Thieves Guild questline for Old Ebonheart

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Rats
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So here it goes. A plan for the Thieves Guild questline in Old Ebonheart, 8 quests in total some of which are a bit longer. This is something I’ve been thinking about for ages, but only now I managed to put it in writing.

To put the whole plot in brief the idea here is that being rather isolated from the rest of Morrowind the Old Ebonheart’s Thieves’ Guild only major adversary is the Delagia’s gang, a bunch of real nasty criminals, who try to gain control over the poor side of town. The Guild is forced to deal with them after they continue harassing people who are under ”Thieves’ Guild’s protection”. This doesn’t happen without violence at which point the townsguard intervenes and locks up the guilds leadership. This ties into the planned TG main plotline (Camonna Tong v. the Guild) as a cautionary example on how *not* to do a gang war. The player’s job is to recover the Death Mask of Empress Katariah to ransom the leadership out of jail. The player will also have a rival character within the Guild with whom they will interact in 3 of the 8 quests.

The TG NPCs the player meets are Cap’n Fentus, the leader; Wry-Eye Moranie, Fentus’ right hand woman; Antio Florane, a boastful tomb raider and the player’s rival; and Yggulf the Mute, the guy who doesn’t talk much but sells lockpicks.

This is obviously a wall of text, so take your time. I hope it’s worth it, but I apologize nonetheless.
 
TR_m3_TG_Fentus1 ”The Eye of Argonia”
Summary: The player gets tested by Cap’n Fentus as he sends the player chasing a non-existent artifact.

After joining the Thieves Guild by talking to Cap’n Fentus in the Empress Katariah Inn, the player is now ready for their first mission. And what a mission it is! Cap’n Fentus tells the player a story about the legendary artifact, ”the Eye of Argonia”, that has found its way to Old Ebonheart being held aboard the Imperial warship ”Princess Morgiah”. Fentus tells the player that the ship’s first mate, Ephaie Calicca, has been charged with keeping the Eye safe under strict orders not to give it to anyone who doesn’t know a secret code phrase. Luckily enough Cap’n Fentus claims he happens to know the phrase: ”Scurvy mudcrab.” He tells the player to get themselves aboard the warship, present themselves as a representative of the Imperial government and use to code phrase to convince Calicca to give the Eye to the player.
If, at this point, the player talks with the other Guild members about the Eye of Argonia they *might* reveal that Cap’n Fentus is in fact fooling the player – the Eye is an inside joke among treasure hunters and something that likely doesn’t even exist. The whole thing is just the Cap’n’s way of testing to see if the player can handle a tricky situation. Player can then confront Cap’n Fentus who admits everything and congratulates the player for thinking before acting – though he admits dissappointment over the fact that it would’ve probably made a good story.

[At the moment entry to the Imperial warship is not restricted in any way, but the quest maker might want to make some changes to that, e.g. place a guard on near the gang plank asking why the player is trying to get aboard]

If the player find the first mate who supposedly has the Eye of Argonia and says the ”code phrase” they will of course get a confused/angry response. If they keep on saying the phrase instead of giving up, the encounter can potentially get them into trouble, for example jailed. (Revealing that Cap’n Fentus sent you on the other hand might yield an amused response as Ephaie Calicca and Cap’n Fentus are old acquaintances). The player can either give up midway and return to Fentus at which point he will reveal the that the whole thing was a just a test, or press on with the ”code phrase” and deal with the consequences after which they will return to Cap’n Fentus empty-handed. Either way Cap’n Fentus will be most amused revealing the whole thing was just a test and gives the player the skill book ”Smuggler’s Island” (as the player appears to be a fan of fiction) as a reward. If the player managed to get a (reasonably sized) bounty on their head during this wild goose chase Cap’n Fentus will clear it for free (saying that he and first mate Calicca are good friends who go way back). Mission passed.

This quest is meant to establish Cap’n Fentus as a whimsical sort of character who’s all about high risk, high reward and above all a good story. It’s also meant to make clear to the player that in OE people will lie and cheat.
 
