Skyrim: Dawnguard – Walkthrough
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The Elder Scrolls are in trouble. Volkihar vampires lead by the Lord Harkon are plotting to steal the ancient magical texts to once and forever cast Skyrim to endless night. The scheme won’t be so easy, because an order of secret Vampire Hunters known as the Dawnguard seek to bring an end to Lord Harkon’s plans with a stake through the heart.
Join with Lord Harkon or the Dawnguard and discover more secrets of Skyrim. Legendary dragons, crossbows, skeleton horses, armored trolls, and a gallery of new enemies, locations, a new realm of Oblivion, dragonbone weapons — the list goes on. And we’re going to help you survive with our giant DLC walkthrough.
To find everything extra like achievement guides, locations, glitches, and whatever else we can discover get yourself over to the Skyrim: Dawnguard DLC cheats page.
For more information on vanilla Skyrim, check out our text and video walkthrough. For more vanilla hints, tips, and secrets, stop by the cheats page.
Check back soon for new updates.
Video Walkthrough
Dawnguard
Talk to the Riften guard to start the Dawnguard mission. Apparently there is a fort in Riften that needs some attention.
Pull up your map and check south- check the option to speak to the representative from Dawnguard.
Head east down the path and across the bridge until you reach the opening to Dayspring Canyon.
Continue down the path and talk to Admoer when you come across him.
If you continue along the path, you will get a “Fort Dawnguard discovered” notification.
Talk to Durak to get some insight and history into the vampire hunters known as Dawnguard.
Your next objective is to find Isran and talk to him. Er, “report” to him. Durak seems uncomfortably serious, doesn’t he?
Durak will give you a crossbow to use before you part ways. Once you are back on the path, you will now be able to use the crossbow.
Talk to Celann and listen to him vent about Isran. Once he’s done complaining, he’ll let you inside.
After the cutscene introducing Isran, you will be able to talk to him and ask him to join Dawnguard. Sounds like he needs someone on the field, so this might just be your lucky day. Congratulations on completing the Dawnguard quest! Time to move on to Awakening.
Awakening
There seems to be some drama between Tolan and Isran. Enjoy the tense dialogue.
Take a few shots at the crates until you have a decent feel for using the bow. Your first task of the Awakening quest is to find out what exactly the vampires are seeking.
Go outside to Dayspring Canyon and pull up your map to travel to the Tower of Mzark..
Go up the snowy path and keep your direction north.
You will have to proceed along the path for quite a while- as long as you keep north as your reference point you will eventually be able to make your way over to the Dimhollow Crypt.
Go up the small set of stairs and examine the opening crevice to enter the Dimhollow Crypt.
Once inside the crypt, you will involuntarily be eavesdropping on a conversation between vampires (including their master.. yikes!).
Move around the big structure in the center of the room to stay out of sight of the vampires. This way you will be able to shoot them down without them having time to react.
Head down the path and up the two flights of stairs. Search the chest in the room for some goodies and activate the chain directly in front of you.
Go down the passageway to the right and make sure you have your crossbow ready once you hit the outside. You will have several skeletons and vampires to dispose of out here.
Keep using the pillars inside the structure in order to sneak attack the next wave of enemies for a large increase in damage.
Activate the next chain and go through the door and down the passageway. You will come out to an area with several eerie waterfalls and a couple more skeletons that need trampling.
As you move down the hallway, be prepared to take out a vicious black dog that comes around the corner, as well as a few more dispersed vampires.
Check the room next to the Nightmaster Vampire for a chest with boots, a potion, and gold.
After getting your treasure, go into the room with the Nightmaster Vampire and take him out.
Go around the corner and open the door that leads to the Dimhollow Cavern.
Take the Scroll of the Fire Storm in the center of the room. Once you have done so, activate the lever in the corner to open the gate.
Go down the stairs and dispose of the two fiends along the way. Search the corpse of the fallen man for some more goodies.
Approach the small pillar in the center of the room and examine it. You have drawn the attention of a tough looking vampire that you will take down quickly in a cutscene thanks to your quick reflexes!
Attempt to use the button in the center of the room again.
Push the braziers into the correct place. It might take you a couple of tries to get them in the right place- make sure they are lighting up purple.
Once all the braziers are in the right place, activate the stone monolith in the center of the room. Looks like we know what the vampires are after now..
Talk to the mysterious woman to complete the Awakening quest.
