The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim — Dragonborn Walkthrough (The Gardener of Men and At the Summit of Apocrypha)

The Gardener of Men

After reading the Black Book you will be transported to what an ominous voice will tell you is Apocrypha.  Open and read the Black Book to return to Solstheim, where Neloth will want to talk to you.  After speaking with him, read the book a third time to return to Apokrafa.  Now walk forward and activate the scrye to lower the bridge.  Then walk through the revolving passageway until you find another platform with a scrye.  Watch out as tentacles around the platform will attempt to strike you.

Activate the scrye and another bridge will lower, get back on the platform and return to the recently lowered bridge.  This platform will contain a book named “Chapter II”.  Open it and you will be transported to a new passageway with spinning book pages.

Walk through the passageway and activate the scrye on the far end, for the passageway to unfurl into a giant platform.  Once this is done, a lurker and two seekers will appear, the seekers will try to shoot at you from a distance, bring them close to kill them. On the eastern side of the room, is another scrye that will open the door on the opposite side of the room.

This door will lead you up a couple flights of stairs to a book that reads “Chapter III”.  If you suffered heavy damage from the lurker and seekers, wait a moment to let your health regenerate before moving on.

Chapter III is a series of bridges and raise platforms.  After crossing the first bridge, if you walk to your right, you will attacked by three seekers.  Try to dodge their slow ranged attack while taking them out, one by one.  Be careful if you choose to use the Font of Magika as the green pools they are in will damage you.

Now go up a series of steep stairs until you come to another revolving passageway.  The end of the passageway has a scrye, which will open the doors for you.  In the room at the end of the revolving passage are two seekers.  Kill them and continue until you come to another revolving passage containing a lurker.  Kill the lurker and continue through this passageway until you find another scrye which will open another set doors to a third passageway.  Take this passage until  you come to a circular room where two tentacles will try to attack you.  Avoid them and continue through the passage. Here you will be attacked by three more seekers.

After killing the seekers, continue down the hall until you find three more of the floating menaces.  Deal with these three and continue to Chapter IV.

Chapter IV start with on a platform with scrye.  Activate the scrype to unfurl a platform containing The Epistolar Acumen.  Read the book and a creature called Heraeus Mora will start to talk to you.  Mora will talk to you about the power of knowledge and teach you another Word of Power.  Then Mora will ask you to work for a third Word of Powers, equal to the power of Miraak.   To gain the Word, Mora will ask you bring him the secrets of the Skaal.

After talking with Mora, you will be able to upgrade your “Bend Will” shout.  Then return to Solstheim by reading the the book.  Upon return, Neloth will encourage the idea of giving Mora the Skaal Secrets, then depart.

Exit the reading room.  Once outside you will attacked by a dragon named Krosulhah that will be absorbed by Miraak.  After that is done, return to the Skaal Village and speak to Storn Crag-Strider.  You won’t mince words, but simply ask for the Skaal secrets.  After some coaxing Storn will, begrudgingly, give up the secrets to you.  You will give him the book and, despite Frea’s protest, Storn will read the book, summoning Heraeus Mora.

Things get pretty crazy, but in the end you will learn Heraeus Mora’s third Word of Power.

At the Summit of Apocryph

After the confrontation between Storn and Mora, you will need to unlock your “Bend Will” shout that was given to you by the God of Knowledge.  Then read the Black Book entitled “Waking Dreams”.  Upon reading the book you will be pulled back into Apocrypha where you must reach Miraak’s Temple.

Walk across the the first room you are in and ascend the stairs where, on a pedestal, is Chapter II.  Open the chapter to teleport to the second room, where you will ascend more stairs and circle around the room on a high ledge. While on the ledge a seeker will attack you. Kill it and cross the bridge in the center of the room. Up the stairs here is a book called “Boneless Limbs”.  Upon taking the book, more stairs will appear back on the side of the bridge you came from.  Backtrack and take them, then go through the doors and step onto a balcony.  Facing the water, on the right side of the balcony you will find Chapter III.

