Agreed with @Pepper-Head there it's very much dependent on the style and execution of the game and what the overall aim is of your players. Going to infamously use Skyrim as another example here where at the end of the long civil war quest line, the execution of either General Tulius or Ulfric Stormcloak doesn't //actually// reward players with all that much but the defeat of an entire army and brilliantly scripted ending is almost a personal accomplishment. Same goes for when you finally kill Alduin after falling down the mountain three times... a few dragon bones isn't an amazing reward in terms of items and currency but your character is famous and the storyline changes are really well played out.
In oblivion however, with the Knights of the Nine quest (is that right? With the wayshrines) you don't get much of a decent story line however the set of armour at the end is awesome - despite treading across 3/4 of Cyradill in order to do so