Oblivion:Hil the Tall

Hil the Tall; (RefID: 0000364C)
Home City	Cheydinhal
Location	The Great Chapel of Arkay
Services
	6am-12pm, 2pm-12am; 12am-6am
Training	Illusion, Basic
Other Information
Faction(s)	Cheydinhal Citizens; Nine Divines (Initiate)

Hil the Tall in the Chapel of Arkay, Cheydinhal

Hil the Tall, a Nord priest, functions as healer and serves the Nine at the Chapel of Arkay in Cheydinhal. He is also a basic trainer in Illusion although both he and other Cheydinhal citizens will tell you he teaches Alteration.

While he may have joined priesthood to avoid military services, Hil is still very devoted as a priest of Arkay, and he puts a lot of effort in fulfilling his duties in the Chapel. He sleeps in the Chapel Hall from 12am to 6am, and after he wakes up, he will immediately head to the Chapel Main Hall to pray in front of the Altar of the Nine for two hours. At 8am he will stop praying and simply stroll around the Chapel until 12pm. At that time, Hil will head outside to roam around the small island along the river in the east side of the town, where he will relax for two hours. Before he starts with his second moment of praying, Hil will spend two hours wandering around the Chapel Hall until 4pm, when he will surface in the Chapel Main Hall again to pray for a second time.

When the clock hits 6pm, Hil will retire to the Chapel Hall again and stroll around the area for two hours. At 8pm, he will grab a piece of food and will sit in one of the available chairs and eat a two-hour dinner. Once he has finished, he will wander around the Hall again for two additional hours, until he finds a bed and goes to sleep. Hil's services will be available at any time of the day, except when he is sleeping or wandering around Cheydinhal. On rainy days, Hil will skip his trip to the island at noon and will instead spend the two hours in the Chapel Hall, offering his services for two additional hours.

He wears a lower-class outfit consisting of a coarse linen shirt, sack cloth pants, and a pair of clogs. He carries the chapel key, the key to the Undercroft and a small amount of gold. Hil knows a leveled set of Priest spells (always strongest for his skill level), as well an extra random-leveled restoration spell.

DialogueEdit

Hil apparently loves everyone and everything, as he make clear when first introducing himself and his services, though he incorrectly states that he is a trainer in Alteration:

"Praise Arkay, and all her [sic] little woodland creatures! I'm Hil the Tall, Priest of Arkay. I'm also a trainer in the arts of Alteration [sic]. I love magic, too. I love everything. And everyone. You, too."

If you ask him about the city, he will tell you how he became a priest of Arkay after having fled from Skyrim:

Cheydinhal

"I came here because I love nature. And because I didn't want to serve as a boot wizard in a mountain legion in Skyrim."

The Sword of the CrusaderEdit

When you arrive in The Great Chapel of Arkay when attacking by the Aurorans, Hil will say the following when you enter conversation with him:

'You must help! They appeared out of nowhere and started attacking!"

When they are defeated, he will say:

'Thank you! I was sure those creatures would be the end of all of us. You truly are the defender of the Faith!"

RumorsEdit

The people of Cheydinhal also seem to know the true reason for which Hil became a priest, as they will ask each other:

"Have you heard about why Hil the Tall joined the priesthood?"

"Do you know why Hil the Tall became a priest?"

To which others will reply:

"I heard he became a priest to avoid becoming a soldier."

"Rumor has it he joined the priesthood to avoid military service. What a coward."

It appears that the townsfolk also think he is an Alteration expert, often saying:

"I understand Hil the Tall will teach Alteration to anyone willing to pay."

"I've heard that Hil the Tall knows a lot about Alteration, how to cast shields and that sort of thing."

To which others will reply:

"I've heard he joined the priesthood to avoid serving in the military. What a coward."

"I heard he learned about Alteration because he is too scared to fight. Pathetic."

NotesEdit

Hil can be killed during the Knights of the Nine quest The Sword of the Crusader. If he dies for whatever reason, he will be replaced at the end of the Knights of the Nine questline (after Umaril the Unfeathered) by Esbern, who has the same schedule and services as Hil.
During The Sword of the Crusader, it is very likely that Hil will pick up an Ayleid Battle Axe to help fight the Aurorans, which he will carry around for the rest of the game.
Although he incorrectly says "Praise Arkay, and all her little woodland creatures!", the Aedra he is likely referring to is Kynareth, since Arkay is not only male, but is also the god of funerals, not "woodland creatures".
True to his name, Hil the Tall is noticeably taller than other NPCs, even High Elves.

BugsEdit

Both Hil himself as well as local rumors incorrectly claim that he trains Alteration while he actually trains Illusion.
- The Unofficial Oblivion Patch, version 2.0.0, addresses this issue. He will now train in Alteration while Deetsan, another Cheydinhal trainer whose rumors were also wrong, now trains Illusion.

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