Don't read this if you don't want to know the details about the latter part of the daedric Discerning the Transmundane quest...



I've noticed on my past 2 playthroughs, I was not given the option to extract blood from corpses during the quest. I go to the usual corpses in Alftand, but I only get the loot option. The only thing different about how I'm playing the game between these last 2 playthroughs and my first few was that I sought out this quest independently of the MQ (wherein you will have to get the Elder Scroll anyway) on my last 2 playthroughs.
Whenever I triggered this quest as an adjunct to the MQ, I was always able to harvest blood. The only other difference has been the patch numbers - as new patches are available, I implement them, so I've probably played through under 4 or 5 different patches, therefore I doubt that's the issue.

I am able to use the console to basically skip the whole blood harvesting step (setstage da04 50), but I'm concerned as to why it's happening at all.

Is anyone else getting this, or does anyone know why this happens?

Thanks.

I have the same problem with this quest, and I know the quest will have to be forced by console if Mzark does not show up on the map when I exit Blackreach.
I am not sure why the quest does not work, it may have a faction requirement as a trigger (Mages Guild?). I feel sorry for console players who find these glitches, because they really do not have a way of forcing the quest to continue without losing many hours of gameplay.

Quick question you do remember you don't get the essence extactor until after you return the lexicon to Septimus right.(and only after level 15) I once thought I had this bug but then realized I hadn't done one of the necessary steps

I've had the same problem on the last two playthroughs as well. One of them was before the 1.6 patch. I had done the Blackreach quest, brought back the inscribed lexicon, and talked to the Daedric Prince. I have the Essence Extractor, but there is no option to harvest blood when I kill any of the appropriate races.

I'm pretty sure you don't get the extractor until after you turn over the transcribed lexicon.

And spesaking of "necessary" steps - just looked at the UESP and saw a bit about a courier: I realized, I have never - in any of my playthroughs - encountered a a courier that progresses the quest. I have always fast-traveled directly from Alftand back to the Outpost. I can't imagine this matters though since (again) everything was fine (blood harvesting-wise) on my first few playthroughs.

See? So I wonder when this got broken - if it is, in fact, broken - or are we (who encounter the issue) simply breaking some sequence.

Is this a PC thing, or can someone on console confirm it as well?

The Courier does not apply if your character is past level Fifteen (15) when they return to Septimus with the Transcribed Lexicon, I can verify that the Extractor bug will still occur even after recieving the letter from Septimus.

The Courier only appears if you retrieve the Lexicon before level 15(which is the requirement to get the book).

I'm on the PC.

And my character was somewhere about level 30 when I finished the Blackreach Quest and it glitched the second time. I'm not sure how high a level I was at on the first one.

Okay. That makes sense. I'm usually pretty high-level when I do this quest.

I have done the quest twice on the Xbox 360 version and never had a problem. Once after doing just about everything else, and again recently (after the last patch) when chasing the Oblivion Walker achievement, when I had hardly done any quests, never had a problem with it. Is everyone getting the glitch playing the PC version?

Nope. I had no trouble with it, was on post-patch 1.5, and high level. I did it following the main quest 'though, not on my own. So maybe that's related to it?

I'm starting to think it has to do with whether or not you do the quest with the MQ or on its own, too.

Has anyone who's done it as an adjunct to the MQ had a blood harvesting issue, or is it only an issue when it is done as a free-standing quest?