Alternative Character Interpretation / The Elder Scrolls

The Elder Scrolls lore is generally not clear-cut. Reasons for this range from biased in-universe sources intentionally only giving you only one side of a story, to sources lacking critical information or working from false information, to the implication that All Myths Are True, despite the contradictions, or that at least all myths are Metaphorically True. Out-of-game developer supplemental texts (frequently referred to as "Obscure Texts" by the lore community) are more trustworthy, but are frequently left unofficial and sometimes later contradicted. Because of this, it is entirely possible for two contradictory statements in the below examples to both be true. (And due to frequent events in-universe that alter the timeline, both may literally be true in-universe.) Because of this, the series has Alternative Character Interpretation (including In-Universe examples) pouring out of it.

Series Lore and Backstory Examples

• In-Universe for Lorkhan, the et'Ada who either tricked or convinced (depending on the culture of the storyteller) the Aedra to create Mundus.
  • Is he, as most races of Mer teach, a malevolent, manipulative agent of chaos who tricked the spirits out of their pre-creation divinity? Or, as most races of Men teach, is he a benevolent savior who rescued the spirits from the static and unchanging prison of pre-creation?
    • Even within the races, there is further alternative interpretations. The Dunmer, going against the other races of Mer, have some manner of respect for Lorkhan, believing that he "exposed" the Aedra as false gods. Meanwhile, the Redguards, going against the other races of Men, see Lorkhan as a serpent with insatiable hunger who tries to prevent mortal spirits from reaching The Far Shores.
  • Is he an Aedric being for suggesting the creation of Mundus? Or is he a Daedric being, due to his lack of sacrifice, Padomaic basis, and indestructible "divine center"? Or does his nature as the demiurge that brought the Mundus into existence make him neither?
• The Aedra (Nine Divines):
  • Benevolent Gods or Sealed Evil in a Can? The Daedra play the opposite, Sealed evil or benevolent Gods?
  • Like Lorkhan, the Aedra also get this In-Universe: Every culture of Tamriel worships or acknowledges the Divines in some fashion, but each mythological tradition gives them different names, personalities, and motivations. The Imperial religion of the Nine Divines is a political creation which blends some of these different aspects in a Broad Strokes fashion. For example, the Altmer see the chief Aedric deity as Auri-El, the golden eagle "king of the gods". The races of Men instead see him as Akatosh, the draconic god of time. Making this even more complicated is how Cyrodiil and High Rock were Mer-controlled for a time, so their takes on Akatosh came to include some Altmeri influences.
  • Nine divines? Or eight? Did Tiber Septim really ascend from being human to become the god Talos, or are the Thalmor correct this is just a belief promoted by the Imperials to justify having themselves in charge of the Empire? In any case, would an ascended human actually count as one of the Aedra, or be something else entirely? That being said, Tiber's blood working for Martin's ritual in Oblivion lends credence to Talos being an Aedra of some sort.
• The Daedra in-general, again in-universe. Complicating their characterization as mostly "evil" and their Blue-and-Orange Morality is that different cultures see specific Princes in different lights. For example:
  • Mehrunes Dagon, Daedric Prince of Destruction: The closest the series has to a Big Bad, or the Fake Final Boss before the Real Big Bad, or something more benevolent entirely? Mankar Camoran's Commentaries on the Mysterium Xarxes naturally portray him in a more benevolent light; he was created in a previous kalpa to destroy the Dreugh, who served Molag Bal and ruled as tyrants over their world, making him something of a Hope Bringer, and in the current Kalpa he wants to undo the tyranny of the Aedra and return the world to its true nature as Lorkhan's Daedric Realm, Dawn's Beauty. As with most things Mankar Camoran-related, it's unclear whether this is actually true or a lie meant to entice people to worship Dagon, who as the Prince of Destruction normally doesn't have much of a mortal follower base. "The Seven Fights of the Aldudagga" offers yet another origin story with a differing purpose, with Dagon having originally been the "Leaper Demon King" who Alduin cursed into this state as "Prince of Destruction" in the first place as a punishment for hiding parts of earlier kalpas from him, only to be freed when he has destroyed all that he previously saved.
  • Azura, Daedric Prince of Dusk and Dawn: Just how much of a 'Good' Daedra is Azura, really? For that matter, did she curse the Chimer into becoming the Dunmer, or did she just point it out while warning the Tribunal that there was going to be consequences for what was done? (The official interpretation is that none of the Daedra are truly good or evil. They all have their own goals, it's just that Azura's tend to be aligned with traditionally "good" mortals more often.)
  • Boethiah, Prince of Betrayal, Ubermenschery, Crime, Plotting, and Unlawful Overthrow of Authority, is seen as one of the worse Daedra by most of Tamriel, given the whole "crime and backstabbing" thing. The Dunmer and Khajit see Boethiah as an ultimately positive force; for the Dunmer, Boethiah uses his ruthless trials to make them better than they are and allowed them to reach a higher state by revealing the 'lies' of the Aedra, while for the Khajit, Boethra is the spirit of 'Willpower Against Authority' and is an important part of the Khajit religion (though not worshipped; to the Khajit, merely living one's life in accordance with the 'Path' is how one honors Boethra, rather than worship).
  • Like Boethiah, Mephala (a Daedric Prince whose sphere is "obscured to mortals" but is associated with manipulation, lies, sex, and secrets; generally, if it's associated with The Vamp or Interplay of Sex and Violence it's probably associated with her) is another In-Universe case. She is generally regarded as one of the "bad" Daedra to most in Tamriel, but the Dunmer see her as one of the three Good Daedra, along with Azura and Boethiah. The Dunmer needed all the skullduggery Mephala embodied to survive in their early days as the Chimer, and she's credited with the creation of the Great House system and the Morag Tong.
  • Meridia is usually considered one of the better Daedra and an ally of mortals, but the Khajit consider her an Adversarial Spirit (the same category as Sheogorath and her enemy Molag Bal) as the "False Spirit of Greed" who lives but does not love, is intelligent but not wise, and powerful but purposeless, and as such is disruptive to the world.
• The Septim Dynasty: Benevolent Emperors or conniving Machiavellian rulers? (At least for the non-Caligulan ones...) Berenziah's bio shows both benevolent and conniving sides of Tiber Septim.

