User blog comment:Spritydove/Deeper Thought into the Civil War/@comment-152.133.14.7-20120619171612

[Not really an anon, but my internet decided to call in sick today and won’t let me login.] I know this is going to be a TL;DR diatribe for most casual gamers, but if you really dig into the lore of TES and listen to what’s happening on both sides of the Civil War questline, there’s a rich layer of cultural and social observation in what Bethesda has created here.

In terms of gameplay the factions are weighted evenly enough, but that's not really the question; the issue is which side (if either) provides a stronger position against the Aldmeri Dominion (AD) in the long run. Janus has a decent point that the Empire and an independent Skyrim could eventually have a good diplomatic relationship again, but after the way the Civil War got started and progressed, those wounds would take several decades to scab over, and the Thalmor aren't going to sit still for that long. In the event of a Stormcloak victory, the AD are going to look for the earliest possible opportunity to overrun the divided and weakened states.

See, what alot of people in Tamriel and Skyrim in particular don't understand (especially those who want to avoid the war altogether) is that the White Gold Concordat was just a band-aid, a temporary stay on the AD's blitzkrieg of Tamriel, like the Munich Pact was for Europe (look it up). It's not a question of whether the Concordat will be violated by one of the parties, it's just a matter of who will break it, and when. The AD got slowed down in their bid for total conquest, but a thorough recon of their embassy in Diplomatic Immunity shows that they have no intention of letting the provinces of free men retain their sovereignty for long. The only chance for the Empire, or Skyrim, or Hammerfell to remain free nations is to rise up against the Thalmor before the Thalmor get a chance to wipe out human resistance permanently. The men and women who lead each side of the Civil War understand this to some point, but they disagree violently about how it should be done.

First, the Empire is operating under an assumption that the only way to succeed is to fight as a unified body when the time comes to resume conflict with the AD. This assumption was rebutted by the accomplishments of the Redguard in defending their own homeland, but in that case the Empire had made a cost/benefit analysis and determined that Hammerfell wasn’t worth fighting for at the expense of Cyrodiil, so they left the Redguard out to dry. Likewise, in the interest of conserving and consolidating resources, in signing the Concordat the Emperor agreed to practically every concession the Thalmor had demanded at the beginning of the Great War, presumably hoping to spare enough lives to eventually regain strength and drive the Dominion back out. This long-range view is expressed by both Tullius and Rikke, the latter of whom is one of the most loyal Nords you’ll meet: she sincerely believes that the best thing for the strongwilled, Talos-worshipping people of Skyrim is to align themselves under the Imperial banner, to overthrow the AD when the time is right.

Second: the Stormcloaks. The basic cause of the rebellion is simple and valid: like the Redguard, the Nords have what it takes to repel the Thalmor oppression, and the complacent dithering of the Empire and their supporters in Skyrim has endangered the life and liberty of everyone that the Dominion wants under their Aldmer thumbs – which is everyone. Those who have studied history, or who know firsthand what it’s like to live under an oligarchy, understand that acquiescing to a political bully is the surest way to inspire that bully to take more from you. The Stormcloak opposition to Titus Mede can be summed up by what Winston Churchill said of his predecessor’s truce with Hitler: “[the Empire] had to choose between war and dishonour. They chose dishonour. They shall have both.” In other words, there’s no question that the free peoples will have to fight the Dominion again, and soon; bowing to the demands of the Concordat only makes them weaker against the Thalmor. And if Nords have to choose between fighting the Empire to remain strong or joining with them to be weak, then fighting the Empire is a necessary step to defeating the Thalmor. Many Imperials state Skyrim cannot be “reclaimed” from the Empire because it has always been an autonomous part of the Empire, but that is a question of semantics – originally, Skyrim was the Empire, and its ruler actually had some authority. The title of High King was merely a formality of Imperial colonialism by the time of Torygg, who was not revered as a good king by most of his subjects, which is why it’s up to the Jarls to decide how to protect their people, whether by attempting diplomacy or joining the fight.

