Skyrim:Halbarn Favor Quest

Quick Walkthrough
#Talk to Halbarn Iron-Fur in Thirsk Mead Hall.
#Find ten stalhrim samples and fifteen ebony ingots.
#Give the items to Halbarn and collect your reward.

Detailed Walkthrough
After the Attack
Once the quest Retaking Thirsk has been completed, the Nord warriors of Thirsk move back into Thirsk Mead Hall. However, during their lengthy exile in Bujold's Retreat, the invading Rieklings turned the hall upside down, with much cleanup to be done. The blacksmith of the hall, Halbarn Iron-Fur, found his forge filled with slop and had to request assistance from Elmus to clean it up. Despite the terrible smell coming from the flames, he is still able to do some work, although he has more problems: ''"Cleaning out the forge was the easy part. But those blasted rieklings made off with most of my materials. And I can't forge air. You tend to wander around, don't you? If you come across any stalhrim or ebony in your travels, bring them back to old Halbarn. Help each other out." This starts the quest and adds an objective to your journal. You will have to gather ten samples of stalhrim and fifteen ebony ingots for Halbarn. Note that you will have to keep count yourself, as the quest will not update.

Stalhrim
thumb|right|The Skyrim:Stalhrim Source|Stalhrim Source
Stalhrim can only be found on Solstheim, in stalhrim deposits. They can only be mined using an ancient Nordic pickaxe, the reward for completing the quest An Axe To Find. Alternatively, you can buy one from Baldor Iron-Shaper in Skaal Village. Baldor is also the only merchant that will sell you stalhrim, although he never sells more than four (75% chance each), so you will need to find some stalhrim deposits as well.

The very best source for collecting stalhrim is the Stalhrim Source, a landmark in northwestern Solstheim. If you have completed the quest A New Source of Stalhrim, the deposit will be marked on your map. It is located south of Northshore Landing and east of Bristleback Cave and Broken Tusk Mine. With the ancient Nordic pickaxe in hand, take the trip to the Stalhrim Source, and start mining. You can gather thirty pieces of stalhrim there. For other sources, see this article.

Ebony Ingots
thumb|right|Skyrim:Raven Rock Mine|Raven Rock Mine
With only seven fixed ebony ingots in the entire game, you will be forced to do some mining and smelting to retrieve the requested amount. Two ebony ores are used to smelt one ebony ingot, meaning you will need at least thirty ebony ores. If you are level 27 or above, there is a chance that blacksmiths and general goods merchants will sell you ores and/or ingots, and an additional chance of looting ores from ash spawn, but mining is probably the easiest method to achieve your goal. There are two options available. You can travel back to Skyrim and find the biggest source of ebony ore in the game, namely Gloombound Mine in the Orc stronghold of Narzulbur. With sixteen ore veins, the mine will net you 48 ebony ores, for a total of 24 ingots, which is more than enough to satisfy Halbarn.

However, it is also possible to avoid the trip to Skyrim and stay on Solstheim. If you have completed the quest The Final Descent, thus helping the townsfolk of Raven Rock, the local Raven Rock Mine will be reopened and new ore veins discovered. This makes the mine the second best source for ebony ore in the game, with a total of nine ore veins, and after some smelting, thirteen ebony ingots. You can also travel to Northshore Landing and find the ebony ore vein a few feet south of the abandoned shack where Old Salty resides, and travel to the landmark Horker Island where the named horker, Lord Tusk, lives. Head to the northeastern shore of the island, where a boat has sunken completely, head west up the beach until you reach the ebony vein next to the cliff wall. Mine your ore and smelt it until you have the fifteen ebony ingots for Halbarn.

The Reward
When you have gathered all the items, return to Thirsk Mead Hall and Halbarn. Hand him the materials and he will hand you a medium amount of leveled gold and be quite happy: "Just in time, too. Kuvar was starting to give me some grief about his new armor. This will do the trick nicely. You come back if you ever want some fancier armor yourself, now."''
 
 

Quest Stages
 
 

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