Mod overview: Moonpath to Elsweyr - Omni-guides/Tuxborn GitHub Wiki

"What is this mod about?"

Moonpath to Elsweyr is renowned for being one of the oldest Skyrim mods in existence. It adds a section of Elsweyr to the places the Dragonborn can visit, and while there, you can aid some Khajiit rebelling against their Thalmor overlords.

"How do I start Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

The main requirement for it in our load order is that you need to have finished The Way of the Voice, in the main quest. We are running an unofficial patch for Moonpath that enforces this as a requirement, using the logic that since you are known to be the Dragonborn by NPCs in Moonpath, it makes no sense for you to run the plot before your status as Dragonborn is generally known.

Once you've fulfilled that requirement, then go to Falkreath. Right across the way from Falkreath's carriage driver, you should see two Khajiit with a wagon. Talk to those Khajiit to ask them if you can travel with them down to Elsweyr to launch the quest.

If you have trouble talking with them, even if you've finished The Way of the Voice, have a look at this entry on the page for known quest-blocking bugs.

"What level is recommended to begin Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

There is no level requirement for running Moonpath. However, we do recommend that you hold off on running Moonpath until you also fulfill the requirements for the quest It Belongs in a Museum, in Legacy of the Dragonborn. That quest will require you to pick up a specific staff from an NPC named Rakis, and that character is found in Elsweyr. So for the sake of convenience if nothing else, you might want to consider running both quests at once.

Requirements for It Belongs in a Museum are:

  • You must be at least level 18
  • You must have at least 70 displays in your museum

Running Moonpath in tandem with It Belongs in a Museum will give you the added benefit of an in-character excuse to go all the way down to Elsweyr to begin with.

"Can I go back to Elsweyr and get the Staff of Indarys if I run Moonpath before I run It Belongs in a Museum?"

Yes. Once you've played through Moonpath, the Khajiit caravan will still be present at Falkreath. You may find that the caravan wagon is invisible; this is a known issue. The two Khajiit NPCs have the same dialogue that they did before, but you should also have an activator you can use to go straight to Elsweyr. Using this activator should put you at the entrance of the Tenmar Forest Hideout. You can then proceed to go get the Staff.

"Can I get the Staff of Indarys without running Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

Unconfirmed, but probably not. The reason for this is, the NPC you need to speak to, Rakis, is at the Topal Sea base, a location you won't be able to reach until you've run Moonpath's main quest.

So our recommendation is, either run Moonpath first and then come back later for It Belongs in a Museum, or, run them both simultaneously.

We will update this page appropriately if we confirm whether it's possible to run It Belongs in a Museum first.

"Do I need to run It Belongs in a Museum?"

If you want the Dev Aveza, you do!

"What followers are best to bring to Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

Lucien would be an excellent choice, as Lucien is the creation of the same modder who made the unofficial patch we're running. His creator gave him custom commentary for Moonpath to Elsweyr.

Inigo would also be an excellent choice RP-wise. While he doesn't have commentary specific to Moonpath, he does have some entertaining battle lines when fighting Thalmor, and you will have a lot of opportunity to do that in this mod.

None of the rest of our custom followers are known to have commentary specific to Moonpath, so other than Lucien and Inigo, player's choice here. Bring whoever you feel is suitable for your playthrough.

"What should I bring to run Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

Moonpath is a very old mod and very simple by current modding standards, so it won't ask much of you. Whatever gear you're currently carrying should be fine. Worst case scenario, if you find you're lacking anything critical, try to bring extra gold so you can buy any needed items from the merchant at the Tenmar Forest Hideout.

"Does Moonpath to Elsweyr have any displayable LOTD museum artifacts?"

A small number of them, yes. A display for Moonpath will activate once you finish its main quest, though all it will contain is the Ancient Siligonder Chitin Armor you acquire as part of running a side quest.

There are two displayable items you should look for when you reach the Tenmar Forest Hideout: Double-Distilled Skooma and Firebrand Wine. These items do appear elsewhere in the game, but if you're running Moonpath anyway, you can look for them in the hideout.

The Tenmar Forest Hideout has a small selection of books scattered around it, some of which are displayable, though they are not specific to the Moonpath mod. If you haven't already acquired copies of those books for your museum, you can get them at the hideout. So check any books you see to see if you have them already.

A book which does appear to be specific to Moonpath is On the Khajiit Moonpaths, so look for that.

Since our load order contains both LOTD and Moonpath, when you kill the sload Malsato, he should drop the Thrassian Plaguesword, which is also displayable.

Lastly, while these ingredients are not unique to Moonpath, Orange Dartwing and Blue Dartwing can be harvested there. If you haven't already collected those ingredients to display for your museum, be on the lookout for dragonflies while running Moonpath.

