Padomay, also known as Fadomai,[1] Padhome,[2] or PSJJJJ,[OOG 1] is a primordial deity who personifies the concepts of chaos and change. Padomay is always associated with its equal/opposite force, Anu, and is heavily associated with the creation of the Aurbis.
When Anu birthed its own soul to create Anui-El,[3] Padomay, being Anu's opposite did the same and created the god Sithis.[OOG 2] Sithis and Anui-El's interplay and the conditions they set on each other would be what actually forms the Aurbis.[3]
It is believed that all Daedric Princes are purely Padomaic and contributed nothing to the creation of Mundus and that the Aedra are both Anuic and Padomaic.[4] Whether this is true or not is unknown but there do seem to be deities that contradict this, most notably the Daedric Prince Meridia who was one of the Magna Ge, implying that she did contribute to the creation of Mundus and that she was partially Anuic.[5]
In The Elder Scrolls lore, Aurbis is the name for the universe. It includes Mundus, Oblivion, the Void, and Aetherius. It is the overlap of the two cosmic forces: Anu and Padomay.
Its extremities in all directions are believed to be the Void. More to the inside of Aurbis is Magna Ge and the planes of Oblivion. The center of Aurbis is Mundus, the mortal plane, and the center of Mundus is Nirn.
Anu, also known as Anu the Everything, is one of the two primordial deities associated with the creation of Aurbis.[1] Anu is an equal and opposite force to his counterpart, most commonly called Padomay, and is often considered to exist within all things and personifies order, stasis, and light.[2][3] According to some, most notably those who worship Padomaic beings, Anu was nothing but a static force incapable of consciousness, personality, intent or will, being depicted as immutable static light that does not change.
Anu is neither an Aedra nor a Daedra; he predates the creation of both groups and played a part in their creation with his younger "brother" Padomay. In The Annotated Anuad, it is stated that, when Anu and Padomay came into being, they both engaged in combat over Nir, who was "created from their interplay" and birthed the Twelve Worlds of Creation. Anu and Padomay fought over Nir, who died in the process. Anu then created Nirn out of the remainder of the Twelve Worlds.[3]
According to this account, the Et'Ada were created when Anu and Padomay's blood was spilled. Their mixed blood supposedly gave birth to the Aedra, while Anu's blood became the Magna Ge and Padomay's blood would end up giving birth to the Daedra. However, the authenticity of this clash is still debatable.[3]
According to the Aldmeri, after the clash between Anu and Padomay, Anu birthed his own soul so that he could understand himself and self-reflect. This reborn soul was known as Anui-El and, in turn, became the soul of all things.[2] However, as Anu created Anui-El, Padomay birthed his soul, Sithis,[OOG 1] who represented all the limitations of Anui-El. Anui-El then noticed that the world created in their conflict, the Aurbis, was turbulent and chaotic. In order to stabilize the Aurbis and further his self-reflection, Anui-El birthed his own soul in the same way as Anu before him. Anui-El's soul was known as Auri-El and began a new force known as time. Time allowed the realm of Aurbis to realize its natures and limitations, and thus the Et'Ada born from the blood finally began to take forms and names.[2] As a response to this action, Sithis birthed his own soul, Lorkhan, to destroy the universe he hated.
Sithis, also known as Akel,[1] SITHISIT,[2] Psijii,[OOG 1] and the Dread-Father,[3] and not to be confused with Padomay, is a deity representative of emptiness and the void. Other sources say that he is also a representation of utter misanthropy.[OOG 2] He is worshipped by the Dark Brotherhood and many other cults. Although usually referred to as male by the Dark Brotherhood, Sithis, like most deities, has no gender.
Sithis is neither an Aedra nor a Daedra. Sithis is the birthed soul incarnate of Padomay and the equal yet opposite force to Anui-El, who is the birthed soul incarnate of Padomay's opposite force, Anu.[OOG 3] The conditions Sithis and Anui-El placed on each other in their interplay would bring about the creation of what is known as the Aurbis, in which the realms of Aetherius, Oblivion, and Mundus would form. It is implied that the Daedra may have been created from Sithis.[4] When Anui-El birthed his soul, Auri-El, to stabilize the then confusing and turbulent Aurbis by creating time, Sithis birthed his own soul, Lorkhan, as well.[OOG 3][1] Sithis is believed to have created Lorkhan to destroy the universe through trickery and deceit, and return the universe to the void.
Sithis, in the eyes of the Altmer, is nothing but an embodiment of all the limitations Anui-El used to ponder himself after his creation. But according to Sithis worshipers, Anuiel was actually one of many ideas created by Sithis that refused to die and enslaved the universe.[5] Sithis is described as the embodiment of everything evil, but at the same time, he is described as being nothing at all: a void. He is appeased through death (although he himself is not a god of death) and other acts of suffering and strife.[7]
In the belief of the Dark Brotherhood, Sithis visited a Dunmer woman who gave birth to five children of Sithis. The Dunmer woman then claimed to hear the voice of Sithis in her head, telling her to send their children to him. However this could not be achieved easily, so she sacrificed her five children, thus sending them to the Void to reunite with their father. Following this, many angry citizens killed the Dunmer lady for her actions and burnt down her house. It is said that this action created the Night Mother. At least 30 years after this, a man heard voices in his head, much like the Night Mother heard Sithis. He followed the voices to her tomb and it was there the first Listener of the Dark Brotherhood was created.[7] Following this and the establishment of the Dark Brotherhood that worships Sithis, he became much more publicly worshiped throughout all of Tamriel than he was before. The Dark Brotherhood believe that Sithis is 'married' to The Night Mother, and the Dark Brotherhood are their metaphorical children.[8] According to some sources, the Night Mother may actually be the Daedric Prince Mephala.[9][10]
Also called Shor, Lorkhaj, Shezarr, Sep. Most directly responible for the existence of Nirn; Lorkhan died long ago, and in giving his life created Nirn. He hasn't influenced much directly during the Third Era though he was responsible for three major near-disasters at the end of the Third Era (indirectly) and his remains are connected to the disappearance of the Dwemer.
Like Akatosh, Lorkahn is the only othe Aedra who appears in every mythology on Nirn but depending on the race, opinions vary. He's generally considered an enemy of the mer and a patron/hero to men. Being called Shezarr, the Missing God, reflects that he's the only one of the Aedra to truly die and vanish.
To the mer he's called the Trickster since they blame Lorkhan for tricking the other Aedra into giving up their divinity, including those who'd become the Elhnofey and Altmer, meaning they blame him for their mortality. The Dunmer are a little less vicious since they think mortality is a test of their strength and he's an obstacle to be overcome in the quest to their destiny of shedding their mortality. (The Dunmer are weird but also cursed so y'know.)
Men of course are stuffed full of butthurt, don't think they're descended from the Aedra and think Lorkhan alone created them because men are men. Lorkhan is their big hero and they're taking their ball and going home if everyone else is mean about him.
A man once known as Tiber Septim, Ysmir Dragon of the North, and Dragonborn who united all the nations of Tamriel into a single Empire. The Eight Divines are said to have made a place for him when he ascended to godhood with him as the God of War, Governance and the Hero-God of Man. However the Aldmeri Dominion disagreed and as part of the White-Gold Condcordat at the end of the Great War, the Thalmor were instigators in outlawing Talos worship given that he was a man, a man couldn't become Divine so he wasn't a god, so he shouldn't be worshiped.
Aedra are one of the two groups who created Mundus, with their name meaning 'our ancestors' to refer to the role they played for mer and men. For most cultures on Tamriel, they're revered as gods.
With Oblivion as the night sky, they're considered by some to be planets with the largest eight considered to be the Divines while the stars are the Magna Ge.
Like the Daedra, the Aedra have their spheres where they oversee depending on the cultural pantheon although there are commonalities between the various cultures. However the constants are the dragon god of time, commonly called Akatosh, and the missed god, commonly called Lorkhan. By some account, there are two group of Aedra on Mundus following the creation of Mundus. Some, led by Auriel, fought against Lorkhan and his followers, and they eventually became the Old Ehlnofey and from that the Aldmer. Others joined with Lorkhan and became men.
The Aedra differ to the Daedra in that they are bound to Mundus and can possibly killed. This might have happened to Lorkhan after the meeting at the Adamnatine Tower. However, an another account suggests he wasn't killed, instead being condemend to exile with his heart torn out.
Daedra literally means 'not our ancestors' and rule over their own planes of Oblivion if they're Daedric Princes; they refused to take part in the creation of Mundus and cannot be permanently killed, only banished. Worship or conjuring can summon the Daedra to Nirn.
Generally not considered 'evil' by the general populace, it's argued that their actions are above what mortal minds can understand with none being wholly good or evil. The 'good' ones might seem that way because what they seek to accomplish is generally beneficial/benevolent to mortals with the 'evil' ones more likely to harm mortals. Also their morality can be viewed through different cultural lenses on top of them being difficult to understand for mortals.
Serving a Prince isn't unlike a deal with the devil; you might be rewarded well for your service but you'll be required to do something morally questionable (or worse) to obtain their favour with service lasting through life and death. However depending on Prince and/or person, this might be an upside.
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago Player: "I like this world. I don't want it to end."
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago Paarthurnax: "Pruzah (Good). As good a reason as any. There are many who feel as you do, although not all. Some would say that all things must end, so that the next can come to pass. Perhaps this world is simply the Egg of the next kalpa*? Lein vokiin (world unborn)? Would you stop the next world from being born?"
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago dragonborn is a balancing point; those who wish to hasten the end are unwittingly slowing it, those who wish to stop it are unwittingly hurrying it
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago so do not complete the main quest
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago see: the kirkbride archives
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago since i believe that alduin truly is an aspect/offshoot/piece of akatosh (subtheory: all of the dragons are divinely tied to akatosh) because it's so heavily implied as subtext it's basically text
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago and then there's the what the thalmor are doing since it involves time or unravelling it; elenwen is either misinformed (fairly unlikely) or lying when she says the thalmor don't know and have nothing to do with the dragons
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago tied to that: the dragonborn is playing into the thalmor agenda
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago the thalmor want to do as the dwemer did, they want to escape the dreamsleeve and become immortal again - how else do you do that? you break the dragon
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago also related to bronach specifically: the towers and how falinesti was one of the towers prior to the rooting
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago also alduin as the adamantium tower because...it might not need to be a physical thing?
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ 44 minutes ago also...akatosh = anu, talos = lorkhan in the lore and how the dragonborn has a similar relationship with talos to being divine/chosen/blessed/incarnate of akatosh???
wondering how much bronach is possibly going to try putting together about grey wardens given what she knows about being a dragonborn and what inessa just told her
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago i'm probably going to have to sit and read about mantling generally again, possibly the nu-mantia intercepts, padomay/anu, there's a sithis thing i'm trying to track down but i can't find the wording
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago the worst possible combination of words in relation to dragons, slaying them, and them rising again came up and i'm just laugh-crying at what this is possibly going to unleash no one would ever confirm it for her if she did put pieces together but by christ she would work at it
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs delete 11 days ago Archdemons have a form of immortality that only Grey Wardens can overcome. Without us, their death is only temporary. History abounds of battles bought without the Wardens, only for a slain archemon to arise again. Their will, and their taint, endures.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago then i look at the scrolls wiki which gives this in relation to dragons: The College of Whispers has questioned several Dremora, who claim dragons simply "were, and are": eternal, immortal, unchanging, and unyielding.[4] In this respect, the dragons are closer to the Daedra than to animals and the mortal races;
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago they are ageless and immortal, with their souls enduring beyond physical death, and they do not mate or breed as animals do.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago The dragon cult itself, however, survived. They built the dragon mounds, entombing the remains of dragons that fell in the war, believing that one day the dragons would rise again and reward the faithful.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs delete 11 days ago bronach has fought the dragon priests, has seen alduin bring back dragons from bare bones
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago i'm tired and interpreting scrolls lore is a pain but iirc it was during the dragon wars - that bronach witnessed part of through the elder scroll she read - that when the ancient nords were taught shouts, that's when they were able to kill dragons because of how dragons are uniquely tied to time itself
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago and if they're all offshoots of akatosh aka all part of the divine then it makes even more sense that it's only very specific individuals who are capable of actually killing them for good since the dragonborn learns shouts from the innate understanding in the soul of the dragon they've called allowing them to master the thing
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago so if a dragon is killed by another thing, the soul stays with the skeleton and all that has to be done is for the name to be said to the skeleton (by alduin or probably another dragon but we'll say alduin)
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago now put that next to what inessa told her about archdemons
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago and also how the nord heroes were given knowledge no one else has
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago like...there is some shit going on and bronach is unhappy
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago one of the best things i have open all the time is the imperial library which has every codex entry as well as michael kirkbride's forum archives where he got so wild and deep on the lore and a lot of wild thoughts i've had feel pretty confirmed or less and now my brain is cracked
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago there's also the whole thing where one of the deities shot an arrow through something and like fired the corpse of something else across and the moons are literally rotting flesh hanging in the sky
Time; Alduin is the World-Eater which means he's the concept of time ending. Akatosh is the concept of time, Alduin is the concept of linear time, Auri-El is infinite looping time. Welcome to Elder Scrolls your brain is on fire.
Re: completing the main quest
Player: "I like this world. I don't want it to end." Paarthurnax: "Pruzah (Good). As good a reason as any. There are many who feel as you do, although not all. Some would say that all things must end, so that the next can come to pass. Perhaps this world is simply the Egg of the next kalpa*? Lein vokiin (world unborn)? Would you stop the next world from being born?"
*A kalpa is an epoch of time comprised of the birth, life and death of that specific period.
Paarthurnax after learning Dragonrend: "the very bones of the earth are at your disposal"
Paarthurnax after defeating Alduin: "perhaps you begin to see the world as a dovah" fucking validating literally all my rp choices as bronach when paarthurnax just brought up insight into the currents of time that the dragonborn might have now
Player: "Why live alone on a mountain if you love conversation?" Paarthurnax: Extinguish hunger. There are many hungers it is better to deny than to feed. Do not feed. Discipline against the lesser aids in qahnaar… denial of the greater."
Player: "The prophecy says that only the Dragonborn can stop him." Paarthurnax: "True… But qostiid - prophecy - tells what may be, not what should be. Prophecy is a weak guide. Just because you can do a thing, does not always mean you should. Do you have no better reason for acting than destiny? Are you nothing more than a plaything of dez… of fate?"
Player: "I didn't come here to debate philosophy with you." Paarthurnax: "Hahaha! You have much to learn of the dov, then. There is nothing else but philosophy to a dovah. It is no accident that we do battle with our Thu'um, our Voices. There is no distinction between debate and combat to a dragon. Talk is battle. For us it is one and the same."
Player: "What better reason to act than to fulfill my destiny?" Paarthurnax: "If you can see your destiny clearly, your sight is clearer than mine. Dahmaan - remember, Alduin also follows his destiny, as he sees it. But, I bow before your certainty. In a way, I envy you. The curse of much knowledge is often indecision."
Player: "I don't believe in destiny. But I will stop Alduin." Paarthurnax: "And so, perhaps, your destiny will be fulfilled. Who can say? Fate slippery. Even to the dov, who ride the currents of Time, destiny is elusive. Alduin believes that he will prevail, with good reason. He strong. And he is no fool. Not fool, very far from. Far from it. He began as the wisest and most far-seeing of us all. "
Player: "The next world will have to take care of itself." Paarthurnax: "Fair. A fair answer. Balance force… maybe you only balance the forces that work to quicken the end of this world. Even we who ride the currents of Time cannot see past Time's end…The whirlwind/vortex of time is treachorous/turbulent. Those who try to hasten the end, may delay it. Those who work to delay the end, may bring it closer."
Paarthurnax re: the blades wanting to kill him; The Blades are wise not to trust me. Wisdom not trust. I would not trust another dragon. Dragons were created for domination. We were made to dominate. The will to power is in our blood. You feel it in yourself, do you not? I can be trusted. I know this. But they do not. Wisdom is not trusting a dragon. It is always wise to mistrust a dovah. I have overcome my nature only through meditation and long study of the Way of the Voice. No day goes by where I am not tempted to return to my inborn nature. Honour is fighting the lure of power. What is better - to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?
Player: I was just fulfilling my destiny as Dragonborn Paarthurnax: Indeed, you saw more clearly than I - certainly more clearly than Alduin. Rok funta koraav (he failed to see). Perhaps now you have some insight into the forces that shape the Vennesetiid...the currents of Time. Perhaps you begin to see the world as a dovah.
Mantling is a process whereby an individual can achieve apotheosis; that is, become a god. It is frequently considered one of the Six Walking Ways, the Fourth, and is sometimes called the Steps of the Dead.[OOG 1]
The process of mantling appears to involve taking up of a role, which then grants the person the power and, to an extent, the identity, associated with that role. It can be used to reshape the nature of gods,[OOG 2] and in the examples that we have of the process all involve the manipulation of a deity in some form.
Note that none of these examples are fully confirmed by independent sources, or stated fully to be "mantling" in any context. Their status is therefore debatable, but are discussed here to provide examples of this concept.
Talos The Arcturian Heresy gives an account that implies that Hjalti Early-Beard, Zurin Arctus and Wulfharth mantle Lorkhan in their construction and use of the Numidium. Of particular note, the Underking loses his heart and tears a hole in Zurin's chest,[1] mimicking Auriel's or Trinimac's tearing out of Lorkhan's heart.[2][3] In addition to this, Tiber Septim led a war against the mer, just as Lorkhan had led a war against Auri-El.[2][4]
Sheogorath During the Greymarch at the end of the Third Era, the Champion of Cyrodiil undertook a variety of tasks to defeat Jyggalag.[5] At the end of this process, Jyggalag addresses the Champion as Sheogorath, suggesting that they have become the same being at that point.[6]
The Tribunal One of Vivec's writings may imply that the Tribunal have mantled the Anticipations, in claiming that "Six are the guardians of Veloth, three before and they are born again", Vivec is implying that the Tribunal took on the roles of Azura, Boethiah and Mephala by mantling.[7] The Tribunal Temple implies that this may be their orthodox claim to divinity, stating that the Tribunal became "high ancestor spirits" where the Daedra are "ancestor spirits", with the strong implication that the Tribunal and the Daedra became one and the same kind of being, at least in respect to Dunmer theology.[8]
The Trial of Vivec further implies that the Tribunal stole worship from the Anticipations, and Vivec states, "from [the Anticipations'] basis did we spring, called to heaven by violence, our people throwing our mantles to us across stars, and across time, and magic and dream, and here we remain."[OOG 3] However, the same source states that this was not the Tribunal's primary path to godhood.
Most of the examples we have seem to indicate that the process is only possible when the entity being mantled is in some way absent from the world. However, the example of the Tribunal could either disprove this, or suggest that mantling has a wider application than generally thought (see note below). Nu-Hatta of the Sphinxmoth Enquiry Tree could potentially imply that mantling is not just the fourth Walking Way, but that there are different ways to mantle, and that Talos used the fourth way to do so.[OOG 1] The notion of being given a mantle by others, as suggested in the case of the Tribunal, could also support this idea.
Apotheosis Apotheosis, is a rare process by which a mortal ascends into godhood.[1] For example, Tiber Septim, who became the god Talos.[2][3] Another example is Reman Cyrodiil, who later became worshiped in some sectors of Tamriel as the god Reman.[citation needed] A more famous example is the Tribunal Temple in Morrowind. In The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles, the Hero of Kvatch achieved this process and became the Mad God, Sheogorath.[2] Mannimarco is also an example of someone who ascended into godhood.[4]
Afterlife Bosmer- The Bosmer afterlife differs the most from others. When Yffre (first of the Ehlnofey) died, a Bosmer witnessed him become apart of the earth and therefore refer to the Ehlnofey as “Earth Bones”. Bosmer therefore theorized in their own religion that they return to nature. Possibly connected with the Dreamsleeve to be reincarnated, but through nature’s choice. Not every Bosmer will become reincarnated, but rather their own spirit becomes one with nature again.
the Dreamsleeve- It is a generic form of spiritual reincarnation for spirits who do not make a bond or are affected by any sort of pull of the soul,. For example: An Imperial dies, his soul goes to the Dreamsleeve and his energy is put into Mundus (the spiritual part of Nirn) the soul can find its way back into the physical being of Nirn and be reincarnated but however is not guaranteed.
Sithis is the start of the house. Before him was nothing, but the foolish Altmer have names for and revere this nothing. That is because they are lazy slaves. Indeed, from the Sermons, 'stasis asks merely for itself, which is nothing.'
Sithis sundered the nothing and mutated the parts, fashioning from them a myriad of possibilities. These ideas ebbed and flowed and faded away and this is how it should have been.
Varieties of Faith: The Argonians
Argonians also venerate Sithis, the primordial Shadow/Chaos that existed before the gods were born.
The Monomyth
In most cultures, Anuiel is honored for his part of the interplay that creates the world, but Sithis is held in highest esteem because he's the one that causes the reaction. Sithis is thus the Original Creator, an entity who intrinsically causes change without design.
[...]
Anuiel, as all souls, was given to self-reflection, and for this he needed to differentiate between his forms, attributes, and intellects. Thus was born Sithis, who was the sum of all the limitations Anuiel would utilize to ponder himself.
[...]
At first the Aurbis was turbulent and confusing, as Anuiel's ruminations went on without design.
[...]
These things were new and they often made mistakes, for there was hardly time to practice being things before. So most things ended quickly or were not good or gave up on themselves. Some things were about to start, but they were eaten up as Satak got to that part of its body. This was a violent time.
Source of Chaos
Padomay is just as ineffable an entity as Anu. This is how the Psijiic Order treats him, at least. His original (Aldmeris? Ehlnofex?) name is PSJJJJ, which is and was meant to be unpronounceable. The Order was founded and organized to divine Padomay's eternal and ever-changing mystery. "Sithis" is a corruption of "Psijii" which, in turn, was a derivation of the high concept PSJJJJ. Sithis was born when a nihilist sect of the already doom-ridden Chimeri merged (under Mephala’s tutelage) Daedric elements with the Inexpressible Action that was Padomay. In essence they began to revere Padomay's Chaos nature (as opposed to that of Anu, who is Order), and over the years degenerated into a thuggish mystery-cult which wanted to "murder the world."
Sermon Ten
Divide ye like your enemies, in Houses, and lay your laws in set sequence from the center, again like the enemy Corners of the House of Troubles, and see yourself thence as timber, or mud-slats, or sheets of resin. Then do not divide, for yet is the stride of SITHISIT quicker than the rush of enemies, and He will sunder the whole for the sake of a shingle.
For we go different, and in thunder. SITHISIT is the start of all true Houses, built against stasis and lazy slaves.
Sermon Twenty-One
They are the lent bones of the Aedra, the Eight gift-limbs to SITHISIT, the wet earth of the new star our home.
