As a High Elf fan, I just live there now. Running around like Don Quixote assailing every sload. Since 2 expansions have passed I missed Dragons and a Vampire plot... But for the Queen. Sloads!
@@joegrimes9232 Yeah, I don't play ESO all that much, but whenever I do, I just camp out on the Summerset Isles, as an Altmer. It's beautiful, and the Elven sophistication we see amongst all Mer is most certainly evident in its wondrous architecture. Praise be to Queen Ayrenn!
@@joegrimes9232 Happy to see another Altmer fan! My character roster has 4 Altmers in it (and also 1 Bosmer, 2 Dunmer, 1 Imperial (the only human) and 1 Khajiit).
This video makes me really appreciate the nice High Elves in Oblivion since they were probably exiled to the mainland. I guess they learned that everyone is equal in the Arena.
Either exiled or willingly left, remember that during Oblivion, they're a part of the Empire, so many may have moved for business reasons or to build foreign relations to better their lives on Summerset
@@thalmoragent9344 Some are also able to live as aristocracy in the other provinces where they would have been lower on the rung upon the Isles, if they did not leave due to ideological dispute it is through ambitions to better their lives.
@@Noxims47314 True, an average Altmer mage in Summerset may be a super good asset and treated better in another province given they're a step above most other races in that regard
Yeah I really feel like they coulda done a lot more with the High Elven architecture in most places. Auridon was the first indicator i guess but it was meant to be a tame cultural barrier, not the real deal...
@@valeclaw1697 I actually think Auridon was a good start; you could see a lot of elements of what was described previously, only less grandiose. While Alinor looked absolutely beautiful and fit some of the descriptions given, I think that they should have made its buildings look a bit more like Auridon on steroids with more elegant curves, roofs that sweep out from the buildings like wings, and glass lining the buttresses and reflecting even more light than before.
@Hexi At least they had an in-lore explanation for the change that makes a relative amount of sense, even if it's kind of... random? Out of nowhere, a bit?
It's strange that the Altmer are so stunningly beautiful and live in such a warm, beautiful land but they themselves are often cold, haughty, and at times even cruel.
I mean, the Altmer we see in Skyrim and Oblivion are probably very angry about being away from their beautiful homeland, and disappointed at everything they see. The summerset altmer themselves probably don't act as cold or haughty.
@@curtiswong7280 True. The average Thalmor Justiciar is certainly cold and haughty, but yeah, given they're in the Empire and dealing with Nords of all people... yeah, I see why they'd be a bit less welcoming 😅
I think the fact that it's a tenet of Altmer culture to sit down a discuss problems before they come to blows is pretty underrated as far as lore goes. Finally a race that doesn't start with throwing axes at each other.
Aldmeris is or was undoubtedly real. It's written about, along with the origins of the Maormer, in the Crystal Tower, and ruins on Summerset only date back so far. It's possible that Tras, current home of the Sload, was once Aldmeris before it was submerged, possibly in the same manner as Yoduka. It's also possible that the Sload were the reason for the Aldmeri exodus, and/or once had feuds with them. Edit: Also, in ESO, certain antiquities excavated in Summerset make direct reference to Aldmeris, such as the Kinlord's Tree, which traces familial lineage back to the first Aldmer immigrant.
@@OuterRimPride Yeah, Aldmeris may have been destroyed at the end of the Ehlnofey wars, and perhaps the few Mer who remained on a little bit of the OG continent got kicked by the Sload, but you'd think they'd remember that and record it in history. Maybe Aldmeris was like Pangae in our world, a big, solid landmass that got sundered, splitting up and killing many Ehlnofey
@@JulianAAYoung I think Aldmeris was a super continent, and Lorkhan "shattered that land into many", and so Aldmeris was destroyed in the Ehlnofey War, when everyone had essentially "demigod" like powers, It reshaped the face of Nirn, and sank much of the lands beneath new Oceans, and so it's possible that Tamriel is the center of Old Aldmeris, meanwhile Atmora, Yokuda, Pyandonea, and Akavir are the other, outer chunks of the ancient "Supercontinent" that would've been Aldmeris.
I would imagine obsession with purity, bloodlines and never leaving Summerset is highly exaggerated description of life among nobility, not everyday altmer
The subplot in ESO of the outcasts is very interesting. I imagine many a Bastard born of a night of indescreet passion ends up casteless and cast adrift in Summerset. They create thier own problems by having such a stifling aristocracy. In ESO, I see Ayrenn trying to air them out and a bitter backlash trying to revert to the staus quo. A pity they ended up reverting to thier former elitest tendancies, but an interesting thread to tug at for future Elder Scrolls.
I think the sad reality might be that by the 4E the only Altmer left in Alinor are for the most part “racially pure” fanatics. Anyone who didn’t step in line with the Thalmor agenda was ruthlessly persecuted and either killed or banished. It took the Nazis a little over a decade from inception to fully taking over the German government. The Thalmor have had hundreds of years to do the same thing, and are working with a much more culturally homogenous population to begin with (also there is no German “race” irl while there is certainly an Altmer “race” in the games, making the job of propagandizing an “us vs. them” narrative even easier). I like to imagine that some of the more chill Altmer we find in Skyrim like Faralda or Ulundil are those that fled persecution in Alinor and are trying to make a new name for their people.
Roleplaying a Thalmor Assassin who despises all Imperials in Oblivion. Needed to get some understanding of the character and her background lol, great vid
Im a Nord through and through but have a vast interest in the Altmer. ESO did an amazing job with them. Glad they get a fair swing in ESO as opposed to Skyrim
I despise the Nord. It's the only race I won't play. They have a horrible, brutal history where they literally cause an extinction of a race and attempt to do the same to another.
@@boethia7367 imperials and redguards did the same to Ayleids and Sinistral elves, made them extinct. And in all 3 cases it was the elves who start the fight with them first.
@@kingclint2382 In the case of the snow elves, it's more like "you kicked my leg so i'll rip off your head and plough it through the ground, sound fair?"
