Oblivion:Unfriendly Competition

A newly opened shop run by Thoronir is selling goods below cost, causing big problems for the other merchants. Quest Giver: Jensine, Tertullian Verus, Claudette Perrick or Ogier Georick in the Market District Location(s): Imperial City, Market District, Trentius Family Mausoleum Reward: Weatherward Circlet and level-dependent amount of gold ID: MS29

The Trentius Family Mausoleum, where the final confrontation takes place

Quick Walkthrough

1. Learn of the unfriendly competition.
2. Speak with Thoronir and learn about his inventory. When he leaves, follow him.
3. Eavesdrop on the conversation then follow Agarmir to his house.
4. Find the Macabre Manifest in the basement and confront Thoronir with it.
5. Head to the Mausoleum and deal with "the competition."
6. Go back to Thoronir with final proof of Agarmir's deeds and collect your reward, then visit Jensine for an additional amount of gold.

Detailed Walkthrough

The Merchants Problem

At the Imperial City Market District speak to some of the merchants. Upon speaking to the merchants (either Tertullian Verus, Claudette Perrick or Ogier Georick) you will learn of a new merchant in town, Thoronir, whom the other merchants don't trust. They will tell you to speak to Jensine for more information.

Unfriendly Competition

Speak with Jensine at Jensine's "Good as New" Merchandise in the Imperial City Market District. You will learn that Thoronir is selling goods with an incredibly low markup price compared to other merchants, essentially committing price dumping. Volunteer to help the Society of Concerned Merchants deal with 'Unfriendly Competition' from Thoronir at The Copious Coinpurse.

Eavesdrop on a Conversation

Speak with Thoronir in the Copious Coinpurse and learn about his inventory. Wait outside the shop until after 8pm, and then follow Thoronir. He will either wander the city or go drinking in The Merchants Inn for several hours - before eventually making his way to a small garden in the Market District around midnight. Agarmir slips into the garden soon after. Sneak close enough, and you will enter a cutscene. When they have finished talking, follow Agarmir back to his house in the Talos Plaza District.

Agarmir's House

Agarmir will lead you to his house, but you will need to wait until he leaves it again to enter and find evidence. He leaves at different times depending upon the day of the week: on the weekend (Loredas and Sundas) he is out from 8am until 8pm; from Morndas to Turdas he leaves just after 4pm and returns after 8pm, and on Fredas he leaves at 5pm for two hours. Once he leaves, pick the lock or pickpocket Agarmir for the key to gain entry to the house. There is another lock to pick to get into the basement, so make sure you have plenty of lockpicks. Take the book called "Macabre Manifest". It will be on a table in the basement surrounded by candles. Go back to Thoronir and confront him with the book. He'll claim he didn't know the goods coming from Agarmir were looted from corpses (hence their cheap price) and want to make amends and make sure Agarmir gets caught, and will suggest you go to the Trentius' Family Mausoleum to gather more evidence.

Mausoleum

Evidence of graverobbing

Go to the Trentius Family Mausoleum, which is among the gravestones in Green Emperor Way, and confront Agarmir. Be very careful not to attack Agarmir or his hireling, Rolgarel, until they have first attacked you. Sneak attacks (or any other crimes) will lead to you getting a bounty, and are very likely to trigger a bug that makes it impossible to finish this quest.

Once you have killed them both, collect any loot in the mausoleum. To get out of the mausoleum you need to get the Trentius Mausoleum Key from Agarmir's corpse. To complete the quest, you need to be sure to take the muddy shovel as evidence. In addition, there is some valuable loot (that can be more worthwhile than the quest's official rewards). Agarmir carries a leveled, unique, enchanted sword, Debaser, which drains Willpower and Endurance. Hidden behind the grave of Calliben Trentius is Calliben's Grim Retort, one of the few magic items with guaranteed locations. To reach the mace, jump nearby and grab it as you fall back to the ground, or use the weak fireball or similar spell to shift it into a position where you can reach it.

