Oblivion talk:A Rat Problem

Do you think it's worth noting that while other boons in the game; Night Mother's Blessing, Grey Prince's training, Watching the sparring outside the arena - are permanent boosts to your skills, the boon given is only a temporary one? The dialog in the game says that she will "provide training" for the skill, but the effect does not behave like normal training. — Unsigned comment by WillFa (talk • contribs)

I'm not sure what you mean that the boost given here is only a temporary one. Free Skill Boosts provides a more complete description of how all the free skill boosts in the game work. This boost works using the modpcskill command, just like most of the game's skill boosts (although unlike the first two examples that you mention in your list). If you have not installed the patch, the effect is somewhat useless (because you will need to train yourself the same amount to catch up before your skill will start advancing again), but that is a glitch that was fixed by the patch. --Nephele 22:45, 3 December 2006 (EST)

Removed from Page

Removed from the bugs list:

• There is a bug where Arvena will think you are tresspassing in her house, you can yield with her, but I successfully killed her without being found out.

For one thing, this needs to be taken out of first-person for consistency. Also, can anyone verify this bug (or did the poster perhaps break in when he shouldn't have)? DisplacedAvenger 13:43, 23 May 2007 (EDT)

I've looked in the Construction Set, and this is what I could come up with:

The moment the quest starts, the cell AnvilArvenaThelasHouse is made public. However, when you report to the Arvena that the problem has been solved (doesn't matter if you tell her that Quill-Weave was responsible or not) the public flag is removed from the cell. The player could at that moment (and is very likely to) still be in her house, and is trespassing. --Timenn 14:31, 23 May 2007 (EDT)

Mountain Lion Ghosts

The quote "If you are in a rush, you can kill the lions yourself before Pinarus arrives at the location - he takes a long time getting there." in the quest notes did not work for me, my attacks went straight through the lions and had no affect until Pinarus arrived, spoke his dialog and initiated combat._hellfire.— Unsigned comment by 121.210.65.197 (talk) on 6 March 2008

I have actually noticed a somewhat different glitch with attacking the lions before Pinarus arrives. In my case the attacks connected fine and the lions retaliated as normal, however running back down the road to Pinarus he ignored the lions and carried on walking up the road, running further back even the Anvil guard at the gates ignored the lions, although entering Anvil and exiting again did cause him to come to my defence.Rhomphaia 20:53, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

The glitch sounds interesting, but nevertheless, the "if you are in a rush"-note on the quest page is simply not true. You'll have to wait for Pinarus to arrive at the scene to get a quest update. He will not give it to you before he stands near the grassy area, whether you've killed the lions or not. I'll delete the note tomorrow, unless somebody can prove me wrong. Krusty 21:01, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

Actually, it still shaves some time off of the quest. If there's nothing for Pinarus to fight, he should give you both quest updates (finding the lions and defeating the lions) at the same time. It isn't much, and not really worth noting on the quest page, but the comment is at least partially correct (providing you don't encounter on of the glitches mentioned above). I'd still say clear it (especially given the issues above), but it's something to think about. -Dlarsh^{(Talk,Contribs)} 21:26, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

Hmm, seems like I was wrong about the quest update. It IS possible to run ahead, kill the lions and run back to meet Pinarus - he will then give you the quest update (stage 55). Which means the note is correct. Krusty 11:18, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Failed Quest Because 1/2 of the Rats Died?

As I understand it, in the first segment of the quest (where the four rats in her basement are under attack by the Starving Mountain Lion), so long as at least one rat survives, once you speak with Arvena Thelas the quest continues. Interestingly, I tried this quest, and 2 of the 4 rats died - when I spoke to Arvena Thelas afterwards, she gave the "my rats are all dead!" response, as if they all died. Has this occurred for anyone else? I was running the Unofficial Oblivion Patch. StoneFrog 15:23, 11 August 2009 (UTC)

Following

I finished this quest by taking out the lions before Pinarus could get there and then spoke to him to get the quest update and finished the quest but now everytime I get arrested he spawns outside the castle or the prison. I have tried this multiple times and it always happens. Is this a common glitch or only something strange?. BlackYoshi 16:50, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