@@erifenesorek5056 imagine your family getting slaughtered overnight and you have the power to do something about it. The Atmorans got theirs. I love snow elves they are my favorite race along with Nords. But they reap what they sow
@@kingclint2382 And yet the Elves have never put humans to Extinction, and only now are they actively planning it. Humans have committed genocide more than the other races on Tamriel... And we don't know what started the conflict we know as the Night of Tears.... we don't know what happened and the Nords only have their own side of the story to go off of. Many Ayleids allied with Allesia and her rebellion, and were even vital to her new Empire since much of it was built on Elven principles of civilization, down to (many of) the laws and language. The Redguards slaughtered Sinestral Elves, as well as each other, as well as all the people in Hammerfell indiscriminately, and blew up their own homeland Continent.... so I mean, who knows, maybe the Sinestral Elves were the good guys trying to stop the Redguards from doing dumb shit, ever thought of that? 🤔
@@valtontony826 Yeah, the contrast of the Men and Mer makes them more interesting. They're not typical fantasy Elves, they have a motive, they have different origins and aren't just a bunch of tree-hugging hippies... not even the Bosmer are that stereotypical. The complexity of Elder Scrolls Elves is what makes them so cool
Yeah, the fact that they have an entirely different view on life to humans is really interesting, believing that they were robbed of immortality and are forced to live in the material world, awaiting to be reunited with their kind in another realm, it suits them a lot considering how long their lives can be. Meanwhile humans have much shorter lifespans and consider life to be a gift, not a prison.
You can talk inaccuracies with architecture all you want, but to me the flora of ESO’s Summerset is astonishing! The colorful maples and cherry tress, the unique coral structures and sea grapes lining the shores, and the greens! I did not know that many shades of green existed in the rainbow before the Summerset chapter of ESO.
High elves are by far my favorite Elder Scrolls race, I see many similarities with Tolkiens Noldor elves and the blood elves from wow(in terms of elitist character, artistic elegance, affiliation to magic, martial prowess, etc) They have so much RP potential , from being a divine protector of Tamriel to becoming an elven supremacist or a ruthless lord. Dark elves are probably my second favorite race but something doesn't feel right about them being allies with the Argonians and fighting their elven brethren.
Sandhiren Pillay I think them having long lifespans make them want immortality even more. They know they should be immortal and their extremely long lifespans is a constant reminder that they once were immortal. Even though they have more time on the mortal plane than any other race but you will still die like them all the same. Which should humble them, but again I think they look at it as if they are being cheated out of their immortality.
It doesn't matter how long you live for, when you are close to the end everyone still wants to be immortal. See when we think hundreds of years for them to live, that is something to envy and we think "why would they complain!? they have so long!" but if it was normal for us humans to live the same age we would still want immortality because no one genuinely wants to die.
Drew. This is for you. FudgeMuppet is an enjoyable and informative channel for any Elder Scrolls fan. To me, regardless of how much I enjoy the complete channel, you are my favorite. You are a poet Drew. You don't just share information and lore, you poetically inform me of lore I didn't know I must definitively needed to know. I love it. But slow down your pace. Just a little, just a tad. I don't mind if your 33 minute videos are 41 minutes instead. Love the great work. Love the channel as a whole. I thank you.
@@bootykraken7177 The thing that came to mind was a JPL or NASA person's statement, "We can go to Mars or we can stay here on earth and destroy everything and in a million years or so, the raccoons will go to Mars."
I just want to say thank you everyone at Fudgemuppet. You guys make it fun to replay the same game with different builds. Never stop doing this and I can't wait to see what you guys have in store for Valenwood.
The High Elves are so cool. They are the most fun to play as. Their ability to naturally harness the Arcane. Also pack a wallop with their martial skills. Really like their unique lore and would appreciate more of it in part 6.
I really like the high elves. An ancient culture with a rich history and powerful magics is absolutely fascinating to me. It's the Thalmor that I hate with a burning passion. they give all elves a bad name. Whenever I play a high elf in skyrim I like to think that my dragonborn is an anti-thalmor political dissident who had to flee his homeland due to thalmor persecution and wound up in skyrim, where our story begins.......
*wasn't watching, but was listening to the end, the thank you at the end was heard* Your videos are so nice to listen to when I'm writing up stuff for my TTRPG world, or writing lesson plans, or working on house chores.
30:50 "The notion of an ascended human being worshipped as a god" If in the beliefs of the Altmer humans are simply further descended elves, then wouldn't a human ascending those same steps in a single leap simply prove their ideas? That it reveals a method outside of simply retracing their descent to rejoin the ranks of the gods?
@@TheSuperRatt Either that or they refuse to admit that Lorkkan could be right. The idea that these great limits was actually the keys to Godhood with greater understanding or even something greater then Godhood is probably to much for them. Its admitting everything believed in is wrong.
@@ozmul5810 I imagine it would be a drug infused with magic. It would have to be better than skooma and have magic boosting effects. Like a cross between Sleeping tree sap, skooma, balmora blue, elder cheese and maybe felldew.
I think it's very.... sad that Bethesda chose to throw away that gorgeous (and incredibly creative) take on Summerset which Zeninimax wrote (check Alinor and Queen Ayerenn in TES library) and instead opted for a much more mundane interpretation. The Altmer are still interesting, but nowhere near as cool as they were depicted in the initial Zenimax concepts. Sadly, as Todd put it, Tamriel is not about magic. If you imagined magic never existed on Tamriel it would still be an enticing place, he said. I disagree. I think the setting suffered creatively.
That could have just been Todd lying again. The guy is about as honest as Mephala after all. Cause seriously, saying TES isn't about magic is as dumb as saying Fallout isn't about nuclear war.
All know that the Altmer are the fairest and most beautiful of all the races on Tamriel. The Elder race of elves will guide the Younger races of men and ensure that all on Tamriel prosper. I'm sorry if I sound like a snob, the high elves are my favourite race in tes and I love their lore the most.
LOL Guide the other races? Mer don't have a good track record of stewarding the races they view as lesser than themselves, let alone leading well at the best of times.