TR_m3_TG_Fentus2 ”High-Flying Plans”
Summary: Player is tasked with robbing Dwemer schematics from the Imperial Navy, moving unseen in the sewers

This time Fentus sends the player on a real job. He has been looking for schematics of a Dwemer airship (”for a personal project”) and has heard that the Imperial Navy has such plans kept in their Command Post by the docks. Gaining access to the place where the plans are will be difficult though. The entrance to the Command Post Tower’s workshop where the plans are is locked and a guard is keeping watch at the doors. The player can of course try their luck sneaking in through the front door and picking the lock, but Fentus suggest the player use an alternative route. It’s time the player learned about the very useful sewer system that runs underneath Old Ebonheart, through which one can access places they’re not meant to. Fentus tells the player that if they enter the sewers through a grate in the docks they should easily be able to find an entrance to the Navy Command Post’s restricted area. Cap’n Fentus might even provide the player with a map of the general layout of the sewers for future use. After gaining access to the Navy Command Post the airship plans aren’t that difficult to find. The player just needs to enter through an unlocked door into the workshop place and be careful not get caught stealing the plans by the one person working there.

The player then returns to Fentus with the plans. Cap’n Fentus is extremely thankful for the plans and rewards the player with a key to Hhontjulf Fire-Mane’s house. Fire-Mane is a local Nord who is often away on lengthy hunting trips. During those trips he keeps his doors locked, but luckily Fentus has managed to get his spare key. Player can now go an freely loot his house. [Hhontjulf as an NPC doesn’t exist atm, but the quest maker might want to add a scripted event where he can suddenly return home to interrupt the looting]
Dwemer airship plans are rather rare in Morrowind (less than ten instances exist), but if the player has found plans someplace else they can of course give them to Fentus. If the player asks about the Cap’n ”personal project” from other guild members they will explain that Fentus used to have a boat until it got destroyed falling down a waterfall – now he’s apparently planning on building a ship that can not fall.

The purpose of this quest is to introduce the player to the sewers – a whole new explorable area and a useful way of moving around the city unseen.
 

TR_m3_TG_Moranie1 ”Facing Eviction”
Summary: Player helps a poor commoner settle her debts with a gang of loansharks

Next the player is directed to Wry-Eye Moranie, Fentus’ ”first mate”, for some pressing matters. Moranie explains to the player that even though she’s a thief she also cares for her city, a rare sanctuary in Morrowind, and for the well-being of its people. Sometimes, she tells, the Guild tries to help the more vulnerable members of the community on the poor side of town. Now it’s one of such times.

The Guild has criminal competition in Old Ebonheart in the form of Delagia’s gang – a gang originally from Cyrodiil who have found their successful business model in loansharking, extortion and murder. The gang also owns many of the properties where the poor people of OE live. Now one of their tenants, Nelara, has contacted the Thieves’ Guild for help. Nelara hasn’t been able to pay her rent and is facing eviction. What is more she actually owes a lot of money to the gang due to loaning money from them for the rent. Nelara fears not only about losing her home but fears for her life too. Moranie tells the player to find a way to help her. She warns the player that the Delagia’s gang are not nice people and that they are likely to get violent if rubbed the wrong way. She also stresses the fact that at no point should the player tell the gang members they’re part of the Thieves Guild as that would probably end in violence.

Player goes to Nelara to get a better picture of the situation. Nelara tells them that in total she owes 1,500 septims to the Delagia’s gang. She has little to no income, so she hasn’t got any way of ever repaying that kind of debt. After that the player goes to Otrebus Delagia’s house and talk with Medemilian Rane, the gang’s accounts manager, to find a way to settle Nelara’s debt. There are two ways to do this. The player can either volunteer to pay the sum of 1,500 septims themselves, or ask for an alternative method of settling the debt. In the case that the player wants to pay the debt Medemilian Rane will mock the player for acting like a ”knight in shining armor” and after the player has paid the 1,500 septims he says that the debt is still not settled because it has grown interest the whole time – another 1,500 septims. The player can solve this by paying again (and maybe lowering the price after a successful Speechcraft check) or asking for another method of settling the debt. The alternative method is that the player does a little job for the Delagia’s gang. Rane tells the player that he has some paperwork to do for which a signet ring of Merxia Vendicci, the head of the East Empire Company, is required. He happens to know that Vendicci keeps a spare signet ring in her dressing room and that that room can be entered unseen from the rooftop. Rane says he believes that the player can find a way to get to the roof – he might even suggest trying to get there from the neighboring Grand Chapel of Talos. Sure enough player finds the signet ring in the dressing room.

