Daggerfall:The Heretic

Quick Walkthrough
# Talk to a quest giver of your Temple.
# Meet the cleric in the town and tavern mentioned to you.
# (Optional) Alternatively, find the priest(ess) in the dungeon mentioned to you.
# Learn about the prophet's lover and travel to their location.
# Meet and speak to the lover.
# Receive a letter or a denial from the lover.
# If you did not receive the lover's letter, wait for a courier to deliver a message (or two).
# Investigate one or both messages, and receive the lover's letter or a severed finger.
# Report back to the quest giver with either the lover's letter or the finger within the time limit and collect your reward.

Detailed Walkthrough
thumb|right|The cleric...
thumb|right|...the priestess...
thumb|right|...the prophet...
thumb|right|...and her lover
 
A Possible Prophet
Speak to a quest giver, who says:

:''"(Temple god) be with you, (player's guild title). You may have heard of (prophet's name). If you have not yet, you will. We are investigating (his/her) claims that (he/she) is a prophet. We are not, I think, censorious by nature, but we must ever be alert to the presence of heretical influences. Would you be available to assist in this important investigation?"
or
:"It falls upon us to investigate the claims of (prophet's name) that (he/she) has seen the face and heard the words of (Temple god). Perhaps you have time to assist in this inquiry?"

Accept
The quest giver goes on:

:Good. We have already sent one of the Temple, (priest(ess)' name) to the desacrilized (dungeon), where (prophet's name) asserts that (he/she) first witnessed the miracle. If (priest(ess)' name) needs assistance, I will send for you. In the meanwhile, I want you to find some more secular information on (prophet's name), by asking around in (his/her) hometown, (town). A loyal cleric of ours, (cleric's name) will meet you in (tavern). I want to see evidence of the true nature of (prophet's name) in no more than (time limit) days. I would leave immediately. May Great (Temple's deity) bless your enterprise, (player's guild rank).

Decline
The quest giver answers:

:"That's a pity, (player's guild title). I hope you will find time in your busy schedule for the temple in the near future."''

The Investigation
There are two ways to proceed with this part of the quest; either one will lead you to the next step of your investigation. You may do both if you wish.

Option I: Meet the Cleric
If you wish to follow the quest giver's instructions, then travel to the prophet's hometown and meet the cleric in the specified tavern. The cleric has much to say:

:''"Ah hello, (player's first name). Welcome to (town). The whole town's in a buzz about that young (prophet's name). But (he/she) isn't even here -- (he/she)'s in (prophet's town) at a tavern called (prophet's tavern), working on a new tract about what this mysterious spirit of (dungeon) had to say about the moral disintegration of (temple). Here's a copy of the original tractate, so you know what this (prophet's name)'s all about. Dangerous character from what I've seen so far. I'm communicating with (lover's name), a (lover's description) in (lover's town) with whom (prophet's name) had some kind of relationship. It wouldn't be a bad idea for you to go to (lover's town) and see if you can't persuade (him/her) to talk to us. Hope all this is helpful information, (player's first name)."

Check your inventory for the religious tractate the cleric gave you, which reads:

::     I scarcely remember my voyage to the place
:called (dungeon): I expect I was
:still partly dreaming. Deep within the stinking
:recesses of the profaned temple, I was met with
:a great fire and from the flames I heard the
:same voice speak: "Welcome."
:::     "Who art thou?" I addressed the flame.
:::     "I am what (temple) doth
:proclaim to worship, but with every act and
:thought defile my divinity. To thee I called
:so that a new (temple) might be
:created, one led by truth and true insight,
:and understanding of my Being. The heathen
:need insight, and you shall be it."
:::     The God told me more that day, but while
:the wicked (temple) continues
:their policy of quashing any who dare to
:challenge their corrupted, contemptible
:theology, I must keep my tracts short. More
:will follow shortly hereafter.

Option II: Find the Priest(ess)
If, on the other hand, you feel like doing some dungeon crawling, you can seek out the priest(ess) instead of the cleric. Proceed straight to the dungeon where the prophet claims to have received these visions and find the priest(ess) within, who will say:

:"(Player's first name), I thought that you were supposed to be investigating the situation in (town). Well, as long as you're here, I have something different for you to do. I've found some torn up letters, scraps really, about a (lover's description) somewhere in (lover's town) by the name of (lover's name). See if you can't find something on (him/her). I don't know if (he/she)'ll talk, but it's worth a try."