Great explanation. Thanks for posting. It would be great if you guys could do something about the “The Path to Alaxon”, the high elf belief system. That would be a good video:).
I’m surprised we don’t see more high elves becoming vampires when near death...or even at the peak of their lifespan to capture their bodily and mental perfection for eternity.
I get that, but nevertheless, when you crave immortality and that closeness to their former Demi-Godliness...they might be inclined to look away from their disdain for the daedra to possibly become more powerful than they. No? It’s just one perspective. Not saying it’s the correct one.
@@Walsinats4 Divinity would also mean becoming something more close to the "source force" that is Auri-El, Anui'el and Anu. if anything their goal is to become formless and endless, impossible in possibility. not a permanent trapped fleshsack that craves constant blood. Molag Bal offers much but not to an Altmer who understands the point of his creation and origins.
There are some High Elves that would agree. The Order of the Virtuous Blood was led by an Altmer named Seridur in the Imperial City, he was a vampire right in the Temple District no less. Clan Aundae was made up entirely of High Elves in Morrowind. So, the answer is yes, some would allow themselves to become vampires.
I generally have a pretty big disdain for the High Elves, mostly due to the Thalmor and the Aldmeri Dominion, but this video helped me see the cool and interesting things about the race, their culture, and history. I'll admit, they're more diverse and less one note than I gave them credit for.
The First Aldmeri Dominion under Queen Ayrenn was pretty cool, and I totally understood their sentiment. I don't like the Thalmor either but I totally understand why they and the current Dominion would be pissed about what Tiber Septum did to them with the Numidium.
If the Nord creation story is correct as well as the high elves that would mean that the Nord's were never elnafey (no idea how to spell that) it might explain why they seem to hate the elves more than the other races of man, since they aren't cut from the same cloth so to speak.
Summerset sounds like a paradise to me, with all the time in the world to hone one's interests, talents and crafts and chase them towards their zenith, then to surpass them again and again past even that, all the while a solid and staunch tradition and quality aimed culture is kept, naturally. to the utmost standards possible and not ever allowed to devolve into something as base, ugly and crude as "the norm." Bah.... the Bosmeri could not give up their love for the wild lands and it's chaotic splendour, the Orsimer could not look away at the state their beloved champion had regressed to, unwilling to forsake him.... likewise the Dunmer have given themselves utterly to the whims and whiles of Daedric ambitions and teachings, whereas the Dwemer abandoned belief and creation before it abandoned them. and the Falmer regressed into absolute mongrelism through deceit and tragedy. truly, it falls to the Altmeri people to set things right.
Being around so many other Altmer fans makes me happy. The ES community generally dislikes the High Elves of Summerset so it’s nice to be amongst friends. Long live the Dominion!
Whenever I make a High Elf character, i always make them a humble person and not snooty. EDIT: I also like to think o my High Elves are born outside of the Summerset Isles or they left them to avoid conforming with other elves and basically losing their identity.
I've been watching your guys channel since the skyrim build you made and i hope that with skywind and skyblivion coming out soon that you guys will continue to make amazing builds for them even if they aren't technically stand alone games as well as continue making skyrim builds
joe grimes we elves will conquer the world again! After that, we’ll probably blow it and lose control pretty quickly. oh well at least we will have something new to brag about and look back on fondly for another thousand years.
I’m new to Skyrim and don’t know if anyone else has thought of this, but did anyone else notice that all elven races start with 3 letters like dun in Dunmer, Bos in bosmer, dwe in Dwemer, and alt in altmer, and all end in mer which as I think refers the all elf-kind. Does anyone else think that the first 3 letters could mean something in an ancient elven language or something, like Dunmer (also called dark elves), because mer refers the elves do you think dun could mean dark, in altmer alt could mean high, in Dwemer dwe could mean deep, or in bosmer Bos could mean wood.
So the house Redoran palace is on a giant crab shell. Can we get a video on that giant crab and if there is more of them. Is it just the one or is there a whole species of castle crustaceans?
The sad thing is, the original concept art did have a bit more faithful interpretation of Summerset pbs.twimg.com/media/DY7cZhVXkAE1eu7.jpg:large It seems as though one year was nowhere near enough time to do proper justice to the rest of the province
@@mads-Riley-Art Not really, Put basically any race against one of the elves (Excluding the Orismer trash) They win easy, While you might say "Morrowind lost to the argonians" Mhm because red mountain errupted, The tribunal fell, And chaos errupted everywhere. Altmer annhilated the Imperials in the great war (Pretty much hate the thalmor myself)
Thank you for this lore video! Initially my favorite race were the Bretons, but recently I've transitioned to the Altmer, so having this much background really makes the experience more immersive.
These videos are great. Why don't you do a video about the potential purification of malacath back to Trinimac. The effects would probably lead to a deadric invasion or something
Dang, this description of a cold, uniform Altmer society really gives alot of room for an Altmer outlander RP to hate their stagnant ways and be a pariah amongst them.
That's exactly what I did. Exiled for her distain for tradition, she spent most days with kajit. Reflected in her unkempt appearance. For she is Evin Sarr. See you around Tamriel traveller
The Altmer are my second favorite race, after Dunmer of course, just because of their fascinating religious beliefs! And I owe it to this channel for helping me fully appreciate them. Also I may be almost alone in this, but Skyrim made me like the Altmer more rather than hating them. I really do wonder what the Thalmor plan on doing with the Dunmer if they ever reach Morrowind. It's not going to be pretty.
@@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933 orcs were created by a bunch of daedra worshipping dumbass elves who smeared malacath's shit all over them just look it up!
That’s... not how a dragon break works... when it happens, time is warped as in nothing is really recorded except what happens afterwards. It’s when concurrent time lines meld together. It’s what’s used to do away with lore inconsistencies and make Bethesda have an excuse to say everyone’s choice in a main story is cannon. It does not warp time backwards.
