Fences are, without a doubt, the best merchants to sell to inThe Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. Even if players don’t steal everything they can and don’t put any perks into the Speech tree, they can take advantage of the fact that fences always accept any item (including stolen items) and can have up to 4,000 gold on hand to purchase whatever players want to sell. The fact that fences also have some good items to sell and always stock lockpicks is a bonus.
However, there’s one problem with fences: players can’t access them immediately at the start of the game, and they don’t start with 4000 gold.Players must join the Thieves Guildand help restore them to greatness if they want access to every fence and all the gold they can afford to spend. Here’s where to find each fence and how to unlock their services.
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Thievery & Fencing Basics
Every object inSkyrim, whether it appears in the overworld or the inventory of a chest or NPC, will have a name that appears in either white or a red. If the object’s name is red, that means players will get a bounty for stealing if someone catches them taking it. Some objects have white names even though they are owned by NPCs. This means the player has a good reputation with the NPC who owns the item, and if players take the item in question, the owner won’t mind.
Even if nobody sees players stealing a red item, the item’s name will continue show up as red in the player’s inventory. This marks it as stolen, and they won’t be able to sell it to normal merchants. (The exception to this is stolen gold, which players can use to buy goods from merchants as normal.) If players have stolen (red) items in their inventory, the guards will confiscate them if players get arrested and either serve time or pay a fine. This includes stolen gold.
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Unlike normal merchants, fences accept every kind of item, including stolen items. Since almost every fence inSkyrimworks for the Thieves Guild, this means players must join the Guild to get rid of stolen items. The alternativeis to reach 90 Speechand get the perk Fence, which allows players to sell stolen goods to any merchant.
Guild fences start out with 1000 gold to spend on player items, but this limit increases by 1000 for each reputation quest players complete, up to a limit of 4000. Players can only increase this to 5000 by getting the Speech perk Master Trader.
All Thieves' Guild Fences
Tonilia (Riften)
Tonilia is the fence in theRagged Flagon,the headquarters of the Thieves Guild. As such, players get access to her services first, and all they have to do is join the guild. The quest to become a member is"Taking Care of Business,“and once it is complete, players can use the shortcut in the cemetery and do business with Tonilia. As players complete more guild quests, more merchants will set up shop in the Flagon, but Tonilia will remain the only fence.
Mallus Maccius (Whiterun)
Players will unlock Mallus Maccius as a fence after completing the main Thieves Guild quest"Dampened Spirits.“He’s the closest fence to Whiterun, and while he doesn’t live in town, players can alwaysfind him atHonningbrew Meadery, which has its own fast-travel waypoint. This makes him a very convenient fence for most players.
Gulum-Ei (Solitude)
Gulum-Ei is a central figure in the next Thieves Guild quest,“Scoundrel’s Folly.“Players can choose to kill him during the quest, but if they spare his life, he’ll become a fence in Solitude. Once the quest is over, Gulum-Eispends most of his time inThe Winking Skeever,the tavern just to the left of the city entrance.
Enthir (Winterhold)
During the Thieves Guild quest"Hard Answers,“players need to find a translator. The person who puts players on the right track is Enthir,a member of theCollege of Winterholdwho dabbles in smuggling. Encountering Enthir during “Hard Answers” will unlock his inventory, but players can also join the College and then talk to him about how he can “get things done.”
Since Enthir isn’t a true Thieves Guild fence, he only has 500 gold on hand instead of the larger amount that Guild fences get. Still, he accepts stolen goods like any other fence, and he’s a good source of rare materials like daedra heartsand black soul gems.
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Endon (Markarth)
Players can unlock Endon as a fence by completing a reputation quest in Markarth. To get this quest, players must complete five jobs in Markarthassigned by Delvin, Vex, or both. Once these have been completed, speak to Delvin to start the quest"Silver Lining.”
Once “Silver Lining” is complete, Endon will act as a fence. He spends his days wandering the city streets,but Markarth’s confusing layout can make him hard to find. To find him, players should wait until the late evening, because Endon always spends his nights at theSilver-Blood Inn.
Niranye (Windhelm)
Niranye is another fence players unlock with a reputation quest, this one in Windhelm. Once again, players should complete five jobs in Windhelm and then speak to Delvin to start the quest"Summerset Shadows.”
Much like Gulum-Ei, players may end up killing Niranye as part of the quest. However, if players take the time to find evidence and confront Niranye, she becomes a Guild fence after the quest is over, stationed in theWindhelm marketplace. She’s also a useful merchant who sells enchanted equipment even before becoming a fence.
The Khajiiti Caravans
After completing three reputation quests, speak to Tonilia. She wants to bringthe Khajiiti caravans that travel acrossSkyrimin on their smuggling operation. To start things off on the right foot, she asks the Dragonborn todeliver a gift of moon sugar to Ri’saad,the leader of the Whiterun-Markarth caravan. Ri’saad will accept, and after players get back to Tonilia, a member of each caravan will become a Guild fence.
The first fence isAtahbah, who is part of Ri’saad’s caravan. The second isZaynabi, who travels with Ahkari on her route between Dawnstar and Riften. The last fence isMa’jhad, who’s part of Ma’dran’s caravan between Solitude and Windhelm.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimis available now on PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
