Dear Winterhold College student,
First let me start this article by saying more than half a million people have played the mod from start to finish without issues. However, Skyrim is Skyrim and sometimes stages might not trigger for no apparent reason. This is not an issue with the mod, but Skyrim itself. The stages follow the same methods and approach than the vanilla quests do, which can also occasionally fail under a lot of stress of the Papyrus script system. So unfortunately, nothing I can fix, but if you often experience stages not triggering while playing the game, chances are you have serious script lag, but that's a story for another day and unrelated to my mod. In any case, you can get around stages not triggering with the help of the console (or by reloading a save and trying again).
How to use these console commands:
Step 0: Identify where you are in the quest that is not advancing by looking at the information below, and then trigger the NEXT objective (not the current one)
Step 1: Open the console (usually the tilde key)
Step 2: Write SetStage + QUESTID + Quest Stage
Example: SetStage COW_CentralQuest 20
Step 3: Press enter for the console command to be executed
Step 4: Close the console by using the tilde key
QUEST "College Curriculum"
Quest ID: COW_CentralQuest
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Talk to Tolfdir
Stage 5 - Objective: Study Waterbreathing and talk to Tolfdir
Stage 20 - Objective: Find Arniel Gane
Stage 21 to 26 - Objective: Complete lessons for the other scholars
Stage 27 - Speak to Tolfdir and tell him you've completed all lessons
Stage 50 - Quest ends. Under Saarthal begins automatically.
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Talk to Tolfdir
Stage 5 - Objective: Study Waterbreathing and talk to Tolfdir
Stage 20 - Objective: Find Arniel Gane
Stage 21 to 26 - Objective: Complete lessons for the other scholars
Stage 27 - Speak to Tolfdir and tell him you've completed all lessons
Stage 50 - Quest ends. Under Saarthal begins automatically.
QUEST "Enchanted to Meet You"
Quest ID: Cow_enchantment
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Find an enchanting table
Stage 15 - Objective: Disenchant the dagger
Stage 20 - Objective: Find a filled soul gem
Stage 25 - Objective: Apply the enchantment on the sword
Stage 30 - Objective: Tell Sergius the sword has been enchanted
Stage 32 - Objective: Read the note Sergius has given you
Stage 35 - Objective: Find Gretode in Stonehills
Stage 40 - Objective: Find the real client in Stonehills
Stage 43 - Objective: Speak to Adara
Stage 45 - Objective: Speak to Adara's mother, Gretode
Stage 50 - Objective: Escort Adara to the College of Winterhold entrance
Stage 55 - Objective: Speak to Adara and convince her to cast a spell
Stage 60 - Objective: Speak to Sergius and tell him the quest is done
Stage 70 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 80 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Find an enchanting table
Stage 15 - Objective: Disenchant the dagger
Stage 20 - Objective: Find a filled soul gem
Stage 25 - Objective: Apply the enchantment on the sword
Stage 30 - Objective: Tell Sergius the sword has been enchanted
Stage 32 - Objective: Read the note Sergius has given you
Stage 35 - Objective: Find Gretode in Stonehills
Stage 40 - Objective: Find the real client in Stonehills
Stage 43 - Objective: Speak to Adara
Stage 45 - Objective: Speak to Adara's mother, Gretode
Stage 50 - Objective: Escort Adara to the College of Winterhold entrance
Stage 55 - Objective: Speak to Adara and convince her to cast a spell
Stage 60 - Objective: Speak to Sergius and tell him the quest is done
Stage 70 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 80 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on Enchanting Table: If you're playing on VR or you have some custom enchantment table not recognized by my mod, it's possible the objective "Find an enchanting table" will not register. You can use the optional file "Enchanted Table Bypass" to automatically skip this step, or you can use a console command to bypass this stage.
- Note on Enchanted Dagger: Sergius will not give you an enchanted dagger if you already know the fire enchantment. There's no need for this since you already know it. Just enchant the sword and you'll be fine.
