Friday, March 29, 2024

Skyrim Blood on the Ice Walkthrough (Murder Mystery Solved)

I picked up Skyrim recently on Steam after being busy with The Witcher 3 for many years. I wasn’t sure if Skyrim would scratch that RPG itch in me like The Witcher did, but after playing it for a couple of weeks, I can say Skyrim and The Witcher 3 feature an overwhelming amount of content and things to do. There are some memorable quests in Skyrim, and one of my favorites is Blood on Ice murder mystery. The branching design of Blood on Ice side quest makes it the most immersive in The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim. While it’s been a while since Skyrim came out, some players are new to this game, so I decided to write a complete walkthrough for The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim Blood on Ice to help my fellow gamers.

How to Start Blood and Ice: To start the quest, you must be at Windhelm between 7 PM and 7 AM Skyrim time. To the left of the city, the gate is a graveyard; if you’ve arrived on time, you can see a crime scene. Speak with the guard near the crime scene and offer to help solve the murder. The guard will send you to get permission from Jarl’s assistant at the Palace of the Kings. He usually hangs around near the king’s throne during the day, but at night, he sleeps in the keep’s kitchen.

Optional Objective: You can speak with Jorleif about the bodies in hopes of finding a clue. He doesn’t offer much information but still hears what he has to say. Speak with Jorleif first before offering your help to the guards.

Come back to the guard with permission to investigate the scene and interrogate the witnesses who’ll offer no helpful information. The guard won’t be surprised at hearing this as it is usually the case; no witnesses have ever been able to offer helpful clues about the murders.

Windhelm has seen similar murders before, but since the regime is busy dealing with a Civil War, they don’t have time to investigate properly, nor do they know who is killing people. Once you’re done with the crime scene investigation, the next step is to visit the Hall of the Dead and speak with Helgrid about the autopsy report. Helgrid doesn’t provide much information other than that the blade used to murder these people is similar to the one necromancers use.

Leave the Hall of the Dead and head back to the crime scene, where more clues await you. The victim’s body is sitting in a large pool of blood, but a trail of blood leads away from the body. Follow the blood trail to reach an abandoned house, but the front door is locked. There are two ways to get inside the house; use high enough lockpicking skills or speak with multiple NPCs throughout the area to get the house key.

Investigating the Abandoned House

If you’re locking-picking skill isn’t high enough, speak with a guard in the area who will explain that the house has Friga Shatter-Shield’s mother, Tova Shatter-Shield. Tova will give you the key without much trouble, so head back to the house and investigate. Inside the house, you will find more blood leading to a chest pushed up against the wall. The chest contains some documents and the mention of a woman named Viola, The Butcher. Read the journal you find in the chest to know the motive behind the murders, which the murderer’s plan to collect body parts.

Investigate the house further to find a wardrobe, a bookcase with more documents, and an essential quest item, an amulet on the bookcase. Inside the chamber, you will find human body parts of prior victims and an operating table. Pick up the journal on one of the chamber’s shelves to learn more about killings and the necromantic ritual.

The concerning part of the journal is the fact that the killer doesn’t have all the body parts yet, which means more murders can occur.

Note: DO NOT miss the amulet on the bookcase, or you will end up breaking the quest and incriminating the wrong person.

Who’s the Killer?

Come back out of the abandoned house and speak with any guard in the area. The guard will suggest you take the amulet to a curio shop owner in Windhelm. Ask the guard about the pamphlets you found in the house to know more about the author. Your next stop is the curio shop, where the shop owner tells you that the Jarl’s court wizard wears this sort of amulet. The shop owner will offer you 500 Gold for the amulet, and selling the amulet to him makes no difference to the quest as long as you have the lead.

The next step is to speak with Viola, the author of the pamphlets, who explains that the court wizard was allegedly involved in necromancy before he arrived in Windhelm. The woman also asks to see the secret chamber inside the abandoned house and wants you to meet her there later.

From here on, you can speak with Jarl’s assistant to accuse the wizard or speak with the wizard to hear his side of the story.

Accusing the Wizard

If you speak with Jarl’s assistant and present the evidence against the wizard, Jarl will order the wizard’s imprisonment, and a trial begins. However, not long after his arrest, another murder will occur with the same modus operandi. The quest doesn’t end there, fortunately. You can continue the quest by speaking with the wizard in prison. The wizard explains that he has been investigating the murders and noticed a pattern. He warns that if the pattern holds, there will be another murder soon. He also believes that the subsequent murder will occur within the market district.

Catching the Killer

The final part of the Blood on the Ice side quest is patrolling the market district after 5 PM Skyrim time. There are two ways to end this quest: to allow the murder to happen or stop the killer before he murders the girl.

If you allow the murder, a chase begins that leads back to the abandoned house. Go inside the house where the killer, Calixto Corrium, will attack you. Kill Calixto Corrium and loot his body. Report back to Jorleif and explain what happened. If you kill Calixto Corrium before he commits another murder, the quest will resolve the same way where you loot his body and report back to Jorleif.

That’s all you need to know on how to complete the Blood on the Ice quest in Skyrim. Need more help with the game? Here are more guides you may like:

Jake
Jake
Hey there! I'm Jake, and for the past eight years, I've been diving deep into journalism and whipping up video game guides. Big-time Pokemon fanatic? That's me. Obsessed with RPGs? Guilty as charged. When I'm not jotting down the latest game tips or hunting for that elusive Pokemon, I'm geeking out with fellow gamers and sharing my latest adventures; 2500+ articles and still going! Dive into my world and let's game on!
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