Skyrim:Black Book: The Hidden Twilight (quest)

This page is currently being rewritten as part of the Skyrim Quest Redesign Project. The page is being rewritten and checked in several stages. All users are welcome to make changes to the page. If you make a change that is relevant to the project, please update this template accordingly, and make sure you have observed the project guidelines. Details Walkthrough: written by Likelolwhat, checked by Arcanearcher Reward: written by multiple users, not checked

Learn the Black Book's hidden knowledge. Quest Giver: The Black Book The Hidden Twilight Location(s): Tel Mithryn, Apocrypha Prerequisite Quest: Reluctant Steward Reward: Mora's Agony, Mora's Boon, or Mora's Grasp power ID: DLC2BlackBook07Quest

Neloth's Black Book

Quick Walkthrough

1. Read the Black Book The Hidden Twilight in Tel Mithryn.
2. Make your way through Apocrypha‎.
3. Learn the Black Book's hidden knowledge.
4. Choose your reward.

Detailed Walkthrough

There are eight chapters/zones here, so be prepared for a trek. You'll materialize in a room with a platform and two fonts of magicka. A scrye is past the platform, straight ahead. Activate the scrye and the door behind it will open, revealing a book on a pedestal: the next chapter. Before going in, search behind and below the pedestal to find a pod containing loot.

Chapter II starts out as a corridor twisting past fonts of magicka built into the walls of books. When the path opens up, beware two seekers wandering the room ahead. Dispose of them and grab the soul gem on an altar, then head east where a ramp leads up. At the end of the ramp is another scrye. Upon activating the scrye, the bridge below you will curve upwards and peak before receding again and will repeat this cycle indefinitely. The goal is to sprint to the edge of the bridge as it reaches its peak before leaping to the next ledge before it begins its descent. The timing is delicate but if you fall you will land on a grated path that will lead you back up to where you were before. There are two such bridges before reaching the other side.

When you reach solid ground there will be two paths forward. The passage to the left leads to a dead end containing a Font of Stamina near a pod. Just beside there is an altar with at two soul gems. If your Conjuration skill is above 40 a Conjure Seeker spell tome will be present as well. Head back to the top of the ramp and travel down the right hand passage to find the portal to Chapter III.

Chapter III begins at the base of a book pillar. You can go either way but by taking the left route you can temporarily evade the nearby Seeker. Hugging the left wall will bring you to a Font of Stamina along the southeast edge of the book barricade just before the opening into the main chamber. Turn left and round the corner to find a pod in an alcove with some minor loot. Exit the alcove and turn west. Do not try to head for the platform yet as the stairs have to be released by activating the scrye situated above where you stand presently. Face west and turn right. Just outside the entry arch there is a ramp. Climb the ramp until you reach the roof of the entryway where you will find the scrye at the edge of the lattice beneath a floating lantern. Activate it and descend the ramp back down towards the main path.

Dispatch the Seeker as you cross the abyssal waters. Take care as tentacles will lash at you as you cross. There are three soul gems on the platform along the way to the other side.

When you reach the end of the crossing you will find an enclosure with a set of stairs directly to the left of a font of stamina. Dispatch the lurker and walk past the font of stamina and up the stairs through the arch facing directly south. From there you can climb a ramp that leads to the scyre which opens the gates to the enclosure. Before moving to the next area, take a right at the bottom of the stairs when you come back down the ramp. You should see two curved tendril-shaped lamps. Pass between them, take a sharp left and then turn south again. You should notice another font of stamina inside a book crevice. Walk towards it and you will find the gate to chapter IV. There is a seeker on the other side so be ready for a fight.

Chapter IV consists of only one small room with nothing but the seeker and a scrye. Activating it opens a gate in chapter V that provides access to a set of five skill books, one for each school of magic.

Go back to Chapter III and retrace your steps to the gate you opened before entering Chapter IV. The next gate can be opened by a scrye up the ramp to the south-southwest. A seeker is in the maze-like section ahead, so kill it and go east. There is what looks like a dead end up ahead, but as you approach the rest of the corridor telescopically expands outward. There is a pod on the north side just before the newly-visible section of corridor. At the end are Chapter V and Chapter VI.

Choose your new power.

Entering chapter V lands you in front of another seeker. Defeat it and activate the scrye which opens a gate in the northwest corner of the chamber. There you will find A Hypothetical Treachery, Racial Phylogeny, Breathing Water, Before the Ages of Man, and 2920 Hearth Fire v9 resting on an altar next to a pod. Return to Chapter III, turn right, and enter Chapter VI. This area is very small, but leads to both Chapter VII and Chapter VIII. Enter Chapter VII, kill the seeker, and activate yet another scrye to raise a bridge in Chapter VIII. Return to Chapter VI, turn to your left, and enter Chapter VIII.

Upon arrival you will be ambushed by another seeker. Just before you reach the bridge, take a left to find another altar with a few soul gems. Loot the area and return to the crossing. Make preparations here as a lurker will burst from a pool on the left side of the platform opposite where you are standing as you cross the bridge. Depending on your current level, a second lurker may appear from the right pool as well.

Crossing one last bridge lands you at The Hidden Twilight, your final destination. Other loot is scattered around the same area, including a vessel, four soul gems (two black and two grand), and three scrolls (a Scroll of Ebonyflesh, a Scroll of Grand Healing, and a Scroll of Paralyze). Upon opening the book, three green orbs will appear in front of you, one for each reward. Choose one, then activate the open book to travel back to Tel Mithryn.

If at a later time you want to change your reward, reread the book and you will be transported to this location again. You will not have to trek through the previous chapters.

Reward

Your choice of one of three greater powers:

• Mora's Agony — Summons a field of writhing tentacles that poisons foes.
• Mora's Grasp — Freezes the target between Oblivion and Tamriel for 30 seconds, making them immune to all damage.
• Mora's Boon — Fully restores your health, magicka, and stamina.

Achievements

One achievement is related to this quest:

• Hidden Knowledge (40 points/Bronze)

Bugs

• Mora's Grasp is affected by the Vampirism+Necromage bug, which will permanently cause its duration to be increased by 50% if you take the ability as a vampire with Necromage. See the vampirism's bug list for more info on being a necromage vampire. ^?
  • If can take the perk as a necromage vampire and then later cure yourself of vampirism, you will still retain the 50% longer bonus as long as you never swap it out for one of the other 2 rewards.

Quest Stages

Black Book: The Hidden Twilight (DLC2BlackBook07Quest)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
10		I read the Black Book called "The Hidden Twilight", and found myself in Hermaeus Mora's realm of Apocrypha. I should uncover the knowledge hidden here, or read the book again to escape. Objective 10: Learn the Black Book's hidden knowledge
20	Finishes quest	I uncovered the hidden knowledge contained in the Black Book "The Hidden Twilight".

Notes

• Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the Radiant Quest system, and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.
• 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 any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.
• 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 DLC2BlackBook07Quest stage, where stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages, but it is possible to clear all stages of the quest using resetquest DLC2BlackBook07Quest.