Do I go to the cave or do I go into town? There could be some much-needed supplies in the cave. But there’s a dragon — a DRAGON — flying around and torching people.

This agonizing decision presented itself to me roughly 30 seconds into my first survival game of Skyrim. And as my avatar stood there on a crumbling old road in the middle of a mist-shrouded evergreen wilderness, I knew I was going to be terrible at this. Really, really terrible.

I am a horrible decision maker through and through. Not that I make bad decisions, but it’s the actual act of making them that I’m horrible at doing. And after playing for basically no more than half an hour, I’ve realized that my survivalism approach to playing Skyrim means that I’m taking my gameplay decision making much more seriously than I did during my first play-through. Because, with the help of mods, I’ve set some rules for myself:

• Assuming you're using Live Another Life, you need to actually enter the Helgen cave from the exit. As you mentioned, the path is blocked if you try to enter it the same way you do with vanilla Skyrim. If you go in through the exit, you can find Ralof and Hadvar and proceed from there.
• Alternate Start - Live Another Life Mod: Ralof/Hadvar choice - posted in Skyrim Mod Talk: Does anyone know if theres any way to continue the civil war quest without having to choose over Hadvar or Ralof? With the Alternate Start - Live Another Life mod, you find both of them dying in a cave, and you can only give one of them a health potion.
• Not to be confused with Helgaor Haelga. Helgen is a moderately-sized community in Falkreath Holdin The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It was one of the only heavily inhabited settlements located in Falkreath Hold, apart from the city of Falkreath itself and Half-Moon Mill. It is destroyed in the prologue by Alduin. Helgen is the first location the Dragonborn willvisit at the beginning of the game.

• I must survive the cold (using the Frostfall mod). This means I have to be mindful of what I’m wearing, whether I’m near fire, where in the world I am, if I fall into water (or see some water that I have to cross), etc.
• I must keep myself nourished (using the Imps More Complex Needs mod). This means I actually have to pay attention to food and water that I have in my inventory. I have to try to eat cooked meat rather than raw. I have to actually purchase food, which anyone who’s played vanilla Skyrim will know is a strange thing to do.
• I must be a “good” person (for as long as possible). Primarily, this means I want to try to survive without resorting to thievery. My character’s a loner, for sure, but he’s not an outlaw. Yet.
• I must stay in character.

I never tried as a Stormcloak/Imperial but try to go in the cave where you normally (or not) kill the bear. There should be the imperial and the stormcloak you follow at the start of the game (suden memory loss -') in place of the bear. Each will ask you for a health potion as they are hurt. Choose the one you want to follow and give it to him. Another unmarked quest in Skyrim revolves around summoning Karstaag, a mighty ghost frost giant that players can find in the Castle Karstaag Ruins. This quest begins by traveling to the Glacial Caves and retrieving Karstaag's Skull. The skull needs to go to the Karstaag Ruins.

This last bit relates directly to the character creation process, which also turned into a dilemma. First of all, if you’ve already played through Skyrim once, do yourself a favor and install the Alternate Start — Live Another Life mod. Right now. I’m serious; I won’t go on until you do.

Hmm, well alright, but if you’re lying, you’re the one that will have to live with it. Because Live Another Life gives you a whole new experience when starting the game, and not just because it allows you to skip the whole introductory tutorial, failed-execution thing (though, on that note, I’d love a mod where you go to your execution like normal and then actually get your height adjusted via sword-to-neck, and as you sit in shock at the dumbest mod ever made, the credits roll). Rather, the mod gives you a list of around 10, maybe, varying options to start the game with. Each one has an opening quest to get the ball rolling, before merging again with the main game.

For instance, you can start as a member of the Imperial Legion. This was my first mistake. I knew I wanted to play an Imperial — I liked the idea of my character being an outsider, a member of the occupying force, yet disillusioned and choosing to spurn his people and live on his own. So, at first I chose the Imperial Legion start so that I could leave the Legion, yet still have that “mark” on me that other characters, such as members of the Stormcloak rebellion, would take notice of.

But, then I realized this started me all the way over in Solitude, when I prefer the wilderness near Whiterun, so I restarted. I chose the “camping in the woods” start, which I should’ve gone with to begin with, since that’s exactly what I want my character to be. Something of a ranger, if you will. A huntsman, and not the Huntsman-Who-Would-Be-King. No no. If there’s another goal to my character, it’s to try to be ordinary. I will do as few main quests as possible, as few guilds as possible, and basically just focus on survival and odd jobs.

