Magical Stones are scattered across the landscape in Cyrodiil; they will not appear on your compass and do not have map markers. If you are looking for information on smaller magical stones, see the pages on Sigil Stones, Varla Stones, and Welkynd Stones.
There are two types of ancient magical stones in Cyrodiil: Doom Stones (Doomstones) and Rune Stones (Runestones). Both appear as a rune-covered monolith in the center of a circle of stones. Doom Stones have glowing red runes and provide greater powers that can be used once a day, similar to those of many birthsigns, but the stones may only be used at night (6pm to 6am). Rune Stones have glowing green runes and provide a bound weapon and a bound piece of armor when used.
The Arcane University hosts a series of lectures on these magical stones, which can provide you with additional background information on the nature of the stones. However, the lectures do not necessarily provide accurate information.
Doom StonesEdit
There are two different kinds of Doom Stones: the Birthsign Stones, related to the constellations that mark the zodiac of Tamriel, and the Heaven Stones, related to other celestial bodies.
Birthsign Stones grant one of several greater powers specific to that stone. These powers can only be obtained one at a time. For example, if you acquire Arcane Well from the Atronach Stone and then use the Lady Stone, your Arcane Well power will be replaced by Lady's Warding; you cannot have both. However, you may switch between Birthsign Stone powers as often as you wish, and using a Birthsign Stone will not replace the birthsign and birthsign power chosen at the beginning of the game (e.g., if you chose The Shadow at the start of the game and then use the Atronach Birthsign Stone, your character page will still list The Shadow and you will retain the Moonshadow birthsign power in addition to Arcane Well).
Heaven Stones, like their Birthsign counterparts, grant one greater power each. Unlike Birthsign Stones, the powers do not replace each other when a new stone is used; one may obtain and keep all seven Heaven Stone powers by visiting each of the seven stones.
Due to their greater power, Heaven Stones also have a renown requirement, which differs by stone; the sum (not difference, as some sources state) of your Fame and Infamy must exceed the required number, or using the Stone will result in the message "The Hero's fate is known when the Hero's fame has grown." The renown requirement can be met by wearing the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal obtained through the Thieves Guild questline, as it provides 100 Infamy whenever worn.
Both types of Doom Stone can only be used at night, between 6pm and 6am. Attempting to use them outside these hours will result in the message "No stars shine upon the doomstone."
The powers acquired from Doom Stones also add the relevant spell effects to the list of effects your character knows, which therefore can be used when creating custom spells or custom enchanted items. In particular, Doom Stones provide one of the few ways to acquire the Fortify Skill and Resist Frost effects; they can also make Chameleon available to characters with low Illusion skill.
Birthsign StonesEdit
| Stone | Location | Spell(s) | Effect(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apprentice Stone | Southwest of Skingrad. (map) | Void Seed (0006A8EE) | Fortify Illusion and Fortify Alchemy 20 pts for 120 seconds. |
| Atronach Stone | Northeast of Kvatch. North of Shardrock, south of Talwinque. (map) | Arcane Well (0006A8EF) | Spell Absorption 30 pts and Fortify Intelligence 10 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Lady Stone | West of Anvil. (map) | Lady's Warding (0006A8F2) | Fortify Willpower and Fortify Endurance 20 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Lord Stone | North of Anvil. North of Niryastare. (map) | Ysmir's Scales (0006A8F3) | Resist Frost 50%, Fortify Heavy Armor 10 pts, Fortify Light Armor 10 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Lover Stone | East of Bravil. South of the Silverfish River, above the letter "r" in "Silverfish" on the map. (map) | Lover's Bower (0006A8F5) | Fortify Personality and Fortify Luck 20 pts for 120 seconds. |
| Mage Stone | Southeast of Cheydinhal. South of Hame, north of the Silverfish River. (map) | Magicka Manifold (0006A8ED) | Fortify Magicka 50 pts for 120 seconds. |