Dear Drew, your voice is soothing... a true virtue to listen to when lying down eyes closed, like when we were little kids listening to a bedtime story (but then so much much better) :) Scott is ok too, but Michael... goddamned dude every video you narrate fucks up the peace: can't you just calmely start your bid? like drew and scot, without the screaming/raising of your voice each time? You guys make such nice lore....
Some fans interpret it this way: Aldmeris and Atmora were not real continents, but a memory of the Dawn Era, before the creation of Mundus, and their fall is the start of linear time. The details of their fall and exodus are different because the Ehlnofey ancestors of Men and Mer had different views on the creation. EDIT: And it should be noted that both the Altmeri and the Nordic accounts are often very self-serving mythology and propaganda.
I think it would be cool if TES6 gives very little (if any) attention to the mystery of the Dwemer in exchange for being able to potentially bear witness to the Altmer following the same path.
Elder Scrolls lore just makes me feel all warm inside and I cannot explain why
Artemis Arrow i know more about elder scrolls lore and religion than i do of my own relogion
Josh Van Trip This is my religion now, praise Aurei-El
euphoria
I know more about the elder scrolls 4000 years history then my 2000 years history
@J T it's not a tumah
Eso summerset footage without ppl running around. Impressive
@Nii Lantei Bright-Davies public test server, a server for ppl to test stuff of new patch b4 it goes live
As a High Elf fan, I just live there now. Running around like Don Quixote assailing every sload. Since 2 expansions have passed I missed Dragons and a Vampire plot... But for the Queen. Sloads!
@@joegrimes9232
Yeah, I don't play ESO all that much, but whenever I do, I just camp out on the Summerset Isles, as an Altmer. It's beautiful, and the Elven sophistication we see amongst all Mer is most certainly evident in its wondrous architecture.
Praise be to Queen Ayrenn!
7:04 there's 1 guy lol
@@joegrimes9232 Happy to see another Altmer fan!
My character roster has 4 Altmers in it (and also 1 Bosmer, 2 Dunmer, 1 Imperial (the only human) and 1 Khajiit).
I love Summerset in ESO. It's one of the most beautiful places I've seen in a video game and the music just adds to it.
Thats a masterpiece
@@CheetahCrusader really? Like….. _really?_
@@CheetahCrusader not as good as cheese
This video makes me really appreciate the nice High Elves in Oblivion since they were probably exiled to the mainland. I guess they learned that everyone is equal in the Arena.
Either exiled or willingly left, remember that during Oblivion, they're a part of the Empire, so many may have moved for business reasons or to build foreign relations to better their lives on Summerset
@@thalmoragent9344 Some are also able to live as aristocracy in the other provinces where they would have been lower on the rung upon the Isles, if they did not leave due to ideological dispute it is through ambitions to better their lives.
@@Noxims47314
True, an average Altmer mage in Summerset may be a super good asset and treated better in another province given they're a step above most other races in that regard
That, or they were born/raised outside the Isles. Which, now that I think of it, would probably make them targets for purging by the Thalmor.
@@thalmoragent9344c ZZZ 2❤
Have you heard of the High Elves?
Fully expecting this to be top comment.
-Seen any elves? Ahahahaha!
BRAAAAHHHH OOOOHHHHH HMMMPFF
Yup. Still damn skooma addicts.
Well I have now
"a city of scintillating crystals"
ESO: here's some gray stone for ya
Yeah I really feel like they coulda done a lot more with the High Elven architecture in most places. Auridon was the first indicator i guess but it was meant to be a tame cultural barrier, not the real deal...
@@valeclaw1697 I actually think Auridon was a good start; you could see a lot of elements of what was described previously, only less grandiose. While Alinor looked absolutely beautiful and fit some of the descriptions given, I think that they should have made its buildings look a bit more like Auridon on steroids with more elegant curves, roofs that sweep out from the buildings like wings, and glass lining the buttresses and reflecting even more light than before.
@Hexi At least they had an in-lore explanation for the change that makes a relative amount of sense, even if it's kind of... random? Out of nowhere, a bit?
@Hexi I'm gay for Alduin
@Hexi They did talk about Alduin giving up his god duties to snack and rule over people instead. They covered their bases.
It's strange that the Altmer are so stunningly beautiful and live in such a warm, beautiful land but they themselves are often cold, haughty, and at times even cruel.
The skyrim presets for them mad ugly doe
Like a Japanese :)
Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Essentially they fell prey to there hubris and became victims of there success.
I mean, the Altmer we see in Skyrim and Oblivion are probably very angry about being away from their beautiful homeland, and disappointed at everything they see. The summerset altmer themselves probably don't act as cold or haughty.
@@curtiswong7280
True. The average Thalmor Justiciar is certainly cold and haughty, but yeah, given they're in the Empire and dealing with Nords of all people... yeah, I see why they'd be a bit less welcoming 😅
Have you heard of the high elves? An Oblivion NPC says to me, who is playing a high elf.
It’s like when Ysolda tells me about the Khajiit and “the way I hear it, Elsweyr ain’t nothin like Skyrim”.. as I role-play a Khajiit merchant😂
Either the npc "doesn't see the world that way" or is on some "they all look the same to me" shit
I think the fact that it's a tenet of Altmer culture to sit down a discuss problems before they come to blows is pretty underrated as far as lore goes. Finally a race that doesn't start with throwing axes at each other.
Maybe the real Aldmeris is the friends you make along the way?
@@JulianAAYoung It's still there, just dead. I like to believe it's where white walkers live.
Aldmeris is or was undoubtedly real. It's written about, along with the origins of the Maormer, in the Crystal Tower, and ruins on Summerset only date back so far. It's possible that Tras, current home of the Sload, was once Aldmeris before it was submerged, possibly in the same manner as Yoduka. It's also possible that the Sload were the reason for the Aldmeri exodus, and/or once had feuds with them.
Edit: Also, in ESO, certain antiquities excavated in Summerset make direct reference to Aldmeris, such as the Kinlord's Tree, which traces familial lineage back to the first Aldmer immigrant.