The rest of the character creation process is fairly straight-forward. Prior to choosing my specific start, I began by designing the look of my character. Race, Imperial. A little on the pale side, lean but not too thin build, long dark hair, thin beard, dirt. I called him Duncan.

At first, he’s a prisoner. Neglected. Forgotten. Resigned to die and rot in a dark, dank cell somewhere in Skyrim. Until, at last, while praying to the statue that shares his cell, he is offered the choice to begin another life. He goes to sleep that night, and awakens.

We awaken in the woods, Duncan and I. (Side note: not sure how to narrate this, so I’ll likely be switching rather sporadically between first- and third-person.) There’s a loud roar and a dragon wheels overhead, then flies north out of sight. It’s morning, I assume, though I can’t quite tell immediately due to the thick fog drifting through the woods. I heard some sort of commotion and believe there to be a victim of the dragon down a path near my campsite, so I head that way.

I find a corpse, burned beyond recognition, yet a leather-bound notebook has somehow survived (the game itself seems to point out the ridiculousness of this). This person was a survivor of a dragon attack at Helgen (the dragon attack at Helgen) and had been scraping by in a cave. On his way to warn the folk of Riverwood, the small village further down in the river valley, he has been attacked and killed.

And so I’m presented with that choice: do I go investigate this cave, or do I carry on the late stranger’s mission and warn the townspeople before they meet a similarly toasty demise? The cave will likely have supplies, but it could also be dangerous. I take stock of my current belongings, and they are few. The light fur armor I’m wearing offers little protection, and my only means of self-defense are a hunting bow and 30 iron arrows. I have a little bit of food (five apples, some bread, and some water), but I’m guessing that won’t last long. I’ve yet to initiate the Frostfall mod (which requires me to read a book in an inn), though I’ve now turned on the More Complex Needs mod, and I will need to eat very soon.

Even though I’ll likely find adequate supplies and only a light challenge at the cave, my character wouldn’t know that, so I decide to play it safe and hike down to Riverwood. I do need food, and perhaps I can pick up some other supplies that will come in handy. Plus, I’d like to get the Frostfall mod started as soon as possible, to make sure the survival stakes are high.

On my way down, I quickly run into danger. A pair of wolves are prowling just above the road, their cold howls giving me just enough warning to ready my bow and take aim. The first wolf takes two arrows and drops about 10 feet from me while the second circles to my left in an attempt to flank me. I backpedal the way I came, frantically knocking another arrow. I let it fly and the wolf takes the hit but keeps coming; it must be desperately hungry. Another arrow ends its struggle. Two kills, four arrows. I count the remaining 26 arrows in my quiver with some worry.

As I run the remainder of the path into the welcome sight of Riverwood village, I wonder if I’ll ever come to resemble those feral wolves, striking out at a dangerous, more powerful foe out of sheer desperation, attacking even though it could cost me my life. For now though, I am safe in Riverwood, and even though I’ve been in the game just a few minutes, I am already relieved. When all you’re thinking about is playing “realistically,” the company of even polygonal humans is comforting.

I hear an old woman raving about a dragon to her son. I approach the son and immediately blurt, perhaps awkwardly and with some spittle, that I too have seen a dragon. He sees something trustworthy in me despite the fact I am wearing animal furs and am covered in dirt and wolf’s blood, and immediately suggests I head further down to the lowlands to warn the jarl of Whiterun.

I will, eventually, but for now my immediate concern has been resolved. The people of Riverwood have been warned, and the dragon will not prey upon them quite as easily. I make for the general store and overhear a conversation between the store owner and his wife about a stolen trinket. Sure, yeah, I say dismissively, I’ll go find it. What’ve you got for sale? With some care I purchase food and more food, as I just received a message that I’m feeling a bit weak from hunger. Considering I don’t think I’ve ever bought food in an Elder Scrolls game before, this is a strange and confusing experience. What should I buy? What will give me the most sustenance? There’s some grilled chicken, potatoes, and more bread — I buy it all and eat the chicken and some bread immediately. I sell the wolf pelts and other parts that I took, besides the meat that I’ll try to cook later, and pick up six more arrows, bringing the count to 32.

It’s definitely a different perspective when going to a store now. Usually I don’t buy much of anything when playing an Elder Scrolls game. Occasionally I’ll pick up some armor or weaponry, maybe some potions, but usually I’m selling loot. Here though, I’m counting coins and looking for the most filling food I can find. It is both nerve-wracking and really, really fun.