You now have enough information to find the lover, and if you spoke to the cleric, the prophet as well. However, if you seek out the prophet at this time, all you will be told is: "How they come to persecute me. Abandon your unholy abuse, hound of (temple). I am under protection of my god ... and the (ruler's title) of (region)."'' Since this is a dead end, seek out the lover for more information.

Locate the Lover
thumb|right|The prophet's bodyguard will step in if confronted
Travel to the town the cleric or priest(ess) named, ask around to find the lover, and meet with them. The lover will belong to a random faction. In most cases this will be a subgroup of one of the eight Temples, a subgroup of the Mages Guild or one of the Knightly Orders. However, there is no way to tell which one it will end up being. If your reputation with this faction is at least five, the lover will say:

:''"(Prophet's name) would kill me if (he/she) knew I was talking to you. But I know that you couldn't be working for (him/her). Here's a letter (he/she) wrote to me about a month ago. I think it explains everything."

Check your inventory for the letter. It reads:

:(Lover's name), My Love,

:::First, forgive the silence of your
:love. It was not another attack of brain
:fever. For some months now, I have been
:in spiritual turmoil, unfit to for any
:company, even for the comfort of your
:dulcet fellowship. My days of pain are
:over, but for this -- I can never see you
:again. My life has a higher purpose than
:the fulfillment of a ridiculous love affair
:now.
:::No longer can I suffer the evil of
:(temple), the evil they did
:to me, and the evil they are doing to all
:of Tamriel. The days the prophet Marukh
:spoke of are on us again. I must rally the
:people by any and all lies, innuendo, bigotry,
:and threats to rise against the spiritual
:tyranny of (temple).
:::Forgive me, my former love. And if you
:can, forget me. And if you can do neither,
:do not see me. If you do, I will slay you
:and stick candles in your eyes and twine
:your organs with beads for the greater
:glory of the gods of the universe. Filthy
:(lover's description), torment me no longer.
::::(Prophet's name)

The letter reveals that the prophet is obviously an impostor, which should be the evidence the Temple needs. Return with this letter to the quest giver for your reward. Alternatively, you can show the letter to the prophet, who will be furious and yell:

:"(Lover's name)! False creature, deceiver! How (he/she) will pay! (Warrior's name), deal with this (player's race)!"''

The prophet takes the letter from you and flees, and a warrior will show up to kill you.

If your reputation with the lover's faction is lower than five, the lover will deny knowing the prophet: 

:''"Whatever they say, I never knew that (prophet's name). Tell (cleric's name) (he/she) has the wrong (lover's description)."''

You will not get the lover's letter in this event; in this case, or if the prophet took the letter from you, you must wait until the quest moves on.

The Aftermath
thumb|right|The cleric's replacement
thumb|right|A severed finger
 
Two to about twenty-one days after the quest was started you will be approached:
 
:A young lad hands you a letter and scurries off.

You may receive one of two letters, or both. Either letter will lead to enough evidence to satisfy the quest giver.

The First Letter
The first letter is addressed from the cleric's tavern. It seems something unfortunate has happened there:

::::::::(Tavern)
::::::::''(Tavern's town)
:Dear (player's name),

::There's been a horrible accident
:here at (tavern), involving
:(cleric's name). Please come here
: when you can.

:Yours sincerely,
:(Replacement's name)

Meet the sender, a replacement cleric sent by the Temple, who will be at the same tavern the first cleric was staying at earlier. Speak to this successor, who will tell you the first cleric was murdered:

:"(Oath), (player's first name), it was dreadful. The tavernkeep found (cleric's name) in one of the rooms, (his/her) body defiled in the most horrifying way, a grim parody of the old (temple) mortuary rites. It was (prophet's name), no doubt. This relic was found in (cleric's name)'s chest cavity. See if (lover's name) in (lover's town) recognizes it."''

The replacement will give you the religious artifact which was used in the cleric's murder. If you show the artifact to the prophet's lover, it provokes shock and horror:

''(Religious artifact)! (Oath), that's poor (prophet's name)'s property. (Oath), I knew (he/she) was unstable, but I never thought (he/she)'d really do it. (Oath), poor (cleric's name). If I had helped (him/her), (he/she)'d still be alive today. This won't make up for what I've done by failing to act, but you will know what to do with this letter. May (random god) forgive me.