Vehk's Teaching
As the process of subcreation continued, both Anu and Padhome awakened. For to see your antithesis is to finally awaken. Each gave birth to their souls, Auriel and Sithis, and these souls regarded the Aurbis each in their own part, and from this came the etada, the original patterns.
[...]
Padhome’s firstborn went wandering from the start, changing as he went, and wanted no name but was branded with Lorkhan.
[...]
Now Lorkhan had by at this point seen everything there was to see, and could accept none of it. Here were the etada with their magic and their voids and everything in between and he yearned for the return to flux but at the same time he could not bear to lose his identity.
Summary
Sithis = Altmeri name for Padomay, and according to Vehk, the same thing as Lorkhan.
In most stories the spirits of the universe are created from the 'interplay' of Anu and Padomay but in the Altmeri tradition it's different (because of course it is) where Anui-el creates Sithis by 'defining his limits.
So by naming something you create the opposite by negative implication.
Which is why we get the whole birthing oneself...thing. But in Altmeri stories, they don't interplay to create everything else and instead anui-el divides himself up into all the other spirits and Sithis becomes Lorkhan alone.
So Anuiel brought immortality to the Aurbis and stasis. Constant change will also be death in the end anyway, which is why the Morag Tong see murder/the act of causing death as a celebration of living.
The Creation of Aurbis image 1; the Aurbis begins In this image we see the dream of ANU, or Satak-Coiled, as it began - one totality, unsundered, drifting within the great void that the Khajiit call Namiira.
image 2; the Aurbis differentiates In this image we see the naming of the first "character" of ANU's dream; HIMSELF. Anu, Anuiel, Ahnurr, whichever name you use, this character acts independently from the totality of ANU. Due to the principle of PSJJJJ, once one thing is Named, you, by implication create an Other. What Anuiel IS, the Other IS NOT. What the Other IS, Anuiel IS NOT. That "other" is called Padomay, Sithis, Fadomai.
image 3; the Aurbis populates In this image we see the birth of the first "true" spirits. The first is TIME, which goes by many names. Each of these are parts of Anui-El which differentiate themselves from the whole. They are his aspects. They begin to make realms within themselves, looking inward for enlightenment - navel gazing; making Realms.
image 4; the Aurbis' last child Sickened by the inward-vision of the "children" of Auri-El, Sithis (or just a part of Sithis - accounts differ) begins to wander the Aurbis. The spirits call him Lorkhan, and he cares not to correct them. Coming to the edge of the Aurbis, he, rather than gazing inward, gazes outward - into the Great Void in which ANU sleeps. Realising the nature of the Aurbis, Lorkhan comes upon the cusp of CHIM and develops the idea of the Amaranth.
image 5; the lesser void Wandering throughout the Aurbis, Lorkhan teaches the children of Anui-El about the Great Void, about CHIM, and some begin to listen. Although none of the students quite "get" it, they start to fashion Voids about themselves, just as the Dreamer sits in a Void. They isolate themselves, making realms within themselves to mimic the Dreamer, but none achieve CHIM; none become Amaranth.
image 6; void follows void But Void Follows Void, and as the students of Lorkhan began to grow in number, so did the Voids begin to coalesce. What had once been a sea of magick foam began to split into areas of clear Void and clear Magick.
image 7; Oblivion At this time Magick and Void were fully distinct. They became known as Aetherius and Oblivion.
image 8; the Aurbis today But Lorkhan was not happy with his students and their followers. None had achieved CHIM; none had become Amaranth. So he devised a new plan; the Mundus. And we all know that story (at least, we know several different versions of it).
Notes
Some spirits gift their whole selves to Mundus; they become the earth bones.
Eight spirits gift only a limb; only a part they're the gift limbs and only partially 'within' Nirn so they retain their autonomy and can maintain their own realm (planets) e.g. Akatosh, Arkay, Julianos are the 'eyes' of the warrior, thief, and mage constellations respectively since their planet sits as an 'eye' in each figure.
CHIM: is a state in which one can break free of all known laws and corruptions of Oblivion. It allows for the user to return to a state before the mingling of Anu and Padomay and manipulate the Aurbis how they please.
Aurbis: the name of the universe. It includes Mundus, Oblivion, the Void, and Aetherius. It is the overlap of the two cosmic forces: Anu and Padomay.
The Bosmer Spinner stood before the rising moons, a shadow fingering a belt of glittering shells.
"Heavy-bearded Y'ffre, speak through me. Tell us of the time before time. Let the story grow in me. Let my heart echo to the pounding of your feet along the story-lines, the bones of the world. I will walk Your steps, and know Your story."
The Spinner's eyes flickered closed. His fingertips slid along the belt, picking out the shape and orientation of the shells. He raised a foot, and with deliberation stamped it on the ground.
"Speak through me, Y'ffre. Tell us of the drum-play of Mara, who beat out a pulse against the darkness that gnawed Old Ehlnofey. Mara, whose eyes glitter like hot coals, known of mer and knowing mer, mother of a thousand-thousand children. She who looks at Arkay's form and does not blush, but breathes deep the scent of Him."
The Spinner took thumping, methodical steps across the hilltop, eyes closed, hands tracing the patterns of shells wrapped around his chest. His voice shamed the night-calls of nearby insects to silence.
The others watching were reverently silent, eyes closed, swaying in time with the Spinner's steps. His feet slowed, pounding deep footprints in the earth. He no longer spoke; he sighed. He whispered.
"'We are who we are,' the taller tribe says, in a voice made of leaf-shivers. 'We taste the earth and feel your steps over us. We were the land of green singing before the bones were set. Before the before-and-after.'"
This is a story the Wood Elves of Valenwood tell their children from a very young age.
Once, there was nothing but formlessness. The land held no shape, the trees did not harden into timber and bark, and the Elves themselves shifted from form to form. This formlessness was called the Ooze.
But Y'ffre took the Ooze and ordered it. First, she told of the Green, the forest and all the plant life in it. She gave the Green the power to shape itself as it willed, for it was her first tale.
The Elves were Y'ffre's second tale. As Y'ffre spun the story, the Elves took the form they have today. Y'ffre gave them the power to tell stories, but warned them against trying to shape themselves or the Green. Shifting and the destruction of the forest were forbidden.
Instead, Y'ffre commended the Wood Elves to the Green, so that they might ask the Green to provide them with shelter and a safe passage, and as long as they respected the Green, it would obey. This is called the Green Pact.
Finally, Y'ffre told of all the beasts that crawl on the land or swim in the rivers or fly in the air. These, Y'ffre gave to the Wood Elves as sustenance. They were to eat no plants but consume only meat. Y'ffre also told that no Wood Elf who is struck down by another Wood Elf should be allowed to sink into the ground, but should instead be consumed, like the beasts. This is called the Meat Mandate.
When the stories were told, Y'ffre saw that they had a pleasing shape, but some of the Ooze remained. Y'ffre told a final tale then, and gave purpose to the Ooze.
Any Wood Elf that violated the Green Pact, either by shifting or by damaging the Green, would be condemned to return to the formlessness of the Ooze. Their names would be scrubbed from the story Y'ffre is telling and replaced with silence.
The Wood Elves tell that those who are favored by the Green have the power to release the condemned from the Ooze, but where the condemned go and what form they take once they are released is unknown.
No one has ever seen the Ooze, or heard the souls trapped in it, or met the one who can relieve the condemned of their punishment. But if you ask a Wood Elf if he thinks the Ooze is "just a tale," he will invariably reply, "There is no such thing as 'just a tale.'"
Many years before your time, and many well before mine, great creatures walked the surface of Nirn. Where they came from, none could say. After a time they faded and vanished, all gone away to the lost corners of the world. All save one.
A great beast made entirely of bones did burrow a writhing path through the ground, named the Destroyer by those who survived its passage. Though none could say where it went or what drove it, all knew the barren swaths of land in its wake.
It is said the Destroyer's coming could be felt as a quailing of the sod a full day before its arrival. When it arrived in a place, the great beast would writhe about, shattering walls and toppling buildings. Cliffs would turn to slurry in the great quakes brought by its pursuit, and many a pod home burst beneath its bones. It did so until it found Men or Mer who could answer its question.
For the Destroyer would always question its victims. The oldest accounts of these questions were all variations on, "Where can I find the old bones?" The canniest of those asked would point in a direction deemed most expediently away from, and least destructive to, their remaining homes.
As the Destroyer searched—evidently in vain—its questions changed. As it neared the end of its rampage it was known to ask, "May I sleep here? It has been so long since I slept."
The only one known to answer "yes" to this question was the treethane of Falinesti, the Walking City. Knowing Falinesti would soon move on from where it wintered in Southpoint, she convinced the Destroyer to sleep in the boughs of Arborfell, an orchard known for its abundance of bats.
There, the Y'ffre priesthood planted a blessed seed in the skull of the great beast as it slept. This seed soon grew into a sapling, the sapling into a great tree, and the great tree into the Barrowbough. The bones have not stirred since.
In the ages following the Destroyer's final rest, ancient bones have sometimes been unearthed throughout Valenwood. Though silent, these remains are brought to Arborfell—now the "Bone Orchard"—in hopes that they will always remain so.
This tradition has spread throughout Valenwood. Bosmer far and wide have taken to burying the bones of their loved ones in the shade of the Barrowbough. Here they believe Y'ffre will grant his blessing, a final sleep for the lost.
Changes in the wind. The leaves. The flow of water. Even the animals seemed to sense a difference. The Voice of the People silenced.
The Silvenar had died. Not unexpected, but an event often attended by varying degrees of turmoil.
Had the city come first, or the Silvenar? No one seemed to know, nor care. There once was chaos, and then came generations of structure. Well, something like structure. Organized mayhem, more like it.
The next Silvenar, a young lad, poised to take up the mantle.
"They're waiting," the attendant said. She held out an alabaster goblet filled with fermented broth.
"I know. Give me a moment." Indaenir closed his eyes and took a deep breath before accepting the ceremonial cup.
The Silvenar. The title wasn't officially his until the wedding, but he could already feel the changes. Like the beat of a moth's wings near his ear, Indaenir felt his new identity whispering to him in quick pulses. It tickled.
The Silvenar represented the Wood Elves. He or she would feel the will of the people and act upon it. The connection went both ways, as his or her influence could also sway the Wood Elves.
In bright springtime, when the ground is drunk with rainwater and the sun smiles on Valenwood, the Wood Elves travel to the Den of the Eldest, an ancient strangler. There, they offer thanks to Y'ffre for the blooming of yet another spring, and they read the history of their home in the branches of the Eldest.
Then, a great festival is thrown by the Green Pact Bosmer, in celebration of the Springtime and the Eldest. Then Elves celebrate long into the night, drinking and regaling each other with stories of past festivals and pilgrims.
The tales run both sacred and profane.
There's the tale of the notorious warlord whose entire army stopped at the Den of the Eldest and went in to pay their respects. When they emerged, they dropped their weapons to the ground and left them where they lay. They never made war again.
But there is also the tale of the impish Wood Elf who spiked the pilgrims' punch with a powder ground from the dung of timber mammoths, that caused the entire gathering to be troubled by the most foul odors from their backsides. Long into the night they groaned as the stink grew unbearable, until they were all so inured to the smell that their groans turned to bursts of laughter that filled the wood.
They also tell of the first pilgrims, an old, childless couple who tended the Eldest as their own offspring. They became the first Silvenar and the first Green Lady.
There are many more tales the pilgrims tell, but few have been written down. The curious would do best to travel to the Eldest in the Springtime and hear the stories and behold the ancient strangler for themselves.
Willowleg rubbed his ankle. Not broken, just twisted. He stood, putting weight on it very carefully. Good. It would hold. He'd fallen while on a journey through Valenwood. One of his legs was thinner than the other. Sometimes he forgot.
"Now to figure out where I am," Willowleg said. He looked at the swaying leaves high above, the hint of blue sky occasionally peeking through. To anyone but a Wood Elf, those brief glimpses would convey nothing, but Willowleg immediately turned to continue on his way.
Soon, he realized he wasn't alone. A little to his left walked another Wood Elf, dark green hair hanging unkempt about his face. Willowleg, used to traveling alone, noticed that his silent companion adjusted his pace to remain close without overtaking him.
"Going to Falinesti, too?" Willowleg asked.
"Yes."
Willowleg said congenially, "I hope I reach the summer site before it's too late."
The green-haired Wood Elf said, "You'll be fine." His tone indicated he didn't wish to speak further, so Willowleg simply nodded and kept walking.
They traveled together, silently, for the rest of the day. When Willowleg stopped to rest, the stranger also stopped. Willowleg shared water and dried meat. Then they began the last part of their journey. The trees thinned out, leaving a clearing into which Falinesti fit perfectly.
At the clearing's edge, the stranger stopped and put a hand on Willowleg's arm. Surprised, Willowleg realized the green-haired Elf's skin was rough and thick, like bark.
"Stay here," the stranger said, murmuring an incantation.
Willowleg, unable to move or speak, watched his companion walk to Falinesti's base and touch its bark with his forehead. The tree-city shuddered and began to move slowly, lifting its roots from the earth.
As the green-haired Elf walked off, leading Falinesti away, Willowleg felt the strange spell over him break, and movement returned with a tingling force through his limbs. He glanced down and saw that not only had his thin leg healed, but his shoes were missing.
"The Woodsmer," Willowleg whispered in awe. The Woodsmer, the mythic one who led the unwary astray in the woods, was also known to bestow favors on those who knew their way.
As Falinesti moved southward, Willowleg wondered which the city was.
The Bosmer find this work quite offensive, as stated in this letter.
by Kerandas Calvus, in the year 2723
The Empire now extends its reach into the Kingdom of Valenwood. Do not be surprised if during your travels you run into the Mer of the forest. The Wood Elves are surprisingly social, and can be very friendly with outsiders, but you must be aware of their peculiar culture and customs so as not to provoke them to anger.
The Wood Elves follow a strict religion called the Green Pact. Any Wood Elf who willingly takes up this pact is prohibited to harm any tree or plant in Valenwood. This includes chopping down trees, harvesting fruit, or digging vegetables from the ground.
As a result of this, Wood Elves who follow the Green Pact eat a strict diet of meat and cheeses. This very specific restriction in what they eat leads to certain physical reactions which you may not typically encounter in public, or with such frequency. If a Wood Elf makes mention of "feeding the fire," simply grow accustomed to breathing through your mouth for the count of twenty heartbeats.
While few Wood Elves will think badly of you for picking a flower or tapping a tree for sap, some will see this as an act of disrespect. Strictest adherents to the Green Pact may react quite strongly, perhaps violently.
This is not meant to alarm you! Remember to treat the forests of Valenwood with respect. If you are uncertain, speak with the nearest Wood Elf "treethane" for guidance. You never know who is watching.
My contact in Haven confirmed it. Fifty copies of the long discredited "Wood Elf Etiquette: An Imperial Perspective" arrived today. Their destination? The Altmer Embassy. They is what they think of us—flatulent bumpkins who fly into a rage if we see anyone trod upon a flower.
To Chancellor Ocato, in mastery! In triumph! In absolute moral good!
Forgive my direct sending, Chancellor, and know that I do this with the respect of every ancestor in my beard, but Grandmaster Jauffre has never responded to previous efforts to warn Empire Actual of the findings of the Sphinxmoth Inquiry Tree. I admit that these warnings may have been too esoteric to merit the attention they deserve.
In short, the Barrier is weakening, and I know why. Moreso, I have uncovered a conspiracy that stretches back to Dawntime and the split of Aldmeris. Empire Actual is threatened by forces of previous realities, and the Ayleids are not destroyed at all.
The moths closest to my ears and lips once served under Belharza the Bull during their corporeal stage. You know thereby the extent of my allegiance. Please give me permission to heard at the Elder Council, even if only by Ducal memo-spore.
Yours under the Red Diamond,
Nu-Hatta
Brother Nu-Hatta,
Yes. I recall your reports. Jauffre passed them up the channels. An interesting theory, but there was nothing there that we could act upon. Shadowy empire-spanning conspiracies? With all due respect to your eminent communicants, neither the Elder Scrolls nor the ancestor moths have ever provided us with much practical information. After the fact, yes, the prophecies always make sense then. Historians and scholars make their careers on such things.
But my business is the government of the Empire in the here and now, with a multitude of problems and dangers that are all too clear. I do not mean to be dismissive; give me something concrete, and you will see us act.
I remain,
Ocato of Firsthold, High Chancellor of the Elder Council, Imperial Battlemage, etc. etc.
"Then will mighty Akatosh reply, wherein the petitioner must be demand full freedom! To speak in the fires of time is to render the speaker a subject of the matron Jills, those servants of the Dragon that mend minutes without volunteer. Only through freedom can true words remain untouched."
My reports shall follow. I assume we move now to scrying by the Elders?
Yours under the Red Diamond,
Nu-Hatta
Brother Nu-Hatta,
Yes, very well. I don't know that the full Council will find your use of the dreamsleeve justified, but I leave that to you.
Ocato
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #3
Members of the Elder Council,
Forgive the brash medium through which this comes to you, but read by its stamp that Ocato has given the smallest of consent. Know too that the Cult of the Ancestor-Moth submits fully to the Council in all things, as it has done since Edict 18.x2n.3E2IS, even though the allegations of such legislature as being Simulacrum Terminatus is still in review.
Scholarship on the subject of the metaphysical Tower is at an all-time high. Not since the Selective have we seen so much dangerous interest in the shezzarite power-symbols. Do any here think this an accident? That such work is not influenced by doppeldream and unlawful messaging? Do any here think this is not the work of the Tharnatos and his sleepers?
The fall of Red Tower should not be seen as the suave conquest of Cyrodiil's agencies, for we have been tricked again by the Dagonites. Though through long eras the chimerical landgods have subverted Divine rule, their protection of the First Stone should have remained as it was: the ironic protection of our enemies to our Enemy.
The Towers of the terrestrial plane have had their histories cloaked in lies and misinterpretations. That the lands they hold dominion over reverberate with troubles now in east and west should give common consent that they are reacting to an Empire-wide attention, sublunar and on dread purpose.
By the implications of my introductory comments alone, I realize that some on the Council may wish to exercise their right of admonishment or call of silence. I withdraw the spore at this time to hear these; otherwise I shall proceed.
Proceed, by all means.
Though the Council may have the power to silence me, they can not enforce deafness. I am unable to confute the topic at hand in my sterile state.
Feeble and counterproductive am I in my position handed down by the Council.
Divayth Fyr
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #4
The beginnings of our present problem go back to the Merethic Era.
...
I hear rumblings of protest already. Please, let me assure you I shall abide by Council measure and present my findings in the accepted quadragraph form of old: metaphysical root, historical lessonates, present threat assessment, and assumption of enemy maneuvers. All Elders who wish to enter trance-state may do so now.
Aldmeris split during the Dawn, but as in all things then, these fractures enjoyed quasi-temporal amendments. Sometimes the Island of Start was with us, othertimes not or not of a whole, close as it was to spirit actual.
The Jills did not have their full powers; rather, I should say, all the mundex spirits had every power at every time amendment at every ordering, which is to say none of them could ever fully express; our world was young and so were its architect gods.
The next is known to all of us in different ways, and the impossibility of the Dawn lends all of these memories credence. I speak of the Ur-Tower, Adamantine, anon Direnni, and of its creation and purpose.
Auriel-that-is-Akatosh returned to Mundex Arena from his dominion planet, signaling all Aedra to convene at a static meeting that would last outside of aurbic time. His sleek and silver vessel became a spike into the changing earth and the glimmerwinds of its impact warned any spirit that entered aura with it would become recorded-- that by consent of presence their actions here would last of a period unassailable, and would be so whatever might come later to these spirits, even if they rejoined the aether or succumbed willingly or by treachery to a sithite erasure. Thus could the Aedra and their cohorts truly covene in realness.
Our forebears saw the erection of Ada-mantia, Ur-Tower, and the Zero Stone. Let the Elders acknowledge this truth: every Tower bears its Stone. The impossipoint of the Convention was the first, though another bears the true title of First Stone.
Because we are finally a pantheosophic assembly, I will not dictate whether Lorkhan was judged sacred or profane or transcendent at the Convention. My brothers at the Temple of the One may call a recess after my first graph to discuss this on the tertiary sense-gradient; sametime tendril-argument is encouraged by the Moth. It is my primary intention to show the echo effect of Ada-mantia and why it will eventually trouble Emperor Actual. I can only do this by telling the story of First Stone without causal debate.
"Aad semblio impera, dela can carpio semblex."
By these words I intone the many-headed language of the Ehlnofey. The phrase-meanings can be both "as in the image of the kings become the hearts of their shadows" and "the shadows in kingly hearts are images of as", where "as" is meant in the sheathe of an ur word.
The outcome of the Convention was to leave the terrestrial sphere in their excess, for its own good, but that it should last after their departure as in the semblance of the Ada-mantia. Mundus was given its second Tower, the Red, whose First Stone was the Heart of the World, "as in the image."
Time began to last in stepped-fashion. Those spirits that remained, lesser and greater, involuntary or eventual earthbone, surrendered all definite hold on divinity. Aldmeris bore witness and built the remaining towers during the Merethic: White-Gold, Crystal-like-Law, Orichalc, Green-Sap, Walk-Brass, Snow Throat, and on and on, "aad semblio impera."
We come to the first shaper-peoples and the historical lessonates, wherein most reversed in enmity, error, or awe what already existed in both meanings at once: "Aad semblio impera, dela can carpio semblex." What happens when one reverses an inversion; moreso, does so in the living day?
We come to the point where Oblivion first troubled our new earth.
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #5
Council members, haste trumps ceremony. I trust that the learned may differentiate between the Tower of metaphysics and the Towers of History.
Let us begin the lessonates.
What are the Towers?
They are magical and physical echoes of the Ur-Tower, Ada-mantia. Ada-mantia was the first spike of unassailable reality in the Dawn, otherwise called the Zero Stone. The powers at Ada-mantia were able to determine through this Stone the spread of creation and their parts in it.
The powers also created Red Tower and the First Stone. This allowed the Mundus to exist without the full presence of the divine. In this way, the powers of Ada-mantia granted the Mundus a special kind of divinity, which is called NIRN, the consequence of variable fate.
After these two acts, which is commonly called the Convention, the gods left the earth.
As they were the most powerful of lesser spirits in the ages after the Convention and eager to emulate what they saw, the Aldmer began construction of their own towers. That they built more than one shows you that they were not of one mind.
The Aldmer began to split along cultural lines, on how best to spread creation and their parts in it. Each Tower that was built exemplified a separate accordance.
This sundering of purpose is the myth of the "destruction of Aldmeris." Outside of the Dawn, and even then only in the dreamtime of its landscape, there was never a terrestrial homeland of the Elves. "Old Ehlnofey" is a magical ideal of mixed memories of the Dawn.
Do not believe the written histories.
All mortal life started on the starry heart of Dawn's beauty, Tamriel.
