Oblivion:Arrow of Extrication

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Contents
Image:OB-qico-ThievesGuild.png
Steal an arrow for The Gray Fox.edit
Fathis Aren's Tower


[edit] Quick Walkthrough

  1. Wait for Amusei to find you in the Imperial City.
  2. Go to the house of Malintus Ancrus in Chorrol.
  3. Go to Bravil and talk to the beggars.
  4. Find Fathis's hidden chamber.
  5. Go through the secret chamber and dungeon.
  6. Enter Fathis' Tower.
  7. Steal the Arrow of Extrication.
  8. Go back to Ancrus's house in Chorrol and give the arrowhead to The Gray Fox.

[edit] Detailed Walkthrough

[edit] Orders

After you have fenced 700 gold and have completed the last quest, Turning a Blind Eye, go to the Imperial City and wait for orders from The Gray Fox. Amusei should be along, and will give you orders to go to the house of Malintus Ancrus in Chorrol. The Gray Fox will tell you that you need to steal the Arrow of Extrication from the Court Wizard of Bravil, Fathis Aren. Once in Bravil, sponsor a beggar so he will tell you information about Fathis Aren. Fathis keeps his most treasured items in a ruined tower outside of town. There may also be a secret passage from the castle to this tower.

[edit] The Castle

Head to the Castle and find out that Fathis has a chamber in the North Wing of the Castle. Getting into the North Wing might be tricky if you don't time it right, so wait until early morning when the guards change shifts, around 7:30 AM, to pick the lock and enter. There shouldn't be any guards in the corridors, but stay in sneak mode to be safe. The chamber with the secret passageway is the first door on the left as you enter the North Wing. Enter the chamber and look for the Arrow. Specifically you need to check the two chests that are to your left as you enter. The arrow is not in either but one has some useful stuff that can be used for increasing your fenced items amount. You will then get a journal entry telling you to look for a secret passageway. One of the two pillars on the alcove straight across from the entrance is the lever that opens up the secret passage to Bravil Wizard's Grotto.

[edit] Passage to the Tower

Bravil Wizard's Grotto and the subsequent Bravil Wizard's Lair are unusual dungeons, where you will encounter Conjurers, Dremora, and possibly Daedric creatures. There are also several locked chests and doors so ensure you have some way of opening them.

As you explore you will eventually find a door that says it needs a key to be unlocked. There is in fact no key available to open this door. Instead the way through is an underwater passage. To the south of that door there is a water-filled cavern containing a very deep shaft. About ten feet down (only part of the way down) there is a tunnel on the north side of the shaft. The tunnel is located immediately below a rock "bridge" in the middle of the shaft that connects the north and south walls, and is at the same vertical level where several rays of light are clearly visible shining through the water. A slaughterfish usually guards the entrance to the tunnel. This tunnel leads around a corner then emerges out of the water on the other side of the locked door.

If you instead dive to the bottom of the deep shaft you will find a Giant Slaughterfish. This slaughterfish is leveled and can be a tough fight, especially since it is underwater. You may be able to lure the slaughterfish to the small opening, where it can't follow you, and take advantage of that. In reward, there is some nice loot. In one of the rooms with Conjurers there is a Potion of Sea (Water Breathing) which can help with getting down to the slaughterfish, although you will probably need more than just the one potion; an item with a water breathing enchantment (such as the helm Fin Gleam, or ring Jewel of the Rumare) is strongly recommended.

There is a passageway off the Giant Slaughterfish area that leads to a door that opens into the bottom of the Niben Bay near Bravil. The trap door has a treasure chest next to it and is located approximately straight down from the "a" in "Niben Bay" on the world map (map). This trap door can also be used as an entrance to Bravil Wizard's Grotto, if you want to bypass the first part of this dungeon.

