akaviri-dovah

[akaviri-dovah]

I imagine that, in a nordic context, Mara takes the role of the protector of the family ahead of the god of the family. Like obviously she still protects the family regardless of the pantheon, but in skyrim she is very specifically the protector. Given that she's the she-wolf and all, it feels logical for her to fill that role. Rather than gathering her children into a soft, warm kind of love, she circles them, guarding, lashing out at predators.

[akaviri-dovah]

Vanus Galerion for user, you guessed it @vanus

[akaviri-dovah]

that sad steampunk guy?

i was gonna draw Almalexia and Vivec too but i kept getting sidetracked.. maybe another day

i love this wet cat of a man.

[akaviri-dovah]

if kyne has hawks then i think itd be cool if namira had vultures… birds of prey who actively hunt vs ones who are generally more on the scavenging already decomposing life side… i think it’d be neat

[akaviri-dovah]

SKYRIM NICHE SEXYMAN POLL

ROUND 4 POLL 2

Sorry it’s taken so long to get this up! I’ll try to be more diligent going forward.

[akaviri-dovah]

July/Sun's Height 12th is a special day for a certain two oc's of mine...

... but the significance is different for each, and the resulting irony is delicious.

for Kytha, this day is her birthday. something she holds in high regard, especially as the favoured child of her family, always told that she would be destined for greatness. though she is still a relatively young mer by the time my characters' stories take place (4E 201 and the years beyond) she already has plenty of experience under her belt, and never hesitates to flaunt the progress of her ruthless climb to power.

(how in-line her behaviour is, with the traits associated with her birthsign of the Apprentice)

... which is why she finds it supremely infuriating that it is also a day that her sworn enemy can celebrate over the very reason of her hatred. the constant reminder that the bloodline she was born into is far from perfect.

because for Aeva, this day is one dedicated to bringing awareness to, and celebrating the beauty in the one feature that she has otherwise been shunned and ridiculed by her family and many others of her race for: her heterochromia. to know that elsewhere, what most of her people deem "an anomalous mark of inferior breeding" is instead perceived as simply a particularly striking natural variation, certainly would boost her self-image.

it is the one time of the year that she can clap back against her sister who has bullied her so much over it.

[akaviri-dovah]

veezara is my favorite skyrim character im so glad nothing bad happens to him!

[akaviri-dovah]

UESP asked people to name first ten tes characters that come to mind, what are yours?

Lifts-Her-Tail

Uriel Septim I

Uriel Septim II

Uriel Septim III

Uriel Septim IV

Uriel Septim V

Uriel Septim VI

Uriel Septim VII

Uriel Septim VIII

Scouts-Many-Marshes

[akaviri-dovah]

So I want to get my little Solstice rant out there...

So, the season of the worm cult is finally here, and with it our beloved bread boy. But at what cost… Suffice it to say I’m still pretty much heartbroken about what happened, even though I’m so happy about all these beloved characters coming back. But that doesn’t mean I’m 100% satisfied with how the story went.

The story, at its core, is good -  but the ending isn’t great

I want to preface this by saying that I think the zone was great overall, though some of that certainly comes down to personal preference as I really enjoy Sanguine content, and the main story was, for the most part, really good as well! Not good enough to give Summerset or Elsweyr a run for their money, but definitely good enough that I got insanely emotional over it (holy shit the music during Gabby’s farewell… I cried), something I genuinely missed these last few years.

I am also still not over that one conversation with Gabrielle, where she admitted to being in love with Darien.

That said, I think whatever was up with the Gift of Death was handled just a tiny bit poorly, and so was Darien’s writing. (I’ll talk about that later, but want to preface it by saying I absolutely don’t blame the writers for this one!) The last quest had its great (if terribly sad) moments, but also just a few weaknesses that I hope might be cleared up in part 2.

This is gonna be a long one, so I’m gonna put it under a cut.