Bloodline
Serana will introduce herself first thing at the beginning of this quest. I suppose she does owe us an introduction, all things considered.
At this point, you can really choose to extract a lot of information from this mysterious weirdo. If you have the patience, you can get Serana to talk a lot and really get a lot of background information on what is going on with the plot.
Down the path, you will run into a few Gargoyle’s Brutes. Use your bow and arrow to take out the hostiles from a safe distance.
Go down the hallway and open the wooden door. Move down the passage and up both flights of stairs. Activate the lever on your right.
You will be hit with a fairly hefty wave of enemies here, so watch your stamina.
Once the enemies have been dealt with, head over to the area that the large blue-ish light is shining on. You will learn Word of Power- Stamina, Drain Vitality.
Immediately to your left, you will be able to open up another chest for some more goodies. Once those are pocketed, go through the door directly in front of you.
Pull the chain to open the gate and head just up the snowy path for a load screen and a cutscene with Serana.
Your task at this point is to take Serana home. Pull up your map and travel to Lower Steepfall Burrow.
Go down the snowy path towards the lake. Swim across it and continue straight towards the beach to discover the Icewater Jetty.
Take the boat across the huge body of water to Castle Volkihar.
Approach the castle gate. It seems that Serana wants to part ways. She tells you to keep quiet and follow her lead once inside.
Open the door to the Volkihar Keep for a load screen transition.
It seems everyone is happy to have Serana back. Have a conversation with Harkon here to progress the story. At this point, you will have a choice as whether to accept Harkon’s gift or not.
If you choose to accept Harkon’s gift, you will awake in a strange place and you will be trained by Harkon.
Note the tutorial for changing between magic and Melee modes.
Harkon will give you some more useful information about being a vampire. You fight for the dark side now. But on a lighter note, congratulations on finishing the Bloodline quest!
Seeking Disclosure
Talk to Goron about Lord Harkon’s message.
Follow Goron as he takes you with him to retrieve the Chalice.
After the conversation, you will need to take the Bloodstone Chalice to Redwater Spring.
Once you have control of your character after the conversations, head up the stairs and out the large double door to Skyrim.
Pull up your map and travel to Darkwater Pass- this is the closest location to Redwater Spring.
Go southeast from your starting location (you can pull up the map if you don’t know exactly where to go and find your net objective).
Follow the path to reach Redwater Den.
Open the trapdoor to go down the stairs into the basement of Redwater Den. You will have to check the weapons at the door.
Open the wooden door and head straight down. You will have to unlock the next door.
Just before you reach the ledge, crouch and use your bow and arrow to hit the vampires with a few sneak attacks.
Head around the sets of corners, pull the lever, and head across the bridge.
When you head down the next hallway you will have some more vampires you will have to take out.
Examine the object at the end of the path in order to open up the next area.
Proceed down the hallway and take out the two enemies in the glowing area to your left. Keep going down the same path to reach the next door. Open the door and go outside to Redwater Spring.
The vampires will converse about drinking from the spring. Redwater Spring. Uh oh. I get it now.
Head down the stairs, but watch out for the enemy that will come at you right once you hit the next corner.
Move down the path but be careful of the set of pendulums that swing. They swing in time, so stop for a second if you have to.
Head to the room with the death hounds and go up the spiral staircase. When you reach the two adjacent pathways, go to the one on the right and activate the lever.
Search the chest in the room for some valuables and then go through the newly opened gate.
You will be able to land sneak attacks on virtually all of the enemies in this room, so keep a sharp eye out and proceed with caution.
Pull the chain at the end of the path to open the gate. Inside the next room, open the door to your right.
Move to the end of the room and open another iron door to face another group of vampires. Use your sneak attacks to your advantage and you won’t even break a sweat.
Search all the fallen enemies for the Redwater Wellspring Key. You will need it to open the door at the end of the room.
Go through the door and approach the fountain. You will be able to fill the Chalice with Vampire blood here.
The boss fight that immediately follows is pretty tough and best fought from a distance. Both of these enemies fight much worse at longer ranges, so use your bow and arrow to your heart’s content.
After the fight, you will have to return the Chalice to Goron. Open the door that leads to Redwater Den.
Open the wooden door at the end of the path and immediately open a door once more next to the preoccupied Dealer.
Go left along the wall and open up the next door to reach the outside.