[edit] Fathis Aren's Tower

Once you get inside the fort area, make your way to the third story of the tower (not the very top) where you should find Fathis Aren. Rob his chest and anything else you want (but be prepared for the consequences). There are several ways you can do this. If Fathis attacks you, you may be able to lure him into falling to his death by going to the other side of the tower. For a powerful sorcerer he doesn't always look where he's going (this is also the fastest and easiest option for Mages Guild members avoiding penalty, see below). Alternatively, Fathis Aren may accept a yield if attacking and not restart fighting you. This may provide an easy way to complete the quest without killing him. You could try taking everything from his chests before yielding. Yet another possibility is that after all the minions in the tower are defeated, Fathis Aren may not move from his desk. You can speak to him and he should not attack you. If you then walk up to the chest and retrieve the arrow, Fathis should not move from his alchemy. If you need a place to hide and heal during the fight with the many minions in the tower, run all the way up the stairs and jump across the gap (you may need a high acrobatics level ie. 60+) Or, you can try taking 2 invisibility potions, use one to sneak past Fathis and loot the chest and use the other immediately after exiting the chest, if done quick enough Fathis will never even see you.

If you are in the Mages Guild: If you are caught killing Fathis or stealing from the tower you are going to be kicked out of the guild. If you are in the upper echelon of ranks in the Mages Guild, it may stop Fathis from attacking you. The easy solution is simply not to attack him first. If he attacks you, you can run away from him. In order to get out of the fort area, you need to take the arrowhead and Aren's key from his chest. You will not be penalized for taking things from this chest. Once you have the arrow and key to the front gate, you can head back down the stairs and exit the tower. Then, just run along the road until a guard or other person appears and they will attack Fathis for you, allowing you to complete the mission without being kicked out of the Mages Guild. Another method is to strike Fathis once with your sword and he will briefly disappear. At that point you can steal the key and arrow head from the chest without getting caught for stealing and without being kicked out of the Mages Guild. If you find yourself getting caught over and over again, you can make a quick escape by using Aren's Tower Key to exit the tower through the main door. He will be waiting for you, but you can lose him by making a beeline for the Nibenay Bay and swimming until you hear the music change. At this point you should be able to fast travel to a safe location. An alternative for Mages Guild members, as mentioned above, is to cause Fathis to fall to the ground below while attacking you - he will fall to his death and his corpse and chest can be looted without penalty. Another option is to use poison - since killing someone with poison does not count as murder, Fathis can be safely eliminated without being booted from the guild. Simply whittle down his health, then strike with a poison-coated weapon and wait for him to die. This is especially useful to players who wish to take the Apprentice Calcinator he possesses.

Afterwards, make your way outside the tower (through the main door) and return to the Gray Fox who will reward you with 500 gold and promote you to Master Thief. He will also tell you that you can now use Fathis Ules, who is the best fence in the guild, as your fence. However, if you have chosen to return the blade in the Sins of the Father quest, Fathis won't talk to you anymore because you didn't take the blade to him.

[edit] Blood Price

Killing any of the following NPCs whilst this quest is active will require you to pay a blood price to Armand:

[edit] Notes

  • Completing this quest can take several trips if you intend to haul most of the treasures and other loot home with you. The Daedra, Conjurers and other monsters will most likely respawn between trips. This increases your loot count but may make even more trips necessary, so be prepared for what could be a long quest.
  • If you have good Chameleon or Sneak skills (or a combination of the two), it is possible to complete the quest without being attacked by any of the monsters and without Fathis even noticing you.
  • You can demoralize him so that he will run away.
  • If Fathis has a disposition towards you of 95 or higher, he won't attack and you are free to take the arrow out of his chest. If you have reached the rank of Conjurer in the mages guild, you should have no problem taking the arrow.
  • If you're inclined to kill Fathis, a Frenzy spell on one of the daedra will allow it to take out Fathis without getting you kicked out of the Mage's Guild.

