From a Lore or RP perspective how would a Breton fit into Ebonheart Pact?

huschdeguddzje · February 2018

Raised in bruma, fled to morrowind after bals invasion

Koensol · February 2018

The same way captain Algren eventually fit in with the samurai in 'The Last Samurai'. Becoming amazed with a culture and finding respect for it. Seeing the world in a different perspective can open your eyes.

Danikat · February 2018

I think it basically comes down to one of three things:

1) They were living in Pact lands when the war broke out and had been for long enough that they considered themselves more a citizen of Skyrim/Morrowind/Black Marsh than High Rock and so stayed and (maybe) fought for their home rather than the place their ancestors come from.

2) They objected to the Daggerfall Covenant for some reason, strongly enough that they chose to go to another alliance and fight against them.

3) They are or were a merchant/adventurer/pirate/other personage of no fixed abode and they happened to end up in Pact lands and didn't object to the Pact enough to up and leave immediately. This one mainly works if you're not going to play them in Cyrodiil, so they're not actively fighting against the other alliances except when the stumble into the middle of an active warzone. The new Morrowind tutorial actually helps with this, especially since you can now go to any starter city to pick up the Coldharbour quest and then be dumped out of Coldharbour into your alliances zone, so it's less like a deliberate choice and more like you just ended up there and got caught up in events.

LordSemaj · February 2018

Dagoth_Rac wrote: »

How would an Italian person fit into the United States of America during WWII? Seems like you are making this more complicated than needed. Just like in real life, people immigrate or their ancestors immigrate and they become emotionally and culturally connected to their new home. Your Breton living in EP lands might be just as "EP" (or more so!) than one of the ethnic groups native to the EP zones. If your character feels at home in EP lands and feels loyal to EP, I don't think you need to explain yourself to anyone.

The Breton may feel at home but everyone else might not agree. I think the real question is how is he fitting in with his environment or hasn't been run out of town yet. Especially since the real world isn't always so tolerable either.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_Japanese_Americans

During a war between the factions, it's a wonder people don't lock up all the cats as potential Dominion spies.

starkerealm · February 2018

Ajaxduo wrote: »

Neither a borrower or lender be.

*Flies into a psychotic rage at Angier Stower.*

idk · February 2018

Easy. For whatever reason disagrees with the local rulers or did something to be banished.

datgladiatah · February 2018

You should consider that Reachmen are technically biologically Bretons and are pretty tied to Skyrim. They don't have to be loyal to the Reach necessarily and could easily blend into Nordic cultures and live in Nordic cities.

On top of that the guilds recently came into their countries and could easily be made into a 'moved here for the job' kind of situation. You could also have an interest in researching nordic ruins, dunmer heritage, or all the various mysteries in Black Marsh. They could have an interest in Dwemer studies, daedric runes/worship in the 1st era, etc.

The Dunmer sometimes adopt people of various races into their great houses if it has merit. House Hlaalu would value traders, Dres would appreciate someone skilled at slave hunting, maybe a translator, or someone skilled at agriculture or magic that benefits plants. Redoran appreciates great warriors and would adopt someone who is pious to the three and has proven their worth through great, selfless deeds (specifically for the dunmer). Telvanni in canon adopts slaves if they're talented in magic. Indoril appreciates piety and diplomacy and anyone could really worship the three for their great deeds, even if they aren't dunmer.

You could also justify the existence of Breton-like people in black marsh. Remember that not only Argonians had cities and governments there. The Kothringi (a nedic/imperial race that lived there for many generations) and the Ayleids had civilizations there. The Bretons were formed by a union of Direnni and Nedic cultures, and it's possible the same could have happened in black marsh, either in secret, or they had ancestors that went to live elsewhere and were able to survive the Knahaten Flu. They could just be as 'breton' as their similar characteristics but not technically be from High Rock, basically.

Minalan · February 2018

Simple enough: Bretons are just half elves: descendants of Direnni and Nord.

Maybe you identify closer to your Nordic cousins in Skyrim? Maybe you attended and lived in Winterhold before the war broke out? Maybe your family is outcast because of some couet intrigue in Daggerfall, and you want to see Emeric fall? Maybe you’re a filthy merc who doesn’t care about faction, and are happy to take Dunmer coin? Maybe you were recruited into a more open Dunmer house because of your power and skill?