After the player returns with it, Medemilian Rane declares that Nelara’s debt is cleared. He will tell the player that they should come work for the Delagia’s gang – they could really use an efficient person like the player. Regardless whether or not the player says yes Medemilian Rane will ask the player to come back later for some work.

Nelara will be grateful to hear that her debt is settled. She says she has nothing to offer as a reward, but says she’ll remember this act of kindness forever. She also tells the player to ”send her thanks to her highness”, meaning Moranie. If asked what she means by that she says it’s ”nothing”. Wry-Eye Moranie will be pleased to hear that the player managed to help Nelara. She says that it’s likely the Guild will have to deal with the Delagia’s gang at some point, but that things are fine for the time being. She gives the player a Scroll of Ekash’s Locksplitter as a reward. If the player mentions Nelara calling Moranie ”her highness” she will dismiss it by blaming it on the inn’s name, the Empress Katariah, on it (”Nelara probably though she was being witty.”).

The purpose of this quest is to introduce the Delagia’s gang as the bad guys as well as hint at the final quest of the OE chapter and the fact that Moranie is descended from Empress Katariah Septim.

TR_m3_TG_Fentus3 ”Thieving Rivalry”
Summary: Player is sent to retrieve an item in an ancestral tomb that another thief is trying to steal too

The player receives their next job from Fentus. He sends the player to retrieve the Ice Ward of St. Felms, a prized helmet, from an ancestral tomb on a nearby island in the Thirr delta (TR_i4-512-Hla – the helmet is really uber atm, could use nerfing). There’s a slight catch however. Fentus says he accidentally gave away the location the of the helmet and the fact he was sending the player fetch it to Antio Florane, a fellow guild member. Florane, who believes himself to be the greatest thief and treasure hunter that ever lived and who’s obsessed with one-upmanship (like an asshole version of Indiana Jones), decided to beat the player to retrieving the helmet.

Fentus says that if the player moves fast they might have a chance to get to the Helmet before Florane does. Besides, he says, the tomb might be dangerous so it’s better that he’s not alone there. Indeed, when player gets to the tomb’s entrance they are greeted by boastful Florane who mocks them for being slow. He claims that he has already claimed the treasure and says he’s heading back to give it to Fentus. He declares himself winner of the ”competition” and says that the player is free to search for whatever is left in the tomb or just give up and return to Old Ebonheart. If the player asks to see the Ice Ward of St. Felms, Florane will rudely decline.

If the player enters and explores the tomb thoroughly they will find out that Florane has in fact found the wrong helmet. The Ice Ward of St. Felms is in the final chamber of the tomb, behind a level 100 lock (the Locksplitter scroll reward from the earlier quest comes in handy). They return with the Ice Ward and give it to Fentus. Antio Florane doesn’t seem to be embarrassed at all by his mistake, instead he refuses to acknowledge it (”Well, I guess they had made two Ice Wards of St. Felms… Lucky for you. Who knew those ancient Dark Elves had two heads?”). Cap’n Fentus gives the player a map of the waterways near Old Ebonheart in which the locations of several interesting shipwrecks – including the sunken warship Prince Helseth – a marked.

[If the player doesn’t find the helmet or gives up without even trying and returns to Fentus the quest will end. People will accept the helmet that Antio Florane found is the real Ice Ward of St. Felms]

The purpose of this quest is to establish Antio Florane as a back-stabber who will most likely get what’s coming to him at some point.

