Shivering:Retaking The Fringe

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1 Quick Walkthrough
2 Detailed Walkthrough
- 2.1 Defending Passwall
- 2.2 Deactivating the Obelisk
3 Notes
4 Bugs
5 Journal Entries

Defend The Fringe and stop the attackers. ^edit

Quest Giver: Sheogorath at New Sheoth
Location(s): The Fringe, Xeddefen
Prerequisite Quest: Ritual Of Accession
Next Quest: Rebuilding the Gatekeeper
Reward: none
ID: SE08

Golden Saints helping to retake The Fringe.

[edit] Quick Walkthrough

Travel to The Fringe.
Speak with the commander of Sheogorath's forces.
Defend Passwall from the Knights of Order.
Enter Xeddefen.
Deactivate the obelisk.
Escape and return to Sheogorath.

[edit] Detailed Walkthrough

Travel to The Fringe and you will discover that it has been completely overwhelmed by the Forces of Order. The general architecture is untouched, but the color of the surrounding area is bleak, the vegetation is dead, and large Order Crystals have burst from the ground. As such, you will have to rediscover all the locations in the area (such as the gate to Cyrodiil). This does not mean these areas are inaccessible, only that they are no longer automatically available on your map.

Make your way to Passwall and speak with either the Golden Saints or the Dark Seducers, depending on your choice during the Ritual of Accession

[edit] Defending Passwall

Talk to either Aurig Desha (A Golden Saint), or Grakendo Udico (A Dark Seducer) and you will be informed of the events prior. Despite their best efforts, the forces of Sheogorath are close to exhausted, and the Forces of Order unrelenting. The majority of the female warriors are dead, and you are offered command of what troops remain. You have two options for the upcoming order of battle:

Take control of the forces and give them command directly.
Trust your commander and allow her to position the forces as she sees fit. (This is the easiest option)

If you choose to control your troops, talk to each soldier and tell them where they should position themselves. You are provided with four soldiers. If your allies are Dark Seducers, two are by default equipped with Worn Dark Maces and two are by default equipped with Worn Dark Shortswords; if your allies are Golden Saints, one has a Worn Golden Shortsword and three have Worn Golden Maces, by default. However, when you give any soldier his orders for the battle, his equipment is adjusted depending upon the orders; all equipment other than what is specified by the orders is removed from the soldier. Your options for each of the four soldiers are:

Ready your bow and head to the rear. Soldier is equipped with a bow (Worn Dark Bow or Worn Golden Bow) and arrows (30 Dark Arrows or 30 Golden Arrows); fighting style is set to "archer." According to the commander, "Those who you assign as archers will head to the rear and keep their distance when the enemy draws close."
Ready a sword and outflank them. Soldier is equipped with a longsword (Worn Dark Longsword or Worn Golden Longsword) and shield; fighting style is set to "flank." According to the commander, "Those with blades and shields will hold the flank. When the enemy draws near, they will close in and attack."
Ready an axe and hold your ground. Soldier is equipped with a waraxe (Worn Dark Waraxe or Worn Golden Waraxe); fighting style is set to "heavy." According to the commander, "The front line will arm themselves with axes of war. They will hold the line against the enemy's charge."

If you delegate leadership to your commander, she will position her troops as follows (whether your allies are Dark Seducers or Golden Saints):

Three are told to position themselves in the front line (i.e., equip themselves with axes).
One is told to be an archer (i.e., equip himself with a bow).

You can subsequently talk to any of the soldiers and override her orders if you prefer.

Once you are prepared for battle, speak again with your commander. Several waves of Knights of Order will enter Passwall from the northeast. Defeat them and speak with your commander once more. She will propose a plan to retake Passwall: you are to infiltrate the ruins of Xeddefen while she stays on the surface and performs a holding action against the Knights. You will need to locate the Obelisk within Xeddefen that is powering the Order Spire and deactivate it.

