The Ultimate Heist (Oblivion)

Overview
Quest giver: Gray Fox Reward: Gray Cowl of Nocturnal

Background Information
The final piece that the Gray Fox needs to lift the curse is to steal an Elder Scroll from the Imperial City Palace itself. To start, he gives you the Boots of Springheel Jak (item}, which he believes you'll need at some point, as well as the Arrow of Extrication, which supposedly should unlock something.

Walkthrough
As preparation, be sure to bring a lot of lockpicks. This is a long quest, so be sure you have time on your hands.

First, go to the Imperial City Palace in Imperial City. Head inside, make a left, picklock the door to the Palace Basement. Once inside, walk a few feet, turn right, and head to the other end of the room (north side); watch out for a patrolling guard. Activate the giant hourglass (the Glass of Time).

Second, head to the Imperial City Arboretum and head to the northern gate. A grate on the ground by a tree is the entrace to the South East Tunnels. Inside, make your way to the Beneath the Bloodworks area.

Kill the Vampire Nightblade and proceed. Once you get to some stairs, make a right, keep going straight, and then you’ll see a door to the left. You’ll need to open some gates with nearby turn wheels to get to the Imperial Palace Sewers. You may come across a zombie or two.

Once inside the Sewers, cross the bridge, head down the stairs, and watch out for the wraith. Go through the northwest hall, and you’ll come to a large circular room with a pool of water. Go through the hallway to the next room, then go through the next hallway and through the gate. Head through the Strange Door to the Old Way.

Old Way
In the Old Way, watch out for traps; look on ground for trap plates. There'll be more dread zombies, skeletons, faded wraiths, and nether lichs. Go down the hall, make your first left and through the door into another room called Old Way. Be careful in here as there are more enemies, such as Skeleton Champion, Skeleton Champion’s Skeleton Guardian, Skeleton Hero, Wraiths, and Nether Lichs. Fight your way through (there’s only one way to go here), then go towards and enter The Lost Catacombs.

Again, fight, or sneak your way through, there’s only one way. Head north, then east through a large area with a few enemies in the lighted center, then north again. When you come to two tunnels, take the right one. Follow it through and you should get to a very large elvish-origin room. Go straight through it and through the door to the Hall of Epochs.

Inside the Hall of Epochs, go straight up the steps to the three statues. You’ll get a message that you need to find the keyhole. Go around back to the large "pillars" (they're walls) and you’ll get a message that you need to lower those walls. You'll see a gate when facing south, so head through it and you’ll find a button. Press it. Then continue through there, fighting to another room named the Hall of Epochs.

Again, fight your way through there. In the last chamber, where there are two catacomb rooms on each side, you’ll see a chest and a button above it; press it. Then go back to the large room with the statues.

You’ll notice that the big walls are now down. Fight the two zombies, stand on the small square on the small bridge and look straight across at the big center statue. You'll see that there is a hole to shoot arrows through (the keyhole). Practice with a few regular arrows at first (you should’ve gotten some from the dead skeletons). You’ll actually need to aim high to hit it. Save the game first before shooting the real thing. If you miss, you can actually pick up the Arrow of Extrication, but save beforehand just in case. Fire the Arrow of Extrication at the keyhole.

Once you approach the door, the two Ayleid Statues will come alive and fight you. Defeat them and prepare yourself in sneak mode. (You can't pick up the statues' weapons, by the way, as it crumbles to dust).

Back to the Imperial Palace
Sneak through the door and you’ll end up in the Imperial Palace Guard’s Room. Sneak your way out, make a left into the Library. Sneak forward more, until you see a door to the library on your left. Pick lock it, enter, make a right and follow the hallway. Pull the lever behind the Blind Priest, go back around to the front of the priest gate, and into the library. Sit on the chair.

A Blind Priest will come down and give you the Elder Scroll. Take it, sneak up the stairs (don’t worry, as long as you’re sneaking, the priests won’t bother you, even if you're directly in front of them). Picklock out, then make a left and picklock into the Moth Priest’s Chambers. Go around, picklock into the Imperial Battlemage’s Chambers.

Picklock into the bedroom. Make sure you’re wearing the Boots of Springheel Jak (item), as you’ll be falling soon. Go to the fireplace and escape through there and fall to the Old Way.

Once you’ve fallen, go back the way you came and return to the Gray Fox with the Scroll.

He asks you of one last thing before your reward: He asks you to take a Wedding Ring to Countess Millona Umbranox in Anvil, and gauge her reaction. If she asks who’s it from, say it’s from a stranger who wants you to have it.

Head to Castle Anvil and give the wedding ring to her. You'll discover that it’s her husband’s ring and that she deeply misses her husband. A beggar will walk up, and will turn into the Gray Fox. He takes off his mask, and reveals that he is Corvus Umbranox, her lost husband. He wore the mask ten years ago when it was inherited from the former Thieves Guild guildmaster and lost his identity for 10 years. Corvus renounces his life of thievery, names you guildmaster, and gives you the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal, which is no longer cursed. Wearing it in public will cause guards to attack you, however people will not recognize that you are the Gray Fox if you remove it in front of them.

Corvus also reveals that Emer Dareloth is the true thief of Nocturnal’s cowl. His theft has caused the guild so much trouble. The guild now has a guild hall at the ruins of Dareloth at the Imperial City Waterfront, where you first met Armand.