Reward

Return to Thoronir with the evidence and he will tell you he has made amends and joined the Society. He will also reward you with the Weatherward Circlet, a leveled ring with Resist Frost and Resist Fire enchantments. Lastly, return to Jensine for a leveled gold reward. When talking to Jensine, you need to choose the topic "Thoronir"; this topic can often be too far down Jensine's list of topics to be apparent when you first start talking to Jensine. Be sure to use the scroll bar to scroll through Jensine's complete list of available topics.

Level	Reward
1-4	100 Gold
5-9	200 Gold
10-14	300 Gold
15-19	400 Gold
20-24	500 Gold
25+	600 Gold

Notes

• If you're having trouble activating the "Follow Thoronir" part of the quest, keep in mind that it doesn't matter too much if you're seen. Simply run around the small courtyard and eventually your character will lock in place and Agarmir and Thoronir's conversation will begin. The activation spot appears to be centered around a pair of small bushes nearby.
• It isn't necessary to follow Thoronir all over. You can shortcut by waiting and being at the meeting point of the courtyard around midnight.
• If you pickpocket Agarmir's Debaser before going to the Mausoleum, he will not have it during the confrontation in the Mausoleum. He may acquire another weapon before the fight; otherwise, he will either attack you with his fists or grab Calliben's Grim Retort when the fight starts (unless you can take it first, in which case he will resort to Hand to Hand combat).
• Successfully casting a high-level Frenzy spell on Rolgarel before Agarmir initiates conversation with you will result in the two fighting each other. Thoronir's and Jensine's rewards can then be collected as usual, and the quest completed, without issue. If he's still alive, Rolgarel will remain in the Trentius Family Mausoleum indefinitely as a non-hostile NPC.
• You don't actually have to follow Agarmir. Simply walking near his house will trigger the quest update.
• Despite Thoronir saying he gave all of his old inventory to the temple, he will have the exact same items for sale as before.
• In the Construction Set, the script attached to Agarmir's Shovel has a note that says "sets stage on sword pickup", hinting that originally picking up Agarmir's Debaser would progress the quest instead of the shovel.

Bugs

• It is possible to kill Agarmir before starting the quest, as he is not marked as essential. This will make Thoronir wait in the garden for nothing, because nobody is going to show up. You'll need to fix it using the console or load a previous game.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch fixes this bug.
• Sometimes when you slay Agarmir, it reads One of the characters needed for this quest has died. If you then take the shovel, you will be unable to drop it as it is flagged as a quest item.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch, version 1.1.0, fixes this bug.
• Sometimes, when you follow Thoronir to the garden, the conversation never actually starts between him and Agarmir. Even if you go up and talk to them, it may not update your quest. In this case, you will have to wait until the next day and follow Thoronir again before it will work.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch, version 2.2.0, fixes this bug.
• If you take the shovel before killing Agarmir, you will need to drop it and pick it up again to get the quest update.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch fixes this bug.
• If you have completed the Dagon Shrine quest, make sure that any hostile Mythic Dawn agents in the city have been killed before following Thoronir to his meeting. These agents may occasionally attack nearby guards during the conversation, causing Thoronir to run off to help fight them. Since the quest never updates properly, you will be stuck in cinematic mode and be unable to move, leaving you little choice but to reload from an earlier save.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch fixes this bug.
• If you try to sneak attack Agarmir or Rolgarel in Trentius' Mausoleum, it will count as an assault and a guard will appear in the tomb to arrest you. After the guard has taken you away (whether to pay the fine or to serve jail time), you will never be able to re-enter the mausoleum. The mausoleum is locked and the only key to open the door is carried by Agarmir, who is inside. Sometimes, however, Agarmir may appear outside the jail upon your release. You can then attack him as usual and finish the quest.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch fixes this bug.
  • This can be fixed by using the console. Click on the front door to the Mausoleum, then type unlock.
  • If you can cast a strong Charm spell on the guard when he first appears, he will "pay the fine" for you, and you will remain inside the crypt. If you talk to Agarmir before the guard arrives he will become hostile, and the guard will help you fight him.
• If you enter the mausoleum and then exit before the quest updates (I've located Agarmir inside the...), upon re-entering the mausoleum Agarmir will give his talk then attack as normal. However, he will be marked essential, can be knocked unconscious and become non hostile upon waking up and the quest never progresses. Your attack on him will be considered an assault and a guard will eventually turn up and arrest you. The quest cannot be completed and will continue as sneak attacking Agarmir as mentioned in the bug above.
  • The Unofficial Oblivion Patch fixes this bug.
• For unknown reasons Agarmir is/becomes essential even if you go forward talking and then fighting. He'll become unconscious and not hostile anymore. ^?
  • This can be fixed by using the console. Before entering the tomb type SetEssential 0001fc54 0.