If we are in haste, why are we being lectured about the metaphysical meaning of Tower in ancient Aldmeris theology? I will have my adjutant inform me if anything of substance is revealed here. I suggest the rest of the Council do likewise. We have matters of real import to discuss with the Emperor today.
Ocato
I will second the Chancellor, though he needs none.
If the gentleman surrounded by moths would please move on to the present threat assessment phase of his quadragraph....
Hasphat Antabolis
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #6
Before I proceed, let it be known that I abide by the Council's wish to move the quadragraph further along. I rescind memo-spore lessonate sendings IV-IX from the dreamsleeve. They are become un-present at this session.
I take my right to present two more, however, as under the Invocation of the Invisible Gate.
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #7
What are the Stones?
The Stones are magical and physical echoes of the Zero Stone, by which a Tower might focus its energy to mold creation. Oftentimes, the Stones borrowed surplus creation from Oblivion, grafting it to the terrestrial domain of its anointed Tower.
It was and is difficult to bypass Oblivion to go directly to creation's source, the Aetherius. It has been done, but not without great expenditure, mundane and otherwise. However, access to Oblivion, the Void that surrounds Mundex Arena, which we might touch every night, was child's play in comparison.
Cultivating creatia that washed into the Void from Aetherius became the rule among Stones.
The Daedric Realms were formed on much the same principle: padomaic powers using aetherial refuse to build their void-territories. The Towers built on the Mundus, since the lands around them congealed in the absence of the gods, were unable to match the capriciousness of the Lords of Misrule.
Sometimes.
The Elves were dividing; some, like the Altmer, did their best to advocate "the will of Anuiel" and so embraced the chrysalis of the Convention; others, like the Chimer, refuted all orderings and aedric measures, following their prophet to "the Stone that is not a Stone that is." The most nefarious Tower, Walk-Brass, refuted even more, refuting unto dis-creation, but we shall come to its role in the present danger to Emperor Actual in a moment. It is but a lesser pawn to the greater evil:
The Tower of White-Gold, whose Stone is Chim-el Adabal, Amulet of Kings, whose masters are returning. I speak of course of the Ayleids, for which "sometimes" was not good enough.
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #8
What is White-Gold Tower?
Like all of the polydox constructs of the earliest Aldmer-- whatever their abnegaurbic creed-- White-Gold Tower is a conduit of creatia, aad sembia sembio, built to bring about a reversal of the congealing spiritual bleed caused by the Convention. In other words, it was a focus point for (re-)reaching the divine.
White-Gold Tower was made by the Ayleids, the Heartland High Elves that would have none to do with their isle-kind. Where the Altmer sought to focus on dracochrysalis, or keeping elder magic bound before it could change into something lesser (and act which ironically required aetherial surplus), the Ayleids harvested castaway creatia from Oblivion by entering a pact with the masters of the Void, the Princes of Misrule.
***
Gypsy Moth dustmemore insert - it should be noted here that it is always foolish to think of whole races sharing like minds. "Ayleid" is as much a metaphysical designation as it is a cultural one. Just like the earliest Chimer who orphaned themselves from the Velothi Exodites, but remain Chimer today, large numbers of Ayleids showed more interest in the immediate earthly needs of agriculture rather than the magical needs of concept-farming. This distinction becomes important later, when "Ayleid" begins to designate other, and ofttimes foreign, agencies.
***
Every dawnmaker Tower takes a myth-form. Red Tower is a volcano and its surrounds. Snow Throat a mountain whose apex is only half here. Walk-Brass is appropriately ambulatory, and (most of the time) anthropomorphic. The Aldmeri polydoxes were cosminachs, and the White-Gold project was and is no different.
Though the Ayleids gave theirs a central Spire as the imago of Ada-mantia, the whole of the polydox resembled the Wheel, with eight lesser towers forming a ring around their primus. To dismiss this mythitecture as being a mockery of the Aurbis is to ignore an important point: this same "jest" gave White-Gold Tower a power over creatia unalike any on this plane(t). It was a triumph of sympathetic megafetish, and the Start of the [Threat! To! Empire!] that brings me to this Council.
If the Ayleids made their own Wheel within the Wheel, were-web aad semblio, what would happen if they plucked its strings?
What appears to be an Altmeri commentary on Talos:
To kill Man is to reach Heaven, from where we came before the Doom Drum's iniquity. When we accomplish this, we can escape the mockery and long shame of the Material Prison.
To achieve this goal, we must:
1) Erase the Upstart Talos from the mythic. His presence fortifies the Wheel of the Convention, and binds our souls to this plane.
2) Remove Man not just from the world, but from the Pattern of Possibility, so that the very idea of them can be forgotten and thereby never again repeated.
3) With Talos and the Sons of Talos removed, the Dragon will become ours to unbind. The world of mortals will be over. The Dragon will uncoil his hold on the stagnancy of linear time and move as Free Serpent again, moving through the Aether without measure or burden, spilling time along the innumerable roads we once travelled. And with that we will regain the mantle of the imperishable spirit.
On the different time-dragons:
Don't forget that gods can be shaped by the mythopoeic forces of the mantlers-- so Tosh Raka could be an Akaviri avatar of Akatosh with a grudge against his mirror-brother in Cyrodiil.
Just like Akatosh-as-we-usually-know-him could time-scheme against his mirror-brother of the Nords, Alduin, to keep the present kalpa-- perhaps his favorite-- from being eaten.
Notice all the coulds.
Another Altmeri in-character snippet:
"Or the number could be more Lorkhanic nonsense; that is, convenient for Man.
"The Ysmir line is dead and so is His stranglehold on the mythic.
"A single Wheel? More like a Telescope that stretches all the way back to the Eye of the Anui-El, with Padomaics innumerable along its infinite walls.
"We're coming for you in every one of your quarters, Sons of Talos. None shall survive."
Lorkhan and his avatars, from a thread on the Six Walking Ways (02/14/04)
1. Wulfharth L 2. Hjalti O 3. Ysmir R 4. Talos K 5. Arctus H 6. Septim A N
Are "Akatosh" and "Tosh Raka" etymologically related? (05/24/05)
Let us be clear that etymology in the TES lore is a risky venture. More than risky, it's asking for trouble when one considers Our Father Who Art in Oxford.
That said, there *is* an attempt at wordplay, consistency, and clues in the lore, so my brother above is right when he says Tosh-Raka is "Dragon Dragon." (So is Akatosh, for that matter.) But he is also missing the subtlety in the title; in Tamriel, "dragon" and "time" are synonymous, they are bones of the same body-concept. That they are combined in seeming redundance should suggest an intention.
Writing the Elder Scrolls (08/27/10)
You misinterpret the meaning of what Elder Scrolls are in the colloquial Tamrielic. When taken in this context, to "write an Elder Scroll" is "to make history".
A deeper meaning is meant, too, but not very many laymen bother with that. Until a prophecy is fulfilled, the true contents of an Elder Scoll are malleable, hazy, uncertain. Only by the Hero's action does it become True. The Hero is literally the scribe of the next Elder Scroll, the one in which the prophecy has been fulfilled into a fixed point, negating its precursor.
Also, Martin mantled Akatosh and dragon-[censored] Dagon silly, so his outlook on time in quite unlike our own. In fact, he said those words during the dragon-[censored] fight and you only remembered them later, a comforting memory that the Jills mended back into your timeline.
Yes.
How does one eat the world? (01/18/11)
When you consider a place like Tamriel, sometimes it's best to take titles literally. Alduin is the World-Eater. It's not going to be "the end of all *life* as we know it," leaving a barren wasteland of Earthbone dirt... it's going to be the whole of Nirn inside his mighty gullet.
"None shall survive" has been a calling card for awhile, but that was only a hint to the more extensive "Nothing will survive."
Unless, of course, there's a loophole. Say, something like the someone called the Dovakhiin happening to show up..."born under uncertain stars to uncertain parents." (An aside for extra credit: what in the Aurbis makes the Prisoner such a powerful mythic figure?)
The Eight Limbs (and their Missing Ninth) have always, always made sure there was a loophole. Sometimes to their detriment, sure, but more often a hedged bet to ensure the survival of the current kalpa.
Then again:
Alduin's shadow was cast like carpetflame on east, west, south, and north...[he was] epoch eater. For as far as any man's eyes, only High Hrothgar remained above the churning coils of dragon stop.
And Alduin said, "Ho ha ho."
It's obviously happened before, so sabers sharp, and may your varliance shine bright.
Explorations on objects (rather than people) mantling and being matled (03/19/14)
Lots of things are objects. We need some restrictions to define our explorations before we go buck wild. At its root, you might be on to a very cool idea. And something pretty close to the famous theft of a famous thing.
Are we:
Limiting the term "object" to a normally non-sentient physical item or tool normally considered mundane? Ex. a rake that has not been enchanted/cursed/used by a famous magic user nor host to a demon, god, or hero?
Let's say YES
Is this rake observed in any way by "regular" mortals? Ex. the farmer that uses the rake.
OR
Is this rake observed only by other normal farmer tools? Ex. tools sitting in the farmer's shed, forgotten.
OR
Is this rake observed by no one except the interior of the shed? Ex. Self-explanatory.
OR
Is this rake observed by no one since there is no light showing in the interior of the shed? Ex. the farmstead and shed are either buried underground or under the shadow of a month-long eclipse? For these examples, let's remove any mythical forces associated with the Underworld, nature, Oblivion, the Moons, Magnus, etc.
Pick one or more
Is the normal use of the rake required but there is no one to use the rake? Ex. the autumn leaves are piling too high.
And so on. Start with this rake within these limits. Try to make the rake do something so special at being another tool that it supplants that tool so much that no one remembers when the rake wasn't just that tool all along.
On the idea of Dragons being more a state of allegiance than a biological definition (07/24/14)
You've got me to back you up. And Kurt, too, insofar as breath weapons being a form of philosophical debate. And that they, you know, feed off time.
K&K's shorthand for dragons very early on were 'biological time machines powered by ideologies'.
Does Paarthurnax have any knowledge of Durnehviir? Followup: how do you know? (03/27/15)
They didn't know each other. I just asked the creator of the two dragons in question and got the answer.
by By Alexandre Simon High Priest of the Akatosh Chantry, Wayrest
As High Priest of the Akatosh Chantry, I have dedicated my life to the service of the Great Dragon. He who was first at the Beginning. He who is greatest and most powerful of all the Divines. He who is the very embodiment of infinity.
I am, quite obviously, a man of deep and unwavering faith. But not blind faith, for I am also a man of scholarly endeavors, and have always valued education and the pursuit of truth, in all its forms. And so, I have had the honor and privilege of making it my life's work to discover the truth about Akatosh, in all of our beloved Divine's incarnations.
Throughout the civilized world (and I refer not only to the Empire, but to every nation on great Nirn that has embraced the virtues of learning and letters), the Great Dragon is worshipped. Usually, the highest of Divines is referred to as Akatosh. But what some may not be aware of is that he is occasionally referred to by two other names as well.
The Aldmer refer to Akatosh as Auri-El. The Nords call him Alduin. These names come up repeatedly in certain ancient texts, and in each one, it is clear that the deity in question is none other than he whom we call Akatosh.
Yet there are those who believe, even in this enlightened age, that this is not so. That the regional interpretations of Akatosh are not interpretations of Akatosh at all. Rather, they are references to altogether different deities, deities who may or may not share the same aspects or be the Great Dragon at all.
Many Altmer of Summerset Isle worship Auri-El, who is the soul of Anui-El, who in turn is the soul of Anu the Everything. But if you ask the high elves themselves (as I did, when I traveled to Summerset Isle to continue my research), the majority will concede that Auri-El is but Akatosh with a different name, colored by their own cultural beliefs.
So maybe it comes as no surprise that the real theological dissention lies in Skyrim, among the Nord people - renowned as much for their stubbornness as they are their hardiness and prowess on the fields of valor. When I journeyed to the stark white province, I was surprised to find a people whose views on Akatosh are almost diametrically opposed to those of the Altmer. The majority of Nord people seem to believe that their Alduin of legend is not Akatosh, but another deity entirely. A great dragon, yes, but not the Great Dragon.
Determined to get to the heart of this matter, I consulted with several Nords, chief among them an old and respected clan chief by the name of Bjorn Much-Bloodied. And what surprised me most about those I talked to was not that they believed in Alduin instead of Akatosh, but that they recognized Alduin in addition to Akatosh. In fact, most children of Skyrim seem to view Akatosh in much the same way I do - he is, in fact, the Great Dragon. First among the Divines, perseverance personified and, more than anything, a force of supreme good in the world.
Alduin, they claim, is something altogether different.
Whether or not he is actually a deity remains in question, but the Alduin of Nord folklore is in fact a dragon, but one so ancient, and so powerful, he was dubbed the "World Eater," and some accounts even have him devouring the souls of the dead to maintain his own power. Other stories revolve around Alduin acting as some sort of dragon king, uniting the other dragons in a war against mankind, until he was eventually defeated at the hands of one or more brave heroes.
It is hard to deny that such legends are compelling. But as both High Priest and scholar, I am forced to ask that most important of questions - where is the evidence?
The Nords of Skyrim place a high value on their oral traditions, but such is the core of their unreliability. A rumor passed around the Wayrest market square can change so dramatically in the course of a few simple hours, that by the end of the day, one might believe half the city's residents were involved in any number of scandalous activities. How then is an educated, enlightened person possibly supposed to believe a legend that has been passed down, by word of mouth only, for hundreds, or even thousands of years?
The answer to such a question is simple - he cannot.
And so, it is my conclusion that the Alduin of Nord legend is in fact mighty Akatosh, whose story grew twisted and deformed through centuries of retelling and embellishment. Through no real fault of their own, the primitive peoples of Skyrim failed to understand the goodness and greatness of the Great Dragon, and it was this lack of understanding that formed the basis of what became, ironically, their most impressive creative achievement - "Alduin," the World Eater, phantom of bedtime stories and justification for ancient (if imagined deeds).
The "Dragon Break" is a mysterious phenomenon that has occurred several times in Tamriel. Very little is actually known, but a book called "Where were you when the Dragon Broke?" was recently discovered in Morrowind that shed some light on the subject. I will begin the analysis of the document by dividing it into five sections so it will be easier to make comments:
The Dragon Break: Section One
Where were you when the Dragon Broke
1E1200-2208 The Dragon Break
Scholar-priests of the Alessian Order tamper with the Dragon God of Time.
A fanatical sect of the Alessian Order, the Maruhkati Selective, becomes frustrated by ancient Aldmeri traditions still present within the theological system of the Eight Divines. Specifically, they hated any admission that Akatosh, the Supreme Spirit, was indisputably also Auriel, the Elven High God.
Newly invented rituals were utilized to disprove this theory, to no avail. Finally, the secret masters of the Maruhkati Selective channeled the Aurbis itself to mythically remove those aspects of the Dragon God they disapproved of. A staff or tower appeared before them. The secret masters danced on it until it writhed and trembled and spoke its protonymic.
The tower split into eight pieces and Time broke. The non-linearity of the Dawn Era had returned.
Tamriel slept through the disaster, which 'lasted one thousand and eight years', until the pieces of the tower came to rest on the mortal plane.
Every culture on Tamriel remembers the Dragon Break in some fashion; to most it is a spiritual anguish that they cannot account for. Several texts survive this timeless period, all (unsurprisingly) conflicting with each other regarding events, people, and regions: wars are mentioned in some that never happen in another, the sun changes color depending on the witness, and the gods either walk among the mortals or they don't. Even the 'one thousand and eight years,' a number (some say arbitrarily) chosen by the Elder Council, is an unreliable measure.
Whether or not the secret masters of the Maruhkati Selective were successful is unknown, and any records of their survival were destroyed by the War of Righteousness that ended the Alessian Order a hundred years later.
It seems that this Maruhkati Selective was upset and tried to channel Aurbis or alter Time. A Tower or staff appeared, and they danced on it until it split. The only reference to a possible tower that seemed to make sense was the Adamantine Tower where Gods convened to discuss what to about Mundus or the Mortal Plane (see Dawn Era). I am not sure if this is the tower to which the text refers.
After further consideration, I now believe that "The Tower" refers to the ideal that Vehk mentions in his new teachings on the Forums. From ...the Tower:
What is the Tower? The Tower is an ideal, which, in our world of myth and magic, means that it is so real that it becomes dangerous. It is the existence of the True Self within the Universal Self, and is embodied by the fourth constellation, and is guarded by the Thief, the third. The Thief is another metaphorical absolute; in this case, he represents the "taking of the Tower" or, and sometimes more importantly, the "taking" of the Tower's secret.
What is the Tower's Secret? How to permanently exist beyond duplexity, antithesis, or trouble. This is not an easy concept, I know. Imagine being able to feel with all of your senses the relentless alien terror that is God and your place in it, which is everywhere and therefore nowhere, and realizing that it means the total dissolution of your individuality into boundless being. Imagine that and then still being able to say "I". The "I" is the Tower.
Interesting side note: Kier-jo once said, "Your monkeys dance on the Tower and the stars change and you do not remember." I found that The Alessian Order enforced the Alessian Doctrines which were "the very strict religious teachings of the monkey prophet, Maruhk" (see First Era). That would explain the "Monkey" reference by Kier-jo, and obvioulsy the name Maruhkati Selective.
This Tower or staff split into eight pieces and Time broke. This lasted until the eight pieces came to rest on the mortal plane. If your read through Shezarr and the Eight Divines, it will provide some additional insight on Queen Alessia. Could the "eight pieces" be the Eight Divines?
Finally, the line "The non-linearity of the Dawn Era had returned" makes me think of time seemingly shifting at random or a Warp in Time. A theory that I will work with throughout this analysis.
The Dragon Break: Section Two
Corax, Cyrodiil, Elder Council:
"No one understands what happened when the Selectives danced on that tower. It would be easy to dismiss the whole matter as nonsense were it not for the Amulet of Kings. Even the Elder Scrolls do not mention it-let me correct myself, the Elder Scrolls _cannot_ mention it. When the Moth priests attune the Scrolls to the timeless time their glyphs always disappear. The Amulet of Kings, however, with its oversoul of emperors, can speak of it at length. According to Hestra, Cyrodiil became an Empire across the stars. According to Shor-El, Cyrodiil became an egg. Most say something in a language they can only speak sideways. The Council has collected texts and accounts from all of its provinces, and they only offer stories that never coincide, save on one point: all the folk of Tamriel during the Middle Dawn, in whatever 'when' they were caught in, tracked the fall of the eight stars. And that is how they counted their days."
Okay, the dying Queen Alessia is transformed into the first of the Cyrodilic saints by Shezarr, AKA Lorkhan, and becomes the first gem in the Cyrodilic Amulet of Kings (First Era). I guess this Amulet of Kings [and Queens :D] can keep track of time during this phenomenon.
One last comment, this text "The Council has collected texts and accounts from all of its provinces, and they only offer stories that never coincide, save on one point: all the folk of Tamriel during the Middle Dawn, in whatever 'when' they were caught in, tracked the fall of the eight stars. And that is how they counted their days," seems to indicate a shifting in time or multiple times existing at once (A Warp in Time).
The Dragon Break: Section Three
Mehra Nabisi, Dunmer, Triune Mistress of the New Temple:
"Accounts of the Middle Dawn are the province of the Empire of Men, and proof of the deceit that call themselves the Aedra. Eight stars fell on Tamriel, one for each iniquity that Lorkhan made clear to the world. Veloth read these signs, and he told Boethiah, who confirmed them, and he told Mephala, who made wards against them, and he told Azura, who sent ALMSIVI to steer the True Folk clear of harm. Even the Four Corners of the House of Troubles rose to protect the periphery of your madness. We watched our borders and saw them shift like snakes, and saw you run around in it like the spirits of old, devoid of math, without your if-thens, succumbing to the Ever Now like slaves of the slim folly, stasis. Do not ask us where we were when the Dragon Broke, for, of all the world, only we truly know, and we might just show you how to break it again."
I don't know if this backs up the idea that the eight pieces of the tower are the Eight Divines or Aedra. It appear to do so. Veloth saw this event and told the Daedra, who in turn, sent ALMSIVI (Almalexia, Sotha Sil, and Vivec) to help the True Folk (probably Chimer/Dunmer).
"Even the Four Corners of the House of Troubles rose to protect the periphery of your madness" refers to the four Deadra: Molag Bal, Malacath, Sheogorath, Mehrunes Dagon. From Skeleton Man's Interview:
Lakelos Char, Steam Gate Quarter, Vivec: The Rebel Daedra [Molag Bal, Malacath, Sheogorath, Mehrunes Dagon], in their arrogance and pride, refused to swear fealty to the Tribunal (Blessed Be Their Holy Names), and were cast out of Morrowind forthwith. These Rebel Daedra thus became the Four Corners of the House of Troubles, and they continue to plague our tranquility and tempt the unwary into Heresy and Dark Worship.
The Dragon Break: Section Four
Rh'leyt-harhr, Khajiit, Tender to the Mane:
"Do you mean, where were the Khajiiti when the Dragon Broke? I'll tell you where: we were recording it. 'One thousand and eight years,' you've all heard it. You probably believe that the Cyro-Nordics came up with that all on their own. You humans are better thieves than even Rajhin! While you were fighting wars with phantoms and giving birth to your own fathers, it was the Mane that watched the ja-Kha'jay, because the moons were the only constant, and you didn't have the sugar to see it. We'll give you credit: you broke Alkosh something fierce, and that's not easy. Just don't think you solved what you accomplished by it, or can ever solve it. You did it again with Big Walker, not once, but _twice_! Once at Rimmen, which we'll never learn to live with. The second time it was in Daggerfall, or was it Sentinel, or was it Wayrest, or was in all three places at once? Get me, Cyrodiil? When will you wake up and realize what _really_ happened to the Dwarves?"
The Khajiit also confirm that this phenomenon lasted "'One thousand and eight years.'" Rh'leyt-harhr compares the Cyro-Nordics to the thief Rajhin. Rajhin is the Thief god of the Khajiiti, who grew up in the Black Kiergo section of Senchal. The most famous burglar in Elsweyr's history, Rajhin is said to have stolen a tattoo from the neck of Empress Kintyra as she slept (see Tamriel Gods: Elsweyr). He's also associated with the "Ring of Khajiit." From Tamrielic Lore:
Ring of Khajiit The Ring of the Khajiit is an ancient relic, hundreds of years older than Rajhin, the thief that made the Ring famous. It was Rajhin who used the Ring's powers to make himself invisible and as quick as the breath of wind. Using the Ring, he became the most successful burglar in Elsweyr's history. Rajhin's eventual fate is a mystery, but according to legend, the Ring rebelled against such constant use and disappeared, leaving Rajhin helpless before his enemies.
I interpret the line "...fighting wars with phantoms and giving birth to your own fathers... as a reference to the shifting in time.
Rh'leyt-harhr claims that the moons remained constant but humans did have the sugar (Moon Sugar) to see it. He confirms that Alkosh (the God of Time has many names: see Tamriel Gods) broke.