I've never heard about such a glitch and just tested it (ran ahead of Pinarus and killed the lions) - and no Pinarus anywhere, no matter which prison I choose. What exactly are you doing to provoke the glitch? --Krusty 17:28, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

I think that I have found out why this happens. I finished the Desolate Mine quest first, none of the guild members died (I took the key and killed the goblins using 100% chameleon) and then finished the rat problem quest. So my guess is that somehow he is having the same bug caused by the first quest. I may need to verify it, and by the way the other guild members also spawn when I get out. BlackYoshi 18:33, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Confirmed. I tested to do it 3 times and this is what actually happens: Apparently if you talk to him while he is opening the door in the first floor (the one leading to the back door) when you leave the dialog he will instead go trough the front door and if he loses your sight he will stand still until he can detect you´re close. Now if you go ahead and kill the lions while HE IS IN ANVIL STANDING STILL he will be permanently stuck in his path to hunt the lions. You can complete the quest normally but he will now spawn outside a prison everytime you get arrested. You can confirm this if you go all the way back away from him and he will stand still, but if you go back to him he will start moving again. BlackYoshi 22:10, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Nice work! I'll give it another check to see if I can make it happen. Thanks for the testing. --Krusty 23:06, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, I can't make it happen. I can make him get stuck in Anvil like you described, but I can't get him to appear outside the jails. To get him stuck in the quest is actually pretty simple - you just have to stop following him (he will wait for you) and then fast-travel to the stables outside Anvil, then kill the lions. I guess that is the same "situation" as you described, just a bit simpler. But maybe you can check it out using that method? Just to make sure...? --Krusty 09:36, 19 October 2009 (UTC)

I tested it by fast traveling and no it did not happened. To get it work he needs to go out trough the front door not the back door, and then you need to run ahead from him to the gate not just stop following him. If you look at him when running to the gate you will see he is still walking but as soon as you get out of Anvil while he is inside he will then be stuck. I can write the steps about how I triggered it if you want. I play on the xbox, so I don´t know if that affects the glitch from happening. BlackYoshi 18:43, 19 October 2009 (UTC)

Nitpicking

When Thelas is talking about suspecting Quill Weave, she says 'in back' instead of the proper pronoucement, 'in the back'. Small issue, yes, but still.— Unsigned comment by 121.213.170.251 (talk) at 11:31 on 23 December 2009

We don't mind nitpicking. This issue is too small to get mention, however. ^Talk Wolok gro-Barok _{Contributions} 15:09, 23 December 2009 (UTC)

Talk to Azzan after the job is done

Do you have to talk to Azzan after the job is done or failed? Because after you finish speaking with Azzan about the contract, he says, "Go take care of the rats. Then talk to me." Does that mean you should actually speak to him? I'm curious.Nikofeelan 03:43, 9 January 2010 (UTC)

Nope, once you get the reward from Arvena Thelas the quest is completed, wheter you tell it was Quill Weave's fault or not. You don't need to return with Azzan to complete the quest. --^MC• S'drassa ^•T2M 04:00, 9 January 2010 (UTC)

meat

Although i wasnt the anon, why is the meat note there? the one quill-weave puts there. MikeTalk 02:03, 20 June 2010 (UTC)

Because Quill-Weave says herself that it is "Rotten Meat", yet it is no different than normal meat.--Arch-Mage Matt^Talk 02:05, 20 June 2010 (UTC)

Catching Quill-Weave

The page notes that Quill-Weave puts the meat outside the house at midnight. In multiple plays of this quest, I've always caught her placing the meat between 6 and 8 p.m. Why wait till midnight? - Wordmama 15:52, 1 July 2010 (UTC)

Well, the wait feature can do some weird stuff to the schedules, but it is a fact that Quill-Weave will wander around Anvil all day long and go into sneak mode at exactly 8pm - which means that her arrival near Arvena's house is determined by where she is at 8pm. Check out her page for a very detailed description of her behavior. --Krusty 16:02, 1 July 2010 (UTC)