What the hell is Darien and why isn’t it talked about anymore: The Summerset Memory Gap

Anyone remember that bit of dialogue in Summerset? The one where we could approach Darien and basically go “You’re not really a Breton, are you?”, and he’d say he didn’t really know himself? We know that man has barely any memory of his early life, and while we know he has a “father”, this might all simply be due to altered memories. Other people have discussed this in far greater detail, but basically there are a few things that Darien could be, and my list is by no means complete: - Someone who used to be a normal Breton, and is now something a bit different, changed by Meridia

- A vessel holding some of Meridia’s power, who acts as her champion when she wishes to get involved

- A Demiprince of Meridia

Personally, I think it’s between option 1 and 2, but my point in all of this is that Darien was never, to my understanding, really dead. We know from his one letter found in Orsinium that after Coldharbour, he retained his consciousness at least, and after Summerset we assumed that he was, well, gone, but again, not dead, just dormant until Meridia needed him again. 

And I would assume the Vestige would have told Gabrielle this, and yet she believed him to be really dead and decided that therefore, she could bring him back with the Gift of Death.

So why does Gabrielle get that idea when she should know Darien is not really dead? And why did it work? 

Was it 

a) a really lucky coincidence, with the Gift being a tainted Light of Meridia and using it for its assumed purpose purifying it, but the Coloured Rooms already changing its functionality so that Gabrielle could actually “summon” Darien?

Or was it

b)  that its use within Meridia’s realm purified it, as Darien said, but it was only returned to its original state? Which would then mean that this caught Meridia’s attention and she sent Darien, because the artifact likely wouldn’t have worked that way anymore.

It’s a bit confusing, and I kinda like to know which option it is, because I want to know if if was Gabrielle or Meridia who really did the thing. I’ll take it though, even though I feel like it’s a flaw in the story’s logic. But I’m really not too happy with Gabrielle really thinking of Darien as dead instead of trapped somewhere else.

Omitting previously established lore

And that, specifically,  leaves me with some questions. What on earth happened to the hints that we were fed during Darien’s seven year MIA phase? There’s just the general Meridia negativity that was all over Southern Elsweyr and Greymoor (remember Southern Elsweyr daily quest man, who repeatedly informed us she was not good and liked stealing people). 

And then there were also really solid clues that there was something up with Meridia, namely one quest, also in Southern Elsweyr, where it was explicitly stated that she’s in need of a new, more loyal champion, as well as the Kilkreath quest in Greymoor, where Meridia did fuck all to stop literal undead from overrunning her followers, leading me to believe something was preventing her from intervening. Even if she didn’t care about her followers, undead in her temple are canonically something she hates and wants OUT.

There was also the fact that Gabrielle quite literally told us she joined the Antiquarian Circle for Darien-related reasons. Girl was researching how to break into the Coloured Rooms. Mind you, this was also after Summerset, so we can assume that even with the Golden Knight Vanishing Act 2, she didn’t believe he was dead at that point. Again, the Vestige would have told her.

So why does she suddenly act like she believes just that in Solstice? Where did all the rest of the lore go?

The only thing I can come up with is that all of it was discarded to make the whole thing more palatable/easier to get into for new and returning players who haven’t been frantically checking every DLC for even vaguely Meridia-themed scraps and who the writers either can’t or won’t expect to catch up on several years of clue hunting. 

The Season of the Worm Cult was marketed as a continuation of the base game story, so everyone was aware of that. But new players and those returning after a long time might not know about Summerset, and really, that was seven years ago. Many folks who were around for Summerset aren’t playing anymore. I imagine the quest was written with a target audience in mind that doesn’t recall events from every chapter that ever happened.

Now why does the writing feel a little flat in some places?

There were a few little things bothering me as I was making my way through the MQ. I think the biggest thing that concerned me at the end was how flat everything felt after Gabrielle’s death. Mostly Darien’s reactions to it, especially with how Gabrielle spoke of him before. He references her, honors her sacrifice of course, but he just seems to take it all in stride. I know that this is partly just due to how he is – ever-cheerful, optimistic guy who pushes forward because there’s no other way – but I would have liked to see some genuine grief from him instead of a bread joke someone snuck into his dialogue. (Yeah, I smiled. But still.) Especially after everyone was safely out of the Coloured Rooms and there was no more need to run off and face the Wormies.