TR_m3_TG_Fentus4 ”A Message From Mister Delagia”
Summary: The Thieves Guild’s local rival gang sends the guild a threatening message by killing their mark

Cap’n Fentus has had a lead that a wealthy silk merchant from Nibenay has just arrived in Old Ebonheart bringing with him a number of priceless moth-silk bolts. Fentus wants the player to steal these bolts. Fentus’ has heard rumours that the merchant is staying in a room in the Salty Futtocks inn. He warns the player to be extra careful. The inn is actually owned by Otrebus Delagia and his gang, so the player is walking on ”enemy territory”.

After asking in which room the merchant is staying the player can either bribe the bartender to give them the key to the merchant’s room or lockpick their way in. Upon entering the room the player is greeted by a nasty sight: the silk merchant has been brutally murdered. There are bolts of moth-silk lying scattered around the room some ruined by blood. The player takes their leave. At the door they are stopped by the bartender who asks them if everything’s ok. The player can either tell of the body (which is unwise, since they would be the main suspect and it would result in a bounty) or lie that everything’s fine. The bartender will then say that he was told to give a note to anyone who came to see the silk merchant. He hands the player the note, which says ”Mister Delagia sends his regards.”

The player will exit the inn and return back to Cap’n Fentus to report what has happened. After seeing the note given to the player Cap’n tells them that this is the only warning the Guild will get and that they will have to act fast. If the player brought any of the moth-silk bolts with them the Cap’n will ask them to just throw them away as he doesn’t want them anymore. He’ll pay some gold as a compensation. Fentus will tell ask the player to speak with Wry-Eye Moranie as she has some news.
 
TR_m3_TG_Moranie2 ”Infiltrating the Gang”
Summary: Player is tasked with infiltrating the rival gang to help a kidnapped associate escape and put an end to the gang’s activities

It has come to Moranie’s attention that Thargus Caerio, an associate of the Guild, has been kidnapped by the Delagia’s gang and is being interrogated for information regarding the guild. She wants the player to infiltrate the gang so they can find out where Caerio is being kept and free him. Being the newest addition to the Thieves Guild in Old Ebonheart there’s a change that the player’s cover isn’t immediately blown. In addition the player has been previously offered a job by the gang so they are the most logical choice for the infiltration. Wry-Eye Moranie reminds the player that though the Guild does not condone killing while on the job, self-defence is permitted, as she fears that this time bloodshed might not be avoided.

Since the player was offered a job by Medemilian Rane during their previous encounter with the gang it’s natural to go to see him about that offer. Medemilian Rane welcomes the player to the gang. He says that the player’s first orders will come from him and that they don’t get to see the boss until maybe later. Asking about Thargus Caerio at this point will only yield an angry response not ask questions. If the player skipped the previous task of stealing Merxia Vendicci’s signet ring, that’s the first task Rane sends them out to do.

For another job Medemilian Rane tells the player to find S’varr, a Khajiit who owes money to the gang, who is hiding somewhere in the city. He tells the player that the cat’s time is up and it’s time for S’varr face the consequences—Rane wants the player to kill S’varr. S’varr can be found hiding behind his house. The Khajiit begs for his life. If the player decides to kill him S’varr will fight back (not to cause the player to get a bounty). However, the player can also tell S’varr that he is wanted dead and that he should skip town. Grateful, S’varr gives the player an amulet that they can show as proof that he is ”dead”. However, this planning is interrupted by Norri the Crow, one of Delagia’s enforcers, who has followed the player. He means to kill the Khajiit and asks the player to either help him or get out of his way – both of these options result in Norri attacking and killing S’varr. The player can also choose to stop him in which case Norri will attack them. In any case, this confrontation will end with either S’varr [1] or Norri [2] dead.

