The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Hints

Randomized Quests

• These are small quests with random elements that certain Companions will give you between main-line quests. Some of the main-line quests will require you to do at least one of these quests after finishing it and before getting the next main-line quest. Unfortunately, the randomness of these quests makes it impossible to give detailed hints, so only brief summaries are given below.
  
  WARNING: Some of the quests may include very tough combats, even for low-level characters. You should quicksave before accepting a task from someone, then quickrestore and try someone else's task if the first one turns out to be too hard.
  
  
  *** SET 1 ***  You'll get quests from this set after finishing the "Take Up Arms" main-line quest and before doing "The Silver Hand." You can also get several of these quests later on, even if you've had them before.
  
  * Animal Extermination: You're to go to a random area and kill a random animal or animals. This can be as simple as going to someone's house and killing a wolf, or as difficult as going to a cave and killing a bunch of trolls. After you do it, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Aela for your reward.
  
  * Escaped Criminal: A random criminal has escaped to a random location, and you're to find him and kill him. Check the world map for a quest marker, then fast-travel as close to it as you can. Check the map again, and repeat the process if necessary before running the criminal down on foot. After he's dead, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Skjor for your reward.
  
  * Family Heirloom: You're to go to a random place and fight or sneak your way through it in order to retrieve a stolen family heirloom. After you get it, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Skjor for your reward.
  
  * Hired Muscle: You're sent to a random location with the goal of intimidating a random person without killing him. To do that, talk to the person and say you've been sent to resolve a dispute, then beat on him with your fists until he falls to the floor. (Use potions that restore your health during the brawl if you need to.) Wait until he talks to you, then return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Farkas for your reward.
  
  * Rescue Mission: You're supposed to track down criminals of a random sort (possibly even vampires!) who've kidnapped a random victim and taken him to a random location. Go there and kill off all the kidnappers, careful not to let the kidnap victim get killed. Free him if he's locked in a cage by using a lever or a key that one of the kidnappers has on him. Talk to him, then take him back to where he was kidnapped from. Talk to him again, then return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Vilkas for your reward.
  
  * Trouble in Skyrim: This quest requires you to go to a random dungeon and kill the leader of the creatures living within it. After you do, return to Jorrvaskr and report success to Farkas.
  
  
  *** SET 2 ***  This next set is only available between "The Silver Hand" and "Blood's Honor." You'll need to do at least one of them, and you can do at most two.
  
  * Retrieval: You're to go to a randomly chosen dungeon and get a fragment of Wuuthrad, which is usually in a chest or on a piece of furniture in the room with the Silver Hand leader. After you get it, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Aela the Huntress.
  
  * Stealing Plans: You're to go to a randomly chosen Silver Hand base and steal some plans from them. Fight your way to the back of the base, where you'll find the plans (probably called a "strategem") either in a chest or on a piece of furniture. After getting the plans, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Aela the Huntress.
  
  * Striking the Heart: You're to go to a randomly chosen Silver Hand base and kill the Silver Hand leader who's inside. Be warned that the leader will have lots of support, possibly including a powerful animal like a sabre cat. After the leader is killed, return to Jorrvaskr and talk to Aela the Huntress.
  
  
  *** SET 3 ***  This final set is only available after you finish "Glory of the Dead." Note that you may not be able to get them until after you do some of the Set 1 quests that you haven't done yet (or that you have done, since many of them are repeatable).
  
  * Dragon Seekers: After you finish the "Dragon Rising" main quest, you can get this quest from Farkas or Vilkas. You're to go to a random dragon's lair and kill the dragon with the help of the quest-giver. Use the usual dragon-slaying tactics of staying under cover and using ranged attacks on the dragon. After it's dead, talk to the quest-giver to finish the quest.
  
  * Purity: If you only killed one Glenmoril Witch for the "Blood's Honor" main-line quest, return to the Glenmoril Coven cave and kill another witch so you can get her head. Return to the burial chamber in Ysgramor's Tomb and activate the Flame of the Harbinger, then kill the wolf spirit that appears. After that, talk to the guy you just purified to finish the quest. After you do this quest for both Farkas and Vilkas, you can use the Flame of the Harbinger to cure yourself, too. It's permanent, so be sure you're done being a werewolf before you do it.
  
  * Totems of Hircine: Go to a randomly chosen dungeon and help Aela the Huntress fight through it to the back room, where you'll find the Werewolf Totem in a chest or on a piece of furniture. After Aela talks to you about it, leave the dungeon and return to Whiterun, then enter the Underforge area. Activate the totem receptacle that's marked with a quest arrow to place the totem and finish the quest. From then on, you can pray at the totem you retrieved to add its special power to your werewolf howl. The Totem of the Hunt gives you a Detect Life effect when you howl, the Totem of Brotherhood summons two spirit wolves when you howl, and the Totem of Fear causes people to flee in fear when you howl. (Talk to Aela to get the second and third totem quests, possibly after doing other randomized quests you haven't finished yet.)
  

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