Qwerty says: the line about not having sugar allows for different interpretations. One, as B suggests, goes along the line "you need to be high on Moon Sugar, like us, so that you can see". But alternatively, remember that Khajiits use "sugar" as a metaphor for soul, or lifeforce. See PGE: "leaking one's sugar in the sand" stands for attacking and/or killing. That considered, "you didn't have the sugar" might've meant "you didn't have the right kind of thinking/feeling/awareness". Just like in English, where "not having guts (or balls)" might be used to describe a mental state, and has nothing to do with one's intestines (or testicles).
In "You did it again with Big Walker, not once, but _twice_! Once at Rimmen, which we'll never learn to live with. The second time it was in Daggerfall, or was it Sentinel, or was it Wayrest, or was in all three places at once? Get me, Cyrodiil?," the Big Walker refers to the Numidium. From Skeleton Man's Interview:
dro'Mhakij, "Prophet of Rajhin," a Khajiit sugar addict outside of Yul's shop: Jodenjone! Don' let Marshee lie to you about Big Walker. The Blades took It from here, sure, but they din' take It back to Cyrodiil and rebuild the thing. Talos, he "annexed" a swath of our bounty-land in Ana'quinal and cleared the Khajiiti out by force. There's where he built the Hall of Colossus - a mighty name for a secret testing warehouse - and that's where Big Walker was born. And that's why that part of our Elsweyr is still poisoned glow-rock, where no cats go. Ach, for the lunacy of you Wayward Folk!
"Once at Rimmen...refers to a place in Elsweyr. We know that the "Big Walker" was rebuilt at the Hall of Colossus in Elsweyr, but it is several miles south of Rimmen (see Map of Tamriel). So what really happened at Rimmen?
I'm assuming that "The second time..." refers to the Warp in the West when the Numidium was used by many different people at the same time.
Finally, here is the infamous line "When will you wake up and realize what _really_ happened to the Dwarves?"
The Dragon Break: Section Five
Mannimarco, God of Worms, the Necromancers:
"The Three Thieves of Morrowind could tell you where they were. So could the High King of Alinor, who was the one who broke in the first place. There are others on this earth that could, too: Ysmir, Pelinal, Hans the Fox (but, then, this is really my warning to you, Arctus; I now know who you are). The Last Dwarf would talk, if they would let him. As for myself, I was here and there and here again, like the rest of the mortals during the Dragon Break. How do you think I learned my mystery? The Maruhkati Selective showed us all the glories of the Dawn so that we might learn, simply: as above, so below."
I take "'The Three Thieves of Morrowind'" to mean the Tribunal. "'High King of Alinor, who was the one who broke in the first place'" refers to Auriel, I would think. And "'The Last Dwarf'" refers to Yagrum Bagarn who resides in the Divayth Fyr's Corprusarium.
Now the line, "'There are others on this earth that could, too: Ysmir, Pelinal, Hans the Fox (but, then, this is really my warning to you, Arctus; I now know who you are).'" According to The Imperial Library, during the Merethic Era, "An immortal hero, warrior, sorceror, and king variously known as Pelinal Whitestrake, Harrald Hairy Breeks, Ysmir, Hans the Fox, etc., wanders Tamriel, gathering armies, conquering lands, ruling, then abandoning his kingdoms to wander again" (see Merethic Era). It appears that Mannimarco, The God of Worms is claiming that The immortal hero, known by many names, is also Zurin Arctus (Tiber Septim's Battlemage and The Underking).
Finally, "'As for myself, I was here and there and here again, like the rest of the mortals during the Dragon Break. How do you think I learned my mystery? The Maruhkati Selective showed us all the glories of the Dawn so that we might learn, simply: as above, so below.'" This seems to fit into the theory of a shift or Warp in time.
Interestingly enough, we've had this book since the late 3rd era, to which it refers as the past.
The Dragon Break Reexamined
by Fal Droon
The late 3rd era was a period of remarkable religious ferment and creativity. The upheavals of the reign of Uriel VII were only the outward signs of the historical forces that would eventually lead to the fall of the Septim Dynasty. The so called "Dragon Break" was first proposed at this time, by a wide variety of cults and fringe sects across the Empire, connected only by a common obsession with the events surrounding Tiber Septim's rise to power -- the "founding myth," if you will, of the Septim Dynasty.
The basis of the Dragon Break doctrine is now known to be a rather prosaic error in the timeline printed in the otherwise authoritative "Encyclopedia Tamrielica," first published in 3E 12, during the early years of Tiber Septim's reign. At that time, the archives of Alinor were still inaccessible to human scholars, and the extant records from the Alessian period were extremely fragmentary. The Alessians had systematically burned all the libraries they could find, and their own records were largely destroyed during the War of Righteousness.
The author of the Encyclopedia Tamrielica was apparently unfamiliar with the Alessian "year," which their priesthood used to record all dates. We now know this refers to the length of the long vision-trances undertaken by the High Priestess, which might last anywhere from a few weeks to several months. Based on analysis of the surviving trance scrolls, as well as murals and friezes from Alessian temples, I estimate that the Alessian Order actually lasted only about 150 years, rather than the famous "one thousand and eight years" given by the Encyclopedia Tamrielica. The "mystery" of the millennial-plus rule of the Alessians was accepted but unexplained until the spread of the Lorkhan cults in the late 3rd era, when the doctrine of the Dragon Break took hold. Because this dating (and explanation) was so widely held at the time, and then repeated by historians down through today, it has come to have the force of tradition. Recall, however, that the 3rd era historians were already separated from the Alessians by a gulf of more than 2,000 years. And history was still in its infancy, relying on the few archives from those early days.
Today, modern archaeology and paleonumerology have confirmed what my own research in Alessian dating first suggested: that the Dragon Break was invented in the late 3rd era, based on a scholarly error, fueled by obsession with eschatology and Numidiumism, and perpetuated by scholarly inertia.
By Fervidius Tharn, Arch-Prelate of the Maruhkati Selective
It is the first of the Exclusionary Mandates that the Supreme Spirit Akatosh is of unitary essence, as is inconclusively proven by the monolinearity of Time. And clearly, the Arc of Time provides us with the mortal theater for the act of Sacred Expungement. Thus it is our purpose upon Mundus to reverse the error of Sanctus Primus and restore Ak-at-Osh to humanadic purity. To say otherwise is vain and empty persiflage.
Therefore let the Staff of Towers be prepared for the ritual that will cleanse the protean substrate of the Aldmeri Taint. All Selectives are to initiate chants of Proper-Life and maintain them until a state of monothought is achieved. Then each shall Dance, duration-forward then volteface, till the Roll of Time winds withershins.
Prophet-Most-Simian guide us! Misplaced Shezarr bless us! May our Wills in this be Enacted!
Dragonkind (Dovahzul: plural Dov, singular Dovah, Aldmeris/Ehlnofex: Aka) often called dragons, wyrm and sometimes dov-rha are a race of Akaviri beings. Usually dragons are described as immortal children of Akatosh, the Dragon God of Time. From the Late Merethic Era until the Dragon War, they were widespread in Tamriel, ruling over mankind, believing non-dragon beings to be weak-minded. Their spoken language allows them to cast powerful magic, Dragon Shouts, from a power known as the Voice, which is inherent within all dragons as well as their kin, the Dragonborn. Kyne, Nordic goddess of the Storm, and Paarthurnax, Alduin's lieutenant, bestowed this to mortals which rendered them (especially Nords) capable of using Shouts with the proper training.
After the war, dragons were nearly made extinct, believed far and wide to be little more than legends until the Fourth Era with the return of Alduin the World Eater, Firstborn of Akatosh in Skyrim.
The origin of dragons isn't known but they're believed to be the children of Akatosh and thus specially attuned to the flow of time itself. Once indigenous to the continent of Akavir until they fled to Tamriel when the Tsaesci attempted to consume them. The Ka Po' Tun of Akavir wished to become dragons (Ka meaning dragon), and it's said that Tosh Raka, their leader, has become one.
Several Dremora where questioned by the College of Whispers on the subject of dragons who back up the claims that they seem to be attuned to time by claiming they "were, and are": eternal, immortl, unchanging, and unyielding. So rather than beasts or mortals, dragons are closer to Daedra who also do not age and are immortal with their souls lasting beyond the physical death, with no need to breed or mate. There have never been examples of dragon eggs or dragonlings. The Iliac Bay stories of such were proven false: the eggs were those of oversized lizards.
As the self-proclaimed "fistborn of Akatosh", Alduin is believed to be the first dragon to have existed, and while Akatosh and Alduin are shwo as dragons, many scholars believe them to be separate entities. The Nordic pantheon shows this; see also, the Alduin-Akatosh dichotomy and the concept of dragons being able to time scheme against themselves.
In the Merethic Era, Ysgramor, an Atmoran warrior and leader of the Five Hundread Companions, came to Tamriel and his people brought with them their animal worship, and with that came the dragon. They weren't permitted to used dovah, the name the dragons used for themselves, as this was forbidden to all by the Dragon Priests. Temples were built to honour the dragons, and many survive to the Fourth Era as ruins, filled with draugr, and some haunted by the undead dragon priests.
The dragons for their part took to their position as rulers over mortals. It was in their nature and they were superior; mortality meant nothing to them, and the people worshiped them. To a dragon, power is equal to truth, and their power over men couldn't be disputed. In exchange for the obedience of the priests, small amounts of favour and power was granted to them in the form of magical masks to their most favoured. These priests ruled over men the way a king would.
Where Ysgramor came from, the dragon priests demanded tribute and created laws where a peace was kept between man and dragon. In Tamriel rule was different either from an ambitious dragon king, a particular dragon, or many weak kings. Whatever caused it, the dragon priests exerted their power absolutely and the rest of the people were little more than slaves.
Of course the people rebelled. The dragon priests retaliated. Tribute wasn't collected by the dragon priests and they began to lose control; the dragons responded quickly and brutally, and so began the Dragon War where at first men died in their thousands.
This is when Kyne appeared with the instruction for Paarthurnax to assist mankind. Paarthurnax had grown disillusioned with Alduin when Alduin proclaimed himself a god, and so he betrayed his leader and taught the power of the Voice to men.
As the people rebelled against the dragon priests, dragons were slain in huge numbers with those that survived isolating themselves from morals. Alduin was banished by Nordic heroes at the Throat of the World through the use of an Elder Scroll to send him hurtling through time. They thought he would be trapped in time forever but he returned in the Fourth Age, resurrecting his followers again.
This wasn't the end of the dragon cult. Dragon mounds were built to bury the remains of the dragons that fell in the war in the belief that they would rise again, and the faithful would be rewarded.
Prior to Alduin's return in the Fourth Age, the last sighting of a dragon in Tamriel was during the time of Tiber Septim. Swearing to protect them if they would serve him, he made a pact with the few that remained, though despite his promise, dragons were still hunted and slain. It's unclear if the last dragons fled Tamriel or were wiped out.
Jills are the female variant of dragons who exist to mend Dragon Breaks. The fixing of the Warp in the West was attributed to them by Mannimarco. Drakes are their male counterparts, though they're said not to be as powerful as them.
Dragon shouts, Shouts or Thu'um in the Dragon language are an ancient form of magic used in Skyrim that's basically become lost outside of certain individuals, Greybeards, dragons and the Dragonborn(s). Using specific 'words of power' to create magical effects, usually for offensive purposes is how each Shout works; one or two words can be used but they're less powerful than the whole shout. Dragons can master and use it at will since the sacred language is their natural ability coming from their souls at the moment of creation, mortals however need to learn and use it via long meditation and practice. Unless you're a Dragonborn because you're born with the soul of a dragon all up inside the soul of a mortal. (So for dragons breathing fire or frost at each other they're actually having a verbal debate, the giant nerds.)
Dragonborns can intuitively learn Shouts and use them after absorbing dragon Souls, and with that the understanding of the dragons of the words. They can also absorb knowledge from other individuals who have mastered them such as the Greybeards.
Brónach's list of shouts in Thedas: Unrelenting Force; Fus Ro Dah (Force Balance Push) Your Voice is raw power, pushing aside anything - or anyone - who stands in your path. Whirlwind Sprint; Wuld Nah Kest (Whirlwind Fury Tempest) The Thu'um rushes forward, carrying you in its wake with the speed of a tempest. Dragonrend; Joor Zah Frul (Mortal Finite Temporary) Your voice lashes out at a dragon's very soul, forcing the beast to land. Aura Whisper; Laas Yah Nir (Life Seek Hunt) Your Voice is not a Shout, but a whisper, revealing the life forces of any and all. Throw Voice; Zul Mey Gut (Voice Fool Far) The Thu'um is heard, but its source unknown, fooling those into seeking it out. Marked for Death; Krii Lun Aus (Kill Leech Suffer) Speak, and let your Voice herald doom, as an opponent's armor and lifeforce are weakened. Dismay; Faas Ru Maar (Fear Run Terror) And the weak shall fear the Thu'um, and flee in terror. Bend Will; Gol Hah Dov (Earth Mind Dragon) Your Voice bends the very stones to your will. As it gains power, animals, people and even dragons must do your bidding.
Bosmer (Aldmeris: green/forest/tree sap people/folk) or Wood Elves are from Valenwood in the South-West of Tamriel. The Bosmer live in the wild alongside nature, trees and animals, rather than the more comfortable or luxurious lives their kin chose. Their major cities are giant migratory trees that roam Valenwood and they decorate themselves to match the forest. Due to this, the Bosmer are viewed as barbarians by many but they're an agile and quick people; this makes them good at anything involving thievery, as well as masters of the bow.
Wood Elves are a collection of barbarian elven clans in the Western Valenwood forests but the Bosmer or Tree Sap People is the main term. It suggests the wildness, a youthful energy. They aren't like their dour Dunmer or Altmer cousins.
Valenwood is largely uninhabited forest with the coasts made up of mangrove swamps and tropical rainforests, with enough heavy rainfalls for temperate inland rainforests. There are clanhouses along the coast and in the interior, with only underdeveloped foot trails to connect them.
Bosmer are smaller than most other races in Tamriel, and smallest of the elves, usually light brown to pale tan to light green in colour. Some Bosmer have horns. As they're Mer, they're cousins to the Dunmer, Orsimer, and Altmer. They aren't so noble as the Altmer in terms of bloodline but they've adapted well to Tamriel. It was the Bosmer that the Ayleids - Wild Elves - joined in seclusion after fleeing Cyrodiil and were completely assimilated so this has probably affected the modern-day Bosmer biology a great deal.
Several Imperial surveys partially describe the geography of Valenwood, and it was claimed as a wasteland product of the Second Empire. Due to the Green Pact, despite Bosmer living in many different towns, they built none of them for themselves. They allowed a few roads to be built by the Second Empire but didn't maintain them as they had no need of them to move easily through thick forest. If it weren't for the Thalmor, these would be overgrown by now, but they've been repaired and widened to allow them to move their weapons and soldiers to and from the coast.
By the time of the Fourth Era, the Thalmor wished to recreate the Aldmeri Dominion of old so expanded into Valenwood as they had Elsweyr, and briefly Cyrodiil and Hammerfell. Valenwood was consolidated with the Summerset Isles into the Third Aldmeri Dominion, and a policy began of expanding their influence and power across Tamriel. It isn't known what Bosmer think of of this but the Thalmor kill families, and there are incidents such as the Falinesti Incident, purges that people never hear about, and re-education, successful or not.
Bosmer worship the Forest Gods and practice ancestor worship. In their legends, the Bosmer saw the death of Y'ffre, first of the Ehlnofey to die who as he passed formed an Earth Bone, a natural law, to limit certain aspect of the world. Y'ffre's Earth Bone limited the ability of a being to change its form and nature as previously they could change them at will, however the Bosmer, having witnessed this formation, learnt how to manipulate it to avoid the restriction. The most notable use is the Wild Hunt, a ritual known only to the shaman of Valenwood. The Wild Hunt transforms all those who take part into bloodthirsty monsters permanently who consume all enemies then themselves, an act called to protect Valenwood from invaders. The Bosmer believe that all monsters in the world were born from Wild Hunts past. At the end of each era it's invoked as a ritual practice within Valenwood.
Auri-El (King of the Aldmer) The Elven Akatosh is Auri-El. Auri-El is the soul of Anui-El, who, in turn, is the soul of Anu the Everything. He is the chief of most Aldmeri pantheons. Most Altmeri and Bosmeri claim direct descent from Auri-El. In his only known moment of weakness, he agreed to take his part in the creation of the mortal plane, that act which forever sundered the Elves from the spirit worlds of eternity. To make up for it, Auri-El led the original Aldmer against the armies of Lorkhan in mythic times, vanquishing that tyrant and establishing the first kingdoms of the Altmer, Altmora and Old Ehlnofey. He then ascended to heaven in full observance of his followers so that they might learn the steps needed to escape the mortal plane.
Y'ffre (God of the Forest) Most important deity of the Bosmeri pantheon. While Auri-El Time Dragon might be the king of the gods, the Bosmer revere Y'ffre as the spirit of 'the now'. According to the Wood Elves, after the creation of the mortal plane everything was in chaos. The first mortals were turning into plants and animals and back again. Then Y'ffre transformed himself into the first of the Ehlnofey, or 'Earth Bones'. After these laws of nature were established, mortals had a semblance of safety in the new world, because they could finally understand it. Y'ffre is sometimes called the Storyteller, for the lessons he taught the first Bosmer. Some Bosmer still possess the knowledge of the chaos times, which they can use to great effect (the Wild Hunt).
Arkay (God of the Cycle of Life and Death) Member of the Eight Divines pantheon, and popular elsewhere as well. Arkay is often more important in those cultures where his father, Akatosh, is either less related to time or where his time aspects are difficult to comprehend by the layman. He is the god of burials and funeral rites, and is sometimes associated with the seasons. His priests are staunch opponents of necromancy and all forms of the undead. It is said that Arkay did not exist before the world was created by the gods under Lorkhan's supervision/urging/trickery. Therefore, he is sometimes called the Mortals' God.
Z'en (God of Toil) Bosmeri god of payment in kind. Studies indicate origins in both Argonian (!) and Akaviri mythologies, perhaps introduced into Valenwood by Kothringi sailors. Ostensibly an agriculture deity, Z'en sometimes proves to be an entity of a much higher cosmic order. His worship died out shortly after the Knhaten Flu.
Xarxes Xarxes is the god of ancestry and secret knowledge. He began as a scribe to Auri-El, and has kept track of all Aldmeri accomplishments, large and small, since the beginning of time. He created his wife, Oghma, from his favorite moments in history.
Baan Dar (The Bandit God) In most regions, Baan Dar is a marginal diety, a trickster spirit of thieves and beggars. In Elsweyr he is more important, and is regarded as the Pariah. In this aspect, Baan Dar becomes the cleverness or desperate genius of the long-suffering Khajiiti, whose last minute plans always upset the machinations of their (Elven or Human) enemies.
Mara (Goddess of Love) Nearly universal goddess. Origins started in mythic times as a fertility goddess. In Skyrim, Mara is a handmaiden of Kyne. In the Empire, she is Mother-Goddess. She is sometimes associated with Nir of the 'Anuad', the female principle of the cosmos that gave birth to creation. Depending on the religion, she is either married to Akatosh or Lorkhan, or the concubine of both.
Stendarr (God of Mercy) God of the Eight Divines, Stendarr has evolved from his Nordic origins into a deity of compassion or, sometimes, righteous rule. He is said to have accompanied Tiber Septim in his later years. In early Altmeri legends, Stendarr is the apologist of Men.
Lorkhan (The Missing God) This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri 'Lorkhan', or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane, upsetting the status quo-- much like his father Padomay had introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the 'scheme of things' is interpreted a variety of ways. In Morrowind, for example, he is a being related to the Psijiic Endeavor, a process by which mortals are charged with transcending the gods that created them. To the High Elves, he is the most unholy of all higher powers, as he forever broke their connection to the spirit plane. In the legends, he is almost always an enemy of the Aldmer and, therefore, a hero of early Mankind.
Herma-Mora (The Woodland Man) Ancient Atmoran demon who, at one time, nearly seduced the Nords into becoming Aldmer. Most Ysgramor myths are about escaping the wiles of old Herma-Mora. Also called the Demon of Knowledge, he is vaguely related to the cult origins of the Morag Tong ('Foresters Guild'), if only by association with his brother/sister, Mephala.
Jone (Little Moon God) Aldmeri god of the Little Moon. Also called Secunda or Stendarr's Sorrow. In Khajiti religion, Jone is only one aspect of the Lunar Lattice, or ja-Kha'jay.
Jode (Big Moon God) Aldmeri god of the Big Moon. Also called Masser or Mara's Tear. In Khajiti religion, Jode is only one aspect of the Lunar Lattice, or ja-Kha'jay
The Bosmer have made a pact with Y'ffre to never harm the green which has greatly impacted their culture. They are religiously carnivorous and cannibalistic as this is a central tenet of the faith which has simple rules for governing Bosmer life:
Only meat-based products can be consumed.
Prohibits the use of wood or other vegetable derivatives as building materials.
Forbidden to harm trees and plant life for their own betterment.
Forbidden to smoke anything of a vegetable nature.
Forbidden to alter their physical form(s)
Bosmer have to use stone or import wood for their own building needs and it's impacted their cuisine, combat, and weapons. They ferment meat and milk to make alcohol, and weapons like bows are made of animal bones or horns. Bosmer combat rules state that the corpse of an enemy must be consumed within three days of being killed. A family is allowed to help eat the kill. Fasting and planning family feasts following battle are all part of combat. Bone pipes for smoking grubs or caterpillars are also common in Valenwood.
The Green Pact is relaxed for bosmer outside of Valenwood, additionally, the following loopholes are found: the bosmer cannot harm living plants and can't eat food made from plants. So some bosmer eat raw fruit that's fallen from trees and they're able to eat mushrooms since those don't count as plants. Eating insects, honey, and dairy products are acceptable. While they can't harm the plants of Valenwood, chosen outsiders are allowed to and the bosmer have been known to purchase lumber from outsiders who cut the trees.
By the age of fourteen all bosmer children are expected to be skilled enough with a bow to join the hunting parties.
The very best archers are known as Jaqspurs, able to snatch an arrow, draw their bow, and fire in one one continuous motion.
Altmer (High Elves) are the most gifted in the arcane arts of any race in Tamriel, able to regenerate Magicka quickly by calling upon their Highborn power.
The Altmer use selective traditions in their marriages and reproduction (eugenics and pedigrees) to strictly maintain the appearance of the elven ancestor race, the Aldmer. Out of the humanoid races, they're the tallest, being taller than all other mer and most humans. They aren't the pale white of Nords or Bretons, but have a distinctly pale gold hue to their skin that's vastly different to the Bosmer. Altmer are slender, with pointed ears, almond-shaped eyes, and their eyes are amber, green, or yellow. Of all races on Nirn they are among if not the most intelligent and inclined towards magic even when placed against the Breton. Altmer have a noble bearing, and tend to be arrogant and disdainful, especially when dealing with humans.
