A Jarl’s Justice is a Dawnguard side quest in which Isran discovers that a vampire has wormed its way into a Jarl’s court disguised as a Visiting Advisor. The hold capital is picked at random, and the catch is political rather than physical: stab a court official without the Jarl’s say-so and the guards will treat it as plain murder. So before any stake comes out, you need paperwork.
How to start
- Talk to Isran, who hands out this job as one of the Dawnguard side quests.
- The target city is chosen at random from the hold capitals.
- The source lists no special prerequisite beyond being on Isran’s side of the Dawnguard conflict.
Walkthrough
1. Warn the Jarl
Travel to the chosen capital and speak with the Jarl about the vampire threat. The Jarl will not order anyone killed on your word alone and asks for evidence first.
2. Find evidence
The Visiting Advisor usually hangs around the main hall of the court. The proof you need is his set of orders, which you have to pickpocket from him. A failed attempt earns you a bounty, and trying it right next to guards, or next to the hold’s Imperial or Stormcloak commander, gets you arrested on the spot. Wait until he wanders somewhere quieter, or make sure nobody important is standing beside him.
3. Bring the evidence to the Jarl
Hand the orders to the Jarl. Once they see what the advisor really is, they give you permission to deal with him, and the guards will no longer interfere.
4. Destroy the vampire
Kill the Visiting Advisor. With the Jarl’s approval this is an execution rather than a crime, so you can do it in the open.
5. Report back
Return to Isran to finish the quest.
Choices and consequences
- Get permission first: the clean route. The guards stand aside and the kill carries no penalty.
- Skip the Jarl and just kill him: the quest still completes, but the game treats the killing as murder, so expect the usual consequences if you are seen.
- The journal also has a separate ending for when the Jarl in question no longer holds the seat; in that case the quest closes with a note that the vampire is no longer a threat. The source does not explain exactly how this plays out.
Rewards
- The source does not list a specific reward for this quest.
Tips and notes
- The Visiting Advisor is one of the few characters who wears the full vampire outfit: robes, gloves, hood and boots.
- Do not count on Detect Life or Detect Dead to unmask him; neither reveals that he is a vampire, even though he otherwise has a vampire’s physical traits.
- If pickpocketing is not your strong suit, save before the attempt. A bounty in the very city whose Jarl you are trying to impress is not a great look.
- Other jobs from the same faction include Hunting the Monster, Preemptive Strike and Ancient Technology.
