Arniel Gane is a Breton mage and senior member of the College of Winterhold. He studies some very peculiar magic, and he is extremely cagey about what exactly that is.
Where to find them
His quarters at the College are the first room on the right on the second floor of the Hall of Attainment. Early in the College questline he is away leading the excavation at Saarthal. He wears Adept Robes of Alteration.
Quests
Under Saarthal: after your first lessons, Tolfdir takes the apprentices to help Arniel at the dig. Arniel isn’t thrilled to have help, asks you not to make a mess, and sends you to round up magical artifacts, including three Enchanted Rings and an amulet. Things escalate from there and end with the discovery of the Eye of Magnus. You can hand him the rings afterwards, but you don’t have to.
Containment: Arniel joins you and Faralda to defend Winterhold from magic anomalies, grumbling that the townsfolk would never lift a finger for the mages. Oddly for a conjurer, he fights with his fists, and he raises anyone who falls as a zombie to keep the fight going.
Arniel’s Endeavor: once you’ve risen through the ranks, he quietly asks for help with his “unofficial” project. First he wants ten Dwemer cogs. Then you must get a Warped Soul Gem out of Enthir, who only hands it over after you recover a staff he accidentally sold to a necromancer. Later steps have you use the gem in a Dwemer Convector three times. In the end the experiment goes spectacularly wrong and Arniel simply vanishes.
Personality & relationships
Arniel is twitchy, defensive and certain that his work will one day be recognised as hugely important. He is particularly secretive about his interest in Kagrenac’s tools. He doesn’t trust Ancano one bit, and is convinced the Thalmor are trying to steal his research. During The Staff of Magnus he mostly worries about losing all his notes.
Good to know
Finishing his questline earns you a spell to summon Arniel’s Shade, and his ghostly form can be seen wandering around the College afterwards. His disappearance barely registers with the other mages. Because he can’t be killed at the Saarthal dig, some players crouch behind him and attack him over and over to train Sneak very quickly.
Quick facts
- Race: Breton
- Gender: Male
- Level: 30
- Class: Conjurer
- Status: Essential
- Found in: college-of-winterhold
- Factions: College of Winterhold
- Base ID: 0001C19D
Also in college-of-winterhold
Arniel’s Shade, Augur of Dunlain, Colette Marence, Drevis Neloren, Nirya, Phinis Gestor, Quaranir, Sergius Turrianus, Tandil, Velehk Sain.
Race, level, class and factions read from the Skyrim game files; story details checked against community wiki articles and written in our own words.