Did you kill Nilsene Shatter-Shield?

[Iveri Sarothil]

I'm honestly curious. If you did the Dark Brotherhood quest where Muiri asks you for an optional reward to kill Nilsene, did you carry it out?

The character I was playing when I did the quest chose not to kill her - why kill only the second problem in the equation when doing away with the first was just as sufficient? Muiri's Contract against Alain Dufont seemed like somewhat justified vengeance. He tried to use her friends' grief to rob them blind, which got her run out of the city and hated by them. Yes, what they did was irrational. But...they were already suffering from the death of the other girl in the family. And then Muiri brings this smooth-talking guy in who ends up robbing them blind? When you're clouded by grief and dealing with your own dark emotions as well as the emotions of everyone else you live with, you act irrationally.

So, I didn't kill Nilsene on this playthrough because that family suffered enough. Muiri didn't even think about the fact that she's too easily led on. They ran her out of the family, but I didn't understand why Muiri would want to just murder someone who had been her friend for years, unless there's something fluffed up about her, too. She could've chosen to understand their grief and distrust, but she didn't, and went to an extreme level to get back at them. They didn't sent hitmen after her - just told her to stfu and gtfo.

But, that's why I didn't opt for the murder of that poor girl. That, and Muiri acts like an ungrateful bint anyway if you don't kill her, which makes me think she's actually on the same level of selfish as Alain.

 

[Gearuvagen]

I see it more as I reunited her with her sister, Her mother was so jealous she went to join them.I might as well send the Old man to see them too and move all their goodies over to Hjerm...Hail Sithis.
(My assassins are evil)

 

[Karen]

Well, as Astrid stated when you first join up with the Dark Brotherhood, it's not an assassin's job to question whether or not the person deserves what they're getting, we simply carry out the contract assigned and collect payment. So that's how I played my assassin character, I don't get caught up in the emotions of it or complicate the task with moral decisions; I have a job and I just do it the quickest way I can. I don't even speak to the victims.

That said though, it can be argued that killing Nilsine isn't part of the original agreement and should be ignored, since Muiri did say it was extra and not part of the deal. When Astrid led, she encouraged doing whatever the client asked for provided they pay for it, but I'm not sure if it's proper protocol when the Night Mother leads. I assumed that since the Black Sacrament involves stabbing "an effigy of the intended victim", it means you only need to kill one person for each client.

 

[Thorn]

I did once, but then never again. I kill Muiri instead now

 

[Reaper0021]

Well, as Astrid stated when you first join up with the Dark Brotherhood, it's not an assassin's job to question whether or not the person deserves what they're getting, we simply carry out the contract assigned and collect payment. So that's how I played my assassin character, I don't get caught up in the emotions of it or complicate the task with moral decisions; I have a job and I just do it the quickest way I can. I don't even speak to the victims.

That said though, it can be argued that killing Nilsine isn't part of the original agreement and should be ignored, since Muiri did say it was extra and not part of the deal. When Astrid led, she encouraged doing whatever the client asked for provided they pay for it, but I'm not sure if it's proper protocol when the Night Mother leads. I assumed that since the Black Sacrament involves stabbing "an effigy of the intended victim", it means you only need to kill one person for each client.

This post is 100% spot on. Under old Dark Brotherhood protocols/tradition, only and ONLY the person that is the target of the "Black Sacrament" is to be killed. Others that may hamper your way to the target can be killed, but generally what made the DB of old so feared was that they only ever sent 1 Assassin and that Assassin always killed the target. Under Astrid and this "Newer" DB, some 200 years newer, the Black Sacrament and things like the 5 tenets are no longer followed, so Astrid wants you to do w/e has to be done to please/fulfill a contract. Reading some in-game books will reveal a lot of just how feared the old DB was compared to this new incarnation of it.

***Note***
Read books like "Oblivion Crisis" (in-game) and others just to see what people thought of the old Dark Brotherhood.

 

[Carmelpoptart]

The dark brotherhood doesn't care if the person deserves it or not. there's a person that's wanted dead, and there's money in it. Those that question weather or not its right to assassinate this one person shouldn't be in the brotherhood.

 

[electricskies]

I wanted to marry Muira so i did what she wanted. Instead of keeping quiet about it she insists on thanking me for sorting our her "problem" all the time. At least she doesn't have to work at the Hags Cure anymore. I'm a sucker for an alchemist.

 

[Fishy Buisness]

I killed Nilsine on my first ever Skyrim run-through with no idea that Tova would commit suicide afterwards, I felt really bad for ages after that and I haven't killed Nilsine since then. The reward for killing Nilsine was not worth it either

 

[Wildroses]

I'm glad I'm not the only person who decided to spare Nilsine. All other times when this topic comes up here and elsewhere the general consensus seems to be: "Woo Dark Brotherhood Forever Assassin's Rule Die Nilsine!" At the end of the day I just don't like killing NPCs, and that makes me a terrible assassin.