- Note on Adara around campfire: Adara and her mother are permanently where they are. Gretolde is in the mine 24/7. Adara sits around the campfire 24/7. If they are not where they are, you have a mod that is assigning schedules to random NPCs. This is not something I can control and can break tons of quest. You should probably uninstall that mod, whatever it is.
QUEST "Rapture of the Deep"
Quest ID: Cow_breathing
Spoiler:
Stage 1 - Objective: Quest Starts - Speak to Arniel
Stage 5- Objective: Player has said they need time to prepare - Talk to Arniel when you're ready to leave
Stage 10 - Objective: Follow Arniel Gane
Stage 20 - Objective: Find the crystal underwater
Stage 30 - Objective: Return the crystal to Arniel Gane
Stage 40 - Objective: Talk to Tolfir
Stage 50 - Objective: Quest is completed
Show
Stage 1 - Objective: Quest Starts - Speak to Arniel
Stage 5- Objective: Player has said they need time to prepare - Talk to Arniel when you're ready to leave
Stage 10 - Objective: Follow Arniel Gane
Stage 20 - Objective: Find the crystal underwater
Stage 30 - Objective: Return the crystal to Arniel Gane
Stage 40 - Objective: Talk to Tolfir
Stage 50 - Objective: Quest is completed
- Note on Arniel Pathing: Arniel is asked to go to the location, but if you've got mods that mess with the navmeshing of winterhold, chances are he gets stuck. Well, just speak to him and tell him that "you'll meet him there". He will teleport to the location.
- Note on cold water: Yes, the water is cold. You should prepare for this. Arniel can make a fire for you if you ask him nicely.
- Note on not finding the chest: Some people struggle to find the chest. This is on purpose so you actually have to use the spell he's teaching you more than once. It's also on purpose that there's no quest marker on top of the chest. If you want to make it easier for yourself, either watch the playthrough video to see where it is, or install the optional file to put a quest marker on top of the chest. "EASY MODE - Show Direct Quest Markers"
- Note on spell costing too much: Yes, depending on your mods or lack thereof, the waterbreathing spell might cost more than what you can cast at level 1. My mod does not edit the spell in any way, so it'll be whatever your game has. My advice: don't be level 1, invest in magicka, use enchanted gear, drink a potion to fortify magicka... there are several ways to get around this. Technically you don't have to cast the spell, just get the crystal.
QUEST "I Choose You, Familiar"
Quest ID: Cow_Conjuration
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5- Objective: Learn the spell "Summon Familiar" and talk to Phinis
Stage 10 - Objective: Follow Phinis to the courtyard
Stage 15 - Objective: Cast a familiar near Phinis
Stage 20 - Objective: Watch the fight and speak to Phinis
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30- Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5- Objective: Learn the spell "Summon Familiar" and talk to Phinis
Stage 10 - Objective: Follow Phinis to the courtyard
Stage 15 - Objective: Cast a familiar near Phinis
Stage 20 - Objective: Watch the fight and speak to Phinis
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30- Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on Phinis pathing: Phinis is asked to go to the courtyard. He might get stuck. Go away, push him... It's just vanilla being vanilla.
- Note on familiar casting: The mod is checking that you cast a familiar wolf near Phinis in the courtyard. If you have a mod that changes the wolf to something else, it might or not work. Try to cast the original spell.
- Note on the fight: Some of you have some mods that make your familiar stronger than an ice atronach. You have some interesting modding choices, sounds like fun but this is not accounted for. In any case, the quest will continue as intended once your familiar vanishes.
QUEST "Reading Comprehension 101"
Quest ID: Cow_Reading
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Read the book and talk to Urag
Stage 15 - Objective: You failed the test - speak to Urag again
Stage 20 - Objective: You passed the test, quest ends
Stage 25 - Objective: You passed the test, quest ends (Alternative)
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Read the book and talk to Urag
Stage 15 - Objective: You failed the test - speak to Urag again
Stage 20 - Objective: You passed the test, quest ends
Stage 25 - Objective: You passed the test, quest ends (Alternative)
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on book reading: It's not actually required to read the book to pass the test. You just need to choose the right answers.
