Aha! The Sanguine Quest is resolved. The Countess wasn't at the dinner party yet. I sneaked in and hid, and did the naughty deed when she finally deigned to join her guests.

Hurray! It took me a couple of tries to find a good spot to stand at the table and hit them all. Did you manage to get out? I fear I was caught and the guard was not impressed with me.

No. I got caught. Nobody in the room actually saw me until I cast the spell, but of course the gig was up immediately after. I considered casting Chameleon and fading back into the servant's quarters but there's almost no time to react after the spell is cast, and I decided I'd just get frustrated trying.

I've become a wandering pilgrim, looking for shrines and odd quests to put off getting to the main storyline. I retreieved the Varla Stone for Martin, but hsitate to take it to him just yet because I suspect that will trigger some things I don't want to happen just yet.

I haven't started the main quest yet Am fiddling around waiting for Gray Fox to send for me - then still have the fighter's Guild to finish but am not sure if I want to do the Dark Brothers thing.

Alice, you definitely want to do the Dark Brothers quests The rewards you are given for completing certain quests are the best in the game. Every time I find a new weapon that looks good I compare it to what I already have, and sell it.

In fact, I haven't changed my armour or weapons since the first part of the game. I'm wearing some enchanted Mithril greaves that reflect magic damage, Tor's glass vest, a Mithril helmet of Life Detection, the Feather shoes, and the weapons I got from the Brotherhood quests. Plus my trusty steed.

Hagatha, I'm still wearing things I found earlier in the game.

My 'Protection conjurer's robe' suits me fine. Have three helmets I switch around depending on what I need. Three rings do the same thing. Usually, for exploring I am wearing the Jewel of Rumar and boots which allow me to walk on water.

Am playing the whole game without a horse to worry about - had difficulty trying to make the Painted Horse do anything but turn in circles and collide with trees so took him back - well, I replayed that episode and decline the horse.

At the moment having difficulty making Gray Fox ask for my help a second time. My log tells me to hang around in The Imperial city but the S.G. wants me to wait in Bruma. Have just bought the Bruma house so I'm not just roaming the streets. Must do something about the fighter's Guild then pluck up courage to gain entry to the Dark Brotherhood.

Now I need to figure out what to do with it. I think I can enchant something right?

I now have some neat Dwarvean armor but my strength is the pits. I somehow lost a great deal during my accidential foray into the realms of almost vampirism and I can't get it back to what it was. Wish there was a restore strength fountain somewhere.

Syd, you could brew up a restore strength potion. I don't know if the ingredients would be hard to find.

http://oblivion.melian.cc/?cmd=cmdOblivionAlchemyWizard

Don't the Temples restore everything?

hagatha I thought it did but I swear I was higher than 42 in Strength - I'm a Battlemage for crying out loud. Maybe I'm wrong and it's always been that low but honestly I can't wear any type of heavy armor (and that is a major skill of mine) and be able to carry any loot. It's very annoying.

Pokey - I think I have those ingredients - I'll check my chest at the house and see what I can do.

While I'm here - anyone remember where they found the Forlorn Wanderer's chest? I walked up and down that river and dove in the water but can't find it anywhere. I also for some reason don't have the map in my inventory. I picked it up but it's disappeared. Even went back to the shipwreck to make certain I didn't leave it behind.

Syd, if I remember correctly you dive into the water slightly to the right of the pier. I know it's real close to it. Sorry I can't be more specific than that. It took me a while to find it, too, because the map made it look like it was across the river, but it isn't.

Jean

If you're talking about the quest from the ghost that haunts the shore, the chest was up river near a dock, and there's a bandit camp immediately above the area.

But if you click on the quest in your journal it will direct you to the exact area. I had to use a potion of night eye to locate the chest as it's near some boulders on the river bottom and was hard to find. I jumped off the dock and swam a few strokes downriver. A Light spell would probably help better than Night Eye, but that was all I had.

If your stats page shows strength as red, then it is damaged and needs to be fixed. Or maybe you had a piece of equipment that upped your strength, and that's either broken or gone now.

I'm looking for the Great Welkynd Stone. I have come to a gate to the Morimath area and can't find a way to open it. In the large room before this, there is a button that seems to raise a cage over the varla stone. Is there a button I missed? Earlier I had to jump down from a bridge because I couldn't get another gate open.

I just found a mini-quest in my Skingrad House. Lots of small loot, too, for the reward.