Daggerfall:Cheats

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Every once in a while, some of us get the urge to pump up our character's stats, get a little extra gold, or get that 'awesome' weapon, whether to kill that pesky ancient lich who's been bothering you or just to see how powerful a character can be. This page contains info on how to obtain such things through various methods, including cheat codes and game exploits. Please feel free to add any suggestions, cheats not included here, or links to sites containing cheat info.

Patch v1.07.212 or later Cheat Codes

In the patches 212 and 213, you can activate some of the development cheat keys in the game. Here's how:

1. With a text editor (like DOS Edit or Windows Notepad) open the file Z.CFG in the main DAGGER directory. Add a line CHEATMODE 1 to activate the cheat codes.
2. While in the game, the cheat keys are...
   1. 1: Sets your MaxSpeed to 1200 (6x the normal value).
   2. CTRL-F1: Activate all maps on the fast travel map. (will not work in DOSBox, goes to DOSBOX keybinding mode instead)
   3. CTRL-F4: Invulnerable mode. (will not work in DOSBox, Updates cached information about mounted drives instead)
   4. CTRL-F9: Give you 5000 gold. (will not work in DOSBox, force quits DOSBOX instead)

If you find the codes don't seem to work, try pressing the 'f' key before the 'ctrl' key. A message along the lines of 'CHEAT CODE ENTERED' should appear at the top of the screen.

1. ALT-F11: If you fall into the void, pressing this will take you back to the previous object you were standing on. This can help you get out of the void when you fall into it. NOTE: You do not need cheat mode activated to use this command. It is always available.
2. [ and ]: If you're in a dungeon, these keys will cycle you through the various quest locations. Be careful, though, that you don't beam into a location that is occupied by a monster; if you do, you will be trapped inside the monster. Also, some locations are high enough to pop you into the void when you beam to them. This can be useful if you fall into the void or can't find the quest item you're looking for.
3. - and =: These keys raise your reputation (by 5, for all factions) and your skills, respectively.

There are several additional codes that weren't released by Bethesda

1. f9: Toggle the quest display information.
2. ': Cycles through the active quests.

In this mode, for the quests with debug information the coordinates of all quest objects, the timers, and the quest flags are shown. For stripped quests, only the flags are shown, identified by their global id or name hash.

Addendum: How to make the CTR+F keys work in Daggerfall dosbox:

1. Start dosbox in the Daggerfall directory and hit ctr+f1 at command prompt (start the dosbox.exe not the shortcut to Daggerfall). Alternatively start it in the game, it works there too.
2. Change the CTRL mod key to ALT(suggestion) for the dosbox commands interfering with in game cheat keys.
3. More information here: http://www.dosbox.com/wiki/KeyMapper
4. "swap image" use ctrl f4, change from mod1 to mod2(at bottom left). Same with "shutdown" (ctrl f9, set to mod2), "mapper" use ctrl F1, set to mod2
5. The dosbox.conf file need to have the line mapperfile=mapper.txt after your modding in the [sdl] heading.
6. You are now able to use the cheat keys.

Flying Through the Void -noclip

You need levitate to use efficiently, but non levitating characters can have limited use.

There are a few areas you can use for this:

1. The best area is a low wall with a propped up casket. Run up the casket and get stuck. Climb up, and cast levitate.
2. Door frames also work, but you have to be fast.
3. Tall stairs like those in Scourg Barrow also work.
4. There is also a niche you may occasionally enter the void in: when you jump into water while jumping toward a wall.

For door frames (you might have to crouch): climb until the roof won't let you climb further, then let go of the climb buttons and you will be able to *see* the void. Access your spell book at that moment, cast levitate, and float up. You should be now be able to float on the outside of the dungeon. In most cases, without the normal walls, obstacles, and puzzles, you can find your objective much more easily. You also won't have to wade through hordes of enemies. Kill the monster quests can be completed with arrows, area of effect spells, or getting really close to the wall with a touch spell. Find the treasure quests can be done by levitating under the floor with the treasure and grabbing it. You will also want to exit the dungeon this way.

If you fall in the void, cast Slowfall, then Levitate, or else you will die.

You shouldn't use this bug in quests like Finding Lysandus or the Totem quest, where the goal is in the middle of a big room, as you will have no way to get back in and complete the quest.

Joining more than one Knight/Temple Guild

In patch versions v1.04.191 and later you can no longer join multiple knightly orders or temples. For those with the current patch version who wish to join more than one, here's how to do so.

1. Install another Daggerfall game into another drive/directory. Use the minimum install unless you've got plenty of hard drive space.
2. Upgrade this new installation to patch version 1.0.179 (version 1.0.179 may work, but this hasn't been tested).
3. Load up your game in your usual Daggerfall game with the later patch. Find a guild which you wish to join and enter the building. Save the game and exit.
4. Copy the save game into the Daggerfall v1.0.179 directory which you've recently made.

