The Radiant Dark

**Enemy Level** | 70-100
 **Quest ID** | RDQuest
– Choice of Rage Paralysis or Conjure Dragon Priest Spell
 **Reward #2** | Radiant Dark Faction
– Both Rage Paralysis and Conjure Dragon Priest Spell
– Offryn, Eldawyn, Sweetroll and Gilsi as Followers
– Sweetroll as a Marriage Candidate

The first major quest added to the mod, this is the continuation of the *Forgotten Lore* quest and ties all the loose ends referenced therein. The quest begins with the discovery of clues on Jadro’Ra’s killer, and his ties to Olivia and her father.

While *Dragon Rising* is a prerequisite for starting *The Radiant Dark*, this can be achieved via the console for mods that give the PC an alternate life. However, the NPCs in the quest will refer to the player as the Dragonborn, as well as their destiny as such. The Black Star quest is a prerequisite to eliminate the possibility that involving Nelacar would break that quest.

***Forgotten Lore* and the Introduction of *The Radiant Dark***

When meeting Jadro’Ra in Shadowgreen Cavern, he will make reference to a Dark Elf whose description matches the Dunmer named Drelas in Drelas’ Cottage. In earlier iterations, a journal was placed in the room at The Winking Skeever linking Drelas/Nelos to the Khajiit, but with the creation of the Radiant Dark quest, that was given to Corpulus and now initiates the quest.  Gilsi, Nelos, Eldawyn and Gerrod were originally added to the world with a possible quest in mind, despite there being no plans to implement it.

• Eldawyn – Can be found in Whiterun at the Bannered Mare and Dragonsreach. Her true identity is also hinted at by Gwyvane in the catacombs in Solitude, and she is mocked repeatedly by her guild mate Gilsi. Mentioning Gilsi will cause her to be dismissive, whereas telling her about Gwyvane’s existence will catch her interest. This was originally intended to end in Gwyvane’s death, but as of v2.38 it’s implied Eldawyn was too lazy to bother.

• Gerrod – Prior to the Radiant Dark, Gerrod can be found at the Cliffside Retreat, lamenting the existence of his ex-wives. As an alteration mage, he has adopted the guise of a hunter, transforming himself in both attire and manner of speech, with one such line claiming *I’ve been hunting and fishing in these parts for years!* Questioning Gerrod’s identity will cause him to reference Gilsi and Eldawyn obliquely. If the PC has met Gilsi or Eldawyn, the PC can mention them by name, but Gerrod will remain evasive.

• Gilsi – Unlike Eldawyn and Gerrod, Gilsi has no intention of hiding her intentions, both romantically and as part of the Radiant Dark. Speaking to her at Dragon Bridge Four Shields Tavern will reveal the true identity of Drelas.  Speaking to Drelas afterward will open bonus dialogue regarding Gilsi.

• Drelas – Found at the eponymous Drelas’ Cottage, it is implied that Nelos killed the vanilla Drelas and took his identity. However, in order to allow the game to clear the location, the current version returns the vanilla Drelas character at the completion of the Radiant Dark quest. Drelas/Nelos will give background information on his life, his philosophy, and his friend Brenil. He mentions Brenil’s stubborn daughter as well, who is later revealed to be Olivia. Speaking with Gilsi will enable an additional dialogue tree, including the following scene, which can also be accessed after the quest begins:

**The Radiant Dark**

After receiving Lathgwen‘s journal detailing the connection between Nelos and Jadro’Ra, the player can take the information to Olivia, after which she reveals her knowledge of the guild. She send the PC off to Pinefrost Tower on the other side of Skyrim, to find a possible research facility that belonged to Vanus.

However, upon arriving at the tower, the Dragonborn finds Gilsi standing at the entrance to a trap door. She reveals the facility does not exist, and that the location is in fact the headquarters for the guild.

The player is given a key and enters the facility, where a tavern environment is set up, complete with its own bard. Down below, Gerrod can be found with various acolytes, now dressed in mage garb. On the top floor, the NPC Offryn is introduced. After navigating through a narrow hallway, the PC enters the Throne of the Dark, where Nelos awaits with a proposition.

