Oblivion:Denel

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Denel

Denel, an Imperial mage, is a member of the Mages Guild and is currently working under Skaleel on a research project at Vahtacen. In particular, he has been trying to decipher the strange, magical code of a column in the ruin.

He is peculiar in that he has absolutely no schedule whatsoever. He will therefore simply stand still close to the column in the final chamber of Vahtacen's first zone.

He wears middle-class attire consisting of burgundy linens and shirt and a pair of thick cowhide shoes. His only other possession is a leveled amount of gold. He doesn't wield any weapons, relying instead on a set of leveled spells from all of the magical schools.

Even though Denel doesn't share Skaleel's frustration on Irlav Jarol, he shares her feelings on their project in Vahtacen: "I’ve had my fill of the place, that’s for sure. And I’ve got the scars to prove it." And as he was unconscious for at least an hour after his last attempt at cracking the mysterious "pillar", he will declare: "I’m trying to help Skaleel the best I can, but I’m not going near the thing again."

In the other end of the ruin, Skaleel will comment on him and his numerous attempts: "Why Denel stays down there, I have no idea. He’s just asking to get killed." And she's pessimistic about the whole affair: "I don’t know why Denel is even trying. This is doomed to fail."

Denel will be key to cracking the code of the column thanks to his extensive knowledge of the Ayleid language. When asked to translate the various tablets he will say:

"av mafre nagaia"

'mafre' seems to translate to frost. So a spell with frost damage should work for it. Anything else?

"av molag anyammis"

According to this, it translates to "From Fire. Life." Fire it is, then. Anything else?

"magicka loria"

It means "Magicka Darkens." Considering the other inscription, it could be translated to mean "Magicka wanes," along with "Magicka waxes." Perhaps a spell that damages Magicka is what you're looking for. or Here we are: "Magicka Darkens." Hmm, that's an odd one. Perhaps it's not a literal translation, then... is there another inscription like it?

"magicka sila"

It means "Magicka Shines." Taken in context with the other inscription about Magicka Darkening, perhaps there's an alternate translation. If we assume it means "Magicka Waxes," then a spell increasing magicka might be what we need. Something that fortifies it, perhaps. or It translates directly to "Magicka Shines." That doesn't seem right. Perhaps it makes more sense in context; you should look at the others.

[edit] Related Quests

• Vahtacen's Secret: Find out how the mages are faring at the excavation of Vahtacen.