Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-11276487-20130714031200/@comment-11344160-20130718013123

A couple of things:

1) Talos IS a God. This is proven by the effect of his shrines. Could a non-existant Divine (god) confer a blessing through worship? (And yes, that is what the existance of his shrines in Skyrim implies - worship.)

2) He wasn't elevated to the hero-god of mankind because he was dragonborn, he was made a divine because he conqured all of Tamriel and was the first individual to bring unity to the continent. Not a dragon, not a mer, but a mortal man. The Third Era's Empire, the one Talos established, is the period of time most known for lasting peace and prosperity. Talos basically brought all the corners of Tamriel out of darkness. The man was revered by mankind for his accomplishments, which led to worship, which led to his divine ascension.

Is he overated? Neither the Thalmor nor the Stormcloaks think so. Both of them were willing to go to war and give their lives over the matter of his divinity. The Empire certainly doesn't think so, since they accepted, if not promoted, his worship until they were forced to outlaw it against their will.