So given that, shouldn't this page say that she places the meat between 8 and 9 p.m.? Wordmama 16:09, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

It is hard to say precisely when she will arrive behind the house. She walks randomly around Anvil until she goes into sneak mode at 8pm. As you know, sneaking NPCs are incredibly slow and if she is far away from Arvena's house (near the Chapel or something) at 8pm, it will take her a long time to reach her destination. If she is close, she will arrive much faster. Still, the page could use some tweaking based on her schedule. The fast-traveling and wait-features probably play a role in this as well, so if you're willing to do some testing feel free to change the quest page. --Krusty 16:16, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

Walls

How do the mountain lions get in her basement if the city has walls around it? Gabe896 05:37, 19 August 2010 (UTC)

Quill-weave is dead, Zombie Apocalypse

A bit before i played the 28 days mod i removed essential tags from all npcs.I am now trying to get thrugh the fighter's guild.However i am pretty sure quill-weave is dead because i cannot find her anywhere (Not even in chorrol).Here corpse has probably long since decayed.Can anyone please help me fix this proble, i am eager to get through the fighter's guild. 99.196.128.59 22:51, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

First, in the Console, try simply typing player.moveto BC69. If you don't see Quill-Weave wherever you end up, then try "BC69".resurrect 1, and if that still doesn't get her to show up, try "BC69".enable. – Robin Hood↝talk 23:19, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

You might also want to use setessential "BC69" 1 (or "BC69" setessential 1 or "BC69" setessential or whatever the actual code is).--TAO^Huh? 23:56, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

Ah!Excellent.Got it working again thanks.Perhaps i should turn essentials back on the next time I add 100 zombies to each city. 75.104.96.55 01:43, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

That bug

That Bug it mentions about talking to her firs and her breaking and never returning to her house, what does it look like? Because right now she is stuck on the bench sitting backwards and will not talk to me. Any thoughts?--Zefiewings 02:03, 1 April 2011 (UTC)

Never mind. The attacking thing worked, but I didn't want the bounty so I reloaded to my last save (looking right at her while stuck, not before the glitch) in some vain hope she would get up, and low and behold she proceeded to walk away. I don't know what caused it, but at least there's the fix. --Zefiewings 03:27, 1 April 2011 (UTC)

Failed at the Start

After seeing my friend start A Rat Problem I thought the problem was the rats. So, before joining the fighters guild I decided kill all the rats (thinking they were the problem) so I could help Arvena Thelas early. Later I found out the rats weren't the problem. Ya, BIG MISTAKE. I still haven't joined the fighters guild. Do the rats respawn? And if they don't will I fail the contract second I start it? Argonian8 9:49PM April, 13/2011

Just save your game, talk to Azzan and join the Fighters Guild - then you will find out. --Krusty 07:50, 14 April 2011 (UTC)

It actually fails the second you talk to Arvena Thelas. It's not good failing my first contract. Argonian8 9:28PM April, 19/2011

Why do creatures in the basement have common level souls?

While 4 supplementary lions fit in petty gems (character is level 2), the lion from the basement charges a common level gem. Is there any in-game explanation to this, or is it simply a yet another bug? Elevens 17:19, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

All lions have common souls. There is no "explanation" for this. I don't know why any of the lions fit inside a petty soul gem, but I'm guessing that you got mixed up. Legoless 17:23, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

"All lions have common souls." Right, that's why I decided to ask about it here.