Example:   cd \dagger\save4
           copy *.* d:\dag01\save4

1. You may need to run an old version of FIXSAVE to get the game running now. Some users transfer games from v1.07.213 to v1.0.179 running v1.1 of FIXSAVE and it works fine, but it may not work in every game.
2. Start up the v1.0.179 of DF and load this game.
3. Join the guild and save the game and exit.
4. Again, transfer this newly saved game into your usual DF directory.
5. Start up your usual DF, load the new game and presto, you're joined to several temple/knightly guilds.

Magicka

Extremely Low Spell Cost

Create enough magical items so that you have over 100% in a particular School of Magic. Now you can cast any spell, no matter how powerful, from this school at a 5 spell-point cost! The patch versions this cheat works in aren't certain, though it is believed to still work as of 1.07.213.

Almost Inexhaustible Supply of Magic

Using this trick, it's possible to get an inexhaustible supply of magic without sleeping. You don't even have to pause, just keep on casting spells.

Use spell absorption, and when you want to heal up or become invisible or whatever, make the spell use an area of affect instead of self as the target. When using the new spell, cast it at your feet, a wall, or monster. This is cool because most spells are additive and by casting them this way even weak spells can have a duration of rounds/days/weeks. It isn't necessary to make all spells area of effect to take advantage of spell absorption in this manner; a few spells that are built this way are enough to recharge magicka for the spells that are not. This method is much faster than using magic items which restore spell points, and magic items are often better for other uses than recharging spell points anyway. This is also a great way to practice spells without ever running out of spell points.

Similar Exploit of Spell Absorption

Similar to above, this requires a character with spell absorption and access to a spellmaker. Make an area effect damage spell that uses nearly all your magic. Dungeon crawling is now a very simple task. Simply walk through dungeons while blasting this spell at your feet (think Q, space bar, Q, space bar). Not only will it do ridiculous damage to everything around you, but it will knock back creatures that manage to survive it at a rate that they can never touch you. And every time you cast it, you will get your full mana cost back. This tends to level your destruction skill quickly, and you'll probably want to redo the spell every once in a while at the spellmaker to make it more powerful so it uses nearly all your magic. However, there are dangers to using this technique. First, it is possible to cast the area effect spell too far away, leaving you with very little magicka left to cast remaining spells. The second danger only comes into play when facing an enemy magic-user; if, between the time you cast the spell at your feet and the time the spell goes off (a very brief window), a monster casts a spell at you, your spell absorption may kick in early, and partially fill your magicka. Afterwards, when the area of effect spell does go off, you don't have the empty capacity to absorb the damage, leaving you to die to your own spell.

• One side effect of this method can be mitigated by also having Immunity to Magic, so if you create a character with both Spell Absorption and Magic Immunity, you'll be immune to your own spells. Thus as long as you always remember to aim the spell at the ground in front of you, you'll never run out of magicka and you'll be able to kill almost anything. Furthermore, you can take advantage of this to train schools in addition to Destruction. Either use an offensive type effect from other magic schools (i.e., Silence for Mysticism, or Paralyze for Alteration) or throw in low cost harmless effects from other schools after you've already set the first effect to area effect damage (i.e., Light for Illusion). Now you don't have to stay at home casting spells at the wall all day; you can go out and use these spells in the field and raise your skills fairly quickly.

Enchanting & Magic Items

Free Magic Items

To get any item from the Magic Item seller in the Mages Guild (and maybe elsewhere), Examine the wares, exit the conversation. Look in your inventory switch the left column to your wagon. Change the right-side inventory over to your Magic Items. Select the "Use" button/option between the inventory columns. Click on your spellbook (it will open to allow you to cast spells). Hit the exit button to abort instead of casting anything. As you abort, the Wagon's inventory will be replaced by the store's inventory that you had viewed just before hitting the inventory button/hot key. And you can't get caught or lose reputation. (doesn't work in v1.07.213, although something weird does happen)

Cheap Enchanting

This is ridiculous. Sweet, but ridiculous. I'm enchanting stuff with 9 advantages at a cost of only 100 EP.

Get an Iron Atronach soul. Bound it to item, then add a bunch of advantages. Then remove all the advantages and exit the item maker. Re-enter Item-maker. Now I can bind that same atronach four times (it just keeps reappearing in the list!). Remove all atronach bindings - notice that removing just ONE removes all the green items, too. Add featherweight and get two freebies. Remove featherweight, leaving two freebies. Do the atronach binding again, remove them again. Now add featherweight and get EIGHT freebies (could have nine, but the last one goes off the end of the scroll). Never have to use the atronach soul.

