The Assassinated Man

The Assassinated Man is a quest in . This mission is different from the other Dark Brotherhood missions in that the Hero doesn't kill anyone, but is instead helping a man fake his death. An underworld crime boss wants Francois Motierre dead, so they are sending an enforcer to kill him. Vicente will give the Hero a Languorwine Blade that will not kill Motierre but will make him appear dead when stabbed. If the Hero kills Hides-His-Heart, the bonus will be forfeit.
==Background==
Some people want Francois Motierre dead because he couldn't pay back a loan, and they have hired an assassin, Hides-His-Heart, to do the job. However, Francois has hired the Dark Brotherhood to stage a fake assassination. Usually, the Dark Brotherhood will only accept contracts involving a death, but Francois offered them his mother.
Lucien takes care of this for the Hero. Vicente will give them the Languorwine Blade, a specially poisoned blade that mimics death but does not kill (the blade is a one-time poison use). Do not kill Hides-His-Heart (so he can report to his boss that Motierre is dead) while doing the job.
==Walkthrough==
Break into the victim's house in Chorrol. Do not kill him, beat him, stab him, or hurt him in any way. He will explain what he wants to be done. When the enforcer comes, he will go into a little tirade; then when he's done, stab Motierre, and he will fall to the ground like he is dead. Hides-His-Heart will attack but do not fight back and kill him or the bonus will be lost.
Not killing Hides-His-Heart can be tricky. If the Hero hits Motierre with the blade and exits fast enough, Hides-His-Heart will exit the house slightly later giving the Hero more time to run out of Chorrol and therefore secure the bonus.
Wait for 24 hours then go to the Chorrol Chapel's Undercroft and revive Motierre with Vicente's antidote. His dead family members will view this as a desecration and will come to life as zombies and try to send the Hero to their grave. Kill them and take Francois to the Gray Mare.
Return to Cheydinhal to get payment and, if Hides-His-Heart is not dead, another bonus, the Cruelty's Heart.
==Journal==
 
Journal Entry
*Update: Upon receiving the quest:
I must go to Chorrol, break into Francois Motierre's house, and then speak with him. Motierre requested we meet this way, so he is expecting me.
*Update: After talking to Motierre:
I must wait in Francois Motierre's house for the enforcer Hides-His-Heart to arrive. After this "confrontation," I am to slice Motierre once with the specially poisoned Languorwine Blade to stage his death. I must do this before Hides-His-Heart attacks Motierre!
*Update: After slashing Motierre:
Motierre has been slashed with the Languorwine Blade and appears to have died from the wound, as expected. I must now flee from Chorrol, and leave Hides-His-Heart alive.
*Update: After fleeing Chorrol:
I have fled Chorrol, and Hides-His-Heart has not been killed. I must now wait a day, so Motierre can be discovered and placed in the Chorrol Chapel Undercroft. There, I must find Motierre and administer the antidote that will revive him.
*Update: After administering the antidote:
I have administered the Languorwine antidote, and Francois Motierre has awakened from his poison-induced sleep. I should now speak with him and make sure he's well enough to travel to the Grey Mare.
*Update: When the zombies spawn:
Motierre has been revived, but his ancestors have risen from the dead, angry at the desecration of their tomb! I must keep Motierre alive and escort him out of the Undercroft and to the Grey Mare, where he can arrange passage out of Cyrodiil.
*Update: After escorting Motierre to the Grey Mare:
Motierre has escaped. I must now return to the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary and speak with Vicente Valtieri to receive my reward.
*Quest complete
==Trivia==
*A Redguard male called Wallace was meant to be part of the quest but never appears in the game.
*If the Hero breaks into Motierre's house before joining the Dark Brotherhood, Motierre will exclaim that they are not the one that Lachance said would come (to undertake this very mission). He will tell the Hero that they are free to loot his home without fear of the guards.
*A very easy way to complete the mission whilst avoiding Hides-His-Heart's blade is to slash Motierre once the two start talking. Don't wait for their chat to finish, just do it and run for the door, and do not stop running until Chorrol is left. Then just wait and return.
*It is not actually necessary to wait a full day. Motierre's body will be moved directly to the undercroft at midnight.
*The zombies that attack in the undercroft will not appear until the revived Motierre has been spoken to. Once the Hero wakes him up, he will try to talk to the Hero, so if the Hero backs away from him before he has a chance, he may follow, in which case he can be led right to the undercroft doors before engaging in dialogue with him.
*The "dead" Motierre can be pickpocketed in the undercroft for a small amount of gold. If the antidote has already been used but hasn't woken him up, the Hero runs the same risk of being caught as when pickpocketing any other sleeping character.
*The Hero can also run from the zombies, which will cause them to follow outside. Guards and townsfolk will attack them.
*Do not fast travel immediately after leaving the house as it is possible for Hides-His-Heart to be killed by guards. Simply exit Chorrol through one of the nearby gates.
*Motierre's "corpse," affected by the Languorwine poison, is not the same as that of the character in the undercroft. If any items are stored on his corpse, they will be lost forever.
*If the dagger is used on any other character, it will still count as assault, and killing them with it will render them permanently dead.
==Bugs==
*If Motierre becomes stuck after reviving in the temple, tell him to follow, step back into the undercroft, and back out, he should now follow. If he still will not follow, hitting him should cause him to chase after the Hero. Lead him to the Gray Mare and then yield.
*If they leave Chorrol while Motierre is following he may not follow them once they re-enter Chorrol.
*If they steal the key from the Orc in the chapel and do not wait 24 hours they can not open the door.
*Re-entering Chorrol before the 24 hours is up causes Motierre to be left standing in the chapel undercroft; he cannot be interacted with in any way. To avoid this, ensure one wait for a minimum of 24 hours before re-entering Chorrol. If the bug is encountered, waiting for 24 hours anywhere outside the undercroft fixes the problem.
==Appearances==
*
de:Der gemeuchelte Mann
es:El hombre asesinado
ru:Убитый