Gaining Citizenship In Daggerfall: A Step-By-Step Guide

In The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, a player's reputation is the most important influencing factor in the game. Your reputation determines which people will talk to you, which quests you can get from a faction, influence goods and services transactions, and if your skills are high enough, whether you can receive a promotion within the factions you have joined.

Your reputation can only be affected by doing quests. The outcome of a quest determines the gain or loss of reputation with the faction you got the quest from, as well as the effects on reputation with other factions. Completing quests for nobles, for example, will also get you the same reputation with their associated kingdom.

Your regional reputation also ranges from -100 to +100, however, it is only visible to you in 13 ranks. When your regional reputation drops beyond a certain level, town guards will appear shortly after you enter a settlement and try to arrest you.

There are two ways to fix this: wait until your reputation has returned to zero, or restore your regional reputation by doing quests. There are three quests in the game that can be used to improve regional reputation: The Escort, Smuggling, and A Mix-Up.

Choose a custom class with high personality and focus on mercantile, etiquette, and streetwise skills

To become a lawful citizen of Daggerfall, it is important to understand the legal basics of the land. While there are universal laws across Tamriel, each province or principality may have its own unique laws. As a citizen of the Empire, it is your responsibility to be aware of and abide by these laws.

To improve your chances of becoming a lawful citizen, creating a custom class with high personality traits and focusing on Mercantile, Etiquette, and Streetwise skills is a strategic approach. Here are some tips to guide you through this process:

• Choose a Custom Class: When creating your character, opt for a custom class option. This will allow you to allocate your primary and major skills according to your preferences, including Mercantile, Etiquette, and Streetwise.
• Maximize Personality Traits: Aim for high personality traits such as charm, politeness, and deference. These traits will positively impact your interactions with NPCs and increase your chances of gaining a positive reputation.
• Focus on Mercantile: The Mercantile skill is crucial for negotiating with merchants and getting the best prices when buying or selling items. Improving this skill will help you make profitable deals and establish yourself as a lawful trader.
• Develop Etiquette: Etiquette is essential for polite and respectful conversations with nobles, merchants, and other NPCs. It can also help pacify certain creatures, such as Vampires and Liches, making them non-hostile.
• Master Streetwise: Streetwise is the skill of being blunt, colloquial, and informal in conversations. It is particularly useful when interacting with thieves or shadowy individuals.
• Increase Your Primary Skills: Remember that your main level progress is based on your chosen primary skills. Therefore, focus on levelling up Mercantile, Etiquette, and Streetwise by interacting with various NPCs and using the appropriate conversation tones.
• Explore Quest Options: Look for quests that involve interacting with people and finding specific individuals in cities. These quests will help you level up your chosen skills and improve your reputation.
• Trade Between Cities: Consider trading items between cities to make a profit. However, keep in mind that trading can be challenging, and you may need to invest in mods or join certain guilds to enhance your trading capabilities.
• Avoid Criminal Activities: Stay on the right side of the law by avoiding criminal activities such as breaking and entering, trespassing, theft, and conspiracy. Committing crimes will lower your reputation and make it more difficult to become a lawful citizen.

Improve your reputation by doing quests

Improving your reputation by doing quests is a surefire way to become a lawful citizen in Daggerfall. The game's reputation system ranges from -100 to 100, with most factions and people starting at zero.

Your reputation can only be affected by doing quests. The outcome of a quest determines the gain or loss of reputation with the faction you got the quest from, as well as the effects on reputation with other factions. Many factions have allies and enemies, so gaining influence with one faction will also gain influence with its allies and lose influence with its enemies.

Most quests give 5 reputation points to the faction if completed successfully, while some provide 10 points. The reputation gain with the faction's associates and allies is half the reputation you get with the quest-giving faction. For example, if you get 5 reputation points with the faction, you gain 2 points with its associates and allies. A failed quest results in a loss of 2 reputation points with the faction and 1 point with its associates and allies.

Temples are an exception to the rule; you can increase your reputation with a specific deity by giving large donations. A donation of 2000 gold will increase your reputation by one point, 4000 gold gains two points of reputation, and so on. However, this only works for the deity of the Temple, and your reputation with the Temple itself and its associates will not change.

To advance in rank within a faction and gain more privileges, you must do quests to improve your standing. For example, to advance in rank in the Mages Guild, you will need to do quests. Some of these quests revolve around traveling to cities and will be simple, but others will require you to go into dungeons.

There are also a few quests that can help improve your legal reputation, which is separate from your guild reputation. One such quest is "The Escort," where you can improve your regional reputation by turning your employer over to the town guards. Another is "A Mix-Up," which provides a bonus of 110 reputation points if completed successfully. However, be cautious as accepting this quest will automatically reduce your regional reputation by 200 points.