| Ritual Stone | North of Leyawiin. East of Fort Redman, northwest of Nocturnal's Shrine. (map) | Mara's Milk (0006A8EB) | Restore Health 100 points on Self. |
| Mara's Mercy (0006A8EC) | Restore Health 150 points on Target. | ||
| Serpent Stone | Southeast of Leyawiin. East of Tidewater Cave, west of Bogwater. (map) | Cobra's Dance (0006A8F8) | Paralyze 5 seconds and Damage Health 4 pts for 20 seconds on target. |
| Shadow Stone | Southeast of the Imperial City. East of Fort Cedrian and the Yellow Road's bridge over the Corbolo River. (map) | Fingernail Moon (0006A8F6) | Chameleon 15% for 120 seconds. |
| Steed Stone | West of Cheydinhal. North of Nagastani, south of the Blue Road. (map) | Hellride (0006A8F1) | Fortify Speed and Fortify Acrobatics 20 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Thief Stone | South of Bruma. North of Sercen, east of the Silver Road. (map) | Cheater's Nip (0006A8F4) | Fortify Agility and Fortify Luck 20 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Tower Stone | Southwest of the Imperial City. West of Fort Homestead, on the north end of the island between the two branches of the White Rose River. (map) | The Master's Hand (00008E53) | Fortify Armorer 20 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
| Warden Key (0006A8F7) | Open Hard Lock in 15 ft on Target. | ||
| Warrior Stone | Southeast of Skingrad. North of Silorn. (map) | War Cry (0006A8F0) | Fortify Strength 20 pts; Blade, Blunt, and Hand to Hand 10 pts on Self for 120 seconds. |
Heaven StonesEdit
| Stone | Location | Renown | Spell(s) | Effect(s) | Message |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jone Stone | North of Skingrad. East of the Shrine of Sanguine. (map) | 10 | Jone's Shadow (0006B69E) | Invisibility, Fortify Sneak 30 pts, Fortify Acrobatics 30 pts, Fortify Athletics 30 pts for 120 seconds on Self. | The Hero's fate is etched into Jone's face. |
| Aetherius Stone | Northwest of Skingrad. South of Bleak Flats Cave. (map) | 20 | Gates of Aetherius (0006B69D) | Fortify Magicka 50 pts, Resist Magic 20% on Self for 120 seconds. | The stars in their courses mark the Hero's doom upon Aetherius. |
| Jode Stone | East of Anvil. Southeast of Troll Candle Camp. (map) | 30 | Jode's Blood (0006B69F) | Fortify Health 40 pts, Fortify Blade 20 pts, Fortify Blunt 20 pts, Fortify Hand to Hand 20 pts for 120 seconds. | On Jode's face, the Hero's doom is traced. |
| Sithian Stone | North of Kvatch. In the center of the triangle formed by Fort Linchal, Mongrel's Tooth Cave, and Shattered Mine. (map) | 40 | Sithian Web (0006B6A0) | Fortify Illusion 20 pts, Fortify Marksman 20 pts, Fortify Mercantile 20 pts, Fortify Security 20 pts, Fortify Speechcraft 20 pts for 120 seconds. | The Hero's doom is figured in the Sithian mystery. |
| Magnus Stone | Northeast of Leyawiin. East of Atatar and Haunted Mine. (map) | 50 | Skein of Magnus (0006B6A1) | Fortify Alteration 15 pts, Fortify Alchemy 15 pts, Fortify Conjuration 15 pts, Fortify Destruction 15 pts, Fortify Illusion 15 pts, Fortify Mysticism 15 pts, Fortify Restoration 15 pts, for 120 seconds. | The children of Magnus chart the Hero's doom in their paths. |
| Shezarr Stone | Northwest of Leyawiin. North of Telepe. (map) | 60 | Shield of Shezarr (0006B6A2) | Reflect Spell 10%, Fortify Block 20 pts, Fortify Heavy Armor 20 pts, Fortify Light Armor 20 pts, Fortify Armorer 20 pts for 120 seconds. | The shade of Shezarr shrouds the Hero's Doom. |
| Dragon Stone | North of Cheydinhal. Northeast of Lake Arrius. (map) | 70 | Dragon Dream (0006B6A3) | Fortify Magicka 50 pts, Fortify Health 40 pts, Fortify Fatigue 100 pts on Self for 120 seconds. | The Dragon dreams, but the Hero gleams in his eye. |
| Nirn Stone | This stone does not exist in game, but its greater power can be found in the Construction Set. | 100 | Nirn's Breath (0006B6B1) | Detect Life 100 ft, Fortify Fatigue 200 pts, Fortify Health 100 pts on Self for 120 seconds. | The heavens wheel around Nirn and Nirn's Hero.† |
Rune StonesEdit
All Rune Stones bind a weightless weapon and piece of armor, which will disappear after the spell wears off. If the Rune Stone can bind either a Blade or Blunt weapon, you will receive whichever weapon type for which your skill is greater (a tie goes to the Blunt weapon).
