quests Skyrim Conflicting/Missable Quests:

[ejnomad07 5]

Hi All, I posted this elsewhere on the forums but this area makes the most sense now for visitors to read.

I like to do as many quests in one run as possible so I was curious to any quests you can easily miss or are conflicting. This is all I know so far and I would like to make one nice list:

 

 

Resolve With Friends Like These... and Destroy the Dark Brotherhood!

 

Why: You either pick to join the Dark Brotherhood or choose to Destroy it.

 

Solution: None. Requires Two Games.

 

 

 

Joining the Legion and Joining the Stormcloaks

 

Why: Picking a faction locks out unique quests on the other side.

 

Solution: None. Requires Two Games.

 

 

 

The Bloodstone Chalice and A New Order

 

Why: Bloodline quest before it determines if you join the Dawnguard or the Vampires faction locking out quests on the other side.

 

Solution: None. Requires Two Games.

 

 

 

Retaking Thirsk & The Chief of Thirsk Hall

 

Why: You have to side with one of the factions

 

Solution: None, Requires Two Games. You can do some of the The Chief of Thirsk Hall quests before picking a side though.

 

 

 

Joining the Legion or Joining the Stormcloaks and Lots of Quests (Just Don't!)

 

Why: A lot of game quests are locked out by joining one side or taking cities from the other faction.

 

Solution: Do the Civil War quests after all city quests are complete.

 

 

 

Resolve The Battle for Fort Amol or The Battle for Fort Hraggstad and Season Unending

 

Why: When one side has no extra holds to trade it becomes impossible obviously for the quest Season Unending to take place.

 

Solution: Complete Main Quest First

 

 

 

Season Unending and many quests in cities and towns after changes in ownership:

 

Why: Changing Jarls can make some quests no longer possible. Example: Dengeir of Stuhn doesn't offer to kill his ancestor while Jarl.

 

Solution: Complete the quests in cities and towns you want to change ownership of first.

 

 

 

Diplomatic Immunity and Find the Thalmor Assassin

 

Why: The second follow up quest doesn't happen if Malborn dies during the Main Quest. This can be difficult because he gets in a lot of fights and can die easily. Also, the quest has a timer of 24 hours after the other quest completes before it gets much harder to complete as Khajiit caravans are altered for the follow up quest to be possible.

 

Solution: Keep him alive. Run ahead as much as possible while escorting him to keep him out of fights. Then do his follow up quest as soon as possible.

 

 

 

Dungeon Delving (Helm of Winterhold) and Purity of Revenge (Fixed with Unofficial Skyrim Patch)

 

Why: If Driftshade Refuge is picked for the Helm's location and you cleared it out looking for the Helm of Winterhold Purity of Revenge won't start until the dungeon is reset.

 

Solution: Complete Purity of Revenge first or Download the Patch.

 

 

 

Delayed Burial and Beginning Innocence Lost or With Friends Like These...

 

Why: Can cause this quest to disappear, fail, or restrict your options.

 

Solution: Complete Delayed Burial First.

 

 

 

Kill Helvard and Thane of Falkreath (Fixed with Unofficial Skyrim Patch)

 

Why: Siddgeir won't let you complete the mission as long as he is Jarl.

 

Solution: Download Patch or Complete Thane of Falkreath first.

 

 

 

Kill Narfi and The Straw that Broke

 

Why: As soon as you start Kill Narfi, you will be unable to start or complete The Straw that Broke.

 

Solution: Complete The Straw that Broke first. 

 

 

 

Bound Until Death and The Spiced Wine

 

Why: As soon as you start Bound Until Death, The Spiced Wine becomes unavailable.

 

Solution: Complete The Spiced Wine first.

 

 

 

Flight or Fight & Clearing Broken Helm Hollow: (Fixed with Unofficial Skyrim Patch)

 

If you get sent to Broken Helm Hollow on a radiant quest or clear it before you get the quest to find Leifnar from Grosta at Heartwood Mill (both locations in the Rift), Leifnar's body will be labeled simply "Nord." You will get an objective to report his death to his family but will be unable to do so.

