Join Empire or Stormcloaks? My Thoughts

[monganfinn]

We can see Ulfric´s Thuum ingame, he clearly isn´t able to shout npcs into dust the way the player can after reading the black books. Nevertheless let us not forget that in RL the unrelenting force shout would be far more devastating than ingame and could easily cause broken limbs or even death if you have a bad fall.

 

Stormcloak territory is definitely a relatively safe harbor for ex Blades, Esbern is another example, though if we assume Fultheim IS an ex Blade - this makes two ex Blades that hide in the Old Holds yet didn´t join the Cloaks! IMO the Blades themselves simply aren´t Ulfric sympathizers, for them it isn´t about Skyrim but just their beef with the Thalmor. In that way they could be the most anti-Thalmor group around. An interesting aspect however is Sky Haven Temple, the dissolution of the Blades was a part of the WGC - if Skyrim remains part of the Empire, how long till the Thalmor force the Empire to besiege the last bastion of the Blades?

 

We know from cut content that Ulfric was meant to lead several battles of the civil war himself, in contrast to Tullius - but regard cut content as you will, we also know he fought at Markarth and can assume it was his Thuum that actually allowed his militia to sack the city. During the Great War he would have been very young and wasn´t a high ranking soldier, as Rikke was his superior officer even then, nevertheless as a noble he wouldn´t have been rank and file, and he would have fought the same way other officers of the same rank would have fought.

As he was captured by the Dominion he also was clearly on the front lines. For his participatin in the Great War he is being treated as a war hero ingame, even just knowing what we saw ingame the assumption that he was a coward who hid behind his underlings is so baseless I do not even know why I respond to this...

 

As the Great War was 25 years ago IMO Tullius wasn´t a general back then, a legate with his own legion perhaps, but clearly we must assume that someone with a human lifespan would not have been a general for that long and still be as spry as Tullius. Sadly we do not know what happened to General Jonna, Tullius´ predecessor as the military governor of Skyrim. If we say that Tullius is perhaps 50 to 60 years old (TES clearly has relatively long human lifespans for nobility at least due to magic) then he would have been around 30 during the Great War, seeing as he wouldn´t have joined the Legion before being at least 15 to 20 this means that Tullius spend the major part of his military career putting down petty city revolts like the ones described in Cicero´s journal! And his leather armor is clearly ceremonial.

 

Concerning the Markarth Incident: If we assume Ulfric truly did order mass executions (though I reiterate that the only source that accuses him of such is a propaganda book, everyone else speaks as the one having done extreme things back then "the Jarl" and Ulfric wasn´t a jarl back then), and that such actions aren´t totally in line with what is the norm in Tamriel, wouldn´t that just have been the same as what the Imperials do? Let´s look at what happened at Helgen ... there too the Imperials send everyone to the executioner´s block who fell into their hands, Lokir, who was no rebel and only a thief/failed thief, and the PC who wasn´t even on their gods damned list. Them and all the other Stormcloaks didn´t even receive a trial simply based on the orders of a single general - the same as it might have happened in Markarth!

 

Lachdonin always "preaches" that the outcome of the civil war needs to be inconclusive, as otherwise the individual decisions of the player would become void to make room for canon, I agree, however, rather than the civil war continuing on with other leaders and reinforcements, or the Dominion conquering Skyrim, IMHO I agree with jpmonteith - the player ending of the civil war will become unimportant due to the dissolution of the Empire itself! And who the first new High King of Skyrim was will simply not be recorded in the history books.

[MidbossVyers]

I generally dislike any censorship of worship, study, and play in any form.

For example, the WGC banning Talos worship.

The Imperial Mages Guild banning necromancy (they deserved to get torn apart into the College of Whispers and the Synod).

Anyone who wants to ban sexual violence in video games and other media, despite the fact of being totally cool with literally all other forms of violence, such as cold-blooded murder for money and cannibalism.

[jpmonteith]

I dunno about sexual violence, I do feel like there are some areas 1 should not tread, unless maybe making reference to such, like Sapphire. Also, I kinda did always find support for the Empire kinda dumb in general, even before I knew much about the Elder Scrolls. Skyrim was my first game, and my first introduction to them is they literally try to chop off my damn head for simply crossing a border, despite the fact I'm not on their list. Though what kinda cemented my hatred for the Empire is the idiots who go and tell me that I'm stupid for siding with the Stormcloaks because "oh Ulfric started a needless war by killing a guy who would have helped him anyways, so he's nothing but a selfish villain." Cut to now, and I know a lot more about the Empire and their bulls***. It seems the empire has always kinda been hard on nords. The Empire also, as a big government seems to have a lotta' corruption whether they be people in high places, or they be guard captains. Least the nords of Skyrim for the most part agree with each other, the empire seems not the know what to do. They had a civil war where a colovian warlord became emperor; they lost the great war to the high elves of all things; they gave up worship for their own god; and they're going up against people that they under-estimate as simple barbarians who don't care to give up their god. The Empire's also lost several nations, whether they lost them to the high elves, or they decided to jump ship so they don't sink with it.

 

Edit: Also, same idiots who were saying the Stormcloaks are the bad guys and idiots, they tried to convince me that Talos wasn't a divine himself despite there being evidence such as ancient blood from his armor being divine enough to open a door that requires divine blood to open.

Edited February 24, 2018 by jpmonteith

[MidbossVyers]

By the way, what is the current Thalmor leadership? They had a queen in ESO, but I've heard that they don't during the events of Skyrim. I ask because a great way for the Dark Brotherhood to send the maximum number of souls to the Void would be to kill all major political actors and let the power vacuum do its work.

[Querpo]

By the way, what is the current Thalmor leadership? They had a queen in ESO, but I've heard that they don't during the events of Skyrim. I ask because a great way for the Dark Brotherhood to send the maximum number of souls to the Void would be to kill all major political actors and let the power vacuum do its work.

The Aldmeri Dominion from ESO is different from this one, we don't know who's the leader of the Thalmor but whoever it is, he knows a great deal about the secrets behind Nirn and the mantling of Lorkhan done by the Talos's oversoul. Many people theorize it is an Old Ehlnofey that somehow managed to survive up until the 4th era.

[Alerios]

An Ehlnofey that's need to burn ! :laugh:

[MidbossVyers]

You know, the best way to end the war (and possibly other things) is to have the most talented members of the Legion, the Stormcloaks, the Thalmor, heck, throw in the Morag Tong and the Forsworn for good measure, get an epiphany and join the Dark Brotherhood... Yes, I've been playing through Dies Irae and am in that mood.

[LadyMilla]

I've been playing Elder Scrolls Online for some time and I had an interesting encounter with an NPC who gave me the following advice:

 

 

 

I wonder if it is an obscure hint at Skyrim's civil war dilemma.

[Alerios]

Lady, it's more about the beginning of Skyrim (obvious) but I don't think that the Stormcloak alongside with Hammerfell (+ the remain of a divided empire) can stand against the Domain, it's too much unstability.

 

What's the class of this NPC ? Rogue ?

[MidbossVyers]

http://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Aspera_Giant-Friend Not sure if NPCs in ESO have classes.