Daggerfall:Witch Covens

right|The beldam of an outdoor Witch Coven
Witch covens in Daggerfall remain a mystery to many players. This article shows some carefully gathered information about them and explains their function and purpose.
 

Introduction
Witches in the Iliac Bay have gathered in groups to perform their actions from ancient times. What these actions are in detail probably only a witch knows, but the fact is covens possess an exhaustive knowledge of ancient lore. Witches are therefore able to summon the various Daedra Princes, thus giving one the opportunity to find one of the lost artifacts of ancient power. It's also rumored that witch covens have a vast knowledge of herbalism and curing diseases, and even the Mages Guild is said to rely on their services from time to time. On the other hand, the guild and the various temples in the bay paint a rather dark and wicked picture of the activities performed by these covens. Whether these rumors are true or not, most people believe in them, thus covens are often confronted with distrust and suspicion. In any case the witches represent a power that must be acknowledged and getting on good terms with them may result in advantages probably not found anywhere else.

How to Find Covens
Covens are located in the wilderness of the Iliac Bay. They often consist of a big mound the size of a house, two guards at the entrance, with more witches and the leader of a coven, the beldam, inside. An example for such a coven is the Glenmoril Witches in Ilessan Hills.

To find a coven, a map with the location might be handy, though unnecessary if you know where to look. All you need to do is to know which square they are in (e.g., 2 squares north of CITY and 2 squares east of TEMPLE will put you there). These directions give you the closest starting location already visible on the map. Traveling nearby and exploring will make the coven appear on your map. When finding these covens, continually check your fast-travel map. Pay attention to exactly when the red line moves as you travel. Think of the location of each town, temple, cemetery, etc. as a "square". Moving in a direction (say north) you can travel within a "square" until you reach the northernmost border, at which time the red line will move one "square" north. When you hit the "I'm At" button, it will tell you whether you are in the square containing the coven or not. When you get near the coven (you probably won't see it beforehand since, compared to the overall area of a square, a coven is rather small) you'll get a message saying, for example, "Entering Coven on the Bluff" and a black dot will mark the coven on your map. From now on, you can just click this dot on the fast-travel map and it will take you right there.

Dungeon Witch
A lone witch standing in a room can be found in a dungeon when embarking on an artifact quest from the knight order one is a member of.

In-house "Warlock"
Due to a bug in the BLOCKS.BSA file, the Glenmoril Witches faction ID has been assigned to a man who can occasionally be found in a random house. Because of this bug, interacting with him provides the witch interaction menu. For this reason, people will usually think they found an "in-house coven" and the man is a warlock. This bug is fairly common, as wrong faction ID assignments are frequent in the whole BLOCKS.BSA file (for example, many commoners have incorrect faction IDs, sometimes of a country (Wayrest, the Septim Empire), sometimes of some unique NPCs such as Br'itsa, Thaik or Lord Kain). As the Glenmoril Witches would be the only witches to have such "in-house covens", it is quite obvious this comes from the same wrong faction ID assignment bug.

Witch Covens and their Locations
There are fourteen Witch Covens in the Iliac Bay. All of their major gathering places can be found in the wilderness.

The Beldama
thumb|right|The Beldama Coven on a winter day
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The Beldama Coven
Location – Daenia, North Central, south of Greenham Manor, north and slightly east of the Old Masterhouse Shack 
Description – This coven is inside a mound, with two spear-wielding female guards outside it. Inside is the beldam surrounded by a Circle of Dancers; same layout as the Coven of the Dust and the Glenmoril Coven.
 

The Daggerfall Witches
The Daggerfall Coven
thumb|right|The Daggerfall Coven
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Location – Shalgora, South and slightly west of Woodham Manor. 
Description – Within a Ruined Tower, it consists of the beldam accompanied by a single Dancer. 
Notes – This coven is not actually in Daggerfall, but the neighboring county of Shalgora shortly beyond the border.
 

The Daughters of Wroth
The Wroth Coven
thumb|right|The Wroth Coven
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Location – Wrothgarian Mountains, southeast edge, due east of Deerville 
Description – A circle of spear wielding women in a field of rubble. The beldam stands in the center of the circle.
 

