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Key Takeaway
You can get Clay from deposits, which are scattered all over Skyrim. You can mine the Clay with a pickaxe.
Constructing homes or other objects is a big part of Skyrim. If you’re looking to take advantage of the building opportunities, you’ll need to know where to get Clay, as it’s needed to make walls, planters, and more.
What Clay is Used For
Clay is used primarily to construct parts of houses, though this is not its only use. The following is a full list of what you need Clay to build:
- Planters
- Shrine Base
- Smelter
- Trophy Base
- Walls
Where to Get Clay
Note that to get Clay, you’ll need to mine it yourself. This means that you will need to have a Pickaxe, which you can buy from most blacksmiths or find in mines. There are numerous places you can mine Clay in Skyrim. The following is a full list of all the Clay deposit locations you can do this from:
Homestead Deposits
- Heljarchen Hall
- Lakeview Manor
- Windstad Manor
Other Deposits
- Bleakwind Basin: west of Whiterun, north of bonfire near the pond.
- Brandy-Mug Farm: just to the north along the river.
- Brittleshin Pass South: south from the entrance, at a short wooden pier, turn east and follow the shore.
- Bruca’s Leap Redoubt: southwest from the main entrance on the other side of the riverbank.
- Druadach Redoubt: leave camp from the north, go past the bear trap then cross to the north side of the river at the base of the waterfall.
- Guardian Stones: across the river, northwest from hunter’s camp.
- Ilinalta Fisherman: by the trail leading to the camp.
- Ivarstead: go out the north exit until the edge of the river, in between two waterfalls.
- Kolskeggr Mine: from Pavo’s house go northeast until the second tree on the right is reached, and the deposit will be across the river on the right.
- Largashbur: below the bridge separating Largashbur and the lake.
- Lost Valley Redoubt: below Forsworn camp, there is a lake in front of the waterfall, and the deposit will be north of this.
- Mara’s Eye Pond: west shore.
- Merryfair Farm: southwest of the fence, along the shore, between the cliffs.
- Nightgate Inn: on the banks of the pond behind the Inn.
- Riften: exit to the southwest between Mistveil Keep and the orphanage, then make an immediate right turn, follow the wall to the lake, and jump the three rocks.
- Riverwood: go towards the log mill, follow rapids upstream, and find the deposit before the falls.
- Robber’s Gorge: head west, and find the deposit south of some standing stones, along the shore.
- Treva’s Watch: across the river to the south.
- Valtheim Towers: north side of the river, west of the bridge.
- Along a river between Sky Haven Temple and Reachwater Rock.
- South of Nilheim, along the water.
- Southeast of the Old Hroldan Inn, near the river.
- West of Karthspire, along a river.
Stephanie is a long-time lover of video games—specifically JRPGs. Anything in the fantasy genre is her jam, and she vows to bring back The Legend of Dragoon one day. Stephanie has also worked as an editor at TheGamer and published features for NME.
Game Trivia
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Did you know the word "Dovakiin" does not mean dragonborn. It really means Dragon Kind Hunter Born?
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At the Falkreath homestead, clay is found to your right when you leave the house near the horse stable where 3 trees make a triangle. The clay looks like an ore vein, and it is brownish in color. The quarried stone is at the mountain to the left of the drafting table near the smelter (if you built one), its bluish grey in color and isn't large compare to a normal ore vein.At the Morthal homestead, clay is found about the same distance from your front door as Falkreath; and is near the back of the horse stable. The quarried stone is next to your carpenter's table.At the Dawnstar homestead, clay is found just north of the log pile. Quarried stone is to the right of the workbench and before the smelter (if you have built one).There are other locations you can mine clay and quarried stone, I'll list them below.Quarried StoneMorthal - Behind the porch of the Guardhouse next to a Swamp Fungal Pod.Half-Moon Mill - East, behind the uncut lumber pile.Dragon Bridge - Left of the Dragon Bridge Lumber Camp (office). ClayDruadach Redoubt - Just across the river.Guardian Stones - Directly across the river, Northwest, from a Hunter's camp.Ivarstead - South of the bridge, along the river before the large waterfall.Mara's Eye Pond - west shore, even with the island.
Valtheim Towers - Under the bridge on the other side of the river.
Are you wondering where to get Clay in Skyrim? Knowing exactly where to get it can be difficult if you are new to the game or do not know where to look for it. Worry not because we’ve got you covered!
Like straw, clay is an important resource in Skyrim if you want to build your own home. Both of these materials were introduced in Skyrim with the Hearthfire DLC. Clay is not only used to build houses but also to craft Shrine bases, Smelters, Trophy bases, Planters, and Walls.