Being one of the oldest races of Tamriel, and one of the earliest descendants of the original race of mer, the Aldmer, and thus through the Ehlnofey to the divine et'Ada themselves, they're extremely proud of their heritage. They strive, always, to maintain that linage. Even the name Altmer means High Ones or Cultured Ones in the Aldmeri language, and they'll argue that they're the first true culture on Tamriel, the most civilised race, and even human scholars have trouble refuting that one.
Living mainly in the Summerset Isle, a large island off the southwest coast of Tamriel that shares a border with Valenwood, the histories of the Altmer claim that their Aldmeri ancestors arrived after fleeing the catastrophic sinking of their original home continent, Aldmeris. This is where splintering groups of Aldmer spread throughout Tamriel. The Altmer remained on this Isles. From here, they acted as the nominal head of meri nations on Tamriel, and for most of the Merethic Era, the other races of elves on Tamriel acknowledged the Altmeri king as their own ruler until the founding of the Comaran Dynasty in Valenwood. This marked the start of the First Era as well as the beginning of the decline of Altmer-dominated Tamriel. However, their influence is still felt with their culture forming the basis for the religion, langage, and even architecture of the Cyrodiilic Empire.
Between the Oblivion Crisis and Dragon Crisis, the Mede Empire was attacked by the Aldmeri Dominion. This was an alliance of elves comprised mainly of the Altmer and their Bosmer allies. The Empire was able to save itself only through the negotiation of the White-Gold Concordat. This treaty seemed to heavily favour the Dominion though there were heavy losses on both sides. The ruling government of the elves, the Thalmor, were elven supremacists, with the aim of ending the dominion of man and the Empire as a whole. The Thalmor also called the Great War the "First War with the Empire".
The White-Gold Concordat signed at the end of the war allowed two things chiefly: the free movement of the Thalmor throughout the Empire, and their ability to suppress Talos worship. This stoked resentment towards the Altmer generally, as well as towards the Empire for surrending to them in places such as Skyrim where Talos is a born son and the people are proud. In Skyrim particularly, there's a Thalmor Embassy west of Solitude, and Thalmor Justiciars can be encountered on the roads, almost always antagonistic, moving from veiled hostility to outright aggression though this begins with verbal warnings.
In Skyrim, many Altmer who moved from the Summerset Isles did so to become Alchemists, Enchanters and mages, with others becoming members of the College of Winterhold. Others fled due to the rise of the Thalmor if they had loyalties to the Empire to escape from the new Aldmeri Dominion though this doesn't stop Stormcloak or Nord prejudices against them though it's less intense than the abuses Dunmer fleeing Morrowind receive.
After the signing of the Concordat, the Altmer presence in Skyrim increased greatly, mostly down to the Thalmor. The outlawing of Talos worship outraged the people, and people being removed from their homes or off the streets with little to no evidence of such worship showed the crackdown to be perhaps a front, with the intention truly being sabotage and/or demoralisation.
Auri-El (King of the Aldmer) The Elven Akatosh is Auri-El. Auri-El is the soul of Anui-El, who, in turn, is the soul of Anu the Everything. He is the chief of most Aldmeri pantheons. Most Altmeri and Bosmeri claim direct descent from Auri-El. In his only known moment of weakness, he agreed to take his part in the creation of the mortal plane, that act which forever sundered the Elves from the spirit worlds of eternity. To make up for it, Auri-El led the original Aldmer against the armies of Lorkhan in mythic times, vanquishing that tyrant and establishing the first kingdoms of the Altmer, Altmora and Old Ehlnofey. He then ascended to heaven in full observance of his followers so that they might learn the steps needed to escape the mortal plane.
Magnus (Magus) The god of sorcery, Magnus withdrew from the creation of the world at the last second, though it cost him dearly. What is left of him on the world is felt and controlled by mortals as magic. One story says that, while the idea was thought up by Lorkhan, it was Magnus who created the schematics and diagrams needed to construct the mortal plane. He is sometimes represented by an astrolabe, a telescope, or, more commonly, a staff.
Trinimac Strong god of the early Aldmer, in some places more popular than Auri-El. He was a warrior spirit of the original Elven tribes that led armies against the Men. Boethiah is said to have assumed his shape (in some stories, he even eats Trinimac) so that he could convince a throng of Aldmer to listen to him, which led to their eventual Chimeri conversion. Trinimac vanishes from the mythic stage after this, to return as the dread Malacath (Altmeri propaganda portrays this as the dangers of Dunmeri influence).
Y'ffre (God of the Forest) While Auri-El Time Dragon might be the king of the gods, Y'ffre is revered as the spirit of "the now." According to the Elves, after the creation of the mortal plane everything was in chaos. The first mortals were turning into plants and animals and back again. Then Y'ffre transformed himself into the first of the Ehlnofey, or "Earth Bones." After these laws of nature were established, mortals had a semblance of safety in the new world, because they could finally understand it.
Xarxes Xarxes is the god of ancestry and secret knowledge. He began as a scribe to Auri-El, and has kept track of all Aldmeri accomplishments, large and small, since the beginning of time. He created his wife, Oghma, from his favorite moments in history.
Mara (Goddess of Love) Nearly universal goddess. Origins started in mythic times as a fertility goddess. She is sometimes associated with Nir of the "Anuad," the female principle of the cosmos that gave birth to creation. For the Altmer, she is the wife of Auri-El.
Stendarr (God of Mercy) God of compassion and righteous rule. In early Altmeri legends, Stendarr is the apologist of Men.
Syrabane (Warlock's God) An Aldmeri god-ancestor of magic, Syrabane aided Bendu Olo in the Fall of the Sload. Through judicious use of his magical ring, Syrabane saved many from the scourge of the Thrassian Plague. He is also called the Apprentices' God, for he is a favorite of the younger members of the Mages Guild.
— Additional Deities with Significant Altmer Cults —
Phynaster Hero-god of the Summerset Isles, who taught the Altmer how to naturally live another hundred years by using a shorter walking stride.
Lorkhan (The Missing God) This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri "Lorkhan," or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane, upsetting the status quo—much like his father Padomay had introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the "scheme of things" is interpreted a variety of ways. To the High Elves, he is the most unholy of all higher powers, as he forever broke their connection to the spirit plane. In the legends, he is almost always an enemy of the Aldmer and, therefore, a hero of early Mankind
The Dunmer or Dark Elves are dark-skinned elves originally from the province of Morrowind, known to be strong, intelligent, quick, aloof, reserved, but also considered by some to be ill-fated. But mess around with Azura and that tends to be what happens folks. Dunmer tend to keep to themselves, and natives of Morrowind hold to a bitter distrust and disdain for other races, considering themselves to be superior. (This is why the Bosmer - the actual cannibal Bosmer - are the friendly elves. They aren't assholes.)
Dunmer have red, glowing eyes with skin that varies from greenish to the more common grey to sometimes occasional light blue. Both male and female Dunmer are around the same height as humans, putting them as taller than Bosmer but shorter than Altmer. However, the Dunmer were once the golden-skinned Chimer until Azura cursed them for the actions of the Tribunal either for using Kagrenac's Tools or murdering Nerevar.
The Dunmer, formally Chimer, (Changed Folk/Changed Ones) were several clans of mer convinced by Boethiah to abandon the customs and laws of the Summerset Isles to instead follow the prophet Veloth in an exodus to Resdayn. At the time, the exiles were known as Velothi. The exiles settled and flourished, creating Velothi High Culture, where worship was based on the three Good Daedra and respect for the House of Troubles and the new customs. They found Dwemer settle there, and much early history is conflict between the Chimer and Dwemer.
A lack of unity allowed the Nords to conquer and rule Morrowind for many years until the War of Succession allowed the Chimer and Dwemer, led by Indoril Nerevar and Dumac Dwarfking to form an alliance against them, ousting the Nords and creating the First Council.
Eventually the Dwemer and Chimer went to war over religion due to the Dwemer using the Heart of Lorkhan, culminating in the Battle of Red Mountain. The Dwemer disappeared and the House of Dagoth allies were annihilated. Nerevar died after the battle either from his wounds or murder at the hands of his closest allies, the Tribunal.
The Tribunal and their actions, either in using the tools to become gods, or for the murder of Nerevar, caused Azura to curse both them and the Chimer, turning their skin to ash and their eyes red. They then became the Dunmer.
After Baar Dau fell and Red Mountain erupted, destroying much of Morrowind, many Dunmer fled to Skyrim. Many settled on Solstheim, an island given to them by the High King at the time, with others fleeing to Windhelm, home of the Stormcloaks resisting against the Empire where they were made to stay in the Gray Quarter, subject to abuse.
Prior to the cataclysm that forced their exodus, among those faithful to Azura were some who received visions of the eruption. Setting out for Winterhold, they built a great shrine though only one, Aranea Ienith remains. In the months after the eruption, some returned to rebuild only to be met with an Argonian invasion.
While most of the information is from the original Varieties of Faith, the structure of this document differs enough to be considered a stand alone piece.
The Dunmer are descended from the Chimer, who were apostates of the Aldmeri's Aedra worship. As the Alessian Reforms never took hold in Morrowind, their pantheon bears little resemblance to the rest of Tamriel. The Dark Elves' original religion was worship of several Daedric Princes, the so-called "Good Daedra," but that has been largely superseded by reverence for the "Living Gods" of the Tribunal.
The Tribunal
Almalexia (Mother Morrowind) Most traces of Auri-El disappeared from ancient Chimer legends during their so-called "exodus," primarily due to that god's association and esteem with the Altmeri. However, most aspects of Auri-El that seem so important to the mortal races—namely immortality, historicity, and genealogy—have conveniently resurfaced in Almalexia, the most popular of Morrowind's divine Tribunal.
Vivec (Master of Morrowind) Warrior-poet god of the Dunmer. Vivec is the invisible keeper of the holy land, ever vigilant against the dark gods of the Volcano. He/she has saved the Dunmeri people from certain death on numerous occasions.
Sotha Sil (Mystery of Morrowind) God of the Dunmer, Sotha Sil is the least known of the divine Tribunal. He is said to be reshaping the world from his hidden, clockwork city.
The "Good" Daedra
Boethiah (Prince of Plots) Heralded by the Prophet Veloth, Boethiah is the original god-ancestor of the Dark Elves. Through his/her illuminations, the eventual "Chimer," or Changed Folk, renounced all ties to the Aldmer and founded a new nation based on Daedric principles. All manner of Dark Elven cultural "advances" are attributed to Boethiah, from philosophy to magic to "responsible" architecture. Ancient Velothi allegories are uniformly heroic successes of Boethiah over enemies of every type, serving as foundation stories of Chimeri struggle. Also known as the Anticipation of Almalexia.
Mephala (Androgyne) Mephala is the Webspinner or Spider God. In Morrowind, he/she was the ancestor who taught the Chimer the skills they would need to evade their enemies or murder them in secret. Enemies were numerous in those days, since the Chimer were a small faction. He/she, along with Boethiah, organized the clan systems that eventually became the basis for the Great Houses. He/she founded the Morag Tong. Also called the Anticipation of Vivec.
Azura (Goddess of Dusk and Dawn) Azura was the god-ancestor who taught the Chimer the mysteries needed to be different than the Altmer. Some of her more conventional teachings are sometimes attributed to Boethiah. In the stories, Azura is often more a communal cosmic force for the race as a whole than an ancestor or a god. Also known as the Anticipation of Sotha Sil.
The Missing God
Lorkhan (The Missing God) This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri "Lorkhan" or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane. This upset the status quo, much like his father, Padomay, who introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and eventually wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the "scheme of things" is interpreted a variety of ways. In Morrowind, he is a being related to the Psijic Endeavor, a process by which mortals are charged with transcending the gods that created them.
Four Corners of the House of Troubles, "Testing Gods"
Enemy gods, more to be placated and appeased than worshiped.
Molag Bal (God of Schemes, Lord of Brutality) Daedric power of much importance in Morrowind. There, he is always the archenemy of Boethiah, the Prince of Plots. He is the main source of the obstacles to the Dunmer (and preceding Chimer) people. In legends, Molag Bal always tries to upset the bloodlines of Great Houses or otherwise ruin Dunmeri "purity." A race of supermonsters, said to live in Molag Amur, are the result of his seduction of Vivec during the previous era.
Malacath (God of Curses) In Dunmer myth, Boethiah swallowed Aldmer hero-god Trinimac and excreted him as Malacath. A somewhat weak but vengeful Daedra, the Dark Elves say he is also Malak, the god-king of the Orcs. He always tests the Dunmer for physical weakness.
Sheogorath (The Mad God) The fearful obeisance of Sheogorath is widespread, and it is found in most Tamrielic quarters. Contemporary sources indicate that his roots are in Aldmeri creation stories; therein, he is "born" when Lorkhan's divine spark is removed. One crucial myth calls him the "Sithis-shaped hole" of the world. He tests the Dunmer for mental weakness and tempts the Great Houses into treachery against each other.
Mehrunes Dagon (God of Destruction) Popular Daedric power. He is associated with natural dangers like fire, earthquakes, and floods. In some cultures, Dagon is merely a god of bloodshed and betrayal. He is an especially important deity in Morrowind, where he represents its near-inhospitable terrain.
a group of related race races of sentient beings which developed from the Ehlnofey
a member of one of the one of the elven races (though exceptions such as the Ayleids and Bretons exist)
In the ancient Aldmeri language, mer means person/us/folk, and isn't unlike the way humans use the word man, with speakers of the Imperial tongue substituting the word 'elf' for mer, especially in adjective form as elven sounds better than the correct 'meri' form. Most mer accept 'elf' though they usually refer to each other as mer. Mer can be used as a singular and a plural. When used in combination with other Aldmeri words, it simply means 'a type of people' i.e. the Bosmer being wood people.
Geerally, the mer believe themselves to be the direct descendant of the Aedra (Aedra literally meaning our ancestors) who had been tricked by Lorkhan into giving up their divinity to create the world. No elves consider mortality to be a 'gift' the way humans do, so opinions differ from race to race, with some lamenting the loss of their birthright with others considering it a test of character.
The first mer came from the continent of Aldmeris, arriving on Tamriel from the southwest during the Middle Merethic Era. Since the Mythic Era, they've diverged and diversified significantly from the original proto-race over thousands of years.
The Aldmer, First Ones, were the ancestral race, the direct descendants of the Ehlnofey (besides the Hist, the only ancient race of Nirn to survive its early days) and modern scholars believe that all of the Ehlnofey became the Aldmer while those on the other three continents became men (Nords, Redguard, and Tsaesci).
At the time of recorded history, the Aldmer had diverged. The Altmer are closest to them in looks and behaviour. Daedric Princes have sometimes interfered in Aldmeri life to create others notably Dunmer and Orsimer. Imperial speakers, unaware of history, will sometimes use the temr to refer to all elves which is incorrect.
The Thalmor are the governing council of the Third Aldmeri Dominion, the union of Valenwood, the Summerset Isles and the client states of Elsweyr. The Thalmor are made up of elven supremacists who seek to end the Empire and eradicate the worship of Talos as it goes against their own beliefes. They claim sole responsiblity for closing the Oblivon Gates in the Dominion.
As a branch of the Dominion, the Thalmor seek to unify the provinces of Tamriel through a single government leadership under the elves. Offended deeply by Tiber Septim's victory in Valenwood, they are sworn to wipe out Talos worship throughout the Empire with the signing of the White-Gold Concordat giving them the legal authority to do so at the end of the war with the Empire of Cyrodiil. Devout worshipers flout this in secrecy or openly but the Thalmor are able to use lethal force, including torture, to eradicate them.
Thalmor can be identified by their long, black hooded robes, and are adept spell-casters. They are viewed unfavourably outside of the Dominion and even by some within.
The Thalmor began as a provisional government by the Bosmer and Altmer during the Second Aldmeri Dominion, claiming the Summerset Isles for themselves, they renamed Alinor in the Fourth Era. The Thalmor sought to unify the land, included parts of Hammerfell to align it against sefaring threats. Tiber Septim thwarted this effort and the 'Brass God' of Dwemer origin. The hatred this sparked would last, a deep and bitter one, especially when the man was apothesised into the deity Talos.
Prior to the Oblivion Crisis, what would become the Thalmor were more or less a loud fringe group openly mocked throughout society, and in the waning years of the Third Era they led boycotts of Imperial goods. When the Oblivion Gates began to open, it threw the Summerset Isles were thrown into anarchy. Refugees in their thousands were killed, those who fled by boat found storms conjured by Daedra cut off escape and were cut down on the wharves and docks. Forced into the raging sea, they drowned.
Towards the end of what would become known as the Oblivion Crisis, it was onlyt the Crystal Tower of the High Elves that stood against the Daedric. Making their last stand there, the Altmer sorcerers and archers killed so many Daedra that they scaled the walls over their own dead. The Crystal Tower fell, torn apart by Daedric machines. In the final moments, the hordes of Daedra vanished completely.
Though many disputed the miraculous claims the Thalmor made, they each had their reputations ruined through rumours they spread and found themselves exiled. Those who continued were assassinated even in exile.
The Stormcrown Interregnum began after Potentate Ocato's murder, the Elder Council fractured which led to seven ruthless years of in-fighting, backstabbing, and plots; the Thalmor seized the chance to act while the Empire was mired in mayhem, overthrowing rightful Kings and Queens of the Altmer in a violent uprising. The first of many pogroms descended on the Summerset Isle where they slaughtered any 'not of the blood of the Aldmer' as well as dissidents who remained.
The Thalmor, newly empowered, acquired Valenwood once more through a coup d'état, and the Former Confederacy of Elsweyr, shaken by political strife, became a protectorate of the new Aldmeri Dominion. The Thalmor's ambitions would not cease there however.
The Thalmor are considered to be the most dangerous enemy to the Mede Empire with the Penitus Oculatus responsible for gathering intel on their movements. Reports claim that they harass refugee communities in Sentinel and Balfierra with murders that could be assigned to them due to them being of mixed blood or associations that would be considered unclean to the Aldmeri Dominion. In Valenwood it was much worse, with Empire supplies no longer reliably reaching rebles.
It was the Thalmor who initiated the Great War against Cyrodiil during Titus Mede II's reign, seeing the frailty of the ruling class and the office of the Emperor after the Elder Council had struggled for decades to place rulers on the throne. The war was violent, vast and bloody. Ulfric Stormcloak was imprisoned at this time, and after interrogated by Elenwen, he was released in the hopes he might stir up unrest to destabilise the Empire further. Four more years of blood forced Mede I to sign the White-Gold Concordat, including the removal of Talos from the pantheon, Nine Divines reduced to Eight.
At this time, there was an unsuccessful attempt to besiege Hammerfell with a retreat after suffering extreme losses. The Imperial Legion was preoccupied by the continuing conflicts in Cyrodiil, Ulfric was able to defeat the Reachmen - usurper Breton natives - occupying the Reach in the Markarth Incident, with Ulfric asking only one promise in return: that Talos worship be permitted in Markarth. Ater taking back Markarth, the Jarl initially kept the promise, until the Imperial Legion arrived to restore law. Ulfric allegedly refused to allow them to enter the city until they too agreed to allow Talos worship, and the Empire too agreed. The Thalmor discovered this violation of the Concordat laying down an ultimatum: forbid the worship or declare war against the Dominion. The Empire and Jarl broke the agreement with Ulfric, giving in to the pressure, and the Empire arrested Ulfric and his followers to enfore the ban on Talos worship. Meanwhile the Bretons stewed in anger at the defeat, wanting to take back the Reach, and named themselves the Forsworn. After the Markarth Incident, the Thalmor had a foothold in Skyrim.
By 4E 176, Thalmor Justiciars were hunting down Talos worshipers and imprisoning them for violating the worship ban. From their embassy in Skyrim, they enforced the White-Gold Concordat, making sure the Empire never broke it again. Secretly, they instigated the conflict between Empire and rebel Stormcloaks, interfering only in certain instances to keep it going. They also hunted down the surviving Blades who escaped eradication.
Jagga: Set several shallow pans of boiled pig's milk cream where the cat can't step on them and leave alone for a day, then stir several times per day thereafter.
Strain the whey into a separate vessel, keeping the curds in their pans. Break the curds apart with a spoon, then allow the curds to dry into shards.
Stir daily to keep them from spoiling. Once dry, use these shards to thicken skimmed pig's milk, or to add more cream to plain pig's milk.
Bottle and let ferment for 3 weeks.
Note that you can drink the whey immediately, or use it in other recipes.
Blood Froth: Pour fresh blood into shallow pans and place in the cold cave till nearly congealed. Meanwhile, whip together a couple of chicken egg yolks and melted tallow.
Using a sharp knife, slice the blood into chunks, then dice. This is why you let it congeal first—it's impossible to dice fresh blood!
Whip the blood slivers with the yolks and tallow, adding more tallow if needed to thin into a beverage. Add salt to taste.
Set aside for a month to allow it to ferment.
Fermented Honey Liquor: Combine two hives' of strained honey with twice the amount of water, and a handful of hops. Cover and let ferment for a season before tasting. Ladle into bottles, seal them with beeswax, and put away.
The longer you let the bottles sit, the better the liquor will be.
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earthbones) wrote2017-11-18 09:04 pm
Dragons
Mer
Padomy & Sithis
When Anu birthed its own soul to create Anui-El,[3] Padomay, being Anu's opposite did the same and created the god Sithis.[OOG 2] Sithis and Anui-El's interplay and the conditions they set on each other would be what actually forms the Aurbis.[3]
It is believed that all Daedric Princes are purely Padomaic and contributed nothing to the creation of Mundus and that the Aedra are both Anuic and Padomaic.[4] Whether this is true or not is unknown but there do seem to be deities that contradict this, most notably the Daedric Prince Meridia who was one of the Magna Ge, implying that she did contribute to the creation of Mundus and that she was partially Anuic.[5]
In The Elder Scrolls lore, Aurbis is the name for the universe. It includes Mundus, Oblivion, the Void, and Aetherius. It is the overlap of the two cosmic forces: Anu and Padomay.
Its extremities in all directions are believed to be the Void. More to the inside of Aurbis is Magna Ge and the planes of Oblivion. The center of Aurbis is Mundus, the mortal plane, and the center of Mundus is Nirn.
Anu, also known as Anu the Everything, is one of the two primordial deities associated with the creation of Aurbis.[1] Anu is an equal and opposite force to his counterpart, most commonly called Padomay, and is often considered to exist within all things and personifies order, stasis, and light.[2][3] According to some, most notably those who worship Padomaic beings, Anu was nothing but a static force incapable of consciousness, personality, intent or will, being depicted as immutable static light that does not change.
