#reezda

Let me first begin the answer to this ask by clarifying that there is no conclusive evidence where the Dwemer are. It may well be they are all just - boringly - dead. It may be they are wandering some outer realm of Oblivion. It may be they trapped their souls in the soul gems which power their creations (although, personally, I find this unlikely due to the well-established fact that intelligent souls must be trapped in black soul gems, while normal soul gems power the automatons). That being said, there are still some things we do know, and there is a popular theory they are part of the giant golem, Numidium.

A bit of background for those who do not already know: The Dwemer and the Chimer (now the Dunmer) fought for centuries over the land in Morrowind. Eventually they joined forces to push back the invading Nords. However after this alliance, the Dwemer Chief Tonal Architect (think chief scientist / high priest mix) Kagrenac finished construction of a giant brass golem - Numidium - whose power threatened the gods. This angered the Chimer, and the two civilizations fought at Red Mountain. When the Chimer gained the upper hand, the Dwemer people suddenly disappeared.

Now one Dwemer man actually survived: Yagrum Bagarn, who was traveling in an outer realm of Oblivion at the time. To the Nerevarine in Morrowind, he states he believes Kagrenac tried to give the Dwemer eternal life using the tools which crafted Numidium, but the attempt backfired, either resulting in some unforeseen side effect or just killing all the Dwemer.

However, in this document - an out-of-game text - a Marukhati states Kagrenac, “sacrificed so many of [the Dwemer’s] golden souls to create [Numidum]’s metal body.” This statement suggests Kagrenac actually used the Dwemer souls to make the frame of Numidium. However this statement needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Not only is it not an in-game text (at least not yet), the Marukhati have a reputation of being paranoid, fanatic, and somewhat psychotic. Add to that the fact this Marukhati is talking about things he did not witness, and the complete lack of corroborating evidence, and you would not be out of your mind to be skeptical.

Nonetheless it is widely regarded in the TES lore community that the Dwemer were undone to make the frame of Numidium. As well, some people convolve the various explanations (they wanted immortality… they were transported to an Outer Realm… etc.) into a theory that Kagrenac made the Dwemer into the skin of Numidium so they could be removed from creation and thus not be stuck in the cycle of creation/destruction that the world of Nirn is - according to some lore accounts - perpetually trapped in.

- Reezda

Some links: Best picture of a dwemer, source (shown below), a wiki page for more reading.

This is a very interesting idea, especially considering Dagoth Ur shares many of the traits of each of the Four Corners of the House of Troubles (he’s insane: Sheogorath, his servants are undead: Molag Bal, he supports violent, destructive cataclysmic change: Mehrunes Dagon, and he is an outcast: Malacath). There is definitely a strong argument to be made that he is the embodiment of the House of Troubles.

However I am a bit biased against the Tribunal, personally, and I see their argument about the Daedric “anticipations” as a manipulative tool they used to ease the newly-Dunmer people into accepting a new religion by making the transition seem continuous: “Your old gods were just placeholders preparing you for us, your living gods,” rather than something based on honest theology. With that interpretation in mind - that there were no such things as anticipations - it would not make sense for Dagoth Ur to have an associated anticipation, since the Tribunal did not want the people to know about him.

This is not an area I typically like to discuss, as it’s kind of “going off the deep end” of lore: lore based on speculation based on speculation. It’s very little hard evidence to make solid statements around and separate “fact” from “headcanon” (though that is deliberate). But I will certainly try to answer your question as best I can.

There are several theories regarding the basis of reality in the Elder Scrolls Universe. One of them is that the universe is a dream. In fact, it is not only a dream, but a dream which dreams itself. “CHIM” is ehlnofex for “royalty” (the Amulet of Kings is the “Chim-el Adabal”). The concept is that one reaches CHIM when one is able to see past the dream that is reality and manipulate the dream accordingly. According to the writings which discuss how to achieve CHIM, it appears the process involves coming up with a litany of contradictions and fulfilling all of them (become one with all of reality, but keep your individuality… reach the infinite, but do not be infinite). The ultimate idea is that CHIM is the ultimate embodiment of love.

Apparently it is impossible for immortals to achieve CHIM, as it requires limited being in order to step out of the dream without stepping out of yourself. Lorkhan allegedly tried, but failed. However according to legend, both Vivec and Tiber Septim managed it.

With the exception of Hircine (becoming a werewolf), Molag Bal (becoming a vampire), and (maybe) Nocturnal, there is no reason to believe the Dragonborn’s Soul will go to any particular Daedra, since simply doing a favor for a Daedra and getting a reward is not the same as bartering your eternal soul to them. And there’s also no evidence I have encountered which states Dragon souls return to Akatosh (though any cited contradictions are welcome).

