I've never finished the game as I'm a "re-roll-aholic", so I'm wondering if I will have access to the plane of Oblivion even after the main storyline is completed. Will there always be gates for me to travel into? I tried to find some info on the Internet and on sites like uesp.net, but I couldn't find anything in particular.

The reason for my asking this question is to see if I will have an essentially unlimited access to sigil stones or if I am limited to only a certain number of them. I'm interested in maximizing my magicka for my character and would like to get +50 magicka sigils for my gear. It's my understanding from uesp.net that is the only way to get a magicka enchantment that high.

No. Once you complete the main quest, all existing Oblivion Gates are closed and no new ones will open.

There's also always a set number of gates that can open over the course of the MQ--the maximum is somewhere around 100, IIRC. You can "farm" gates during the MQ, but even then you'll eventually run up against the hardcoded limit.

True. 50 Magicka from Sigil Stone.
No. After you finish the Main Quest, all Oblivion Gates are closed. But what you can do right now is: Go to an Oblivion plane, reach the Sigil Stone and before grabbing it SAVE. Grab it, check quickly in your inventory what kind it is and if you don't like it, RELOAD. Grab it again.....etc.. until you find your stone. It changes each time. (They come randomly). Sometimes it takes long and maybe it's better trying another gate. I just found that Hint recently (2 months ago) on that wonderful Forum. :wink_smile:

Thank you for the reply.

I've come up with some other questions that would be very helpful to have an answer for: Are sigil stones determined the first time you enter the Oblivion portal? Are they determined only when you touch the sigil itself? Is the type of sigil stone in any way tied to the type of Oblivion map you're on?

Anything relevant that I haven't thought to ask would be helpful to know, too. Thank you again for your time. I appreciate it.

EDIT:
Nevermind, Chimpy already answered the questions I had while I was typing the post. Thanks, Chimpy!

The total number of gates you can close is 60 (50 random gates, 9 standard gates, and the Great Gate). There are a total of 100 fixed locations where gates may open.

But there are still two Oblivion realms you can enter after the main quest has finished. Both Boethia's Daedric quest and Peryite's Daedric quest send you to Daedric Realms after the conclusion of the main quest, if you choose to do those quests later.

::EDIT:: Sigil Stones (and everything else that is random, such as loot, enemy levels, etc) is determined at the time you activate the Gate. If you save before activating a gate you can "shop" for different sigil stones and other loot.

Read the Post "Defending Bruma" at the bottom of the page. You'll find many answers at your questions.

EDIT: Glad I could help. :biggrin:

It seems you've contradicted the other two informational replies in this thread.
1) There are not up to 100 gates available to explore.
2) The sigil stone is determined at the time you enter the Gate instead of at the time you grab the stone.
b) Is just the level of the sigil stone determined for the first time entering the gate (ascendent, transcendent, etc.) or is the type of sigil stone itself determined as well?

1) The Sigil properties are calculated by the game at the moment of activation. Saving in either location will work, but saving just prior to activating the stone is more convenient.

However: all the loot and creatures and realm itself are determined when you activate the gate itself. If you want to try for different loot in a particular container or you want a different Oblivion realm, for instance, you will still need to go back to a pre-gate save.

2) As I said before, the total number of gates is 60. The total number of locations is 100.

3) All random properties of the Sigil stone are decided on activation.

Bit of confusion here, but Pseron is right.

There are 100 possible gate locations, however the max that can open is determined by how far you're in the main quest. This value varies from 0-60, it tends to gradually increase and then falls as the main quest progresses towards the end. If you say have opened 40 gates, and then the max number is reduced to 25 (due to you progressing in the main quest), then no new gates will open.

The realm you go to is determined as soon as you activate the gate for the first time, along with the enemies and loot. The sigil tower that you go into gets decided the first time you open the door to it (from within the plane), along with the loot and enemies inside. The enchantment on the sigil stone is decided as soon as you activate the sigil stone at the end, however the level of it (ascendant, transcendent etc) is determined by the players level on activation. Meaning saving/reloading before activating will produce a different stone than from before, but it will be of the same level, unless the player levels up (which is not possible in a realm due to the lack of beds).