I also think the entire MQ very… impersonal at times? In some places it feels like the Vestige and everyone around them suffer from memory loss specifically affecting their personal relationships, unless you make it a point to go through specific dialogue options. I know that, again, this is likely so that any new player can jump right in and not constantly wonder “Why does this NPC talk to me as if we’re old friends?”, but that’s canonically what they are! Especially Covenant Vestiges! They have been close with most of the characters involved in Solstice for - depending on how you interpret the timeline - years! In my case, I go with ‘one chapter per year’ so my girl’s known them for 10 years. These people are more important to her than anything else and I would have very much appreciated to be able to lean into that a bit more.

And, like, I get it! We’re coming off a series of one or two year standalone stories that you could jump into without any previous knowledge. Blackwood, High Isle, Necrom and Gold Road as well as any additional DLC during those years required absolutely no knowledge of previous stories or returning characters. (I’m counting Blackwood since having played Orsinium was in no way relevant to what was going on there, aside from having met Eveli before, whereas in the Markarth DLC, for example, it would have been a good idea going in with knowledge of Rivenspire.) So yeah, going back to referencing older content more might be an adjustment, but it would be so much better for the depth of the story!  

Is it rushed?

In my opinion, the ending is. I would have wished for Gabrielle’s death to have a bigger impact especially on Darien (who also might just love her) and Skordo (who’s been her friend for years). I would have liked an option for the Vestige to address the topic with them, because the Vestige is also among her closest friends. I suppose I was just a bit bothered by how quickly the quest was concluded. I know that it’s intended to be just “the middle of things” and there’s gonna be a whole bunch of Stirk Fellowship folks arriving at any moment, but to me it seemed like at least some of the people already there should have been… in shock? Grieving? At the end. As it is, Azah’s grief over Merric’s death in the prologue was given more room than what surely the characters would have felt about Gabby dying, and that doesn’t sit right with me.

My advice: Make a choice who you’re writing these quests for!

In all honesty? In my experience there are only two types of people playing this game. Those who actively go questing, listen to all the dialogue and know what happens in the story, and those who rush through for skill points and achievements. If anything, there is a very small “middle group” who has a vague idea of what’s going on but doesn’t particularly care.

So, dear writers, just write for the group that actually loves your work. For the small but dedicated fanbase that’s been (in this case) turning over every pebble in search of Darien hints for the last seven years. For the people who can handle more than the most straightforward, simplified storylines. That means you don’t have to go “Previously on ESO…” as if we can only play one quest per week (one little summary at the start of the second half of an arc is okay and much appreciated). Instead, you could give the characters more depth and feelings, and you could bring in references to long-ago DLC and simply assume that the person who actually reads through all the quests/listens to the dialogue will remember and know what it’s about. I promise. It would improve the quality of the quests so much and be a huge step in returning them to the insane level they were on in the base game and certain older chapters and DLC.

Yes, I know the writers will never read this. I am a small blog with no reach. I also know it’s just a dream of mine and they probably have been told to make the quests easily accessible for people who have no idea about previous stories. But I still wanted to get it out there.

Still, and I need this to be understood, I LIKED this questline. I have been waiting for it for seven years and I’m so glad to have it.

That being said, I see three ways this could end…

Now, as for my predictions regarding how the whole thing will turn out: Mannimarco and Vanus both have to come out of this alive (or close enough to it anyhow), if not, practically ancient TES lore will be contradicted. But what of our beloved friends?

