Skyrim - Smithing in Whiterun

It turns out that the magic blade I took from the bandit chief in the fort earlier in the day is actually the family heirloom of an Amren in Whiterun. Returning to Whiterun from our recent reconnoiter, I instantly begin my search for the Redguard.

Amren is very grateful for the return of this sacred sword, and gives me lessons in one-handed combat techniques, free of charge. Of course, future ones will cost me gold, but his tutelage is excellent. I'll be going back for more when my coin stretches that far.

Due to my recent mining, I have a large haul of iron ore sitting in my pack. It weighs heavily on my mind, and my back. On previous visits to Whiterun, I've done some smithing at Warmaiden's, the armoury shop run by Adrianne Avenicci. She is appreciative of my skills, my yearning for further knowledge of the smithing art. She lets me use her equipment pro bono.

First, the smelter. This melts down the chunks of iron ore into iron ingots. All I have to do is shovel enough coal in to keep the fire hot enough to melt the raw ore. With these new ingots, I walk over to the smith and start to hammer out some iron helmets and iron daggers. The daggers only need iron ingots, but the helmets require some leather straps to keep them on heads. I've already got some leather, I just need to cut it into strips at the tanning frame.

I could sell my newly-built battle equipment now, but I'll make more money by improving my already excellent work. I sharpen the daggers, and improve the helmets further on the workbench before walking into Warmaiden's.

I buy some more arrows and other bits from the humourously named Ulfberth War-Bear. He is somewhat bearish in build, and sports the best beard I've seen in Whiterun. He doesn't seem to mind at all that I've used his tools to make the very items I'm selling to him.

Leaving Warmaiden's, I walk up to the Companion's headquarters of Jorrvaskr. I speak with a variety of people in there. In all honesty, they're all quite similar. Maybe I should learn their names if I want to join them, which I do. They accept me on board, despite my badness with faces.

I'm told that my first quest for them is to travel to Dustman's Cairn, a lovely pit of undeath located near to Whiterun, and retrieve the "Fragment of Wuuthrad." I don't really know what I'm looking for, but luckily another Companion called Farkas is assigned as my "Shield Brother." I'm trying to take all this information in, its all a bit cliquey.

Of course, with Farkas as my new battle-brother, I am forced to leave Lydia back at Breezehome. She's doesn't seem too bothered by this, just goes to sit in her room and have a sleep. With that, Farkas and I turn for the door, and head for Dustman's Cairn.

Skyrim - Lydia, my Housecarl

With Lydia as my new follower, we depart Whiterun for some trial exploration. Though she seems knowledgeable in the ways of the world around the town, it will be interesting to see how she fares away from her comfort zone.

I kit her out in the same armour and weaponry which had previously belonged to Faedal. Amazingly, it all fits - clearly Nord women are built in a very similar way to elf males. She chooses to wear the steel helmet I give her, which is unfortunate, as I won't be able to see the expressions on her face. I know that Lydia is loyal to me, being a Housecarl of Whiterun, but her back-chat has an air of aloofness to it.

We head west - so far, I have only really explored the west of Skyrim. In the midst of a barren waste, the first location we come to is a fort by the name of Greymoor. Like most forts I've found, it looks uninhabited, though is actually filled to the ramparts with bandits. They have even made it look like more dwell there by making mannequins from pieces of wood and old armour. These are difficult to make out, as the sun has set.

Lydia and I leap into action, with her firing arrows into the crowd and me slicing them with my sword. Soon, the only sound we hear is the keening of the wind over the walls. Lydia has performed well in her first combat, and I am very pleased with her.

We clear out the remaining bandits from within the fort. This proves tougher than fighting the exterior guards - the leaders of this war band seem to have surrounded himself with thugs and minor mages. I sneak around the dark rooms and corridors, dispatching bandits wherever we find them. Occasionally, they run at us in droves, and we desperately hack at them with swords and magic.

By the time we emerge from the fort victorious, the night has passed and the sun is rising. I do one final sweep of the ramparts to make sure all of worth has been taken from these bandit filth, then we head out of the fort to walk over the plane further west.

I catch my first glimpse of a mammoth herd - they amble, graceful for creatures their size, slowly. Soon, I find myself outside another mine. It seems as though the bandits are busy in this part of Skyrim, as they dwell within the confines of this excavation too.

The minor foot soldiers prove little trouble to either myself or Lydia, and I pick gold and arrows from their bodies as we fell them. They protect a bandit chief - this man knows how to find. He swings his enchanted sword, narrowly missing my head. We have to hack it him with our weapons, yet leap back whenever he takes a swing at us. But just like the other bandits, he cannot survive us for long. I pick his body clean of magical weapons and armour - these will fetch a high price next time I'm in town.