"Got mixed up"="got confused"? If so, then no, because I've rechecked several times. Rats and the lion are charging Common soulgems while four other lions are going into Petty gems. Though they somehow manage to take up two Petty-gems at once. Maybe it's caused by a patch which changes the appearance of the inventory and which messes with displaying of right things somehow — I'll try to find that add-on, disable it and try soultrapping once more. Elevens 18:32, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

If you're running a modded game, then that's probably the reason. No soul fills up two gems, so unless you "got confused" over the rats and the lions there's no other explanation for you here (unless someone wants to test it out). Legoless 21:14, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

Well, either way I've recheked everything before sending the previous message, and tried turning with disabled mod now (it was the one called "Wz Inventory" — neat thing, by the way). I have in inventory Petty(10), Lesser(2), Common(8), Grand (1) gems and Azura's Star. No matter in what manner I capture the souls (enchanted bow\manual casting) the result is always the same: if there are Petty gems in inventory, they will be occupied, if not, the higher gems will be used, but there current level will be showing Petty, and there price will be lowered. And the same matter with the basement souls: they are fully working Commons, which are able to recharge 800pts. enchantment. Elevens 22:18, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

(←) Check in the CS. The rats and lions in the basement have Common Souls. The lions outside Anvil have petty souls. Thats how they are made. They are special versions made specifically for this quest. --DKong27 ^{Talk Cont} 01:12, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

Then someone might want to change that, all the starving lions stats on the wiki say they are common souls. Id do it but it appears that some of them are common and some are petty, so Ill trust someone else to fix the differences.--Catmaniac66 01:16, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

I changed the Lions to Petty and the Rats in the basement to Common. --DKong27 ^{Talk Cont} 01:21, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

«They are special versions made specifically for this quest.»

I think that still makes little sense and it's more probable to be a bug. I can understand why, perhaps, rats are so spiritual – they may be raised wise and so on – but if the lions outside are on the level of Petties, then so must be the two lions that sneaked into the basement, because essentially they are the same.

I'd also like to inquire about divarication too: has that occur on someone else? Elevens 04:57, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

Or the developers just made the ones outside petty... I dont see any possible way a bug could change their soul levels. The developers just made them this way. It doesnt need anything else besides just stating the obvious and telling the difference. Thanks for leading us to discover this little quirk though!--Catmaniac66 05:39, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

Strange that the CS stats were transcribed incorrectly. Hopefully there aren't any more soul mistakes on the wiki. As for it being a bug, I think "oversight" might be a better word, if you consider differing souls to be a substantial fault. Legoless 11:20, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

respawning

do the rats in the basement respawn after killed? — Unsigned comment by Crazynate1203 (talk • contribs) on 15 June 2011

No. mxk101^Talk 10:06, 15 June 2011 (UTC)

Mountain Lion Bug

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When you fight the mountain lions in the gold coast, sometimes one may become trapped in a rock. He can attack you and Pinarus, but not the other way around. You must reload for this makes the quest impossible to finish. Confirmation anyone? It happened to me and I was wondering if it should be added to the bug page. Obliviongamer 01:35, 1 July 2011 (UTC)

Doesn't sound like something to reoccur that often... Elliot (talk) 02:28, 1 July 2011 (UTC)

Dead rats

Is there like a bug pr something? I started the quest but right the first time i went to speak with the woman she told me her rats where already dead and i just arrived for the very first time at her house on that save file.

Quill-Weave spawning

On rare occasions Quill-Weave spawns in an entirely different town. I have personally been forced to fast travel to Skingrad and follow her to the house. A pain,but good for your sneak. just be prepared to fight a lot of enemies on the journey. — Unsigned comment by 99.74.45.21 (talk) on 26 April 2012

Azzan quest

As a Google search for "Azzan quest will not start" shows aAzzan will speak of the quest but not actually give it to the player. Since the fix for it is the same as another bug "setstage FGC01Rats 01", it has skipped under the radar Anarchangel (talk)

Pacifist method

I'm attempting a pacifist run through Oblivion, and was able to successfully complete this quest without killing anything.

There's two ways to complete this quest as a pacifist: first, if you allow the first basement mountain lion to kill all of the rats, you can complete the quest right then and there. Alternately, you can get the rats to kill the mountain lion for you! It appears the rats will only actively attack the lion if it's attacking them, so to get the others to help fight, you can use a Command spell. I was able to take care of both basement lions through this method (plus a little buffing of the rats and kiting the lion).

The mountain lions outside Anvil can be easily disposed of by letting Pinarus take care of them. Alynnidalar (talk) 19:09, 16 September 2017 (UTC)