Oblivion:Bad Medicine

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1 Quick Walkthrough
2 Detailed Walkthrough
3 Notes
4 Journal Entries

Cure the sickly warlord Roderick at Fort Sutch: a spoonful of sugar, a pint of poison. ^edit

Quest Giver: Ocheeva at Cheydinhal Sanctuary
Location(s): Cheydinhal, Fort Sutch
Prerequisite Quest: The Lonely Wanderer
Next Quest: Whodunit?
Reward: Up to 600 gold, The Deceiver's Finery
Fame/Infamy: Infamy +1
ID: Dark07Medicine

The cupboard, your target in this quest.

[edit] Quick Walkthrough

Receive the contract and poison.
Travel to the fort and make your way to Roderick.
Switch the medicine with the poison in the cupboard.
Exit without being seen, then make your way back to Ocheeva.

[edit] Detailed Walkthrough

[edit] Enter the Eliminator

Speak with Ocheeva to complete the "Enter the Eliminator" mini-quest and receive your next contract. She asks you to kill the ailing warlord Roderick at Fort Sutch and gives you a bottle of poisoned medicine. Only by sneaking into the fort and replacing his medicine bottle with the poisoned one, while remaining completely undetected, will you receive a bonus. Killing him in any other manner or being seen by anyone will forfeit your bonus, so saving before entering the fort is advised.

[edit] Deadly Medicine

If you speak with Teinaava, you learn about a secret entrance to the south-southeast of the fort. Travel to Fort Sutch, north of Anvil. Inside, the fort is very small with only one cell, and a passage to the right of the entrance (inside) is a shortcut around some of the guards. A guard might notice you opening the door but if you run outside before he officially detects you, you can actually kill him and not fail the quest. Sneak about until you find Roderick's bedchamber area; Sneak, Invisibility, Chameleon and Detect Life spells, potions, and items will aid you greatly in getting the job done. Look for a cupboard in a well-lit area a short ways from his bed's alcove. Take the medicine inside the cupboard, leave the poison in its place, and then exit without being seen.

[edit] Reward

Return to Ocheeva for a level-dependent gold reward (up to 600 gold), a single Infamy point, and your bonus, The Deceiver's Finery, a leveled outfit that fortifies Speechcraft and Personality. This outfit qualifies as nice enough for the dinner party in "Whodunit?", the next Dark Brotherhood quest.

[edit] Notes

It is possible to complete the quest with a low Sneak skill without using spells and potions. Sneak, and when you come across a guard use a bow (better yet, the powerful Shadowhunt bow from the previous quest) or other sneak attack to help you get the sneak attack damage bonus. This allows you to kill your enemy and remain undetected, provided it's a one-shot kill. You CAN kill the guards and still get the bonus.
Complete the quest without killing or spells: enter the fort, turn immediately right, pick the gate, follow the path and pick the second gate. Stay on the upper ledge, follow the green arrow, get the medicine, leave the poison and follow the same route out. To avoid guards, make sure your volume is up and listen for footsteps around corners, or throw up a "Detect Life" spell or an item with such effect (IE: Gray Cowl of Nocturnal.)
If you use the secret entrance south-southeast of the fort, after exploring a short ways you will overhear a conversation between two guards. Follow them and the orc will lead you directly to the cupboard with the medicine; however, leaving before the conversation ends will allow you more time without having the guard on your heels. Be careful, as there is another guard who will patrol down the hallway you entered through.
If your acrobat skill is high enough, you can sneak past the first gate, across the bridge, and then jump onto the ledge where Roderick is sleeping. The medicine cabinet is just down the hall and unguarded. This way you only need to sneak past one guard, who is easy enough to pass with M'raaj-Dar's Deathly Visage spell. Or you could just eliminate him... If you're having trouble getting up, try jumping first on one of the pillars to the side of the ledge, and then next to Roderick. It's a little tricky since the ceiling seems to push you back down if you don't do it right.
You can remove the poison again after the quest update, or even put the medicine back again. Ocheeva will still think that you poisoned him.
If you enter from the secret flooded entrance, be aware of the lone guard that patrols the hallways on the other side of the twin locked gates. She can position herself in some vexing locations, and will go all the way down to the edge of the water and stay there for a little bit if she hears something.

[edit] Journal Entries

Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
Enter the Eliminator (Dark06WandererFIN)
10		I must accept a contract from Ocheeva.
100	0	I have accepted a contract from Ocheeva.
Bad Medicine (Dark07Medicine)
10		I must sneak into Fort Sutch, find the medicine of the debilitated warlord Roderick, and replace it with the poisoned bottle Ocheeva has given me. If I am detected by any of the mercenaries, or if Roderick is killed in any other manner, my bonus is forfeit.
12		I must sneak into Fort Sutch, find the medicine of the debilitated warlord Roderick, and replace it with the poisoned bottle Ocheeva has given me. If I am detected by any of the mercenaries, or if Roderick is killed in any other manner, my bonus is forfeit. Fortunately, I've learned of an alternate way inside that should be unguarded. Not far from the ruins of Fort Sutch lie the ruins of the Fort Sutch Abbey. If I enter there, I can get to Fort Sutch underground through some flooded tunnels.
15		I have successfully entered Fort Sutch. I must now locate Roderick's medicine and replace it with the bottle of posioned medicine.
20		I have taken Rodericks' medicine. I must now put the bottle of poisoned medicine in its place.
30		The bottle of poisoned medicine has been placed in the cabinet, and the real medicine removed. The next time Roderick is given treatment, he will die. I must now return to the Sanctuary and speak with Ocheeva to receive my reward.
35		I have been detected by someone in Fort Sutch. That means the poisoning will fail. I must now kill Roderick the old fashioned way...
40		I have completed the contract, but not as directed, so the bonus is forfeit. I must now return to the Sanctuary and speak with Ocheeva to receive my reward.
100	0	I have spoken with Ocheeva and received my reward.

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.