Skyrim:Riverwood

Town: Riverwood (view on map) (lore page)
Respawn Time	10 days
Console Location Code(s)
Riverwood
Region
Whiterun Hold
Location
South of Whiterun East of Bleak Falls Barrow
Special Features
# of Tanning Racks	2
# of Forges/Anvils	1
# of Grindstones	2
# of Workbenches	1
# of Cooking Pots/Spits	1
# of Fishing SuppliesCC	1
# of Wood Chopping Blocks	4
# of Stone QuarriesHF	3

Riverwood

Riverwood is a small milling town in southern Whiterun Hold.

It is at the foot of the Throat of the World, on the banks of the White River. It is the town closest to where you start the game and has some basic facilities available, including a sawmill where you can work for money, a blacksmith, a general goods store in the Riverwood Trader, and a small tavern named the Sleeping Giant Inn.

Riverwood is a good town to start your character. With the work available, you can earn a decent amount of coin in a short amount of time.

Riverwood Residents

Alvor and Sigrid's House Alvor Dorthe Hadvar * Sigrid Faendal's House Faendal

Hod and Gerdur's House Frodnar Gerdur Hod Ralof * Stump (dog) Riverwood Trader Camilla Valerius ‡ Lucan Valerius

Sleeping Giant Inn Delphine † Embry Orgnar Sven and Hilde's House Hilde Sven (Bard)

Whiterun Guards appear after Before the Storm is completed.
* Appears only if he was followed during Unbound.
† Leaves once Alduin's Wall is begun. Orgnar becomes innkeeper.
‡ Only becomes a merchant if Lucan Valerius is killed.

Related Quests

Quests Starting Here

Side Quests

• The Golden Claw: A shopkeeper wants you to retrieve his family heirloom from a bandit.

Miscellaneous Quests

Quest Giver	Giver Location	Quest	Objective(s)	Requirement
Faendal	Faendal's House	A Lovely Letter: Use a forged letter to resolve a love triangle.	Deliver Faendal's letter to Camilla (Optional) Tell Sven about Faendal's letter Talk to Faendal
Sven	Sven and Hilde's House or Sleeping Giant Inn	A Lovely Letter: Use a forged letter to resolve a love triangle.	Deliver Sven's letter to Camilla (Optional) Tell Faendal about Sven's letter Talk to Sven

• Chop Wood: Get paid to chop firewood. (radiant)
• Quest all Drunks Have: Make a drunk dance for joy. (radiant)

Other Quests

Main Quest

• Alduin's Wall: Locate the prophecy within Sky Haven Temple.
• Before the Storm: Inform the Jarl of Whiterun about the dragon attack on Helgen.
• A Blade in the Dark: Prove you are Dragonborn to Delphine by slaying the dragon Sahloknir.
• A Cornered Rat: Locate Esbern.
• Diplomatic Immunity: Infiltrate a party at the Thalmor Embassy.
• The Horn of Jurgen Windcaller: Retrieve a Greybeard artifact from Ustengrav.
• Paarthurnax: Deal with a potential threat.

Notes

• Across the river, directly west of the mill, is the treasure chest for Treasure Map I, assuming you have the map.
• Near the main bridge north of town is a salmon rack. If the Fishing creation is installed, there will also be a fishing rod and a copy of Line and Lure leaning against some Fishing Supplies.
• After completing A Chance Arrangement, there is a 20% chance of encountering a thief trying to break into Riverwood Trader.
• If Stump follows some of the children up onto the lookout post on the edge of town, he may become wedged into the barriers because he is too big.
• Across the main bridge to Riverwood, a duplicated bird sound effect appears to be placed in one spot near a tree. On closer inspection, you'll find four red-winged blackbird models stacked on top of each other stuck inside the tree.
• According to The Art of Skyrim, Riverwood was the prototype for the towns in the game, and was the first area to be fully developed.

Bugs

• Upon arriving in Riverwood with Hadvar at the start of a new game, Faendal may be dead somewhere in town for no apparent reason. If this is the case, the quest A Lovely Letter cannot be started, and Faendal cannot be recruited as a follower.
• Residents are sometimes seen walking through the river water instead of using a closer path.
  • The Unofficial Skyrim Patch, version 2.0.4, fixes this bug.
• If the Stormcloaks take Whiterun Hold, the Whiterun Guards in Riverwood may not be replaced by Stormcloak Soldiers.
  • The Unofficial Skyrim Patch, version 2.0.4, fixes this bug.
• Riverwood is extremely prone to dragon attacks. The corpses of these dragons have trouble "cleaning up properly", and remain in the town for excessive amounts of time. This results in bones clipping through buildings and performance drops.
  • The Official Skyrim Patch, version 1.2, fixes this bug.
• If you commit a crime in Riverwood, leave the town for over 24 in-game hours, then return, the guards will not arrest you. All of the townspeople will be hostile toward you, although killing them will not yield a higher bounty, and the guards will not attack you. Fast traveling to Whiterun and paying off the bounty or going to jail will fix the glitch.

Gallery

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  Protective wall

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  Fishing supplies in Riverwood