But there was no way I was killing the only surviving daughter of the mother who walks around in a grief-stricken daze, offering in a broken voice to sell the possessions of Friga who no longer needs them to the Dunmer second hand merchant at the marketplace. Or the surviving daughter of the father who reminisces to the farmer's wife about how Friga loved cooking so much yet was so terrible at, and so delighted at how happy they were the time she managed to make a delicious leek soup. They are all actual conversations that happen in vanilla Skyrim. Hang around the Windhelm marketplace and you'll hear them yourself.

If killing Nilsine had been compulsory to progress the questline, I can confidently say I would never have finished it. I mean, I haven't even done Molag Bal, Boethiah's or Namira's quests! The only reason I did the Dark Brotherhood questline was because everyone said how awesome it was.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

While I can't fault the sentimentality expressed in many of these posts. I have to refer back to Karen on this. Being an assassin means you are given a target and it is your job to kill them (quietly if at all possibly) and without evidence (as long as you belong to a guild). No one else should get hurt (collateral damage). The emotions of the victim's family, friends and/or acquaintances should not even be a factor. You aren't much of an assassin if you allow sentimentality to get in your way.

While I am a warrior and have no issue with battlefield tactics or taking out an entire encampment of Foreswarn (sorry, I work for the Jarl of Markath and you keep trying to kill me anyhow) or Bandits (I hate thieves and will not tolerate them), I don't consider it assassination. That's a sideline. Cleanup if you will. And it's profitable. I'll even knock off some of those damned Justiciars and their flunkies from time to time just 'cause they annoy me and are, frankly evil and racist, as well as being religious fanatics.

Bottom line for me is: Got a job? As long as you pay, I'll take care of it. No dirty hands. And certainly, unless you are going to motivate me with more gold, I will not go beyond the contract.

I haven't joined the brotherhood yet, but am going to as soon as I clean up Markath for my Jarl and take care of the lingering issues in Solitude (just 'cause I've a crush on the future High Queen), I intend to. If the ones the Brotherhood sends after me are an example of the quality of their recruits, they need me!

 

[Chadonraz]

Of the three times I've done the DB questline, I only killed her the first time. Somehow I managed to do it without any trouble... yet when I tried it the second time, I just didn't get a chance. In the end I used an invisibility potion and shot her in the marketplace, in broad daylight. Guess how that ended...
Didn't try again, because I'd wasted enough time in Windhelm.

The third time I just ran through the quests, not even trying to get any bonuses or putting that much effort to avoiding bounties (did go wolf where no one saw me, though) -- so I simply killed the bandit guy (totally ignoring a Blood Dragon on the way to the ruin).

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Of the three times I've done the DB questline, I only killed her the first time. Somehow I managed to do it without any trouble... yet when I tried it the second time, I just didn't get a chance. In the end I used an invisibility potion and shot her in the marketplace, in broad daylight. Guess how that ended...
Didn't try again, because I'd wasted enough time in Windhelm.

The third time I just ran through the quests, not even trying to get any bonuses or putting that much effort to avoiding bounties (did go wolf where no one saw me, though) -- so I simply killed the bandit guy (totally ignoring a Blood Dragon on the way to the ruin).

You do that too? I mean - ignoring dragons? I have so many bones and scales now - when I finally am able to smith my own dragon armour, I'll have plenty of raw materials (by the way - can someone else do it for me? One of the smiths that I don't know about?). I am just getting tired of killing dragons. I've got better (and more profitable) things to do with my time.

 

[Chadonraz]

You do that too? I mean - ignoring dragons? I have so many bones and scales now - when I finally am able to smith my own dragon armour, I'll have plenty of raw materials (by the way - can someone else do it for me? One of the smiths that I don't know about?). I am just getting tired of killing dragons. I've got better (and more profitable) things to do with my time.

I only did it because I wanted to get the DB done (and get the final achievement). I actually ignored several dragons during the questline. Become Ethereal

 

[Daelon DuLac]

I only did it because I wanted to get the DB done (and get the final achievement). I actually ignored several dragons during the questline. Become Ethereal

Whey become Ethereal? All you have to do is walk away and the dragon will stop attacking you, especially if you're near a town/city and there are other targets. I luv Ethereal, but I never thought of using it for the purpose of avoiding dragons (dragon priests maybe, but not dragons).

 

[Chadonraz]

Whey become Ethereal? All you have to do is walk away and the dragon will stop attacking you, especially if you're near a town/city and there are other targets. I luv Ethereal, but I never thought of using it for the purpose of avoiding dragons (dragon priests maybe, but not dragons).

Unlimited sprinting. I wanted to play it safe, and not risk getting burned or frozen by a pesky lizard.

 

[Ritterkreuz]

I did it once with an old Dragonborn, then felt pretty guilty. I have a habit of destroying the Dark Brotherhood on most occasions.