Dark Brotherhood (Skyrim)

The Dark Brotherhood is a group of assassins who are willing to assassinate anyone that they are paid to.

Background
The Dark Brotherhood has operated in Tamriel for centuries, having many clandestine sanctuaries across the Empire. They worship Sithis, the serpent god of entropy and chaos, as well as the Night Mother, who is the spiritual leader of the Dark Brotherhood, who are called upon through a ritual called "The Black Sacrament". Their operations in Skyrim are based out of a sanctuary located in the Pine Forests in the hold of Falkreath, west of the city.

Joining/Destroying the Dark Brotherhood
While on your travels in Skyrim, go to any inn and ask for the latest gossip. The innkeeper will tell you that there is a child trying to summon the Dark Brotherhood in Windhelm. If you happen to be in Riften, speak to a man named Maul. He will be standing against a post as soon as you enter the city. After sharing some tough words with you, he gives you information on both the Thieves Guild, and the Dark Brotherhood; for a price, of course.

You could alternatively talk to Idesa Sadri inside Candalhearth Hall in Windhelm and ask about a cursed child performing the Black Sacrement. Idesa can also be overheard talking to Grimvar Cruel-Sea about the child, Aventus Aretino, outside the Aretino Residence. Aventus Aretino can be found inside the Aretino Residence, which is has a novice-level lock. The child will offer you the Innocence Lost quest, which will lead to the quest With Friends Like These....

After Innocence Lost has been completed, a courier will appear and give you a note with the imprint of a black hand and the words "We Know" written beneath it. If you do not receive the note, wait for a couple of days. Once you receive the note, sleep in any bed. Thereafter, you are abducted by the Dark Brotherhood, taken to an Abandoned Shack, and asked to kill one of three people in the room (With Friends Like These... ). Killing one or all of the potential victims will earn you an invitation to join the Dark Brotherhood. You may also take the opportunity to destroy the organization by attacking the Dark Brotherhood representative, Astrid. This will initiate the quest Destroy the Dark Brotherhood!.

Dark Brotherhood Contracts
Upon visiting the Brotherhood's secret sanctuary, Astrid will inform you that she doesn't have a primary contract for you and instructs you to speak with Nazir for work. Nazir will give you the first three Dark Brotherhood contracts:

Contract: Kill Narfi

 * Narfi is located in the town of Ivarstead. He can be found at a shack on the north side of the river.

Contract: Kill Ennodius Papius

 * Ennodius Papius is located at a camp near Anga's Mill (west of Windhelm).

Contract: Kill Beitild

 * Beiltid can be found at Dawnstar at the far north of Skyrim. She is located on the east side of town and wanders between her house and the smelter.

Once you've completed the first three contracts you can speak to Astrid to get your first "primary" contract.

Mourning Never Comes

 * 1) Speak with Astrid
 * 2) Talk to Muiri in Markarth.
 * 3) Kill Alain Dufont
 * 4) Kill Nilsine Shatter-shield (Optional)

Whispers in the Dark

 * 1) Talk to Astrid about Cicero's possible treachery and suspiciousness
 * 2) Hide inside the Night Mother's coffin and Eavesdrop on Cicero.
 * 3) You are appointed Listener of the Dark Brotherhood, by the Night Mother. The Night Mother then tasks you to go find Amaund Motierre in Voluruund
 * 4) Report back to Astrid and tell her what happened
 * 5) Astrid will then task you to go to Nazir to get more contracts while she thinks over what happened.

Contract: Kill Lurbuk

 * Lurbuk is an orc bard. He can be found in the Marthal Inn and will move to the back room eventually.

Contract: Kill Hern

 * Hern is a vampire located at Half-Moon mill (north of the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary). During the day he can be found in the house adjacent to the mill. His female companion Hert is in the house with him so you'll need to kill them both. Hert will occasionally work at the lumber mill in the early mornings which leaves Hern vunerable in the Half-Moon mill. (Unconfirmed whether they move outside at night).

The Silence Has Been Broken

 * 1) Speak with Astrid, she tells you to go speak with Amound Motierre
 * 2) Amound Motierre wants the Dark Brotherhood to kill several people, all of whom lead to a primary target - the Emperor himself.
 * 3) Report back to Astrid with the letter (you can open and read the letter beforehand; Astrid will comment about that before she sends you to kill Vic) and the amulet.
 * 4) Go to the Ratways in Riften and show Delvin Mallory the amulet.
 * 5) Report back to Astrid

Bound Until Death

 * 1) Go to the wedding of Vittoria Vici
 * 2) Kill Vittoria Vici
 * 3) Report back to Astrid

Breaching Secruity

 * 1) Speak to Gabriella, she gives you a contract to kill Gaius Maro.
 * 2) She gives you a bonus contract to kill Gaius Maro, in one of the main cities.
 * 3) In order to do so, you must steal Gaius Maro's travel schedule in Dragon Bridge.
 * 4) Plant the Incriminationg Letter on Gaius Maro's body.
 * 5) Report back to Gabriella

