Dead Men's Respite is a dungeon in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Location[edit]
Hjaalmarch, south of Morthal
Walkthrough[edit]
Make your way to Dead Men's Respite. Enter the Respite and head down the first tunnel. You find that there is a ghost just ahead of you. You will see the ghost point to the door just beyond the altar in front of you.
On the table is the Ruby Dragon Claw. The door will open when you take it. But it will also release 4 Draugr that will converge on you. Move back into the entry way to avoid being swarmed by them. Use it to bottleneck them. With them defeated, head through the now open gate across from the entrance of the Respite.
Head down the corridor to the T-intersection. Stop before you reach the actually crossing. You will see the ghost of a figure walk past you. Also, because there is a pressure plate in the middle that triggers a spear trap on the sides of the entrance that can inflict heavy damage. Turn to the left and continue along the path there. Continue forward to the stone door. To the right of it is a pull chain. Activate it to clear the way forward.
Once again, this will loose a number of Frostbite Spider and a Draugr Deathlord on you. Hang back and deal with them at range (unless you are melee focused, then go ahead and charge in). Head to the back and turn to the West.
There are 2 rooms you need to burn your way through because of Webbing with some loot inside them. The one to the North has nothing, just a dead end. The one to the South is where you can go forward. Before you do though, continue to the West then South. Burn through the webbing blocking the way forward to find a locked chest (Apprentice level). Now head through the door to the South. Pull the chain to the right of the stone door to clear the way forward.
As you open that door, expect a few Draugr to be coming in after you. Quickly take them out then continue forward to the East. Watch out again if you go straight East because there is another pressure plate at the start of the next corridor leading to a potion and a Coin Purse. You can also find the Speech skill book The Buying Game sitting nearby there. Be careful because there is a battering ram that will swing in at you from behind when you remove something from those stones. Head back to the West and then turn to the North. There is a Draugr waiting in the corner for you so spot them and take it out. From there, make your way to the Northwest.
This will lead to another large chamber. Inside you will need to deal with a pair of Frostbite Spiders. Kill them off and head across the room to the North. There is a webbed over nook with some loot inside it. AFter that, head to the middle of the Eastern wall. Underneath the candles is a pull chain that will open a trap door in the Northern. Drop down into the water below.
Head through the corridor to the North. Follow it as it winds around the roots, through the water. There are a few Skeevers lurking in the water. Just beyond the skeever you have more Draugr waiting for you. Continue forward to the next chamber.
This chamber lets you see the mysterious ghost again. This time they go up the ramp in the Southern part of the room. Follow them upwards as you deal with the various Draugr that are emerging from their coffins.
The situation does not improve on the upper level. As you start across the narrow bridge you will find it is trapped with a number of swinging blades. You can either dash through each set of blades or just use Whirlwind Sprint. Get across the bridge and use the pull chain to disable the blades. After that, take the ramp upwards. Now just open the door and head to the West and turn to the North, follow the path down. The door to the West, for now, is sealed.
Head down the ramp to the North. You will encounter a Draugr Deathlord. Defeat it and continue on forward and head down the ramp leading to the West. This leads to another chamber for you to explore. There are some Draugr behind gates. They can and will attack you through the openings. There are at least 5 of them scattered throughout the room. Take them on one at a time to make things easier.
You want to pull the chain in the middle of the Southern wall to continue forward. This will open the gate in the floor. Just follow the stairs on down. This leads to another door. To the left is a pull switch that will clear the way forward. This will reveal the Lost Verse and the Ghost of its author, Svaknir. King Olaf's Verse rests in his hands. Pick it up then head back up the ramp.
With King Olaf's Verse in hand, head up the ramp. At the top, turn to the West. You will see the ghost again. Follow him to the sealed door. He will open it up for you. At the end of the hallway you will find the puzzle door that you need the Ruby Dragon Claw to open.
The key to the puzzle is: (top down) Wolf, Eagle, Wolf. Get that sequence and then activate the key hole. Go on through and head into the next room. Svaknir will call out to Olaf that, "It is time."
You will find that there are a lot of Draugr scattered throughout the room. You need to fight through most of them. You have close to 20 to fight over all. The good news is that only 2-4 Draugr at a time. Defeat them and then continue to the South to press forward. You will find after that, there are more to deal with. You need to defeat Draugr Deathlord and Draugr Scourge.
Take the stairs up to arrive at the sarcophagus. Go past it to find a Word Wall. This is a word from the shout: Whirlwind Sprint. This leads you into battle against King Olaf One-Eye. This is just like fighting another Draugr Deathlord. Keep a little distance and take your time to defeat.
Turn to the Southeastern part of the room. You will find the door. Open it up using King Olaf's Treasury Key and go into the room.
You will find a large chest. You will find plenty of loot inside it. There is also a pull lever to the right of it. Open it up and you will find the way to get back to the surface quickly.
