Daggerfall:Oracle

A noble is prophesied to die.

Location(s):	Any Guildmagister of the Mages Guild
Reward:	Random gold/Nothing
Reputation Gain:	see Reputation Gain/Loss
ID:	n0b21y14
Required Reputation:	21 reputation or more
Difficulty:	Easy/Hard

The Acolyte of the Oracle wants to see you

Quick WalkthroughEdit

Talk to the Guildmagister at a Mages Guild hall.
Receive a letter from him and read it.
Talk to the Acolyte in a temple in town.
(Option 1) Talk to the noble at their residence in town.
1. Travel to the dungeon the noble mentioned to you.
2. Find and speak with the noble's lover within the dungeon.
(Option 2) Alternatively, meet the Oracle in the town the Acolyte mentioned to you.
1. Talk to the Oracle.
Return to the noble with either the noble's lover or the Oracle.
Talk to the noble within the time limit and receive your reward.

Detailed WalkthroughEdit

The Acolyte's LetterEdit

Speak to the Guildmagister, who says:

"Are you (player's name)? The (player's guild rank)?"

AcceptEdit

The Guildmagister goes on:

"Ah, good. I have a letter for you. Apparently more than simple chance brought you here."

DeclineEdit

The Guildmagister answers:

"Very well, forgive the mistake."

Meeting the AcolyteEdit

Despite his portrait, the Acolyte appears as a pretty lady (see bugs)

You will be given one of two possible letters by the Guildmagister. Read the letter, the contents of the letters are approximately the same. It says the Acolyte of the Oracle is currently in a temple in town and wants to speak to you, before the quest's time limit has expired. Meet him and he will say to you:

"Thank you for coming, (player's first name). The Oracle has foreseen the death of one of the great nobles of (noble's town), the noble (noble's name), and like a pebble in a still pond, (his/her) death will lead to great calamity for (region). I have tried speaking with (him/her), but I am not permitted to enter (his/her) company in (residence). My mistress, the Oracle, intends to come to (noble's town) speak [sic] with (his/her) Grace, and I last heard that she was in (Oracle's town). I am not familiar with these parts, so I don't know how far away that is. I need you to either talk to (noble's name) and convince (him/her) to protect (him/her)- self, or find the Oracle somewhere near (Oracle's town) and bring her to see (him/her). There is precious little time. Please, I beg thee, hurry."

The noble

Afterward, you may speak to the noble if you like. Follow the Acolyte's directions to their location. The noble tells you:

"As I told that blasted Acolyte, I am not interested in hiding my head because some mad old crone had a bad dream about me. As it happens, I am waiting for some word about my love, (lover's name) who was kidnapped. I will listen to (his/her) advice on this matter, but I will not go into hiding while (he/she) remains in danger. I should never have let (him/her) go within a hundred feet of (dungeon) without proper escort, but I will certainly not abandon my love now. There is your answer, (player's guild rank)."

You can proceed with this quest in two ways:

Option 1: Rescue the LoverEdit

The noble's lover

Travel to the dungeon the noble mentioned, and find the lover within. Speak to the lover, who says:

"You've come from (noble's name) to rescue me? (Oath), let us make haste then. I've had a terrible -- and, I fear, prophetic -- dream about (him/her)."

Escort the lover back to the noble:

(Noble's name) and (lover's name) embrace, and then (he/she) pleads that, for the good of all (region), (noble's name) bust go into hiding with (his/her) most trusted guards. At once, (he/she) agrees, but not before giving you (random gold) gold pieces in gratitude for rescuing (his/her) love.

Option 2: Bring the Oracle to the NobleEdit

The Oracle

Travel to the town the Acolyte mentioned and talk to the Oracle, who will be in the local temple there. She says:

"You are (player's name), the (player's race) my Acolyte sent to escort me to (noble's name). I gave my eyes to the gods, you see, and I saw your approach through their eyes. Now, let us hurry to (residence) in (noble's town) before (noble's name)'s fate is set."

Bring the Oracle back to the noble, and witness the following:

The Oracle speaks to (noble's name), and her calm, persuasive tones work their magic. It takes only a few moments for (him/her) to recognize the wisdom in her advice, and (he/she) agrees to go into hiding for a few days for the good of (region). The Oracle thanks you for escorting her and tells you that she will recommend you to the court of Sentinel for your bravery and resourcefulness.

Thus convinced, the noble will then go into hiding. Choosing this path will not get you any material reward, but due to the Oracle's connections will increase your reputation with the Kingdom of Sentinel.

RewardEdit

When the noble is finally convinced to go into hiding, you receive the following notification from the Guildmagister (probably in your mind):

You are a credit to the guild (player's first name).

Note, you can bring both the lover and the Oracle to the noble. However, you will not receive a gold reward, you will only get the Oracle's reward of reputation with Sentinel.

If the time limit expires before you can convince the noble to go into hiding, your failure is noted with an ominous message:

It is too late. The hour has come when fate has won the war with human will. The wind itself whispers (noble's name) is dead. (Region) will tremble.

