- Talk to Paarthurnax, Arngeir, OR Esbern.
- Talk to Jarl Balgruuf.
- Get the Greybeards' help in negotiating a truce.
- Talk to General Tullius and Ulfric Stormcloak.
- Go back and talk to the Greybeards.
- Take your seat at the negotiating table.
- Negotiate the treaty.
- Complete the Civil War campaign
When you have defeated Alduin (for now), he will fly off. It is important to know where he has gone. It may be possible to find out from one of Alduin's minions. Talk to either Paarthurnax, Arngeir, or Esbern to get ideas. You can talk to all three but only one is needed to continue the quest.
They will all tell you that Dragonsreach was once a prison to a dragon. If you speak to Esbern, he will also tell you that he knows who the Greybeards' master is, and he wants you to kill Paarthurnax for his past crimes. This will start the optional quest Paarthurnax.
Go to Whiterun and talk with the Jarl. Depending on your progress in the civil war, the next part of the mission is handled in a variety of ways:
- If the civil conflict has been settled for either the Legion or the Stormcloaks, the Jarl will allow you permission upon speaking with him.
- If the civil conflict hasn't been settled for either side, the Jarl will at first be hesitant and tell you he can't capture a dragon with the ongoing war threatening his hold. You have to get both sides to agree with a truce. He will suggest the Greybeards to host it.
- Should you choose to complete Paarthurnax before the peace negotiations, and anger or kill Arngeir, you will have no way of negotiating the truce, but instead have to end the civil war through battle.
Go to Solitude and Windhelm and speak with the leaders. You may have to persuade them to go by indicating there is a dragon threat looming, at which point they will agree. Return to High Hrothgar, and talk to Arngeir. He will tell you that everything is ready, and the Greybeards have done their part in preparing. Delphine and Esbern will arrive, and you will see a small scene with the Blades and the Greybeards. This conversation can be affected by your conversations with Master Arngeir and Esbern in Paarthurnax. If you haven't yet received the Paarthurnax quest, they will not mention anything about it. Master Arngeir will allow them to sit in on the negotiations, as they have knowledge about the dragon threat, and that it is no time for past grievances. Go to the Council Room and take your seat.
It is possible at this point to talk to everyone and get some unique dialogue from both sides. Elenwen, in particular, will remember you from the party and warn you that she now knows who you are.
Once you are seated, the Imperial side will take their seats, while Ulfric will complain about Elenwen being present. He will demand that Elenwen leave. You can either kick her out or let her stay, giving you a "point" for whose side you favor. Either way, Ulfric will take his seat. The negotiations will finally commence.
- While this is not officially part of the negotiations, it will affect how the two sides will react to your choices. For instance, if you play through the treaty twice and make the same choices, with Elenwen's presence being the only difference, it will cause one of the two sides to be disappointed in your fairness, being whoever you did not favor with Elenwen. In order to be completely unbiased if you have not started the civil war quests for either side: allow Elenwen to stay, persuade the Imperials to accept Winterhold as a trade for Markarth, and demand that the Stormcloaks offer compensation for the massacre. This elicits a neutral reaction where neither side is angry with you for an unfair negotiation.
The next option gives you the choice of what territory the Stormcloaks must return to the Empire in exchange for the Reach. Depending on the choices you have made in your game so far, you will either be given the option of choosing between the Rift or Winterhold, or the option of choosing between the Rift and the Pale (it is not yet clear what choices govern which of these options the player is given). If you give over the Rift, Tullius' happiness will go up and Ulfric's will go down. If you gave over either Winterhold or the Pale, the Stormcloaks will be happier and Tullius will be less happy.
At this point, whatever side is unhappy with you will make some additional demands. If the Stormcloaks are unhappy with you, they may ask you to give up Falkreath, Hjaalmarch, or ask that the Empire pay compensation for their army's massacre against the people of a random radiant location. If instead it is the Empire that is unhappy, they may ask the Stormcloaks to give up the Pale, Winterhold, or ask the Stormcloaks to pay compensation for a massacre. The player will be given the option to decide the outcome of each of these demands.
One (sometimes both) of the sides will complain that it favors the other too much, question your fairness, but eventually agree to the terms.
At some point during the negotiation, Ulfric and Galmar Stone-Fist will get upset due to the fact that they consider even being at the negotiations a "generous gesture". Tullius will state that at least he is negotiating in good faith. Depending on your progress in the Civil War, the opposite may occur, with Tullius saying the "generous gesture" line. Esbern will interrupt and remind them all why they are there, because the dragons are decimating both sides and to allow you a way to defeat Alduin. Ulfric will get insulted and ask Delphine if he is with her, and tells her Esbern should watch his tongue, meaning being careful as to what he says. If you kept Elenwen in the meeting, she may interject, at which point she is reminded she is only an observer.
Once a mutually acceptable treaty has been made, Arngeir will lay the terms on the table; both Tullius and Ulfric will agree, and the meeting will adjourn. The Blades will remain, however, and talk to you about which dragon you will call to Dragonsreach now that the Jarl of Whiterun has gotten his truce. Esbern will tell you of Odahviing, and give you his words of power if you haven't already gotten them from Paarthurnax.
After Esbern is finished, and if you have not talked to Esbern and Delphine since defeating Alduin the first time, they will bring up the subject of Paarthurnax, giving you the quest to kill him. Delphine will demand that you kill him, right away, and say that until you do, they won't help you because it would be breaking their oaths as Blades.
At this point, you can talk to Arngeir for more advice.