We finally get a happy ending (not bloody likely)

There is a chance, however small, that we somehow get to save Gabrielle and keep Darien, this time around. Knowing Darien and his role in previous arcs, it’s not likely, but a woman can hope, right? It would be a nice ending to the whole Worm Cult mess, with the Daggerfall gang all back together, without any dead or missing friends this time. In all honesty though, one of the reasons I think this won’t be the case is that Gabrielle being in love with Darien and him having some feelings for her at least is now canon. That paired with the fact that so many people ship Darien with their Vestiges, and the writers maybe not wanting to take Darien away from player characters, makes the whole thing a tiny bit complicated, doesn’t it? I suppose we’ll see if we get flirty dialogue options for him like we did for Raz. (I sure hope not...)

We lose them both and the Vestige goes bonkers

There’s also the distinct possibility that we’re gonna get hit with a worst case scenario: Gabrielle stays dead and Darien, once again, sacrifices himself and the cycle starts again. Now, if this happens, I genuinely doubt we’re ever going to see Darien again after that – we’re not going to get him back another time, or it would begin to feel less impactful. That said, my Vestige at the very least would absolutely lose it if this happened. That woman has been held together by a support system of one Orc warrior, one Breton mage and a gaggle of vampires for the last few years. If she loses even one more of them, her sanity might just walk off the nearest cliff. I can’t be the only one with this problem.

The Switch Back

And then there’s the third option, in which Darien and Gabrielle switch back – he sacrifices himself, maybe even permanently this time, to bring her back. I don’t want to think about this one too much. Mostly because Darien/Gabrielle is my OTP.

This is it for now – big rambling post of the year concluded. What do you all think? I would love to yap about your thoughts with you!

[akaviri-dovah]

Oh my god, Dramatic Alduin is CANON!!!

[akaviri-dovah]

Back with another Altmer headcanon ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

so going through the ESO Treasures list, I came across one item:

Royal Masquerade Invitation A gold-filigreed invitation to the Grand Masquerade of Alinor, a High Elven event that only takes place every 150 years.

First thought is, well of course, these fuckers would host some grand party that only happens every 150 years!

But now I'm wondering how this party goes, ya know? (Let me first mention that I have considered if this Grand Masquerade is still happening in the 4th era. All I know is that the Thalmor ended the monarchy when they seized control in 4E 22, so it would no longer be a royal invite. I could see it going either way: for it, as a way to keep up traditions, or against it, for the over-decadence. Anyways-)

The arts mean a lot to Altmeri culture. I could see this being Tamriel's verison of the Met Gala, honestly. Every 150 years they see a different theme. Every mer lucky to get an invite scrambles for the best of the best for designers, jewelers - the best quality items, the rarest materials used. Every artisan Altmer dreams to be hired for this, sees this as their opportunity of a lifetime to prove their path to perfection and gain their alaxon sphere through this event! And that's if Altmer artisans are hired. I could see Altmer hiring from the mainland (but possibly hide that they were wearing a non-mer's design)

Just a fun little idea!

[akaviri-dovah]

* for Khajiit characters, just go with fur color!

Some of my friends and I have been noticing a trend when it comes to HoK hair color and we want to see if it's universal or just us! Please reblog for sample size!

[akaviri-dovah]

Ok well since I'm on the topic already I really want to share my thoughts about the Altmer in more detail because now it's on my mind.

I want to bring up two main points: Comparing the Altmer/Thalmor to Nazis and Altmer lore and representation.

So, first of all, comparing Altmer/more specifically Thalmor to Nazis is actually incredibly insensitive in so many ways, yet it’s one of the most popular jokes in the fandom. Listen, it’s a fictional universe. It’s a fictional fantasy race. Nazis and their ideology are a real thing that is still incredibly dangerous to this day! That still oppresses people! Like there are actual neo-Nazis that are active in their ideology and commit terrible crimes in the name of that ideology to this very day! And I don’t think it’s funny to compare that to a fictional universe that quite frankly has nothing to do with real life racial supremacy. I think it takes away from the seriousness those terms should have and makes all those things that harm real people into a joke.

I could go on and on about this. But I need to stay focused and get into the Altmer lore and how it took a huge turn for the worst after Skyrim.