"What kind of weapons and armor are available in Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

There are no custom weapons in Moonpath to Elsweyr, but there is a custom armor piece you can acquire, the aforementioned Ancient Siligonder Chitin Armor. This armor may mostly be useful to you as a display piece, but it's worth noting that it gives you a +50 buff to Carry Weight. So you might consider wearing it early in your playthrough if you want that buff, at least until you get better armor, or gear with better Carry Weight enchantments on it.

Also, the Ancient Siligonder Chitin Armor is craftable, after you conclude that quest. So if you happen to want another set of it for some reason, you can make it at a forge as long as you have additional siligonder chitin available.

"Does Moonpath to Elsweyr have a player home?"

Yes, the Tenmar Forest Hideout. You will arrive there as soon as you finish the initial journey to Elsweyr, and you'll be gifted the place by the NPCs you're visiting. The Hideout will serve as your headquarters for the duration of the plot. It comes with all standard crafting stations, a place to sleep, a cache of alchemy ingredients, and a few chests for storage.

The Hideout is open-air, basically built as a series of platforms with walkways between them, but no walls.

Nearby, you'll also find an Alfiq merchant hanging out on a boat. So you can sell things to that merchant, if necessary.

As noted above, you should be able to return to this home later if you wish, by visiting the caravan again in Falkreath and using the activator to go to Elsweyr. You may also be able to use known Means of teleportation in Tuxborn, such as Delrune's Dwemer Compass or the Milestones spell, to give yourself access to the place without requiring going to Falkreath first.

"Are there any new followers in Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

No.

"What other custom items are in Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

There are a small number of alchemy ingredients you can acquire by killing various monsters in this mod: Rivercrab Chitin, Zahilisk Tooth, and Zahilisk Eyeball. These look very similiar to Mudcrab Chitin, Sabre Cat Tooth, and Eye of Sabre Cat in the base game.

Like base game alchemy ingredients, what potions these ingredients create will be impacted by the Apothecary mod. We're tracking that in conjunction with other known ingredients on the Frequently Asked Questions: Crafting page. Scroll down to the part about how to make potion types with Apothecary.

Rivercrabs basically look like orange mudcrabs, and will drop rivercrab meat if killed. This will look a lot like salmon, and you should be able to cook it with salt at a cooking fire.

"What side quests are available in Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

There are only a small number of quests in Moonpath in general, and its main quest involves helping the Elsweyr resistance fight the Thalmor. It'll play through in a reasonably logical flow, outlined on the TES Mods wiki.

But there are a couple of side quests to do as well. These LOTD wiki links date from when Moonpath was explicitly bundled in as part of LOTD. This is no longer the case, but their historical data about how to run the quests is still accurate:

  • The Dinner Guest: the quest you run to fight the sload Malsato, which will get you the Thrassian Plaguesword

  • Desert Style: the quest which will get you the Ancient Siligonder Chitin Armor

  • Rebuilding the Past: the quest you will need to do to secure the Topal Sea Island base. This is the location you'll need to go to to find Rakis to get the Staff of Indarys, so you'll definitely want to do this quest. Rakis should spawn at the base when you've secured it, if you're running It Belongs in a Museum and Moonpath to Elsweyr simultaneously.

"How do I return to Skyrim when I'm done running Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

Return to the Tenmar Forest Hideout. At the same spot where you spawned when you first arrived, there should be a door you can go through which will send you right back to Falkreath.

"What are some other recommendations for running Moonpath to Elsweyr?"

Since Moonpath is a very old mod, keep that in mind when playing it, and give it a little grace when comparing it against other mods in the load order.

You'll fight quite a few Thalmor as part of running this mod. So if you happen to need a supply of moonstone, you'll get a lot of Elven gear you can melt down at the nearest smelter.

Certain Skyrim plants are available all over Moonpath's play area, so if you are inclined to alchemy, you can get in some good harvesting while playing this mod.

‼️ Lastly, a warning: be advised that if you're wearing the dragon priest mask Nahkriin, the one you get when you kill the dragon priest at Skuldafn, this attacks the friendly Pahmar guards at the Tenmar Forest Hideout. So if you meet the edge case of a) you wish to use that mask, and b) you put off running Moonpath to Elsweyr until after you finish the main quest, then you should avoid using the mask for the duration of running this mod.

Alternately, try to run Moonpath before you run Skuldafn, to avoid the problem entirely. ‼️

Credits

Many thanks to the following players on #txbn-general for contributing info for this page:

  • Redintro, for reporting the issue with the Nahkriin mask