The "Last" Dragonborn?

[AurianaValoria1]

So, given what we know about the Elder Scrolls series thus far, do you really think that the Dovahkiin of Skyrim is truly the Last Dragonborn?

 

Because, let's face it, no one knew that the First was Miraak before the Dragonborn DLC. At any point down the road, Beth could say "Oh, well that was just prophecy speak" or "the last of that Age" or "it wasn't literal," etc.

 

Your thoughts? Do you take it literally? Or, considering Beth's way of changing the lore, do you think it might be..."bent" sometime in the future, so to speak?

Edited August 17, 2013 by AurianaValoria1

[Lachdonin]

Bethesda doesn't have a tendency to change the lore. They pick up on vague references and expand them (such as Jyggalag and the Thu'um) or create new stories without directly encroaching on the established background (such as the Sword Saints).

 

That said, there remains the question of whether or not the Skyrim PC is the LAST. Well, based on the interviews from 2010... probably not. They specifically relate to him being the last KNOWN. They also mention that the Dovah blood is hereditary, which means should the PC have any legitimate children, they too will be Dragonborn... Though without training in the Thu'um, or souls to consume, they'd never know it.

[AurianaValoria1]

Well, perhaps I should have said "twisting" rather than "changing." Up until Skyrim, it was assumed that the only (surviving) Dragonborn line was that of the Septims...and then we learn that nope, it can happen to pretty much anyone at practically any time. So then it has to be established that the Septim heirs only go through Alessia's descendants, not just any Dragonborn.

 

You do bring up an interesting point about the heredity. Does that mean that the Skyrim PCs mother or father had to be Dragonborn? Or does it imply that the Dovahkiin is the start of a new line? And as the dragons are pretty much going to die out a second time, with the exception of Paarthurnax, perhaps, and the Amulet of Kings is gone, how would it be tested in the future?

 

Or would anyone in Tamriel even care?

[Lachdonin]

The relevance of the Dragonborns is pretty limited... Eventually someone is going to have to deal with Alduin again, so the bloodlines will have to continue, but in all likely hood, their importance will fade pretty quick. Lets face it, Tiber Septim was the only Septim to even be declared Dragonborn, despite his entire line carrying the Dragonblood.

 

As far as the Dragons go, i tend to suspect that we may see a different path this time. It wasn't until the Akiviri Dragon Hunters came to Tamriel that they really went extinct, and with Paarthunax as their defacto leader, they may be less prone to burning down cities this time.

[sajuukkhar9000]

They also mention that the Dovah blood is hereditary

Except it isn't.

 

http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:The_Book_of_the_Dragonborn

"Because of this connection with the Emperors, however, the other significance of the Dragonborn has been obscured and largely forgotten by all but scholars and those of us dedicated to the service of the blessed Talos, Who Was Tiber Septim. Very few realize that being Dragonborn is not a simple matter of heredity - being the blessing of Akatosh Himself, it is beyond our understanding exactly how and why it is bestowed."

[AurianaValoria1]

If another Dragonborn were to come along before Alduin's eventual return, what do you imagine his or her destiny to be? Do you think another role of the Dragonborn will be discovered?

Edited August 17, 2013 by AurianaValoria1

[Lachdonin]

 

Except it isn't.

 

http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:The_Book_of_the_Dragonborn

"Because of this connection with the Emperors, however, the other significance of the Dragonborn has been obscured and largely forgotten by all but scholars and those of us dedicated to the service of the blessed Talos, Who Was Tiber Septim. Very few realize that being Dragonborn is not a simple matter of heredity - being the blessing of Akatosh Himself, it is beyond our understanding exactly how and why it is bestowed."

 

 

In an interview from Todd Howard, March 2011, from the Gamestop magazine...

 

"One upon a time, there were many Dragonborn, the gift passed down through the generations. Over time, though, the bloodlines faded along with their importance, until all that was left was the Septims. Your character in Skyrim, though, is from one of the lost lines of Dragonborn, maybe even the last one."

 

This is a case where we have a out of universe statement vs an in-universe scholarly argument. As much as Todd tends to be on sketchy ground, lore wise, you can't just discount his statements out of hand.

 

Though, the two don't need to contradict each other. The Dragon Blood can pass through hereditary lines, but it still requires a source, which could be the blessing of Akatosh. Considering Miraak, however... I tend to think that not all the bloodlines were so willingly given.

 

Anyway... The vast majority of Dragonborn would likely have been, and will be normal people. Unless you have Dragons around to slay, or Greybeards to train with, they'd never know about their gift in the Voice. If put in a situation where they are exposed to the Thu'um, however, their gifts would become apparent, and they would probably rise quickly as either leaders, heroes or rather nefarious villains.

 

IF they are the first in their line, blessed by Akatosh, you can almost guarantee that they are one of the Divine's back-up plans, created to avert some catastrophe. Sometimes even to the determent of the Divines themselves.

Edited August 17, 2013 by Lachdonin

[TheObstinateNoviceSmith]

Does simply being in the bloodline make one Dragonborn?

 

It's just that with things like this, they typically don't work that way. Usually it just means the potential to be Dragonborn would be there rather than it being guaranteed.

[niceguy]

I suspect Akatosh intervened somehow and allowed a new dragonborn to surface, due to a need.

[Inquart]

About "The Book of the Dragonborn", there's one particular fragment puzzling me:

 

"The World-Eater wakes, and the Wheel turns upon the Last Dragonborn"

 

Well, in Skyrim, the World-Eater is on a rampage once again and we have our brave Dovahkiin to face him, right? Now, at the very end of the game, it is heavily speculated by both Esbern and Arngeir (if not spoken outright - I don't quite remember) that Alduin wasn't killed in Sovngarde but rather temporarily banished and that he will return one day. So, if my understanding of all this is accurate, whenever Alduin awakes, there will always be a Dragonborn to deal with him again and again - up until the end of days, when the World-Eater will be finally slain by that Last Dragonborn. I've probably said here something everyone already knows, but that's why I don't think our Dovahkiin to be the last.