>Main Quest: Season Unending

A Modicum of Civility

Return to High Hrothgar and seek out Master Arngeir. Initially, he talks about the difficulties in capturing a dragon. Inform him that you’re actually here to get his help stopping the Civil War. Arngeir reluctantly agrees to this and requests that you journey to Ulfric Stormcloak and General Tullius, and tell them that the Greybeards wish to speak to them. You may approach the leader of the Stormcloaks and the Imperials in either order.

General Tullius: Plot a path and trek to Solitude. Enter the walled city. Progress to the entrance to Castle Dour, where the high-ranking Imperials command the ongoing war efforts. Approach General Tullius. He has a different greeting depending on how the Civil War is progressing and whose side you’ve chosen, but he certainly remembers you from Helgen. Speak to the general again if he fobs you off and tell him you have a message from the Greybeards—they are convening a peace council at High Hrothgar. You can attempt to persuade Tullius, tell him that Ulfric has already agreed (if this is the case) or convince him with answers that you choose: Eventually he agrees to the treaty.

Ulfric Stormcloak: Figure out a favored route and journey to Windhelm. Step inside the walled city. Move to the entrance to the Palace of the Kings, where the Stormcloak chieftains plan their ongoing raids. Approach Ulfric Stormcloak. His opinion on you differs, depending on how the Civil War is progressing and the side you’ve chosen, but he can’t forget his time at Helgen. Inform him of the message from the Greybeards, that they have requested a peace council at High Hrothgar. You can try persuading Ulfric, letting him know Tullius has already agreed (if this has happened), or bring him around with answers of your choosing. Finally, he agrees to the sit-down treaty meeting.

War and Peace

Journey back to High Hrothgar and locate Master Arngeir. As you arrive, Delphine and Esbern are having a heated discussion with the Greybeards, demanding to be part of the meeting. If you’ve completed Main Quest: Paarthurnax, the conversation is slightly different, depending on how you’ve dealt with the dragon. The conversation ends, Arngeir expresses further concerns to you—especially that this place was built and dedicated to peace—before all parties are requested to take their seats for the council.

Enter the grand hall in High Hrothgar, and take your seat opposite the entrance. The various members of the factions attending this meeting are as follows:

• Legate Rikke, a loyal and disciplined second-in-command and a true believer in the rightness of the Imperial cause.
• Jarl Elisif the Fair, the figurehead of Solitude who defers to Tullius.
• General Tullius, the leader of the Imperial forces in Skyrim. He is practical but impatient and unimaginative.
• Jarl Balgruuf the Greater, of Whiterun. A strong, noble, and valiant leader, he attends if he still rules his city.
• Elenwen, a steely, determined, and ruthless head of the Thalmor observers. She sits near the Imperials, but her machinations are more complex.
• Arngeir, Delphine, and Esbern sit in the adjacent chairs, opposite you. Their alliances are disparate but well known to you.
• Ulfric Stormcloak, the fiery and charismatic Jarl of Windhelm, is attempting to win Skyrim’s independence.
• Galmar Stone-Fist is Ulfric’s grizzled, hard-bitten, and fearless housecarl. Importantly, he is also completely loyal.
• Jarl Vignar of Whiterun, if the Civil War has progressed and the Stormcloaks have Whiterun under their control.

Opening Remarks

The negotiations now begin. Due to the variations that your previous choices have already had on this peace process, there are several variations and discussions. But it is vitally important for your own machinations that you understand what you should be seeking to accomplish from this:

Failure is not an option

The good news is, unless you start brandishing a weapon and slashing dignitaries, there is no way to “fail” in this meeting. But you must tailor the agreements to your personal wishes. Here’s how this all breaks down:

• Every time you’re asked your opinion, you need to favor a faction, either the Imperials or the Stormcloaks. Logically, you should side with the faction you are helping (or wanting to help) in the Civil War; strongly agree with all their statements.
• Or, you can favor the opposing faction. This is counterintuitive, as it will only anger your allies and (if you’re interested in the Civil War) will force you to retake any Holds you gave away thanks to your terrible negotiations.
• You can favor one faction a little or a lot. Read the answers you’re about to give to determine what are strongly or weakly favored responses.
• Or, you can favor neither side if the Civil War doesn’t interest you, the Civil War Quests haven’t started yet, or you wish to simply be impartial. This has no real effects on the faction you may be leaning toward.

Negotiations Begin: Whose Side Are You On?

Hold Importance

First, you should understand how the Holds of Skyrim are broken down, in terms of “type,” for this meeting. The following table shows which Holds are strongholds (the base of operations for a faction), which are major Holds (important), and which are minor Holds (less important):

Negotiation 1: Elenwen

As soon as the negotiations begin, Ulfric raises objections about Elenwen even being involved in this council. Tullius or Ulfric asks you what your thoughts are:

• To agree with Ulfric and kick out this unwanted entity
• To disagree with Ulfric and keep Elenwen in the meeting

Negotiation 2: Markarth or Riften

The next item to discuss is giving up a major Hold. If you take the Stormcloak side, General Tullius will demand that Riften be turned over to the Empire. Otherwise, Ulfric will demand Markarth be surrendered to the Stormcloaks. The opposing faction’s reaction depends on the state of the Civil War:

• The faction that controls Markarth or Riften asks you what you think is a fair trade for the city. Your answer is always one of two choices:
• An exchange of a major Hold the opposition has
• An exchange of a minor Hold the opposition has
• The council goes along with whatever choice you make. Bear in mind that the side that controls Markarth or Riften will be unhappy if it is bargained for a minor Hold!

Negotiation 3: The Archivist Speaks

At this point, one of the factions threatens to leave the bargaining table. This is always the faction that is most unhappy at the moment (the one you have favored the least). Esbern restores order with an impassioned speech about the greater danger, and both sides grudgingly agree to continue.

Negotiation 4: Concessions

It is now time for the faction that you’ve favored less (and thus “losing” the negotiations) to ask for additional concessions.

For each demand, you can choose whether to agree to the concession. This continues until the side demanding a concession from you receives it or they run out of concessions to ask for (which requires you to refuse all their demands).

Quest Conclusion

The council now concludes. If you’ve favored the enemy over your initial allies, you will be scolded by your allies. The quest then concludes.

Postquest Activities

At this point, Main Quest: The Fallen begins. Consult Part 2 of this quest (shown previously) for more information.