Skyrim's Real Life Size

[heyiforgot]

That was my major disappointment with Morrowind and Oblivion, I was hoping for a place the size of Daggerfall to run around in with updated graphics, by Skyrim I guess I knew better.

Edited January 17, 2016 by heyiforgot

[CaptainPatch]

I recall talking to a game designer (John Hill) many years ago describing a game mechanic for Squad Leader. The question was, "How long is one turn in the game?" His answer was, "The duration is such that the following things can occur during that time period:" and then he went on to list the turn phases that occur in one turn. In short, one turn is however long it takes for all the turn elements to transpire.

 

Geography in TES is much the same: It is as big as it needs to be to contain everything on the map.

 

One needs to remember is that Tamriel is NOT the entire world. It is just ONE continent. In Real Life terms, I tend to think of it as being about the size of Australia. On that scale, Skyrim would be about the size of Queensland, if it switched places with Northern Territory. http://www.mapsofworld.com/australia/australia-map.gif

[Lachdonin]

It's purely a game limitation thing. Daggerfall was far and above Bethesda's most unstable game, largely because of the size and the need to rely on random generation. Early in the development of Morrowind, they were approached by Microsoft to make it available for Xbox (an act which, despite some people bitching, probably saved the studio from closing) and the approach that was used for Arena and Daggerfall simply would not run on consoles. It still wont, for that matter.

 

So, they scale things. It's a necessity, unless you want a world full of randomly generated nothing.

 

Anyway, there are 2 pervading interpretations of scale in TES. Both based on the same sources, but differing in the interpretation of what constitutes Red Mountain. The source indicates there is a particular distance between the city of Mournhold, and Red Mountain (i want to say 250 miles...). Xenoposeidon's scale measured to the peak of the volcano its self, but Lady Nerevar's measured to the closest point considered to be part of Red Mountain (IE, the coast of Vardenfell, as the entire island is the Volcano).

 

Using Xenoposeidon's scale, Skyrim would be about the size of North Dakoda.

 

Using Lady N's (the one i personally prefer) it would be the size of Kazakhstan (ironically, bigger than all of Tamriel using Xenoposeidon's scale).

 

There is a 3rd interpretation, using the Arena manual, that states that Tamriel is 12 million square miles, which is in-between the two... In which Skyrim is about the size of Mongolia. But it uses an out-of-universe source with no corroboration since.

 

Hope that helps any.

[TheObstinateNoviceSmith]

Tamriel is not the entire world (57,308,738 Sq mi or 148,429,000 Sq k), but why would Tamriel have to be the smallest continent on our planet?

 

It just seems to take up far more space on maps I've seen of Nirn than Australia does on our globe, by far. Of course all maps of Nirn are speculative and again, we don't know how big their planet is intended to be, but it doesn't seem/sound right to me that Tamriel is smaller than multiple countries.

 

But you're obviously entitled to your opinion and I thank you for your post.

[CaptainPatch]

Tamriel is not the entire world (57,308,738 Sq mi or 148,429,000 Sq k), but why would Tamriel have to be the smallest continent on our planet?

Where is it stated that Tamriel is the smallest continent? To be honest, the ONLY other continent I know of is Atmora, and that only because of its connection to Tamriel's History. I don't even know how many continents there are.

[TheObstinateNoviceSmith]

 

Tamriel is not the entire world (57,308,738 Sq mi or 148,429,000 Sq k), but why would Tamriel have to be the smallest continent on our planet?

Where is it stated that Tamriel is the smallest continent?

 

 

In your post...

 

...I tend to think of it as being about the size of Australia....

 

Australia is the smallest continent on Earth. That is you claiming that Tamriel would be equivalent to the smallest continent on our planet.

[Lachdonin]

 

I don't even know how many continents there are.

 

There were at least 4, with as many as 6 mentioned.

Yokuda was supposedly larger than Tamriel, but was destroyed in a war with the Hiradirge (the most accepted cause, some say it was earthquakes though). All that remains above sea level are a few islands.

 

Atmora, which is frozen. Whether in ice, or in time, depends on the interpretation. I personally prefer the latter.

 

Akavir, of which we know nothing about it's geography or size. Different guesses make it the same size as Tamriel, or sometimes smaller, but rarely larger.

 

Tamriel, which we all know and love.

 

Then there's Aldmeris, which may not be a physical place, but rather a philosophical concept of Merish unity that was lost when the Aldmer split up into the various Elven Races.

 

And Lyg, which is one of the 'Adjacent places'. Discribed as bizzaro Tamriel, it's where Meridia had Dagon forged into Mehrunes the Razor.

[CaptainPatch]

Australia is the smallest continent on Earth. That is you claiming that Tamriel would be equivalent to the smallest continent on our planet.

That's on Earth. What I said was "about the size of Australia"; NOT also ".... and therefore likewise the smallest continent on Nirn." In point of fact, Tamriel is one of -- if not THE -- largest continents on Nirn: http://uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Nirn

[TheObstinateNoviceSmith]

You quoted me saying this:

 

Tamriel is not the entire world (57,308,738 Sq mi or 148,429,000 Sq k), but why would Tamriel have to be the smallest continent on our planet?

 

 

Then you asked where it's stated that Tamriel is the smallest continent.

 

 

Why would you quote me questioning the idea that Tamriel would be comparable in size to the smallest continent on Earth and then bring up it being the smallest continent in Nirn?

 

Did you just miss where I said, "our planet" or did you just not understand that I was referring to the Earth even though I said "our" and used a link referencing the Earth? Maybe you just misunderstood what I was saying in that line you quoted from me, but I was saying I found it strange to assume a continent described as one of the largest on Nirn would be roughly the size of the smallest one on Earth.

 

I was basically asking why you would assume one of the largest continents on their planet would be around the size of the smallest continent in ours?

 

Are you saying you think Nirn is smaller than Earth? Are you saying that all the continents on Nirn are roughly the size of Australia? Do you think Nirn has more water or something?

 

I was just trying to understand your point of view is all.

[CaptainPatch]

You quoted me saying this:

 

Tamriel is not the entire world (57,308,738 Sq mi or 148,429,000 Sq k), but why would Tamriel have to be the smallest continent on our planet?

Sheesh. Is that what this has all been about? That I had the temerity to suggest that Tamriel might be only as big as Earth's smallest continent? Would it have been more palatable to you if I had suggested the size of Asia or one of the other continents? I mentally associate Tamriel with Austrakia primarily because of their comparative shapes. Basically the shape of a rugby ball with a large-ish island just off of one corner. (Tasmania off the SE coast of Australia and Summerset Isle off Tamriel's SW coast.) Tamriel doesn't really look anything like any of Earth's other continents.