[1] If S’varr (or both S’varr AND Norri) is killed the player can return to Otrebus Delagia’s house where Medemilian Rane pays them a small amount of gold for their efforts and informs them that mister Otrebus Delagia himself wants to see them. The player will then head upstairs and meet Delagia. At first Delagia will be seemingly friendly, telling the player that his small organization is always looking for new talents and that the player has chosen wisely to join his gang. However, he will then reveal that he knows that the player is affiliated with the Thieves Guild. He says that from Thargus Caerio, who he reveals is kept locked in the attic, he has also learned that the Thieves Guild in Old Ebonheart are led by a person named Raathim. Now he wants the player to tell him where the guild chapter is and who its members are. The player has already killed someone, he argues, so what’s a little more blood on their hands going to hurt. The player can either tell him or decline. If the player tells him what they know (everything except the Raathim bit) Delagia will be pleased telling the player that the guild members that will soon be dealt with. He will then say that the player won’t be around to see it and attack the player. Both of Delagia’s enforcers (Norri the Crow, if he’s alive, and Gura gra-Lagrob) downstairs will also have their AIs set to hostile, while Medemilian Rane disappears from the scene. Declining to tell give any information about the guild will result in a similar attack.

[2] If Norri is killed S’varr will thank the player for saving his life. However, he warns the player that the gang must quickly realize that something’s when Norri isn’t coming back and then deduce that the player has been involved. He suggests that instead of reporting back to Medemilian Rane as if everything was normal, the player should try to gain access to the upper floor of Delagia’s house from the balcony door. The balcony can be reached obviously with levitation magic but also from the small alley behind the house; there’s a ladder that leads onto a series of wooden beams and planks from which the player could jump on the roof from there make their way to the balcony. A little bit of acrobatics, S’varr thinks, may be worth it: it would allow the player to pass the remaining gang members unseen and confront Delagia. Alternatively the player can return to Otrebus Delagia’s house normally and falsely inform Medemilian Rane that S’varr has been dealt with. An encounter similar to the one in option [1] with Otrebus Delagia will follow ending with Delagia attacking the player.

After dealing with Delagia and what’s left of his gang (except for Medemilian Rane who has legged it) the player gets up to the attic to find Thargus Caerio alive but severely shaken by his captivity. He manages to thank the player for rescuing him and follows them outside.

Depending on whether or not S’varr got killed during the infiltration Wry-Eye Moranie’s reaction to the news of Thargus Caerio being rescued and Delagia’s gang being dealt with will differ greatly.

If S’varr is still alive she will congratulate the player for defending him. She will be relieved to hear that the Delagia’s gang is a threat no more, and understands that the player acted in self-defence. She tells the player that they should not feel guilty for what has happened; they were simply protecting themselves and the people of Old Ebonheart from a villain who was not going to yield. The player can ask her about the thing Otrebus Delagia mentioned earlier, the guild being led by a person named ”Raathim”. At first she shrugs it off as nonsense, but if pressed more about the topic she will say that the Raathim are an ancient noble family of Old Ebonheart and that some folk in the poor side of town hold the belief that the Thieves Guild is actually led by a Raathim descendant. To end the discussion she will then ask the player to judge from themselves whether or not they think Cap’n Fentus looks like he could come from an ancient line of kings. She will then give the player an enchanted shirt, Shirt of Many Pockets, with a constant Feather effect.

However the player will get no praise from her if S’varr was killed during the infiltration. She will be equally disgusted by S’varr’s death whether the player killed him (”You went too far. You were only meant to infiltrate the gang, not become one of them”) or if the player stood back and allowed Norri to kill him (”Oh, you just watched? You *just* watched?”). Player will get no reward from this outcome and Moranie will not be answering any of the questions the player might have after the quest. She tells them to get out of her sight.

TR_m3_TG_Fentus5 ”Why did it have to be Spiders?”
Summary: With the rival gang gone, the player is tasked with rescuing the thief who previously tried to one-up them from a tight spot

Cap’n Fentus has a job for the player. During the Guilds troubles with the Delagia’s gang the legendary tomb raider Antio Florane has been dungeoneering around the world. Now the Cap’n is starting to worry about him. Last time he was heard of he was heading to the Dwemer ruin of Bthung, just northeast of Old Ebonheart, in search lost Dwarven artifacts. Cap’n Fentus wants the player to see if something has happened to Antio.

