Neloth (Dragonborn)

"I am likely the greatest wizard you will ever meet. Who else do you think could create a staff enchanter?"

- Neloth

Neloth is a master Telvanni wizard-lord who can be found in Tel Mithryn. He is said to be one of the oldest and most respected members of House Telvanni.

He lives in the main tower of Tel Mithryn with his apprentice, Talvas Fathryon. He also employs various workers within the settlement, including a steward, cook and mycologist.

He wears a set of Telvanni robes and shoes and carries an ebony dagger.

Background
During the late Third Era, Neloth lived in his Telvanni tower of Tel Naga in Sadrith Mora, Vvardenfell. During this time he served as a clan leader in House Telvanni. While several of his fellow Telvanni councilors were assasinated, he managed to survive and became one of the oldest Telvanni wizard-lords.

Some time before the erruption of Red Mountain in 4E 5, Neloth left the island and moved to Solstheim, where he grew his citadel, Tel Mithryn, with cuttings he brought from Morrowind.

It was around this time he began studying the ash and molten rocks that landed on the shores of Solstheim from Red Mountain. He named them heart stone and learnt that they had the capacity to animate the ash. Neloth deduced that because they lay next to the Heart of Lorkhan for millennia, some vestige of its power must have seeped into them. It led him to believe they held secrets that have the potential to unlock great power.

Decades later, he took on the services of a mycologist named Elynea Mothren who fled to Skyrim after the Red Year, and later an apprentice named Ildari Sarothril. Ildari was headstrong, but her lust for power caused her to continually push Neloth to teach her more.

Continuing his research into heart stones, Neloth began performing necropsies on spriggans, which led him to believe that a heart stone could be implanted in a person's chest, granting them great power. He considered replacing his own heart with a heart stone, however Ildari volunteered to let him operate on her first. Neloth was only too happy to oblige and promised her power and glory. In 4E 181, Neloth performed a ritual that resulted in Ildari's heart being replaced with a heart stone. The experiment failed and Ildari died as a result. Neloth, mildy annoyed by the setback, had her buried in the cemetary behind Tel Mithryn. It was after this he took on Talvas Fathryon as his new apprentice, as he continued his research.

Personality
Neloth is an eccentric, self-absorbed, tyrannical taskmaster with little to no regard for the safety of his apprentices or employees. He cares little for sentimentality or manners, not because he deliberately sets out to be malicious, rather because he sees little value in it. A fact that makes many of his servants disgruntled.

He views gratitude as a tool for the weak and foolish but is not above rewarding those who perform their duties admirably. In fact the only thing that seems to garner his attention is when efforts made are not wasted, believing that if a person fails, that is because they simply did not try hard enough.

He almost never accepts responsibility for his own flaws and does not accept the limits of others. He will often blame them for anything that goes wrong, yet is a profound genius at the art of enchanting and many other magical fields, but he has a special skill with enchantment in general, being a staff enchanter himself.

Though many view him with disdain, none can deny his mastery over the arcane was a trait that he had earned, entitling him to his arrogance.

Dragonborn
He can be found at the Earth Stone. If approached, he'll ask what brings the Dragonborn to Raven Rock. If asked about Miraak, he mentions that Miraak has been dead for thousands of years. He then suggests the Temple of Miraak may hold some answers.

The Path of Knowledge
Travel with Neloth to Nchardak to find the Black Book: Epistolary Acumen.

Heart Stones
Neloth requires that the Dragonborn bring him a heart stone. Prerequisite to Briarheart Necropsy.

Telvanni Research
The Dragonborn is tasked with obtaining an Ash Spawn Sample using the Ash Extractor.

Reluctant Steward
The Dragonborn must find Neloth's steward, Varona Nelas, who is on the outskirts of Tel Mithryn.

Briarheart Necropsy
Neloth requires an examination of a Forsworn Briarheart to see how they use their Briar Hearts. To do this, Neloth places a memory spell on the Dragonborn and asks them to "examine" a Briarheart.

Experimental Subject
The Dragonborn will become a testing subject for Neloth's spell. This spell provides a small boost to health, Neloth will tell you to try it out and find any flaws with it. Either swimming or standing in the rain will reveal the flaw in Neloth's spell, your health is reduced by 25 points until you return to Tel Mithryn and Neloth takes away the spell.

Old Friends
Reluctant Steward must be completed first. The Dragonborn is sent to kill Neloth's old test subject and apprentice, Ildari Sarothril, who has been sending Ash Spawns to attack Tel Mithryn. Neloth's experiment has worked, but Sarothril appears to be angry at him. Upon completion Neloth makes the Dragonborn a member of House Telvanni. If asked about what this means, he replies:

What does it mean to be a member of your house?: "For now, not much. But in a few decades when I return to Vvardenfell, you would be seen as Morrowind nobility. In the mean time, we would keep a bed and chest here for you."

