Online:Through the Shroud

End the threat of the Reachmen at Vernim Woods. Zone: The Rift This quest is part of the Zone Story Faction: Ebonheart Pact Objective:  Vernim Woods — Investigate Vernim Wood. Quest Giver: Lieutenant Belron Location(s): Vernim Woods, Vaults of Vernim Prerequisite Quest: Gift of the Worm Next Quest: To Nimalten Reward: Wormcrusher's Axe 1 Skill Point Average Leveled Gold XP Gain: Standard

Defeat Stral Blackthroat once and for all

Our final goal at Vernim must be to kill Stral and end the threat of the Reachmen. Unfortunately he's protected by a death shroud in the central ruin.

Quick Walkthrough

1. Use the Gray Jar near Lieutenant Belron.
2. Talk to Lieutenant Belron.
3. Destroy the Withering Idol.
4. Talk to Lieutenant Belron.
5. Defeat the Graveborn in the Vaults of Vernim.
6. Defeat Stral in Stral's Ritual Site.
7. Talk to Orla at the Pact's camp in Vernim Woods.

Detailed Walkthrough

Lieutenant Belron has a plan to get you through the death shroud to Stral. Belron explains that the shroud protecting Stral's lair can only be entered by the dead. Therefore, any living creature that tries to pass through will be destroyed. He asks you to break the shroud by destroying the totem at the bottom of the mound where the entrance to the lair is located. This will allow the living to enter Stral's lair and kill him once and for all.

In order for you to pass through the barrier, you need to be dead. Belron is going to kill you... sort of. He mixed the Graveborn hearts you collected in the previous quest into a potion, which he instructs you to drink. It will make you a lot less alive than you are now, but it won't kill you completely.

"We've got to get to Stral. End Stral, and we end the Reachmen's threat."

What's the problem?

"You may have noticed the ruin in the center of the wood. That shroud of death and darkness? Nothing living can pass through it.
Luckily, the dead can."

Why's that lucky?

"Oh, I thought it was obvious. We kill you, sort of. These Graveborn hearts … yes, imbuing their essence into a potion. Like so.
Drink this. Trust me, nothing will go wrong!"

All … right.

Once the conversation ends, you should be able to use the Gray Jar he gave you, as long as you are close to Belron. The potion turns you into a skeleton. Talk to Belron once you've taken a swig, then head southwest to the center of Vernim Woods.

"The bravery of Vivec! Nicely … you have a little something on your mouth, there."

Yech. I can pass through the shroud, now?

"Absolutely. I think. You're much less alive than you were a few minutes ago, anyway.
That should get you through the shroud."

Then what?

"At the bottom of the ruin there should be a totem powering the death shroud. Destroy it, the shroud goes away, and the living can enter the ruin."

There's a Dragon Mound with a dark orb hovering above it; this is Stral's lair. Head down into the mound. At the bottom of the hole is a totem called the Withering Idol. Destroying it will remove the death shroud surrounding the Vaults of Vernim, allowing the living to get through.

After you destroy the idol, Belron, Dajaheel and healer Orla will run down. If you have the Persuasion Perk, you can ask him to magically aid you in the fight. He will grant you the "Hex Armor" buff, which last for four minutes.

"With the shroud gone, we can follow you in!
You're looking a little dead around the edges. Let me take care of that."

[Persuade] Can you magically aid me in the coming fight?

"Of course! How could I have forgotten?
Here, hold still."

Enter the Vaults of Vernim. There is a large group of Graveborn enemies in the back of the first chamber. You need to defeat all of them. Take it slow. Once you move past Dajaheel, the first group (about three or four Reachmen) will attack you. Once the first group is dead, another four Reachmen will attack, and so on. If you really want to, you can run into the middle of the group, shield up and aoe them all down for a quick kill. Once the Graveborn are dead, enter the room to the west to get to Stral's Ritual Site. Stral is channeling a ritual with two skeletons. When you engage him, he kills Belron. When he gets to around 80% health, he kills Dajaheel and summons a bone colossus. Try to kill his skeletons first, then damage him. Kill the bone colossus as soon as it's summoned to make the fight simpler.

Once you've defeated Stral, he dissipates in a burst of blue flames. Return to the Pact's camp at Vernim Woods with Orla and speak to her there. She commends you for your efforts and promises to ensure that Dajaheel and Belron's sacrifice is remembered by the Pact. She also rewards you for your part in ridding the world of Stral Blackthroat.

"I didn't think we were going to make it out of there … Dajaheel. Belron."

You fought bravely.

"I'll make sure the Centurion … the Pact knows of Stral's defeat. Dajaheel and Belron sacrificed themselves to see that beast slain.
Their sacrifice will be remembered."

Quest Stages

Through the Shroud
Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
	Belron thinks he knows a way past this death shroud. He's given me a jar of dark sludge and told me to drink it, if I want to get past the death shroud. Objective: Drink Potion near Belron
	I've drunk the potion. I should speak to Belron to learn what my next move should be. Objective: Talk to Belron
	Belron has sort-of killed me. He hopes that will be enough to get me past the death shroud. At the base of the ruin, I should find an idol or totem. Destroying it should drop the shroud. Objective: Destroy Totem
	The idol has been destroyed, and the shroud is gone. Belron has arrived with backup. I should speak to him. Objective: Talk to Belron
	The way is clear and the soldiers of the Pact are with me. I need to enter the ruin. Objective: Enter the Ruins
	Stral's Graveborn are performing a necromantic ritual within the ruins. I must defeat them and put an end to their ritual Objective: Defeat the Graveborn
	With the aid of the Pact soldiers, I'm set. Time to kill Stral Blackthroat. When that's complete, we will need to regroup with the remaining Pact soldiers outside the cave. Objective: Kill Stral Blackthroat
Finishes quest	Stral is dead. Unfortunately, he took Dajaheel and Belron with him. I should return to the encampment and regroup with whomever is left. Objective: Report in at the Pact Camp

Notes

* Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the game and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.

• 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 any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.