- Note on options missing: Depending on your screen resolution, it's possible for some answers not to show up all at once. Scroll down the dialogue options to see them all. There are 4 possible answers for each question.
QUEST "None Escape The Light"
Quest ID: Cow_restoration
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Colette
Stage 10 - Objective: Speak to Tolfdir
Stage 15 - Objective: Use Turn Lesser Undead on the draugr and kill them
Stage 20 - Objective: Speak to Colette
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Colette
Stage 10 - Objective: Speak to Tolfdir
Stage 15 - Objective: Use Turn Lesser Undead on the draugr and kill them
Stage 20 - Objective: Speak to Colette
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on the draugr: It's not required to cast the spell on the draugr to complete the quest, but Colette will know if you did or not use the spell. What matters is that you kill the draugr
- Draugr dying not updating: If you have significant script lag, it's possible for the death of the draugr not to trigger the next stage. Give it 5 minutes and chances are the script will work eventually. But also, this is not my mod's fault. OnDeath is one of the most common functions in Skyrim and if you're having this issue as part of this quest, you will have it with dozens and dozens of other quests, vanilla or otherwise, and should probably look into it.
QUEST "Back-Stabbing Rodents"
Quest ID: Cow_illusion
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Drevis
Stage 15 - Objective: Use Frenzy on the skeevers and make sure they're all dead
Stage 20 - Objective: Speak to Drevis
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 10 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Drevis
Stage 15 - Objective: Use Frenzy on the skeevers and make sure they're all dead
Stage 20 - Objective: Speak to Drevis
Stage 25 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on the skeevers: It's not required to cast the spell on the skeevers to complete the quest, but Drevis will know if you did or not use the spell. What matters is that you kill the skeevers.
- Skeevers dying not updating: If you have significant script lag, it's possible for the death of the skeevers not to trigger the next stage. Give it 5 minutes and chances are the script will work eventually. But also, this is not my mod's fault. OnDeath is one of the most common functions in Skyrim and if you're having this issue as part of this quest, you will have it with dozens and dozens of other quests, vanilla or otherwise, and should probably look into it.
QUEST "A Test of Ice and Fire"
Quest ID: Cow_destruction
Spoiler:
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Faralda
Stage 10 - Objective: Use Firebolt on the ice-wraith
Stage 15 - Objective: Speak to Faralda
Stage 20 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
Show
Stage 0 - Objective: Quest Starts
Stage 5 - Objective: Learn the spell and speak to Faralda
Stage 10 - Objective: Use Firebolt on the ice-wraith
Stage 15 - Objective: Speak to Faralda
Stage 20 - Objective: Quest is completed
Stage 30 - Objective: Quest is failed (Player refused the quest)
- Note on the ice-wraith: It's not required to cast the spell on the ice-wraith to complete the quest, but Faralda will know if you did or not use the spell. What matters is that you kill the ice-wraith.
- ice-wraith dying not updating: If you have significant script lag, it's possible for the death of the ice-wraith not to trigger the next stage. Give it 5 minutes and chances are the script will work eventually. But also, this is not my mod's fault. OnDeath is one of the most common functions in Skyrim and if you're having this issue as part of this quest, you will have it with dozens and dozens of other quests, vanilla or otherwise, and should probably look into it.
Other topics:
- "I've completed all the quests and spoken to Tolfdir, but the quest Under Saarthal is not starting!" - Chances are one of the necessary aliases for that quest are being used by a mod, or you killed them, or you got them disabled somehow... which prevents the quest from starting. This has nothing to do with my mod and you'd have gotten the same without my mod. All my mod does is ask the game to start the quest, it does not modify the quest or the characters in any way: You can try this console command, but if it's not working, then it's something to look up in your own game: setstage MG02 0 and then try setstage MG02 10
6 comments
Honestly, your work has kept me playing Skyrim 13 years later. At this point, I can barely imagine playing without your mods. You've elevated the game to something truly special, and it's easy to forget how much passion and effort goes into what you do behind the scenes.
So again, thank you for everything — your mods doesn't just improve Skyrim, it keeps it alive.