Wind and Sand
Neloth needs a copy of the book, Wind and Sand, for spell research, and asks the Dragonborn to retrieve it from a radiant location. After acquiring the book and returning it to Neloth, he will mention using the powers of the book and channeling it into a new spell. The spell in question is called whirlwind cloak, a destruction spell and will be available to buy from Neloths apprentice in roughly a 3 day period.

Azra's Staffs
Neloth has asked the Dragonborn to retrieve one of Azra Nightwielder's staffs.

A Sight for Sore Eyes
Neloth asks for some help with a little experiment.

At the Summit of Apocrypha
Upon returning to Solstheim upon completion of this quest, Neloth approaches and remarks:

"Hold still. Let me get a good look at you."

What are you looking for?: "Incipient madness. Loss of self-awareness. Black spots in the whites of the eyes. Any of the documented indications of Hermaeus Mora's permenant influence. Hm, no, you look fine. At least no different than when I first saw you."

You don't need to worry about me: "I wasn't worried. Just interested. I don't get to observe first-hand many people who've spoken to Hermeaus Mora."

Don't you want to know what happened with Miraak?: "Who? Oh him. Well, I assume you killed him. Or Hermaeus Mora turned on him when you looked like the winning bet. Or a bit of both. Miraak's influence has vanished from Solstheim, so I assumed you had handled things. Why, did something interesting happen?" ''Now all that's left are these Black Books, waiting for another ambitious fool to be lured into Hermaeus Mora's clutches. Speaking of which... I think I've located another book, if you're interested. Here, let me show you.'' If some Black Books are still unfound, this lead into the side quest Lost Knowledge:
 * No, nothing interesting. I just killed Miraak and saved Solstheim: "Well, that is what you hero types do, isn't it? I wasn't expecting anything less."
 * You don't seem very grateful: "I don't recall asking you to kill Miraak. That was your own project. And now I'm not even mentioning the fact that now we'll never know what would have happened when Miraak returned. Although... from all indications he could have proved a serious nuisance. So, yes, I am grateful that you dealt with him."

Lost Knowledge
Retrieve a Black Book that Neloth has located.

Enchanting training
If asked about Enchanting training, Neloth reveals himself to be a true master of the art. If Enchanting skill level is less that 90, he reluctantly agrees to give a lesson. If skill level is equal to or higher than 90, he becomes defensive and refuses to train the Dragonborn. A sharp contrast to all other skill trainers who, in the same circumstances, simply state that don't have the knowledge to train the Dragonborn any further:

Can you train me in Enchanting?:


 * Enchanting skill < 90: "Don't be ridiculous. Of course I can. The question is, should I? I suppose if it's going to be done right, I'll have to do it."
 * Enchanting skill ≥ 90: "I could, but I won't. It wouldn't do to have you become better than me after all."

Staves merchant
In addition to providing training, Neloth also serves as a magical goods merchant. Most notably, he sells unenchanted staves, in addition to regular enchanted staves and soul gems. Provided he has granted use of his staff enchanter, the unenchanted staves can be enchanted.

He typically carries 1000 on hand for trading, but this can be increased to 2000 with the Master Trader perk.

First meeting
Neloth can be first encountered at the Earth Stone during the quest Dragonborn, where he will give the following dialogue. However if this first initial meeting is skipped, he can later be met at his home in Tel Mithryn after the first quest has been completed, where his dialogue will vary slightly.

Earth Stone
Traveling to the Earth Stone, several townsfolk can be seen working on the structure. Neloth, who is observing nearby, will approach and ask:

"You there... You dont quite seem to be in the same state as the others. Very interesting. May I ask what it is you're doing here?"

I'm looking for someone named Miraak:  "Miraak...Miraak... It sounds familiar but I cant quite place... Oh. Wait. I recall. But that makes very little sense. Miraak's been dead for thousands of years."

What does that mean?: "I'm not sure, but it is fascinating, isn't it. Perhaps it has some relation to what's going on here. Quite unexpected. I'm afraid I can't give you any answers. But there are ruins of an ancient temple of Miraak's toward the center of the island. If I were you, I'd look there." He can then be questioned further:

'''Who are you? What are you doing here?:' "It's true that I normally prefer to stay home and conduct my research in peace. Everything's so much more convenient there. But, given that something seems to be taking control of the minds of all the inhabitants, I thought it worth investigating."''

Why aren't you affected like everyone else?: "I have gone to some pains to ensure that I am immune to many forms of control. I cannot say for certain which is currently protecting me, but it bears further investigation at some point."

What are these people doing?: "Building something, clearly. And yet they don't seem to have much to say about it. I'm very interested to find out what happens when they finish."

Have you tried to stop this?: "Certainly not! Doing so would interfere with whatever is going on, and I would be unable to see how this all turns out."

Tel Mithryn
Once the quest Dragonborn has been completed, Neloth returns to Tel Mithryn. If he was met during the aforementioned quest he asks:'' "You again. Didn't I see you in Raven Rock?" . If this is first time meeting him, he will instead remark: "I don't recall inviting you into my tower. I do hope you make this worth my while."''

