Board Thread:Lore Discussion/@comment-31082174-20170329222809/@comment-24144336-20190322152301

A mortal is eligible for entry into Sovngarde only if they are linked by ancestry to the Wandering Ehlnofey who fought at Shor's side at the end of the Dawn Era. It's these Ehlnofey and their descendants to whom Shor accorded the afterlife of Sovngarde. The "first generation" of those descendants were the Atmorans: the mortal offspring of Wandering Elhnofey who showed heroic courage when they made a last stand against the Aldmeri Pantheon in defense of Shor.

Ages later, the "second generation" emerged as the Nords: a distinct group that resulted from Atmorans gradually interbreeding with the Nedes in Skyrim--the same Nedic people the Atmorans liberated from the dominion of the Snow Elves during The Return. As Nords are able to gain entry to Sovngarde just as their Atmoran forefathers, a likely explanation is that the Nordic afterlife remains available across time & interbreeding to those tracing their bloodline from father's side directly to Shor's Elhnofey champions.

If the Nords, in turn, should give rise to a derivative group through interbreeding as the Atmorans have, the individuals of that "third generation" within the North's lineage would have access to Sovngarde just as the Atmorans and Nords did. So it goes on, across oceans of time, until The Last War. Two criteria must be met before the souls of Men find themselves in Sovngarde: 1) their paternal ancestry must flow back to Shor's Ehlnofey warriors as an unbroken road and 2) they must have died deaths which speak of courage and defiance--echoing the heroic bravery of these ancient Ehlnofey ancestors throughout the ages.

If both indeed have been met, then in their deaths Shor will see them, and he will know & recognize them; and those souls of Men earn the right to join in the "blessed feasting"--until The Last War commences.