Morrowind

• All versions of the Battle of Red Mountain provide lots of this for all parties involved. For example, in the version Vivec tells the player, the Tribunal's worst crime was breaking their promise to Nerevar after he was dead, and they only did it in order to use their newfound power for their people, while Dagoth Ur was a Fallen Hero asked to guard the Tools who was tempted by their power. In the Ashlanders' version, they outright murdered him when he wanted to summon Azura to ask for her advice, and Dagoth Ur only used the tools afterward to get revenge on the Tribunal for murdering his lord. Similarly, why the battle was fought, what Kagrenac was doing with the Heart, and who else might have been present can all alter how the people involved appear to the audience.
• Vivec: A just and kind god-king who had to do some bad things for the greater good, or a murdering traitor who may or may not have been redeemed over the four millennia since he became a god? Is he a genuine humanitarian as suggested by works x, y and z, or is he a petty- but Magnificent Bastard as suggested by works 1, 2 and 3? Is he, in fact, right when he says that all beings are the illusions of a gigantic dreaming god that he is aware of and therefore the only absolute God of the 'verse, or is that simply an excuse for Michael Kirkbride to continue using him as an Author Avatar after he lost his plot importance. There's even debates as to whether the constant use of him when Kirkbride writes in-Universe documents makes him simply a very heavily examined character or an outright Marty Stu. Or is he all at once? Or is THAT idea simply a way for people to believe one thing or another about him despite evidence to the contrary? Adding to the ambiguity is that in Online Sotha Sil states that Vivec seeks to be all things at all times but will inevitably fall short, adding the layer that Vivec likely wants all these ideas to be true, but which ones actually are is still up in the air.
• Dagoth Ur: In a very similar vein to Vivec, almost to the point where he could be Vivec's inverse. Is he, as painted by Tribunal Temple dogma, The Devil who betrayed both the Chimer/Dunmer people as well as Nerevar by siding with the hated Dwemer and Nords? Is he now a maniacal Mad God who seeks to Take Over the World while corrupting it with the Corprus Disease? Or is he, as detailed in the supposed "heretical" tales surrounding the events of the Battle of Red Mountain, a faithful friend of Nerevar who carried out his duty (protecting the Heart and Tools) even after the Tribunal murdered Nerevar? And who only used the Tools in an attempt to prevent them from using them? Is he a liar in the end-game conversations where he readily accepts responsibility for his less savory deeds, answers every question the Nerevarine puts to him, and accepts the Nerevarine as Nerevar's reincarnation outright with the love and respect of on old friend? Or is he being truthful, with the (relative to the feelings of the greater Dunmer populace) well-intentioned plans to drive out the Empire and cast down the false gods who led the Dunmer people astray?
• The Nerevarine: Is the hero of Morrowind Lord Nerevar reborn seeking to regain his power? A true reincarnation but lacking in any of the original's memories? A simple adventurer who'll fulfill whatever prophecy they have to if it stops the annoying storms? A master manipulator who's using the prophecies to gain unimaginable power over every faction - even ones that otherwise hate each other? It's a question only you can answer. In addition to this, the PC is The Ageless and immune to all diseases, so can hold this position forever.
• King Hlaalu Helseth: Brilliant, fair minded Magnificent Bastard who skillfully manages to both act in the best interest of his people and province and keep a healthy diplomatic relationship with the rest of the Empire, or a tyrant who ruthlessly exploits and oppresses his people for personal gain?

