Pirates called the Blood Horkers have been raiding the coast so heavily that the East Empire Company can no longer afford to keep its Windhelm office open. Orthus Endario, who runs that office, wants them gone and offers you a cut if you help. Rise in the East takes you from a bit of burglary in Windhelm to a tavern in Dawnstar and finally to a full naval assault on the pirate island of Japhet’s Folly, all starting in Eastmarch.
How to start
Talk to Orthus Endario at the East Empire Company office on the Windhelm docks. The guard outside the East Empire Company Warehouse near Solitude will also point you towards Orthus if you ask him about the Company’s problems.
Walkthrough
Steal Suvaris Atheron’s logbook
The logbook is in the Shatter-Shield office right next door to the East Empire Company office. The door has a master-level lock. If you cannot pick it, go to the Clan Shatter-Shield house in Windhelm and pickpocket the key from Torbjorn Shatter-Shield. Inside, the logbook lies in the back left corner behind a larger open book; a small wall shields it, so it is easy to take while sneaking. The book belongs to Suvaris Atheron.
Give the logbook to Orthus
Take the logbook back to Orthus. It reveals that the Shatter-Shields have been paying a pirate gang to dominate trade.
Talk to Stig Salt-Plank
Orthus sends you to the Windpeak Inn in Dawnstar to find out where the pirates dock. Speak to Stig Salt-Plank, who will tell you if you either bribe him or beat him in a brawl. Sneaky alternative: pickpocket him and read the Blood Horker’s Note he carries.
Report back and depart for Japhet’s Folly
Return to Orthus with the location. East Empire agent Adelaisa Vendicci puts you in charge of the assault and tasks you with killing the pirates’ magician. Speak to her to set sail.
Kill Haldyn
When the ship arrives, hop across the gaps in the ice floe heading south until a small stone tower appears in the mist. The Blood Horker docks lie to the left (east), while straight ahead is a sea cave that lets you slip into Japhet’s Folly quietly. Work your way through to the tower; the mage leader Haldyn waits at the very top.
Haldyn uses Lightning Bolt and Fast Healing. Shock resistance potions and gear help, as do weapons that drain magicka; the Staff of Magnus can drain him until he is harmless. He has no allies in his dead-end room, so a high-Sneak character can simply walk up and backstab him or open with a poisoned arrow. His room also has a chest with gold, scrolls, enchanted items and jewelry.
Escape the bombardment
Loot Haldyn’s key from his body; it gives a quick way out of the tower. At the very bottom is an expert-locked door hiding Japhet’s body and a chest of leveled loot (and a lot of cobwebs). Outside, the East Empire Company ships are now pounding the island with explosive arrows, flattening the buildings and finishing off the remaining pirates. Watch out, as the blasts can hurt your followers too. Head north-east through the ruined harbour to the boat where Adelaisa is waiting.
Return to Windhelm
Adelaisa explains the fleet could only attack once Haldyn died, because the fog he conjured vanished with him. Tell her you are ready to leave, then speak to Orthus at the Windhelm docks to collect your payment.
Rewards
- Leveled gold from Orthus Endario
- Adelaisa Vendicci becomes available as a follower
- Loot from Haldyn’s chest and Japhet’s room
Tips and notes
- Do not stash items in containers outside the fort. Once the bombardment starts, those containers and their contents can be destroyed.
- Do not lockpick your way into Orthus’ office at the start. Talking to him there counts as trespassing and stops you from handing over the logbook.
- The bombardment permanently blocks parts of the fort. Some areas can still be reached by leaving through the main entrance and coming back in via the sea cave, but going back through the sea cave can also leave you trapped.
- You cannot swim away from Japhet’s Folly; an invisible barrier stops you.
- Roughly a day after the quest, the Windhelm office is fixed up and sports a Company logo. Guards will thank you and dream about imported Breton cheese.
- Surviving Blood Horkers may later turn up as a random encounter, looking for revenge.