@@OuterRimPride
Yeah, Aldmeris may have been destroyed at the end of the Ehlnofey wars, and perhaps the few Mer who remained on a little bit of the OG continent got kicked by the Sload, but you'd think they'd remember that and record it in history.
Maybe Aldmeris was like Pangae in our world, a big, solid landmass that got sundered, splitting up and killing many Ehlnofey
@@JulianAAYoung
I think Aldmeris was a super continent, and Lorkhan "shattered that land into many", and so Aldmeris was destroyed in the Ehlnofey War, when everyone had essentially "demigod" like powers,
It reshaped the face of Nirn, and sank much of the lands beneath new Oceans, and so it's possible that Tamriel is the center of Old Aldmeris, meanwhile Atmora, Yokuda, Pyandonea, and Akavir are the other, outer chunks of the ancient "Supercontinent" that would've been Aldmeris.
Lol no
I would imagine obsession with purity, bloodlines and never leaving Summerset is highly exaggerated description of life among nobility, not everyday altmer
The subplot in ESO of the outcasts is very interesting. I imagine many a Bastard born of a night of indescreet passion ends up casteless and cast adrift in Summerset. They create thier own problems by having such a stifling aristocracy. In ESO, I see Ayrenn trying to air them out and a bitter backlash trying to revert to the staus quo. A pity they ended up reverting to thier former elitest tendancies, but an interesting thread to tug at for future Elder Scrolls.
I think the sad reality might be that by the 4E the only Altmer left in Alinor are for the most part “racially pure” fanatics. Anyone who didn’t step in line with the Thalmor agenda was ruthlessly persecuted and either killed or banished. It took the Nazis a little over a decade from inception to fully taking over the German government. The Thalmor have had hundreds of years to do the same thing, and are working with a much more culturally homogenous population to begin with (also there is no German “race” irl while there is certainly an Altmer “race” in the games, making the job of propagandizing an “us vs. them” narrative even easier).
I like to imagine that some of the more chill Altmer we find in Skyrim like Faralda or Ulundil are those that fled persecution in Alinor and are trying to make a new name for their people.
Roleplaying a Thalmor Assassin who despises all Imperials in Oblivion. Needed to get some understanding of the character and her background lol, great vid
I'm roleplaying as a former Thalmor who despises them now and helps the people of Skyrim ❤
Im a Nord through and through but have a vast interest in the Altmer. ESO did an amazing job with them. Glad they get a fair swing in ESO as opposed to Skyrim
I despise the Nord. It's the only race I won't play. They have a horrible, brutal history where they literally cause an extinction of a race and attempt to do the same to another.
@@boethia7367 imperials and redguards did the same to Ayleids and Sinistral elves, made them extinct.
And in all 3 cases it was the elves who start the fight with them first.
@@kingclint2382 In the case of the snow elves, it's more like "you kicked my leg so i'll rip off your head and plough it through the ground, sound fair?"
@@erifenesorek5056 imagine your family getting slaughtered overnight and you have the power to do something about it. The Atmorans got theirs. I love snow elves they are my favorite race along with Nords. But they reap what they sow
@@kingclint2382
And yet the Elves have never put humans to Extinction, and only now are they actively planning it. Humans have committed genocide more than the other races on Tamriel...
And we don't know what started the conflict we know as the Night of Tears.... we don't know what happened and the Nords only have their own side of the story to go off of.
Many Ayleids allied with Allesia and her rebellion, and were even vital to her new Empire since much of it was built on Elven principles of civilization, down to (many of) the laws and language.
The Redguards slaughtered Sinestral Elves, as well as each other, as well as all the people in Hammerfell indiscriminately, and blew up their own homeland Continent.... so I mean, who knows, maybe the Sinestral Elves were the good guys trying to stop the Redguards from doing dumb shit, ever thought of that? 🤔
Elves in the elder scrolls are a lot more interesting than in most fantasy settings.
because they are more believable, they have more humanity
In other fantasy setting, there are usually just humans with pointy ears
@@valtontony826
Yeah, the contrast of the Men and Mer makes them more interesting. They're not typical fantasy Elves, they have a motive, they have different origins and aren't just a bunch of tree-hugging hippies... not even the Bosmer are that stereotypical.
The complexity of Elder Scrolls Elves is what makes them so cool
Yeah, the fact that they have an entirely different view on life to humans is really interesting, believing that they were robbed of immortality and are forced to live in the material world, awaiting to be reunited with their kind in another realm, it suits them a lot considering how long their lives can be. Meanwhile humans have much shorter lifespans and consider life to be a gift, not a prison.
*gasps in hobbit* … how DARE you! :o
"Have you heard of the High Elves?"
Me after watching this video: Ah, I see you are a man of culture as well!
You can talk inaccuracies with architecture all you want, but to me the flora of ESO’s Summerset is astonishing! The colorful maples and cherry tress, the unique coral structures and sea grapes lining the shores, and the greens! I did not know that many shades of green existed in the rainbow before the Summerset chapter of ESO.
High elves are by far my favorite Elder Scrolls race, I see many similarities with Tolkiens Noldor elves and the blood elves from wow(in terms of elitist character, artistic elegance, affiliation to magic, martial prowess, etc)
They have so much RP potential , from being a divine protector of Tamriel to becoming an elven supremacist or a ruthless lord.
Dark elves are probably my second favorite race but something doesn't feel right about them being allies with the Argonians and fighting their elven brethren.
You'd think a thousand year lifespan would dim their desire to become immortal.
ungrateful bastards
Sandhiren Pillay I think them having long lifespans make them want immortality even more. They know they should be immortal and their extremely long lifespans is a constant reminder that they once were immortal. Even though they have more time on the mortal plane than any other race but you will still die like them all the same. Which should humble them, but again I think they look at it as if they are being cheated out of their immortality.
A being like the mayfly would the same about us humans. Personally I would love to be immortal with friends and family.
NOT ENUFF YEARS!
It doesn't matter how long you live for, when you are close to the end everyone still wants to be immortal. See when we think hundreds of years for them to live, that is something to envy and we think "why would they complain!? they have so long!" but if it was normal for us humans to live the same age we would still want immortality because no one genuinely wants to die.
