Sorry. I should have paid closer attention to his screenshot.

I don't know why this is happening.

I guess I will try installing to the hard drive and see if that might improve my chances.

I have gotten all 5 before. I don't understand what the deal is, here. It is very frustrating. I am not settling for any less than 5.

It is confirmed on the wiki that 5 exist as pictured in Ji Soo's screen shot.

2 on the table, 2 of the floor, and 1 on the shelf.

I thought maybe it might have to do with Alduin's attack blasting them away, but I have tried running straight behind Ralof into the tower, as well as lingering outside for about 1 minute.

I have no idea what else to try. Very discouraging.

Holy OCD, Batman.

Unnecessary.

I already humbly admitted above, twice, that I realize most people wouldn't consider it a big deal, like I do.

The game was made with 5. I want 5. I am not accepting a bug before even getting through the opening sequence. That is ridiculous.

Yep. That's how mine were on PS3 when I went there yesterday. I'm gonna' check back in 30 game days to see if there are more. FWIW I am 1.4 and did not gather them when escaping from Helgen in the beginning.

That's how it looked in my game too (on PC). Although I think the ones on the table/bench there were on the floor...possibly knocked around by some Shouting going on downstairs.

It's been more than 30 days since I picked those up, I'm fairly sure. I should go back and check later tonight (when I get a chance to play) and see if they've respawned. I'm on 1.5 now; first picked that mead up on...er, I want to say 1.3? Maybe it was 1.4. I don't know. Didn't pick them up in the intro either; didn't even know they were there. Too busy fleeing for my life.

They really are a nice touch, btw. Stumbling on them when revisiting the ruins of Helgen made for a very melancholy experience.

I know, right? You'd have to be a dedicated alcoholic to be looking for drinks while a named dragon is attacking you as a LVL 1 with busted ass gear and weapons. "OMFG!!1! A dragon is attacking with the fire and everything, aaaahhh! Wait...look at that. Well, there's always time for a flammable beverage break."

Well to be fair, I'm sure in a situation like that I'd think "I need a drink," but...I wouldn't stop mid-flee to go find one.

Also, just checked in-game tonight. The mead with juniper berry bottles did respawn--all five exactly where they should be.

Ok hold on you two.

Lol. First of all, YOUR HANDS ARE BOUND during the attack on Helgen. You can't pick anything up while fleeing. I kept laughing while reading.

Also Tyraa Rane... Are you saying that you got more than 5? You said you picked them up, then waited, came back and got more????

Well, good. Then we entertained. Our work here is done.


Yes, that's what I'm saying, verifying some discussion earlier in the thread. I visited Helgen in my game some time ago, after the bandits had moved in--and first saw the bottles then and picked them all up. I just revisited Helgen tonight, with the same character, after everything in the cell had respawn/reset and found five more bottles. So that mead is set to respawn along with the rest of the items in the cell.

WHAT? You are on PS3, is that right?

I have read on 2 wiki links, that Helgen does NOT respawn. Ever.

That is why the end table and wardrobe by the bed are safe containers, because they never reset.

The only thing that changes about Helgen are the bandits moving in, and the corpses/containers become lootable.

Also the wiki confirms there are only 5 bottles in the entire game in the upper room of the Inn.

It wouldn't make sense for the bottles to keep appearing.

That would be the same thing as random coin purses and anything else such as books/potions/food laying on shelves in homes respawning again and again. It doesn't happen.

So if what you are saying is true, then I am the unluckiest guy ever, and you are the luckiest.

It does happen in a lot of places. Even if an endtable is safe for storage, the surface items might respawn. Not in a player owned home, of course.

I found 5 bottles today, right where they should be. PS3. I wish I could give them to Ralof.

Wow, that is crazy. My mistake, then. I had no idea that could happen. I wonder if there is a way to exploit this?

As for Ralof, I have considered reverse pickpocketing one onto him.

Nope, I'm on PC. Wish I could say how long it's been since I cleared out Helgen the first time...certainly more than 30 in-game days, at least.

FWIW, the respawn I saw in Helgen was only partial as far as I could tell. Only one bandit respawned...or maybe it was one I somehow missed on my first pass through, although that seems unlikely. (I'm usually very thorough.) I didn't think to check containers, etc. to see if they'd respawned as well. The mead however did respawn, along with random, "loose" loot scattered around on the tables. Coin purse, a potion or two, etc. There were five bottles on the floor and three bottles (drank the other two ) I'd already collected ages ago, sitting in a chest back in Breezehome.