In this section, follow the hallway and take a left.  There will be a seeker here, kill it and then kill a second one to the south.  There is a third seeker that will float between the two locations, so keep an eye open for it.  Then wrap around the wall and take the stairs up to the altar.  Here, take the book of Delving Pincers.  Return to where you started and you will see a south side door has opened.  Enter this room and activate the scrye to open a long hallway.  Follow the hallway and take a right.  In this large open room with a series of bridges, walk to your left and activate the scrye.  Then take the south bridge and pick up the book “Prying Orbs” to open the door across the room.  Now take the west bridge and go through the doors you just opened.  Follow the hallway to Chapter IV.

This chapter will teleport you to a balcony.  Take the stairs to the right and kill the two seekers waiting for you.  Continue down the stairs and follow the hallway to the end.  You will hear noise of the hallway shifting, return and to your left will be another hallway.  Go to the end of this hallway and the halls will shift again.  Now, return out of this hall and a seeker will be there.  Kill the seeker and exit the hallways the way you came in to find a different room.  Ascend the stairs and you will find the book “Gnashing Blades”.  Take the book and return down the stairs.  There will now be an open hallway on your right.  Follow the hallway to the end and the hallway will start to extend.  Continue down the hallway and take a left.  This will lead to another open room.  In here you will find four seekers.  Kill the seekers as you ascend the stairs and cross the bridge in the center of the room.  This will lead you to more stairs and another scrye.  Activate the scrye and enter the hallway to the east.  Follow the hallway into another large open room with a lurker guardian.  Kill guardian and enter the nook in the west side of the room.  Here you will find another scrye.  Activate it and go through the, now open, doors on the north side of the room.  Ascend the stairs and you will find Chapter V.

Follow the hallway and you will enter a large, open room with criss, crossing bridges.  Here waits seekers and a seeker arbitant, kill them and place the book, “Gnashing Blades” on the pedestal with the beast-like teeth.  Cross to the north bridge and go left to place “Prying Orbs” on the eye pedestal.  Then follow the ledge east, kill the two seekers here, and place the book of boneless limbs on the tentacle pedestal.  Now, return across the south bride and go east to place the book, “Delving Pincers” on the pedestal with claws.  Once all the books are in the right places Chapter VI will appear in the center of the room.  Open the chapter to teleport to the next phase.

The chapter brings you to room that leads to a ramp.  Go up the ramp and enter a large room with two seekers and a dragon.  Do not let the dragon breath on you or he will dispel you from Apocrypha.  Stay against the far wall and wait for the dragon to circle the air and land right in front of you.  Use your Bend Will shout to control the dragon named Sahrotaar.

*This takes some timing and can be glitchy.  If its not working at first, keep trying, eventually it will work.

Sahrotaar will invite you to ride him to face Miraak.  You will wish there was another way by the end, but there isn’t.  So climb aboard the awkward express and desperately try to steer this clumsy bag of scales.  But honestly, you can put the controller down for the dragon combat, you don’t have any control and cpu will do all the work.  After the fight is over, you will take control of steering the dragon. Go to the tallest plateau where Miraak is waiting for you.

Miraak will want to parlay with you, but don’t bother with words.  Attack him while he’s talking and get some cheap shots in.  You will have to deplete his health three time before you can kill him.  After his health is depleted he will turn transparent and teleport to safety.  After absorbing a dragon soul, his power will be recharged and he will attack you again.  Try to heal yourself while he is recharging his life and use “Slow Time” while fighting him.  After he is dead, Heraeus Mora will congratulate you.  In the center of the plateau will appear another Black Book to take you back to Solstheim.

Once you return Frea will thank you for making her father’s sacrifice worthwhile.  Now you have beaten the main quest of the Dragonborn DLC.  Keep checking back as we’ll start to tackle the sidequests next.