Oblivion

• Mannimarco and the Order of the Black Worm: Genocidal, batshit insane sadists that give Necromancy a bad name, or staunch freedom fighters boldly fighting against Archmage Traven's tyranny?
• Hannibal Traven: On the other side of the coin, is he the Only Sane Man in the Mages Guild who recognized the threat and evil of necromancy and did right in washing the Guild's hands of it? Or is he a Knight Templar whose zealous actions only ended up weakening the Guild as a whole?
• Necromancy: merely an icky branch of magic that tends to attract the wrong sorts, inherently wrong due to messing with the dead, or is there something about it that drives people towards being genocidal, batshit insane sadists? In Morrowind, where necromancers cannot be upstanding citizens - by longstanding and deeply held tradition and law, necromancy is punished by death in the region it takes place in - yet we meet more than one necromancer that, while not necessarily good, aren't evil, either. In Oblivion, where necromancy is perfectly legal and, up until shortly before the game began, openly done by the Mages' Guild, there are no non-evil necromancers to be found.
• Is the Champion of Cyrodiil really just a wayfaring adventurer who gets a lucky break, or are they actually a magnificent chessmaster who take advantage of the political crisis brought on by Uriel Septim's assassination to pole-vault into a position whereby they are the head of every single major guild in Cyrodiil, all at once? Think about it - by the end of the various questlines, every mage, thief and assassin in the province now works for them directly, and headship of the Fighters' Guild gives them their own personal army as well. Meanwhile, the fact that they're the Grand Champion of the Arena (and Champion of Cyrodiil) means they're a popular hero as well, while possible membership of the Blades gives them an ear in the political backrooms of the Imperial Palace. The player character need never overthrow the paralysed Elder Council - they rule the province far more directly than the council ever could. Oh, and since they may also be a vampire, they could conceivably hold this power forever. And this without mentioning that the PC also becomes one of the Daedric Lords, the Mad God of the Shivering Isles.

Skyrim

• Is the Last Dragonborn a selfless hero with a heart of gold that's out to free Skyrim from the ever-looming threat of the dragon invasion, or a power-hungry jerk that becomes a master with their voice, highly influential in the major cities of Skyrim, the head of each guild, a member of either the original government or the new upcoming one (depending on the player's choice), the person that brings the Dark Brotherhood back into prominence, a possible monster of lycanthropic or vampiric power, and ultimately the chessmaster that aims to replace Alduin as the most powerful threat to Skyrim hinted at even more by having a shout that's similar to the one most often used by Alduin. (As with all the other TES protagonists above, one has to note that, since the game generally uses a pretty "hands off" attitude when it comes to characterizing them, these interpretations could all be completely and one hundred percent true depending on the player.)
• The Stormcloaks: Brave rebels fighting against religious and imperialist oppression, Stupid Good pawns of the Thalmor playing into their Divide and Conquer strategy, or racist bastards. The Empire, meanwhile, is either a tyrannical pawn of the Thalmor, a pitiful Vestigial Empire due to be wiped away, or the only hope Tamriel has against Thalmor oppression that's simply playing along with their decrees until it can defeat them.
  • In-universe and out of universe: was Ulfric justified in using the Thu'um against Torygg? The pro-Ulfric camp says it was a traditional Nord duel, where anything is allowed—weapons, armor, magic—if the person has "earned" it, and Torygg didn't specify "no using the Thu'um"; the anti-Ulfric camp says it was an unfair advantage that Torygg had no chance of winning against.
• Paarthurnax: An Atoner who feels genuine remorse for his actions during the Dragon War and wants to lead the remaining dragons into a peaceful coexistence with humanity, or a Starscream to Alduin who uses the Player Character to dispose of him so that he can take over?
  • A third interpretation is that he's both: he's just as ambitious and power-hungry as any other dragon, but he ruthlessly channels it into positive actions (which include defeating Alduin, taking over the remaining dragons and convincing them to follow—or making them submit to—the Way of the Voice). This is born out by his words: "What is better - to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?"
• The Blades: By the same token, are the Blades Esbern and Delphine justified in demanding Paarthurnax killed for the crimes he committed and right to believe that, since he betrayed Alduin once, he is likely to one day betray the people of Skyrim as well, or are they just unable to get past the fact that, due to the Thalmor, they've been hunted and driven underground and can't truly trust anyone, as well as loyalty to their cause as dragon-hunters?