 

Solution: Get the quest from Grosta before clearing Broken Helm Hollow for any other reason or avoid the secret room with his body before you get the quest.

 

 

 

Lights Out! and Kill the Bandit Leader (Ahtar)

 

Why: During Lights Out!, you are required to trek through Broken Oar Grotto, where Captain Hargar lives. If you kill him before starting Kill the Bandit Leader, you will never be able to start that quest.

 

Solution: Complete Kill the Bandit Leader (Ahtar) first

 

 

Blood on the Ice and Mourning Never Comes

 

Why: During Mourning never comes, you are given the option to kill Nilsine Shatter Shield as a bonus. Doing this will cause Tova Shatter-Shield, distraught over the loss of her second daughter, to kill herself. This can cause a fair amount of problems with quest progression, especially if you have not yet started Blood on the Ice, so it's best to complete that quest first.

 

Solution: Complete Blood on Ice First

 

 

Rare Gifts (Torbjorn Shatter-Shield) and Mourning Never Comes

 

Why: During Mourning never comes, you are given the option to kill Nilsine Shatter Shield as a bonus. Doing this will cause Tova Shatter-Shield, distraught over the loss of her second daughter, to kill herself. This obviously means Torbjorn offer his quest as he no longer needs to find a gift for his wife.

 

Solution: Complete Rare Gifts first or don't kill Nilsine.

  
 

Lost to the Ages and Mourning Never Comes

 

Why: During Lost to the Ages, you are required to trek through Raldbthar, where Alain Dufont lives. If you kill him before starting Mourning Never Comes, you cannot kill Nilsine Shatter-Shield for the bonus reward in that quest.

 

Why Not: Alain only becomes hostile if you attack him, he won't defend the other bandits in the area. You can kill all the bandits but Alain, and complete Lost to the Ages without affecting Mourning Never Comes. Also, Mourning Never Comes is only available if you choose to join the Dark Brotherhood; if you choose to destroy them, you will never be given it.

 

Solution: Don't kill Alain or do Mourning Never Comes first.

 

 

 

The Forgemaster's Fingers and Coated in Blood or The Cursed Tribe or Fetch me that Book! or Kolskeggr Mine or Sanuarach Mine or Skilled Apprenticeship or Mine Ore (Iron) - Shor's Stone or Kindred Judgment (Dawnguard side) or Being an Orc

 

Why: Becoming Blood-Kin with Orcs cancels the need for this quest.

 

Solution: Start Forgemaster's Fingers before starting other quests

 

 

 

Rare Gifts (Siddgeir) and Letter from Jarl Siddgeir of Falkreath given at level 9

 

Why: Rare Gifts is skipped over to it's subsequent quest if the letter is read. 

 

Solution: Catch Rare Gifts early in the game. It's easy and you even get the Mead in Helgen. 

 

 

 

Totems of Hircine and Purify yourself of Lycanthropy

 

Why: If you are no longer a Werewolf you can't find the rest of the totems.

 

Solution: Find all three totems first before you purify yourself of Lycanthropy.

 

 

 

Visit the hunters at Frostmoon Crag and Purify yourself of Lycanthropy

 

Why: The Werewolf Pack will not interact with you kindly here keeping you from buying four unique rings that enhance a Werewolf player.

 

Solution: Do this quest before you purify yourself of Lycanthropy.

 

 

 

Elmus Favor Quest (mead) and Retaking Thirsk or The Chief of Thirsk Hall

 

Why: If you retake Thirsk Hall or Kill him during the Chief of Thirsk Hall this quest can no longer be completed.

 

Solution: Do his favor quest first before picking a side

 

 

 

Non-quest Unique Weapon Conflict:

 

 

 

Ill Met By Moonlight and Recovering Bolar's Oathblade in Bloated Man's Grotto

 

Why: If Ill Met By Moonlight is done first and Sinding lives and makes this his home the Blade can never spawn. If killed you must wait for the dungeon to respawn.

 

Solution: Clear Bloaded Man's Grotto first before starting Ill Met By Moonlight if you want to save Sinding.

