Tamriel Rebuilt:Axiomatic Inversion

Tempt catastrophe with a daring magical heist. Quest Giver: Ethalvora in Andothren Location(s): Andothren, Guild of Mages Prerequisite Quest: Arrange an Accident for Adric Jerenise Reward: Polyhedrascope Reputation Gain: +2 (general), +5-+10 (Mages Guild) ID: TR_m4_MG_Ando_8

The Weir Gate of Ebon Tower

The Weir Gate Focus Lens

Quick Walkthrough

1. Speak to Ethalvora in Andothren's Guild of Mages about a Weir Gate Focus Lens.
2. Retrieve the lens from Talos Tower, in Old Ebonheart's Ebon Tower.
3. Bring the lens to Ethalvora and allow her to conduct her experiment.
4. Return later and speak to who you find.
5. Bring the lens to the receptaculum in Talos Tower.
6. Speak to a battlemage in the Talos Tower (optional).
7. Return to the Andothren Guild of Mages for your reward.

Detailed Walkthrough

Ethalvora believes that she has cracked the secret of the strange artifact that you acquired from Kurhu, and requests that you retrieve a Weir Gate Focus Lens from Old Ebonheart's Ebon Tower.

"Weir Gates are among the Empire's most prized secrets. Few know how they work, even in the Guild. A certain high-ranking battlemage confided to me, however, that the Gates are "tuned" using the very same arcane crystal technology I have been studying. The Battlemages at Ebon Tower will have a Focus Lens. Bring it to me, and I'll use it to fix that strange artifact. These might help you get inside. If you do get caught, of course, the Guild must disavow your actions."

Heist in the Ebon Tower

She will furnish you with equipment to aid in the theft—a Potion of Telekinesis and an Exclusive Potion of Invisibility. You may wish to purchase additional potions elsewhere, and a means of bypassing high-level locked doors/traps, but when ready, travel to Old Ebonheart (either by boat, foot, or guild guide). Here, proceed to the city's castle, the Ebon Tower. The Weir Gate is in the highest chamber of the castle's tallest tower (Talos Tower), while the Weir Gate Lens is in the lowest chamber of that same tower.

The easiest way to reach the lens is by bypassing a level 80 locked door in the Palace's High Chambers. You can alternatively levitate up to the tower—not so far as to reach the trapdoor at the very top, but far enough to reach the level 50 locked door to Talos Tower. If you enter this way, the chamber containing the lens will be opposite you on entry, but be prepared to drink the invisibility potion you were given immediately after passing through the door, or you will be challenged by the guard.

The lens itself is on a shelf in the lowest chamber (see picture), atop a book named Weir Gate Memorandum. You can use the Potion of Telekinesis that Ethalvora gave you to grab it while being out of the line of sight of the guard. It's time now to get out of here. Your best escape route is most likely via the way you came in, or through use of an intervention spell. The various battlemages guarding the tower will challenge you only if you get within a couple of feet—and not at all if you are invisible, so make ready use of that effect. Once free of Ebon Tower, return to Ethalvora in Andothren.

Ethalvora will now use the focus lens to create a powerful artifact—the Polyhedrascope. Whether she gives it to you or not depends on whether you obeyed her wishes in Arrange an Accident for Adric Jerenise, and murdered the man. You'll receive the artifact and 10 reputation in the Mages Guild if yes, and 5 reputation only if not.

Ethalvora will have no more duties for you. However, if you leave the guild and return later, you may find somebody else in her place.

Adric's Route

If you did not kill him, standing where Ethalvora used to be is Adric Jerenise. He will notify you that Ethalvora has been summoned to Almalexia, presumably to answer to the Arch Mage there:

"Ethalvora went too far when she ordered you to steal it from Ebon Tower. And you're on thin ice, for following those orders. She's been recalled to Almalexia, to be expelled, I assume. If you don't want the same fate for yourself, then you have one option: return the Weir Gate Focus Lens."

Adric will give you the lens personally.

Ethalvora's Route

If you killed Adric Jerenise, you might hear a rumor in Ebon Tower that gives you a hint that something is going on at Talos Tower, or you can simply return to Talos Tower whenever ready. In the tower, you'll find distressed battlemages who explain that without the focusing lens, the Weir Gate has gone awry.

