Daedric Princes

In the The Elder Scrolls universe, Daedric Princes (sometimes referred to as Daedra Lords) are the most powerful of the Daedra and thus most commonly worshiped as deities. Despite the title of "Prince," these entities are technically genderless; any manifestation otherwise is purely cosmetic. Throughout the series, a number of Daedric Princes, along with the other worshiped gods, play a major part in the events of a game's main storyline. In all, there are sixteen widely known Princes (a "seventeenth" prince, Jyggalag, was expanded upon in the Shivering Isles questline as the original form of the prince Sheogorath). Daedric Princes (along with most Daedra) operate on a different plane of existence than humans and other mortals, and as such possess an incomprehensible concept of 'morality'; it is for this reason that none of the Daedric Princes can be considered objectively "evil". However, a number of them have been known to consistently inflict harm on the inhabitants of Tamriel, leading to most being considered sinister by mortal standards. Every Daedric Prince has his own plane of Oblivion.

Azura
Azura is the Daedric prince whose sphere is dusk and dawn, the magic in-between realms of twilight. Azura is always depicted as a female, and is also known as "Mother of the Rose," "Queen of the Night Sky," and the Anticipation of Sotha Sil. Azura is most recognized with the artifact, Azura's Star, a reusable soul gem which can be found in Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim. Azura is one of the few Daedra who might be considered "good" by mortal standards. Azura's plane is known as Moonshadow.

It was Azura who told Nerevar that Dagoth Ur's knowledge of the Heart of Lorkhan was accurate. This caused a war with the Dwemer (whose king denied knowledge of the Heart, although Azura only denied it due to lack of her own personal knowledge of the subject), from which Nerevar emerged the victor and the Dwemer did not emerge at all. Later, when the Tribunal of Vivec, Almalexia and Sotha Sil used the power of the Heart of Lorkhan to make themselves gods (and thus breaking their oath to Azura), Azura cursed the Chimer (Caused their skin to become a dark greyish color and eyes red, thus making them Dunmer, or Dark Elves) and claimed that he would cause Nerevar to be reborn and that he would make things right again. Later, Azura aided the Nerevarine in defeating Dagoth Ur and toppling the Tribunal Temple (due to the differing accounts, told by various factions and individuals in Morrowind, that this should be taken with a grain of salt). Azura is also credited on making the Khajiit out of the Bosmer stock in Elsweyr.

Boethiah
Boethiah is the Prince of Plots, who rules over deceit, conspiracy, secret plots of murder, assassination, treason, and unlawful overthrow of authority. She is depicted as a great caped warrior, often in a stoic pose. She is also known as the Anticipation of Almalexia.

Boethiah loves competition and battle, and this nature is manifested in her quest in Oblivion, transporting the player to his realm of Oblivion for a tournament to decide who is truly worthy of Goldbrand, an enchanted katana with a gold-colored blade (rebuilding his shrine near Khartag Point in Vvardenfell is enough to claim the blade in Morrowind). The infamous Pillow Book is also named in her honor.

Heralded by the Prophet Veloth, Boethiah is the original god-ancestor of the Dark Elves. Through her illuminations, the eventual 'Chimer ', or Changed Folk, renounced all ties to the Aldmer and founded a new nation based on Daedric principles. All manner of Dark Elven cultural 'advances' are attributed to Boethiah, from philosophy to magic to 'responsible' architecture.

Clavicus Vile
Clavicus Vile is the Daedric prince whose sphere is the granting of power and wishes through ritual invocations and pact. Clavicus has a companion named Barbas. While capable of selective shapeshifting, the form it assumes most of the time is that of a dog (although in dialogue from Oblivion he states that one of the forms he took was a "scamp who made deals with orcs"), a possible reference to an easter egg named "Creeper" from Morrowind. Clavicus himself is depicted as a jovial fellow with horns protruding from his forehead.

