How does one go about doing his mission to fnd the helm? So far, the option has not come up for me [done several smaller quests for Solitude since arriving].

Give him a gold several times - have to wait 24 in game hours to repeat - may be only takes once, can't remember.

Another thing is you can only have one favor of a certain type active at one time. His is classified as 'Item Retrieval (Cave)'. Can't start it if you have a favor for Oengul War-Anvil, Roggi, Runil, or Frida active. If you have one of those, finish it and try him again.

You can, however, have an 'Item Retrieval (Cave)' and an 'Item Retrieval (Bandit Camp)' active at the same time.

Thanks for the tip(s). I will give him some more mead money then

ask him if he was really a soldier once and actually speak to him.

he tells you he lost his helm in a terrible cave blah blah.

when you're done come back and let us know what you think of the terrible cave.

I've never done this quest nor heard of it. Thanks all.

Several attempts to give him money has still not yielded his quest options... yet. I'm going to keep trying. Although, I should point out the guy in the Winking Skeever who wants you to take the rum to Falk Firebeard also fails to bring up this quest as an option.

I did this on a new toon today - my khajiit as it happens. I didn't do anything but walk up to him and spacebar - the option to discuss his story ("What's your story, old man?") was there first thing. Didn't even have to give him a gold, though I did after getting the quest.

I've never had trouble with this. I walk up and talk to him and it's in the menu right off... and I have had other quest givers glitch. I'm not sure how you prompt him if he's not willing to talk about his time in service to his King. Maybe poke his other eye out?

I'm kidding... sorta.

There is a possibility it is not showing up because I have already been to the cave / lair where his helmet is. I have trekked across much of the North West of the map...

Poking his eye out seems like an idea... to be considered. Ahem.

It doesn't matter if you have already previously been to the location as all quest ' should ' reset that location and bandits etc should respawn. Unless you have already cleared the cave AND taken the helmet without knowing its a future quest item, and then sold it.

AFAIK, it's not the same cave every game (seems like I've had 3 different caves across my toons who've done this) and I would doubt the helm is there at all if you haven't picked up the quest.... Don't know that for positive of course, but that's how various other things do work.

I haven't picked it up [I am 100 percent positive of this]. There are two quests in Solitude that won't appear for me (the other one is the guy who wants me to deliver some rum to Falk in the Blue Palace). So far, neither one will speak to me {but Noster let's me give him money}

I know what youre saying but its not 100% that quest items only appear once the quest is triggered. Ive picked up various things like journals, logbooks etc only to find hours later when i do happen to run into the person accidently who activates the quest to retrieve an item, i have the speech option ' i have already found the item '.

I also picked up a silver mold and had the thing in my inventory for what seemed a lifetime. I tried to drop the thing and wasn't able to as it was a quest item. Hmmmm actually i have never tried but can/do you have the option to sell quest items that won't allow you to drop them ??

AFAIK those items do not even appear in your inventory during buying/selling - just to keep that from happening. And I did this quest in reverse order: found the helm and was stuck carrying it around until I checked the wiki to see who wanted it, so yes it can appear without the quest having been already assigned.

I loaded a save on a toon who'd never done the quest this afternoon. I went to the three caves I know of that Noster can send you to: Broken Oar Grotto, Steepfall Burrow, Shadowgreen Cavern.

His helmet wasn't in any of them. I went back into Solitude, picked up the quest from him (Steepfall Burrow) and the helmet was there when I went back, even though the cave was cleared.