The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim did not become one of the most recognizable open-world RPGs in the industry through sheer luck. Endless secrets and stories that dot the region's landscape for players to explore, and Dwemer ruins in particular may be hiding a lot that casual fans are unaware of.
Given the Dwemer ruins in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim have stood the test of time, remaining long after Dwemer society itself, all of them are already unique relics. Yet even among other Dwemer ruins, Kagrenzel stands out for hiding the secret of possible artificial intelligence alongside the bones of long-forgotten species.
Skyrim's Kagrenzel is Holding More Than One Secret
The Elder Scrolls' Dwemer metal is likely to thank for the continued functionality of ruins across Skyrim. It does not age or rust, which makes it the perfect material for a civilization that wants to outlive time itself. Players can still access and interact with the technology left behind, and even among Dwemer ruins Kagrenzel manages to be more advanced than the rest. This was undoubtedly by design, as Kangrezel is tucked away in the far easy of Skyrim's map as if hidden from the rest of the world.
Upon entering Kagrenzel, players are greeted with typical Dwemer architecture, but as they delve deeper a high-pitched musical tone will begin to play. As they approach the source, they will find a glowing light labeled "strange orb" that's surrounded by dead bandits. The player can interact with the orb, but it will trap and then "scan" them. After that, the orb enters the cage where the player is trapped before dropping them down the longest fall in the entire game. The Dwemer hid many secrets, and this likely one of their biggest ones.
This "strange orb" appears to be some form of Dwemer artificial intelligence, which already exists within Dwemer automatons to a lesser extent. Using soul gems, these automatons walk the halls of ruins, safeguarding them from any possible trespassers. However, this light seemingly chose to kill the bandits found near it, but not the player. The biggest clue to go off of is the musical tones it emits, as this may be a form of tonal architecture: a powerful tonal magic the Dwemer utilized. This strange orb may have been one attempt at creating artificial life using this mysterious magic ability.
Another secret hidden in Kagrenzel is more haunting. As the players falls into the depths of the earth, they can see bones for creatures like dwarves and even dragons. These bones are so big, they even show up on the player's local map. Michael Kirkbride, one of the writers for Morrowind and Oblivion, has previously detailed the existence of flying snow whales. While this lore was never employed by Bethesda, making them not canon, these bones could serve as a reference to his writings - something Bethesda has done through other secrets found across Skyrim.
Kagrenzel demonstrates Skyrim's ability to fascinate the player with possibilities rather than explicit truths. It gives the player something to mull over as they tread through the game's landscape, and the secrets of The Elder Scrolls franchise play a large part in its popularity as a whole. Hopefully The Elder Scrolls 6 will have just as many secrets to uncover, even if they don't further explain that strange light in the Dwemer ruins.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is available now on PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