Could be a bug. Could be weirdness caused by various patches going in between when I first picked up that mead and now. (As I said, it was either on 1.3 or 1.4...and the game is now on 1.5; patching has caused some hinky respawn and scripting glitches before, although they usually sort themselves after 72 in-game hours.) Or it could be that the wikis are wrong and those bottles are set to respawn along with the rest of the "loose" loot in Helgen.

If I had the energy I'd download the CK and nose around to see if I could see if they're indeed flagged to respawn. But I'm half-asleep at the keyboard, so that's not going to happen. Maybe somebody who already has it installed would be willing to take a look.

Edit: On checking the UESPwiki, it looks like only Helgen Keep, which is an interior cell, has been specifically tested and verified for safe storage/no respawning containers. The exterior Helgen cell hasn't been verified in the same way as far as I can tell. It's possible someone mistakenly thought the exterior was set the same way as Helgen Keep when it really isn't.

Interesting.

That's also interesting that the Keep is safe. I could've sworn stuff had respawned inside on my first character when I went back and I thought the bandits had respawned once after I cleared the place, but the wikis are a better source than my recollection.

All I know is that I started these test games, noticed there were none on the floor during the attacks. I ran to whiterun, waited a month, traveled back. Bandits. No mead.

Tyraa - also weird that you mentioned coin purses and potions.

None exist in Helgen exterior.

Tyraa - if you check back, could you please tell me if you checked this out, to see if they are supposed to respawn (you mentioned checking, but being too tired)?

If anyone else on PC could check in the meantime, it would be deeply appreciated.

I just checked in the Creation Kit; they are indeed set to respawn.

THANKS!

Could someone let me know the standard approach for respawning / resetting cells?

What is the best way to go about waiting for something to respawn that you want to see respawn?

30 days away from the cell? Fast travel?

Some do, actually. A few appear on a table on the floor below where you'd find the juniper berry mead. I don't think they're there in the intro; presumably the bandits who occupy Helgen later on are the ones who put them there.


Thanks for verifying that one for us.

@ Bleakwail - cell reset time seems to vary wildly in Skyrim...I've heard 72 hours, 2 weeks (or maybe it was 10 days), and 30 days. Your best bet to ensure that the cell has reset is to wait for 30 days. You can fast travel to another cell and wait there for the whole 30 days, but that's pretty dull although slightly more efficient. Another alternative is simply to go adventuring elsewhere and then return to Helgen (either via fast travel or hoofing it; shouldn't matter) after the 30 days have passed.

I had a character collecting mead/ale/etc. and I wanted some of these also. I had to post here before someone pointed out to me that the bottles only spawn in the upper floor of the inn. You have to go back into the tower and jump through the hole like you did in the intro. There should be about 5 bottles there.

I do wish they were labeled differently though. On the shelf they just look like a regular Ale bottle.

You must stay completely out of the cell for respawn. Reenter the cell before respawn and you reset the timer. I thought it was 10 in-game days for the world and 30 for interior cells but I really don't know.

Another respawn issue, and this is more of a question than a theory: Do items respawn only if they have left the default spawn point? Does an item that was never moved "refresh" after a respawn cycle? What I am getting at is this: Say the bottles were knocked off the table and clipped into the floor. They might still be right there even if you cannot reach/see them. In that case, would they ever respawn?

Just as an update, Tyraa was absolutely correct.

They are guaranteed to respawn.

Just to make sure that I had waited long enough, I waited 35 days on the calendar in Whiterun.

Upon returning, all 5 bottles were there, exactly where they were supposed to be.

I noticed that you have to return to Helgen once, then leave, and come back after a 2nd reset for the bandits to appear.

Skooma, to answer your question,, yes I believe that items will respawn even if they were clipped into the floor, walls, etc.

On my test game, only 2 bottles of juniper mead were visible during the attack on Helgen.

after reset, they were all visible.

I believe the respawn/cell reset fixes placement.

Sweet. I have to collect them now, too.

...and you just Waited in Whiterun for 35 days? What did you do? ...have a Staycation? You're the laziest Dragonborn ever.

Man... my houses are so cluttered already and now I need to hike up to Helgen for these bottles.

LOL yeah. I just stood next to the Jarl in Whiterun and waited.

Skooma - I just love them because they are unique.