Key Takeaways
- Skyrim players are theorising ways of doing Molag Bal’s quest without doing anything morally reprehensible.
- There’s an exploit you can perform to save Tyranus’ life during House of Horrors.
- You may require a level of cognitive dissonance.
Fans of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim are sure to be familiar with the memorable House of Horrors quest. What begins as a leisurely stroll through Markarth has the potential to end in a bloody murder spree. But, is there a better way?
House of Horrors is a quest undertaken for the Daedric prince Molag Bal, but if you’ve never played Skyrim, you could get unknowingly roped into the prince’s schemes. House of Horrors begins when you agree to help Tyranus, a Vigilant of Stendarr who asks for your assistance in checking out an abandoned house he suspects to be haunted. Upon entry into the house, the doors are locked and the Dragonborn is forced to slay Tyranus to proceed.
Moral Dilemma
If you’re roleplaying a moral character, then this could be a problem, as killing an innocent man is generally not a good thing. However, in a Reddit thread bemoaning the lack of choices offered by the 13-year-old game, a couple of commenters have theorised solutions to the moral dilemma posed by the House of Horrors quest.
You can always avoid the quest entirely, but that conflicts with the completionist spirit that’s present in so many gamers. Perhaps a better solution is the one offered by EkeMyWay in the comments, who says “I like to talk to the Vigilant of Stendarr outside the house. I agree to help him. Then I blast him with a fury spell, then I hit him with a pacify spell. It fails the quest, the house stays locked, and the Vigilant goes to the inn and drinks for the rest of the game.
This is the best possible resolution because not only are you not bloodying your hands, but you’re also saving Tyranus’ life. He does go on to become an alcoholic regular of the Silver Blood Inn, but you couldn’t have predicted that he’d turn away from Stendarr. If you do this route, your conscience will be clear.
Thank_You_Aziz has a solution for those who don’t want to be evil but still want Molag Bal’s creepy mace. You just need to psychologically frame the quest in a way where none of the actions you take. Tyranus attacks you to save his own life, so really, killing him is self-defence and not murder. The unfortunate soul that you kill thrice is a follower of Boethiah, an objectionable deity, so brutally torturing him is fair game. Strafe1349 adds that you don’t have to use the Rusty Mace to kill Logrolf, you can ‘make it quick’ by one-shotting him. It’s good to know that if you put your mind to it, you can justify any action.
One of the all-time greats, The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim redefined the concept of the Western RPG. With countless awards under its belt and releases on almost every platform imaginable, you’ll find yourself engrossed in a colossal open world in your role as the Dragonborn. You must face your destiny and save the land from a formidable foe.