- For the location in The Elder Scrolls Online, see The Middens.
The Midden is a small dungeon found underneath the College of Winterhold. Trap doors leading to The Midden can be found just north of the door to the Hall of the Elements in the College's courtyard and under the stairs in the Hall of Countenance.
Overview
Whichever way the Midden is entered, there will be a room with four openings on a wall (in a two by two arrangement). The bottom right opening is clear, while the others are barred with iron grates. However, the opening leads to a long drop to a room with a waterfall that can be reached in another way.
To the northeast is a passage that leads to a split. The right side (which leads to the east) leads to a single empty jail cell. The left (north) passage leads to a snow-covered room that joins on to a low-ceilinged room with many pillars with two exits. An exit path to the east northeast leads to a large room with an attached room straight across to the southeast that contains the Atronach Forge. A passageway to the southwest leads to a cell door, with a room beyond that has a bench containing some Alchemy Ingredients.
Further southwest is the floor of the waterfall room seen before. The stairs on the left side lead to a ledge with nothing but a Draugr. Instead, continuing along the path under the ledge to the southwest leads to The Midden Dark.
Items of interest
- The Atronach Forge, which is vaguely similar to the Atronach Altar in Frostcrag Spire, can be used to summon Frost, Flame, and Storm Atronachs. A book on the use of the Forge can be found on a nearby table. The forge is a great tool for players to use to practice their skills, both magicka and otherwise, because any summoned Atronach will remain around until destroyed with no apparent time limit, unlike Atronachs summoned by way of a spell. Furthermore, these Atronachs are hostile, and once summoned they will immediately begin attacking the player. Consequently, this area is an ideal place to practice casting restoration wards because unless an Atronach is destroyed by the player it will cast lightning spells (Storm Atronach) or fire spells(Flame Atronach) seemingly indefinitely. Obviously, wards are useless against the melee attacking Frost Atronachs, which don't seem to have magical ranged attacks comparable to that of their Storm or Flame counterparts, but blocking and light or heavy armor skills can be upgraded instead when battling them. The Atronachs will exit the room the forge is in to pursue the player through the adjacent rooms, and Storm and Flame Atronachs do have melee capabilities if they are close enough. Also, the precious gem used to summon an Atronach at the Forge will be lost if the Atronach is destroyed, but any ingredient used will not, and can be reclaimed.
- The Daedric Relic is a location in The Midden Dark, used to imprison Velehk Sain.
- The Augur of Dunlain is also located in The Midden Dark, for the Good Intentions and Restoration Ritual Spell quests.
- In The Midden Dark, there is an Alchemy Lab as well as a skill book, De Rerum Dirennis, on it.
- Torchbug Thorax litter the path through The Midden.
- Many White Cap fungi.
- In the Midden, near the College entrance, there is a skeleton pinned to the floor with a leveled, enchanted dagger.
- 4 ingots of Refined Moonstone in a basket in the ceiling rafters.
- Orichalcum ingot on the wardrobe next to the entrance to the Atronach Forge.
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