NOTE: Using this cheat (multiple bindings) does seem to cause a number of errors. I've encountered #2 (can't enter ship), #117 (occurs seemingly at random), and an unknown one that dumps me back into Windows.

Note: Doesn't work in v1.07.213 (and maybe in some earlier patches).

Another Soul-Bind Cheat

Now, this is a really dirty and underhanded trick for Daggerfall, so people who intend on playing fairly, don't use it. The best way to make powerful items, is of course, to soul bind a powerful creature into it, right? That's all fine and good, but the side effects can be a real drag. To soul bind a creature with no side effects, select all your item's properties first, before adding and disadvantages. Then, add some other excess powers, just to take up space, until the game says that the item can't have any more powers (I believe this is after you put about 10 or so in an item). Then, remove the last power. Now put the soul bound critter in the item. The game will display the message "no more room in item." No room for the disadvantage side effects that is. You will have an item with a soul bound creature, with all the bonus points, but none of the side effects. Great, eh? This works in all versions of Daggerfall

Getting Free Enchantment Points in the Item Maker

This is a repost of an old messie. It regards enchanting items that are soulbound without the side effects. As such it is definite spoiler material. If you don't want to be spoiled, please stop reading now.

For the following exercise you need the following:

1. Access to Item maker in the Mages Guild
2. Soul trap with Daedra Lord
3. Suitable item to enchant (preferably armor or weaponry, clothing or items such as armbands can be unstable)
4. Between 30,000 and 100,000 gold (recommend min 100,000 gold)

Instructions: In the Item maker select the item you want to enchant. Rename it if desired. Before you do anything else, however, add at least seven desired effects to the item *before* you add the soulbound disadvantage. Add up to nine (but not more) if desired. Attempt to add some of the more exotic effects that require more enchantment points in order to use your 8000+ points to advantage...practice will reveal the more potent ones ('Regeneration all the time' is good example). Now add soulbound and select Daedra Soul. You will receive a message similar to the following:

"No room for item in list..."

Click on message. Note lack of Daedra Lord disadvantages. Enchant item. Congratulations, you now have an enchanted item of 8000+ enchantment points with no disadvantages.

Another alternative for enchantment points is to give an item 4-5 multiple disadvantage enchantments. You can use the same negative enchantments like bad reputation to the underworld many times. Giving the item thousands of points without needing to use soul trap.

Multiple Low Damage Vs. Side Effects Trick

Here's another method of gaining some extra enchantment points for creating powerful magical items - without using any soul gems or other nasty side effects you might regret later. However, this trick only works on enchanting weapons. Also, it's still limited to the maximum total of 10 powers and side effects. First, you must decide which of the following two are worth taking: Low Damage versus Animals OR Low Damage versus Undead. The procedure is a bit different depending:

*** Low Damage versus Animals *** Either select your item powers or side effects first. It does not matter. However, the FIRST side effect chosen must be Low Damage versus Animals. Then click [Side Effects] again, select [Low Damage vs] and [Animals] will still be an available choice! I've had weapons with Low Damage versus Animals times FOUR. And at 1200 EP each time, these multiples can add up quickly. Nice! This can be added without worry if you've gained at least a few levels and the material is Dwarven or better. As far as I can tell, the effects do not appear to be cumulative. The weapon will STILL strike down the common critters with ease!

*** Low Damage versus Undead *** Similar to above. But after selecting Low Damage versus Undead as the first side effect, go back to the [Side Effects] and then the [Low Damage vs] menu. Versus [Undead] will no longer be shown as an option. HOWEVER, simply press the [ESC] key or otherwise cancel out of the menu and an additional Low Damage versus Undead will be added. Repeat as desired. However, since undead are commonplace (some being quite dangerous) and this side effect only nets 800 EP each time, it's probably not worth it.

Changing Weapons Quickly

If you desperately need to swap weapons in the middle of a battle without getting massacred while equipping them, try this: instead of going to the inventory, go to the character sheet and then the inventory. When you quit the inventory sheet, you get back to the character sheet, and can watch the equipping messages roll by. When all is ready, exit that and swing away... instant equipping!! (Essential when your main enchanted weapon breaks!!!)

Changing Weapons Update

While the character sheet exploit still works in v1.07.213, there is another method. When your weapon breaks suddenly or you otherwise need to swap weapons in battle, immediately save the game and press [F6]. In the inventory screen swap weapons as normal. Exit the screen and immediately save again. Then reload the save and start swinging (melee weapons) or clicking (bows) your mouse as if it was equipped. The weapon will appear instantly and work as normal. Apparently, saving after changing weapons and then reloading will automatically equip the weapon instantly.