Skyrim talk:Darkness Returns

Page Edits

-- Corrected capitalization (Pilgrim's path) and grammar (it's place). — Unsigned comment by Shadowgm (talk • contribs) at 14:38 on 17 November 2011

Nightengale Bow

--Nightengale bow same as my eleven bow at level 23. If thay helps at all TakaRai 03:22, 19 November 2011 (UTC)

The stats of the Nightingale Bow are scaled to your level with the highest level version being awarded at level 46+. 24.17.218.20 20:08, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

Unincorporated Edits

I've moved the following comments off the article, because they are not in proper article style. Edits should be incorporated into the existing text, without any attribution or datestamp:

Edit 11/21/11 (VayneDragon): if you have Whirlwind Shout at this point (and you should), you can blow past the swinging blades and not set off either of the traps. Time it so you take off just as the blades are beginning their upward, into the walls arc.

Edit 11/22/11 (ChildeRoland): there's a pass leading to a hall on your left with two Sentinals inside, which you can use to avoid the death traps.

--Nephele^Talk 04:47, 22 November 2011 (UTC)

Glitch?

ok, so the door wont open for me even though ive spoken to the ghost with all the speach options, can anyone help me? — Unsigned comment by 69.127.58.56 (talk) at 20:24 on 23 November 2011

I'm actually having the same issue, so this isn't a one-off. Did you, by chance, leave after entering? That is the only thing I can think of that would have such a strange effect.--^Corevette₇₈₉ 01:22, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

Found a work-around tonight. On my girlfriend's character, she didn't know about the glitch and progressed up to this quest while I was at work, so I had no idea to warn her not to leave after talking to him... Well, after an hour of searching the internet at the start of the dungeon, we happened across another glitch to fix a glitch, so to speak. Not sure if this is the case on all game saves, but the wall around and behind the left side of the door was non-existent. She simple Whirlwind Sprinted through the invisible barrier and into the corridor just past the door. We've gone back multiple times to see if it was a load failure glitch, but the wall was gone all 9 times we returned. I will go on my character later and see if it's across all games or was a one-time thing. Mikeyy 04:04, 1 December 2011 (UTC)

Confirmed that the wall is not there on multiple character saves, and also, I recommend saving before attempting. You also must whirlwind sprint over the gap, as it is possible to fall through the floor. Mikeyy 04:10, 1 December 2011 (UTC)

Mikey, you saved my life! This worked just as you described. Thank you :D (Jeff) — Unsigned comment by 76.97.82.216 (talk) at 03:59 on 3 December 2011

Skeleton key

This might be a problem for the Daedric quests site as well, but it says in that page that as a reward from this quest is nightingale blessing OR skeleton key. Would that be only if you choose not to complete the quest? — Unsigned comment by ZeNinjaHawk (talk • contribs) at 10:12 on 24 November 2011

yeah, i was wondering the same thing, is there any way to keep the key if u complete the quest???? — Unsigned comment by Misusel (talk • contribs) at 18:19 on 24 November 2011

There is no way to keep the key and complete this quest. Also, worth mentioning, is that the key does NOT count towards the Oblivion Walker achievement, leaving no room for glitches and misses. Mikeyy 10:22, 5 December 2011 (UTC)

Karliah will not give quest

I keep reloading, escaping from the sanctuary in the previous quest, then i escape, get her bow, then she completes the quest. However, she doesn't give me Darkness Returns, she talks about it, but doesn't actually give it to me. startquest tg09 isn't working, if i use setstage tg09 0 or setstage tg09 10, then use getstage tg09 it gives me a GetStage >> 0.00, showing I haven't gotten the quest, can anyone explain a console command to receive the quest? — Unsigned comment by 108.3.181.132 (talk) at 00:53 on 26 November 2011

edit: fixed, if you have the same bug, when she auto approaches you as you exit the sanctuary, cancel talking to her, save, then restart your game, then talk to her again. — Unsigned comment by 108.3.181.132 (talk) at 01:08 on 26 November 2011