In the past, Clavicus Vile has worked through mortal representatives to gain what he desires. In the game Redguard, Vile gambled with the protagonist Cyrus for the soul of Cyrus' sister against Cyrus' own soul. In Morrowind, the player may obtain Clavicus Vile's artifact, the Masque of Clavicus Vile, by defeating a Nord sorcerer who has been terrorizing the village of Dagon Fel. In Oblivion, the Masque can be acquired by finding and returning the sword Umbra to Vile. In Skyrim, the Masque is given to you by Calvicus Vile after helping him acquire the Rueful Axe (During which, you have an option to kill Barbas or to refuse. If you kill Barbas, you keep the Rueful Axe. If you don't, you get the mask, and lose the Axe). Another artifact associated with Clavicus Vile is the Bitter Cup. In Morrowind the player is able to trade this with a Clavicus Vile worshiper in order to gain political support. In the Oblivion "Vile Lair" plugin, the book "Manifesto Cyrodiil Vampyrum" states that Molag Bal and Clavicus Vile are the patrons of Cyrodiil's clan of vampires. {C}

Hermaeus Mora
Hermaeus Mora is the Prince whose sphere is scrying of the tides of fate, of the past and future as read in the stars and heaven, and in whose dominion are the treasures of knowledge and memory. His realm is known as the "Apocrypha", an endless library where all forbidden knowledge can be found.

Hermaeus Mora's appearance is probably the most bizarre and perplexing of all of the Daedric Princes the player encounters; most commonly, he represents himself as a rotund mass of tentacles, with an abundance of eyes and four disproportionately large lobster claws. In Skyrim, he appears as a black hole-like purple and black portal. In all appearances, Hermaeus Mora has a deep, menacing voice, although his voice is notably more relaxed in Skyrim.

He may be the "Woodland Man" of Nedic myth who catches villagers lost in the woods; the secondary set of his name, Mora, is one word for "wood", "woodland" or "tree(s)" in Elvish. He speaks with a deep and frightening voice. His artifact, the Oghma Infinium, is an ultimate skill book that selectively improves character traits.

Hircine
Hircine is the Daedric prince whose sphere is the Hunt, the Sport of Daedra, the Great Game, the Chase, known as the Huntsman and the Father of Manbeasts. Hircine created the various lycanthropic diseases which transform mortals into beasts, and is therefore the guardian of were-creatures. They reflect his sphere admirably, hunting at night and being hunted by day. Hircine is a sportsman who enjoys giving his prey a chance for victory, however small. Hircine's statue depicts him as a physically fit man whose whole head is obscured by a deer skull with long antlers. He is armed with a great spear and has a companion wolf. Hircine's typical lackeys on the mortal realm Nirn are werewolves, which he directly talks to, gives tasks and rewards with additional powers. The lesser Daedra Herne are also affiliated with him.

In The Elder Scrolls Legends: Battlespire, the protagonist was forced to endure a hunt in his realm. In The Elder Scrolls III: Bloodmoon expansion, the Nerevarine was forced to defeat an aspect of Hircine (that of strength, speed or guile) at the end of the Bloodmoon hunt. In The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, he sends the protagonist on a hunt for a unicorn's horn. In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, he is involved in the quest Ill Met By Moonlight.

Malacath
Malacath is the Daedric prince whose sphere is the patronage of the spurned and ostracized, the keeper of the Sworn Oath, and the Bloody Curse.

He was created when Boethiah ate the Aedra Trinimac. The Orsimer ("Pariah Folk" in Elvish) or Orcs were also created, as they were Trinimac's devout followers. Malacath is not recognized as a Daedric Prince by his peers, which fits his sphere perfectly. Malacath is also called Malauch by Orcs and Orkey or the Old Knocker by Nords, who blame him for stealing mankind's long lifespans. Malacath spurns physical weakness, hence the above-average strength of the creatures associated with him.