I leave the store, ignoring the wife who follows me out to point out the dungeon that I likely won’t be bothering with for a while, and head to the inn. I find the book for cold-weather survival, initiate Frostfall mod, and step back outside. This game of survival is finally set to begin. I glance to the right, down the road that will lead to Whiterun, and then to the left, back up into the mountains, where the stranger’s cave awaits.

Skyrim Live Another Life Walkthrough

With a sigh, I turn left.

Skyrim Live Another Life Investigate Caves

Live Another Life Skyrim Options

Helgen Keep is a keep used to escape Helgen in the aftermath of the dragon attack. There is a single interior zone to the keep: Helgen Keep.

During Unbound, you must escape a dragon attack on the town of Helgen by making your way through the keep and its subterranean caves.

After Helgen is abandoned, the town and keep become inhabited by bandits.

Related Quests[edit]

• Unbound: Escape Imperial custody and a dragon attack.

Helgen Keep[edit]

Helgen Keep[edit]

Tower

There are two entrances to the keep, one enters the barracks and the other enters the base of the tower. There is a small difference depending on who you followed into the keep. If you followed Hadvar into the barracks there will be two living Stormcloak soldiers (a male and a female) to the right of the entry from the barracks, and the corpse of Gunjar by the table to the right. The male Stormcloak is equipped with an iron battleaxe and the female has an iron mace and a hide shield; they both wear a Stormcloak cuirass, fur boots, and fur gauntlets. Gunjar has an iron war axe, and wears the same clothes minus the gauntlets. if you follow Ralof the two living Stormcloaks will be replaced by an Imperial soldier and an Imperial captain who rush in from the barracks. The captain carries the Helgen Keep key, needed for a locked gate, and is equipped with an Imperial sword and an iron dagger. She wears a set of heavy Imperial armor, including boots and bracers, and she wears an Imperial officer's helmet. The soldier is equipped with the same weapons, but wears studded Imperial light armor and standard light Imperial boots, bracers, and helmet.

Barracks

Skyrim Se Live Another Life Investigate Cave

The barracks are the easternmost section of the keep. There are four beds by the eastern wall and two dining sections by the western wall. There are two chests by the beds, one is empty and the other holds an Imperial light helmet and some gold. In the northwest corner of the room there is a long table with two chairs, and two sets of shelves. On the table are four gold coins and a copy of Mixed Unit Tactics. The southwest part of the room holds two round small tables—one with one chair and the other with two—two weapon racks, a set of shelves, and the warden's chest. Each weapon rack holds an iron sword, and the chest contains another iron sword, Imperial light armor, Imperial light boots, and a Helgen Keep key. There are two bottles of wine on the set of shelves, a bottle of standard wine and a bottle of Alto wine. There is a pull chain to the right of the corridor that activates a wooden gate to the corridor, and another again to the right that opens the gate to the tower.

Kitchen

There is a locked gate to the west leading further into the keep. Through the gate is a cart with two cabbages. To the right is a bench with two sacks to the side of it. To the left is a set of stairs winding down further into the tower. After following the corridor until it becomes a dead-end, there is a door to the left leading to a kitchen. There are two soldiers in here. Hanging from the center pillar are two garlic braids and two leaves of dried elves ear. Hanging in front of the fireplace is a rabbit and a pheasant. On the other side of the center pillar is a small round table with a bottle of Alto wine.

Opposite the entrance is a large dining table with two chairs. Around the table are three sets of shelves. Among the utensils on the table is a slice of bread and a bottle of Alto wine. On the left-hand shelves is a potion of minor magicka and a salt pile. On the right-hand shelves is a potion of minor healing and a bottle of wine.

Through the connecting archway is a storage area. There is a barrel to the left that contains five potions, three of minor healing, one of minor magicka, and one of minor stamina. There are three sacks underneath the overhanging shelf, and another on the other side of the steps up to that shelf. There is a table to the right with a salt pile and a potion of minor healing. Above that hang two more rabbits. Just in front of the table is a basket with four rock warbler eggs. The door by your companion leads to a corridor going down further into the keep.

Skyrim Live Another Life

Torture Room

The next room is a torture room. The Torturer and Torturer's Assistant can be found here in combat with two Stormcloak soldiers. Against the far wall are three novice-locked cells. The side ones are empty and the middle one contains a dead mage, who carries 25 gold pieces, two potions of minor magicka, a novice hood, and novice robes. Alongside him in the cell are four gold pieces, another potion of minor magicka and a copy of the Spell Tome: Sparks.