Oblivion Walker Achievement

Does anyone know if giving back the Skeleton Key affects the Oblivion Walker achievement (collect 15 daedric artifacts)? Do you have to have 15 artifacts in your possession at one time to trigger the achievement, or do you just need to complete 15 daedric quests to get it? --Skrutop 14:27, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

I think the achievement is to receive 15 daedric artifacts, ie you don't have to have them all at the same time, I'm unsure about whether or not you can simply complete the quests without getting the artifact to get achievement.RIM 14:32, 27 November 2011 (UTC)

I've confirmed that the Skeleton Key does not count towards the acheivement, as it is a quest item and not an actual artifact. I missed Meridia's Beacon in the first phase of the Dawnstar DB Sanctuary and had 14 other artifacts. I received no achievement when I picked up the Key. Mikeyy 10:24, 5 December 2011 (UTC)

God Mode?

Hey, kinda new to wiki talk so I apologize if this is formatted incorrectly. I was playing the other day and had god mode on during this quest. In the room in which you creep in the shadows and avoid the light, you can still be damaged with god mode on. I wasn't sure if this was noteworthy enough to be added. Maybe as trivia? — Unsigned comment by 129.2.129.101 (talk) at 22:32 on 1 December 2011

I think it's noteworthy. I'm on the Xbox and literally a minute ago, I tried using the "Become Ethereal" shout (powered by two of three runes) to do the same thing. I was still damaged, just more slowly than unprotected. By the way, those bandits out in the light do not have anything interesting on them. One lockpick each and a random spellbook, looks like. Oshaugm 23:04, 6 December 2011 (UTC)

I have just test because of this "[verification needed — Can someone reproduce this effect, and if so, why is this happening?]" and I can confirmed that we still take damage over time in the light. — Unsigned comment by 82.242.48.47 (talk) at 15:32 on 2 January 2012

It's a scripted damage effect that triggers once you walk in the light. That's why it damages you despite God Mode. The become ethereal, I didn't test, so I can't verify that it damages you less than normal, but for sure the light damages you desipte God Mode. 208.83.214.226 04:25, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

I had the damage effect hit me in the inventory screen on the 360. Could have just been weird timing or a one-off bug, can anyone else confirm? 70.122.227.164 09:24, 11 September 2012 (EDT)

Since it's a script effect, god mode does nothing. However, Immortal Mode (tim) works. You take damage, but you never hit 0. Schiffy (talk) 17:41, 1 October 2012 (GMT)

Is it just my imagination, or...?

Is it just my imagination, or did the Shrine of Nocturnal suddenly appear in the Ragged Flagon Cistern after completing this quest?? I don't remember seeing it before. Oshaugm 00:41, 7 December 2011 (UTC)

Nope, it does appear there sometime after becoming a full-fledged Nightingale. It's not your imagination, unless Nocturnal desires it to be. ;) --Mikeyy 04:21, 23 December 2011 (UTC)

A Shrine to Nocturnal appeared in the cistern after completing Darkness Returns. It can be activated for a blessing that confer's +10% to your sneak skill. Gharveyn _a ^collective representative... ;^) Enjoy! 13:34, 20 November 2017 (UTC)

References

Night is the new day, and ghost of the sun are both references to the Swedish band Katatonia. They're both songs, also names of EP's or singles. I'm not sure how this wiki handles games referencing life. 110.174.243.167 01:36, 10 December 2011 (UTC)

It's usually just put at the bottom as an Easter egg or the like. There are other pages with additions of this sort. I'll share a link to one so you have an example when I find one. It can also be added to the Easter egg page for Skyrim if you wish. --otakun — Unsigned comment by 70.126.193.210 (talk) at 18:32 on 10 December 2011

Another Karliah Glitch

I have a problem where the quest marker points to Karliah after Nocturnal's speech, but she only replies, "Yes, fellow Nightingale?" and does not grant me any further dialogue. (This is different from the glitch mentioned where Karliah does not show up at all or is "busy", and the quest marker points to Nocturnal's shrine.) I have thus far been unable to fix this glitch; reloading both the inner chamber and the entire dungeon fails to fix it, and waiting after Nocturnal's speech does nothing.

