Lore:Fort Greymoor

This article is about the fort in Whiterun Hold. For the subterranean castle in Blackreach, see Greymoor Keep.

Greymoor
Type	Settlement
Continent	Tamriel
Province	Skyrim
Hold	Whiterun
Appears in	Arena, Skyrim

Fort Greymoor circa 4E 201

Fort Greymoor, formerly known as Black Moor and Darkmoor, is a partially ruined fortified settlement that dominates the Western Plains of Whiterun Hold. The central fort (originally called Black Moor Keep) guards a strategic crossroad which connects Whiterun to the Reach, Hjaalmarch, and Haafingar. A lone mountain lies to the west of the imposing fortress.

History

Black Moor Keep was in existence since at least 2E 577, when it was occupied by Arkasis the Mad Alchemist while he experimented on the citizens of Whiterun, transforming them into werewolves using alchemical concoctions. When his actions were discovered, Arkasis was chased back to the keep by an angry mob and was forced to flee the hold. These events later went on to be dramatized and reimagined in an Investigator Vale novel known as The Hounds of Black Moor.

In the early years of the Third Era, Darkmoor was ruled by Count Sven Advensen and his wife. Emperor Tiber Septim granted Sven this title and fiefdom upon his retirement from the Imperial Legion. The previous rulers there had been distant cousins to the new Count and his wife, Lady Inga. The couple famously became the guardians of Princess Barenziah, and the future Queen of Morrowind was raised in the small Skyrim village, unaware of her birthright.

During the Imperial Simulacrum in the late Third Era, the village of Black Moor was an active settlement, being ruled by Lord Torben. It had a rivalry with North Keep. It was neighbored by several settlements, including Riverwood to the southeast, and Whiterun to the east.

By 4E 201, the ruins of Fort Greymoor had been ravaged by war, and collapsed parts of the stone walls were fortified with wooden barricades. The occupants changed regularly, with Orcs, vampires and bandits all having occupied the ruins. During the Stormcloak Rebellion, the fort served as a point of contention between the Imperial Legion and the Stormcloaks, with both sides struggling for control. The Staff of Hasedoki was smuggled into Skyrim the same year, and the Gilgar family dispatched Modig Gilgar to recover the staff, who was ambushed by smugglers intending to rob him at the road next to Fort Greymoor. He quickly dispatched them, with the Last Dragonborn arriving to the scene shortly after, being attacked by a wary Modig, whom they killed.

Gallery

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  The settlement of Black Moor during the Imperial Simulacrum

Notes

• 1.	In TES: Arena, "Black Moor" was also sometimes called Blackmoor, Darkmoor, or Greymoor. Some references in the Skyrim data files call the location Fort Blackmoor. The Real Barenziah also describes the fort as "Darkmoor Keep".

• Cut files from ESO indicate that a Dark Brotherhood quest involving assassinating a "Baron Blackmoore" at his Keep for practicing dark magic was intended to be included, but was cut along with the rest of the faction's content before launch.

See Also

• For game-specific information, see the Arena and Skyrim articles.

References

Note: The following references are considered to be unofficial sources. They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.