[edit] Deactivating the Obelisk

Follow your map marker to Xeddefen and enter. Eliminate any Knights that you come across until you encounter a Priest of Order with an entourage of Knights. Kill them and retrieve the key from the Priest's body. This key will unlock the leveled doors to the north. If you are good at opening locks, you don't need to get the key from the Priest of Order, as the lock is not one of the 'needs a key' type.

Continue northwards and enter the second zone, Xeddefen Fane. Continue northwards, again eliminating any Knights that you may encounter until you reach the third zone, Xeddefen Great Chamber.

At the center of this zone is the Obelisk of Order, which is powering the Spire on the surface. As you approach the Obelisk room, you will be approached by Shelden, who was previously hiding inside a room concealed behind a fake wall. He will inform you that Felas Sarandas has defected to the Forces of Order and requests that you escort him to safety. You can either have Shelden follow you or stay.

Head north and enter the Obelisk chamber. Kill the Priests present, as well as any Knights that get in the way, and shut down the Obelisk. This is a standard Obelisk; place three Hearts of Order into the Obelisk to deactivate it. There is also a Crystal Chest located in the Obelisk's chamber.

As soon as the Obelisk is deactivated, Xeddefen begins to collapse around you. You'll need to escape quickly. The falling rubble and pillars are considerably dangerous, to both you and any other Knights of Order still remaining in Xeddefen, and needs to be avoided where possible. Exit Xeddefen quickly, following your compass until you reach surface.

Return to Passwall and speak with either Desha or Udico. She will thank you for your assistance in liberating Passwall and send you back to report the success to Sheogorath while her forces remain in The Fringe to eliminate any remaining Knights. Shelden and the other remaining denizens of Passwall will reappear shortly after.

Return to New Sheoth and report your success to Sheogorath. Pleased with your progress, he will assign you a rather interesting task.

[edit] Notes

The various weapons used by the Golden Saints and Dark Seducers are unique to this quest. If you are interested in collecting certain weapons, you may wish to deploy your troops to maximize those weapons. In the ensuing battle, it is likely that at least one of the soldiers will be slain, allowing you to recover his weapon. Should no soldiers perish in the battle, you can simply kill one (or all) yourself.

Occasionally, Shelden will use a fallen Knight of Order's sword rather than his fists (if you told him to come with you).

When you return to Passwall, any Knights of Order that you didn't kill in the ruin will be fighting what's left of your saints or seducers, so sneaking through this ruin is not recommended as you may be faced with twenty or more knights at once when returning to Passwall.

Once this quest starts, the entire Fringe region is replaced with a new, "Ordered" version of the Fringe. The Ordered version of the Fringe remains in place until you complete Shivering Isle's main questline. You will need to re-explore the Fringe in order to make the various map markers reappear. One minor difference between the two versions of the Fringe is that the map symbol for the Door to Cyrodiil changes from the "landmark" symbol to the "Ayleid Ruin" symbol. ( This bug is fixed by the Unofficial Shivering Isles Patch.)

If you choose to escort Shelden, he will become stuck on the other side of a gate that closes immediately after you pass through it. He will yell at you and find another way out of the ruin, eventually appearing outside Xeddefen when you have escaped.

[edit] Bugs

Occasionally after completing the quest, Sheogorath is nowhere to be found. On the PC version, enter the following into the console while in front of his throne to get him back:
PRID 13641
enable
If he's still not there: moveto player
If he's finally back but invisible: saa 1

This bug is fixed by the Unofficial Shivering Isles Patch.