On this character, I have completed "Hard Answers" twice, and started "Darkness Returns" before I started "Hard Answers" the second time; completing "Hard Answers" twice fixed the bug where Karliah stays in the Winterhold inn's cellar. The testing comes from a time before I entered the Twilight Sepulcher, but after discovering it and starting the "Darkness Returns" quest. Picking up the journal at the beginning of the dungeon doesn't seem to affect the results, nor does fiddling with the corpse found after the "Leap of Faith". Installing the game did not help fix the problem. I'm playing on the 1.2 patch on the Xbox 360, so I have no way of using console commands. 68.53.28.12 02:13, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Same problem, except immediately prior to completing darkness returns, I'd started(and finished) Hard Answers the second time while collecting SoBs. After reverting to the save just before Hard Answers II, Karliah behaved properly. Fett0001 21:30, 20 January 2012 (UTC)

Agent of Shadow

I'm playing this quest right now, and Karliah states Agent of Shadow rather than Stealth, should I go ahead and change it? Halla man2 02:55, 18 December 2011 (UTC)

it says agent of stealth for me in the options to talk to her about 84.13.21.44 14:39, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

She seems to have two conflicting dialogue lines in this regard:

• "The Agent of Stealth is the master of remaining unseen. They are able to manipulate the darkness and use it to their advantage."
• "The crescent moon represents the Agent of Shadow, the half moon for the Agent of Subterfuge and the full moon for the Agent of Strife."

So hard to say which one is correct, since the power itself will display as "Shadowcloak of Nocturnal". --Alfwyn 22:55, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

Quest Icon

When the knots get added, this is Thieves Guild, not Daedric Quests in game. — Unsigned comment by Bwross (talk • contribs) at 15:13 on 1 January 2012

The Ebonmere Reset bug

I was stuck in this strange situation for quite a lot of time: the ebonmere was like the skeleton key had removed, before the quest was done for long time ahead. I think tied to the fact the gallus journal was still in inventory. So, eager for a solution, i looked for that in internet, finding few things, the bug itself even, but not the answer to my problem. And, after some attempt with the console, i used setstage command to put darkness return (TG09) at 45, and it worked, for a while at least. After some quest, ebonmere reset again, unfortunately. Someone can give me some advice? 84.223.19.194 01:19, 3 January 2012 (UTC)

Cannot Exit After Quest

So after the dialogue between Karliah and Gallus, I am supposed to exit through the Oblivion-gate-like0door, however, everytime I attempt to do so I freeze. This is also on PS3. I will try to A) whirlwind through and if this fails, B) backtrack through the dungeon to the original opening — Unsigned comment by 98.71.40.23 (talk) at 05:37 on 4 January 2012

So after four tries, I tried to whirlwind through the exit. I could not whirlwind through the door, but when I tried to do that and then immediately clicked to exit through the door it finally worked. — Unsigned comment by 98.71.40.23 (talk) at 05:42 on 4 January 2012

Ebonmere Closing

After i finished this quest, everything as fine. I was gone for a while (in game) and when i returned to change my power, the Ebonmere was closed.. I could still get the abilities, but the appearance was just like it was befre finishing the quest. I used the console to get another skeleton key, but it didnt unlock the portal. Any reason behind this? The only thing i could think of is a used setstage to finish the quest to be headmaster of the guild. — Unsigned comment by 68.0.170.137 (talk) at 02:51 on 6 January 2012

This happened to me as well. In addition, Karliah remained in the chamber indefinitely. Her full set of conversation options were still active but even if you go through them all she never leaves. --174.6.51.17 10:33, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

Console commands

Is it possible to use console commands to complete the quest without turning in the Skeleton Key? 67.168.149.21 06:44, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

Can't you just add the skeleton key back to your inventory with the console after completing the quest? — Unsigned comment by 75.34.55.137 (talk) at 17:51 on 6 January 2012

Sacred Witness Book

Did anyone else find Sacred Witness in the same area as Proper Lock Design? I don't see it. --oddboyout 17:35, 12 January 2012 (UTC)

I did, on the table near the middle of the room Rpbraley868 20:32, 13 January 2012 (UTC)

Same to me (PC, ver 1.4)--178.120.161.228 22:02, 20 February 2012 (UTC)

