Daggerfall:Research Notes

Grab some research for the Mages Guild. Location(s): Any Guildmagister of the Mages Guild Reward: Random Gold Reputation Gain: see Reputation Gain/Loss ID: n0b00y09 Required Reputation: In Guild Difficulty: Easy

A renowned scholar has some research for the Mages Guild

Quick Walkthrough

1. Talk to the Guildmagister at a Mages Guild hall.
2. Travel to the town the Guildmagister mentioned.
3. Possibly receive a letter from the Dark Brotherhood.
4. Meet the scholar and get their research notes.
5. (Optional) Deliver the notes to the Dark Brotherhood, and possibly receive fake notes.
6. Deliver the research notes (or fake notes) to the Guildmagister within the time limit.

Detailed Walkthrough

Dangerous Research

Speak to the Guildmagister, who says:

"As the premier research institution in the Empire of Tamriel, the Mages Guild employs a number of mystics and scholars all over the land. If we can get a representative of the Guild over to a place within a reasonable distance of here, the eminent scholar, (scholar's name), and [sic] has agreed to share (his/her) research. Would you be available for this?"

or

"The Mages Guild of (Guildmagister's town) has an exciting opportunity to benefit from the work of the renowned researcher and scholar, (scholar's name). (He/She) has agreed to donate some of (his/her) research to the Guild if we send someone to (scholar's town) to pick it up. Not surprisingly, (he/she) fears Necromancer intervention. I take it that you're as excited about this possibility as I am, (player's guild rank)?"

Accept

The Guildmagister goes on:

"Grand, just grand. Now, (scholar's name) is staying in (scholar's town) in a place called (building) for just a few days. The danger is the Necromancers. Those reprobate spellslingers are interested in getting to (scholar's name) and (his/her) research. I will give you (time limit) days to get to (scholar's name) and back before I send someone else. Good luck."

Decline

The Guildmagister answers:

"That's rather disappointing, (player's guild rank). If I were in better condition, I'd jump at the chance to meet the great (scholar's name). You're wasting your youth, (player's guild rank)."

An Alternate Offer

In truth, it is not the Necromancers who are after the research notes, but the Dark Brotherhood. If your reputation with the Brotherhood is less than or equal to ten, there is a 50% chance of getting a letter from them shortly after you start this quest. You should receive the letter at the latest one day after starting the quest. The letter reads:

(Player's name), Do not make an enemy of the Dark Brotherhood. We can be great help to one another, but you could not wish for a worse enemy. When you have (scholar's name)'s research paper, bring it to me here at (contact's building) in (contact's town). Fail not, or the wrath of Mephala, Queen of Oblivion be on you. (Contact's name)

If your reputation with the Brotherhood exceeds ten, you will always get a letter from them, with somewhat friendlier wording. You should receive this letter about thirteen hours after you started the quest at most. This letter says:

(Contact's building) (Contact's town) Dear Old (player's first name), Well done, (player's first name). (Scholar's name) was characteristically pigheaded about giving us (his/her) research notes, but (he/she)'d be pleased as a pumpkin to give it to a "representative" of the right-minded Mages Guild. You'll have a lovely bit of gold waiting for you here in (contact's town) when you get here with the notes. Yours, (Contact's name)

Meeting the Scholar

Travel to the town specified by the Guildmagister and locate the scholar, who says:

"You're the (player's race) the Mages Guild sent over to protect my work, yes? Marvelous to meet you, my child. Here's the bally thing. Good luck getting past those infernal Necromancers with it. I certainly couldn't."

The scholar hands you the research notes. If you received the Dark Brotherhood's letter, choose whether you want to accept the Brotherhood's offer or return the notes to the Mages Guild. In the latter case, simply return the notes to the Guildmagister and collect your gold.

(Optional) Help the Dark Brotherhood

The Dark Brotherhood appreciates your assistance in this matter

If you want to accept the Dark Brotherhood's offer, travel to where the Brotherhood's contact is waiting for you. Ask around town until you know their location, enter the building and talk to the contact. Hand over the research notes, and the contact says:

"What a thoughtful gift. I hope your Mages Guild pals aren't too upset about losing it. What would they know about practical application of dry research anyhow? Here, take (random gold) gold for your trouble. Buy yourself something nice."

However, there is a 50% chance that the contact will also give you a fake copy of the original research notes, in which case they say:

"How kind. The Dark Brotherhood would gratefully offer you (random gold) gold pieces for your service. In addition, here's a little something I whipped together that should keep you from getting in trouble with (Guildmagister's name) and the other Mages Guildmembers. All research notes look alike anyhow. When they don't yield results, the Guild will just throw more assistants at it or give up the project in embarassment [sic]. The Mages Guild is simply a tedious pack of researchers who don't have to worry about gold and thus are never happier than when they are doing pointless work."

If you deliver these fake notes to the Mages Guild Guildmagister, you can still successfully complete the quest and receive your Mages Guild reward. If you are not given the fake notes, the quest counts as a failure once its time limit expires.

Reward

Return either of the two research notes and the Guildmagister says:

"Oh, this is brilliant stuff. I guess those damned Necromancers were not too difficult to handle, at least, not for you. Spiffing job, (player's guild rank)."

You receive a random amount of gold in return.

Reputation Gain/Loss

If you return any of the research notes to the Guildmagister, the quest counts as a success.

