You’re standing in the basement of Castle Skingrad. It smells like damp stone and old secrets. Somewhere upstairs, Janus Hassildor is pretending to be a normal Count, but you’re not here for him. You’re here for a book. Specifically, the Lost Histories of Tamriel. It’s a simple fetch quest on paper, but the Lost Histories quest in Oblivion is actually a masterclass in how Bethesda used to build tension without relying on a single combat encounter.
Most people remember The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for the screaming orange skies or the potato-faced NPCs. But the Thieves Guild questline was different. It felt like playing a completely different game—a proto-Dishonored stealth sim buried inside a high-fantasy RPG. Lost Histories is the turning point where the stakes move from "steal some loose change" to "infiltrate a high-security dungeon and find a man who doesn't exist."
Honestly, it's brilliant.
Breaking Into Skingrad: More Than Just Lockpicks
To get this quest started, you’ve got to be in the Thieves Guild. S’Krivva in Bravil is your point of contact. She’s annoyed. A thief named Theranis was sent to Skingrad to fetch a book and he never came back. Classic. You’re the cleanup crew.
The beauty of the Lost Histories quest in Oblivion is that it doesn't give you a map marker for the objective immediately. You have to talk to people. You have to act like a spy. If you just run into the castle and start crouching, the guards will toss you in the clink faster than you can say "Stop right there, criminal scum."
You need intel.
Talk to the beggars. In Skingrad, that means finding Falanu Hlaalu or any of the local street-dwellers. They’ll tell you that Theranis was arrested and taken to the dungeons. Now you have a choice. Do you get arrested on purpose? Do you try to sneak through the wine cellar? Most veterans know the wine cellar route is the "canon" way to feel like a badass, but getting a job as the castle slop-bucket carrier is a surprisingly valid tactic too.
Bethesda designers like Emil Pagliarulo, who wrote much of the Dark Brotherhood and Thieves Guild content, loved these branching paths. It’s why this quest sticks in the brain. It’s not just a corridor. It’s a puzzle.
The Pale Lady and the Horror in the Cellar
Once you’re in the Skingrad dungeon, things get weird. The jailor is a jerk, obviously. But there’s a rumor about "The Pale Lady."
If you talk to Larthjar the Laggard—a prisoner who has clearly seen better days—he’ll tell you that a mysterious woman comes by and takes prisoners away. They never come back. This is where the Lost Histories quest in Oblivion shifts from a heist into a mild horror story.
You find a secret door. It’s hidden behind a wine rack because of course it is. Activating the right bottle (the second one from the left) opens a passage into a blood-soaked sub-basement. This is the part where you realize the Count of Skingrad’s "affliction" isn't just a quirky character trait. The Pale Lady is a vampire, and she’s been using the prisoners as a literal juice box.
You find Theranis. Or rather, you find what’s left of him.
He’s dead.
But he wasn't alone. There’s another prisoner there, an Argonian named Amusei. You might remember him from earlier in the guild questline; he’s the bumbling rival who always got caught. Now, he’s terrified and trapped in a cage next to a corpse. This is where the real challenge of the Lost Histories quest in Oblivion begins: the escort mission.
Escaping the Castle Without Killing Everyone
Escort missions are usually the worst part of any game. Amusei is a bit of a liability. He’s loud, he’s not particularly fast, and the Skingrad guards are everywhere.
The trick here—and what makes the AI of 2006 so charmingly chaotic—is that you have to time your movements based on the guard patrols. If you have a high enough Illusion skill, an Invisibility spell makes this a joke. If you don't? You’re leaning on the "Wait" mechanic and hugging shadows.
If you get caught, the Thieves Guild has a strict "No Killing" rule during jobs. You kill a guard, you get a blood price fine. It’s expensive. It’s annoying. So you sneak. You lead Amusei through the secret tunnels, back through the wine cellar, and out into the crisp Skingrad night.
Once you’re clear of the castle walls, Amusei finally breathes. He tells you that Theranis hid the book "near a bush near the well" outside the castle. It’s a bit of a scavenger hunt, but eventually, you find it. The Lost Histories of Tamriel.
Why This Quest Matters for Modern RPGs
We don't see quest design like this much anymore. Modern games love waypoints. They love "detective vision" that highlights clues in glowing red. The Lost Histories quest in Oblivion forced you to listen to dialogue. It forced you to care about the layout of a building.
There’s a specific nuance to Janus Hassildor’s character that is reinforced here. He knows what’s happening in his basement, but he’s a "civilized" vampire. He allows the Pale Lady to feed on the dregs of society to keep the peace. It’s dark. It’s morally gray. It’s everything that made the world of Cyrodiil feel alive despite the dated graphics.
Pro-Tips for the Perfectionist Thief
- The Wine Bottle Trigger: Don't just spam the 'E' or 'A' button. The lever is specifically the "Mainest" bottle on the rack. It’s a physics object that acts as a switch.
- Amusei’s Pathfinding: If he gets stuck on a rock (which he will), just wait one hour using the in-game menu. The game engine usually teleports your followers to your side when the time skip finishes.
- The Blood Price: If you must kill the Pale Lady, do it. She doesn't count against your Thieves Guild blood price because she’s a monster/undead. The guards, however, are off-limits.
- Fame vs. Infamy: Completing this quest gives you a solid boost in the guild but watch your Infamy. If it gets too high, the guards in other cities will start harassing you just for walking down the street.
The book itself is a letdown if you actually try to read it—it’s just a standard lore book—but the journey to get it is arguably the peak of the Thieves Guild arc. It sets the stage for the Ultimate Heist later on. It teaches you that in the world of Oblivion, the biggest secrets aren't in the ruins; they’re under the floorboards of the people in power.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Playthrough
If you’re booting up a copy of Oblivion in 2026, here is how you should approach this quest to get the most out of it:
- Bump the Difficulty: Stealth is too easy at low levels. Turn the slider up to make the guard detection feel dangerous.
- Don't Use a Torch: It sounds obvious, but the lighting engine in Oblivion actually calculates light levels. Use "Night Eye" potions or spells instead. It preserves the atmosphere.
- Invest in Acrobatics: You can skip half the cellar sneaking if you can jump onto the high rafters.
- Listen to the Rumors: After the quest, talk to the NPCs in Skingrad. Their dialogue changes based on the "disappearance" of the prisoners, showing the ripple effect of your actions.
The Lost Histories quest in Oblivion isn't just a footnote. It's a reminder of a time when quests felt like stories you were uncovering, rather than tasks you were checking off a list. Go find Amusei. Save him from the Pale Lady. Just make sure you don't trip over the wine bottles on your way out.