It should be on the broken table, near to the lockpicking book. But I can't find it, going there with the console (player.moveto 0010c24b). The book itself has some scripting concerning Dark Brotherhood quests. --Alfwyn 16:31, 7 February 2012 (UTC)

(←) I couldn't find it either.(PS3 user) 71.224.13.163 19:31, 11 February 2012 (UTC)Marcus

It was there in my game. (360 user). 99.148.63.146 00:52, 23 February 2012 (UTC)

Same, there for me too. (360, ver 1.4) 84.215.240.74 14:59, 13 March 2012 (UTC)Lars-Erik

Definitely there, on a table in the room. Playing right now and I saw it. — Unsigned comment by 174.50.243.210 (talk) at 00:03 on 14 March 2012

I found it on the broken table in the middle of the lower area. XBox version. — Unsigned comment by 94.196.178.124 (talk) on 21 March 2012

No book here either... (PS3) DuckmanBR 23:49, 13 April 2012 (UTC)

I see the table where it should be, but no book. (360). — Unsigned comment by 70.244.17.243 (talk) on 4 May 2012

Here's a screenshot of the book lying on the broken table in Twilight Sepulcher:

Apparently there is an occasional bug that it is missing in some playthroughs. Maybe it should be added to bugs section? --Xyzzy 18:52, 14 April 2012 (UTC)

Only appears if u startedthe dark brotherhood — Unsigned comment by 24.35.5.165 (talk) at 02:52 on 24 October 2013‎

That's a good possibility. Let's see if we can get some verification. I'll as a vn tag to the article. --Xyzzy ^Talk 05:11, 24 October 2013 (GMT)

Same here. Haven't started the DB. Only using full DLC and latest Unofficial Skyrim Patches. (PC). - Zelus | 14 Nov 2013

Ok. Can we get some verification that it IS present if the DB questline has been started? --Xyzzy ^Talk 06:10, 15 November 2013 (GMT)

This looks to be a bug introduced by a script meant to prevent duplicate books from appearing during the fire in Death Incarnate (and it looks like maybe also transfer any unread skill books to the Dawnstar Sanctuary as well). From testing, the book will only appear here if you've already acquired or read the same book elsewhere (the DB Sanctuaries or the one in the Draugr near the Abandoned Shack). – Robin Hood  ^(talk) 08:35, 23 November 2013 (GMT)

Karliah invisible

After meeting Nocturnal, Karliah was present, but invisible. The quest marker showed where she was, her presence showed up when I did an Aura Whisper shout, I went through the dialogue with her, and she had her chat with Gallus, but I couldn't see her throughout. Peterguard 13:19, 26 January 2012 (UTC)

Locked Vault

Not sure if my game is bugged or not. After completing the entire thieves guild main quest and side quests should the vault in the The Ragged Flagon - Cistern remain open or closed? In my game the vault is locked and requires a key (at this point the skeleton key no longer exists). Just think it's weird that the Guild Master (myself) can't access his own vault. — Unsigned comment by MrOlaf (talk • contribs) at 00:31 on 28 January 2012

It is normal that the vault is locked and requires a key. Anyway there is nothing (some cabbages) inside. — Unsigned comment by Dickson916 (talk • contribs) at 20:50 on 3 August 2012

Drakness Returns PS3

Return the Skeleton Key to the Ebonmere...did that, Nocturnal tells you to drink from the Ebonmere...she did not, what do I do now??? I did talk to Karliah but didn't notice if she was there the hole time....which I'm now reading that she needs to be. she's supposed to be back at nightingale hall but she's not...again I'm reading that she may be back at Snow Veil Sanctum??? how do I get the game to do what it's supposed to?? 1, I need to drink from the Ebonmere. 2, Karliah needs to go back to nightingale hall. 3, Brynjolf needs to be wearing his nightingale gear again.

any suggestions??? — Unsigned comment by 71.7.173.131 (talk) at 16:56 on 11 March 2012

Shock trap?

I think the note about a "shock trap" (in the shadow room) is incorrect; the lights seem to dispense fire damage, not shock.

One giveaway is that magicka is not affected; only health. Shock damages both.

