Delvin Mallory (Skyrim)

Delvin Mallory is a Breton thief, and a member of the Thieves Guild in Riften. He wrote the book Shadowmarks, which helps members of the guild recognize both valuable targets and places that should be avoided.

Reviving the Guild
Delvin will ask the Dragonborn to help him return the Guild to its former glory, and will give multiple jobs. The larceny targets below can be sold to him for 50-800, and are in chronological order:
 * Queen Bee Statue
 * Honningbrew Decanter
 * East Empire Shipping Map
 * Model Ship
 * Dwemer Puzzle Cube
 * Bust of the Gray Fox
 * Left Eye of the Falmer

These rare treasures are placed on or near the desk next to the Guild treasury in The Ragged Flagon - Cistern, by the Crown of Barenziah.

Connections to the Dark Brotherhood
As a friend of Astrid (he makes friendly comments on Astrid after she directs the Dragonborn to meet Delvin as part of "The Silence Has Been Broken"), and the Dark Brotherhood, he often takes fine jewelry and items on credit, when contracts pay the Brotherhood with them instead of gold. When Amaund Motierre employs the Dark Brotherhood to assassinate Emperor Titus Mede II, he pays with an amulet of the Elder Council. Astrid sends the Listener to speak with Delvin at The Ragged Flagon to receive credit for the amulet. Although suspicious of how the Brotherhood came to acquire the amulet, he willingly accepts it.

When Delvin was a new member of the Thieves Guild, he attempted a robbery in an unspecified tavern that resulted in him accidentally committing murder. Gallus, caring for Delvin, sent him to live with the Dark Brotherhood for several years until the heat caused from the murder died down. It was here he developed a relationship with Astrid, which ended when he left the sanctuary.

After the scene involving Mercer angering the Guild, Delvin will have a line of dialogue about betrayal, and that it's "like the Dark Brotherhood all over again." This could indicate he was in the Brotherhood and betrayed by them, or even by Astrid herself, though it leaves much to speculation because there will be no other discussion on the matter. Astrid will only smugly reveal that they have a "history." It could even indicate that he, like Astrid herself, felt betrayed when the Night Mother did not choose a new Listener and let the Brotherhood decline.

If the Dark Brotherhood questline has progressed to the point that the Brotherhood is now located in the Dawnstar Sanctuary, he will sell a few things to improve the sanctuary. One can choose the following options:
 * New banners – 1,000
 * Poisoner's nook – 5,000
 * Torture chamber – 5,000
 * Secret entrance – 5,000
 * Master bedroom – 3,000

Related quests

 * The Numbers Job
 * The Fishing Job
 * The Bedlam Job
 * Under New Management
 * The Silence Has Been Broken (Dark Brotherhood)
 * Where You Hang Your Enemy's Head (Dark Brotherhood)

Special Jobs

 * The Dainty Sload
 * Imitation Amnesty
 * Silver Lining
 * Summerset Shadows

Trivia

 * Delvin is warned by Vex in a note on the table in the Ragged Flagon for trying to "sneak a peek" at her bathing nude in the lake and threatens that she will cut off his "most valuable asset" if she catches him again.
 * It is implied that Delvin might have feelings for Vex through his dialogue and the note, Give Me A Chance. If is installed, Glover Mallory in Solstheim also implies this. As the dialogue above reveals, she is obviously not interested.
 * If the Dragonborn is a member of both the Thieves Guild and the Dark Brotherhood, Delvin will say "You're making friends all over, ain't ya?" As such, he is one of the few characters in  who recognizes that the Dragonborn joins more than one faction and does other things in the game, along with the Thieves Guild.
 * Although Astrid says that he is a fence, he won't buy stolen goods from the Dragonborn (except for the Larceny Targets).
 * Dirge incorrectly calls Delvin as Vekel when he ask about the Dwarven Warhammer that he was supposed to retrieve.
 * Apart from Vex, Delvin is seemingly the only person in the Guild who recognizes the Dragonborn as the Guildmaster after they've reached the rank, as he will frequently call them "boss."
 * It is revealed in Dragonborn that Delvin is Sapphire's uncle, though he doesn't seem aware of this fact.
 * Delvin Mallory could be a pun on "delve in mallory," the name "Mallory" meaning bad luck and the Thieves Guild's condition is repeatedly blamed upon bad luck.
 * Also, Delvin is old English, meaning good friend.
 * If Dragonborn is installed, Delvin's brother Glover Mallory will be on the island of Solstheim working as a blacksmith in the town of Raven Rock. His house also has a shadowmark to the left of the door, possibly implying that the Thieves Guild may have a slight presence on Solstheim.
 * Delvin may assign his brother Glover as the target of a fishing job.
 * A Warning and a Timely Offer are both addressed to Delvin.
 * Delvin will always be found in the Ragged Flagon, except during the quest "The Pursuit." This is also true for Vex.
 * Strangely, even if the Dragonborn destroyed the Dark Brotherhood and is also a member/the Guildmaster of the Thieves Guild, Delvin will never comment about them slaying Astrid or the other Dark Brotherhood assassins.
 * Delvin was voiced by Enn Reitel.
 * If the subtitles are turned on, some of the subtitles don't quite match what he is saying; a word or two may be missing, or some words added that aren't in the subtitles.
 * Delvin speaks with a pronounced British accent, making him one of 4 Guild members with unique voices. The others are Vex, Brynjolf and Karliah.

Bugs

 * When one of the "Radiant Quests" has been finished, Delvin may not respond to its completion. No new quests can be initiated either, which may be due to a special mission he has given the Dragonborn. Once the special mission is complete he will go back to normal.
 * In the quest with Torsten Cruel-Sea, all quest items must be acquired before Delvin takes any of them.
 * Sometimes Delvin will not buy a larceny target such as the Left Eye of the Falmer.
 * Collecting all the larceny targets and not returning them to Delvin will result in the miscellaneous quests completion. However, they will not be able to be given to Delvin for the rewards and the prizes will not appear in the guild's display area unless the Dragonborn places them there.
 * There is a rare chance that, after you've finished all the City Influence quests, became the leader of the guild and did the job for the Khajiit caravan, all dialogue of finishing the city influence quests will reset, meaning you can speak to Delvin again and all options 'I have completed the ... job' are available again, meaning you can also get the rewards again.

Appearances


Delvin Mallory Delvin Mallory Делвин Меллори Delvin Mallory