In Morrowind, Malacath's quest is one of revenge for an Orc. In Oblivion a player can visit Malacath's shrine; his quest is one of freeing enslaved ogres. Malacath's statue is a muscular orc ready to strike with a heavy weapon. Malacath's item is a strong warhammer called Volendrung.


 * In Morrowind, Malacath is known as one of the "Four Pillars of the House of Troubles," known in Morrowind as the "bad Daedra."
 * In Skyrim, he is most commonly referred to as "Orkey," or "Old Knocker."

Mehrunes Dagon
Mehrunes Dagon is the Daedric Prince of Destruction, Change, Revolution, Energy, and Ambition. He is associated with natural dangers like fire, earthquakes, and floods. He is an especially important deity in Morrowind, where he represents its near-inhospitable terrain. In some cultures, though, Dagon is merely a god of bloodshed and betrayal. Dagon's plane of Oblivion is known as "The Deadlands," and is featured in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

Of all the Daedric Princes, Mehrunes Dagon seems to have the most animosity towards Nirn's species. Given his nature (prince of destruction), along with the fact that Daedra cannot truly be destroyed, the only entities he can practice destruction on are mortals. He positively assisted Jagar Tharn in his temporary procurement of the Imperial throne. {C} {C}He invaded and seized control of the Battlespire in contravention of the Daedric pact  preventing unchecked meddling in mortal affairs by divine beings  ; the purpose of this was to cripple the capacity of the Imperial College of Battlemages which presented a threat to Tharn's power as Emperor.

Mehrunes Dagon was also responsible for the destruction of Mournhold at the end of the First Era and apparently destroyed Ald Sotha,  home of House Sotha  and Sotha Sil's birthplace. In Oblivion, the plot centers around a plot by Dagon's followers to destroy the Septim bloodline and Tamriel in general.

In Michael Kirkbride's "The Aldudagga", a glimpse is given to the Aedric origins of the prince of Destruction. He, like the Daedra Prince Meridia, is said to have been banished from Aetherius. He tricked Akatosh, and was made into the Daedric Prince of Destruction after a short (by divine standards) happy life as a jumping demon. At the end of Oblivion, the Avatar of Akatosh destroys Dagon's physical body, sending Dagon back into the Waters of Oblivion.


 * In The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, Mehrunes Dagon is known as one of the "Four Corners of the House of Troubles," which consists of the Daedra the citizens of Morrowind consider the "bad Daedra," or the malevolent Daedra Princes that cause destruction in Tamriel.


 * In The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, he's the only Daedric Prince who doesn't offer the player a side quest (given his status as the game's antagonist). His trademark artifact, "Mehrune's Razor," can be found in an official plug-in however.

Mephala
Mephala is a Daedric Prince whose sphere is obscured to mortals, also known by the names Webspinner, Spinner, Spider, and the Anticipation of Vivec. The only consistent themes seem to be interference in the affairs of mortals for her amusement, and spiders. She also helped directly to found the infamous cult/society of the Morag Tong. Her sphere seems to indicate a careful plan carried out through executions, each life a portion of a massive web. Mephala sees the affairs of mortals as a weave; pull but one thread and the whole thing unravels. Her quest in Oblivion involves inciting a peaceful town into anarchy. In Skyrim, you receive the Ebony Blade for the questline.

Meridia
Meridia is an obscure Daedric Prince to mortal eyes, and very little is known about her. She is associated with the energies of living things, and bears a special hatred for the undead. Her realm is known as the Colored Rooms.

In Oblivion, she presents the player with a quest to destroy Necromancers who are raising an army of the undead. Meridia is rumored to be Aedric in origin, but banished for a misuse of magic.

In the "The Elder Scrolls IV: Knights of the Nine" plugin, the Ayleid sorcerer king Umaril the Unfeathered was revealed to have made a pact with Meridia. This pact allowed Umaril to cheat death after his defeat at the hands of Pelinal Whitestrake by escaping into Meridia's realm in Oblivion and return to the mortal world. It would also allow him command over Meridia's daedra, the Aurorans.