Reputation Gain/LossEdit

A successfully completed quest results in a reputation gain according to the table below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Mages Guild	+5
The Mercenary Mages	+5
Associated factions	+2

A failed quest results in a reputation loss according to the table below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Mages Guild	-3
The Mercenary Mages	-3
Associated factions	-2
Oblivion and all associated Daedra Princes	+1
Sheogorath	-1
The Night Mother	+1
The Dark Brotherhood and its associated factions	+1
Ebonarm	-1
The Order of Arkay and its associated factions	-1
The Benevolence of Mara and its associated factions	-1
The Akatosh Chantry and its associated factions	-1
The School of Julianos and its associated factions	+1
The House of Dibella and its associated factions	-1
The Temple of Stendarr and its associated factions	+1
The Thieves Guild and its associated factions	+1
Random Ruler	-1
Daggerfall and its associated factions	-1
Sentinel and its associated factions	-1
Wayrest and its associated factions	-1
The King of Worms and The Necromancers	-1
The Underking and his agents	-1
Orsinium and its associated factions	-1
The Glenmoril Witches	-1
The Dust Witches	+1
The Daughters of Wroth	+1
The Witches of the Marsh	+1
The Beldama	+1
The Tide Witches	+1
The Merchants	-1
The Bards	-1
The Prostitutes	-1
Wrothgarian Mountains and its associated factions	+1

(Allies/Enemies affiliations for listed factions are not considered.)

Additional ReputationEdit

If the Oracle convinced the noble to go into hiding, you will gain additional reputation as seen below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Sentinel	+10
Queen Akorithi	+10
Associated Factions	+5

(Allies/Enemies affiliations for listed factions are not considered in the tables)

EnemiesEdit

Random dungeon monsters

NotesEdit

The town where you start this quest must have at least one temple or knightly order for the quest to work.
Although the Oracle is an ally of Queen Akorithi, you will not get any reputation with her or the Acolyte in the event that you gain reputation with Sentinel and Akorithi.

BugsEdit

The Acolyte incorrectly uses the flat with an index of 19, which is a female sprite. The correct flat has an index of 20. Some unofficial patches change this to allow the Acolyte to display properly.

The Acolyte's correct flat

LettersEdit

The initial letter from the Acolyte can appear with either of two texts. The quest will proceed the same no matter which letter you receive.

(Temple) (Temple town) Dear (player's name), Far have I come to speak with you on behalf of the Oracle, the wise woman of Hammerfell. The Archmagister of the Mages Guild has spoken highly of you as an honorable and talented caster of magicka. Please come meet with me as soon as possible; time is a circumscribed commodity. Without your help, the Oracle's dark prophesy will come to pass in (time limit) days, and all (region) will weep. I must see you soon. Yours cordially, The Acolyte

(Temple) (Temple town) Dear (player's name), It is imperative that I speak with you as soon as possible. I represent the Oracle of Hammerfell. For the next several days I will be staying at (temple). There are but (time limit) days before the future is irrevocably set, so I must see you soon. This matter is grave indeed. Please do not fail to meet me. The Acolyte

Additional DialogueEdit

If you ask an NPC about the Oracle, they may say:

"The Oracle has no eyes but she is said to be the wisest woman in Tamriel."
"The Oracle has traditionally been the counselor to the monarchs of Sentinel."
"The Oracle advised King Cameron against warring with Daggerfall."
"King Cameron didn't the Oracle's advice against warring with Daggerfall."
"The Oracle knew that Sentinel would lose the war with Daggerfall."
"If Cameron of Sentinel had listened to the Oracle, he'd be alive today."

If you ask an NPC about the Acolyte, they may say:

"The Acolyte was said to be nobleman before he became the Oracle's disciple."
"The Acolyte does all of the Oracle's footwork. Understandable at her age."
"The Acolyte used to be a nobleman, but he is devoted to serving the Oracle."
"The Acolyte is that (acolyte's description) down at (temple)."
"The Acolyte has been the Oracle's servant for years, since he was very young."
"When the Oracle gives the Acolyte his prophesy, he will leave her at last."

After you have accepted this quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

"(Noble's name) is certainly one of the greatest nobles in (region)."
"If anything were to happen to (noble's name), I shudder to think."

If you fail the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

"The stars last night spoke of calamity and death."

If you successfully complete the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

"The stars last night spoke of a disaster narrowly averted."
"The Acolyte passed through town recently. I wonder what he wanted."

Quest LogEdit

Oracle (n0b21y14)
Stage/ Index	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
0		(Date): I got a letter from The Acolyte asking for a meeting. He is staying at (temple) in (temple town).
1		(Date): The Acolyte told me that he is attempting to convince (noble's name), to leave (residence) lest (he/she) die and by dying, bring calamity to all (region). I have been asked either to speak with (noble's name) myself or go to (Oracle's town) to escort the Oracle, the Acolyte's mistress, here. She might be able to convince (noble's name), but, then again, so might I.
2		(Date): (Noble's name) refuses to go into hiding until (he/she) knows that (his/her) love, (lover's name), has been freed from (his/her) kidnappers. If I rescued (him/her) from (dungeon), (noble's name) might listen to reason.

UESPWiki β