To get clay in Skyrim, you need to mine the deposits that are found across the entire map. Some of the most notable places where you can find it are Heljarchen Hall, Lakeview Manor, and Windstad Manor.
There are many other locations where you can get clay in Skyrim so if you want to know about them, we’ve listed them in the section below. Plus, if you want to know why is it important to get clay, we’ll talk about that as well. With that said, let’s dive right in and take a look at where to get clay in Skyrim and what it’s used for.
As aforementioned, you can find clay at tons of deposits that can be found across the map of Skyrim. If you do not know where these deposits are located, we’ve listed down all the places where you can get it so that you don’t aimlessly roam around in hopes of finding clay.
Finding clay can be an annoying task. Plus, mining it can take some time depending on how much quantity you want – which can be quite frustrating to deal with since it is an important resource. However, once you find the deposits, you can mine away all the clay until you have the required quantity needed to build your house. We’ve divided this list into two parts since you can find clay deposits in a few homesteads as well as random areas as well.
Homestead Deposits
The good thing is that you can find clay deposits near the three most notable homestead locations. This is especially useful since you will have a free deposit next to your land after purchasing it. You’ll be able to easily mine it and continue building the house of your dreams.
Heljarchen Hall
Once you find or purchase this homestead, you can find the clay deposit behind the stable that can be found to the right of the main hall. The deposit is quite difficult to miss if you know where you’re looking for.
In case you do not know what the clay deposits look like, they have a brown smudge-like appearance. You will want to use a pickaxe to mine clay so make sure that you bring that with you. Plus, each deposit gives you almost 4000 clay, so, you’ll have a good amount to build your home.
Lakeview Manor
After you are at this location, go to the front door and look for the three trees that are close together. Right next to these trees, you will find a clay deposit that you can mine to start building your house at the Lakeview Manor. Again, make sure that you bring a pickaxe with you or you won’t be able to mine it.
Windstad Manor
Finally, you can find the clay deposit in the Windstad Manor north of the wood chopping block. This one can be a bit tricky to find but just head north of the wood chopping block and look towards the east of the log pile that you can find in this area.
Random Deposits
These deposits are found across the map but you will have to know where exactly they are located. The good news is that each of these deposits contains about 4000 clay, so, it should be enough to help you build your home. With that said, here is a list of all the random clay deposits in Skyrim:
- Bleakwind Basin
- Brandy-Mug Farm
- Brittleshin Pass South
- Bruca’s Leap Redoubt
- Druadach Redoubt
- Guardian Stones
- Ilinalta Fisherman
- Ivarstead
- Kolskeggr Mine
- Largashbur
- Lost Valley Redoubt
- Mara’s Eye Pond
- Merryfair Farm
- Nightgate Inn
- Riften
- Riverwood
- Robber’s Gorge
- Treva’s Watch
- Valtheim Towers
- Along a river bank between Sky Haven Temple and Reachwater Rock
- Along the waterside just south of Nilheim
- Southeast of the Old Hroldan Inn
- Along a river bank west of Karthspire
Luckily, these deposits are located across the map. So, you can easily find more clay without having to travel long distances. Make sure that you always get plenty of clay so you don’t have to visit the deposits again and again just to mine more. Some of these locations have more than one clay deposits which is a great thing since you can mine more from one place.
While the usual quantity of these deposits is about 4000 clay before they run out, you can mine an infinite amount of clay. After a deposit has run dry, wait a while for it to fill again before you start mining. However, if you are in quick need of clay, you can always visit the other locations and start mining those deposits.
What is Clay Used For
Now that you know where you can stock up on clay, let’s take a look at what it is used for. Clay was first introduced in the Hearthfire DLC. It allows you to construct your houses if you mix it with stone and other materials. While the entire process of making your own house isn’t that difficult, it can be pretty annoying and tedious all things considered.
On top of that, you can also make Planters with clay so that you can plant various seeds and grow food or other flowers. This will allow you to decorate your house as you see fit without any issues and also harvest your garden to get the resources you need. This is a good way to have rare crops growing right next to your house so that you do not have to constantly look for these materials across the map.
Another useful thing that you can craft using clay is the Trophy base. These bases allow you to display your hard-earned trophies in your house. This will not only enhance the aesthetic of your homestead but also allow you to display your collection of various dragon heads or anything else that you want to show.
Looking for more Skyrim content? Check out these guides:
The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim is available to play on Steam.