Either way, the next set of non quest-related dialogue options becomes available:

What is this building?: "This is a Telvanni tower. It's my citadel, grown from the spores of the giant fungus trees found in Morrowind. Back in the homeland, there are other Telvanni wizards that have them as well."

Two possible options are presented:


 * Telvanni? What are the Telvanni?: "The Telvanni are the master wizards of Morrowind. The greatest of us grow magical towers like this one from the mighty fungus trees. Together we form House Telvanni, one of the great houses of Morrowind. The great houses rule what is left of our once proud nation."

After this reply, its possible to give one of the following three replies. The options that appear depend upon the progress of the College of Winterhold questline:
 * I've heard of the House Telvanni of Morrowind: "Of course you have. Everyone has heard of the master wizards of Morrowind. We are one of the great houses that rule Morrowind."

Questline progress between Under Saarthal and The Staff of Magnus:
 * You must be almost as powerful as Savos Aren of Winterhold: "Savos? Ha! He wouldn't be fit to be my apprentice. Of course he does have a knack for wards that would be handy to learn. If you see him, let him know that I might be willing to take him on as my apprentice. For a price of course."

The Eye of Magnus has been completed:
 * As the Archmage of Winterhold, you and I should share our secrets: "Winterhold? That small college that is falling into the Sea of Ghosts? You're the one that recovered the Staff of Magnus. Impressive. Talvas should finish his apprenticeship in a couple of decades. Come see me then. I think I could teach you a trick or two."

College of Winterhold has not been joined:
 * You must be a very powerful wizard: "I am likely the greatest wizard you will ever meet. Who else do you think could create a staff enchanter? If you make yourself useful around here, I might just let you use it."

Varona
Varona: "Master Neloth, I'm preparing for a trip to Raven Rock to pick up supplies. I have your list of soul gems, but nothing else." Neloth: "Hmm? Oh. Raven Rock. Right. I need soul gems..." Varona: "I know that. What else?" Neloth: "Maybe some daedra heart. Elynea never seems to stock it. Let me get you the rest of the list tomorrow. I'm just too busy to think about this right now." Varona: "That's what you said yesterday! I really can't put this trip off for much longer."

Varona
Varona: "Master Neloth, the silt strider traders just dropped off some supplies." Neloth: "What did they bring? Books? Soul gems?" Varona: "Mostly books. There were a couple of soul gems, some ingredients for Elynea, and some strange wood." Neloth: "Ah! The wood is for the staffs. Put them away when you get a chance. But don't get in my way."

Drovas
Neloth: "Drovas, where's my tea?" Drovas Relvi: "I'll go fetch some, Master Neloth. Canis root, right?" Neloth: "Yes, yes. Canis root tea. And don't let Ulves water it down."

Morrowind
Any time after first meeting Neloth, he can be questioned about the province of Morrowind. He replies with one of eight possible answers, however he can be repeatedly asked the initial question.

What can you tell me about Morrowind?:
 * "You are too young to rememeber the Nerevarine. He defeated Dagoth Ur and saved us all from the blight."
 * "When the city of Vivec was destroyed, it took decades for us to rebuild. We are still but a shadow of our glorious past, but some day we will rise again."
 * "There is the big island of Vvardenfell, and the coastal mainland. House Telvanni has it's properties on Vvardenfell. I've never been to the mainland myself."
 * "Red Mountain dominates the island. Every now and then ash and debris from an eruption land on our shores."
 * "It's the homeland of the dunmer. The lesser races call us dark elves. We built great works there, like Vivec and Ald'ruhn. Many of them are destroyed now, either by Red Mountain or the argonian invasion."
 * "The ignorant think it's only a place of ash and lava. It has rolling green plains and swamps and verdant hills too."
 * "It is the only place where silt striders can be found. Although I managed to transplant a few here when I arrived."

Black Books
'''What are these Black Books? Where do they come from?:' "Hermaeus Mora has always tried to seduce mortals into his service with the lure of forbidden knowledge. Where the Black Books actually came from... no one really knows. Some appear to have been written in the past, others might be from the future. Apparently time is more malleable if you're a Daedric Prince of fate and destiny."''

Trivia

 * He refers to the Nerevarine as a "He", though the Nerevarine could have been male or female, like the Hero of Kvatch or the Dragonborn.
 * He appears to have become more generous in his old age, having rewarded the nerevarine with only ten drakes for retrieving a valuable robe worth ten times that price, yet rewarding the Dragonborn for fulfilling similar tasks with enchanted gear later during the events of dragonborn.
 * When asked for Enchanting training, if the skill is above the training limit, Neloth will say that he won't train the Dragonborn any further, unlike other trainers which say they can't train the Dragonborn any further. This is additional proof of his arrogance and/or powerful magic skills.
 * Althought he is shown as a master enchanter, his in-game enchanting skill is only at level 15.