[edit] Bugs

  • Sometimes Amusei won't arrive. See the tips here for things to try if this happens.
  • Sometimes the Gray Fox won't appear at Malintus Ancrus's house. Malintus Ancrus will tell you not to keep the Gray Fox waiting but he will never show up. What you need to do instead is go to Helvius Cecia's house in Bruma which is where he met with you for the Turning a Blind Eye quest. There is currently no patch or reason for this glitch. After you've gotten the arrow the Gray Fox will still be in Bruma.
  • Some doors in this dungeon cannot be opened with target alteration spells (they go straight through the door.) Bring lockpicks.
  • The secret door in Fathis Aren's castle room sometimes doesn't open after manipulating the lever (though the sound effect of an opening door plays), preventing you from entering the passageway. The only way to get around this bug is using the console command tcl (toggle collision) to enable your character to pass through the wall.
  • If you have an Atronach Familiar from the Frostcrag Spire altar, after all the minions in the tower have been killed, there's a chance that Fathis will begin attacking your Familiar, with the standard "town" music playing. If this happens, dismiss the Atronach to prevent Fathis from dying. After this, he'll completely ignore you and go back to his room on the top floor. From there, you can open the non-burglary chest and steal the Arrow right in front of him!
  • If you triggered the Gray Fox quests prematurely (for example, because of the Temple of the Ancestor Moths glitch), make sure to finish all of the other Thieves guild rank advancement quests before you complete the Arrow of Extrication quest. If not, the other quests will reset your guild rank and trigger a serious bug during the Ultimate Heist.
  • Sometimes Malintus Ancrus will not be standing outside his house when you return to Chorrol with the arrowhead. If this happens, go inside and talk to Malintus before speaking with the Gray Fox, otherwise the Independent Thievery quest will not update and you will not be able to start the next quest. Alternatively, you can fence your amount up to the next benchmark or attack the Gray Fox and make him follow you out of Malintus Ancrus' house. This seems to fix the journal.

[edit] Journal Entries

Stage Finishes Quest Journal Entry
Arrow of Extrication (TG09Arrow)
10 Amusei sought me out and delivered a message from the Gray Fox. I am to meet him at the home of Malintus Ancrus in Chorrol. He has another task for me. It seems Amusei has finally straightened up and joined the Thieves Guild. He is even trusted enough to deliver messages for the Gray Fox.
20 The Gray Fox will pay me 500 gold coins to steal the Arrow of Extrication. It was recently recovered by Bravil's court wizard, Fathis Aren. There will be no bloodprice for killing Fathis, so long as he doesn't die in the castle. I should start my search in Bravil.
22 (Removes the Gray Fox from Malintus Ancrus's House in Chorrol)
25 A beggar in Bravil told me that Fathis Aren has claimed the ruined tower southeast of the city for himself. The door to the tower is impenetrable, but rumor has it that Fathis uses a secret passage from inside the castle to get to it.
26 I found Fathis Aren's rooms in Castle Bravil. Now to locate the Arrow of Extrication.
27 I've searched both chests in Fathis Aren's room. Neither had the Arrow of Extrication. I'm beginning to think it isn't here. This room doesn't seem to have enough wizardly stuff for a wizard of Fathis stature. I wonder if there is a secret chamber where he keeps his more valuable treasures?
28 I didn't find the Arrow of Extrication in his room. I should explore this secret passage though. It would be very much like a wizard to hide his valuables in some dark hole filled with monsters.
30 I found a key shaped arrow head, but not the whole arrow. This must be what the Gray Fox is looking for, or at least as close as I am going to get. I should take it to him.
39 The Gray Fox accepted the key shaped arrow head. Apparently it is all that remains of the Arrow of Extrication. He is going to try and get it reforged.
40 0Yes The Gray Fox accepted the key shaped arrow head. Apparently it is all that remains of the Arrow of Extrication. He is going to try and get it reforged. He thanked me for my efforts and promoted me to Master Thief in the Thieves Guild.
50 0Yes (Removes the Gray Fox from Malintus Ancrus's House in Chorrol)
Blood Price (TG09BloodPrice)
90 I've killed someone while attempting to get the Arrow of Extrication. Murder is against the Thieves Guild code. I'll have pay the blood price for it of 1000 gold coins per person killed. I can pay Armand.
91 The Gray Fox has rescinded my Thieves Guild membership because I committed murder while obtaining the Arrow of Extrication. I can get back in if I pay the blood price. I can pay Armand.
95 0Yes The bloodprice has been accepted. I am back in the Thieves Guild. My promotion ot[sic] MasterThief is now final as well. I finally got paid for the theft of the Arrow of Extrication.
Notes
  • Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
  • Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in random order.
  • If an entry is marked as "Finishes Quest" it means the quest disappears from the Active Quest list, but you may still receive new entries for that quest.
  • On the PC, it is possible to use the console to advance through the quest by entering setstage quest stage. Where quest is the internal name of the quest, and stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages. See SetStage for more information.
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