Being a mine, there are veins of iron abound. Thanks to a nearby pickaxe, I dig out numerous chunks of iron ore, as well as the odd jewel here and there. All of this should help me with my smithing.

Skyrim - Whiterun

Before leaving Riverwood, I have a little chat with an elf called Faendal- he's happy to join me as thanks for removing a potential competitor for him. The walk to White run is relatively uneventful, aside from the usual scraps with wolves. Luckily for me the creatures howl before appearing, giving me and my follower ample time to unsheathe my sword and prepare.

I don't ask much of Faendal. He is an archer, and he is there in the thick of it whenever he is needed. Clearly he sees me as a friend, but after the last time, I'm not prepared to go that far with him just yet. I don't think I can take another betrayal so soon.

Whiterun is a grey old town, built on top of a hill. Water seems to be flowing out of all manner of grates and springs in the ground. Chatting with the first man I come to, he lets me know that the town is based around two families. Both of them are feuding for some reason or other, maybe due to taking different sides with the Imperial invasion - I'm not sure, I didn't really listen.

I continue my journey up the hill, towards the main building in Whiterun. It is a luscious villa, replete with carvings, rugs and fruit bowls. As I walk towards what I assume to be the king, I am approached by a dark elf, sword in hand. She informs me that she is the "Jarl's" chosen bodyguard, Jarl obviously meaning King in these cold climes. All it takes is for me to say that I have some important news, and she lets me past - great bodyguard my bottom.

The Jarl doesn't seem too perturbed by the presence of my impressive muscle-form, nor by the weedy elf standing to my side. He is interested in my stories of dragons though, and thanks for despite the doom-and-gloom. Then he sends me to his wizard. For a second, I think that he's going to conduct horrible experiments on me. Instead, he asks if I can go and find a stone at Bleak Barrows. I arch my eyebrows, and reach into my knapsack - "This one?" I asks, producing a large piece of carved stone from the canvas. He looked genuinely pleased, I swear he was hiding tears. This is what I do it all for, not money or glory, just helping people.

Faendal and I make our way into the large hall once more, only to be told that another dragon has been sighted just outside the city walls. So naturally, putting all sanity and fear aside, we run into the wet weather with a host of guards to locate the flying beast. We find it near a watch tower, and it is making a mess of the area. The guards are hammering the thing, while Faendal plows flight after flight of arrows into its wings. Eventually it falls to my hand, a broad stroke to the neck. The creature falls, and bizarrely begins to turn to flame, its skin ash in the wind. I begin to feel a bit funny, the wind picks up. Apparently I've absorbed the dragon's soul…

Someone, I'm not sure who (come on, I've just absorbed a dragon soul), jabbers on about the legends of dragonborn. He says for me to try shouting. I think "I'll give him a shout…" and let out an almighty boom. People stumble at the blast of sound, and I myself feel quite shakened by the experience. "You are dragonborn!" they cry. This may be true, I have no memory of my actual mother.

And then there is a calling, as if from the gods themselves. What is that? No one seems certain, though all are in agreement that I should head back to Whiterun to speak with the Jarl.

Its all a bit much to absorb. We wander for a bit instead, to try to make some sense of it all. Rather than the quiet jaunt I needed, we find ourselves in the midst of an imperial vs. bandit fight. An imperial prisoner asks to be cut loose - without consideration for the political or social implications, he cut his bound wrists. To my surprise, he runs off to beat up the imperial soldiers. If he'd survived, I would have made him my son, but soon he lies in a pile of his own tomatoes. The imperial soldiers and bandits both seem unhappy that I've intervened in their little turf war, and turn on me and Faendal. Naturally, we explode into action and kill each of the factions in turn. Looking out of the hillside, its all a bit of a mess - blood, guts and bodies are like litter.

The bandits seemed to have found a home in a mine cut into the hill, and there are pieces of mammoth everywhere. Someone in Whiterun had asked me to grab a mammoth tusk on my travels, so I pocket the first stub of ivory I find. There are also large quantities of iron laying about. Where did they come from? The mine of course. I grab a pick axe and start to mine more of the ore for myself. Faendal just watches as I pick at the then vein of ore. The bandits seem to have some form of rudimentary smelting operation going on, so I put lump after lump of the iron into it to fashion some iron ingots. Surely these will have use with my smithing.

Of course, my pack is quite full now with the various bits I've accumulated on my travails. Back to Whiterun for some barter I think!