Any thoughts? — UncleBubba ^{( T @ C )} 03:13, 16 April 2012 (UTC)

Somebody changes it to frost damage. I removed the elemental reference, since none of the side effects of any of the elemental damages seem to be present (flames, magicka damage, or slow). --Xyzzy^Talk 23:08, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

My character experienced the same visual effect as some of the ethereal beings-- not the transparency, but the floating white strands that look sort of cold, somehow. --Vulpa 23:19, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

It seems to me that if the damage was elemental, then resistance to that element should reduce the damage. I'm not in a position to easily test this, though. --Xyzzy^Talk 23:25, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

Me neither. But if I remember correctly (from this morning), I was wearing Nightingale Armor (resistance to frost damage), and it took 7 or 8 seconds to fully deplete my health in those light patches. I didn't have any other resistances on me, so does anyone know about how long it takes to kill you with average health levels and no frost resistance? --Vulpa 23:31, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

(←) It does light damage. It looks like if you are taking max damage (if you're close enough to the light--I think, in the CK, red is max damage and yellow is not, as there are red and yellow effect boxes in there), the formula is game.getPlayer().damageAV("health", (game.getPlayer().getBaseAV("health") * 0.2)) and, if not, game.getPlayer().damageAV("health", (game.getPlayer().getBaseAV("health") * 0.05)). I am uncertain what BaseAV("health") is, but it seems like it may be based on your armor value (AV). Someone else may be better at reading scripts, but there it is. If someone wants to puzzle out that formula, good luck. Vely^►t►e 23:48, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

On second glance, the formula looks like damage health by base health * .2 or .05, as it turns out AV means Actor Value. Vely^►t►e 23:57, 29 July 2012 (UTC)

I don't get asked to drink from ebonmere on the sky rim darkness returns quest

This has been marked as a question that needs to be answered.

Hi, get through all of the darkness quest and insert the skeleton key, nocturnal comes out and only mutters that a hero has brought back the key. She does not ask me to drink from ebonmere. I try to talk to her and karleigh but it says they are busy. Help! 90.217.158.252 22:55, 17 April 2012 (UTC)

the cutscene...s?

how many type of cutscene that exist when the character is on that well? i encounter two different type so far. the first time i play skyrim, the cutscene was my character use the skeleton key. the second time i play skyrim, the cutscene was my character cut his hand with an iron blade (that i do not have). what did i do that i end up with that scene? or is it just random? 223.255.225.16 19:30, 16 May 2012 (UTC)

Stuck at the end of Pilgrim's Path

Got through the path, jump into the well with Anders, and...nothing. Not even after examining Anders. No cutscene, no Nocturnal, no floor lowering. Tried restarts, no results. Tried going to previous save, nothing. Did all the quests i'm supposed to do. What gives? Vyc Ðarkshådøw 03:53, 20 July 2012 (UTC)

Used "setstage tg09 40", and it went to a cutscene of me looking at the Skeleton Key. Floor descended, Nocturnal appeared, Karliah showed up. No more problems, just not sure why cutscene wouldn't kick in. Vyc Ðarkshådøw 04:18, 20 July 2012 (UTC)

About the Reward: Leader of the Thieves Guild?

In the Rewards, it says ".....; Leader of the Thieves Guild". Is there any difference between Leader and Master of the Thieves Guild? Because you must complete the quest Under New Management before you can be the Master of the Thieves Guild and retrieve the armor. — Unsigned comment by Dickson916 (talk • contribs) at 12:35 on 3 August 2012

Can you ever get back inside?

I thought exploring would easier once the Sentinels were back to normal, so I didn't go poking around until I finished the quest... and now the whole entry is blocked by the portal to the inner sanctum. There are two skillbooks I'm missing in there! Can I get back in, or do I need to reload and repeat if I want those skill books? 184.174.156.214 08:06, 11 August 2012 (UTC)

You can get back inside although your not meant to. The sentinels won't go back to normal they just respawn after a while. To get back in to pilgrims path you need to glitch round the wall by the portal entrance to the sepulcher. I believe this is described on the quest page. There is no wall behind the portal this allows you to whirlwind sprint behind it and your at the start of pilgrims path.KingK^Talk 19:06, 14 August 2012 (UTC)