A successfully completed quest results in a reputation gain according to the table below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Mages Guild	+5
The Mercenary Mages	+5
Associated factions	+2

A failed quest results in a reputation loss according to the table below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Mages Guild	-3
The Mercenary Mages	-3
Associated factions	-2
Oblivion and all associated Daedra Princes	+1
Sheogorath	-1
The Night Mother	+1
The Dark Brotherhood and its associated factions	+1
Ebonarm	-1
The Order of Arkay and its associated factions	-1
The Benevolence of Mara and its associated factions	-1
The Akatosh Chantry and its associated factions	-1
The School of Julianos and its associated factions	+1
The House of Dibella and its associated factions	-1
The Temple of Stendarr and its associated factions	+1
The Thieves Guild and its associated factions	+1
Random Ruler	-1
Daggerfall and its associated factions	-1
Sentinel and its associated factions	-1
Wayrest and its associated factions	-1
The King of Worms and The Necromancers	-1
The Underking and his agents	-1
Orsinium and its associated factions	-1
The Glenmoril Witches	-1
The Dust Witches	+1
The Daughters of Wroth	+1
The Witches of the Marsh	+1
The Beldama	+1
The Tide Witches	+1
The Merchants	-1
The Bards	-1
The Prostitutes	-1
Wrothgarian Mountains and its associated factions	+1

(Allies/Enemies affiliations for listed factions are not considered.)

Additional Reputation

If you give the research notes to the Dark Brotherhood, you will gain reputation with them as shown below.

Faction/Person	Reputation Gain
Dark Brotherhood	+10
Associated factions	+5

Enemies

• None

Notes

• The text of the scholar's research notes reads like this:

The manner by which the diastolic pressure of any two scarce commodities (creating a type of propulsion with no moving parts and virtual silence) has been postulated by thyrionic mathematicians for many years. In conventional thinking, the default parameters of any formula (objectively speaking, it is essential to remember that objectivity is indeed subjective) will always return to what Mornthaur called the "back medium." However, starting with a grid of complex numbers that more than covers the unit circle and three cube roots of one, we can backtrace, by uptracking the negative "half numbers," and create an infinite basin with dual natures of blackness and whiteness. The rate of adiabatic cooling or warming in unsaturated air can thus be made directly proportional to the fourth power of its absolute temperature.

• The text of the fake research notes is as follows:

When white light is passed through a gas under a medium dense gas at high temperature, a dynamic thermal instability occurs. Since magicka is usually a very faint source of illumination, gases, under much greater pressure, are forced to combine with degenerated matter, creating dual forces, beyond and beneath. The end result is a quasi-horizontal chonolith composed of anastomosing ductoliths, whose distal ends curl like a harpolith, thin like a sphenolith, or bulge discordantly like an akmolith or ethmolith. There are thus five elements that must be contributed towards a universal confederation of what Galerion Vanus called "gray matter" -- perception, evidence, essence, morality, and extraction.

Additional Dialogue

If you ask an NPC about the scholar, you may be told:

• "(Scholar's name) is only one of the most respected scholars in Tamriel"
• "(Scholar's name) is a (scholar's description), a very well-respected scholar"
• "(Scholar's name) is only going to be visiting (region) for a short time"
• "One of the finest minds of the third era, so they say"
• "(Scholar's name) would definitely agree that (he/she)'s a genius"
• "(Scholar's name) is a typical intellectual. No idea of what's going on"
• "(Scholar's name)'s very clever, but (his/her) brains sometimes go to (his/her) head"

If you ask an NPC about the scholar when the Dark Brotherhood is involved, you may also be told:

• "Talk to (contact's name) over in (contact's town) -- (he/she)'s been asking about (scholar's name) too."
• "A (contact's description) in (contact's building) was asking about (scholar's name) as well."

After you have accepted this quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

• "Maybe that (scholar's name) is a celebrity to scholar types, but (he/she)'s just a (scholar's description)"
• "It's an honor for (scholar's town) to host the renowned (scholar's name)'s visit to (region)."

If you fail the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

• "The Necromancers will be the dominant magical power in Tamriel in a few years."
• "The Mages Guild is unable to defend itself against the Necromancers."

If you successfully complete the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:

• "(Scholar's name)'s research will help the Mages Guild in a number of ways."
• "The Necromancers didn't seem to get their hands on (scholar's name) ... or did they?"

If you successfully complete the quest, the quest giver may later greet you with:

• "Well, if it isn't the (player's race) who brought us that manuscript. How are you?"

If you failed the quest, the quest giver will greet you with:

• "As you haven't got the manuscript you swore you would retrieve, I see little point in conversing with you. Take your business elsewhere."

Quest Log

Research Notes (n0b00y09)
Stage/ Index	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
0		(Date): The Mages Guild of (Guildmagister's town) has sent me to (scholar's town) where (scholar's name), a renowned scholar, is staying at a place called (scholar's building). I am to avoid the agents of the Necromancers, get (scholar's name)'s research from (him/her) and return to the Mages Guild in no more than (time limit) days.
1		(Date): I received a threatening letter from (contact's name) of the Dark Brotherhood, telling me to bring (scholar's name)'s research paper to (contact's building) in (contact's town) instead of the Mages Guild.
2		(Date): (Contact's name) of the Dark Brotherhood sent me a letter, congratulating me on my guile, and telling me that (he/she) would be at a place called (contact's building) in (contact's town) with a gold reward for bringing the research paper to (him/her) instead of the Mages Guild.