3:26
"In order to understand their origins, we need to go all the way back to the very beginning."
ShoddyCast anyone?
Da Soviet Union i thought the very same
I really miss old ShoddyCast
@@VindensSaga Same
Drew. This is for you. FudgeMuppet is an enjoyable and informative channel for any Elder Scrolls fan. To me, regardless of how much I enjoy the complete channel, you are my favorite. You are a poet Drew. You don't just share information and lore, you poetically inform me of lore I didn't know I must definitively needed to know.
I love it. But slow down your pace. Just a little, just a tad. I don't mind if your 33 minute videos are 41 minutes instead.
Love the great work. Love the channel as a whole. I thank you.
You can slow down playback lmao
3:35 “Before there was anything, there was one thing, and he was everything-“
*raccoon slowly enters stage right*
This tickled me 😂
OH YES
I dont even get the reference but this got me lmao
@@bootykraken7177 The thing that came to mind was a JPL or NASA person's statement, "We can go to Mars or we can stay here on earth and destroy everything and in a million years or so, the raccoons will go to Mars."
I roleplay as a High Elve in my current run and I was suprised that when they tried to execute me that man asked “are you from the thalmor?”
Gonna fall asleep to this. Love it so much!
I appreciate your correct pronunciation of “cuirasses”
I just want to say thank you everyone at Fudgemuppet. You guys make it fun to replay the same game with different builds. Never stop doing this and I can't wait to see what you guys have in store for Valenwood.
Whole year later and this series still hits 💯
At 0:57 even their chickens are in order. The Altmer sure are masters of their land lol.
Altmer are so underrated. A lot of people probably see them as generic Tolkien ripoffs, but I want more.
The High Elves are so cool. They are the most fun to play as. Their ability to naturally harness the Arcane. Also pack a wallop with their martial skills. Really like their unique lore and would appreciate more of it in part 6.
My favorite race the high elves, great elven and glass armors and weapons.
My favourite race, though sometimes I feel like I am the only one who likes them.
Rodiacreed highelves are cool though! I like the orcs so I know what you mean!
I like Khajiit
I really like the high elves. An ancient culture with a rich history and powerful magics is absolutely fascinating to me. It's the Thalmor that I hate with a burning passion. they give all elves a bad name. Whenever I play a high elf in skyrim I like to think that my dragonborn is an anti-thalmor political dissident who had to flee his homeland due to thalmor persecution and wound up in skyrim, where our story begins.......
@@tannerblack4498 that's almost my exact mental backstory everytime I start a new high elf character xD
Me too
I always play the same Altmer warrior, who relies very heavily on magic (usually spells).
Same. Spellsword who recks the Thalmor in cathartic fashion
*wasn't watching, but was listening to the end, the thank you at the end was heard*
Your videos are so nice to listen to when I'm writing up stuff for my TTRPG world, or writing lesson plans, or working on house chores.
30:50 "The notion of an ascended human being worshipped as a god"
If in the beliefs of the Altmer humans are simply further descended elves, then wouldn't a human ascending those same steps in a single leap simply prove their ideas? That it reveals a method outside of simply retracing their descent to rejoin the ranks of the gods?
Yes, but they are far too racist to admit it.
@@TheSuperRatt Either that or they refuse to admit that Lorkkan could be right. The idea that these great limits was actually the keys to Godhood with greater understanding or even something greater then Godhood is probably to much for them. Its admitting everything believed in is wrong.
They believe they are the most intelligent and physically gifted of all beings because they are not just high elves they are very high elves!
They also love their lists
@@ktc1875 ah yes them and the Imperials. Do you have something to confess?
High from smoking what thoe, that's the question XD
They ARE the most intelligent and physically gifted of all beings though.
@@ozmul5810 I imagine it would be a drug infused with magic. It would have to be better than skooma and have magic boosting effects. Like a cross between Sleeping tree sap, skooma, balmora blue, elder cheese and maybe felldew.
I love the way Drew explains lore in The Elder Scrolls, it kinda sounds like a book or novel, I love it!
He sounds like he’s reading the Bible
I think it's very.... sad that Bethesda chose to throw away that gorgeous (and incredibly creative) take on Summerset which Zeninimax wrote (check Alinor and Queen Ayerenn in TES library) and instead opted for a much more mundane interpretation. The Altmer are still interesting, but nowhere near as cool as they were depicted in the initial Zenimax concepts. Sadly, as Todd put it, Tamriel is not about magic. If you imagined magic never existed on Tamriel it would still be an enticing place, he said. I disagree. I think the setting suffered creatively.
That could have just been Todd lying again. The guy is about as honest as Mephala after all. Cause seriously, saying TES isn't about magic is as dumb as saying Fallout isn't about nuclear war.
@@zixx844 Could he be mephala?
@@sirwaylonthe1st239 the plot thickens...
Pelinal: *heavy breathing*
Pelinial, buddy it's alright there are no elves here. Just have a nice colovian brandy and sit by the fire. Everything is just fine
Lol I'm playing a Divine Crusader playthrough right now and I must drench myself in the blood of elves!
>:(((
@@orchid5996 hey loser, he elves killed you
Altmer might have magic, but do they have a genocidal cyborg-god from the future?
All know that the Altmer are the fairest and most beautiful of all the races on Tamriel. The Elder race of elves will guide the Younger races of men and ensure that all on Tamriel prosper. I'm sorry if I sound like a snob, the high elves are my favourite race in tes and I love their lore the most.
I love the high elves
LOL Guide the other races? Mer don't have a good track record of stewarding the races they view as lesser than themselves, let alone leading well at the best of times.
I’m 1 minute into the video and these words that I’m hearing are magnificent 👍🏾
UA-cam subtitles: Awsomer
Sounds like an awsome race.
Great explanation. Thanks for posting. It would be great if you guys could do something about the “The Path to Alaxon”, the high elf belief system. That would be a good video:).
