Dawnguard Faction Chosen

Dawnguard Faction Chosen

You have made your choice -- and your choice is to follow the Dawnguard!  Harkon throws you out on your arse and you head back to the Dawnguard HQ to report in.  When you arrive you get attacked by a group of vampire -- hey no worries, just kill them!

After you report in to Isran he fills you in on what he thinks will help -- describing the people he wants to recruit to join the Order.  You can talk to him about vampire hunting to see if there is anything that he can teach you, and if you still need training in Heavy Armor he can do that too.  You can ask him to tell you what the Dawnguard is, and ask him about Fort Dawnguard -- he will fill you in on the history -- and you can ask where the Dawnguard came from? 

Finally you can ask Isran what he has against the Vigilant -- and he tells you!  It seems that while they may be an element in the defence of the realm, they are not a very useful one as far as he is concerned! 

This basically completes the quest BLOODLINE and flags the quest A NEW ORDER.  You should bear a few things in mind before you continue if this is the path you are choosing as your permanent one, starting with the question of being a werewolf.  If you already are one that is fine, and if you are not that is fine too since you will be given the opportunity deep into the faction quest line to become one -- and you can always go do the Companions of the Circle quests if you have not already done so since they will turn you into a werewolf...  But being a werewolf is actually a really good idea.  Let me explain...

Reporting in on your chat with Harkon

As a human every time you do combat against a vampire there is a good chance you will get infected and, if you do not hit a shrine or quaff a Cure Disease potion, in three days you will end up being a full-blown vampire!  That is not good, since it will cause you all kinds of problems with the Dawnguard.  Getting cured once the disease advances is something of a pain in the arse, so it is better not to get infected at all -- and that is where being a werewolf will help!

Unlike humans, werewolves can NOT be infected when battling vampires -- they cannot catch that disease, they are immune to it.  That being the case, it is a serious benefit and in case you are worried that being a werewolf will change the way you are used to playing, it will not.  Once you are infected with lycanthropy you can continue to play the game as if you were not -- there is no downside that I could find.  On the other hand if you are willing to use that power and unlock its perks it can be a majorly useful tool to you in combat...  I am just saying.

So if you are human and do not want to become a werewolf straight away I seriously suggest you lay in a supply of Cure Disease potions and check yourself after every vampire fight (just open the menu and select MAGIC > ACTIVE EFFECTS and then look for a red line that lists the vampire disease).  If you are infected, drink a potion or visit a healing shrine.  If you are a werewolf then hey, no worries mates!

Finally there is the matter of being prepared...  You should check your kit, you should be using the best armor and weapons you can manage.  If you have yet to level Smithing and Enchantment mates, I seriously suggest that you do so now, before you start this adventure or at least before you go any further.  Once you have those capped off make yourself a good set of Dragon Armor, using Blacksmith gear and potions to make as fine a set as you can and then improving it to Legendary Status, then Enchant it with useful Enchantments.  Do the same for your weapon -- a Dragon Bone Sword and Bow are top notch weapons mates, and well worth the effort, I am just saying.

As a member of the Dawguard once you get a bit into the quest line you get the skill to make your own Crossbows and ammo -- and you can already make your own arrows -- so again, make the very best one you can and then Enchant it!

Well, that pretty much covers what needs covering.  Good on ya for choosing the Dawnguard -- that was my choice as well -- and have a great game mates.  I certainly did!