Barbas

"Skyrim is now host to giant, flying lizards and two-legged cat-men, and you're surprised by me? Yes. I just talked. And am continuing to do so."

- Barbas

Barbas is the dog companion of the Daedric Prince, Clavicus Vile. He is a shape shifting Daedra that often takes on the appearance of a Dog, but is known to take on the form of a Scamp called Creeper.

Planemeld
In 2E 582, a novice Altmer mage known Pircalmo was tasked by the Bosmer living in Willowgrove, Valenwood to clear out the nearby woods. However, Pircalmo's experience with magic was often limited by his constant errors and problems dealing with magic. Before trying to cast his spell, Pircalmo wished for it to work good. Unknown to Pircalmo, his wish was granted to him by the Daedric Prince Clavicus Vile, who had an ancient and forgotten shrine in a close by cave. Pircalmo's spell worked in that it transported a large group of dangerous Atronachs from Oblivion to burn down the woods. Having seemingly failed the contract, Pircalmo's wife was taken by the local Bosmer to be murdered and devoured. Fortunately, the Vestige found the shrine, which Barbas had been bound to due to the Pircalmo's wish. The Vestige then destroyed the shrine, freeing Barbas and banishing the atronachs back to Oblivion before Pircalmo's wife could be hurt. The same year, Barbas appeared as Creeper when an Orsimer merchant by the name of Zagrugh summoned a scamp to be his personal assistant. Zagrugh ran a general goods store beneath the city of Mournhold, in a Dunmer ancestral tomb which had been taken over by criminals. Zagrugh had hoped that a summoned being from Oblivion would be more trustworthy and loyal than his previous employees, who had all stolen items from his store. Strangely, Zagrugh's corpse was later found, and his assistant Creeper took over the store.

Meeting with Cyrus
When the hero Cyrus travelled to Clavicus Vile's realm in 2E 864, Barbas took a liking to Cyrus and transformed his face to apear like Cyrus'. It was also revealed by Vile that Barbas likes being a dog as well as other different things.

Time in Morrowind
In 3E 427, Barbas took on the appearance of a Scamp called Creeper to live and trade goods with a group of Orsimer in Caldera, Vvardenfell in the province of Morrowind.

Oblivion Crisis
In 3E 433, during the Oblivion Crisis, Clavicus Vile tasked the Hero of Kvatch with obtaining the sword of Umbra. Barbas foresaw the chaos and destruction that the sword would bring to Clavicus Vile's realm of Oblivion, and left his masters side to manifest himself as a statue of a dog. Through the statue, Barbas talked with the hero in an attempt to make it so the hero would not want to bring the sword to Vile. This attempt proved futile, as the sword was given back to the prince.

The Umbriel Crisis
The being known as Umbra later took much of Clavicus Vile's power and created the floating city Umbriel, leaving Vile's realm of Oblivion greatly damaged. When Ezhmaar Sul and the prince of the Empire, Attrebus Mede travelled to Clavicus Vile's realm to make a deal with the Prince, Barbas helped in negotiations between Vile, Sul and Attrebus.

Meeting with the last Dragonborn
In 4E 201, Clavicus Vile had forsaken Barbas due to an argument they had, and due to a pure annoyance of his servant. Barbas, in the form of a dog, was left wandering the forest of southern Skyrim. This weakened Vile's power, making it so that he could only manifest in Mundus in close proximity to one of his shrines. The inhabitants of Falkreath noticed a stray dog, and so when the Last Dragonborn was tasked by one of the towns citizens to find the stray dog, The dog revealed that he was Barbas after being found by the Dragonborn and asked the Dragonborn to help him end his quarrel with Vile. The two travelled to the Prince's shrine in Haemar's Shame and Clavicus Vile had the Last Dragonborn obtain an artefact of Vile's known as the Rueful Axe. After obtaining the axe, Vile then said that the Dragonborn could keep the axe if they woul kill Barbas in his mortal form, banishing him back to Oblivion for a few centuries and allowing Clavicus Vile to use the full extant of his power; or to continue with the original pact, forcing Vile to take both the axe and Barbas back with him. It is not known which option the Last Dragonborn picked.