The lover will now give you the letter which reveals the prophet as an impostor. Return this letter to the quest giver for your reward.

If confronted with the religious artifact, the prophet will snatch it from you and say:

:"Thank (random god), I was afraid I had lost that. Thank you, good (player's race)."

If the prophet takes the artifact, it will make it impossible to get the letter from the lover. Thus, you will be unable to gather the evidence to complete the quest by following this trail. The only other means of completing the quest comes if you have also received the second letter.

The Second Letter
The second letter you may receive reads as follows:

::::::::(Temple)
::::::::''(Temple's town)
:(Player's guild rank) (player's name),
::(Priest(ess)' name) has failed to
:meet with the man to whom (he/she) was to report
:(his/her) findings in (dungeon).
:We must assume the worst.
::You are hereby ordered to find either
:(priest(ess)' name) (him/her)-self or (his/her) body
:in (dungeon) and report back
:to me. All other assignments and investigations
:take lower priority.
:::::(Quest giver's name)''

Travel to the dungeon to look for clues. Seek out the priest(ess)' earlier location, and make a grisly discovery - a severed finger:

:''You pick up a scrap of flesh, carefully, even ritually ritualistically stripped from a (priest(ess)' description)'s hand. This was once a finger of (priest(ess)' name).''

Return the finger to the Temple; the quest giver will accept it as evidence and reward you. If you show the finger to the prophet, it will be taken from you amidst some amusing comments. If you are not able to procure the lover's letter after losing the finger, you will be unable to complete the quest. 

Reward
To complete the quest successfully, you must return to the Temple with either the prophet's lover's letter or the severed finger. Hand over either and the quest giver will say:

:''"Well done, (player's guild title). I tremble to think what (prophet's name) might have done to our temple had (he/she) spread (his/her) profane word. (Temple god) bless you and keep you, goodly (player's race). Here, a small token of the esteem of your brethren."''

Reputation Gain/Loss
 

Enemies
Random dungeon monsters
One Warrior if you show the lover's letter to the prophet

Notes
The time limit of this quest is always 26 days 9 hours and 20 minutes.
If you gave the letter or the religious item to the prophet, you can still complete the quest by returning the finger to the quest giver.

Bugs
The letter you receive when the priest(ess) is murdered is supposed to display your rank in the Temple followed by your full name. However, the rank may also display as your full name, leading to an odd double-named salutation.
Successfully asking an NPC about the prophet will not return the proper dialogue, instead the NPC will use the quest giver's "failed quest" greeting. 

Additional Dialogue
If you ask an NPC about the prophet, you may be told:
''"Say what you want about (prophet's name)'s religion, but (he/she)'s a persuasive writer."
"(Temple) is real nervous about having a revolutionary like (prophet's name) around."
"I read about (prophet's name)'s miracle in (his/her) tract. I must say, it's persuasive."
If you ask an NPC about the lover, you may be told:
"(Lover's name) -- ah, poor (lover's description). Well, (he/she) keeps mostly to ( )-self.
''"(Lover's name) is a (lover's description) in (lover's building). They say (he/she) mourns for (his/her) lost love."
"No matter what anyone tells you, (lover's name)'s lover is not dead. Mad, not dead."
"(Lover's name) is one of the tragedies in (lover's town). They say (his/her) lover went mad."
If you ask an NPC about the replacement cleric, you may be told:
"(Replacement's name) is that (replacement's description). Affiliated with (temple) somehow."
"(Replacement's name) was an old friend of (cleric's name) before the ... accident."
After you have accepted this quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:
"Say what you want about (prophet'a name)'s religion, but (he/she)'s a persuasive writer."
"(Temple) is real nervous about having a revolutionary like (prophet's name) around."
"I read about (prophet's name)'s miracle in (his/her) tract. I must say, it's persuasive."
If you fail the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:
"(Prophet's name)'s gone on to preach (his/her) evangelium to the heathen folk of Tamriel."
"(Prophet's name)'s left the Bay, but (his/her) work is not yet complete."
If you successfully complete the quest, NPCs may say when asked for any news:
"That (prophet's name) was a   who found some fools in (town)."
If you successfully complete the quest, the quest giver may later greet you with:
"For what thou hast done for the faith, I'd be happy to help thee."
If you failed the quest, the quest giver will greet you with:
"I have nothing to say to thee, heretic of (prophet's name)."''

Quest Log