Taking on the Thieves Guild

Taking on the Thieves Guild is a quest.

Details

Property	Description
Giver	Dark Brotherhood
Membership	Member
Requirements	Rank 5+
Summary	Assassinate a Thieves Guild boss who moves with bodyguards, optionally buying his routine from his mistress.

Objectives

Use the location names in your quest journal. Follow map markers when they are available.

Step	Objective	Optional
1	Assassinate the target in the named town. He moves around a lot, and keeps bodyguards.	No
2	Pay the mistress the fifty gold she asked to sell out the target	Yes
3	Catch the target alone at the quest destination around six o'clock	Yes
4	Return to your quest giver for your guild fee	No

Choices

Decision	Choice
The target's mistress will sell him out for fifty gold.	Pay her price
The target's mistress will sell him out for fifty gold.	Refuse

Outcomes

Added gear requires a successful quest payment and a qualifying outcome. Quest mail alone does not count as payment.

Outcome	Gold multiplier	Gear choice
Fifty gold bought an hour of the target's time from his own mistress, and you spent it well.	100%	Yes
You would not buy the target from his mistress, and found him anyway. The Brotherhood respects a hunter.	125%	Yes; one reward tier higher
The target fell, bodyguards, spells and all. The Thieves Guild has one schemer fewer.	100%	Yes
Seven days passed, and the target still moves around the named town.	No added payment	No

Outcome	Change type	Target	Change
Fifty gold bought an hour of the target's time from his own mistress, and you spent it well.	Faction reputation	The Thieves Guild	-3
You would not buy the target from his mistress, and found him anyway. The Brotherhood respects a hunter.	Faction reputation	The Thieves Guild	-3
You would not buy the target from his mistress, and found him anyway. The Brotherhood respects a hunter.	Faction reputation	The Dark Brotherhood	+2
The target fell, bodyguards, spells and all. The Thieves Guild has one schemer fewer.	Faction reputation	The Thieves Guild	-3

With Questlines enabled, these outcomes control the added rewards. Gold multipliers apply only to gold the quest actually pays. A gear choice offers a weapon, armour and jewellery; keep one. See Quest rewards and loot for rarity, payment and online reward rules.

Possible quest foes

Foe	Group size
Thief	1
Sorcerer	1
Knight	1
Rogue	1

These are the script’s possible foe groups, including conditional encounters. They are not all guaranteed to appear together; repeated attacks and ordinary dungeon enemies can add more. Follow a foe’s reference for its combat rules before choosing weapons.

See Quest reference for offer requirements across quests.

Online, a failed outcome does not apply its faction-reputation penalties. Legal-standing changes and choices made during the quest are separate.

Sources (18)

Last edited 29 Oct 2026. View history · What links here.