[ejnomad07 5]

By the way. Thank you for the REP! Hope this helps you.

[ejnomad07 5]

Just doing another run through of the game. Bumping this in case anyone knows of something I missed.

[Leonardo 51]

On 8/18/2017 at 3:33 AM, ejnomad07 said:

Resolve The Battle for Fort Amol or The Battle for Fort Hraggstad and Season Unending

 

Why: When one side has no extra holds to trade it becomes impossible obviously for the quest Season Unending to take place.

 

Solution: Complete Main Quest First

This isn't entirely accurate.  Because I know both sides can change ownership based on what choice the player make.

For example, in my case I decided to let the Stormcloaks gain ownership over Markath while the Imperials got Riften.

Spoiler

tell General Tullius about what strategic position the Imperials will have when controlling the road to the South directly to Cyrodiil

Which has worked in my game every time I've finished the MQ, either in vanilla or in a modded game.

[ejnomad07 5]

Leonardo I believe you are thinking more along the lines of a solution to the conflict rather than the actual conflict. The point of the conflict is if you go so far along the civil war quest line you miss out on Season Unending. Those two quests are the last battles before you finish by taking the Capitals for either side. If you complete them then at that point there is nothing to trade and Season Unending can't start.

[DayDreamer 14]

Pretty much all of this (and more) has long been documented at https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Quest_Timing

[ejnomad07 5]

On 2/15/2020 at 2:50 PM, DayDreamer said:

Pretty much all of this (and more) has long been documented at https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Quest_Timing

I'm sorry but that's incorrect. I started with that page at one point but built my list up from it. It's missing conflicts.

Example, they don't list all possible conflicts Mourning Never Comes can have or the importance of keeping Malborn alive or you miss another quest and the small window you have to easily complete it.

 

[Arthmoor 543]

Keeping Malborn alive and the follow-up quest having a narrow window to pursue it isn't a conflict. That's bonus material for protecting him effectively at the embassy. Not everything is a "conflict" in the sense that list is trying to specify.

[Leonardo 51]

On 2/8/2020 at 11:07 PM, ejnomad07 said:

The point of the conflict is if you go so far along the civil war quest line you miss out on Season Unending.

No, there is no conflict with the Season Undending quest.  The player won't miss the Season Unending quest, because it is part of the MQ and will always be available.  Why?  Because the player must capture Odahviing and only him can take the player to Skuldafn, which is the only location the player cannot fast travel to.

[BlackPete 36]

Leo, maybe I'm misunderstanding what you're talking about, but you actually can skip over Season Unending if you advance far enough into the Skyrim Civil War questline. I know for sure it can be bypassed completely if you've already finished either the Battle for Windhelm or the Battle for Solitude. I've heard it can also be skipped if one side controls eight out of the nine holds, but I've not played under that particular situation before.

The whole point of Season Unending is to help persuade the Jarl of Whiterun to help you catch Odahviing. He won't do that while the Civil War is still underway. If it has already been finished for one side or the other, the Jarl of Whiterun won't hesitate to help you capture the dragon during "The Fallen" and there's no need for the temporary truce in the Civil War. The cutoff point for whether Season Unending is triggered is very early on during "The Fallen" (can't recall which stage).

[Arthmoor 543]

Pete is correct. I did the civil war on my first playthrough without ever seeing Season Unending. People were asking me stuff about the peace conference and I had no idea what they were talking about because the path I went through the game didn't require it.

That's not a conflict. That's the result of decisions you made while playing.

[ejnomad07 5]

20 hours ago, Arthmoor said:

Keeping Malborn alive and the follow-up quest having a narrow window to pursue it isn't a conflict. That's bonus material for protecting him effectively at the embassy. Not everything is a "conflict" in the sense that list is trying to specify.

I don't disagree. It's not a conflict. The thread here is about conflicts or missable content. He said that page had everything I listed and more. It doesn't. The point I was trying to convey is it neglects many conflicts and missable content. It does. Collecting Bolar's Oathblade and keeping Sinding alive is another if you do them out of order.