Anu is neither an Aedra nor a Daedra; he predates the creation of both groups and played a part in their creation with his younger "brother" Padomay. In The Annotated Anuad, it is stated that, when Anu and Padomay came into being, they both engaged in combat over Nir, who was "created from their interplay" and birthed the Twelve Worlds of Creation. Anu and Padomay fought over Nir, who died in the process. Anu then created Nirn out of the remainder of the Twelve Worlds.[3]
According to this account, the Et'Ada were created when Anu and Padomay's blood was spilled. Their mixed blood supposedly gave birth to the Aedra, while Anu's blood became the Magna Ge and Padomay's blood would end up giving birth to the Daedra. However, the authenticity of this clash is still debatable.[3]
According to the Aldmeri, after the clash between Anu and Padomay, Anu birthed his own soul so that he could understand himself and self-reflect. This reborn soul was known as Anui-El and, in turn, became the soul of all things.[2] However, as Anu created Anui-El, Padomay birthed his soul, Sithis,[OOG 1] who represented all the limitations of Anui-El. Anui-El then noticed that the world created in their conflict, the Aurbis, was turbulent and chaotic. In order to stabilize the Aurbis and further his self-reflection, Anui-El birthed his own soul in the same way as Anu before him. Anui-El's soul was known as Auri-El and began a new force known as time. Time allowed the realm of Aurbis to realize its natures and limitations, and thus the Et'Ada born from the blood finally began to take forms and names.[2] As a response to this action, Sithis birthed his own soul, Lorkhan, to destroy the universe he hated.
Sithis, also known as Akel,[1] SITHISIT,[2] Psijii,[OOG 1] and the Dread-Father,[3] and not to be confused with Padomay, is a deity representative of emptiness and the void. Other sources say that he is also a representation of utter misanthropy.[OOG 2] He is worshipped by the Dark Brotherhood and many other cults. Although usually referred to as male by the Dark Brotherhood, Sithis, like most deities, has no gender.
Sithis is neither an Aedra nor a Daedra. Sithis is the birthed soul incarnate of Padomay and the equal yet opposite force to Anui-El, who is the birthed soul incarnate of Padomay's opposite force, Anu.[OOG 3] The conditions Sithis and Anui-El placed on each other in their interplay would bring about the creation of what is known as the Aurbis, in which the realms of Aetherius, Oblivion, and Mundus would form. It is implied that the Daedra may have been created from Sithis.[4] When Anui-El birthed his soul, Auri-El, to stabilize the then confusing and turbulent Aurbis by creating time, Sithis birthed his own soul, Lorkhan, as well.[OOG 3][1] Sithis is believed to have created Lorkhan to destroy the universe through trickery and deceit, and return the universe to the void.
Sithis, in the eyes of the Altmer, is nothing but an embodiment of all the limitations Anui-El used to ponder himself after his creation. But according to Sithis worshipers, Anuiel was actually one of many ideas created by Sithis that refused to die and enslaved the universe.[5] Sithis is described as the embodiment of everything evil, but at the same time, he is described as being nothing at all: a void. He is appeased through death (although he himself is not a god of death) and other acts of suffering and strife.[7]
In the belief of the Dark Brotherhood, Sithis visited a Dunmer woman who gave birth to five children of Sithis. The Dunmer woman then claimed to hear the voice of Sithis in her head, telling her to send their children to him. However this could not be achieved easily, so she sacrificed her five children, thus sending them to the Void to reunite with their father. Following this, many angry citizens killed the Dunmer lady for her actions and burnt down her house. It is said that this action created the Night Mother. At least 30 years after this, a man heard voices in his head, much like the Night Mother heard Sithis. He followed the voices to her tomb and it was there the first Listener of the Dark Brotherhood was created.[7] Following this and the establishment of the Dark Brotherhood that worships Sithis, he became much more publicly worshiped throughout all of Tamriel than he was before. The Dark Brotherhood believe that Sithis is 'married' to The Night Mother, and the Dark Brotherhood are their metaphorical children.[8] According to some sources, the Night Mother may actually be the Daedric Prince Mephala.[9][10]
Lorkhan & Talos
Like Akatosh, Lorkahn is the only othe Aedra who appears in every mythology on Nirn but depending on the race, opinions vary. He's generally considered an enemy of the mer and a patron/hero to men. Being called Shezarr, the Missing God, reflects that he's the only one of the Aedra to truly die and vanish.
To the mer he's called the Trickster since they blame Lorkhan for tricking the other Aedra into giving up their divinity, including those who'd become the Elhnofey and Altmer, meaning they blame him for their mortality. The Dunmer are a little less vicious since they think mortality is a test of their strength and he's an obstacle to be overcome in the quest to their destiny of shedding their mortality. (The Dunmer are weird but also cursed so y'know.)
Men of course are stuffed full of butthurt, don't think they're descended from the Aedra and think Lorkhan alone created them because men are men. Lorkhan is their big hero and they're taking their ball and going home if everyone else is mean about him.
A man once known as Tiber Septim, Ysmir Dragon of the North, and Dragonborn who united all the nations of Tamriel into a single Empire. The Eight Divines are said to have made a place for him when he ascended to godhood with him as the God of War, Governance and the Hero-God of Man. However the Aldmeri Dominion disagreed and as part of the White-Gold Condcordat at the end of the Great War, the Thalmor were instigators in outlawing Talos worship given that he was a man, a man couldn't become Divine so he wasn't a god, so he shouldn't be worshiped.
Aedra & Daedra
With Oblivion as the night sky, they're considered by some to be planets with the largest eight considered to be the Divines while the stars are the Magna Ge.
Like the Daedra, the Aedra have their spheres where they oversee depending on the cultural pantheon although there are commonalities between the various cultures. However the constants are the dragon god of time, commonly called Akatosh, and the missed god, commonly called Lorkhan. By some account, there are two group of Aedra on Mundus following the creation of Mundus. Some, led by Auriel, fought against Lorkhan and his followers, and they eventually became the Old Ehlnofey and from that the Aldmer. Others joined with Lorkhan and became men.
The Aedra differ to the Daedra in that they are bound to Mundus and can possibly killed. This might have happened to Lorkhan after the meeting at the Adamnatine Tower. However, an another account suggests he wasn't killed, instead being condemend to exile with his heart torn out.
Daedra literally means 'not our ancestors' and rule over their own planes of Oblivion if they're Daedric Princes; they refused to take part in the creation of Mundus and cannot be permanently killed, only banished. Worship or conjuring can summon the Daedra to Nirn.
Generally not considered 'evil' by the general populace, it's argued that their actions are above what mortal minds can understand with none being wholly good or evil. The 'good' ones might seem that way because what they seek to accomplish is generally beneficial/benevolent to mortals with the 'evil' ones more likely to harm mortals. Also their morality can be viewed through different cultural lenses on top of them being difficult to understand for mortals.
Serving a Prince isn't unlike a deal with the devil; you might be rewarded well for your service but you'll be required to do something morally questionable (or worse) to obtain their favour with service lasting through life and death. However depending on Prince and/or person, this might be an upside.
theory nonsense;
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago Paarthurnax: "Pruzah (Good). As good a reason as any. There are many who feel as you do, although not all. Some would say that all things must end, so that the next can come to pass. Perhaps this world is simply the Egg of the next kalpa*? Lein vokiin (world unborn)? Would you stop the next world from being born?"
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago dragonborn is a balancing point; those who wish to hasten the end are unwittingly slowing it, those who wish to stop it are unwittingly hurrying it
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago so do not complete the main quest
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago see: the kirkbride archives
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago since i believe that alduin truly is an aspect/offshoot/piece of akatosh (subtheory: all of the dragons are divinely tied to akatosh) because it's so heavily implied as subtext it's basically text
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago and then there's the what the thalmor are doing since it involves time or unravelling it; elenwen is either misinformed (fairly unlikely) or lying when she says the thalmor don't know and have nothing to do with the dragons
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago tied to that: the dragonborn is playing into the thalmor agenda
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago the thalmor want to do as the dwemer did, they want to escape the dreamsleeve and become immortal again - how else do you do that? you break the dragon
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago also related to bronach specifically: the towers and how falinesti was one of the towers prior to the rooting
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ an hour ago also alduin as the adamantium tower because...it might not need to be a physical thing?
ɢᴀsʜᴀᴘᴏɴ 44 minutes ago also...akatosh = anu, talos = lorkhan in the lore and how the dragonborn has a similar relationship with talos to being divine/chosen/blessed/incarnate of akatosh???
wondering how much bronach is possibly going to try putting together about grey wardens given what she knows about being a dragonborn and what inessa just told her
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago i'm probably going to have to sit and read about mantling generally again, possibly the nu-mantia intercepts, padomay/anu, there's a sithis thing i'm trying to track down but i can't find the wording
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago the worst possible combination of words in relation to dragons, slaying them, and them rising again came up and i'm just laugh-crying at what this is possibly going to unleash no one would ever confirm it for her if she did put pieces together but by christ she would work at it
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs delete 11 days ago Archdemons have a form of immortality that only Grey Wardens can overcome. Without us, their death is only temporary. History abounds of battles bought without the Wardens, only for a slain archemon to arise again. Their will, and their taint, endures.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago then i look at the scrolls wiki which gives this in relation to dragons: The College of Whispers has questioned several Dremora, who claim dragons simply "were, and are": eternal, immortal, unchanging, and unyielding.[4] In this respect, the dragons are closer to the Daedra than to animals and the mortal races;
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago they are ageless and immortal, with their souls enduring beyond physical death, and they do not mate or breed as animals do.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago The dragon cult itself, however, survived. They built the dragon mounds, entombing the remains of dragons that fell in the war, believing that one day the dragons would rise again and reward the faithful.
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs delete 11 days ago bronach has fought the dragon priests, has seen alduin bring back dragons from bare bones
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago i'm tired and interpreting scrolls lore is a pain but iirc it was during the dragon wars - that bronach witnessed part of through the elder scroll she read - that when the ancient nords were taught shouts, that's when they were able to kill dragons because of how dragons are uniquely tied to time itself
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago and if they're all offshoots of akatosh aka all part of the divine then it makes even more sense that it's only very specific individuals who are capable of actually killing them for good since the dragonborn learns shouts from the innate understanding in the soul of the dragon they've called allowing them to master the thing
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago so if a dragon is killed by another thing, the soul stays with the skeleton and all that has to be done is for the name to be said to the skeleton (by alduin or probably another dragon but we'll say alduin)
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago now put that next to what inessa told her about archdemons
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago and also how the nord heroes were given knowledge no one else has
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago like...there is some shit going on and bronach is unhappy
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago one of the best things i have open all the time is the imperial library which has every codex entry as well as michael kirkbride's forum archives where he got so wild and deep on the lore and a lot of wild thoughts i've had feel pretty confirmed or less and now my brain is cracked
ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴇʏᴇs 11 days ago there's also the whole thing where one of the deities shot an arrow through something and like fired the corpse of something else across and the moons are literally rotting flesh hanging in the sky
Dragons & Time
Time;
Alduin is the World-Eater which means he's the concept of time ending. Akatosh is the concept of time, Alduin is the concept of linear time, Auri-El is infinite looping time. Welcome to Elder Scrolls your brain is on fire.
Re: completing the main quest
Player: "I like this world. I don't want it to end."
Paarthurnax: "Pruzah (Good). As good a reason as any. There are many who feel as you do, although not all. Some would say that all things must end, so that the next can come to pass. Perhaps this world is simply the Egg of the next kalpa*? Lein vokiin (world unborn)? Would you stop the next world from being born?"
*A kalpa is an epoch of time comprised of the birth, life and death of that specific period.
Paarthurnax after learning Dragonrend: "the very bones of the earth are at your disposal"
Paarthurnax after defeating Alduin: "perhaps you begin to see the world as a dovah" fucking validating literally all my rp choices as bronach when paarthurnax just brought up insight into the currents of time that the dragonborn might have now
Player: "Why live alone on a mountain if you love conversation?"
Paarthurnax: Extinguish hunger. There are many hungers it is better to deny than to feed. Do not feed. Discipline against the lesser aids in qahnaar… denial of the greater."
Player: "The prophecy says that only the Dragonborn can stop him."
Paarthurnax: "True… But qostiid - prophecy - tells what may be, not what should be. Prophecy is a weak guide. Just because you can do a thing, does not always mean you should. Do you have no better reason for acting than destiny? Are you nothing more than a plaything of dez… of fate?"
Player: "I didn't come here to debate philosophy with you."
Paarthurnax: "Hahaha! You have much to learn of the dov, then. There is nothing else but philosophy to a dovah. It is no accident that we do battle with our Thu'um, our Voices. There is no distinction between debate and combat to a dragon. Talk is battle. For us it is one and the same."
Player: "What better reason to act than to fulfill my destiny?"
Paarthurnax: "If you can see your destiny clearly, your sight is clearer than mine. Dahmaan - remember, Alduin also follows his destiny, as he sees it. But, I bow before your certainty. In a way, I envy you. The curse of much knowledge is often indecision."
Player: "I don't believe in destiny. But I will stop Alduin."
Paarthurnax: "And so, perhaps, your destiny will be fulfilled. Who can say? Fate slippery. Even to the dov, who ride the currents of Time, destiny is elusive. Alduin believes that he will prevail, with good reason. He strong. And he is no fool. Not fool, very far from. Far from it. He began as the wisest and most far-seeing of us all. "
Player: "The next world will have to take care of itself."
Paarthurnax: "Fair. A fair answer. Balance force… maybe you only balance the forces that work to quicken the end of this world. Even we who ride the currents of Time cannot see past Time's end…The whirlwind/vortex of time is treachorous/turbulent. Those who try to hasten the end, may delay it. Those who work to delay the end, may bring it closer."
Paarthurnax re: the blades wanting to kill him;
The Blades are wise not to trust me. Wisdom not trust. I would not trust another dragon. Dragons were created for domination. We were made to dominate. The will to power is in our blood. You feel it in yourself, do you not? I can be trusted. I know this. But they do not. Wisdom is not trusting a dragon. It is always wise to mistrust a dovah. I have overcome my nature only through meditation and long study of the Way of the Voice. No day goes by where I am not tempted to return to my inborn nature. Honour is fighting the lure of power. What is better - to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?
Player: I was just fulfilling my destiny as Dragonborn
Paarthurnax: Indeed, you saw more clearly than I - certainly more clearly than Alduin. Rok funta koraav (he failed to see). Perhaps now you have some insight into the forces that shape the Vennesetiid...the currents of Time. Perhaps you begin to see the world as a dovah.
Divine Conceptual Nonsense
The process of mantling appears to involve taking up of a role, which then grants the person the power and, to an extent, the identity, associated with that role. It can be used to reshape the nature of gods,[OOG 2] and in the examples that we have of the process all involve the manipulation of a deity in some form.
Note that none of these examples are fully confirmed by independent sources, or stated fully to be "mantling" in any context. Their status is therefore debatable, but are discussed here to provide examples of this concept.
Talos
The Arcturian Heresy gives an account that implies that Hjalti Early-Beard, Zurin Arctus and Wulfharth mantle Lorkhan in their construction and use of the Numidium. Of particular note, the Underking loses his heart and tears a hole in Zurin's chest,[1] mimicking Auriel's or Trinimac's tearing out of Lorkhan's heart.[2][3] In addition to this, Tiber Septim led a war against the mer, just as Lorkhan had led a war against Auri-El.[2][4]
Sheogorath
During the Greymarch at the end of the Third Era, the Champion of Cyrodiil undertook a variety of tasks to defeat Jyggalag.[5] At the end of this process, Jyggalag addresses the Champion as Sheogorath, suggesting that they have become the same being at that point.[6]
The Tribunal
One of Vivec's writings may imply that the Tribunal have mantled the Anticipations, in claiming that "Six are the guardians of Veloth, three before and they are born again", Vivec is implying that the Tribunal took on the roles of Azura, Boethiah and Mephala by mantling.[7] The Tribunal Temple implies that this may be their orthodox claim to divinity, stating that the Tribunal became "high ancestor spirits" where the Daedra are "ancestor spirits", with the strong implication that the Tribunal and the Daedra became one and the same kind of being, at least in respect to Dunmer theology.[8]
The Trial of Vivec further implies that the Tribunal stole worship from the Anticipations, and Vivec states, "from [the Anticipations'] basis did we spring, called to heaven by violence, our people throwing our mantles to us across stars, and across time, and magic and dream, and here we remain."[OOG 3] However, the same source states that this was not the Tribunal's primary path to godhood.
Most of the examples we have seem to indicate that the process is only possible when the entity being mantled is in some way absent from the world. However, the example of the Tribunal could either disprove this, or suggest that mantling has a wider application than generally thought (see note below).
Nu-Hatta of the Sphinxmoth Enquiry Tree could potentially imply that mantling is not just the fourth Walking Way, but that there are different ways to mantle, and that Talos used the fourth way to do so.[OOG 1] The notion of being given a mantle by others, as suggested in the case of the Tribunal, could also support this idea.
Apotheosis
Apotheosis, is a rare process by which a mortal ascends into godhood.[1] For example, Tiber Septim, who became the god Talos.[2][3] Another example is Reman Cyrodiil, who later became worshiped in some sectors of Tamriel as the god Reman.[citation needed] A more famous example is the Tribunal Temple in Morrowind. In The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles, the Hero of Kvatch achieved this process and became the Mad God, Sheogorath.[2] Mannimarco is also an example of someone who ascended into godhood.[4]
Afterlife
Bosmer- The Bosmer afterlife differs the most from others. When Yffre (first of the Ehlnofey) died, a Bosmer witnessed him become apart of the earth and therefore refer to the Ehlnofey as “Earth Bones”. Bosmer therefore theorized in their own religion that they return to nature. Possibly connected with the Dreamsleeve to be reincarnated, but through nature’s choice. Not every Bosmer will become reincarnated, but rather their own spirit becomes one with nature again.
the Dreamsleeve- It is a generic form of spiritual reincarnation for spirits who do not make a bond or are affected by any sort of pull of the soul,. For example: An Imperial dies, his soul goes to the Dreamsleeve and his energy is put into Mundus (the spiritual part of Nirn) the soul can find its way back into the physical being of Nirn and be reincarnated but however is not guaranteed.
Sithis
Sithis
Varieties of Faith: The Argonians
The Monomyth
Source of Chaos
Sermon Ten
Sermon Twenty-One
Vehk's Teaching
Summary
The Creation of Aurbis
image 1; the Aurbis begins
In this image we see the dream of ANU, or Satak-Coiled, as it began - one totality, unsundered, drifting within the great void that the Khajiit call Namiira.
image 2; the Aurbis differentiates
In this image we see the naming of the first "character" of ANU's dream; HIMSELF. Anu, Anuiel, Ahnurr, whichever name you use, this character acts independently from the totality of ANU. Due to the principle of PSJJJJ, once one thing is Named, you, by implication create an Other. What Anuiel IS, the Other IS NOT. What the Other IS, Anuiel IS NOT. That "other" is called Padomay, Sithis, Fadomai.
image 3; the Aurbis populates
In this image we see the birth of the first "true" spirits. The first is TIME, which goes by many names. Each of these are parts of Anui-El which differentiate themselves from the whole. They are his aspects. They begin to make realms within themselves, looking inward for enlightenment - navel gazing; making Realms.
image 4; the Aurbis' last child Sickened by the inward-vision of the "children" of Auri-El, Sithis (or just a part of Sithis - accounts differ) begins to wander the Aurbis. The spirits call him Lorkhan, and he cares not to correct them. Coming to the edge of the Aurbis, he, rather than gazing inward, gazes outward - into the Great Void in which ANU sleeps. Realising the nature of the Aurbis, Lorkhan comes upon the cusp of CHIM and develops the idea of the Amaranth.
image 5; the lesser void
Wandering throughout the Aurbis, Lorkhan teaches the children of Anui-El about the Great Void, about CHIM, and some begin to listen. Although none of the students quite "get" it, they start to fashion Voids about themselves, just as the Dreamer sits in a Void. They isolate themselves, making realms within themselves to mimic the Dreamer, but none achieve CHIM; none become Amaranth.
image 6; void follows void
But Void Follows Void, and as the students of Lorkhan began to grow in number, so did the Voids begin to coalesce. What had once been a sea of magick foam began to split into areas of clear Void and clear Magick.
image 7; Oblivion
At this time Magick and Void were fully distinct. They became known as Aetherius and Oblivion.
image 8; the Aurbis today
But Lorkhan was not happy with his students and their followers. None had achieved CHIM; none had become Amaranth. So he devised a new plan; the Mundus. And we all know that story (at least, we know several different versions of it).
Notes
Codex entries/The Imperial Library
The Green Singing
The Ooze: A Fable
Last of the Old Bones
The Voice of the People
The Eldest: A Pilgrim's Tale
The Woodsmer
Wood Elf Etiquette: An Imperial Guide
Note about "Wood Elf Etiquette"
Nu-Mantia Intercept
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #1
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #2
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #3
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #4
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #5
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #6
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #7
Nu-Mantia Intercept, Letter #8
Michael Kirkbride Posts
What appears to be an Altmeri commentary on Talos:
To kill Man is to reach Heaven, from where we came before the Doom Drum's iniquity. When we accomplish this, we can escape the mockery and long shame of the Material Prison.
To achieve this goal, we must:
1) Erase the Upstart Talos from the mythic. His presence fortifies the Wheel of the Convention, and binds our souls to this plane.
2) Remove Man not just from the world, but from the Pattern of Possibility, so that the very idea of them can be forgotten and thereby never again repeated.
3) With Talos and the Sons of Talos removed, the Dragon will become ours to unbind. The world of mortals will be over. The Dragon will uncoil his hold on the stagnancy of linear time and move as Free Serpent again, moving through the Aether without measure or burden, spilling time along the innumerable roads we once travelled. And with that we will regain the mantle of the imperishable spirit.
On the different time-dragons:
Don't forget that gods can be shaped by the mythopoeic forces of the mantlers-- so Tosh Raka could be an Akaviri avatar of Akatosh with a grudge against his mirror-brother in Cyrodiil.
Just like Akatosh-as-we-usually-know-him could time-scheme against his mirror-brother of the Nords, Alduin, to keep the present kalpa-- perhaps his favorite-- from being eaten.
Notice all the coulds.
Another Altmeri in-character snippet:
"Or the number could be more Lorkhanic nonsense; that is, convenient for Man.
"The Ysmir line is dead and so is His stranglehold on the mythic.
"A single Wheel? More like a Telescope that stretches all the way back to the Eye of the Anui-El, with Padomaics innumerable along its infinite walls.
"We're coming for you in every one of your quarters, Sons of Talos. None shall survive."
Lorkhan and his avatars, from a thread on the Six Walking Ways (02/14/04)
1. Wulfharth L
2. Hjalti O
3. Ysmir R
4. Talos K
5. Arctus H
6. Septim A
N
Are "Akatosh" and "Tosh Raka" etymologically related? (05/24/05)
Let us be clear that etymology in the TES lore is a risky venture. More than risky, it's asking for trouble when one considers Our Father Who Art in Oxford.