There are three different kinds of Rune Stones: Hestra, Reman, and Sidri-Ashak. Each binds weapons and armor specific to its kind. Multiple instances of each are scattered throughout Cyrodiil.
For details of bound items, refer to the Bound Armor and Bound Weapon pages. (Like other bound items, the ones from Rune Stones can be kept permanently by exploiting certain glitches.)
Activating a Rune Stone counts as casting a conjuration spell, and therefore trains your Conjuration skill as well.
If you try to use the same type of Rune Stone twice in the same day, you will receive the message "Stones sleep. Stones rest this day." In this case, you will not receive any bound weapons or armor. You will also receive this message if you try to use the Rune Stone on the same day of the week as your previous use (e.g., if you last used a Reman Rune Stone on a Tirdas, you will not be able to use any Reman Rune Stones on a Tirdas). Wait until after midnight and you will again be able to use the stone.
Whereas patches of multiple common plant types or a single uncommon or rare plant type are found all over Cyrodiil, Rune Stones are always surrounded by a patch of four or five uncommon or even rare plant types.
Hestra Rune StonesEdit
Rune Blade and Bracer or Rune Mace and Bracer: Summons Bound Gauntlets (Light Armor) and a Bound Dagger or a Bound Mace for five minutes. There are ten Hestra Rune Stones in all (see the Oblivion map).
- Northwest of the Imperial City. West of Sinkhole Cave. (map)
- Northwest of the Imperial City. West of Fort Caractacus, east of Fort Empire. (map)
- Northeast of the Imperial City. North of Fort Chalman, northeast of the Red Ring Road. (map)
- Southeast of Bruma. South of Namira's Shrine, north of Anga, above the letter "h" in "The Silver Road" on the map. (map)
- East of Bruma. Southwest of Plundered Mine, east of the Silver Road. (map)
- Northwest of Bruma. Southeast of Cloud Ruler Temple. This is where the spies will appear during the quest Spies. (map)
- Northwest of Cheydinhal. East of Silver Tooth Cave. (map)
- Northwest of Cheydinhal. West of Lake Arrius. (map)
- South of Cheydinhal. South of Harlun's Watch, east of Vaermina's Shrine. (map)
- South of Cheydinhal. Southwest of Drakelowe, west of the Reed River. (map)
Reman Rune StonesEdit
Rune Cuirass and Sword or Rune Cuirass and Axe: Summons a Bound Cuirass (Heavy Armor) and a Bound Sword (claymore) or a Bound Axe for five minutes. The stone will determine which to use based on the higher of your Blunt and Blade skills (a tie goes to the Blunt weapon). There are nine Reman Rune Stones in all (see the Oblivion map).
- West of the Imperial City. Southwest of Fort Nikel, northeast of Fort Wooden Hand. (map)
- Northwest of Skingrad. Southwest of Bleak Flats Cave and the Aetherius Stone. (map)
- East of Kvatch. North of Fort Istirus, at the top of the hill. (map)
- East of Kvatch. Southwest of Fort Istirus. (map)
- Northeast of Kvatch. Northwest of Talwinque, southeast of Varondo. (map)
- Northwest of Kvatch. At the base of the plateau. (map)
- East of Bravil. Southeast of Fort Entius, west of Malada. (map)
- Southeast of Bravil. South of the Mouth of the Panther, northwest of Barren Mine, west of the Yellow Road. (map)
- Northeast of Leyawiin. West of Veyond, on the other side of the Yellow Road. (map)
Sidri-Ashak Rune StonesEdit
Rune Bow and Helm: Summons a Bound Bow and a Bound Helmet (Light Armor) for two minutes. There are five Sidri-Ashak Rune Stones in all (see the Oblivion map).
- South of the Imperial City. North of Sardavar Leed, on the southern shore of Lake Rumare. (map)
- Southwest of Bruma. East of Moranda, north of the Orange Road. (map)
- North of Chorrol. North of the main ruin at Sancre Tor. (map)
- Northwest of Anvil. In the center of the letter "A" in "Anvil" on the map. (map)
- North of Cheydinhal. North of Azura's Shrine, southwest of the Temple of the Ancestor Moths. (map)