Red vs. Blue

Stormcloak or Empire? And why? (or Forsworn and Thalmor if you want).

You are a young farmer in a village deep in the Southern border - a village so useless, without anything more valuable than potato bread, that it was left out of Skyrim politics for years. During a caravan trip to Whiterun you are made aware of the situation of the kingdom. After asking around and hearing the position of all parties, you decide to make a choice.

For the Empire!

Before I justify myself I want to make clear that I have never even played Skyrim, but know a lot about the plot and have played both Morrowind and Oblivion to death.

My reasons:

1. I always loved the idea of the Empire in TES. I never really understood why, I just really like the concept and what the Empire stands for. My first pro Imperial character was an imperialised Dunmer in Morrowind (Knight of the Imperial Dragon, Primate of the Imperial Cult, Grandmaster of House Hlaalu etc)

2. As I said I know much about the Stormcloaks anyway, and to me they are reminiscent of supremicist ideology. I know much about the racist undertones of the Nords that support the Stormcloaks, and it reminds me too much of the Dunmeri racism toward all other races that I hated, probably one of the main reasons I grew so attached to the Empire. Besides, glorifying a race of tall, fair skined, blue eyed, blond haired northerners as superior, well...we know how that one turned out in the past!

3. Now heres my most interesting reason. I see the struggle between Empire and Stormcloaks as a parody of the situation here in Scotland at the moment. Unionists versus Nationalists I mean. Im a very strong and proud Unionist and believe strongly that seperatism will do nothing to move my country forward, actually more likely to drag it backwards. Like the Nords that support the Empire, I am exceptionally proud of my people, our culture and our heritage, but I also believe that we are an integral part of something much larger than just our own nation and that we must remain united to achieve a better future for the many and not just the few.

4. Caius Cosades, duh!!!!

I'm pro Empire, but only to be in a better position to fight the Thalmor. After that my character would find another lost cause, such as the Forsworn.

Yeah, it does raise some interesting questions. Foreigners coming and telling you your religion is heresy does anger some people. On the other hand, Skyrim isn't really "of the Nords", the Forsworn and Dwemer were there before Nords complete took over the place, and I think the Snow Elves even before that. And the Nords' attitude toward the Forsworn is the same as the Imperials' toward the Nords: the Forsworn are barbarians with outdated beliefs! Hypocrisy? No, TES politics! I'd very much like to use Skyrim in an ethics class.

Considering that Ulfric would openly defy the Thalmor, and they desire to destroy everything that makes the humans humans in the first place, the Empire is the only way to go!

Oh right right, I'm supposed to be a farmer. Well, Talos is the supreme power in the universe, because he uses it more than Vivec, sooo.... Stormcloaks! (Save for the dumb uniforms...)

Right, the uniforms! Scratch that, Empire all the way.

For the Emperor! For much the same reasons as Kharad gave.

"Bah, Imperials. Have you not been moved by Heimskr's words? Talos loves his followers, and yet you shall turn away from him!?

Shall you kneel before your Thalmor masters, attending to their every need? The Imperials are nothing more than their slaves! What freedom is there in that!

Shall you work your farmsteads, trying to provide for your family, when the Thalmor show up and demand food and shelter? What if your friends and family are taken away for questioning, never to return? Is this the world you envision to live in?!

Support freedom and support the Stormcloak cause! Only Jarl Ulfric can free us from this tyranny! He is the true hero of Skyrim, and has been blessed by the Greybeards themselves!

Tradition. Honor. Freedom. This is the Stormcloak way!"

Out in the small crowd, someone cried out, "What of the treatment of the Dunmer and Argonians in Windholm!?"

"I am sure the Stormcloaks will sort that out later..."

* * *

I guess I'm the only Stormcloak supporter here. This is probably because I never really played any other Elder Scrolls game besides Skyrim, so I have no attachment to the Empire. Besides, they were going to behead my character!

I was actually a Stormcloak in my first campaign. When I found out they were assholes, it was already too late and the game didn't allow me to desert. Imperials were very reprehensible as well, but were the lesser evil. 

Besides: Thalmor. The game doesn't quite convey this with the intensity this situation actually has. The Aldmeri Dominion has all mankind on their knees and would probably put them all in concentration camps if they knew this was possible. In-game info tells us that the Dominion will start another war against mankind, and that it will be definitive.

PS: My hobby: to use magic runes and the dwemer trap mod and conduct terrorist attacks on Thalmor patrols.

PPS: great, now this thread is being tracked by NSA.

Jing Ming wrote:

PPS: great, now this thread is being tracked by NSA.

I am sure they will find it an exhilarating read. Besides which, I am fairly sure they would be Imperials!

For the President Emperor!!!1!

The Thalmor wish to do something much, much worse to all umans than physical/mental torture! They'd unmake the world to become lesser spirits again, much like the et'Ada. Then there would be zero chance of current-mortal-humans achieving CHIM! Fortunately, Talos is almost as much of a BAMF as Vivec, and would intervene again most likely. Giant stompy robot, anyone?

Isabel Tenorio wrote:

The Thalmor wish to do something much, much worse to all umans than physical/mental torture!  They'd unmake the world to become lesser spirits again, much like the et'Ada.  Then there would be zero chance of current-mortal-humans achieving CHIM!  Fortunately, Talos is almost as much of a BAMF as Vivec, and would intervene again most likely.  Giant stompy robot, anyone?

In hindsight, probably should have let Dagoth Ur finish building him then huh?

Assuming he succeeds, and that he is pro-mankind, Skyrim would have a Dragonborn who can mind control dragons and send them against the Dominion. The closest we can get to the stompy robot. 

In all honesty I would like to see mankind destroyed. It would be a proper end to the TES series, and after Morrowind canon it would not even be unthinkable for the devs or the community. After four eras it ends in Skyrim, where it started. The cicle is complete with Alduin's appearance anyway. And Miraak does say that the player is the last dragonborn.

Dagoth Ur didn't need to finish it, the original Numidium still exists kinda. IIRC, it survived in most of the parallel timelines of the Daggerfall Dragonbreak. The heart was destroyed by the end, but giant stompy robot might still exist. Of course Talos could just sneeze and create a dozen more if he pleased!

But it doesn't end in 4 eras, Jing! There's still the 5th era when things go reeeaally bad, and the kalpa is ended/begun anew. Just read the Love-Letter from the 5th Era for an accounting!  

Imperials because they got more money to pay too my assassin. Blah i always find both sides at least partly right in such games so i just create I-care-only-about-money character and in the end find a way to make myself the ruler.

Stormcloaks, because because! That's why!