Highlights
- Kagrenzel is one of many mysterious Dwemer ruins, but it differs in many ways. There is no active security system upon entry, and the orb isn't commonly seen in other Dwemer ruins.
- Many speculate it could have been a fossil research location or the beginnings of a city, with the orb serving as a primitive AI security feature.
- With more mystery tied to it than a standard Dwemer ruin, it will be interesting to see if The Elder Scrolls 6 provides answers regarding its existence.
The Dwemer are the most mysterious group of people in The Elder Scrolls and their legacy is found in their ruins all over Tamriel. Famous for their artificial constructions that are reminiscent of a steampunk age, the Dwemer were a race of elves who preferred to live underground but, unlike the Falmer, were intelligent and became masters of their environment. Their ruins are some of the most confusing in Skyrim, and none moreso than Kagrenzel, a Dwemer ruin that can be found on Skyrim's far eastern border with Morrowind.
The Dwemer were a group of technologically-advanced elves who disappeared during the Battle of Red Mountain in the First Era, possibly due to their meddling with the Heart of Lorkhan. It's unclear exactly what happened, but at the conclusion of the battle, every Dwemer across Tamriel (minus one) had disappeared from their fortresses and underground cities, leaving only their machines. The disappearance of the Dwemer is a mystery that has yet to be solved in The Elder Scrolls, but their ruins may hold the key to the mystery behind their disappearance.
The Secrets of the Dwemer Lie Within Their Ruins
Over the centuries, Dwemer ruins have been plundered by treasure hunters looking for valuables, but it's considered dangerous work as all the Dwemer security systems are still in place even hundreds of years without maintenance or ongoing instructions. The robust security systems found within Dwemer ruins paradoxically make them a prime target for adventurers as many of the valuables the Dwemer left behind are still left intact within their cities, along with most of their secrets. Puzzles that use starlight as keys to unlock, strange mechanisms, and even magic are all some of what may be used in Dwemer contraptions to hide valuables or secrets, but sometimes they're used for no discernable reason at all.
One such example is the Dwemer ruin of Kagrenzel, a comparatively tiny Dwemer ruin on the side of the mountains on the eastern border of Skyrim. Lying between Riften and Windhelm, Kagrenzel can be difficult to find as the only quests that lead to it are from radiant quests, leaving the Dragonborn to randomly stumble across it if they don't already know it's there. Unlike other Dwemer ruins, the security system appears to be pretty light, lacking the usual automatons and security traps that are normally found in these ruins.
The Mystery of Kagrenzel in The Elder Scrolls 6
Kagrenzel comprises just one chamber with a glowing orb in the center; floating above a pedestal, this orb is surrounded by the corpses of two bandits. The orb activates when interacted with, which triggers the missing security system. A cage springs up around the Dragonborn as the orb appears to scan them, after which the floor turns over and dumps the player into the longest freefall drop in Skyrim. The Dragonborn lands in water and emerges unscathed into Stony Creek Cave.
What the Dwemer were doing in Kagrenzel is unknown, but there are several theories such as the Dwemer investigating the fossils that can be seen in the tunnel the Dragonborn falls through to the ruins simply being the start of a new, uncompleted city. The most perplexing part of Kagrenzel is the orb, which some speculate is a primitive AI security feature considering how it seems to scan the Dragonborn and the two dead bandits in the chamber.
The Elder Scrolls 6 will likely take place in Hammerfell, a Province the Dwemer were notoriously active in, if past tenses are any indication. Players don't need the answers to every mystery handed to them, and the speculation of the purpose behind Kagrenzel is what has made it a legend in the Skyrim community. The Elder Scrolls 6 needs to have more Dwemer ruins like Kagrenzel, and Hammerfell provides not only the perfect setting for more mysteries of the Dwemer, but perhaps even pieces of the puzzle that could one day explain their disappearance.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is in development.