If you speak to Ethalvora about the Weir Gate Focus Lens, you have the opportunity to ask her to give the lens back. If your rank in the Mages Guild is Warlock or lower, Ethalvora will refuse to do so. If pressed on the matter, Ethalvora will expel you from the Mages Guild.

"That's it, %PCrank. You are meddlesome, iimportunate, and, worst of all, you are insubordinate. I hereby expel you from the Mages Guild."

If your rank in the Mages Guild is Wizard or higher, Ethalvora will attack you on the suspicion that you're acting under the orders of the Arch Mage of Almalexia. Defeat her and pick up the lens from her body.

Weir-d Science

Stock up on supplies as needed—you'll require a means of levitation or telekinesis to reach the receptacle that the focus lens must be placed in. Once ready, return to the Ebon Tower itself, and re-enter Talos Tower. Assuming you enter via the bottom, you'll meet a battlemage who explains that without the focusing lens, the Weir Gate has gone awry. He'll be relieved to hear that you have such a thing in your possession:

"You've got one? How did you get-- Never mind! Someone needs to insert the lens into the receptaculum, and since you're the one with the Focus Lens, you just volunteered. It's at the top of the tower. Be careful on the way up: the Gate's unwinding, and it won't hesitate to tear you apart, too."

Ascend the tower, but don't expect to do so unopposed. A powerful Dark Seducer has entered the tower through the collapsing Weir Gate, and is cutting the residents to bloody ribbons. Defeat the Dark Seducer, and place the Focus Lens in the receptacle at the very top of the beam. This is enough to stabilise the gate.

Return to any living battlemage within the tower to receive the reward of a spell—Silmane's Binding. Take what you want from the tower while you are here—once you have left, it will once more be illegal to enter.

If Adric Jerenise is alive, return when ready to Andothren, and speak to him about the Weir Gate Focus Lens to complete the quest, and be rewarded with Ethalvora's newly-created artifact, the Polyhedrascope.

Quest Stages

The following Journal ID and Index codes can be used with the Journal console command to manually update the quest to a certain point.

Axiomatic Inversion (TR_m4_MG_Ando_8)
Index	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
10		Ethalvora claims to have found a way to activate the strange artifact I brought her from Kurhu. To do so, she needs a Weir Gate Focus Lens. The only one in Morrowind is kept in Ebon Tower, in the custody of the Imperial Battlemage Corps. The guildmaster warned me that the Mages Guild will not intervene if I am caught stealing the lens.
100	Finishes quest	Using the Weir Gate Focus Lens, Ethalvora was able to turn the strange artifact helm into a useful item called a Polyhedrascope, with multiple useful enchantments.
Axiomatic Inversion (TR_m4_MG_Ando_8a)
5		Adric Jerenise told me to return the Weir Gate Focus Lens that I stole to Ebon Tower. If I don't comply, I might be expelled from the Mages Guild.
10		It seems that without their Focus Lens, the battlemages of Ebon Tower have been unable to control their Weir Gate, and it is emitting an unstable energy. Additionally, things from other Weir Gates have come through the uncontrolled portal, wreaking havoc in the tower.
20		An Imperial Battlemage told me that, in order to stabilize the Weir Gate, I need to insert the Focus Lens into something called the receptaculum, at the top of Talos' Tower.
90		I have returned the Focus Lens to the receptaculum, and stabilized the Weir Gate.
95	Finishes quest	I have stabilized the Weir Gate and slain the Dark Seducer who was wreaking havoc in Talos' Tower. I was rewarded with a spell unique to the Imperial Battlemage Corps, called Silmane's Binding.
100	Finishes quest	I managed to stabilise the Weir Gate in Ebon Tower, but the area remains off-limits to civilians. If I return, I will likely be arrested.
105	Finishes quest	I have done a service to the Legion by bringing Ebon Tower's Weir Gate is back under control.
110		Adric Jerenise rewarded me for returning the Weir Gate Focus Lens.

Prev: Arrange an Accident for Adric Jerenise

Up: Mages Guild Quests

Next: None