That said, there *is* an attempt at wordplay, consistency, and clues in the lore, so my brother above is right when he says Tosh-Raka is "Dragon Dragon." (So is Akatosh, for that matter.) But he is also missing the subtlety in the title; in Tamriel, "dragon" and "time" are synonymous, they are bones of the same body-concept. That they are combined in seeming redundance should suggest an intention.
Writing the Elder Scrolls (08/27/10)
You misinterpret the meaning of what Elder Scrolls are in the colloquial Tamrielic. When taken in this context, to "write an Elder Scroll" is "to make history".
A deeper meaning is meant, too, but not very many laymen bother with that. Until a prophecy is fulfilled, the true contents of an Elder Scoll are malleable, hazy, uncertain. Only by the Hero's action does it become True. The Hero is literally the scribe of the next Elder Scroll, the one in which the prophecy has been fulfilled into a fixed point, negating its precursor.
Also, Martin mantled Akatosh and dragon-[censored] Dagon silly, so his outlook on time in quite unlike our own. In fact, he said those words during the dragon-[censored] fight and you only remembered them later, a comforting memory that the Jills mended back into your timeline.
Yes.
How does one eat the world? (01/18/11)
When you consider a place like Tamriel, sometimes it's best to take titles literally. Alduin is the World-Eater. It's not going to be "the end of all *life* as we know it," leaving a barren wasteland of Earthbone dirt... it's going to be the whole of Nirn inside his mighty gullet.
"None shall survive" has been a calling card for awhile, but that was only a hint to the more extensive "Nothing will survive."
Unless, of course, there's a loophole. Say, something like the someone called the Dovakhiin happening to show up..."born under uncertain stars to uncertain parents." (An aside for extra credit: what in the Aurbis makes the Prisoner such a powerful mythic figure?)
The Eight Limbs (and their Missing Ninth) have always, always made sure there was a loophole. Sometimes to their detriment, sure, but more often a hedged bet to ensure the survival of the current kalpa.
Then again:
Alduin's shadow was cast like carpetflame on east, west, south, and north...[he was] epoch eater. For as far as any man's eyes, only High Hrothgar remained above the churning coils of dragon stop.
And Alduin said, "Ho ha ho."
It's obviously happened before, so sabers sharp, and may your varliance shine bright.
Explorations on objects (rather than people) mantling and being matled (03/19/14)
Lots of things are objects. We need some restrictions to define our explorations before we go buck wild. At its root, you might be on to a very cool idea. And something pretty close to the famous theft of a famous thing.
Are we:
Limiting the term "object" to a normally non-sentient physical item or tool normally considered mundane? Ex. a rake that has not been enchanted/cursed/used by a famous magic user nor host to a demon, god, or hero?
Let's say YES
Is this rake observed in any way by "regular" mortals? Ex. the farmer that uses the rake.
OR
Is this rake observed only by other normal farmer tools? Ex. tools sitting in the farmer's shed, forgotten.
OR
Is this rake observed by no one except the interior of the shed? Ex. Self-explanatory.
OR
Is this rake observed by no one since there is no light showing in the interior of the shed? Ex. the farmstead and shed are either buried underground or under the shadow of a month-long eclipse? For these examples, let's remove any mythical forces associated with the Underworld, nature, Oblivion, the Moons, Magnus, etc.
Pick one or more
Is the normal use of the rake required but there is no one to use the rake? Ex. the autumn leaves are piling too high.
And so on. Start with this rake within these limits. Try to make the rake do something so special at being another tool that it supplants that tool so much that no one remembers when the rake wasn't just that tool all along.
On the idea of Dragons being more a state of allegiance than a biological definition (07/24/14)
You've got me to back you up. And Kurt, too, insofar as breath weapons being a form of philosophical debate. And that they, you know, feed off time.
K&K's shorthand for dragons very early on were 'biological time machines powered by ideologies'.
Does Paarthurnax have any knowledge of Durnehviir? Followup: how do you know? (03/27/15)
They didn't know each other. I just asked the creator of the two dragons in question and got the answer.
The Alduin/Akatosh Dichotomoy
Dragon Break Study
The Dragon Break: Section One
The Dragon Break: Section Two
The Dragon Break: Section Three
The Dragon Break: Section Four
The Dragon Break: Section Five
The Dragon Break
Vindication for the Dragon Break
Dragonkind
After the war, dragons were nearly made extinct, believed far and wide to be little more than legends until the Fourth Era with the return of Alduin the World Eater, Firstborn of Akatosh in Skyrim.
The origin of dragons isn't known but they're believed to be the children of Akatosh and thus specially attuned to the flow of time itself. Once indigenous to the continent of Akavir until they fled to Tamriel when the Tsaesci attempted to consume them. The Ka Po' Tun of Akavir wished to become dragons (Ka meaning dragon), and it's said that Tosh Raka, their leader, has become one.
Several Dremora where questioned by the College of Whispers on the subject of dragons who back up the claims that they seem to be attuned to time by claiming they "were, and are": eternal, immortl, unchanging, and unyielding. So rather than beasts or mortals, dragons are closer to Daedra who also do not age and are immortal with their souls lasting beyond the physical death, with no need to breed or mate. There have never been examples of dragon eggs or dragonlings. The Iliac Bay stories of such were proven false: the eggs were those of oversized lizards.
As the self-proclaimed "fistborn of Akatosh", Alduin is believed to be the first dragon to have existed, and while Akatosh and Alduin are shwo as dragons, many scholars believe them to be separate entities. The Nordic pantheon shows this; see also, the Alduin-Akatosh dichotomy and the concept of dragons being able to time scheme against themselves.
In the Merethic Era, Ysgramor, an Atmoran warrior and leader of the Five Hundread Companions, came to Tamriel and his people brought with them their animal worship, and with that came the dragon. They weren't permitted to used dovah, the name the dragons used for themselves, as this was forbidden to all by the Dragon Priests. Temples were built to honour the dragons, and many survive to the Fourth Era as ruins, filled with draugr, and some haunted by the undead dragon priests.
The dragons for their part took to their position as rulers over mortals. It was in their nature and they were superior; mortality meant nothing to them, and the people worshiped them. To a dragon, power is equal to truth, and their power over men couldn't be disputed. In exchange for the obedience of the priests, small amounts of favour and power was granted to them in the form of magical masks to their most favoured. These priests ruled over men the way a king would.
Where Ysgramor came from, the dragon priests demanded tribute and created laws where a peace was kept between man and dragon. In Tamriel rule was different either from an ambitious dragon king, a particular dragon, or many weak kings. Whatever caused it, the dragon priests exerted their power absolutely and the rest of the people were little more than slaves.
Of course the people rebelled. The dragon priests retaliated. Tribute wasn't collected by the dragon priests and they began to lose control; the dragons responded quickly and brutally, and so began the Dragon War where at first men died in their thousands.
This is when Kyne appeared with the instruction for Paarthurnax to assist mankind. Paarthurnax had grown disillusioned with Alduin when Alduin proclaimed himself a god, and so he betrayed his leader and taught the power of the Voice to men.
As the people rebelled against the dragon priests, dragons were slain in huge numbers with those that survived isolating themselves from morals. Alduin was banished by Nordic heroes at the Throat of the World through the use of an Elder Scroll to send him hurtling through time. They thought he would be trapped in time forever but he returned in the Fourth Age, resurrecting his followers again.
This wasn't the end of the dragon cult. Dragon mounds were built to bury the remains of the dragons that fell in the war in the belief that they would rise again, and the faithful would be rewarded.
Prior to Alduin's return in the Fourth Age, the last sighting of a dragon in Tamriel was during the time of Tiber Septim. Swearing to protect them if they would serve him, he made a pact with the few that remained, though despite his promise, dragons were still hunted and slain. It's unclear if the last dragons fled Tamriel or were wiped out.
Jills are the female variant of dragons who exist to mend Dragon Breaks. The fixing of the Warp in the West was attributed to them by Mannimarco. Drakes are their male counterparts, though they're said not to be as powerful as them.
Dragon Language
Dragon Shouts
Dragonborns can intuitively learn Shouts and use them after absorbing dragon Souls, and with that the understanding of the dragons of the words. They can also absorb knowledge from other individuals who have mastered them such as the Greybeards.
Brónach's list of shouts in Thedas:
Unrelenting Force; Fus Ro Dah (Force Balance Push) Your Voice is raw power, pushing aside anything - or anyone - who stands in your path.
Whirlwind Sprint; Wuld Nah Kest (Whirlwind Fury Tempest) The Thu'um rushes forward, carrying you in its wake with the speed of a tempest.
Dragonrend; Joor Zah Frul (Mortal Finite Temporary) Your voice lashes out at a dragon's very soul, forcing the beast to land.
Aura Whisper; Laas Yah Nir (Life Seek Hunt) Your Voice is not a Shout, but a whisper, revealing the life forces of any and all.
Throw Voice; Zul Mey Gut (Voice Fool Far) The Thu'um is heard, but its source unknown, fooling those into seeking it out.
Marked for Death; Krii Lun Aus (Kill Leech Suffer) Speak, and let your Voice herald doom, as an opponent's armor and lifeforce are weakened.
Dismay; Faas Ru Maar (Fear Run Terror) And the weak shall fear the Thu'um, and flee in terror.
Bend Will; Gol Hah Dov (Earth Mind Dragon) Your Voice bends the very stones to your will. As it gains power, animals, people and even dragons must do your bidding.
Bosmer
Wood Elves are a collection of barbarian elven clans in the Western Valenwood forests but the Bosmer or Tree Sap People is the main term. It suggests the wildness, a youthful energy. They aren't like their dour Dunmer or Altmer cousins.
Valenwood is largely uninhabited forest with the coasts made up of mangrove swamps and tropical rainforests, with enough heavy rainfalls for temperate inland rainforests. There are clanhouses along the coast and in the interior, with only underdeveloped foot trails to connect them.
Bosmer are smaller than most other races in Tamriel, and smallest of the elves, usually light brown to pale tan to light green in colour. Some Bosmer have horns. As they're Mer, they're cousins to the Dunmer, Orsimer, and Altmer. They aren't so noble as the Altmer in terms of bloodline but they've adapted well to Tamriel. It was the Bosmer that the Ayleids - Wild Elves - joined in seclusion after fleeing Cyrodiil and were completely assimilated so this has probably affected the modern-day Bosmer biology a great deal.
Several Imperial surveys partially describe the geography of Valenwood, and it was claimed as a wasteland product of the Second Empire. Due to the Green Pact, despite Bosmer living in many different towns, they built none of them for themselves. They allowed a few roads to be built by the Second Empire but didn't maintain them as they had no need of them to move easily through thick forest. If it weren't for the Thalmor, these would be overgrown by now, but they've been repaired and widened to allow them to move their weapons and soldiers to and from the coast.
By the time of the Fourth Era, the Thalmor wished to recreate the Aldmeri Dominion of old so expanded into Valenwood as they had Elsweyr, and briefly Cyrodiil and Hammerfell. Valenwood was consolidated with the Summerset Isles into the Third Aldmeri Dominion, and a policy began of expanding their influence and power across Tamriel. It isn't known what Bosmer think of of this but the Thalmor kill families, and there are incidents such as the Falinesti Incident, purges that people never hear about, and re-education, successful or not.
Bosmer worship the Forest Gods and practice ancestor worship. In their legends, the Bosmer saw the death of Y'ffre, first of the Ehlnofey to die who as he passed formed an Earth Bone, a natural law, to limit certain aspect of the world. Y'ffre's Earth Bone limited the ability of a being to change its form and nature as previously they could change them at will, however the Bosmer, having witnessed this formation, learnt how to manipulate it to avoid the restriction. The most notable use is the Wild Hunt, a ritual known only to the shaman of Valenwood. The Wild Hunt transforms all those who take part into bloodthirsty monsters permanently who consume all enemies then themselves, an act called to protect Valenwood from invaders. The Bosmer believe that all monsters in the world were born from Wild Hunts past. At the end of each era it's invoked as a ritual practice within Valenwood.
Varieties of Faith: The Wood Elves
(King of the Aldmer) The Elven Akatosh is Auri-El. Auri-El is the soul of Anui-El, who, in turn, is the soul of Anu the Everything. He is the chief of most Aldmeri pantheons. Most Altmeri and Bosmeri claim direct descent from Auri-El. In his only known moment of weakness, he agreed to take his part in the creation of the mortal plane, that act which forever sundered the Elves from the spirit worlds of eternity. To make up for it, Auri-El led the original Aldmer against the armies of Lorkhan in mythic times, vanquishing that tyrant and establishing the first kingdoms of the Altmer, Altmora and Old Ehlnofey. He then ascended to heaven in full observance of his followers so that they might learn the steps needed to escape the mortal plane.
(God of the Forest) Most important deity of the Bosmeri pantheon. While Auri-El Time Dragon might be the king of the gods, the Bosmer revere Y'ffre as the spirit of 'the now'. According to the Wood Elves, after the creation of the mortal plane everything was in chaos. The first mortals were turning into plants and animals and back again. Then Y'ffre transformed himself into the first of the Ehlnofey, or 'Earth Bones'. After these laws of nature were established, mortals had a semblance of safety in the new world, because they could finally understand it. Y'ffre is sometimes called the Storyteller, for the lessons he taught the first Bosmer. Some Bosmer still possess the knowledge of the chaos times, which they can use to great effect (the Wild Hunt).
(God of the Cycle of Life and Death) Member of the Eight Divines pantheon, and popular elsewhere as well. Arkay is often more important in those cultures where his father, Akatosh, is either less related to time or where his time aspects are difficult to comprehend by the layman. He is the god of burials and funeral rites, and is sometimes associated with the seasons. His priests are staunch opponents of necromancy and all forms of the undead. It is said that Arkay did not exist before the world was created by the gods under Lorkhan's supervision/urging/trickery. Therefore, he is sometimes called the Mortals' God.
(God of Toil) Bosmeri god of payment in kind. Studies indicate origins in both Argonian (!) and Akaviri mythologies, perhaps introduced into Valenwood by Kothringi sailors. Ostensibly an agriculture deity, Z'en sometimes proves to be an entity of a much higher cosmic order. His worship died out shortly after the Knhaten Flu.
Xarxes is the god of ancestry and secret knowledge. He began as a scribe to Auri-El, and has kept track of all Aldmeri accomplishments, large and small, since the beginning of time. He created his wife, Oghma, from his favorite moments in history.
(The Bandit God) In most regions, Baan Dar is a marginal diety, a trickster spirit of thieves and beggars. In Elsweyr he is more important, and is regarded as the Pariah. In this aspect, Baan Dar becomes the cleverness or desperate genius of the long-suffering Khajiiti, whose last minute plans always upset the machinations of their (Elven or Human) enemies.
(Goddess of Love) Nearly universal goddess. Origins started in mythic times as a fertility goddess. In Skyrim, Mara is a handmaiden of Kyne. In the Empire, she is Mother-Goddess. She is sometimes associated with Nir of the 'Anuad', the female principle of the cosmos that gave birth to creation. Depending on the religion, she is either married to Akatosh or Lorkhan, or the concubine of both.
(God of Mercy) God of the Eight Divines, Stendarr has evolved from his Nordic origins into a deity of compassion or, sometimes, righteous rule. He is said to have accompanied Tiber Septim in his later years. In early Altmeri legends, Stendarr is the apologist of Men.
(The Missing God) This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri 'Lorkhan', or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane, upsetting the status quo-- much like his father Padomay had introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the 'scheme of things' is interpreted a variety of ways. In Morrowind, for example, he is a being related to the Psijiic Endeavor, a process by which mortals are charged with transcending the gods that created them. To the High Elves, he is the most unholy of all higher powers, as he forever broke their connection to the spirit plane. In the legends, he is almost always an enemy of the Aldmer and, therefore, a hero of early Mankind.
(The Woodland Man) Ancient Atmoran demon who, at one time, nearly seduced the Nords into becoming Aldmer. Most Ysgramor myths are about escaping the wiles of old Herma-Mora. Also called the Demon of Knowledge, he is vaguely related to the cult origins of the Morag Tong ('Foresters Guild'), if only by association with his brother/sister, Mephala.
(Little Moon God) Aldmeri god of the Little Moon. Also called Secunda or Stendarr's Sorrow. In Khajiti religion, Jone is only one aspect of the Lunar Lattice, or ja-Kha'jay.
(Big Moon God) Aldmeri god of the Big Moon. Also called Masser or Mara's Tear. In Khajiti religion, Jode is only one aspect of the Lunar Lattice, or ja-Kha'jay
The Bosmer have made a pact with Y'ffre to never harm the green which has greatly impacted their culture. They are religiously carnivorous and cannibalistic as this is a central tenet of the faith which has simple rules for governing Bosmer life:
Bosmer have to use stone or import wood for their own building needs and it's impacted their cuisine, combat, and weapons. They ferment meat and milk to make alcohol, and weapons like bows are made of animal bones or horns. Bosmer combat rules state that the corpse of an enemy must be consumed within three days of being killed. A family is allowed to help eat the kill. Fasting and planning family feasts following battle are all part of combat. Bone pipes for smoking grubs or caterpillars are also common in Valenwood.
The Green Pact is relaxed for bosmer outside of Valenwood, additionally, the following loopholes are found: the bosmer cannot harm living plants and can't eat food made from plants. So some bosmer eat raw fruit that's fallen from trees and they're able to eat mushrooms since those don't count as plants. Eating insects, honey, and dairy products are acceptable. While they can't harm the plants of Valenwood, chosen outsiders are allowed to and the bosmer have been known to purchase lumber from outsiders who cut the trees.
By the age of fourteen all bosmer children are expected to be skilled enough with a bow to join the hunting parties.
The very best archers are known as Jaqspurs, able to snatch an arrow, draw their bow, and fire in one one continuous motion.
The (Improved) Emperor's Guide to Tamriel: Valenwood
Altmer
The Altmer use selective traditions in their marriages and reproduction (eugenics and pedigrees) to strictly maintain the appearance of the elven ancestor race, the Aldmer. Out of the humanoid races, they're the tallest, being taller than all other mer and most humans. They aren't the pale white of Nords or Bretons, but have a distinctly pale gold hue to their skin that's vastly different to the Bosmer. Altmer are slender, with pointed ears, almond-shaped eyes, and their eyes are amber, green, or yellow. Of all races on Nirn they are among if not the most intelligent and inclined towards magic even when placed against the Breton. Altmer have a noble bearing, and tend to be arrogant and disdainful, especially when dealing with humans.
Being one of the oldest races of Tamriel, and one of the earliest descendants of the original race of mer, the Aldmer, and thus through the Ehlnofey to the divine et'Ada themselves, they're extremely proud of their heritage. They strive, always, to maintain that linage. Even the name Altmer means High Ones or Cultured Ones in the Aldmeri language, and they'll argue that they're the first true culture on Tamriel, the most civilised race, and even human scholars have trouble refuting that one.
Living mainly in the Summerset Isle, a large island off the southwest coast of Tamriel that shares a border with Valenwood, the histories of the Altmer claim that their Aldmeri ancestors arrived after fleeing the catastrophic sinking of their original home continent, Aldmeris. This is where splintering groups of Aldmer spread throughout Tamriel. The Altmer remained on this Isles. From here, they acted as the nominal head of meri nations on Tamriel, and for most of the Merethic Era, the other races of elves on Tamriel acknowledged the Altmeri king as their own ruler until the founding of the Comaran Dynasty in Valenwood. This marked the start of the First Era as well as the beginning of the decline of Altmer-dominated Tamriel. However, their influence is still felt with their culture forming the basis for the religion, langage, and even architecture of the Cyrodiilic Empire.
Between the Oblivion Crisis and Dragon Crisis, the Mede Empire was attacked by the Aldmeri Dominion. This was an alliance of elves comprised mainly of the Altmer and their Bosmer allies. The Empire was able to save itself only through the negotiation of the White-Gold Concordat. This treaty seemed to heavily favour the Dominion though there were heavy losses on both sides. The ruling government of the elves, the Thalmor, were elven supremacists, with the aim of ending the dominion of man and the Empire as a whole. The Thalmor also called the Great War the "First War with the Empire".
The White-Gold Concordat signed at the end of the war allowed two things chiefly: the free movement of the Thalmor throughout the Empire, and their ability to suppress Talos worship. This stoked resentment towards the Altmer generally, as well as towards the Empire for surrending to them in places such as Skyrim where Talos is a born son and the people are proud. In Skyrim particularly, there's a Thalmor Embassy west of Solitude, and Thalmor Justiciars can be encountered on the roads, almost always antagonistic, moving from veiled hostility to outright aggression though this begins with verbal warnings.
In Skyrim, many Altmer who moved from the Summerset Isles did so to become Alchemists, Enchanters and mages, with others becoming members of the College of Winterhold. Others fled due to the rise of the Thalmor if they had loyalties to the Empire to escape from the new Aldmeri Dominion though this doesn't stop Stormcloak or Nord prejudices against them though it's less intense than the abuses Dunmer fleeing Morrowind receive.
After the signing of the Concordat, the Altmer presence in Skyrim increased greatly, mostly down to the Thalmor. The outlawing of Talos worship outraged the people, and people being removed from their homes or off the streets with little to no evidence of such worship showed the crackdown to be perhaps a front, with the intention truly being sabotage and/or demoralisation.
Varieties of Faith: The High Elves
The Eight
(though few Altmer outside the Empire accept the limitation of Divines to eight)
(King of the Aldmer)
The Elven Akatosh is Auri-El. Auri-El is the soul of Anui-El, who, in turn, is the soul of Anu the Everything. He is the chief of most Aldmeri pantheons. Most Altmeri and Bosmeri claim direct descent from Auri-El. In his only known moment of weakness, he agreed to take his part in the creation of the mortal plane, that act which forever sundered the Elves from the spirit worlds of eternity. To make up for it, Auri-El led the original Aldmer against the armies of Lorkhan in mythic times, vanquishing that tyrant and establishing the first kingdoms of the Altmer, Altmora and Old Ehlnofey. He then ascended to heaven in full observance of his followers so that they might learn the steps needed to escape the mortal plane.
(Magus)
The god of sorcery, Magnus withdrew from the creation of the world at the last second, though it cost him dearly. What is left of him on the world is felt and controlled by mortals as magic. One story says that, while the idea was thought up by Lorkhan, it was Magnus who created the schematics and diagrams needed to construct the mortal plane. He is sometimes represented by an astrolabe, a telescope, or, more commonly, a staff.
Strong god of the early Aldmer, in some places more popular than Auri-El. He was a warrior spirit of the original Elven tribes that led armies against the Men. Boethiah is said to have assumed his shape (in some stories, he even eats Trinimac) so that he could convince a throng of Aldmer to listen to him, which led to their eventual Chimeri conversion. Trinimac vanishes from the mythic stage after this, to return as the dread Malacath (Altmeri propaganda portrays this as the dangers of Dunmeri influence).
