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That said, as fun as the overall game of Skyrim is, the nitty-gritty of the game can often be frustrating to get through. This can often be due to the game’s bugs or, just as often, obtuse direction. One example is a particular puzzle in the quest Under Saarthal, so here’s a quick guide to getting through it.
Updated June 5, 2022 by Erik Petrovich: The Under Saarthal puzzle is one of Skyrim’s most well-known. Most Nordic ruins in Skyrim only feature one of these pillar-turning puzzles, but Saarthal, found in Winterhold Hold, has two. The first is relatively normal, but the second requires a bit of lateral thinking. Unfortunately, players can’t just walk into Saarthal – instead, they have to go through the College of Winterhold to eventually be able to unlock the entrance. Each Saarthal pillar puzzle is found one after the other, separated by practically a single room of Draugr. As such, Dragonborn who don’t mind having the solution spoiled can use this guide to solve the second part of the Saarthal puzzle in particular, which can become very tedious with one wrong move.
How To Get To Saarthal
Saarthal is a Nordic Ruin found at the very top of the map of Skyrim, just a few minutes’ travel into the frostbitten tundra to the east of the town of Winterhold. However, entering this Nordic ruin is not a matter of simply walking in – in fact, the way is sealed before the Dragonborn fulfills a specific requirement: joining the College of Winterhold.
To get to the College of Winterhold from the start of the game, head to Whiterun as part of the main quest, then hire the carriage just outside the city to Winterhold. Head north of the village to meet a member of the college, who will initiate you. After your first lesson with Tolfdir he brings the students to Saarthal (or, rather, the player meets him there). He opens the door, and players are greeted with one of the most interesting locations in all of Winterhold.
How To Solve The Saarthal Pillar Puzzle
The quest “Under Saarthal” begins with the Dragonborn helping out a class perform some archaeology in the ancient ruin, but they get trapped below ground along with Tolfdir, an instructor at the College of Winterhold. At first, the Dragonborn is trapped in a room on their own, and must use either a Destruction spell or one of Skyrim’s Shouts to break down a tablet blocking an entrance.
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After this follows a medium-length dungeon replete with Draugr and traps, an encounter with the Psijic Order, and of course the Under Saarthal puzzle Skyrim forces players to solve to complete the questline.
The First Pillar Puzzle
There are six pillars, each with three images on them, and the correct image must face the hallway the player occupies on each pillar. At first, it may seem that there’s no way to tell which is the correct symbol, but the answer is closer than many think.
A good light source will illuminate the correct image behind each pillar. This makes having a torch handy, or and gives a reason to use the night vision of a Khajiit. One of Skyrim’s hidden tricks to players not in the know is the Khajiit’s race-specific night vision spell costs nothing. Either way, check behind the pillars with a good light to advance past Saarthal puzzle 1.
The Second Puzzle
After sneaking or fighting through a room involving more traps and two powerful Draugr, players will find themselves in a room with four more pillars. Just like before, the correct images are next to the totem, but turning one turns others at the same time. Don’t let it ruin your Skyrim playthrough – facing the barred door, turn the pillars in this order to solve this Saarthal puzzle.
Turn the back left pillar to the Whale symbol, which also turns all three other pillars Turn the front left pillar to the Snake symbol, which also turns the opposite two pillars on the right side Turn the back right pillar to the Hawk symbol, which also turns the front right pillar Turn the front right pillar to the Whale symbol, completing the puzzle!
When turning each of the pillars, several others will still be turned too, but this order ensures that they all end up on the correct image in the end. The Under Saarthal puzzle is one of Skyrim’s most iconic as it makes the player think - with most of the pillar puzzles you just turn each totem to the correct image and you’re done. In the Skyrim Saarthal puzzle, the player actually has to pause and think.
Skyrim: Anniversary Edition is available for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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