The player heads to Bthung and enters the ruin. The ruin, they find, is filled with little Centurion Spiders guarding it. In the first level there’s a room filled with such automatons. After killing the spiders they hear Antio’s voice, but the man himself is nowhere to be seen. Turns out the sound is coming from inside one of the metal barrels inside the room. Antio explains to the player that they simply hate spiders and climbed into the barrel to get away from them. In Antio’s telling what was clearly done in a moment of panic is painted as a daring leap into safety. There’s one small hiccup, though. Now he’s stuck inside the barrel and can’t move let alone get out.

Antio asks the player to find a hammer or an axe with which to break the barrel and free him. If the player has an axe or a blunt weapon at hand they can use that, otherwise they will have to search the ruin for a one. Depending on players skill and luck it will take a few swings to break the barrel and release Antio. Might be fun to have the player which one of the barrels is the right one with Antio sarcastically commenting after each empty barrel is destroyed. With bad luck it’s possible to hurt him a little in the process.

After getting out of the barrel instead of being grateful Antio will scold the player for taking their time to find him and say that this is the last time he’ll take the player on an adventure with him. He says that he’ll see the player back in the Empress Katariah.
Returning back to Old Ebonheart will trigger the next quest, An Empress’ Ransom, because when the player enters the inn they find that the guild members have disappeared.

TR_m3_TG_Moranie3 ”An Empress’ Ransom”
Summary: Previous deeds return to haunt the Guild as the leadership gets jailed; the player is tasked with finding an artifact that could be use as ransom; the annoying one-up thief returns for the one final time

When player returns to the Empress Katariah there’s no one to be seen. The publican Naamalvu Erendi is missing, the one patron who wasn’t a thief Three-Scales is missing and Moranie, Cap’n Fentus and Yggulf the Mute are all gone. The player finds a note on the floor which says ”%PCName, go to top floor, the door to your right, cross the skywalk, down the spiral stairs and down the hatch. -Y.” and a small key. Following the instructions the player will find a secret trap door in the inn leading the a Thieves Guild hideout in the sewers. There they will find the badly shaken Naamalvu Erendi, Three-Scales and Yggulf the Mute who, for the first time ever, is not silent. He yells and curses at the Guild’s misfortune.

Yggulf explains to the player that while they were out finding Antio Floraine the inn was raided by the guards. Apparently Medemilian Rane, who escaped the destruction of the Delagia’s gang, had tipped them off. Normally, the guards wouldn’t bother with the Thieves Guild in such a way, but Rane had presented them with evidence that tied the Guild to several killings, including S’varr/Norri, Otrebus Delagia, Gura gra-Lagrob, and the Nibenese silk merchant. He had given the guards his own eye witness’ testimony about the terrible deeds the Guild had done and presented them with Otrebus Delagia’s journal in which the late crime boss allegedly writes about his fear for his life because of the violent Thieves Guild that’s out to get him. With this evidence the guards came an took everyone except Yggulf who managed to escape.
Wry-Eye Moranie and Cap’n Fentus are jailed in the Legion prison in the Ebon Tower. Yggulf doesn’t know what will become of them, but the future doesn’t look bright: a life sentence in prison could very well be the best-case scenario. Yggulf says that the player should go speak with them. He says that the player has no business going back to the surface. Some of the city guards are still searching for potential Thieves Guild members. Instead the player should use the sewers to access the Legion prison. Yggulf gives the player a common robe and tells them to tell the jailors that they are a priest come to talk with the prisoners. He warns the player not to get themselves arrested too – it would foil any hopes of getting Moranie and Fentus out.