Return to Castle Volkihar and cross the bridge to enter it.
Talk to Goron for a brief conversation and then head up the stairs to talk to Lord Harkon.
Once Lord Harkon is done talking, follow him. He has a proclamation, so you’re going to need to listen to him talk some more. This about wraps it up for that quest.
Prophet
Your objective is to find a Moth Priest. Talk to Serana, and then make your way to the door and head out to Skyrim through it.
Talk to the townspeople to try to learn the location of the Moth Priest. As you are wandering around the town, a battle will break out. Time to defend Skyrim.
Head up the path and talk to the little boy named Clinton. Seems like he has seen the moth priest. Or rather, an old man in a robe. Close enough, eh?
Head across the bridge and towards the scene of carnage. Examine it and you will find a Vampire’s note here.
Head to Forebear’s Hideout and enter it through the crevice.
Head down the path and to the large area. Here, you will be able to sneak attack some foes with your bow and arrow.
Move ahead and up the sets of stairs until you confront Vanik and Dawnguard. Use your bow and arrow to take them out.
Approach the chest with the gold, the spell tome, and the steel plate and pillage it for all it’s worth.
Approach the body of Malcus near the center of the room and search the corpse for some more items.
In the next area, you will be able to fight the Moth Priest. After the battle, it will be your duty to put your charm on him.
Talk to Dexion Evicus, who will be happy to obey you. Once you capture the Moth Priest, you will need to report your success to Harkon.
Head all the way back out the way you came and through the opening to Skyrim.
Travel to Castle Volkihar and cross the giant bridge out front to enter it.
Speak to Lord Horkon inside. He will have you command the priest to read the Elder Scroll.
After the priest finishes reading the scroll, speak to Harkon again. This will be the completion of the Prophet quest.
Chasing Echoes
Talk to Serana for a long cutscene. You can pick whichever option you want, but eventually, you are going to have to suggest the castle to proceed with the game.
Your next goal will be to get to castle Volkihar and search the courtyard for Valerica. She does have one of the elder scrolls, after all.
You will have to use a hidden entrance on the back side of the island to avoid being detected by Harkon.
Once outside, jump into the water and swim around the land mass to get to the back of the island.
Go up the sets of stars and dispose of the random skeletons to make your way forward.
At the end of the path, open the door to enter the Volkihar Undercroft.
Once inside, dispose of the enemies and take the water filled passageway all the way down to the small set of stairs.
Once you are in the brown hallway with the spider webs, enter the room with the giant spider and pull the lever to open the door to the next area (after taking care of the spider, of course).
Go all the way down the path and open the door that leads to the Volkihar courtyard.
Talk to Serana and listen to her ramble on. The information is semi useful.
Place the missing crests where they need to be.
Your next destination is the Volkihar ruins. Pull the chain to open the door at the end of the path and head dead straight and up the large flight of stairs. Open the wooden door at the end.
In the next area, crouch and use your bow and arrow sneak attacks in order to get rid of the enemies nice and quietly.
Head up the consecutive stair flights and into the room with the giant spider web. Be careful here for an ambush from a gargoyle.
Open the door at the end of the room. In the next room, go down to the end and check the door on the left to pick its lock.
Clear the skeletons out of your way as you make your way deeper into the ruins. Pull the lever above the gargoyle statue and destroy the gargoyle immediately when it comes to life.
Keep heading up the stairs until you reach a door with another lock you have to pick. Go through it and proceed forward.
Once Serana starts talking about there being a passage in the vicinity, approach the candlestick and turn it to unlock the next part of the path.
You will arrive at the destination after you go through the door, but it seems the quest isn’t over yet. Check the bookshelf to the right to dig up Serana’s mother’s journal.
Next, you will have to gather the gem shards, ground bone meal and purified void salts. Plenty of these items can simply be found by looking around all the shelves and tables in the area.
Once you have collected what you needed, place the ingredients in the vessel.
Speak to Serana and jump in the giant portal in the middle of the room to Soul Cairn in order to finish off this quest.
Beyond Death
You can talk to the souls around here.. if you really want to. They’re quite depressing. Head down the road and take advantage of sneak attacks when you can to clear away enemies.
Keep heading deeper into the ruins until the glow turns more light and magenta-ish, as opposed to the harsh blue glow. Talk to Valerica once you find her. There will be a long cutscene here, so brace yourself.