By the second of the center pillars is a small table with a knapsack, an iron dagger, and a copy of The Book of the Dragonborn. The knapsack contains four lockpicks and a potion of minor healing. In the northeast corner of the room is the torturers cell. It contains a weapon rack and a long L-shaped shelf that has two lockpicks on the southern half. There is an iron mace hanging on the rack, an iron shield lying beside it, and a copy of Brief History of the Empire, v2 under the shelf by the door.

The exit to the room is in the northwest corner, and along the corridor are four prison cells—two on each side. The first on the right is open and empty, as is the second on the left. The first on the left is novice-locked but empty, and the second on the right is novice-locked and contains minor loot—a lootable skeleton and a coin purse. The corridor leads to another torture chamber, though this one is in considerably worse condition, having massive cobwebs in the corners and along the edges. There are two hanging cells to the left, one with a skeleton, the other with a dead Stormcloak soldier. There are another two hanging cells to the right of the entrance, but only one is occupied with a skeleton. There is a third skeleton in-between these two, by two disused hanging cells on the ground.

Caves

The way forward is through the broken wall and into the natural caves that have been utilized by the Legion as a hidden entrance to Helgen. The first room is guarded by five soldiers, one across the mini-bridge, two in the sunken middle area, and two archers on the far side of the room. The archers are equipped with long bows and also stand over an oil slick, which can be ignited using the spell Flames. After that there is an upturned wooden bridge blocking the way. There is a lever just before it to the right to lower it.

Once the bridge has been lowered and crossed it will collapse under some falling rocks. A tunnel is revealed and it leads to a small stream. On the opposite bank is a skeleton, and beside that is a coin purse and a potion of minor healing. The stream leads back to the same room that the normal route was taking; it joins with another stream and flows through another tunnel. The room is empty of any loot. A short distance along the next tunnel it turns right as the stream flows under some rocks. The remains of a skeleton can be seen on a ledge along with a coin purse.

The tunnel shows signs of what is in the next room, frostbite spiders. There are three spiders around the room and two larger spiders descend from holes in the ceiling as you enter the room. There are two web sacs around the area where the spiders are, and a dessicated corpse hanging to the right. There are a total of seven egg sacs around the room containing spiders eggs. On a ledge to the left of the entrance is an iron mace by the remnants of a corpse.

There is a tunnel to the east that leads back to the stream which has re-emerged from the rocks. There is a lit brazier across the stream on a ledge. By it is a potion of health and an iron dagger. Back on the path there is a cart with three bottles of Alto wine and a coin purse, and on the ground behind it, an iron helmet and a bottle of Black-Briar Mead. In the gloom to the south is a uniquely weak bear. There is nothing else of interest to find. The exit is along a winding path to the southeast.

Bandits[edit]

There are a number of minor differences once the bandits take over. Any loot missed before will still be there as the area does not respawn.

• Kitchen: two bandits sitting at the big table.
• Torture room: it has been redesigned as a bar, with the torturer's cell acting as the bar itself. A bandit occupies the cell and another patrols the next corridor. On the shelf in the cell there is now an iron dagger, two lockpicks, a copy of Brief History of the Empire, v1, two coin purses, a random potion, six bottles of ale, and a copy of the Archeryskill bookThe Black Arrow, v2.
• Caves: in the first room after the torture rooms are three bandits, one of whom is a bandit chief. The chief stands in the middle of the cave, near a chest, while the other two patrol the far walkway. The bandits have replaced the collapsed bridge with a permanent walkway, and another bandit sits on it. Finally, there is a frostbite spider near where the unique bear is.

Notes[edit]

Skyrim Live Another Life Extension

• The keep will be occupied by rival forces to whomever you followed into the keep, with the exception of the troops in the Torture room (they will always be the same with only the hostility transferred from one group to the other). If you chose Ralof the troops will be Imperial Legion, if you followed Hadvar they will be Stormcloak soldiers.
• Though the Keep has a technical minimum level of 6, scripts prevent this being applied during Unbound. Instead most soldiers are, at a maximum, level 2, and most creatures are level 1. The minimum level does apply to the bandits that take over afterwards.

Bugs[edit]

• A duplicated book on the barracks bookshelf is visible, but not accessible, due to chair and table placement.
  • This issue has been addressed by version 1.2.1 of the Unofficial Skyrim Patch; the table has been moved and the duplicate book replaced with one useful to a beginning player: The Holds of Skyrim.
• Gunjar's body doesn't disable with the other bodies.
  • This bug is fixed by version 1.2.7 of the Unofficial Skyrim Patch.

Skyrim Live Another Life Quest