Player makes their way to the Ebon Tower prison and find Fentus and Moranie in a cell that’s under constant guard. Under the pretence of being a priest or by using bribery/persuasion the player gets to talk with them. Cap’n Fentus is rather grim, but Moranie thinks they might have one way of getting out. She knows that one thing the Imperial government in Old Ebonheart will value more than keeping couple of old thieves jailed over a bunch of messy killings is its keeping up its image. Moranie explains that she knows where to find the hidden tomb of the celebrated Empress Katariah where her priceless death mask is kept. She tells the player that she is one of Katariah’s descendants, a member of the ancient House Raathim. If she had the death mask of her ancestor it could be used to ransom both herself and Cap’n Fentus – the Imperial government in Old Ebonheart couldn’t say no to such an iconic artifact, nor would they dare risking the public outcry that would result from keeping the Empress’ descendant jailed based on relatively shaky evidence. The only problem is, she says, that the tomb is cursed. Only a true member of the Raathim blood can enter. Anyone else will be killed by the guardian placed at the tomb’s entrance. Moranie then takes a deep breath and plucks her eye, the one that is blind, out and gives it to the player. It’s enchanted, she explains, but it has her blood nonetheless. She thinks that if the player carries that eye with them the tomb’s guardian might let them through. Moranie will then instruct the player to go to the sewers underneath the Grand Chapel of Talos and find an empty-looking tomb with the Wolf Banner. There’s a hidden switch on the wall with which the way will be opened. She tells the player to find the Death Mask of Empress Katariah and bring it back to her.

Player does as they are told and finds the tombs entrance. Sure enough, the stone statue guarding a gate to the Raathim ancestral tomb allows the player to enter the tomb if they are carrying Moranie’s eye (otherwise they will get blasted with powerful destruction spells). After a little searching the player should find the Empress’ tomb and inside it the death mask. However, when the player picks it up they’re a greeted by Antio Floraine who has been following them in their footsteps. A gate rises from the ground trapping the player with Floraine on the other side. He thanks the player for making it possible for him to enter the tomb – he says he wouldn’t have gotten pass the guardian statue if it wasn’t for the player. He commands the player to hand over the Death Mask of Empress Katariah in exchange for pulling a lever to open the gate and free the player. If the player tries to explain to him why it’s important to take the mask to Moranie and Fentus, Floraine will say that while it’s tragic that they’re in jail it’s their own damn fault. Good thieves like me, Floraine argues, know better not to get caught. The player can refuse to give the mask in which case Floraine will simply stand and wait for them to change their mind (incidentally, the Tomb of the Empress is one of those places in which teleporting doesn’t work). When the player finally gives up and gives Floraine the mask he run away while staying true to his word and freeing the player. The player can chase after him, but it’s no use. However, when the player arrives at the ancestral tomb’s main entrance they witness Floraine getting killed by the spell of the guardian statue – now that Floraine wasn’t near the player and Moranie’s eye the guardian interpreted him as a hostile. The player can then collect the death mask from Floraine’s corpse.

After exiting from the tomb into the sewers the player is now greeted by a number Imperial guards with whom Moranie and Cap’n Fentus are. A guard captain informs the player that they are under orders to exchange the two prisoners for the Death Mask of the Empress. After the exchange is done (unless the player decides to make a dick move and keep the mask to themselves, thus dooming the Thieves Guild in OE) Moranie and Cap’n Fentus return to the inn. As a reward Moranie let’s the player keep her enchanted eye and even ”unlocks its true power” by making the enchantments on the eye be Constant Effects rather than Cast When Used. The Death Mask is put on display in the Curia building of the Ebon Tower, while Medemilian Rane, that weasel, is put into prison.

After some time has passed a courier will bring a letter from Cap’n Fentus where he thanks the player for being a part of their crew. In the letter the captain explains that thanks to the dwemer airship plans and the special helmet the player managed to steal for him he has finally finished his new ship and has left the earth’s dust behind to become ”the most feared sky-pirate and cloud-bandit that ever lived!”. Indeed, Cap’n Fentus is nowhere to be found in Old Ebonheart after this.
 

Ateiggaer's picture
Ateiggaer
Joined:
2016-03-14 17:47
Last seen:
7 months 1 week ago

I really like the characters, especially Capn’n Fentus and Antio Floraine, there’s some hilarious situations I must say, I like how the Cap’n sends you on a false artifact hunt to test you, really fitting for the TG. I also like the rewards you get from him in form of information where to get good stuff.