The Dust Witches
thumb|right|The Coven of the Dust
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The Coven of the Dust
Location – Antiphyllos, directly northeast of 'Perpetual Sunrise of Mara' 
Description – Same layout as the Beldama Coven and the Glenmoril Coven.
Notes – This coven can be fairly easily discovered by using dungeon maps. Antiphyllos houses only 9 dungeons, coven included, so there is a high chance that the second dungeon map you get or find will already reveal the coven's location.
 

The Glenmoril Witches
The Glenmoril Coven
thumb|right|The Glenmoril Coven
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Location – Ilessan Hills, 1 cell west and 4 cells north of 'Old Chrystausa's Place'.  
Description – Same layout as the Beldama Coven and the Coven of the Dust.
Notes – Although the game displays it as being the Glenmorial Coven, this is a mistake which has been fixed by the Hackfall unofficial patch.
 

The Mountain Witches
The Coven of the Peaks
thumb|right|Coven of the Peaks on a winter day
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Location – Dragontail Mountains, most southeastern part, 2 cells north and 3 cells west of the Baircte Farmstead
Description – Three women swaying their magical staff in a semi-circle of giant rocks. In the center of the group is the beldam.
 

The Sisters of Kykos
thumb|right|The Kykos Coven
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The Kykos Coven
Location – Dak'fron, southwest Central, About 8 cells straight north from Old Faelpga's Hovel. If you discover The Ruins Of Lerd Manor along the way, your on the right track. The coven is about 3 cells north of that.
Description – There are two large grey statues in a marsh like landscape. North of them stand two spear wielding women. Near the statues are two staff swaying women and two kneeling women. The beldam stands between the two statues.
Notes – You can also obtain the location of the Kykos Coven by taking a Nobles Quest to deliver a holy relic. No matter in which region of the Iliac Bay you are, you'll get the location of the Kykos Coven.
 

The Sisters of The Bluff
The Coven on The Bluff
thumb|right|Coven on The Bluff on a winter morning
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Location – Daggerfall, 2 cells directly south of 'Burning Martyr of Kynareth' on the west coast of Daggerfall.
Description – This coven consists simply of the beldam standing beside an altar - no followers.
 

The Skeffington Witches
The Skeffington Coven
thumb|right|The Skeffington Coven
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Location – Phrygias, south central region near the border, 1 cell due west of Old Barbyn's Farm.
Description – Inside a circle of stones; the beldam stands next to four dancers.
 

The Tamarilyn Witches
The Tamarilyn Coven
thumb|right|The Tamarylin Coven
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Location – Menevia, 1 cell north and 3 cells west of 'Hawkton Court' 
Description – A circle of seven dancing girls on a clearing, and in the center of the circle is the beldam 
 

The Tide Witches
thumb|right|Coven of the Tide
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The Coven of the Tide
Location – Myrkwasa, Central, 1 cell directly southeast of Rhanotujer, or 1 cell northeast of Thofyl Manor.
Description – A circle of four spear wielding women on a clearing of palms, and in the center of the circle is the beldam.
 

The Witches of Alcaire
thumb|right|The Alcaire Coven on a winter morning
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The Alcaire Coven
Location – Alcaire, 1 cell south and 2 cells east of Ashsmith Plantation.
Description – The beldam stands alone within a circle of shrubs on a clearing.
 

The Witches of Devilrock
The Devilrock Coven
thumb|right|The Devilrock Coven on a winter morning
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Location – Dragontail Mountains, north seacoast, 1 cell north and about 11 cells east of 'The Unfortunate Goblin Tavern'. 
Description – An outer circle of nine spear-wielding women guard outside; inside is a second circle of four kneeling women surrounding the beldam.
 

The Witches of the Marsh
thumb|right|Coven in the Marsh
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The Coven in the Marsh
Location – Alik'r Desert, Travel 1 cell north and 2 cells west of 'Gentle Star of Stendarr' and you will discover 'The Web of Trogdred' dungeon, and the coven is 2 cells west of that. 
Description – The beldam stands without company within an ample marsh.
 