I’m surprised we don’t see more high elves becoming vampires when near death...or even at the peak of their lifespan to capture their bodily and mental perfection for eternity.
The altmer is the race that despise the daedra the most this is why there are few altmer vampires
I get that, but nevertheless, when you crave immortality and that closeness to their former Demi-Godliness...they might be inclined to look away from their disdain for the daedra to possibly become more powerful than they. No? It’s just one perspective. Not saying it’s the correct one.
@@infra_r3d133 they crave divinity, not immortality itself. Vampires go to coldharbour, where unsurprisingly divinity is not an option
@@Walsinats4 Divinity would also mean becoming something more close to the "source force" that is Auri-El, Anui'el and Anu. if anything their goal is to become formless and endless, impossible in possibility. not a permanent trapped fleshsack that craves constant blood. Molag Bal offers much but not to an Altmer who understands the point of his creation and origins.
There are some High Elves that would agree. The Order of the Virtuous Blood was led by an Altmer named Seridur in the Imperial City, he was a vampire right in the Temple District no less.
Clan Aundae was made up entirely of High Elves in Morrowind.
So, the answer is yes, some would allow themselves to become vampires.
This is what I have been waiting for! I am so so glad I've found this amazing channel!!
These videos help me unwind at night, your voice is great, and your storytelling, data collection, its all great dude
I would love a series playlist of you guys making your ideal fallout in depth like 30 min episodes each on something about you ideal fallout
I generally have a pretty big disdain for the High Elves, mostly due to the Thalmor and the Aldmeri Dominion, but this video helped me see the cool and interesting things about the race, their culture, and history. I'll admit, they're more diverse and less one note than I gave them credit for.
The First Aldmeri Dominion under Queen Ayrenn was pretty cool, and I totally understood their sentiment. I don't like the Thalmor either but I totally understand why they and the current Dominion would be pissed about what Tiber Septum did to them with the Numidium.
At long last, love the Altmer, keep up the great work guys.
I hope the next episode is on my favorite race, the Imperials
FrodoSaggins what about the lusty argonian maids?!
I like the name lol. My friend had a similar name only instead of Bilbo it was dildo saggins lol
Altmer: the High Elves that make me run screaming back to the Elven folk of Middle-earth. (Well, the Thalmor do, anyway.)
my favourite race, so civilized, cultured, disciplined,... They fought off the Sloads and are now taking their revenge for what humans did to them.
Skyrim. You are my childhood. I love you.
Yeah yeah, Alinor is fancy, but do you get to the Cloud District very often? Oh what am I saying, of course you don’t.
WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE NAZEEM?
I just killed you the other night with a Soul Tear shout after Soul Trapping you
Please make this a series exploring all of the races of Nirn!
Could you guys pleas cover the Maomer?
I think they have, brb gonna go check
ua-cam.com/video/Wf-KU0i4OM8/v-deo.html this covers A maormer, gonna look back, im sure they have one about all maormer
ua-cam.com/video/KdSUQmSSk_g/v-deo.html
@@youstolemyhandleyoutwat thanks very much!
@@rhysgarland9295 np bud, i hope those cover the info you were looking for!
Not sure if this was on purpose, but the high elf in your thumbnail definitely reminds me of Princess Zelda.
She's the Queen's cousin as far as I remember, and she's extremely beautiful to my taste. A very smart one too.
If the Nord creation story is correct as well as the high elves that would mean that the Nord's were never elnafey (no idea how to spell that) it might explain why they seem to hate the elves more than the other races of man, since they aren't cut from the same cloth so to speak.
Woke up to see this beautiful video on my feed. What joy!
Summerset sounds like a paradise to me, with all the time in the world to hone one's interests, talents and crafts and chase them towards their zenith, then to surpass them again and again past even that, all the while a solid and staunch tradition and quality aimed culture is kept, naturally. to the utmost standards possible and not ever allowed to devolve into something as base, ugly and crude as "the norm." Bah....
the Bosmeri could not give up their love for the wild lands and it's chaotic splendour, the Orsimer could not look away at the state their beloved champion had regressed to, unwilling to forsake him.... likewise the Dunmer have given themselves utterly to the whims and whiles of Daedric ambitions and teachings, whereas the Dwemer abandoned belief and creation before it abandoned them. and the Falmer regressed into absolute mongrelism through deceit and tragedy. truly, it falls to the Altmeri people to set things right.
Always appreciate the work you put into your writing. Love it.
Funny you make this vid now. I just made an altmer-nord hybrid. Altmer but the appearance of a nord. Battlemage stormcloak
I wish Elder Scrolls lore was a major at my uni.
Allow me to give a "short" description of the home of the altmer.
"Pretty island with crystal buildings"
Hey perfect! I was just looking for this info yesterday. Thnks can’t get enough of these during replay after years
I'm watching this for lore research on my altmer dragonborn
Champion of Auri-El
Being around so many other Altmer fans makes me happy. The ES community generally dislikes the High Elves of Summerset so it’s nice to be amongst friends. Long live the Dominion!
Long live the AD!!!!!!!!!!!!!
High Elf master race
Race is cool
Dominion is what's lame ASF
watched this while doing my homework :)
Whenever I make a High Elf character, i always make them a humble person and not snooty.
EDIT: I also like to think o my High Elves are born outside of the Summerset Isles or they left them to avoid conforming with other elves and basically losing their identity.
I've been watching your guys channel since the skyrim build you made and i hope that with skywind and skyblivion coming out soon that you guys will continue to make amazing builds for them even if they aren't technically stand alone games as well as continue making skyrim builds
Hail the Altmer!!! My people!!!
Our people!
@@BelleroseQC "soviet anthem starts"
@@ukkothedwarf1259 hehe, but it's God Save the Queen. Dry, boring Aristocratic, sits on an island believing in it's once dominion over the world.
joe grimes we elves will conquer the world again! After that, we’ll probably blow it and lose control pretty quickly. oh well at least we will have something new to brag about and look back on fondly for another thousand years.