The thing that struck me, would lend itself more for the rivalry between the player and Floraine, would IMO be, that Fentus sends you to retrieve the helm, because, that “incompetent Antio” still hasn’t retrieved it. Which would; first show that Fentus doesn’t like people who boast but don’t deliver, second gives Antio a bit more of a tragic apperance ( like yeah he’s a lying imposter, but he also gets the karma coming for him), third, it gives him a reason to have a grudge against the player, who is sent to do his job. He still would of course brag about how he’s the best thief in the world.

The plot of how things escalate I have to think a bit more about, but I generally like it.

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Rats
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Thanks for the comments! Sure, making Antio more of an incompetent and tragic character works well.

I started to think that maybe the questline is a bit short as it is. A couple of (side) quests could be added between TR_m3_TG_Fentus3 and TR_m3_TG_Fentus4. Those could be given either by Fentus, Antio Florane (!) or by Yggulf the Mute (which would be interesting since he doesn’t talk).

 

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I think a few quests so steal items from Comana Tong members or some of the many merchants would be nice. A nice late-stage quest would be to do an assesment of the security of one of the other guild’s spots in a nearby town, to give the sense that they want to make sure they would be safe for any Comana Tong attacks otuside of OE’s walls.

EDIT: Also, the death of the rival in the tomb is really campy. How would he suddenly forget the guardian statue would kill him? It would be nicer to have a re-write that inculdes the option of finding where he’s stashing the mash and re-stealing it, or just outright killing him to take it back. Maybe even going under the employ of the *gasp* Hlaalu or Comana Tong to dig some dirt up on the rival to blackmail him into giving the mask back?

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Yggulf could hand the player missions in form of written documents, that is if he’s not an illiterate.

A thought I had about the part, where the player’s facing off Otrebus Delagia, is I think a bit to radical for a thief guild member to just kill off all of the gangs memebers; even if it is in self defence ( It may be depending on the players level and skills also a bit difficult ).

How about Medemilian Rane is even more devilish than everybody thought and planned to takeover the gang all along. So when the player returns to Otrebus’ house he finds it burned down, with Otrebus and his closest allies dead. Imperial guards standing there, trying to arrest the player if they see him. Medemilian Rane accused the TG of attacking them.

This could use some of those extra quest you talked about, where it builds carefully up to this shocking conclusion.

Rats's picture
Rats
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Hmm, yes, the player murdering everyone - even for self-defence - is pretty out of place for a TG questline. With the right build up your suggestion is much better.

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Yeah and thats the very tricky part, to figure out how to build this up convincingly… :P
Well, time to brainstorm.

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 It's really not that hard to think of something. In all honesty, the way that I would look at the thieves guild would be almost like in Ocean's Eleven movie, and that it has to have a lot of convoluted twists and turns in it but it still makes sense in the end, with a nice reveal surprise at the end. 

 The real difference would be the gravity on which the story is founded. Ocean's Eleven's movies are more humorous and have a light hearted tone to them. However within the thieves guild it should be a little bit more of a grave and serious tone, knowing how much is at stake. Morrowind is, as we know, a place that is dark, somber, and takes itself seriously 96% of the time.

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Kevaar
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Camona Tong should probably be left to the nearby Andothren as a plot, as that town’s supposed to be thick with them.

I got a little bogged down trying to figure out the last quest, but otherwise, I really like the direction of this.

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6plus
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Ateiggaer

Yggulf could hand the player missions in form of written documents, that is if he’s not an illiterate.

He could be illiterate and just hand the player a drawn note to figure out with the help of Moranie and Erendi (doesn't have to be an image ingame, just a descriptive text).

And I suggest to add a side quest between TR_m3_TG_Fentus1 and TR_m3_TG_Fentus2. The Imperial Navy is IMO too much of a high-profile target for a n00b thief (especially since it’s possible to ‘botch’ TR_m3_TG_Fentus1 and still be accepted).

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Kevaar
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Consider sticking this in the Asset Browser, mate.