Hello

I have just got the game and started to play and explore. However, IIRC, when I have played Morrowind in the early days it was possible to compromise future quests or tasks etc by exploring too much and or killing certain characters. Also when you explore it could be possible to find items that you sell on not realising that they could be part of a future quest and you can no longer remember the name of the trader or where you dropped it etc. IIRC in Oblivion I would sell certain things to one vendor and when I went back for them they had gone.

I have started to clear certain areas and then stumbled upon a certain key (vague on purpose) and that made me wonder if the above points could be valid...?

I like to do my own thing in these types of game without bothering too much about the MQ until I'm ready to continue with it and so I'm curious to know if wandering around the map is likely to cause any issues..?

Any ideas..?

Thanks

I think it's unlikely that you will break anything by exploring early on, I think skyrim was designed to be played that way & radiant quest thingy looks after that particular dynamic to ensure that the quests cannot be broken in such a manner.

In my option at least, I could well be wrong.

Keep exploring!

you better stay away from dungeons, can happen that you'll find quest items before asked and the related quest won't trigger, happened on my first playthrough with hijalti's sword.

Just one advice, when you get to the end of a dungeon and is looking at the boss chest. Take a good look at what you are picking. If there is a named item, chances are that picking those items without getting their quests will prevent you from taking the quest.

There is only about 6-7 of such quest items in the whole game, but you might just want to pause your game and Google for the item in question.

Thanks for the advice

As noted I was concerned to find a certain key and I thought that this might prevent a certain quest from triggering. I didn't really want to Google on certain items, although it is a good idea, as then I get to find out too much about the quest etc itself. But that might be the only way to do it.

I suppose it would not be possible to kill certain MQ characters through ignorance..? But I have come across several people in the wilderness with names, albeit they are now notches on my trusty bow.! But I then realise that they too could be part of a quest of function.

Perhaps exploring is one thing but clearing out camps, caves, dungeons etc could have certain consequences for quests etc, if that objective hasn't been given.

I think that I am just remembering both Morrowind and Oblivion (IIRC) could have some issues if you strayed too far on your own.

yes, it happened. refrain from exploring too much. honestly.

It's nowhere near as bad as it was in previous games...in most cases, and I stress most because sometimes it does go sour, the worst that happens is that you pick up the quest item and can't get rid of it out of your inventory until you stumble across the quest later. I've had five or six of those in 600 hours on one character...however, that said, I do have one item that the quest didn't trigger on and it just won't go away *facepalm.

As a bit of extra advice...at 614 hours on this character, I probably still have 6 or so places that I haven't been in or to, and still have around a dozen major quests active and about the same minor quests, but I pretty much cleaned everything else out at some point or other (my character is soon to retire, lol, so the next one can have a go)...you won't get bored in this game, but don't be too afraid of exploring.

Best advice, if you go into a place, and it's chock a block full of bad nasties, it's a fair bet it is a major quest location..so you can back out without doing too much harm.

NPCs no. There is no quest of significance that will fail (without warning) due to the death of an NPC. Some NPC's death will cause the quest to fail, but you will always know instantly.

Only the radiant fetch quests might do that to you but those never have unique rewards.

One of the most commonly-heard complaints against this game is that there are far too many essential NPCs. These NPCs are necessary for quests and cannot be killed. You are relatively unlikely to kill any NPC who is necessary for a major quest in the game. And I have picked up more than one named artifact before I received the quest for that artifact and was able to later finish the quest associated with that artifact with no problem.

These things do happen. But I have never experienced any problems from exploring the game world. The game is designed around that.

So my advice is to go explore.

That is encouraging

So by backing out would I still get the quest triggers...?

The items in your inventory - are you "stuck" with them there and can't sell them etc...? Apart from the weight etc that might not be a bad thing as long as the quest could still trigger..? That last item that you have noted which will not "go away" can't you use the tilde key and use the console commands to get rid of it..?

@wtflasg and pseron wyrd

Thanks also for posting about the NPC's - I was worried about killing them, but it has happened, and future quest issues. But as I got no messages as such I figured it might be ok. It was just that some of them were named characters, but hostile, rather than just being "bandits".

If you pick up a "named" item can you deposit that item in your house for safe keeping or is it stuck in your inventory until the quest gets triggered..?

you should tell this to my Hijalti's sword, I found it first and the ghost that should show up in the tavern and ask me to look for it never showed, means the quest will never trigger for me on that playthrough (350+ hours).
On my second char I went directly to the tavern, without finding the sword, and surprise, the ghost was there.

So long as you don't grab the quest booty, or come across the actual quest objective you should be fine.

Any items that are stuck in your inventory don't actually count against your weight limit (apparently) like they did in other games.

In my case, I avoided console clipping because I thought I might eventually trigger the quest..didn't happen though in this guy's lifetime

As an aside, I have been to a couple of dungeons on more than one occasion, and the last time was as the result of a quest...now, I can't be absolutely sure after so long in-game, but I had the feeling that the actual later quest component of the dungeons weren't there when I went through them earlier...as in there was an entrance through walls that I didn't recall, and same for the quest objective.

Possibly it could be that many people wouldn't pick that up unless they did lots of time in game, and did lots of the quest lines, or it could be that I'm imagining things...but I really had that feeling on a couple of occasions. If that is the case, then Beth has found a very good workaround for multi-use dungeons and quest layouts.

Wierd. I haven't found that one but I know at least twice I've met someone, they asked me to go get something or do something, I had a dialog option like "oh, this thing?" or "I already did it" and i got the reward straight up.

In fact it is the most fun part of game!

Latest one is
before i was asked. We will see what happens.

-
Oh yeah and I often clear a dungeon before the thing spawns for the quest and the return trip is just "kill the now-spawned boss" and finish the Q


that is fun too. Makes the boss fight less epic which is fine with me!

I found two named instruments but didn't had a Quest for them. I couldn't sell them and i couldn't drop them. And i didn't know who wants them. I think they should have made these items appear as soon you get the Quest for it, just like the little Quest for the Argonian Beer.

I tend to go undiscovered places only if i have a quest that takes me there, just in case. Last character i had i explored a lot and some quest did not work and all so my inventory was full of quest items that can not be dropped and if a quest buggs on you, you are forced to carry that quest related item in your inventory.

Why bother throwing away keys... i never even look at my key section and they're weightless

Also you cant sell quest items

But you cant sell misc find them quest items

Like 10 bear pelts... 10 deathbell 10 nightshade etc

Always keep keys, they're weightless.