Most notably, an entire culture is simplified into a bunch of xenophobic racial supremacist eugenicists that want to take over the world (and in some theories, straight up delete it). Listen, just because a culture has a militant branch of fascists that are all of those things, doesn't mean that everyone who belongs to that culture is going to have the same opinions. I think it's super unfair to dumb down an entire race of people to "racist piss elves." Listen, it was funny right after Skyrim came out and people were clowning on the Thalmor, then the Altmer in general. But after the thousandth time seeing the same old joke it's really not funny anymore. It's just weird. And if you express liking the Altmer in any way, you're deemed a Nazi! Like, I think we need to grow some braincells here please.

Anyway I'm sorry to rant but this has been on my mind for a while, I just haven't been active in the TES fandom for like a year. I'm glad (and horrified) to be back.

[akaviri-dovah]

TES Devs: Mer live to be 200 on average. While some will live to be older, 200 is considered "quite old," while 300 is only achievable for those with a high level of magic and a low-risk lifestyle, usually only seen in nobility for obvious reasons, and Altmer live the longest in general.

Teldryn Sero: a Dunmer sellsword who is not a great mage, not part of a Great House, and does not by any means live a low-risk lifestyle. He professes to have met Saint Jiub, a man who died in the siege on Kvatch in 3E 433. Even assuming that Teldryn was a child when this occurred, this must have occurred in Morrowind, which pushes the timeline back to around 3E 428. Teldryn would have to be old enough to remember it, and therefore no younger than six, putting his latest possible birth year at 3E 422. Teldryn is introduced no earlier than 4E 201, which makes him 211 at the youngest—he isn't portrayed as old in any capacity.

Brandyl "Brand-Shei" Tenvanni: a Dunmer merchant who was definitively born in 4E 5, The Red Year, and was raised in an environment dramatically unsuited to his physiology by adoptive parents who weren't even the same species. He has some skill in Destruction magic that he rarely (if ever) uses, no firsthand experience with the Great House from which he was descended, and lives in one of the most dangerous cities in the country. He is also not portrayed or referred to as old at any time.

Ambarys Rendar: a Dunmer barkeep and proprietor of the New Gnisis Cornerclub. He immigrated to Skyrim as an adult in the Red Year, 4E 5, setting down roots in Windhelm. His only magical aptitude is in Destruction, which he basically never uses, his business is based in the single most hostile social environment for his people in the entire country, and he is not indicated by anyone at any time to be old in spite of already being an adult 196 years ago.

Aduri Sarethi: the younger sister of Avrusa Sarethi, immigrated with her in the Red Year, possibly as a child, although Avrusa was already an adult at the time and had her own business prior to the destruction of Vivec City. Is an artist and a farmer, and considered "too young" to go off on her own at her introduction in 4E 201, in spite of being at least 200 years old.

Runil: an Altmer priest who fought as an extremely capable battlemage in the Great War, which he describes (in cut dialogue) as the time when he was "at the height of [his] power." He left the Thalmor after the war, which lasted a total of four years and ended just over 25 years ago, and is now considered a very old man in spite of having been in the prime of his life no more than a quarter century prior.

Nurelion: an Altmer alchemist who literally dies of old age on screen.

TES Fandom: Yeah so mer live to be like 200 on average unless they're really good at magic, and even then 200 is considered to be "old age" for all mer, except Altmer who live longer than everyone else.

[akaviri-dovah]

13 | fossil

He swears it's an "authentic dragon hatchling skull" worth 200,000 gold, and honestly I don't know enough about dragons to question it.

[akaviri-dovah]

Doomed by the narrative.

Celebrating my 100th drawing of the year with Martini Septimi 'cause why not =w=

[akaviri-dovah]

Since Elenwen and Ondolemar both seem to wear eyeliner, does that mean the Thalmor have Dominion approved eyeliner? Who gets to wear it? Did Ancano’s eyeliner get confiscated when he was sent to Winterhold?