Moving up

I warp back to Balmora and sell a little crap. Namely a magic scroll I didn't think I needed to the Mages guild woman. Eventually I got her to buy a 100 dollar scroll for 87. I had to bribe her my last 10 gold to increase the price and...anyway. I also sold some amulates and rings at the traders. Finally I flew back to Suran to do some bribing and/or strong arming to get the money owed to the guild. Turns out Helviane Desele needs to like me at at least 75/100. As I found out.

I also found out if my buy something from an NPC with a "barter" option when you've completed the transaction the likeability towards you will go up one point. Also if you sell the same thing you just bought back to the NPC the likeability will again go up. I did that for about 4 points until I reached 75/100.

Finally Helviane Desele gave in and gave me 200 gold. I recall back to balmora and talk to Eydis Fire-Eyes at the fighter's guild. She says "good job" and gives me 100 gold. I then get the next job from her. To go to a local orc's house and kill him. Which I do of course. Looks like that wasn't too hard of a job. I'm at level 4 now. Didn't take much effort to find and kill him. There was no option that I noticed to talk my way out of it. I was hardly even hurt really.

So I go back to Eydis Fire-Eyes and she gives me more gold and says I'll have to talk to someone at another fighter's guild because she's all out of missions. Well fine then.

Of course there was a mission about finding some kind of Dwemer puzzle box wasn't there? Lets look through the journal: yep looks like the path is right near Balmora too. Pretty easy to miss though.

I come to the bridge to find some crazy-ass mage ready to rumble. Well he gets me the first time but upon a reload of my save game I summon my favorite slinker and use my lightning/fireball rings to take him out. Him and the slinker actually.

I then enter the ruins. Spent several real hours wandering the halls. No puzzle box in sight! Lots of cool looking junk though. Even some cool dwemer armor. Too bad I'm I don't have enough free weight to carry it at the moment. I get a lot of experience from these caves. But then I am late level four so the grave robbing types aren't too challenging. Except for one door I'll have to come back and visit later because it's locked at level 40 I go through the whole place. Even manage to disable a trapped door with my trusty "probe".

At one point I thoughtI might be close. I see a walk way leading to a gap over hanging a lava lake (more pond but who ever heard of a "lava pond"?). I couldn't jump over but I happen to have 3 magic "scrolls of icarian flight".

Wait a minute. I didn't think this was earth. Why would this alternative fictional world have mythology from ancient greece? Oh never mind.

Not easy scrolls to use but I get across the gap. There's one psychotic grave robber with a really big war axe but nothing else of interest. What a waste of perfectly good magic scrolls.

Ok lets do another note: my auto-save script is all well and good but sometimes I don't want to save for a while. I need to find out if I can put in a pause-script functionality so it doesn't save at an in-opportune moment.

Couldn't find the damned box. So I give up again and consult the Internet. Now I did notice a second level I could see from the entrance, but I never thought to go up there for some reason.

Before any more exploring looks like all this had bashing has raised my level again. Better warp back to the fighter's guild and get some sleep. When I wake up I'm level 5 and upgrade a few different abilities.

Time to go back for for puzzle box!

Finally I run all the way back to the ruins and this time climb the hidden (or semi-hidden) rock walk way to the next level near the entrance. I enter to find another guy who thinks he's something when he isn't and finally find the dwemer puzzle box.

I grab some stuff for sale back at the guild and warp to the fighter's guild. Here I finally sell some stuff off.

Upon talking to Hasphat Antabolis in the basement of the fighter's guild who originally gave me the puzzle box quest I learn the dwemer artifacts are supposed to be protected and taking and/or selling such items is considered treason. Of course I did drop a dwemer cog on the floor up stairs near the entrance but no one seems to have noticed. Obviously a very loosely-enforced crime of treason.

Hasphat Antabolis gives is happy about the puzzle box and gives me a note to take back to Caius Cosades. I also get out him that there's another dwemer ruin that is being officially explored by the Imperials themselves. After some questioning he decides I'm worthy and gives me a "note of introduction" so I can visit this site.

I then take the notes given to me by Hasphat Antabolis to give to Caius Cosades and see what he says. He says thanks but he needs more. Doh!

I'm to go to the Mage's guild and take to Sharn gra-Muzgob to get more info and of course "she'll have an errand for me". Pfff. Any of this sounding like busy work to anyone else?

Sharn gra-Muzgob tells me I have to go to the Andrano Ancestral Tomb to find the skull of Llevule Andrano. The tomb is located on the road to Pelagiad. I'm fairly certain I already did a good job of clear that dungen but I remember leaving a skull since I knew it would likely have something to do with a quest. Which it does. But I could have taken it just given the skull to Sharn gra-Muzgob when she assigned me the quest. Too bad then. At least I think that'd work.

Sharn gra-Muzgob also seemed a little to adamant about not being a necromancer. Obviously she is and only a favorable opinion of me would yield much useful info. If I cared. I'm not sure I do.

So I'm off to the Andrano Ancestral Tomb to get a skull. Maybe I'll finally finish the quest involving the mugged damzel in distress who is infatuated with the mugger for some reason. I think she needs a good therapist.

The skull will have to wait for next time.