Roggvir Roggvir was a Nord warrior and , formerly , one of the Hold Guard s of Solitude . Biography . Roggvir lived in Solitude all his life , growing up with his sister Greta and locals Sorex Vinius and Vivienne Onis . According to Sorex , Roggvir was a cruel and immature boy in his childhood , who often pulled practical jokes , such as leaving a beehive in Sorex ' s bed , and humiliating him whenever in the presence of Vivienne , whom Sorex had feelings for . When his sister married local fisherman and stall Vendor Addvar , Roggvir became an uncle to the young girl Svari , who was fond of him . Roggvir was a member of the city guard at the time of High King Torygg ' s death at the hands of Ulfric Stormcloak . Immediately after the incident , Roggvir , who was presumably on gate guard duty opened the city gates and allowed Ulfric to escape . For this , he was branded a traitor and sentenced to death . He was a proud Nord and Stormcloak sympathizer , defending Ulfric ' s actions as honorable even in the face of death . His sister , Greta , stopped going to the Temple of the Divines after his death , while his niece Svari was also very upset . Addvar tried explaining to her that people must be held accountable for their actions , however this did not console her , but as he states " a child feels what she will . " Captain Aldis , who presided over his execution , respected Roggvir , labelling him as a " fine and honorable man " when in conversation with the Dragonborn , although saying his execution was justified and necessary . Also , after the crowd disperses at the execution , he looks down at Roggvir ' s corpse and says , " " Damn shame Roggvir , you were a good man . " " Interactions . Upon entering Solitude for the first time , the Dragonborn witnesses Roggvir ' s execution . Before death , he exclaims that Ulfric challenged Torygg in single combat , and won honorably . As such , it was the way of the Nords to allow Ulfric to leave , as he had done nothing wrong . Despite his claimed innocence , Roggvir is still executed for treason . If the Dragonborn tries to stop the execution , whether by attacking the guards or simply walking onto the execution platform , Roggvir will make a run for it . If the guards are distracted long enough , he can escape . But if the Hold Guards aren ' t distracted enough , they , Ahtar , and Captain Aldis will rapidly stab and kill Roggvir and the Dragonborn will be attacked , but receive no bounty . However , he will either disappear or drop dead if the Dragonborn attempts to speak with him , and all NPCs still comment as if he were executed . Attacking Roggvir before he is killed will cause the guards to become hostile , but will accrue no bounty . If saved , Roggvir will sometimes go to the grindstone near his planned execution site and work on a sword . He will not leave the grindstone unless the Dragonborn attempts to use it . Entering Solitude for the first time through the side gate will cause the Dragonborn to miss the execution . However , dialogue options with NPCs will still be as if the Dragonborn had witnessed the execution ( note : After taking over the city of Solitude with the Stormcloaks , the guards talk about how it is ' too bad they couldn ' t have gotten here in time to save Roggvir ' ) . If the Dragonborn kills Ahtar , captain Aldis , and the guard with them before Roggvir ' s death , Roggvir will die shortly after , since he is programmed to die regardless of the Dragonborn ' s actions . Quests . Speaking to Svari , the daughter of Roggvir ' s sister , Greta , about her mother starts a miscellaneous quest to convince Greta to return to the Temple of the Divines . This entails recovering Roggvir ' s Amulet of Talos off of his body and giving it to Greta . In the catacombs , the amulet is in the stone coffin to the left of the entrance in the second alcove .