In Skyrim Meridia tasks the player with returning a beacon to her statue, guiding a beam of light through her shrine, and finally slaying the necromancer Malkoran and his attendant Corrupted Shades in the quest The Break of Dawn. For their efforts the player is rewarded with the sword Dawnbreaker, designed to destroy undead in accordance with Meridia's sphere of influence.

Molag Bal
Molag Bal is the Daedric Prince whose sphere is the domination and enslavement of mortals. His only desire is to harvest the souls of mortals and to bring mortals' souls within his sway by spreading seeds of strife and discord in the mortal realms. As mentioned above, this is not evil. His realm is called "Coldharbour," a twisted dark version of Tamriel.

He is said to be the father (along with Vivec, whom he seduced ) of a population of mutant degenerates living in the region of Morrowind bearing his name, who may have been the first eventual vampires, a corruption of Vivec's ties to the Heart of Lorkhan transmitted to mortals. However, some other cultures disagree with that story, claiming the creation of vampires to be in Skyrim.

It should be noted, however, that Molag Bal helps the player cure his vampirism (if it has been contracted) in Morrowind. In exchange, the player must track down Molag Bal's daughter and kill her. Note on the game there is also another Molag Bal mission, at a shrine on an island east off the coast of Vvardenfell. The player must kill his lazy servant Menta Na in his lair east of Kogoruhn in the Ashlands region. If the player completes it they are awarded the unique Mace of Molag Bal. The mace may also be acquired in Oblivion and Skyrim, in Oblivion after a quest requiring the player to let a man named Melus kill them with a cursed mace, and in Skyrim after a quest requiring the player to slay a preist of Boethia at his shrine in an abandoned house for desecrating it.

In a book from the Oblivion "Vile Lair" plugin, one of the other vampire creation myths is given. Molag Bal, in a rage against Arkay, the god of life and death, set out to disrupt the cycle. He ravaged a Nedic virgin named Lamae in Skyrim, and her screams became the winds. He pricked his finger and left a drop of his corrupting blood on the center of her forehead. She awoke as the mother of vampires as she was burning on a funeral pyre. She slaughtered the funeral procession, and her "unholy" progeny spread to every corner of Tamriel, much to the despair of Arkay, incapacitated by the creation of Nirn.


 * In Morrowind, Molag Bal is known as one of the "Four Pillars of the House of Troubles," known in Morrowind as the "Bad Daedra."
 * Has a shrine in Skyrim, its location is in the Abandoned House in Markarth. As a reward for freeing a priest and beating him into submission twice and then slaughtering him at Molag's altar, you get the Mace of Molag Bal. During this quest, Molag Bal states that Boethiah is his rival.

Namira
Namira is the Daedric Prince whose sphere is the ancient darkness. She is associated with all things generally considered repulsive including various creatures, such as spiders or slugs, and disease which cause any kind of unattractive physical abnormalities. Namira's followers keep to themselves and prefer living peacefully in dark and squalid conditions, but will react violently at any attempts to "save" them from their abysmal, minimalistic lifestyles. Her quest in Oblivion involves working with outcasts to ambush a group of priests under Arkay who attempt to "save" Namira's dark followers.

In Skyrim, the player has an indirect meeting with Namira in the town of Markath in the Hall of the Dead. The player meets a cannibalist in the Hall, and after clearing out a dungeon (if you decided not to kill her) you meet a cannibalist cult in a grotto North-West of Falkreath. The player must lure a priest of Arkay who guards the Hall of the Dead in Markarth to Namira's shrine, and eat him. (Fortunately there is no cutscene.) When the player slays him over Namira's shrine, Namira has a short conversation with the player about how pleased she is at eating a priest of Akray. If the player goes this far without killing any of the cannibalists, he or she recieves Namira's ring, a daedric artifact that restores the players health and stamina when "feasting" on slain enemies. (It is interesting to note however, since the cannibalist cult is full of humans, if you decide to be a Khajiit or Argonian, they still seem to think you are a cannibal even though you are eating a different race than your own.)

