Greatsword for a Great Man is a quick errand in Whiterun, one of the first miscellaneous jobs many players pick up in Whiterun Hold. The blacksmith Adrianne Avenicci has made a fine steel greatsword as a surprise gift for Jarl Balgruuf the Greater. She is not even sure he will accept it, so she would rather her father, the jarl’s steward, handled the presentation.
How to start
Talk to Adrianne at her forge outside Warmaiden’s, the smithy just inside Whiterun’s main gate. Offer to help and she hands over the sword straight away. The quest has no prerequisites and can be done at any level.
Walkthrough
Deliver the sword to Proventus Avenicci
Climb up through the Plains District and the Wind District to Dragonsreach. Proventus Avenicci is normally in the main hall near the jarl’s throne or in the jarl’s quarters. Tell him his daughter sent you and give him the blade. He pays you 20 gold for the trouble and the quest completes on the spot.
If Whiterun has changed hands
If you sided with the Stormcloaks in the Civil War and Whiterun has been taken, Balgruuf and Proventus are no longer in Dragonsreach. They move to the basement of the Blue Palace in Solitude, so that is where the delivery has to go.
Rewards
- 20 gold from Proventus Avenicci.
Tips and notes
- The weapon you carry is Balgruuf’s Greatsword, a two-handed steel greatsword with 17 base damage, weight 17 and a value of 200 gold. It is improved with a steel ingot.
- You can steal it back from Proventus after the delivery, but he will usually have equipped it, so you need the Misdirection pickpocket perk to lift an equipped weapon.
- The quest is part of the stream of small Whiterun favours that help you get known in the city; if you are working towards becoming a thane of the hold, see Thane of Whiterun.