Your task now is to retrieve Arvak’s skull. Once you have done so, you will need to return it.
Once you reach the graveyard, you will have to kill the 3 boneyard keepers. They’re running about and not too hard to spot.
Speak to Valerica and then follow her. After this, you will have an opportunity to return Arvak’s skull by speaking to the Soul.
Once you are ready, open the door to the Boneyard and talk to Valerica.
After the lengthy battle, talk to Valerica. Follow her again and talk to her to retrieve the Elder Scroll.
Head up the path and open the door to enter the Soul Cairn.
After the conversation with Durnehviir, you will learn his summon.
Climb the staircase back up to Volkihar Ruins to complete this quest.
Seeking Disclosure and Unseen Visions
Talk to Dexion Evicus in Volkihar Castle. He will tell you some useful information about the tower. This will initiate the quest.
Open the door and head out to Skyrim.
Pull up the map and travel to Falkreath.
Travel west until you discover Peak’s Shade Tower. Continue past it towards your destination.
Ride Arvak here- it will make this travel manageable.
Keep traveling towards the glades, using your map as a reference if you get lost. From Falkreath, it’s really not a far way down. Once you reach the Ancestral Glades, examine the opening to enter.
Proceed along the path and approach the structure in the middle of the large open area to find the knife you need. You can also gather the Canticle bark from the tree that’s right next to where you are.
You will now have to gather up all 7 groups of moths. Just look around the area as they are all in plain sight. They will all follow you once you approach them- you don’t have to do anything special.
Approach the pillar of light and enjoy the intense sequence.
Touching The Sky
Talk to Serana. After the ensuing battle, head through the opening that leads out to Skyrim once again and travel to Bruca’s Leap.
Head northwest to reach your next destination. Once again, I recommend riding Arvak.
Path through the cavern with the creepy white spider webs and go up the creek. You will have some more randoms here so stay on your toes and watch your resources.
Once you’ve located Auriel’s Bow, speak to Gelebor. After the sequence, he will tell you about the wayshrine.
Talk to Gelebor one more time, and when you are ready, open the door and head through it to Darkfall Passage.
You will run into a bunch of Chaurus enemies here but you will be fine- the passageways are narrow for the most part and you have your ally backing you up as well.
Make your way deeper into the passage until you run across the bridge through the waterfall.
Once you get through the passage, talk to Prelate. You will have to fill the vessel for the initiation.
Fill your cup with the liquid from the structure in the center and head outside. You have to find 3 out of 4 more locations to fill from out here. They are all in close vicinity and are clearly marked on the map in case you need to refer to them.
Prelate Nirilor will give you the same exact greeting at each filling site. Hey, at least that’s how you know you’re in the right place.
To get to the last location, you will have to head into the Glacial Crevice and go deep to the point where you pass the gate all the way down to the Forgotten Vale.
Go ALL the way down (it might take a while). Is it me, or did Prelate seem extra excited that you found this one??
After you draw water from the Basin, you will have to gain entry to the Inner Sanctum.
Head past the giant statue and examine the basin.
Once you go through the large door, your task will be to locate Vyrthur.
Go down the path and enter the crevice to Auriel’s chapel.
You will locate Vyrthur in here. Approach and examine him in order to confront him.
Follow Serana to track down Vyrthur after the fight. He has climbed up onto the balcony.
You will have to fight Vyrthur once more before talking to Gelebor about the restoration of the wayshrine.
Enjoy the last sequence of events before your completion of the Touching The Sky quest.
Kindred Judgment
This final quest is pretty short and essentially consists of you confronting Harkon and your subsequent battle with him.
Talk to Serana once Gelebor finally stops blabbing. This is right during the point at which the quest is initiated.
After Serana is done talking, go up the stairs behind her and open the portal to Darkfall Cave.
Go through the cave along the path and pull the chain to open the rock door when you get to it. Keep going along the path until you reach the opening to Skyrim.
Pull up your map, as it is time to travel to Castle Volkahir.
Clear the wave of enemies outside and cross the bridge to enter the castle.
Go into the castle and find Harkon for an intense cutscene between him and Serana.
The last boss fight is particularly difficult mainly due to the fact that you will have several of skeletons to fight while you are fighting Harkon. This numbers game can quickly start to wear on you so it is important to take the skeletons out first. Coming through in this fight means completing the quest and the DLC. Congratulations!
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