Hide and Seek is a side quest for the Dawnguard in the Dawnguard add-on, and it is all about murder with good manners. Gunmar has learned that a vampire is hiding in plain sight in one of Skyrim’s towns, posing as a harmless visitor. Your task is to kill it without being seen, because the guards have no idea the victim is a monster and will treat you as a common killer.
How to start
- Join the Dawnguard and do not be a vampire yourself.
- Complete A New Order.
- Ask Gunmar at Fort Dawnguard for work.
Walkthrough
Find the impostor
Gunmar names a town and a disguise. The vampire will be posing as a traveling bard, a traveling merchant, a traveling pilgrim or a visiting advisor. Possible towns and stops are Dawnstar, Dragon Bridge, Falkreath, Kynesgrove, Markarth, Morthal, Nightgate Inn, Old Hroldan Inn, Raven Rock, Riften, Riverwood, Rorikstead, Solitude, Whiterun, Windhelm and Winterhold.
Kill it discreetly
The kill only counts as discreet if no citizen or guard sees it or is alerted. Bards, merchants and pilgrims can be talked into following you somewhere quieter, but the advisor cannot, so that version carries a real risk of a bounty. Several approaches work:
- Lure them away. With a strong enough Speech skill you can persuade or intimidate the target into following you (not possible with the advisor). Lead them well out of town. After a while they turn around and head back, which gives you a clean chance to crouch and sneak-attack them from behind.
- Strike from hiding. A high Sneak skill lets you kill the target from a concealed spot.
- Hide your identity. Find a private spot and transform into a werewolf or a Vampire Lord if you can. The whole town will turn on you, but nobody will know who did it. Kill the target and run before the guards wear you down.
- Let the guards do it. With enough Illusion skill, cast Fury on the target so it attacks everyone and the guards cut it down. Fortify Illusion potions help the spell take hold, and the Quiet Caster perk reduces the chance of being noticed, though guards may still come after the caster.
- Pull it out with a bow. From far enough away and while hidden, shoot the target. It will come looking for you, so lead it away from witnesses and finish it there.
- Use a familiar. The Conjure Flaming Familiar spell from A Scroll for Anska is suggested as another option.
- Visit at night. The source also suggests arriving after dark and waiting for vampires to attack, as the hostility of that attack can be steered toward the target. It is only vaguely described, so treat it as a fallback.
Return to Gunmar
Once the impostor is dead, head back to Fort Dawnguard and report to Gunmar.
Rewards
- A leveled apparel item.
Tips and notes
- If no map marker shows up, the target is probably in Raven Rock on Solstheim.
- The vampire-side equivalent of this quest is The Hunt.
- Gunmar works alongside Isran at Fort Dawnguard; vampires who joined the Volkihar Clan get their own radiant jobs instead.
