Online:Litany of Blood

This article is about the quest. For the book, see Litany of Blood (book). For the achievement, see Litany of Blood (achievement).

You have received a strange tome from a Dunmer assassin, containing mysterious clues. Zone: Gold Coast Faction: Dark Brotherhood Quest Giver: Nevusa Location(s): Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary Prerequisite Quest: A Lesson in Silence, and the first Sacrament quest Reward: Cadaverous Assassin Litany of Blood (page) Average Leveled Gold XP Gain: Standard ID: 5634

Read the mysterious tome called the Litany of Blood

The Listener sent a mysterious Dark Elf to the Sanctuary to deliver a strange tome by the statue of the Night Mother. She mentioned that it was meant for the killer who tasted death.

Quick Walkthrough

1. Talk to Nevusa.
2. Read the Litany of Blood.
3. Talk to Nevusa again.

Detailed Walkthrough

The eliminated targets will appear as ghostly projections inside the Sanctuary

After doing your first job for the Sanctuary's matron, and your first sacrament quest, an assassin named Nevusa will appear at the Sanctuary. Speak to her to begin the quest:

"The Listener said you would come to me."

What did you say about the Listener?

"The Listener sent me to deliver the Litany of Blood. I placed it before the Night Mother's shrine. She said the book is meant for the killer who tasted death.
While that could refer to anyone in the Sanctuary, I believe she intends it for you."

What's the Litany of Blood?

"A test, perhaps? A message, most certainly. Your Brothers and Sisters have gazed upon it and seen nothing but blank pages. They found it to be comforting, calming, but totally empty.
Perhaps your eyes will see something more?"

I'll take a look at the book.

"Go and look at the Litany of Blood. If you see nothing, then you aren't the one I supposed you to be."

Who are you, if you don't mind me asking?

"The Listener send me to deliver the Litany of Blood.
That's all you need to know and more than I want to say."

Who's the Listener?

"The Listener and the four Speakers make up the Black Hand, the ruling council of the Dark Brotherhood. You might even say she's the leader of the council.
The Listener hears the words of the Night Mother and whispers them to the Speakers."

You said the pages of the book are blank?

"As blank as the stare in a dead man's eyes. But go ahead and see for yourself.
I'm curious to find out if the Listener is right about you. If you can see what's really there."

The Guise of Cadaverous Assassin

Read the book, and you will find instructions for targets all over Tamriel, each instruction concluded with the words "You will know them by their eye." Then, speak to Nevusa to complete the quest:

"Tell me, Assassin, what did you see?"

I can read the Litany of Blood.

"So the Listener was right. Tell me, what did you see?"

It's some kind of prayer or ritual, maybe. Very poetic.

"What a blessing you've received! The Night Mother has chosen you to fulfill the Litany of Blood.
Let me ask you this. Did the passages make any sense to you?"

It's a chant. Descriptions of people, like riddles, ending with "you will know them by their eye."

"Of course. The targets must be marked in some way. Easier than I would make it, but who am I to question the Listener?
It's clear to me that you must decipher the Litany of Blood and kill the targets inscribed on their pages."

Why do you think they're targets?

"What else would a book provided by the Listener contain? Determine each target and assassinate them. Beyond that, the will of Sithis isn't for you or I to question.
Your task won't be easy, but the Listener has faith that you will succeed."

Target List

Although the quest concludes after this, all fifteen pedestals must be filled to complete the Litany. The book provides hints, and can be accessed directly from your inventory under the Miscellaneous Items section.

The Litany involves using the Blade of Woe to kill a specific NPC in each of the fifteen Alliance zones. Aside from the hints provided, the NPC can be confirmed as a target by their single white eye. If you assassinate the correct NPC, they will turn to ash in a red flash of light and their soul will appear back at the Sanctuary. The NPCs respawn immediately, but many of them have a large wander radius. The achievement list can be used to keep track of which zones you've covered.

