One of the things I greatly dislike about Skyrim is how...insistent it is that you do certain quests. Such as Brynjolf stalking you in Riften, waiting for a chance to force you into dialogue so that he can throw a quest in your face (or journal). Another notable example of that is Barbas. This story deals with him.
I had been given the quest to "find the dog" but had no intention of ever actually doing it, and whenever I was in/near Falkreath I tried to avoid being near where Barbas spawns. Well I was heading to a Draugr tomb near Falkreath to do a quest (not really thinking of the area I was in) when I saw Barbas spawn and immediately start walking towards me (even though I was a couple of football field lengths away). I acted quickly, jumping up a hill and crossing a mountain (which coincidentally was the direction the Draugr tomb was in) and finally found and entered the Draugr tomb. I went about my business there, fighting my way up to about the third floor, I had just spotted a group of Draugr and them me when suddenly I'm forced into a dialogue screen. I swivel the camera around and the text and audio finally appears...and it's Barbas. He followed me all the way over a small mountain/hill and into a Draugr tomb, and up two floors, to force me into a dialogue screen.
Thanks Skyrim/Bethesda, I really didn't want to miss that quest...and it sure is...natural...the way I....discovered...that quest...all on my own...it doesn't feel contrived or forced...at all....nope.
Totally agree about Brynjolf. However his quest (and even the misc objective "Listen to Brynjolf's scheme") can be easily avoided.
Eltrys the Markarth stalker is an entirely different matter. If you let him talk to you, you'll get that misc objective that can only be cleared by starting the Forsworn quest. I often wish to entirely avoid that quest, but also want to keep my journal clean - so I'll avoid Eltrys for as long as I can. Like dropping down from the upper "level" near the inn after he leaves his standing spot to try and get me.
But sooner or later something/someone requires me to go to the Silver-Blood Inn... and that place is impossible to leave without that damn Eltrys initiating conversation. I've tried sneaking, and sneak + invisibility, and muffle + sneak + invisibility, and immediate post-loading screen Whirlwind Sprint. Nothing works. -.-
As for Barbas, if I don't want to do the quest, I'll talk to him until the "find the dog" objective is completed. Then I simply exit the dialogue before the actual quest can begin. Barbas will be forever waiting there on the road, but I won't have unwanted quests in my journal.
You're definitely right; too many quests are forced on you. I especially hate (in addition to ones mentioned above) "Visit the museum in Dawnstar", which I don't think can be completed without triggering "Pieces of the Past".
And more on topic: I once decided to show my face at the Riften stables while in beast form. Predictably, everyone aggroed on me, and I soon had to withdraw back to the forest because I was low on health
and about to transform back.
Then when I returned to the stables, I saw a bunch of guards trying to kill the carriage horse (who seems to be invulnerable without the use of console commands). From their combat dialogue I concluded that they mistook the horse for a werewolf, or at the very least a hostile beast. They were hostile towards me, as well, even though they hadn't seen me transform (either way).
I even have a video of that occurrence (if you're a horse lover like me, you may not want to watch):