**Choosing a Side**

After making his case, Nelos asks the player to return to Olivia and tell her what he/she has found. The PC will have the option of leading her into the trap or warning her of the dangers within. Speaking to Nelos will make Vinnius’ and Eldawyn’s dialogue active. At this point, the player can fetch Eldawyn a bottle of wine and reveal the true nature of her existence, which was previously hinted by a combination of her recollections and Gwyvane’s. Felena and Sweetroll will also make their appearance in Light’s Hourglass.

Returning to Winterhold, the player finds Olivia at the entrance to The Frozen Hearth, where she informs the player she has developed two of Vanus’ five spells. If the player lies to her about the state of The Radiant Dark, she will see finishing the guild as a good opportunity to teach some of the college’s less attentive students. Warning her of the dangers will result in her recruiting two powerful mages, Nelacar and Helsig. Lying to her will also make her suspicious of the PC, and she will not provide either of the spells she developed. Telling her the truth will result in having a choice of Rage Paralysis or Conjure Dragon Priest.  However, lying to her will eventually net the player both spells.

**Guildmaster of the Radiant Dark**

Leading Olivia and the three students into the trap will alter the chemistry of the final battle, as Nelos will appear by himself alongside the Dragonborn. Olivia will have access to both spells, Conjure Dragon Priest and Rage Paralysis. After eliminating the foursome, Nelos will reveal the true nature of the prophecy before retreating to the hearth for one last view of the light.

The player will then be directed toward the back of the room where Vinnius and the others await. The PC can converse with each, and gain the group as followers. They will now greet the player as Guildmaster. Returning to Skyrim will place all the acolytes and the bard back in the Hall of the Radiant.

– Eldawyn, Gilsi, and Offryn do not have idle commentary and do not count toward the official follower tally.

– On Olivia’s body the PC will find both spell tomes. Nelos hints that this reflects her uncertainty over whether to trust the Dragonborn, and that her hesitancy resulted in the worst possible outcome.

– The concept behind Rage Paralysis, as told in the story by Nelos, is inspired by parasitic wasps that inject their young in caterpillars. The young eat their way out of the caterpillar, who at the same time protects them from predators.

– An earlier bug had Nelos say an additional line upon falling after “So…bright,” which should have only been conditioned to be said when siding with Olivia.

**The End of the Radiant Dark**

Warning Olivia of Nelos’ activity will result in her recruiting Nelacar and Helsig. Helsig informs the Dragonborn this fight is personal, naming Offryn as her brother. Her monotone delivery is deliberate, and is a mirror opposite of Offryn’s hyperbolic attitude. This results in a separate confrontation prior to meeting Nelos, where Helsig unveils her knowledge of the thu’um.

Siding with Olivia results in the full guild appearing for the final battle. Nelos will attempt to reveal the true nature of the prophecy upon death, but his words are mostly cryptic.  Jadro’Ra will make an appearance in Light’s Hourglass. The player will then have the opportunity to tell him he/she fulfilled his request in Forgotten Lore or neglected it.

– Offryn and Helsig’s father is Zarlak, found at North Skybound Watch. Bringing Helsig there prior to and after the quest will result in a scene where Zarlak asks whether Offryn has been killed.

– An earlier bug where members of the Radiant Dark would turn aggressive but would not fight was removed in version 2.38

Notes: The scripting for this quest happens primarily through dialogue. Meaning, setting the stage through the console may not produce the desired effect, as the enabling of various NPCs is done through the fragment scripts attached to the conversations as opposed to the quest’s main script.

In addition, many aliases, scenes and scripts are contained within a separate quest, RDQDialogue, which was created in the event the aliases in RDQuest were set in older saves.

As the move command was not known during the creation of the quest, the Radiant Dark NPCs Eldawyn, Nelos, Gilsi, and Gerrod are technically clones of their earlier iterations and thus have multiple RefIDs.

The quest cannot be started normally if Corpulus is dead.