In-house covens
As stated above, these are not real covens but are available due to a bug. They consist in a house inhabited by a man who has incorrectly been assigned the Glenmoril Witches faction id. Therefore he can summon Hircine and he offers the standard coven quests, upon completion of which you earn reputation with the Glenmoril Coven.

Anticlere
Town of Arkdale
Location – Anticlere, Town of Arkdale, the building in the southwest corner (see Longing)
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Daggerfall
thumb|right|Location of the first Coven of Daggerfall City
Daggerfall City #1
Location – Daggerfall City, in the southeast corner just south of the pawn shop
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the second Coven of Daggerfall City
Daggerfall City #2
Location – Daggerfall City, just opposite the Thieves Guild
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the Coven at the City of Oxway
City of Oxway
Location – City of Oxway, near the Mages Guild
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the Coven at the Town of Eastwick
Town of Eastwick
Location – Town of Eastwick, just south of the Fighters Guild
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Town of Vanham Wood
Location – Town of Vanham Wood, just south of the Fighters Guild (see Eastwick)
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the Coven at the Town of Longing
Town of Longing
Location – Town of Longing, the building in the southwest corner
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the Coven at The Mouse and Jug Tavern
Mouse and Jug Tavern
Location – The Mouse and Jug Tavern, in a normal residence.
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

thumb|right|Location of the Coven at Gothway Garden
Coven at Gothway Garden
Location – Daggerfall, Gothway Garden, in a normal residence.
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Ephesus
Town of Pheonadla
Location – Town of Pheonadla, the building in the southwest corner (see Longing)
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Town of Rhanascuja
Location – Town of Rhanascuja, the building in the southwest corner (see Longing)
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Orsinium Area
thumb|right|Location of the Coven at the Town of Midpath Hill
Town of Midpath Hill
Location – Town of Midpath Hill, there is a circle of houses and the coven is in the house at one o'clock
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Wayrest
thumb|right|Location of the Coven at the City of Easttale
City of Easttale
Location – City of Easttale, a little southeast of the Mages Guild
Notes – He is only present from 06:00 to 18:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Daenia
City of Graybrone Court
Location - City of Graybrone Court, ine a "House for Sale" located directly south of two Armories next to each other on the far west and north side near the city wall. Sticks out since it is brown with wood paneling and the other houses nearby are white.
Notes - He is only present from 09:00 to 21:00; entry door is locked otherwise
 

Coven Coordinates
Even when one knows the approximate location of a coven it is still very hard to find it. Since the Iliac Bay has an enormous dimension, a small place like a coven can be considered as one grain of sand in a dune. To make it even easier to find a specific coven in this vast landscape without using a cheat, following table shows the exact coordinates of the Covens on the world map. In Daggerfall Unity you can use the "tdbg" console command to see your current coordinates.



Summoning Daedra
Summoning daedra in a witch coven is slightly different than summoning in a Temple or a Mages Guild. Covens will only summon a random daedra, no matter what the summoning day is — useful if you just missed a summoning day for a daedra and don't want to wait for a whole year.

The Glenmoril Witches in Ilessan Hills summon Hircine - as does any coven in cities and the witch appearing during the artifact quest. Going to any of these covens on the numerous so-called "summoning days" will prove the only daedra the Glenmoril Coven will summon is Hircine, no matter whose day it is.

However, there is a slight possibility for Sheogorath to replace the daedra to summon, even with the Glenmoril Witches.

Unlike at guilds, a failed summoning will result in waves of daedric foes coming after you.

Cost of Summoning Daedra and Success
See ''Daedra Summoning

Coven Location Cheat
If you are running patch 2.12 or later and have cheats enabled (by adding   to Z.CFG), press CTRL-F1 while not on the map screen. When you then go into the map screen, all the fast travel locations will be visible. Witches' Covens will show up as black dots—select "Dungeons" to make them easier to see. Not all provinces have covens. You can hit CTRL-F1 again to restore the map to only the destinations you have come across "naturally".

Quests