As for what would happen in the hypothetical case a mortal traded his/her soul to more than one Daedric prince, I imagine one of two things would happen. Either the soul would be shattered into multiple aspects, with each prince getting a piece, or the princes sort out among themselves who gets the new soul. But that’s just my speculation.

This post comes from a packet of lore I made for a Elder-Scrolls-themed D&D campaign I am running. It is just a brief summary of some important lore points focused on the campaign, but Mira and I feel it’s educational enough to post here.

The world of the Elder Scrolls is known as Nirn (also called Mundus). The main continent of importance in Nirn is called Tamriel. Tamriel itself is divided into several provinces: High Rock, Skyrim, Morrowind, Black Marsh, Elsweyr, Valenwood, Summerset Isles, Hammerfell, and Cyrodiil. In addition to Tamriel, there are a few other continents, such as Atmora, Yokuda, Akavir, Pyandonea, and Aldmeris, but they are all inaccessible, for a variety of reasons.

The races of Tamriel are divided into three groups: Men, Mer (elves), and Betmer (beastfolk: Argonians and Khajiit, to name the most popular two). Throughout history, men and mer have been fighting each other, creating deep-seated racial tensions between them. All races of elves come from a race called the Aldmer (old folk). The Aldmer come from the continent of Aldmeris, believed to be to the south of Tamriel. From Aldmeris, the Aldmer are believed to have settled in the Summerset Isles, an archipelago to the west of Tamriel. From there they established a flowering society steeped in magic, worshiping the Aedra: the gods from whom the mer believe they descend (versus the Daedra, whom the mer believe share no connection to Nirn… typically regarded as “demon lords,” though that’s not precisely accurate, since some of them are not particularly melovolent).

However the society of the Aldmer grew fractious. Several groups of mer left the Summerset Isles and headed into mainland Tamriel. Among these groups were the Ayleids. The Ayleids headed into central Tamriel – what would now be called Cyrodiil – and established a civilization of city-states, with the White-Gold Tower and its surrounding city (what would later become the Imperial City) as its center.

While the mer were establishing themselves in Tamriel, men from the continent of Atmora to the north of Tamriel began to flee their homeland as it began to freeze over. The Atmorans began settling in the northern part of Tamriel – what is now Skyrim – where they eventually came into conflict with Falmer (snow elves) – the mer who had settled in that region.

As human tribes established themselves south of Skyrim, they encountered the Ayleids. The Ayleids enslaved some of the people, forcing them to build their new civilization. In the year 242 of the first era, the human slaves revolted, led by a woman named Alessia – later regarded as a saint, who received prophetic visions from the Aedra, supporting her revolt.

During the Alessian Slave Revolt, the Ayleids were severely weakened. The power structure of Cyrodiil shifted, and a new empire rose, led by the human fomer-slaves – the Imperials, though some Ayleids still held power over some regions in Cyrodiil.

However, centuries after the Revolt, the teachings of an Imga (the Imga were a betmer race of ape-men) named Marukh started a religious order within the Alessian Empire: the Alessian Order. This order vilified mer and established a monotheism to replace the polytheistic pantheon of Aedra that was commonly worshiped in the Empire. As the power and influence of the Alessian Order grew, the Ayleids began a long exodus out of what remained of their cities, fleeing to all corners of Tamriel, seeking sanctuary with other races of mer.

I don’t recall an instance of a poisoned Argonian, so I cannot answer you if your question is about something specific. That being said, there is a reason why an Argonian in The Elder Scrolls Online could have been poisoned.

In The Elder Scrolls Online, Saxhleel are not immune to poison; they just have a resistance to it. It’s possible for them to be poisoned just like any other race, but they aren’t affected as harshly. Finding a poisoned Argonian in ESO is not all that peculiar.

As for why the Saxhleel are not immune to poison in ESO, despite being immune in Arena, Morrowind, and Oblivion, I would chalk that up to the Hist. Hist sap allegedly has the ability to alter the minds and form of the Saxhleel, so it would not be absurd to think the Hist can affect their biochemistry as well. I would speculate that some time between the Three Banner’s War and the Imperial Simulacrum, the Hist changed the Saxhleel and made them immune to poison.

From Reezda:

1. Scouts-Many-Marshes (Skyrim): My favorite just because I marry him in Skyrim. Can’t not put my hubby at the top of the list.

2. Sees-All-Colors (Online): I love her because she’s a Meridia-worshiping (sorry if that spoils anything for anyone) Saxhleel, just like my main character. She’s also got to be a pretty badass fighter to make it to Grandmaster of the Fighter’s Guild.

3. Teinaava (Oblivion): A Shadowscale member of the Dark Brotherhood, he’s the one who introduced us to the Shadowscales.

4. Haj-Ei / Hides-His-Eyes (Morrowind): The first Saxhleel whose name we know in both Cyrodilic and Jel, affirming that Saxhleel can go by two names which mean the same thing in different languages.