Nightingale Hall / Portal Upgrades Bug

Has anyone figured out a solution / reason for the portal, upgrades, etc. not appearing in Nightingale Hall? We've tried several characters and gone through multiple attempts of restoring from various saved positions and have not noticed any changes after completing the Thieves Guild quest line. Has anyone ever even seen any changes? We're using both the PS3 and an Xbox. (Davin) — Unsigned comment by 99.27.172.12 (talk) at 20:43 on 11 September 2012 (EDT)

What upgrades are you referring to? I'm not aware of any info that states that any upgrades or improvements are supposed to be made to Nightingale Hall. --Xyzzy ^Talk 03:04, 12 September 2012 (GMT)

Could they be specifically referring to a supposed portal meant to be within the Nightingale Hall after you have completed the quest, that leads directly to the Inner Sanctum? - Helenaannevalentine (talk) 03:25, 12 September 2012 (GMT)

Ebonmere Glitch

After returning the Skeleton Key to Nocturnal, she goes into the entire speech of you are a champion, you do my bidding, and all that jazz. She tells me to drink from the Ebonmere. She then goes down into it, and then nothing. The mission tells me to listen to Nocturnal, even though i did. Karliah is not there, i don't know if she is invisible or not, but the command to talk to Karliah does not show up. What do i do?

Conflict with Lytheus' riddles and the corrupted Nightingales due to missing Skeleton Key (Plot hole?)

As Gallus mentions at the beginning of the quest, he says that the Enemy Nightingale Sentinels inside are corrupted due to the missing Skeleton key. Then, how come that the same type of enemies are found in the Pilgrim's path? Is the path made after Mercer stole the key? I think there's some minor plothole in here.

--112.206.19.145 11:11, 10 January 2013 (GMT)

This sort of question is more suited for the forums. Article talk pages are mainly for discussions about improving the articles. --Xyzzy ^Talk 18:43, 13 June 2013 (GMT)

Missing Skeleton Key?

I have the same thing! I'm so annoyed I've reset the game went back to the start of the quest but I just can't get it to work! Does anybody know how to help? — Unsigned comment by 81.152.136.88 (talk) at 06:34 on 13 June 2013

I think you misunderstood the question above. Are you saying that you are missing the Skeleton Key? --Xyzzy ^Talk 18:43, 13 June 2013 (GMT)

Followers

In regards to not getting the standard message, everything looks fine in the CK, so I'd like in-game verification. It should be noted that, as with all such no-follower locations, you only get the message the first time you enter. If you've been there before (can you?) or you've gone in and then back out, you won't get it. – Robin Hood  ^(talk) 16:17, 6 August 2014 (GMT)

I play on the PS3, and the first time I entered I did receive the message about my follower not being able to follow me here. Chocoholic (talk) 08:36, 23 November 2014 (GMT)

Quest Markers in the Pilgrims Path

There were no quest markers for any of the four tests or for the location of Nystrom's Journal. Obviously by design, but still thought it worth a mention in case it appears the quest broke.--Lmstearn (talk) 09:46, 30 October 2015 (UTC)

Nightingale Subterfuge

What's the magnitude of the Frenzy effect? --Debatra (talk) 08:05, 6 August 2018 (UTC)

100 points over 15 feet for 30 seconds. Silence is Golden^{Break the Silence} 16:30, 6 August 2018 (UTC)

The Sacred Witness bug criteria seems incorrect

As i was able to read the book and score the skill point upgrade, therefore can't have read either of the other books. Biffa (talk) 23:37, 5 May 2019 (UTC)

According to the notes on the USKP bug tracker, if either Sacred Witness or Sithis is read in either of the sanctuaries, then all other copies will disappear. So the note on the page was the wrong way around. The script, which is the only one to apply to any skill book, appears to be intended to stop a second copy appearing in Dawnstar if you got the first, a totally needless precaution on a book that has no value after its one and only skill level up. Silence is Golden^{Break the Silence} 01:55, 6 May 2019 (UTC)

Thanks for checking. Biffa (talk) 12:19, 6 May 2019 (UTC)