Served Cold is a Dragonborn side quest in Raven Rock on Solstheim, a tale of Dunmer revenge that has been simmering for a long time. Second Councilor Adril Arano is convinced that the Ulen family of House Hlaalu has put a deathmark on Councilor Morvayn, who once ordered the execution of one of their own. Morvayn thinks Adril is paranoid. You get to find out who is right.
How to start
- Complete March of the Dead and The Final Descent.
- Captain Veleth then tells you that Adril Arano wants to see you urgently. Find Adril walking around town or in Morvayn Manor.
Adril explains that he only has suspicions, not proof. Raven Rock is too small for him to move in secret, so he wants an outsider to be his eyes and ears, starting with Geldis Sadri at The Retching Netch.
Walkthrough
Talk to Geldis Sadri
Geldis thinks Adril has been chasing the Ulens the wrong way for years. His advice: let the fish come to you. Someone keeps leaving ash yam offerings in the Ulen Ancestral Tomb near the temple, so wait inside and see who turns up. He has shared this before, but whenever Adril and the Redoran Guard tried it, nobody came.
Wait in the Ulen Ancestral Tomb
After a short wait, Tilisu Severin enters. To identify her you need to get close enough to see her name, for example by sneaking up behind her or standing beside the door as she walks in, or you can simply talk to her. She claims she is just honouring the dead because no Ulens are left on the island, and bristles at any accusation.
Search Severin Manor
Report to Adril. He refuses to kick in doors without solid evidence and hands you the key to Severin Manor, the house nearest the Earth Stone. Inside, Tilisu and Mirri Severin attack unless your Sneak skill is high enough to stay unseen. Either kill them and take the safe key from Mirri’s body, or pick the Expert lock. The safe is downstairs in the master bedroom at the end of the hall, to the left of an empty bookcase, and contains a letter called The Ulen Matter. It blows the family’s cover: Vendil Severin is really Vendil Ulen, his supposed wife Tilisu and daughter Mirri are members of House Hlaalu, and all three are plotting with unknown allies at a place called Ashfallow Citadel.
Assault Ashfallow Citadel
Adril now sends you to join two Redoran guards at Ashfallow Citadel, northwest of the Sun Stone. You arrive too late: two Morag Tong assassins have already killed the guards and attack on sight. Inside, take the curved stairs down and look for a rough opening in the southeast wall leading south.
The corridor below is blocked by gates guarded by more Morag Tong. Pull chains to raise them:
- On the wall of the first room on the left (first gate).
- In the trapped second room on the right (part of the second gate).
- By the second doorway on the left (east) side, near the gate (rest of the second gate).
- Two more behind pillars near three swinging blade traps on the right side, behind the second blade, in a room with its own spike trap.
In the last room Vendil Severin waits with two Morag Tong assassins. If you spared Tilisu and Mirri at the manor, they are here too, now in chitin armor. Defeat them all.
Report to the councilors
Tell Adril that Vendil is no longer a threat. He mourns the guards he sent, then takes you to Councilor Morvayn. He thanks you for doing far more than anyone could expect from a visitor and decides that coin alone is not enough: since the Severins, or whoever they really were, turned out to be criminals, their property is forfeit and goes to you. He also grants you citizenship and hopes you will stay on as part of the community.
Choices and consequences
Killing Tilisu and Mirri at Severin Manor or slipping past them only changes the final fight: spared Severins join Vendil at Ashfallow Citadel.
Rewards
- Leveled gold.
- Severin Manor as your home in Raven Rock.
- Honorary Raven Rock citizenship.
- The Raven Rock Owner achievement/trophy for owning a house in Raven Rock.
Tips and notes
- Bring lockpicks if you plan to sneak through the manor; the safe lock is Expert.
- Ashfallow Citadel is full of ash piles and traps; watch for the swinging blades near the last chains.
- The assassins here belong to the Morag Tong, the Dunmer assassins’ guild, hired by Vendil according to Adril.
- Do not steal from Severin Manor before the quest is over. Once the house is yours its contents are no longer marked as owned, but anything you took earlier stays flagged as stolen in your inventory.
- Geldis Sadri has a reputation as a gossip, which is exactly why Adril sends you to him first.