Avoid dungeons and focus on talking to people and finding specific people in a city

If you want to become a lawful citizen in Daggerfall and avoid dungeons, you should focus on improving your reputation and building relationships with key factions and individuals. Here are some strategies to achieve that:

• Increase your reputation with factions: Completing quests for various factions can improve your reputation and standing with them. Your reputation can range from -100 to 100, and it influences which people will talk to you and the quests you can undertake. Factions have allies and enemies, so gaining influence with one faction may also affect your reputation with their associates.
• Join guilds: Joining guilds like the Mages Guild, Fighters Guild, or Knightly Orders can provide benefits and increase your reputation. However, be mindful that failing quests for a guild can result in a reputation loss.
• Improve specific skills: Focus on developing skills like Streetwise, Etiquette, Mercantile, and Running. These skills will help you navigate conversations, improve your movement, and enhance your ability to trade and interact with NPCs.
• Donate to temples: Temples are an exception to the rule that quests are required to improve reputation. Donating gold to a specific deity in a temple will increase your reputation with that deity. However, it won't affect your reputation with the temple itself or its associates.
• Avoid crimes: Committing crimes will negatively impact your reputation and legal status. Try to avoid breaking and entering, trespassing, theft, and causing harm to others. These actions can lead to fines, incarceration, or even death penalties.
• Seek merchant and innkeeper quests: Completing quests for merchants and innkeepers can increase your legal reputation. These quests may involve tasks like escorting a merchant or resolving disputes. However, be cautious, as your choices in these quests can affect your reputation with different factions.
• Utilize conversation options: When interacting with NPCs, choose conversation options that align with your goal of becoming a lawful citizen. Avoid aggressive or unlawful options that may lower your reputation.
• Explore character creation options: During character creation, choose attributes and skills that support your lawful citizen roleplay. Consider selecting high Personality and the necessary skills to interact with people and navigate cities effectively.

Increase your regional reputation by doing quests

To increase your regional reputation by doing quests, you must first understand how the reputation system works in Daggerfall. Your reputation can range from -100 to 100 and is unique to each region within the Iliac Bay. While it is unclear how your regional reputation affects the way you are treated by the regional populace, it does have an influence on the justice system of the region. When your regional reputation drops beyond a certain level, town guards will appear shortly after you enter a settlement and attempt to arrest you. If you are caught, you will be accused of high treason, which will result in a severe punishment if the court finds you guilty.

• Complete quests for merchants or innkeepers: Your regional reputation is lowered when you commit crimes and increased when you do merchant or innkeeper quests, or when you go to jail.
• Be mindful of quest choices: Some quests may interfere with the affairs of certain factions. For example, quests for nobles often interfere with the Thieves Guild. If you complete a quest for a noble successfully, you will likely lose a considerable amount of reputation with the Thieves Guild and its associated factions.
• Keep track of your reputation: While you cannot check your reputation with different factions inside the game, you can use external tools or mods to track your reputation. This will help you make informed decisions about which quests to accept and manage your reputation effectively.
• Join a knightly order: Completing quests for a knightly order can also improve your regional reputation. However, keep in mind that your reputation gain or loss with the knightly order will also influence your reputation with its associated factions.
• Be selective with quests: If your goal is to increase your regional reputation, be mindful of the quests you choose to accept. Some quests may lower your regional reputation, so read the quest descriptions carefully before accepting them.
• Utilize mods: Mods can provide additional options to increase your regional reputation. For example, there are mods that tie your regional reputation to your average reputation across different factions in the region, gradually moving your legal reputation towards that sum over time.

Join a guild

Joining a guild is one of the best ways to improve your reputation and gain lawful citizenship in Daggerfall. There are six categories of factions you can join, each with its own unique benefits, quests, and requirements.

Fighters Guild

The Fighters Guild is the Imperial mercenaries' guild. To advance in rank within the Fighters Guild, you must increase your reputation with the guild and improve your skills in areas such as long blades and giantish. It takes time to advance in rank, and you can only advance once per month.

Mages Guild

The Mages Guild is the official centre of magical study in Tamriel. To join, you must demonstrate a fair aptitude in at least one school of magic. The guild offers many benefits to members, including spell merchants, training, and teleportation services.

Thieves Guild

The Thieves Guild is an official organised collection of burglars, prostitutes, and other thugs. To join, you must pick ten or more pockets successfully or break into a store without an Open spell. The guild offers benefits such as the ability to bribe judges and access to fences (sell magical items).

Dark Brotherhood

The Dark Brotherhood is the assassins' guild led by the Night Mother.

Temples

Temples are devoted to the Eight Divines of Tamriel. You can only be a member of one temple faction at a time.

Knightly Orders

Knightly Orders are valiant knights who serve a lord. You can only be a member of one Knightly Order at a time.

Joining a guild not only improves your reputation but also grants access to special benefits, quests, and harder challenges. It is an essential step towards becoming a lawful citizen of Daggerfall.

Frequently asked questions