The Cure For Madness

 * 1) Talk to Astrid. Cicero is now a traitor, and you must kill him.
 * 2) Search Cicero's room to find any leads to where is ran off too.
 * 3) Talk to Astrid, she tells you to go after her husband. Astrid also gives you her loyal horse Shadowmere. Shadowmere cannot die, but she can be knocked down.
 * 4) Locate Arnbjorn
 * 5) Talk to Arnbjorn
 * 6) Enter the Dawnstar Sanctuary where Cicero is located. The password for the sanctuary is "Innocence, my brother."
 * 7) Note that to get to Cicero you must pass through a elaborate set of traps and security sentinals
 * 8) *As you progress through the sanctuary you must deal with six seperate sets of enemies (most of whom are spirt sentinals)
 * 9) **The first enermy is a spirt sentinal who is stationed at the very beginning of the santuary, he is easily sneaked pasted)
 * 10) **The second enemy is just pasted the first sential but he is standing on the opposite side of a brightly lit bridge, that has spike/spear traps, this bridge cannot be bypassed so I would recommend that you should take out the sentinal with a sneak attack with a bow.
 * 11) **There is then two sentinals located in a round room they can be easily taken out with a sneak attack with a bow, after you kill the sentinals you should run as fast as you can through the circle room because there will be a fire attack that leaves two streaks of fire.
 * 12) **After this there will be a largly lit room with two sentials waiting in a well lit room that is right after the fire trap, they will be facing your direction. If you are quick enough you can reach the room right as the sentinals are appearing at this time you can take out one of the sentinals with out the other noticing, the sentinal that can be taken out will appear from the left side of the dorr arch.
 * 13) **After this there is a frost troll that is extremely easy to sneak by, if you want to kill him I would stongly recommend that you use a fire spell, there are three fireball scrolls located behind a chest that is at a alter in the top section of the area that the troll is guarding.
 * 14) **Finally there is four more sentinals located in a well lit room.
 * 15) Kill Cicero, or leave the Sanctuary. Cicero begs for mercy and ask you to lie to Astrid that you killed him. (If you do not kill Cicero you will have the option to take him as a companion later on in the game.)
 * 16) Report back to Astrid

Recipe for Disaster

 * 1) Report to Festus Krex
 * 2) Question Anton Vircane
 * 3) Kill Anton Vircane
 * 4) Kill Balagog gro-Nolob
 * 5) (Optional) Drag Baagog's body to a hiding place
 * 6) Take rite of passage
 * 7) Report back to Festus Krex

To Kill an Empire
(Note: Be sure to remove all items you care about from the Pine Forest Sanctuary BEFORE completing this quest.)
 * 1) Report to Astrid
 * 2) Report to Commander Mare
 * 3) Report to Gianna while wearing a chef's hat
 * 4) Make the Patage le Magnifique
 * 5) Follow Gianna to the dining room
 * 6) Kill the Emperor
 * 7) Escape the tower!
 * 8) Return to sanctuary

Death Incarnate

 * 1) Enter the sanctuary
 * 2) Search for survivors
 * 3) Kill Nazir's attacker
 * 4) Speak with Nazir
 * 5) Escape the sanctuary
 * 6) Embrace the Night Mother
 * 7) Talk to Astrid

Hail Sithis!

 * 1) Talk to Nazir
 * 2) Talk to Amound Motierre
 * 3) Board the Katariah. You can board the Katariah through the anchor by swimming around to the back.
 * 4) Kill the Emperor!
 * 5) Report back to Amound Motierre
 * 6) Retrieve the payment (20,000 gold)
 * 7) (Optional) Kill Amound Motierre
 * 8) Report to Nazir

Dawnstar Sanctuary
After you have completed the Hail Sithis! quest you have completted the main Dark Brotherhood quest line, you can however report back to Nazir to retrieve other smaller quests that don't hold story to them, these quests are infinite and you can keep coming back for more, at this point you will also unlock the Dawnstar Sanctuary as the main Brotherhood hideout because the other is now unfit to be habitable, after you tell Nazir of the move to the Dawnstar sanctuary he will give you the following quest: Where You Hang Your Enemy's Head, this quest doesn't need to be completed and it just involves you going to talk to Delvin Mallory to recruit his 'services'. His services involve him obtaining certain things which you will use to make the Dawnstar sanctuary habitable, these things include a fully stocked laboratory and a master bedroom which you can use to store your items. After you have made the sanctuary habital, Nazir will recruit two more brotherhood members. Both of these can be found around the hideout and both of which can be recruited as companions. The total upgrade of the hideout will cost you 19,000 septims which you can pay for from the 20,000 you receive from competing the 20,000 the Hail Sithis! quest. You will then only have 1,000 gold left.