(God of the Forest)
While Auri-El Time Dragon might be the king of the gods, Y'ffre is revered as the spirit of "the now." According to the Elves, after the creation of the mortal plane everything was in chaos. The first mortals were turning into plants and animals and back again. Then Y'ffre transformed himself into the first of the Ehlnofey, or "Earth Bones." After these laws of nature were established, mortals had a semblance of safety in the new world, because they could finally understand it.
Xarxes is the god of ancestry and secret knowledge. He began as a scribe to Auri-El, and has kept track of all Aldmeri accomplishments, large and small, since the beginning of time. He created his wife, Oghma, from his favorite moments in history.
(Goddess of Love)
Nearly universal goddess. Origins started in mythic times as a fertility goddess. She is sometimes associated with Nir of the "Anuad," the female principle of the cosmos that gave birth to creation. For the Altmer, she is the wife of Auri-El.
(God of Mercy)
God of compassion and righteous rule. In early Altmeri legends, Stendarr is the apologist of Men.
(Warlock's God)
An Aldmeri god-ancestor of magic, Syrabane aided Bendu Olo in the Fall of the Sload. Through judicious use of his magical ring, Syrabane saved many from the scourge of the Thrassian Plague. He is also called the Apprentices' God, for he is a favorite of the younger members of the Mages Guild.
— Additional Deities with Significant Altmer Cults —
Hero-god of the Summerset Isles, who taught the Altmer how to naturally live another hundred years by using a shorter walking stride.
(The Missing God)
This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri "Lorkhan," or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane, upsetting the status quo—much like his father Padomay had introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the "scheme of things" is interpreted a variety of ways. To the High Elves, he is the most unholy of all higher powers, as he forever broke their connection to the spirit plane. In the legends, he is almost always an enemy of the Aldmer and, therefore, a hero of early Mankind
Dunmer
Dunmer have red, glowing eyes with skin that varies from greenish to the more common grey to sometimes occasional light blue. Both male and female Dunmer are around the same height as humans, putting them as taller than Bosmer but shorter than Altmer. However, the Dunmer were once the golden-skinned Chimer until Azura cursed them for the actions of the Tribunal either for using Kagrenac's Tools or murdering Nerevar.
The Dunmer, formally Chimer, (Changed Folk/Changed Ones) were several clans of mer convinced by Boethiah to abandon the customs and laws of the Summerset Isles to instead follow the prophet Veloth in an exodus to Resdayn. At the time, the exiles were known as Velothi. The exiles settled and flourished, creating Velothi High Culture, where worship was based on the three Good Daedra and respect for the House of Troubles and the new customs. They found Dwemer settle there, and much early history is conflict between the Chimer and Dwemer.
A lack of unity allowed the Nords to conquer and rule Morrowind for many years until the War of Succession allowed the Chimer and Dwemer, led by Indoril Nerevar and Dumac Dwarfking to form an alliance against them, ousting the Nords and creating the First Council.
Eventually the Dwemer and Chimer went to war over religion due to the Dwemer using the Heart of Lorkhan, culminating in the Battle of Red Mountain. The Dwemer disappeared and the House of Dagoth allies were annihilated. Nerevar died after the battle either from his wounds or murder at the hands of his closest allies, the Tribunal.
The Tribunal and their actions, either in using the tools to become gods, or for the murder of Nerevar, caused Azura to curse both them and the Chimer, turning their skin to ash and their eyes red. They then became the Dunmer.
After Baar Dau fell and Red Mountain erupted, destroying much of Morrowind, many Dunmer fled to Skyrim. Many settled on Solstheim, an island given to them by the High King at the time, with others fleeing to Windhelm, home of the Stormcloaks resisting against the Empire where they were made to stay in the Gray Quarter, subject to abuse.
Prior to the cataclysm that forced their exodus, among those faithful to Azura were some who received visions of the eruption. Setting out for Winterhold, they built a great shrine though only one, Aranea Ienith remains. In the months after the eruption, some returned to rebuild only to be met with an Argonian invasion.
Varieties of Faith: The Dark Elves
While most of the information is from the original Varieties of Faith, the structure of this document differs enough to be considered a stand alone piece.
The Dunmer are descended from the Chimer, who were apostates of the Aldmeri's Aedra worship. As the Alessian Reforms never took hold in Morrowind, their pantheon bears little resemblance to the rest of Tamriel. The Dark Elves' original religion was worship of several Daedric Princes, the so-called "Good Daedra," but that has been largely superseded by reverence for the "Living Gods" of the Tribunal.
The Tribunal
(Mother Morrowind)
Most traces of Auri-El disappeared from ancient Chimer legends during their so-called "exodus," primarily due to that god's association and esteem with the Altmeri. However, most aspects of Auri-El that seem so important to the mortal races—namely immortality, historicity, and genealogy—have conveniently resurfaced in Almalexia, the most popular of Morrowind's divine Tribunal.
(Master of Morrowind)
Warrior-poet god of the Dunmer. Vivec is the invisible keeper of the holy land, ever vigilant against the dark gods of the Volcano. He/she has saved the Dunmeri people from certain death on numerous occasions.
(Mystery of Morrowind)
God of the Dunmer, Sotha Sil is the least known of the divine Tribunal. He is said to be reshaping the world from his hidden, clockwork city.
The "Good" Daedra
(Prince of Plots)
Heralded by the Prophet Veloth, Boethiah is the original god-ancestor of the Dark Elves. Through his/her illuminations, the eventual "Chimer," or Changed Folk, renounced all ties to the Aldmer and founded a new nation based on Daedric principles. All manner of Dark Elven cultural "advances" are attributed to Boethiah, from philosophy to magic to "responsible" architecture. Ancient Velothi allegories are uniformly heroic successes of Boethiah over enemies of every type, serving as foundation stories of Chimeri struggle. Also known as the Anticipation of Almalexia.
(Androgyne)
Mephala is the Webspinner or Spider God. In Morrowind, he/she was the ancestor who taught the Chimer the skills they would need to evade their enemies or murder them in secret. Enemies were numerous in those days, since the Chimer were a small faction. He/she, along with Boethiah, organized the clan systems that eventually became the basis for the Great Houses. He/she founded the Morag Tong. Also called the Anticipation of Vivec.
(Goddess of Dusk and Dawn)
Azura was the god-ancestor who taught the Chimer the mysteries needed to be different than the Altmer. Some of her more conventional teachings are sometimes attributed to Boethiah. In the stories, Azura is often more a communal cosmic force for the race as a whole than an ancestor or a god. Also known as the Anticipation of Sotha Sil.
The Missing God
(The Missing God)
This Creator-Trickster-Tester deity is in every Tamrielic mythic tradition. His most popular name is the Aldmeri "Lorkhan" or Doom Drum. He convinced or contrived the Original Spirits to bring about the creation of the mortal plane. This upset the status quo, much like his father, Padomay, who introduced instability into the universe in the Beginning Place. After the world is materialized, Lorkhan is separated from his divine center, sometimes involuntarily, and eventually wanders the creation of the et'Ada. He and his metaphysical placement in the "scheme of things" is interpreted a variety of ways. In Morrowind, he is a being related to the Psijic Endeavor, a process by which mortals are charged with transcending the gods that created them.
Four Corners of the House of Troubles, "Testing Gods"
Enemy gods, more to be placated and appeased than worshiped.
(God of Schemes, Lord of Brutality)
Daedric power of much importance in Morrowind. There, he is always the archenemy of Boethiah, the Prince of Plots. He is the main source of the obstacles to the Dunmer (and preceding Chimer) people. In legends, Molag Bal always tries to upset the bloodlines of Great Houses or otherwise ruin Dunmeri "purity." A race of supermonsters, said to live in Molag Amur, are the result of his seduction of Vivec during the previous era.
(God of Curses)
In Dunmer myth, Boethiah swallowed Aldmer hero-god Trinimac and excreted him as Malacath. A somewhat weak but vengeful Daedra, the Dark Elves say he is also Malak, the god-king of the Orcs. He always tests the Dunmer for physical weakness.
(The Mad God)
The fearful obeisance of Sheogorath is widespread, and it is found in most Tamrielic quarters. Contemporary sources indicate that his roots are in Aldmeri creation stories; therein, he is "born" when Lorkhan's divine spark is removed. One crucial myth calls him the "Sithis-shaped hole" of the world. He tests the Dunmer for mental weakness and tempts the Great Houses into treachery against each other.
(God of Destruction)
Popular Daedric power. He is associated with natural dangers like fire, earthquakes, and floods. In some cultures, Dagon is merely a god of bloodshed and betrayal. He is an especially important deity in Morrowind, where he represents its near-inhospitable terrain.
Mer/Aldmer
In the ancient Aldmeri language, mer means person/us/folk, and isn't unlike the way humans use the word man, with speakers of the Imperial tongue substituting the word 'elf' for mer, especially in adjective form as elven sounds better than the correct 'meri' form. Most mer accept 'elf' though they usually refer to each other as mer. Mer can be used as a singular and a plural. When used in combination with other Aldmeri words, it simply means 'a type of people' i.e. the Bosmer being wood people.
Geerally, the mer believe themselves to be the direct descendant of the Aedra (Aedra literally meaning our ancestors) who had been tricked by Lorkhan into giving up their divinity to create the world. No elves consider mortality to be a 'gift' the way humans do, so opinions differ from race to race, with some lamenting the loss of their birthright with others considering it a test of character.
The first mer came from the continent of Aldmeris, arriving on Tamriel from the southwest during the Middle Merethic Era. Since the Mythic Era, they've diverged and diversified significantly from the original proto-race over thousands of years.
The Aldmer, First Ones, were the ancestral race, the direct descendants of the Ehlnofey (besides the Hist, the only ancient race of Nirn to survive its early days) and modern scholars believe that all of the Ehlnofey became the Aldmer while those on the other three continents became men (Nords, Redguard, and Tsaesci).
At the time of recorded history, the Aldmer had diverged. The Altmer are closest to them in looks and behaviour. Daedric Princes have sometimes interfered in Aldmeri life to create others notably Dunmer and Orsimer. Imperial speakers, unaware of history, will sometimes use the temr to refer to all elves which is incorrect.
Thalmor
As a branch of the Dominion, the Thalmor seek to unify the provinces of Tamriel through a single government leadership under the elves. Offended deeply by Tiber Septim's victory in Valenwood, they are sworn to wipe out Talos worship throughout the Empire with the signing of the White-Gold Concordat giving them the legal authority to do so at the end of the war with the Empire of Cyrodiil. Devout worshipers flout this in secrecy or openly but the Thalmor are able to use lethal force, including torture, to eradicate them.
Thalmor can be identified by their long, black hooded robes, and are adept spell-casters. They are viewed unfavourably outside of the Dominion and even by some within.
The Thalmor began as a provisional government by the Bosmer and Altmer during the Second Aldmeri Dominion, claiming the Summerset Isles for themselves, they renamed Alinor in the Fourth Era. The Thalmor sought to unify the land, included parts of Hammerfell to align it against sefaring threats. Tiber Septim thwarted this effort and the 'Brass God' of Dwemer origin. The hatred this sparked would last, a deep and bitter one, especially when the man was apothesised into the deity Talos.
Prior to the Oblivion Crisis, what would become the Thalmor were more or less a loud fringe group openly mocked throughout society, and in the waning years of the Third Era they led boycotts of Imperial goods. When the Oblivion Gates began to open, it threw the Summerset Isles were thrown into anarchy. Refugees in their thousands were killed, those who fled by boat found storms conjured by Daedra cut off escape and were cut down on the wharves and docks. Forced into the raging sea, they drowned.
Towards the end of what would become known as the Oblivion Crisis, it was onlyt the Crystal Tower of the High Elves that stood against the Daedric. Making their last stand there, the Altmer sorcerers and archers killed so many Daedra that they scaled the walls over their own dead. The Crystal Tower fell, torn apart by Daedric machines. In the final moments, the hordes of Daedra vanished completely.
Though many disputed the miraculous claims the Thalmor made, they each had their reputations ruined through rumours they spread and found themselves exiled. Those who continued were assassinated even in exile.
The Stormcrown Interregnum began after Potentate Ocato's murder, the Elder Council fractured which led to seven ruthless years of in-fighting, backstabbing, and plots; the Thalmor seized the chance to act while the Empire was mired in mayhem, overthrowing rightful Kings and Queens of the Altmer in a violent uprising. The first of many pogroms descended on the Summerset Isle where they slaughtered any 'not of the blood of the Aldmer' as well as dissidents who remained.
The Thalmor, newly empowered, acquired Valenwood once more through a coup d'état, and the Former Confederacy of Elsweyr, shaken by political strife, became a protectorate of the new Aldmeri Dominion. The Thalmor's ambitions would not cease there however.
The Thalmor are considered to be the most dangerous enemy to the Mede Empire with the Penitus Oculatus responsible for gathering intel on their movements. Reports claim that they harass refugee communities in Sentinel and Balfierra with murders that could be assigned to them due to them being of mixed blood or associations that would be considered unclean to the Aldmeri Dominion. In Valenwood it was much worse, with Empire supplies no longer reliably reaching rebles.
It was the Thalmor who initiated the Great War against Cyrodiil during Titus Mede II's reign, seeing the frailty of the ruling class and the office of the Emperor after the Elder Council had struggled for decades to place rulers on the throne. The war was violent, vast and bloody. Ulfric Stormcloak was imprisoned at this time, and after interrogated by Elenwen, he was released in the hopes he might stir up unrest to destabilise the Empire further. Four more years of blood forced Mede I to sign the White-Gold Concordat, including the removal of Talos from the pantheon, Nine Divines reduced to Eight.
At this time, there was an unsuccessful attempt to besiege Hammerfell with a retreat after suffering extreme losses. The Imperial Legion was preoccupied by the continuing conflicts in Cyrodiil, Ulfric was able to defeat the Reachmen - usurper Breton natives - occupying the Reach in the Markarth Incident, with Ulfric asking only one promise in return: that Talos worship be permitted in Markarth. Ater taking back Markarth, the Jarl initially kept the promise, until the Imperial Legion arrived to restore law. Ulfric allegedly refused to allow them to enter the city until they too agreed to allow Talos worship, and the Empire too agreed. The Thalmor discovered this violation of the Concordat laying down an ultimatum: forbid the worship or declare war against the Dominion. The Empire and Jarl broke the agreement with Ulfric, giving in to the pressure, and the Empire arrested Ulfric and his followers to enfore the ban on Talos worship. Meanwhile the Bretons stewed in anger at the defeat, wanting to take back the Reach, and named themselves the Forsworn. After the Markarth Incident, the Thalmor had a foothold in Skyrim.
By 4E 176, Thalmor Justiciars were hunting down Talos worshipers and imprisoning them for violating the worship ban. From their embassy in Skyrim, they enforced the White-Gold Concordat, making sure the Empire never broke it again. Secretly, they instigated the conflict between Empire and rebel Stormcloaks, interfering only in certain instances to keep it going. They also hunted down the surviving Blades who escaped eradication.
Extra
source
Potions:
Cure Disease: Charred Skeever Hide, Felsaad Tern Feathers (DB), Hawk Feathers, Mudcrab Chitin, Vampire Dust
Fortify Barter: Butterfly Wing, Hagraven Claw
Fortify Block: Bleeding Crown, Boar Tusk (DB), Briar Heart, Honeycomb, Pearl, Slaughterfish Scales
Fortify Carry Weight: Giant’s Toe, Hawkbeak, Netch Jelly (DB). River Betty, Scaly Pholiota, Wisp wrappings
Fortify Conjuration: Ancestor Moth Wing (DG), Blue Butterfly Wings, Bone Meal, Charus Hunter Antennae (DG), Frost Salts, Hagraven Feathers
Fortify Destruction: Beehive Husk, Ectoplasm, Glow Dust, Glowing Mushroom, Wisp Wrappings
Fortify Enchant: Ancestor Moth Wing (DG), Blue Butterfly Wing, Charus Hunter Antennae (DG), Hagraven Claw, Spawn Ash (DB)
Fortify Health: Bear Claws, Boar Tusk (DB), Giant’s Toe, Glowing Mushroom
Fortify Heavy Armor: Ice Wraith Teeth, Sabre Cat Tooth, Slaughterfish Scales, White Cap
Fortify Illusion: Dwarven Oil, Mora Tapinella, Scaly Pholiota
Fortify Light Armor: Ash Hopper Jelly (DB), Beehive Husk, Felsaad Tern Feathers (DB), Hawkfeathers, Honeycomb, Luna Moth Wing, Skeever Tail
Fortify Lock Picking: Falmer Ear, Namira's Rot, Pine Thrush Egg, Spider Egg
Fortify Magicka: Briar Heart, Ectoplasm, Histcarp, Salmon Roe (HF), Void Salts
Fortify One-Handed: Bear Claws, Hawk Feathers, Rock Warbler Eggs, Small Pearl
Fortify Pick-Pocket: Blue Dartwing, Nordic Barnicle, Orange Dartwing, Slaughterfish Egg
Fortify Restoration: Abecean Longfin, Cyrodillic Spadetail, Salt Pile, Small Antlers, Small Pearl
Fortify Smithing: Blisterwort, Glowing Mushroom, Sabre Cat Tooth
Fortify Sneak: Abecean Longfin, Hawk Feathers, Human Flesh, Powdered Mammoth Tusk, Beehive Husk
Fortify Stamina: Boar Tusk (DB), Chaurus Eggs, Large Antlers, Slaugterfish Egg, Torchbug Thorax
Fortify Two-handed: Fly Amanita, Troll Fat
Invisibility: Chaurus Eggs, Ice Wraith Teeth, Luna Moth Wings, Vampire Dust
Regenerate Health: Luna Moth Wing, Narmira's Rot, Nordic Barnacle, Vampire Dust
Regenerate Magicka: Dwarven Oil, Fire Salts, Salt Pile, Salmon Roe (HF)
Regenerate Stamina: Bee, Fly Amanita, Mora Tapinella, Scaly Pholiota
Resist Fire: Berit’s Ashes, Bone Meal, Fire Salts, Fly Amanita, Mudcrab Chitin, Spawn Ash (DB)
Resist Frost: Frost Salts, Hawk Beak, Silverside Perch, Slaughterfish Scales, Small Pearl
Resist Magic: Bleeding Crown, Chicken’s Egg, Felsaad Tern Feathers (DB), Hagraven Claw, Hawk's Egg (HF), Void Salts, Wisp Wrappings
Resist Poison: Beehive Husk, Charred Skeever Hide, Falmer Ear, Mudcrab Chitin, Slaughterfish Egg, Troll Fat,
Resist Shock: Ash Hopper Jelly (DB), Blue Dartwing, Glow Dust, Glowing Mushroom, Hawk Beak, Pearl, Pine Thrush Egg, Swamp Fungal Pod
Restore Health: Ash Hopper Jelly (DB), Blisterwort, Blue Dartwing, Briar Heart, Butterfly Wing, Charred Skeever Hide, Daedra Heart, Eye of Sabre Cat, Felsaad Tern Feathers (DB), Imp Stool, Rock Warbler Egg, Swamp Fungal Pod
Restore Magicka: Briar Heart, Dwarven Oil, Ectoplasm, Fire Salts, Frost Salts, Giant Lichen, Human Flesh, Mora Tapinella, Pearl, Vampire Dust, White Cap
Restore Stamina: Bear Claws, Bee, Charred Skeever Hide, Eye of Sabre Cat, Histcarp, Honeycomb, Large Antlers, Mudcrab Chitin, Netch Jelly (DB). Orange Dartwing, Pearl, Pine Thrush Egg, Powdered Mammoth Tusk, Sabre Cat Tooth, Salmon Roe (HF), Silverside Perch, Small Pearl, Torchbug Thorax, Wisp Wrappings
Water Breathing: Chicken Egg, Hawk's Egg (HF), Histcarp, Nordic Barnicle, Salmon Roe (HF)
Poisons:
Damage Health: Ectoplasm, Falmer Ear, Human Heart, Human Skin, Imp Stool, River Betty, Skeever Tail, Small Antlers , Troll Fat, Void Salts
Damage Magicka: Butterfly Wing, Chaurus Eggs, Daedra Heart, Eye of Sabre Cat, Glow Dust, Hagraven Feathers, Human Heart, Luna Moth Wing, Namira's Rot, Nordic Barnicle
Damage Magicka Regen: Ancestor Moth Wing (DG), Bear Claws, Blue Butterfly Wings, Charus Hunter Antennae (DG), Chicken Egg, Glow Dust, Hawk's Egg (HF), Human Heart, Spider Egg
Damage Stamina: Ancestor Moth Wing (DG), Blue Butterfly Wing, Berit's Ashes, Bone Meal, Charus Hunter Antennae (DG), Cyrodillic Spadetail, Giant’s Toe, Rock Wabler Egg, Spider Egg
Damage Stamina Regen: Daedra Heart, Giant’s Toe, Histcarp, Large Antler, Silverside Perch, Skeever Tail
Fear: Blue Dartwing, Cyrodillic Spadetail, Daedra Heart, Namira's Rot, Netch Jelly (DB), Powered Mammoth Tusk
Frenzy: Blisterwort, Boar Tusk (DB), Falmer Ear, Fly Amanita, Hagraven Feathers, Human Heart, Troll Fat
Lingering Damage Heath: Imp Stool, Mora Tapinella, Orange Dartwing, Slaughterfish Eggs, Slaughterfish Scales
Lingering Damage Magicka: Hagraven Claw, Swamp Fungal Pod, Torchbug Thorax
Lingering Damage Stamina: Butterfly wings, Chicken egg, Hawk's Egg (HF), Small Antlers
Paralysis: Briar Heart, Human Flesh, Imp Stool, Netch Jelly (DB), Swamp Fungal Pod
Ravage Health: Cyrodilic Spadetail, Eye of Sabre Cat, Giant Lichen, Silverside Perch, Skeever Tail
Ravage Magicka: Orange Dartwing, Spawn Ash (DB), White Cap
Ravage Stamina: Bee, Berit’s Ashes, Bone Meal, Honeycomb, Spawn Ash (DB)
Slow: River Betty, Salt Pile, Large Antlers
Weakness to Fire: Bleeding Crown, Frost Salts, Ice Wraith Teeth, Powdered Mammoth Tusk
Weakness to Frost: Abecean Longfin, Ash Hopper Jelly (DB), Fire Salts, Ice Wraith Teeth, White Cap
Weakness to Magic: Dwarven Oil, Rock Warbler Egg, Salt Pile, Scaly Pholiota, Torchbug Thorax
Weakness to Poison: Abecean Longfin, Bleeding Crown, Chaurus Eggs, Pine Thrush Egg, Sabre Cat Tooth, Small Antlers
Weakness to Shock: Bee, Hagraven Feathers, Void Salts
Impossible Potions :
(Fortify Alteration): River Betty
(Fortify Marksman): Spider Egg
Aunt Anela's Cookbook