[edit] Journal Entries

Retaking The Fringe (SE08)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
0		(Disables Syl)
1		(Disables Thadon)
4		(Acts as the entry point to the quest from SE07A/B)
5		Angry over Thadon's replacement as the Duke of Mania, Syl has betrayed Sheogorath and joined with the forces of Order. According to Syl, Order has already taken the Fringe. I should travel to the Fringe and investigate her claims. (If the player is now ruler of Mania) or Angry over Syl's replacement as the Duchess of Dementia, Thadon has betrayed Sheogorath and joined with the forces of Order. According to Thadon, Order has already taken the Fringe. I should travel to the Fringe and investigate his claims. (If the player is now the ruler of Dementia)
10		I've arrived in the Fringe to find that it has been completely conquered by the forces of Order. Passwall may have been attacked. I should take a closer look.
20		(Used to control the timing of the battle)
25		I've talked to Grakendo Udico about what has happened in Passwall. Order has been attacking the town non-stop. She's asked for my help in protecting the Passwall. I must place the Dark Seducers in the best positions possible to prepare for the attack. When I am satisfied, I should speak to the Grekendo. (If the player is ruler of Dementia and chose to place the guards personally) or I've talked to Grakendo Udico about what has happened in Passwall. Order has been attacking the town non-stop. She's asked for my help in protecting the Passwall. I should provide what aid I can and speak to her when I'm ready. (If the player is ruler of Dementia and let Udico place the guards) or I've talked to Aurig Desha about what has happened in Passwall. Order has been attacking the town non-stop. She's asked for my help in protecting the Passwall. I must place the Golden Saints in the best positions possible to prepare for the attack. When I am satisfied, I should speak to the Aurig. (If the player is ruler of Mania and chose to place the guards personally) or I've talked to Aurig Desha about what has happened in Passwall. Order has been attacking the town non-stop. She's asked for my help in protecting the Passwall. I should provide what aid I can and speak to her when I'm ready. (If the player is ruler of Mania and let Desha place the guards)
26		The forces of Order are advancing on Passwall. We must defeat them all.
30		The force of Knights attacking Passwall have been eliminated. I should speak to Grakendo Udico about the situation. (If the player is ruler of Dementia) or The force of Knights attacking Passwall have been eliminated. I should speak to Aurig Desha about the situation. (If the player is ruler of Mania)
35		The Dark Seducer commander Grakendo Udico has a plan to retake Passwall. I need to slip through the gate into the ruins of Xeddefen while her Dark Seducers distract the knights. They will continue to hold the line at Passwall. I have to use this opportunity to slip into Xeddefen and find Order's source of power. (If the player is ruler of Dementia) or The Golden Saint commander Aurig Desha has a plan to retake Passwall. I need to slip through the gate into the ruins of Xeddefen while her Golden Saints distract the knights. They will continue to hold the line at Passwall. I have to use this opportunity to slip into Xeddefen and find Order's source of power. (If the player is ruler of Mania)
40		The counterattack on Xeddefen has begun. Kiskella Udico and her Dark Seducers will distract the knights. While the Dark Seducers fight, I need to slip past the gates of Xeddefen and locate the source of the Spire's power. (If the player is ruler of Dementia) or The counterattack on Xeddefen has begun. Aureg Desha and her Golden Saints will distract the knights. While the Golden Saints fight, I need to slip past the gates of Xeddefen and locate the source of the Spire's power. (If the player is ruler of Mania)
45		I've made my way into the ruins of Xeddefen. I must seek out the spire's source of power and find a way to deactivate it.
50		I've discovered the source of Order's power -- an obelisk is having its power amplified by the spire that leads to the center of Passwall. I must find a way to shut down the obelisk.
60		(Set once the player has talked to Shelden)
70		I've overloaded the obelisk and collapsed the spire. The caverns are now coming down around me and I must escape before I'm trapped.
80		I've survived the collapsing ruins of Xeddefen. I should seek out Grakendo Udico and ask her how the battle above ground went. (If the player is ruler of Dementia) or I've survived the collapsing ruins of Xeddefen. I should seek out Aurig Desha and ask her how the battle above ground went. (If the player is ruler of Mania)
90		(Seems to be unused)
100		Passwall has been liberated and the forces of Order have been defeated. I should speak with Sheogorath.
200	0	(Makes Saint/Seducer captain unessential; other cleanup)

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.