Lore:Lion's Den

The Lion's Den
Type	Mountain Pass
Continent	Tamriel
Province	Skyrim
Appears in	Skyrim, ESO

The Lion's Den ca. 2E 582

The Lion's Den (also known as Steelhead Cleft) is a mountain pass in the province of Skyrim, between the Throat of the World to the north and the Jerall Mountains to the south. Specifically, it directly branches eastern Falkreath Hold, where modern-day Helgen is located to western Rift Hold, on the Great Riften Road intersection near Honeystrand Hill.

There are conflating stories of how the valley acquired its name. One story claims it was a historical breeding ground for local mountain lions, but another comes from the mid-Second Era, when the Lion Guard took it over. Many caves exist across the mountain pass, such as Giant's Crush, Haemar's Shame, and excavated tunnels created by the Lion Guard.

History

The Lion's Den is the road east of Helgen and south of Ivarstead

Locals of the Rift know the valley as a historical breeding ground for mountain lions that Nedes of the late Merethic Era often hunted for pelts. Over the years, locals avoided the area in favor of harvesting furs from domestic livestock.

In the early Second Era, a tribe of Giants took residence in the mountains nearby and were aggressively territorial. People characterized them as angry hermits and even built a gate to the valley's entrance to prevent anyone from entering the region. But with the Alliance War in full motion, the Lion Guard, the elite soldiers of the Daggerfall Covenant built a forward camp in the Lion's Den. An Ebonheart Pact scouting party led by Thragof was captured and interrogated by the Covenant, while another party discovered the camp from afar. An Agent of the Pact assisted the second party by eliminating the three highest-ranking Lion Guard officers and helped Thragof rescue his soldiers and leave behind the traitor.

By the Fourth Era, the pass was a major road depicted on maps of the province and branched the eastern Falkreath intersection between Whiterun Hold and the Pale Pass, where Helgen is now located, and the Great Riften Road intersection south of Ivarstead. At some point, an alchemist built a shack on the valley's east end, where the autumn forest meets the snowy trail.

Gallery

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  The Lion's Den ca. 2E 582

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  The blocked entrance to the valley (Online)

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  Helgen

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  Haemar's Shame

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  The Alchemist's Shack

See Also

• For game-specific information, see the Elder Scrolls Online article.

Books

• Into the Lion's Den — A short history of the Nordic valley known as the Lion's Den