The Dropped Gauntlet

The Dropped Gauntlet is a Vampiric Clan quest available in . The Agent is sent to answer a challenge from a Daedric Prince's Coven, who wish to fight the Agent's vampiric bloodline for underworld supremacy.
==Background==
Having contracted vampirism and been recognised as a member of one of the Iliac Bay's nine vampiric clans, the Agent will be contacted to complete quests at the behest of their fellow bloodline members.
==Objectives==
#Take delivery of a letter from a member of the Agent's vampiric bloodline.
#Journey to the town identified by the letter.
##Speak with the bloodline vampire whom sent the letter.
##(Optional) Read the letter sent to the Bloodfather of the bloodline.
#Journey to and enter the dungeon outlined by the bloodline vampire and find the Daedric apostle.
##(Either) Accept the apostle's challenge and slay the daedroth.
##(Or) Submit to the apostle's Daedric Coven and leave in shame.
#Return to the bloodline vampire before the time limit expires.
==Walkthrough==
After spending several weeks as a vampire in the Iliac Bay, the Agent will receive a letter, delivered by a 'terribly pale, wild-eyed boy'. This letter demands that the Agent meet with another member of their Clan immediately, simply giving a town, building and name. With that, the Agent must head to the town specified and speak with their blood-kin.
===The Cowardly Clan?===
The bloodline vampire whom contacted the Agent reveals that the Bloodfather of the Clan has received a letter, 'found wrapped around a knife in his sanctuary'. The bloodline vampire outlines its content, stating that the Agent must meet with the author of the letter and prove that their bloodline 'are no cluster of mollycoddles'. With that, the Agent is handed a copy of the Letter to the Bloodfather, and the name and location of dungeon specified in said letter.
Reading the letter reveals more information about the challenge, most notably that the origin of the call comes from a member of one of the Covens of the Daedric Princes. The letter states that the Coven which to challenge the Clan over their 'monopoly on the terror business in [the region]', and that the Clan must prove their worth. The Bloodfather must therefore 'consider the gauntlet dropped', hence why the Agent is sent to 'investigate' the matter urgently.
===A Coven's Challenge===
The Agent must delve into the dungeon specified by both the bloodline vampire and the letter to the Bloodfather. Inside, lurking among the usual dungeon creatures, will be an daedric apostle, whom appears as an aspect of their Prince. The Agent must speak with the aspect, whom will respond:
The Agent is therefore given a choice of whether to submit to the Daedric Prince, answering 'yes', or take up the Prince's challenge, answering 'no'.
====Daedric Destroyer====
Answering 'no' to the Prince's statement will result in the apostle responding thus:
With that, the apostle vanishes and is replaced by a daedroth, which the Agent must slay. Upon its death the Agent will receive a mental message from the Daedric Prince, whom accepts that the Clan are 'worthy of respect' and that they 'will meet [the Agent] again'. From there, the Agent simply has to return to the bloodline vampire whom originally summoned them before the time limit expires to complete the quest.
====A Coward's Call====
In contrast, answering yes to the apostle's welcoming statement will result in the following response:
That effectively ensures that the Agent fails the quest, although they still have to return to the bloodline vampire whom originally contacted them before the time limit expires.
==Rewards==
Successfully answering the challenge and slaying the daedroth will see the Agent rewarded with a random gem, handed over by the bloodline vampire who gave them the quest. Furthermore, the Agent will receive a significant boost in their reputation, not just with the Clan, but with the Prince whom they defied and the Dark Brotherhood. Conversely, submitting to the Prince will result in the Agent losing a significant amount of reputation with Clan, Prince and Brotherhood.
The changes in reputation, based on success or failure, are shown below:
Success 	Success
Faction 	Reputation
Specified Vampiric Clan 	+0
Daedric Princes 	+1
The Night Mother 	+1
Dark Brotherhood 	+1
School of Julianos 	+1
Temple of Stendarr 	+1
Thieves Guild 	+1
The Dust Witches 	+1
The Daughters of Wroth 	+1
The Witches of the Marsh	+1
The Beldama Coven 	+1
The Tide Witches 	+1
Sheogorath 	-1
Ebonarm 	-1
Order of Arkay 	-1
Benevolence of Mara 	-1
Akatosh Chantry 	-1
House of Dibella 	-1
Mages Guild 	-1
King of Worms 	-1
The Underking 	-1
Daggerfall 	-1
Wayrest 	-1
Orsinium 	-1
Wrothgarian Mountains 	-1
Merchants 	-1
Region ruler 	-1
Successfully rebelling against the Daedric Prince and slaughtering their aspect will result in the additional reputation changes outlined below:
Daedric Defier 	Daedric Defier
Faction 	Reputation
Random Daedric Prince 	+10
Associated Prince 	+5
Dark Brotherhood 	+5
Dark Brotherhood Associates	+5
Failure 	Failure
Faction 	Reputation
Specified Vampiric Clan 	-5
Daedric Princes 	+1
The Night Mother 	+1
Dark Brotherhood 	+1
School of Julianos 	+1
Temple of Stendarr 	+1
Thieves Guild 	+1
The Dust Witches 	+1
The Daughters of Wroth 	+1
The Witches of the Marsh	+1
The Beldama Coven 	+1
The Tide Witches 	+1
Sheogorath 	-1
Ebonarm 	-1
Order of Arkay 	-1
Benevolence of Mara 	-1
Akatosh Chantry 	-1
House of Dibella 	-1
Mages Guild 	-1
King of Worms 	-1
The Underking 	-1
Daggerfall 	-1
Wayrest 	-1
Orsinium 	-1
Wrothgarian Mountains 	-1
Merchants 	-1
Region ruler 	-1
Conversely, failing the quest by submitting to the Daedric Prince will result in following loss in reputation:
Daedric Defier 	Daedric Defier
Faction 	Reputation
Random Daedric Prince 	-10
Associated Prince 	-5
Dark Brotherhood 	-5
Dark Brotherhood Associates	-5
==Journal==
The Dropped Gauntlet - p0b10l08 / p0b1xl08	The Dropped Gauntlet - p0b10l08 / p0b1xl08
ID 	Journal Entry
0 	[Date]:
I have received a letter from [Bloodline vampire's name] of [Bloodline], asking for my immediate presence in a place called [building] in [town].
*Quest accepted
1 	[Date]:
[Bloodline vampire's name] of [town] has given me a letter, written by a [Daedric apostle's name] of [dungeon], insulting our tribe, [Bloodline]. I am to go to [dungeon] and make this [Daedric apostle's name] eat [his/her] words. I have [x] days to do this and return to [building].
==Trivia==
*This quest can in theory be given to the Agent regardless of whether they had completed The Blessing of Vampirism or not.
*Characters have a variety of remarks to make about the quest during its activation:
**Acceptance: "Strange things are afoot in [dungeon]. Even stranger than usual, I should say."
**Success: "[Dungeon] has quieted. Even the daedra stars glowed softer last night."
**Failure: "Things have quieted down around [dungeon]. But the daedra stars burn at night."
==Bugs==
* Due to a programming error, this quest will not function at all, for it has two mismatched references.
** This can be fixed by changing the name of one of the following files so that it matches the other: P0B1XL08.QBN (in-game file); P0B10L08.QRC (text file).
** A patch is also available at the UESP Wiki
==Appearances==
*