March of the Dead is a side quest in The Elder Scrolls V: Dragonborn. Captain Veleth is searching for assistance against the ash spawn that have been invading Raven Rock.
Background
Walkthrough
This quest starts south of the Bulwark in Raven Rock. Near Old Attius Farm, a dark elf, Captain Veleth, is found fighting several ash spawn.
After helping him defeat the creatures, he will say that the ash spawn have been attacking more frequently and, peculiarly, seem to be becoming organized. With an offer of help, he will ask the Dragonborn to look for clues as to why the ash spawn are attacking Raven Rock. In one of the ash piles left by the dead ash spawn will be a note called Declaration of War. Giving it to Veleth continues the quest. During the conversation, Veleth will mention it comes from General Falx Carius, which cannot be true, since he died 200 years ago. Veleth suspects foul play at work, and asks the Dragonborn to find the general at Fort Frostmoth and kill him.
Fort Frostmoth is located directly east of Old Attius Farm. On the map it appears as five white circles (those are the ash-topped towers) on the south coast of Solstheim. The main entrance is from the south, and there are several ash spawn inside.
General Carius and his ash spawn
When the courtyard is entered, an alarm will be raised that there is an intruder in the fort. This raises some ash spawn from the ground. Carius is located downstairs in a locked room in the western building (on the left as the courtyard is entered).
Upon entering the building, there are two spawn ash. To the left (south) are several shelves, one of which holds an East Empire Company strongbox. Further to the south, a ramp leads up to a ladder to the roof.
Back at the entrance, directly ahead (west) is an adept-locked chest. To the right (north) are stairs leading down. Directly forward from their bottom is a master-locked gate. To the left (west) is an opening blocked by a spider web that an be cut through. Beyond is a short corridor that leads down to a room with two Heart Stone deposits, three Ruby Geodes, and a passage to the north that comes to a dead end.
To the right (east) of the gate is the corpse of Maximian Axius, plus his knapsack and several letters. In the east wall is a wooden door that requires a key. Another passage continues north, then comes to a T intersection where an ash spawn lies in wait. To the right (east) are two coffins with little loot. The path left eventually leads to a large room with many coffins. Two coffins are stacked on top of each other with a knapsack in front of them and Ildari's Journal resting atop them. In the knapsack is the "Fort Frostmoth Key", which will open the locked door as well as the gate.
Past the gate is a room with several bottles of Cyrodiilic Brandy, and a chest. The locked door leads to stairs up to a large room with the general. Open the door with the key and defeat him and his attendant ash spawn. Search his corpse for the Champion's Cudgel and possibly a Letter to Imperial City. Returning to Captain Veleth, with or without a note, will cause him to give a reward.
It turns out that a necromancer named Ildari had found a way to animate the General's body from (his first) death; this is learned from reading the journal left in the crypt underneath Fort Frostmoth.
Journal
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I've stumbled across a dark elf in combat for his life with strange, ashen beings at the Attius Farm outside of Raven Rock. He appears outnumbered, and he's requested I lend him a helping hand.
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I've stumbled across Captain Modyn Veleth fighting strange beings called "ash spawn" at the Attius Farm outside of Raven Rock. Captain Veleth was outnumbered, so I engaged his attackers and lent him a helping hand.
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Captain Veleth explained that the ash spawn have been attacking Raven Rock for some time now, and he's been trying to locate their source. His lack of manpower and reluctance to leave the town without a commander are keeping him from finding out more. As a result of our conversation, I've agreed to help him deal with this situation. I need to begin by searching the Attius Farm for clues that might lead me to the ash spawn's source.
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While assisting Captain Veleth at the Attius Farm, I've discovered a strange note. I should give this note to Captain Veleth in order to learn more about the origins of the ash spawn threat to Raven Rock.
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Captain Veleth was alarmed by the strange note I recovered from the ash spawn at the Attius Farm. The note mentions Fort Frostmoth, the ruins of an Imperial fort located southeast of Raven Rock. According to him, the fort's been abandoned ever since the eruption of Red Mountain. He's sent me to Fort Frostmoth to kill the author of the note, General Falx Carius, before the town falls prey to his threats.
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I've slain General Falx Carius in the ruins of Fort Frostmoth and put an end to any further ash spawn attacking Raven Rock. I should return to Captain Modyn Veleth and inform him of my victory.
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I've slain General Falx Carius in the ruins of Fort Frostmoth and put an end to any further ash spawn attacking Raven Rock. Captain Veleth was very pleased with my results, and awarded me a bounty in gold.
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Reward
Captain Veleth will give a leveled reward amount of gold. (Possibly the largest, except for Hail Sithis!)
- Level 1-29: 1500
- Level 30-39: 2500
- Level 40-49: 5000
- Level 50-59: 7500
- Level 60+: 10,000
Trivia
- Fort Frostmoth can be entered and cleared of ash spawn, and General Carius killed without having met Captain Veleth. When the Letter to Imperial City is found on Carius' body, the journal will instruct that it be taken to a guard in Raven Rock. When given to a guard, the guard will ask that it be taken to Veleth. When the letter is given to the captain, the quest will complete.
- If General Carius is killed while undetected, the Ash Spawn in the final room will not be triggered, unless attacked while in the ground.
- The three Ash Spawn may all be killed near each other so the ash they drop may all be on top of each other, leading to the possibility that you may not get the Declaration Of War. To fix this, when Veleth asks you to look for clues on the farm, go to straight to Fort Frostmoth and kill Carius. This will advance the quest past that point.
Bugs
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This section contains bugs related to March of the Dead. Before adding a bug to this list, consider the following:
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- The three ash spawn encountered at Old Attius Farm may be invincible; it will be impossible to damage them.
- To get around this, go to a previous save and go directly to Fort Frostmoth, bypassing Veleth and the ash spawn. Clear the fort, kill General Carius, take the letter from his corpse to a guard in Raven Rock and then to Captain Veleth. The quest will then finish.
- Sometimes, if the game lags, the Ash Spawn may become invincible. To fix this, avoid moving until the lag stops and the Ash Spawn will lose their immortality.
- PC Even if all three ash spawn are killed, next stage of the quest may not be triggered and therefore Veleth may not have the necessary dialogue.
- Sometimes after entering Fort Frostmoth and killing the ash spawn the key can not be found in the knapsack, this can be resolved by simply exiting and re-entering the fort.
- Template:360 The floor in the west building can have areas that vanish, allowing items and the player to fall through the floor. For items that fall through these holes they will appear again over the hole before dropping through it once more. This seems to repeat indefinitely. When the player drops through these holes they fall for a few seconds before landing back inside the entrance to the west building, unharmed.
- Template:Pc upon first encountering the ash spawns attacking Captain Veleth, it will cause CTD the second they spot the Dragonborn or any of his/her's followers.
| Dragonborn Quests | |
|---|---|
| Main Quests | |
| Black Book Quests | |
| Raven Rock Quests | |
| Skaal Village Quests | |
| Tel Mithryn Quests | |
| Other Quests | |