Nocturnal
Nocturnal is the Daedric Prince whose sphere is the night and darkness, also known as the Night Mistress. {C}The Cyrodiilic Thieves Guild leader, The Gray Fox, has the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal, which truly represents the sphere's darkness quality; it permanently removes the wearer's specific identity from all history. According to an account of a Blind Moth Priest, this is to prevent anyone from remembering the face of Nocturnal, for to do so would be to go insane (Although in Skyrim her face is seen by the player).

Another item of hers is the Skeleton Key, an unbreakable lockpick which allows even unskilled users to pick the most complicated locks. It makes an appearance in both Oblivion and Skyrim during Thieves Guild questlines.

In  Skyrim you have the ability to become one of her special followers, The Nightingales, which grants you the final quests of the Thieves Guild. You receive a set of Nightingale armor along with a former Thieves Guild member (Karliah) falsely accused of killing the previous guild master (Gallus Desindius), and a Thieves Guild member (Brynjolf), and set out to find and then return the Skeleton Key stolen by the current guild master (Mercer Frey) to Nocturnal.

Peryite
Peryite, also known as the Taskmaster, is the Daedric Prince whose sphere is Pestilence, and he is charged with ordering the lowest levels of Oblivion. He is often depicted as a green Dragon, and is ostensibly concerned with ensuring all things are accounted for, neat, tidy, and in their proper order.

Peryite's artifact is an enchanted shield, the Spellbreaker,which in both Oblivion and Skyrim possesses the ability to occasionally reflect enemy spells back on the caster.

Ironically, despite being one of the least powerful Daedric Princes, Peryite is represented by a dragon.

Sanguine
Sanguine is the Daedric Prince whose sphere is hedonistic revelry and debauchery, and passionate indulgences of darker natures. He often appears on the seals and signs of brothels and whore-houses. Sanguine is depicted as a portly man with a demon-like head with horns and always with a bottle in his hand, or a whore under his thumb.

In Morrowind, it is revealed by the Grandmaster of the Morag Tong, Eno Hlaalu, that Sanguine crafted 27 items for Mephala collectively termed the "Threads of the Webspinner". If the character collects all 27 items and returns them to Hlaalu, they receive the Mephala's Blessing spell.

In Oblivion, if the player visits his shrine and gives him a bottle of Cyrodiilic Brandy, he will send the player on a quest to play a prank on a noble and her guests at a party. If successful, Sanguine will grant the player the Sanguine Rose, a staff that can summon a random Daedra on a target. {C}In Skyrim, you can once again obtain the staff, this time by completing the quest A Night to Remember. In its Skyrim iteration, the staff always summons a Dremora Lord.

Sheogorath
Sheogorath is the infamous Prince of Madness, whose motives are unknowable. His realm in Oblivion is The Shivering Isles, and is served by the Golden Saints and Dark Seducers.

He savors the act of driving mortals insane or making them perform actions which can be seen as trivial or silly. Sheogorath speaks with an almost exaggerated Scottish accent in the Shivering Isles. Most amusing of all is his favored weapon for mortals, the staff Wabbajack, which can transform any living non-NPC creature into another random creature. Another artifact known as the Staff of Everscamp, which the owner cannot discard, causes them to be constantly followed by four scamps. There is also a region in Morrowind named after him, Sheogorad. There are many Daedric shrines there, many of which are shrines built specifically for his followers to worship him. As the Madgod, Sheogorath himself considers madness to be a form of mercy for those who would otherwise not function in the world - "a bitter mercy, perhaps, but a mercy nonetheless". This opinion is reflected in the Bitter Cup which is found in Morrowind, specifically the Sheogorad region and increases one's most powerful attribute, while decreasing their weakest one.

