Legate Sadal

"I wonder what the lens of history will show when our people look back on this day? Will my brother and I be remembered as the saviors of our race? Or will we be known as monsters and horrors?"

- Sadal

Sadal, more commonly referred to as Legate Sadal, was a Chimer military commander who led the defense of Stonefalls during the Nedic invasion of Resdayn in the First Era. Alongside his brother, General Balreth, Sadal suffered numerous defeats at the hands of the Nedic invaders and proved incapable of halting their advance by conventional means. In an act of desperation, the brothers lured the Nedes into a climactic battle amidst the ruins of a Daedric temple complex located in central Stonefalls. While their soldiers defended the ruins against the Nedes, Sadal and Balreth sacrificed themselves in an arcane ritual that transformed them into the Brothers of Strife - a pair of powerful, flaming bone colossuses. These twin harbingers of destruction decimated both the Chimer and Nedic armies, laying waste to the surrounding area until mages from Vvardenfell managed to confine them atop the Tormented Spire and Ash Mountain.

Many centuries after their deaths, Sadal and Balreth were revered by the Chimer and Dunmer as great military leaders. The brothers were immortalized with a pair of enormous stone statues that were erected at the site of their sacrifice. In the year 2E 582, Vunal Telvanni summoned Sadal from the afterlife in order to discover more about the chain of events that resulted in the creation of the Brothers of Strife.

Background
"All my life I fought for the Chimer. I skirmished with the Dwemer and drove beasts from the Ashlands, until a greater threat loomed."

- Sadal Although very little information exists regarding their childhood, Sadal and his brother Balreth were likely born to Chimer parents in the early years of the First Era. At the time, the fledgling Chimer kingdom of Resdayn controlled large swathes of territory along the shores of the Inner Sea, particularly in the regions of Stonefalls and Vvardenfell. Most of its territory, however, remained vulnerable to attack as Resdayn was surrounded by hostile neighbors. To the north, lay the agnostic and technologically advanced Dwemer city-states with which the Chimer had fought numerous wars in the name of religion and territorial expansion. To the south, the Chimer regularly raided the various Argonian tribes of northern Black Marsh in order to acquire the ever-growing numbers of slaves their society required. Finally, in addition to these more organized threats, the Chimer were also forced to contend with the aggressive local fauna.

Born into such a hostile environment, Sadal and his brother Balreth served their people as warriors for the majority of their lives. By combatting the Dwemer and hunting the wild beasts that roamed the Ashlands, Sadal made a name for himself as a warrior and a leader. Eventually, he achieved the rank of legate, and in the process, gained a reputation as one of the greatest military leaders of the Chimer.

However, Sadal and the Chimer had yet to face their greatest challenge - a precursor race of men known as the Nedes. After colonizing the frozen tundras and mountains of Skyrim, the Nedes invaded the lands of Resdayn from the west. Led by their warchiefs, Nedic raiders pillaged and burned throughout Chimer territory in Stonefalls. Initial attempts by the Chimer to achieve a diplomatic resolution to the conflict were violently rebuffed by the Nedes who massacred any mer they discovered.

As the greatest generals of Resdayn, Sadal and his brother Balreth were placed in command of the Chimer armies and charged with defeating the Nedic invaders. In the earliest phase of the war, Sadal went on the offensive in an attempt to completely expel the Nedes from Stonefalls; however, this soon proved untenable as his forces wilted in the face of the Nedic onslaught. After falling into a defensive posture that would last for the remainder of the conflict, Sadal sacrificed many of his soldiers in order to acquire enough time for Chimer civilians in the path of the Nedic invasion to evacuate. This costly process continued for many years while the Chimer were slowly driven farther east into the interior of Stonefalls.

Appearances


Légat Sadal Легат Садал