Skyrim Special Edition

About this mod

Grand ruins of an ancient city

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The Great City of Winterhold


If you're here for sight-seeing, well then you've seen the sights. Might as well head somewhere warmer. - Winterhold Guard

The 4.1 update:






Showcase by Artic Scrolls of version 4.03

Many thanks to Arctic Scrolls!



Just a village
The first time you entered Winterhold you probably thought it was nothing more than a little village. However, it turns out that Winterhold once was an epic city but was destroyed by a massive event known as the Great Collapse. An endless stormed battered the cliffs upon which Winterhold stood. That is, until the cliffs gave way and most of the city fell into the sea.





A bit of lore
Winterhold is an ancient place dating back to the first era. Legend claims Winterhold was created by Shalidor the Archmage with no more than the whisper of a single spell, the same man who created the infamous Labyrinthian. Winterhold continued as a wealthy and prosperous city rivalling Solitude in influence and power. It was even the capital of Skyrim during the reign of Borgas in the First Era. Winterhold has seen better days though. The Winterhold we see today is just a shadow of it's former glory. It all ended with the Great Collapse, most of the city fell and was swallowed by the sea. Now all that remains are a few stubborn Nords and the College although most Nords blame the College for the Great Collapse.






Where are the ruins?

Where are the walls that once protected the city? Where are the ruins? With this mod I hope to restore some of Winterhold's glory. The aim of this mod is to add immersion to every visit of Winterhold as well as adding a few nooks and crannies to explore. It features carefully crafted custom made architecture and a few custom textures designed to fit in seamlessly with the vanilla style. The architecture was designed to bridge the gap between the ancient Nordic architecture of Windhelm and the high medieval sophistication of Solitude.

This mod contains a few additional NPCs, three of which are voiced with new dialogue. These are meant to add to Winterhold's backstory and do not offer any quests. Two of the NPCs are vendors (blacksmith and spellbooks). There is a also a new player home that becomes available after achieving the position of thane.

The VA cast:
Alex Cain - Chayim
Alex Luthor - Frode Snow-Owl
Thea Solone - Magna Frost-Vein

Compatibility
First off: You have to start a new game if you want this mod to fully function. When I say a mod requires a new game someone might ask if there is a workaround and the answer is always the same. You have to start a new game if you want everything to function. You have to. There is no workaround. You have to start a new game.

This mod is not compatible with any mod that significantly alters the area surrounding Winterhold or it's interiors. Common problems are broken AI pathing, broken quests, missing NPCs, seemingly random floating items, light flickering and many more. Check if your incompatible mods have patches at:

The Patch Collection

This mod is not compatible with the All-In-One The Great Cities - Minor Cities and Towns SSE Edition unless you download the patch in the patch collection above!

Many thanks to RobertGK, Czasior, Jelidity and Janquel for helping me with important bug fixes and just generally being cool people!


My other city mods:

Find my other mods here!

I don't have a lot to offer but if you like my work and are interested in supporting me I have a Patreon :)
Patreon