Sheogorath came into existence with Nirn, as the "Sithis-shaped hole in the world." It is learned in Shivering Isles that the other Daedric Princes feared the Daedric Prince of Order (Jyggalag) was becoming too powerful, and so they cursed him into a body of madness (Sheogorath), everything he stood against. Though Sheogorath seems to prefer this new existence and to care in his own way for the residents of the Shivering Isles, Jyggalag is nonetheless able to return at the end of every era, leading a "Greymarch" (destruction of the realm using the Knights of Order). The curse would then revert him to Sheogorath, leaving Sheogorath to once again re-assemble his realm. Not wanting to see his beloved Shivering Isles destroyed again by the Greymarch, Sheogorath called for a champion from Nirn. At the end of the 3rd Era, Jyggalag was struck down by Sheogorath's Champion. With this, the Greymarch was ended prematurely, releasing Jyggalag from the cycle, and the Hero was crowned the new "Sheogorath." Jyggalag says that the hero may one day grow into their new role.

The name "Sheogorath" is derived from "Theodore", after former developer Ted Peterson.

In Morrowind, Sheogorath is known as one of the "Four Corners of the House of Troubles."

Sheogorath reappears in Skyrim in the quest, The Mind of Madness, which has an improved Wabbajack as it's reward. He makes references to the Oblivion Crisis, stating that he had a personal involvement, possibly revealing that he is indeed the Hero of Kvatch.

Jyggalag
Jyggalag is the Prince of Order, but his sphere and other characteristics were not revealed during the early Elder Scrolls games. Prior to The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles, Jyggalag had only been briefly mentioned in books such as On Oblivion but had not appeared in any games. Jyggalag commands his own Daedra, the "Knights of Order," which are spawned from mysterious obelisks activated by his followers, the Priests of Order. Jyggalag and his minions are depicted as grey crystalline knights. He represents logical order and deduction, and is said to "never have had an original idea in his life."

Shivering Isles reveals that Jyggalag is in fact Sheogorath himself. Jyggalag had grown in power and influence, and the other Daedric princes had grown fearful of him. They cursed him to live as Sheogorath, the incarnation of the thing he hated most: Madness. However, the other Daedric Princes wanted to make sure that Jyggalag suffered more, and so he is allowed to return to his true form at the end of every era in order to retake his lands from his mad self, an event known as the "Greymarch." However, once this was done, the curse would transform him back into Sheogorath, starting the cycle over again, something that Jyggalag knew would happen everytime he was finished. At the end of the Third Era, with the Greymarch occurring, the player is given the chance to defeat Jyggalag, stopping the Greymarch before it can conquer Sheogorath's territory. This releases Jyggalag from his curse, allowing him to remain in his true form and return to Oblivion. The player is then granted the role of "Sheogorath," the Prince of Madness.

Vaermina
Vaermina (also spelled Vaernima) is a Daedric Prince whose sphere is the realm of dreams and nightmares, and from whose realm issues forth evil omens. Some have also claimed her sphere ties somehow to torture. Vaernima is depicted as a grotesque old woman. Her plane of Oblivion is "Quagmire." It is described as a nightmare realm, where every few minutes reality shifts and becomes ever more horrifying.

In Oblivion the player is tasked with retrieving an orb of Vaermina's that was stolen by a powerful warlock held up in a remote tower. The reward item granted to the protagonist in Oblivion is the Skull of Corruption, a staff imbued with the power to create a temporary evil clone of an NPC that lasts for half a minute. She is credited with telling Molag Bal the cure for Vampirism in Morrowind.

In Skyrim, in the quest Waking Nightmare, the player must save the people of Dawnstar from nightmares caused by Vaermina's shrine. The Skull of Corruption reappears as the reward, although it has a completely different effect.