@@joegrimes9232 RULE ALINOR, ALINOR RULES THE WAVES! ALTMER NE'ER NE'ER SHALL BE SLAVES!
Damn, this is a hell of a job!
I am constantly blown away with how well you do this, even years after thousands of hours playing Skyrim.
You should make videos like this about real historical civilizations. These are amazing.
I always regard hochelaga as the real world Fudgemuppet Drew or vaatividya.
So they built massive glass towers on a tropical island near the equator and they live in these things? It has got to be BOILING hot in there.
I’m new to Skyrim and don’t know if anyone else has thought of this, but did anyone else notice that all elven races start with 3 letters like dun in Dunmer, Bos in bosmer, dwe in Dwemer, and alt in altmer, and all end in mer which as I think refers the all elf-kind. Does anyone else think that the first 3 letters could mean something in an ancient elven language or something, like Dunmer (also called dark elves), because mer refers the elves do you think dun could mean dark, in altmer alt could mean high, in Dwemer dwe could mean deep, or in bosmer Bos could mean wood.
So the house Redoran palace is on a giant crab shell. Can we get a video on that giant crab and if there is more of them. Is it just the one or is there a whole species of castle crustaceans?
Ah yes my favourite faction!
This guy is the best hands down
ESO’s art direction, while decent, doesn’t do justice to what the Summerset Isles should looks like.
The sad thing is, the original concept art did have a bit more faithful interpretation of Summerset pbs.twimg.com/media/DY7cZhVXkAE1eu7.jpg:large It seems as though one year was nowhere near enough time to do proper justice to the rest of the province
Races I play as:
Breton
Imperial
Dunmer
Altmer
Races I rarely play as:
Khajiit
Bosmer
Races I NEVER play as:
Nords
Redguards
Argonians
Orcs
Dunmer, altmer, orsimer, bosmer supremacist here elves rule if only the Falmer and dwemer were playable
@@mads-Riley-Art Not really, Put basically any race against one of the elves (Excluding the Orismer trash) They win easy, While you might say "Morrowind lost to the argonians" Mhm because red mountain errupted, The tribunal fell, And chaos errupted everywhere. Altmer annhilated the Imperials in the great war (Pretty much hate the thalmor myself)
Thank you for this lore video! Initially my favorite race were the Bretons, but recently I've transitioned to the Altmer, so having this much background really makes the experience more immersive.
I was still watching! Splendid video!
These videos are great. Why don't you do a video about the potential purification of malacath back to Trinimac. The effects would probably lead to a deadric invasion or something
Better yet, maybe all the orc incest would end.
Dang, this description of a cold, uniform Altmer society really gives alot of room for an Altmer outlander RP to hate their stagnant ways and be a pariah amongst them.
That's exactly what I did. Exiled for her distain for tradition, she spent most days with kajit. Reflected in her unkempt appearance. For she is Evin Sarr.
See you around Tamriel traveller
The Altmer are my second favorite race, after Dunmer of course, just because of their fascinating religious beliefs! And I owe it to this channel for helping me fully appreciate them. Also I may be almost alone in this, but Skyrim made me like the Altmer more rather than hating them. I really do wonder what the Thalmor plan on doing with the Dunmer if they ever reach Morrowind. It's not going to be pretty.
Compeltely agree. ESO made me love the altmer in Skyrim way more.
I can bet the arrogant Thalmor Fucks will see the Dunmer as an embarrassment to all elven races
@@maxbielinski2276 The Dunmer are a dissapointment to elvenkind. Don't get me started on Orcs
@@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933 orcs were created by a bunch of daedra worshipping dumbass elves who smeared malacath's shit all over them just look it up!
@@rezandrarizkyirianto-1933 That's some spice. I like it.
17:33 i'd also take alot of the pocket guide as imperial propaganda, they likely have names, but foreign to the human language.
I would love to play a more scripted game (I.e. similar to TESA: Redguard) where you play as a member of The Beautifuls fighting against the Thalmor
Shout out to my favorite fictional culture and people in one of my favorite fictional worlds.
My favorite race of the Elder Scrolls universe
next lore video:FudgeMuppet is actually Hermaus Mora teaching us mortals
absolute favorite race, wish their depiction was more than just thalmor elf gestapo in Skyrim
😔I wanna see the ancient falmer, maybe the next dragon break will bring them back
Maybe able to find one in greymore chapter of eso.
That’s... not how a dragon break works... when it happens, time is warped as in nothing is really recorded except what happens afterwards. It’s when concurrent time lines meld together. It’s what’s used to do away with lore inconsistencies and make Bethesda have an excuse to say everyone’s choice in a main story is cannon. It does not warp time backwards.
Best race.
Summerset for TES7
Old high elves: "We need to preserve our values and culture"
Young high elves: "Ok boomer"
"Ok Bosmer"
Dear Drew, your voice is soothing... a true virtue to listen to when lying down eyes closed, like when we were little kids listening to a bedtime story (but then so much much better) :) Scott is ok too, but Michael... goddamned dude every video you narrate fucks up the peace: can't you just calmely start your bid? like drew and scot, without the screaming/raising of your voice each time? You guys make such nice lore....
Do you have any on what actually happened to the moons??
Thxz for the video I love the high elfs
How did the Elves arrive from Aldmeris, when they were an evolution of the old ehlnofey, who were already on Tamriel?
Some fans interpret it this way:
Aldmeris and Atmora were not real continents, but a memory of the Dawn Era, before the creation of Mundus, and their fall is the start of linear time. The details of their fall and exodus are different because the Ehlnofey ancestors of Men and Mer had different views on the creation.
EDIT: And it should be noted that both the Altmeri and the Nordic accounts are often very self-serving mythology and propaganda.
I think it would be cool if TES6 gives very little (if any) attention to the mystery of the Dwemer in exchange for being able to potentially bear witness to the Altmer following the same path.
Really appreciate you are still making elder scrolls videos, don’t know when we can get a glimpse of next game
Based off of what you said near the end of the video, I think I like dark elf culture the most.