Skyrim:Stormcloaks

Stormcloak banner as seen in the Palace of the Kings

The Stormcloaks are a rebel faction led by Ulfric Stormcloak that you have the option of joining. They seek to defeat the Imperial Legion that controls most of Skyrim, end the Empire's rule over the land, and turn Skyrim into an independent country. They primarily rely on the use of axes and other melee weapons in combat, and use hit-and-run tactics to gain advantage over the larger Imperial armies. Most of the eastern half of Skyrim is currently under Stormcloak control, with the critical Whiterun Hold in central Skyrim remaining nominally neutral but friendly to Imperial traffic as the events of Skyrim unfold.

Joining

If you chose to follow Ralof to escape Helgen during the quest Unbound and then from the keep either accompany him on the road to, or leave and rejoin him in Riverwood, Ralof will invite you to join the Stormcloaks and direct you to Windhelm. In addition, Stormcloak soldiers encountered across Skyrim will likewise invite you to join their side, and the quest will be added to the log if it hasn't been earlier.

Regardless of whether or not you have previously received the quest, you can travel to the Palace of the Kings in Windhelm and talk to Galmar Stone-Fist and request to join the Stormcloaks, at which point Galmar will give you an initial test, as detailed at Joining the Stormcloaks.

You can join the Imperial Legion and fight against the Stormcloaks instead. Completing the Joining the Legion quest will cause you to automatically fail the Joining the Stormcloaks quest. However, the next quest for both sides is to find the Jagged Crown (Imperial or Stormcloaks). If you choose to bring it to the other party instead, you can still join them.

Quests

Three achievements (50 points; 2 Bronze and 1 Silver) are unlocked by completing either Civil War questline (either Stormcloaks or Imperial Legion).

• Joining the Stormcloaks: Prove yourself worthy of being a Stormcloak rebel. ( 10 pts/Bronze)
• The Jagged Crown: Find this crown for Ulfric Stormcloak.
• Message to Whiterun: Deliver an axe to the Jarl of Whiterun.
• Battle for Whiterun: Take Whiterun in the name of the Stormcloaks. (radiant)
• Liberation of Skyrim is the overarching quest governing the individual battles of the war. Each Imperial-controlled hold in Skyrim must be liberated, one at a time. Which holds are Imperial-controlled depends upon negotations during Season Unending, and therefore only a subset of the following quests need to be completed. See Liberation of Skyrim for more details.
  • Liberate Falkreath
    • Rescue from Fort Neugrad: Rescue Stormcloak soldiers from the Imperials and capture the fort. (radiant)
  • Liberate The Reach
    • Compelling Tribute: Blackmail a Talos worshipper into helping the Stormcloaks. (radiant)
    • The Battle for Fort Sungard: Take this fort in the name of the Stormcloaks. (radiant) ( 10 pts/Bronze)
  • Liberate Hjaalmarch
    • A False Front: Find and deliver some forged documents to the Imperials.
    • The Battle for Fort Snowhawk: Take Fort Snowhawk for the Stormcloaks. (radiant)
  • Liberate the Pale
    • The Battle for Fort Dunstad: Take this fort for the Stormcloaks. (radiant)
  • Liberate the Rift
    • The Battle for Fort Greenwall: Take Fort Greenwall for the Stormcloaks. (radiant) ( 10 pts/Bronze — only if The Battle for Fort Sungard did not need to be completed)
  • Liberate Winterhold
    • The Battle for Fort Kastav: Take this fort for the Stormcloaks. (radiant)
  • Liberate Haafingar
    • The Battle for Fort Hraggstad: Take this fort for the Stormcloaks.
    • Battle for Solitude: The final push to free Skyrim of the Imperials. (radiant) ( 30 pts/Silver)

Titles

Concept art of a Stormcloak

Title	Requirements
Unblooded	Complete Joining the Stormcloaks
Ice-Veins	Complete Battle for Whiterun
Bone-Breaker	Complete Rescue from Fort Neugrad
Snow-Hammer	Complete The Battle for Fort Sungard
Stormblade	Complete The Battle for Fort Snowhawk

Camps

Camps of Stormcloak soldiers can be found in each hold of Skyrim except for Eastmarch. These are marked on the map with the displayed bear pawprint icon. Stormcloak camps only exist in holds controlled by the Empire, and vice-versa, meaning these camps may not exist, depending on the player's chosen side and progress in the Civil War.

•  Falkreath Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp located in the mountains of Falkreath Hold, east of Helgen. (map)
•  Haafingar Stormcloak Camp — A small Stormcloak camp overlooking the Karth River. (map)
•  Hjaalmarch Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp located east of Ustengrav and west of Mzinchaleft. (map)
•  Pale Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp located in the Pale, on the south shore of Lake Yorgrim, southeast of Bronze Water Cave. (map)
•  Reach Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp located along the Karth River in the Reach. (map)
•  Rift Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp in the Rift, located just northeast of Sarethi Farm and south of Darkwater Crossing. (map)
•  Solitude Military Camp — A Stormcloak camp set up just a bit west of Katla's Farm for the attack on Solitude. (map)
•  Whiterun Military Camp — A Stormcloak camp set up just east of Pelagia Farm, and just west of the Honningbrew Meadery, for the battle for control of Whiterun. (map)
•  Whiterun Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp in Whiterun Hold, located south of the Ritual Stone, east of White River Watch. (map)
•  Winterhold Stormcloak Camp — A Stormcloak camp located northeast of Windhelm, close to the White River. (map)

Notes

• The alternative is that you join the Imperial Legion and fight against the Stormcloaks.
• Joining the Stormcloaks may cause random spawn groups of Imperial Soldiers to attack you, and you will not be welcome in Imperial camps anymore.
• A random encounter occurs where you meet three Imperial soldiers escorting a captured Stormcloak soldier. The Stormcloak may be freed and his captors killed or disabled without attracting the usual bounty. The captive runs to the Windhelm gates, disappearing if he successfully makes it to them. Escorting the escaped captive yields no reward.
• If you encounter Stormcloaks in their camps at any Hold while wearing Imperial Armor, they may question your decision on your armor and suspect you of being an Imperial Spy. If you admit that you support the Empire, they will attack you but if you tell them that you don't mean anything by wearing it, they will allow you to stick with your choice of armor in spite of their distaste.
• If you have taken over a city for the Stormcloaks and displaced a Jarl who supported the Empire, they as well as their Housecarl and family will reside in the basement of the Blue Palace. They can be found down the corridor left of the stairs leading to Elisif's throne. For obvious reasons, they won't be happy to see you, but they won't attack you.
• If the Stormcloaks take control of Solitude, a Shrine of Talos will be added to the Temple of the Divines within the city.