The following table provides the name and general location of each target. Each target has one or more paths they walk, so they may be found anywhere on those paths. You may find that you are not the only player stalking them. However, they also instantly respawn, meaning you can continue searching the city even if someone steals your kill.

Zone	Clue	Target	Location
Aldmeri Dominion
Auridon	She who reflects the heavens in her gaze and dress, drifting from dance to dance.	Cimalire	Skywatch
Grahtwood	He who is aged and gnarled as the trees, his back bowed but not bent.	Dirdelas	Elden Root
Greenshade	She who surveys the market beneath an auburn veil and keeps silver close to her heart.	Caraleth	Marbruk
Malabal Tor	She who sweeps away the seasons with straw and the swish of her tail.	Sihada	Vulkwasten
Reaper's March	He who clothes his stripes of brown with stripes of gold.	Dablir	Rawl'kha
Daggerfall Covenant
Glenumbra	He whose dress is as cool as his demeanor and pate as barren as his heart.	Cesarel Hedier	Daggerfall
Stormhaven	She who peers from behind a crimson curtain and marred her face to hide her nature.	Alix Edette	Wayrest
Rivenspire	She who greets death as a sister, her smile joyless and unflinching.	Bolaag	Shornhelm
Alik'r Desert	He who leaves a trail of neat black ropes dangling over a golden cage.	Ebrayd	Sentinel
Bangkorai	She whose heart bears many scars, but does not fear to wear them proudly.	Berea	Evermore
Ebonheart Pact
Stonefalls	He who is silver, ash, and fire, draped in copper filigree.	Dinor Girano	Davon's Watch
Deshaan	She who marches beneath a red crest and wields winding steel.	Cindiri Malas	Mournhold
Shadowfen	She who is caked in mud but wears a halo of bone, bright and untouched by mire.	Gideelar	Stormhold
Eastmarch	She who bears time at her waist, but for whom age has not robbed her golden crown.	Hakida	Windhelm
The Rift	He whose arms are coiled and stained with the ink and weeds of the sea.	Eldfyr	Riften

When you return to the Sanctuary after completing all the listed killings, you will be granted the Litany of Blood achievement, allowing you to read Litany of Blood Fulfilled and collect the Cadaverous Assassin Polymorph. You'll also be able to use the Executioner title.

Notes

• The people targeted can be killed before the quest is unlocked. If you do this, they will be added to their pedestal and marked as completed in the log when the quest is started.
• There are 15 pedestals, one for each alliance zone. Facing into the room, numbering them 1 to 15 beginning with the closest pedestal on the right and ending with the closest pedestal on the left, numbers 1-5 are the Aldmeri Dominion zones in order, 6-10 are the Ebonheart Pact zones in order, and 11-15 are the Daggerfall Covenant zones in order. This is a good way to track which kills are completed and which ones you are still missing, although checking the Achievement tab in your Journal will also tell you who is left.
• All of the targets have one eye that is blinded/entirely white, referencing the line "You will know them by their eye."
• Thirteen of the targets are in the same towns as the respective Outlaws Refuges in their provinces, making it comparatively easy (so long as you can evade guards) to find your way there and pay off any bounty you might incur. The exceptions are in Auridon (Skywatch, rather than Vulkhel Guard) and Malabal Tor (Vulkwasten, rather than Velyn Harbor).
• The Litany of Blood lacks the typical golden glow of readable notes.

Quest Stages

Litany of Blood
Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
	Nevusa said I should examine the Litany of Blood for myself. The blank book rests at the base of the Night Mother's shrine in the Sanctuary. Objective: Examine the Litany of Blood
	Nevusa claimed that the Litany of Blood was a book of blank pages, but the pages were full of words to my eyes. I should tell Nevusa what I saw and read. Objective: Talk to Nevusa
Finishes quest	Nevusa claimed that the Litany of Blood was a book of blank pages, but the pages were full of words to my eyes. I should tell Nevusa what I saw and read. Objective: Talk to Nevusa

Notes

* Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the game 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.