Journal Entries

Unfriendly Competition (MS29)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
5		One of the shopkeepers in the Market District of the Imperial City has informed me of another shop that opened recently. Apparently, this shop's prices are so low it's undercutting all of their sales. They're collectively looking for someone to hire to investigate, as they suspect foul play. I was told to go speak with Jensine at her "Good as New" Merchandise store for more information.
10		A group calling themselves the Society of Concerned Merchants has hired me to investigate a new store that's just opened up in the Market District with ridiculously low prices. They suspect the owner must be doing something illegal. I should pay a visit to Thoronir at The Copious Coinpurse.
20		Speaking to Thoronir hasn't revealed any information. Since he's obviously hiding something, I should keep an eye on him, and watch what he does after his shop closes.
40		I've observed a meeting between Thoronir and a mysterious man named Agarmir. Looks like my new target is Agarmir. I should follow him and see where he goes.
50		I've discovered that Agarmir has a house in Talos Plaza. I should go inside when he's not around and investigate.
60		I've found my way into Agarmir's basement. The place consists of an odd assortment of clothing and trinkets. Most disturbing is the dirty shovel and mud-encrusted boots tucked into the corner and the bits of ground bonemeal strewn about. I suspect Agarmir's stock he sells to Thoronir is taken from the recently dead. I should continue to search carefully for more solid evidence into this grisly accusation.
65		I've found a manifest that seems to detail names of the recently deceased, what they were buried with and their locations in Cyrodiil. I should take this macabre manifest and confront Thoronir, as he may not realize where his merchandise is coming from.
70		After showing the macabre manifest to Thoronir, he agreed to stop meeting Agarmir. He also told me that Agarmir said he had "something important" to do this very day. I think I need to check out the local graveyard, as the last name on the list was here in the Imperial City. I should return with one more piece of evidence of Agarmir's crime to confirm the manifest's contents.
80		I've noticed that the door to the Trentius Family Mausoleum has been unsealed. This must be Agarmir's doing. I should proceed inside.
82		I've located Agarmir inside the Trentius Family Mausoleum. It appears as though he's attempting to desecrate another grave along with someone else I don't recognize. I need to convince him to stop this heinous act.
90		Agarmir has been slain. Since the penalty for grave robbing is death, it somehow seems as though justice has been done. I should search the gravesite for anything potentially incriminating.
100		I've acquired Agarmir's shovel still damp with the fresh earth of the open grave. This is the final bit of proof I need of Agarmir's crimes. I should bring it back to Thoronir.
110		Thoronir has agreed to donate all his ill-gotten merchandise to the local temple and begin selling legitimate merchandise. He also rewarded me with a small ring as a token of his esteem. I should now bring the macabre manifest and Agarmir's shovel to Jensine for my reward.
150	Yes	Jensine awarded me a bounty of gold on behalf of the Society of Concerned Merchants for restoring the economy of the Market District to its rightful place.
200	Yes	One of the characters needed to complete this quest has died.

Notes

• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in random order.
• If an entry is marked as "Finishes Quest" it means the quest disappears from the Active Quest list, but you may still receive new entries for that quest.
• It is possible to use the console to advance through the quest by entering setstage MS29 stage, where stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages. See SetStage for more information.