And then there is Ulfric. The man himself may be the biggest obstacle to the goals of the Stormcloak rebellion, because his overbearing personality and dogmatic refusal to reconsider what he has already decided make him a polarizing force – pretty much everyone in Skyrim either hates or loves him. The other side of that coin is, these qualities also make him the ideal Nord: stubborn, rooted in deep convictions, and loyal to his principles, if not to individuals. His challenge to Torygg is portrayed by Elisif and her supporters as a brutal ambush, but if you look into the facts, you find that Ulfric’s actions as a Jarl who opposed his king’s decisions were consistent with the custom and protocol of Skyrim – except, perhaps, for the arguably unfair advantage of using a dragon shout to take him down. He’s his own man, and even his detractors, who are wise enough to take in the whole political scene as a panorama, concede that his vision of Skyrim’s future shows keen perception. Again, the problem is with his methods. He is called impulsive and shortsighted by his detractors, but don’t confuse urgency for imprudence – Ulfric’s actions are not rushed, as you can see if you listen to his war room discussions with his advisors. He is convinced that time is running short before the Thalmor take advantage of the Empire’s complacency and resume their violent domination of Tamriel, which is why Imperial diplomats and politicians who don’t want to pick sides are, to him, obstacles that cannot be tolerated.

A quick sidenote about in-game prejudices: a central aspect of the Elder Scrolls universe is the diversity of races throughout Nirn – this should not be confused for what people on Earth refer to as “race.” It has often been said that there is only one race on our planet, the Human Race, and since we are all created equal there is no justification for making moral or racial distinctions between ethnicities. This is not true in Tamriel; here, the races really are different species, with different attributes and origins, and what you will typically find in conversation with NPC’s in most TES games is that everyone makes judgments about the other races. Go talk to the people of the Grey Quarter in Windhelm; some of the Dunmer mention only their personal circumstances, and note the lower standard of living there, but many of them are more interested in showing their contempt for Nords in general, especially since the dark elves are habitually a xenophobic people and were notorious slaveholders until fairly recently. Nords are culturally very attuned to their history, and an influx of Mer into their ancient homeland is reminiscent of Skyrim’s bloodiest days; having suffered attempted genocide, enslavement, and subjugation from other races, I think the Nords can be justified in doing a bit of profiling. The biggest racists of all, if the term even has any meaning in Tamriel, are the High Elves, whose Arianesque superiority complex has stained the entire continent with blood.

The real lynchpin in this conflict, however, is not the tension between people groups, but the Dragon Crisis. Alduin’s Wall and the Dragonborn prophecy indicate that the reappearance of the AD and the Stormcloak uprising are just cogs in a bigger mechanism, and what happens after the Civil War will also be determined by the havoc wrought by Alduin’s return, and the choices made by the Dragonborn. Interestingly, different characters interpret the dragons’ presence through the lens of their position on the war: some whose loyalty harkens back to the old Septim Empire – like Baalgruf and Delphine, for instance – suspect that the timing of Alduin’s appearance is just a little too convenient for Ulfric Stormcloak. Others cite the ancient prophecies, pointing out that the subjugation of the Empire and Skyrim lying “sundered, kingless, bleeding” are but necessary steps toward the advent of Alduin’s defeat. However, once the Dragonborn learns the truth behind what Alduin is doing in Skyrim, it is clear that the Civil War and its aftermath must take a back seat to the immediate issue of the dragons. After that crisis is resolved, a wider view must be taken of the strife between provinces, and there’s room on both sides for a solid conviction. In my opinion, though, solidarity with the Mede Empire is not a refuge. The Empire has chosen to weaken itself, not only by conceding the terms of the White Gold Concordat, but by forcing the “loyalty” of Skyrim, probably its strongest and most independent province. To throw Imperial troops at the Stormcloak-controlled holds and spill more blood (mostly Nord blood) in the interest of presenting a united front is a frivolous waste of life, and current events suggest that Skyrim stands a much better chance by establishing independence and then extending olive branches to Hammerfell and to any patriotic Bretons in High Rock, to form necessary alliances rather than establish dominion of one province over another. The people of Tamriel have seen enough “reunification” for the rest of this age.