Lynx7386 · February 2018

Bretons are just vertically challenged nords, when you think about it.

Luigi_Vampa · February 2018

Oh, I got another one. Your Breton wanted to learn the "5 secrets to a better beard and a better you" known only by Nord men (and some of the more hirsute women.)

Demycilian · February 2018

Nord may view you with distaste because of your mer heritage. The Dunmer would think you weak and exploitable; Bretons seem to be among their favourite slaves. And i imagine the run of Argonians will be suspicious and resentful towards you, as their experiences with men and mer have been troubling to say the least.

Knowledge · February 2018

Dagoth_Rac wrote: »

How would an Italian person fit into the United States of America during WWII? Seems like you are making this more complicated than needed. Just like in real life, people immigrate or their ancestors immigrate and they become emotionally and culturally connected to their new home. Your Breton living in EP lands might be just as "EP" (or more so!) than one of the ethnic groups native to the EP zones. If your character feels at home in EP lands and feels loyal to EP, I don't think you need to explain yourself to anyone.

Counter argument would be being a Japanese person in the USA during WWII. They were all rounded up and sent to internment camps. If the same was happening in EP to Breton's, it would be a bit lore-breaking to be "cool with everyone."

Luigi_Vampa · February 2018

Knowledge wrote: »

Dagoth_Rac wrote: »

How would an Italian person fit into the United States of America during WWII? Seems like you are making this more complicated than needed. Just like in real life, people immigrate or their ancestors immigrate and they become emotionally and culturally connected to their new home. Your Breton living in EP lands might be just as "EP" (or more so!) than one of the ethnic groups native to the EP zones. If your character feels at home in EP lands and feels loyal to EP, I don't think you need to explain yourself to anyone.

Counter argument would be being a Japanese person in the USA during WWII. They were all rounded up and sent to internment camps. If the same was happening in EP to Breton's, it would be a bit lore-breaking to be "cool with everyone."

That isn't happening in ESO though. Besides what the Dominion was doing to Argonians in Shadowfen, there isn't really that much racial tension that I can see in the games. Besides a few crazy people their isn't and state sponsored hate groups or racisim. Any race can be explained into the faction seemlessly, I think.

Take Sun-in-Shadow, or whatever her name is. She wants to be a Telvanni mage and even though the Telvanni still keep Argonian slaves the other Telvanni magisters aren't overwhelmingly against her. A few are, but if an Argonian can live in that political climate, then I don't really see a barrier anywhere.

If you look at NPCs, there are different races spread all throughout the world.

opaj · February 2018

You have lots of answers, so I'll just share my Breton main's background.

She was born and raised in Cyrodiil and spent her early career with the Mages Guild in the Imperial City. She transferred to Morrowind before the Akaviri invasion, where she fell for a Dunmer and married. Therefore, she already had roots in the area before the Ebonheart Pact was formed.

She doesn't feel any particular loyalty to the Pact, but after her, ahem, dismissal from the Mages Guild, she ended up working for a Pact-based academy and so had to take the party line there. She's also had to deal with suspicion and xenophobia her entire time in Morrowind, but that's part of being a wartime expat, I suppose. She remains because she loves the land of her deceased husband, though her lack of membership in the Mages Guild or the Pact Military has made her situation a bit tenuous. For now, she works as a researcher under the patronage of a minor Telvanni noblewoman, but who knows what will happen if that source of employment evaporates?

Danikat · February 2018

Interestingly shortly after reading this topic I started exploring Chorrol in Cyrodiil. Even though it's in the area typically held by the Daggerfall Covenant, and right in the heart of the warzone it seems to be inhabited by people of almost every race in Tamriel.

The tavern is run by an argonian and cleaned by two khajiit, there's a bosmer bard playing music outside, an altmer upstairs reading, a khajiit merchant, a couple of dunmer around the place, plus bretons, orcs and redguards and Imperials of course. And they all seem fine with each other being here.

The only racial tensions I've seen is one guy saying he hopes the fissure through the town swallows all the non-Imperials and one orc claiming the only reason she can't get a place to stay (in a town that's mostly ruins) is racism.

Sevalaricgirl · February 2018

Well think about it. If we go to the vet zones with say our Bosmer, we have to come up with a story and everyone treats us as if we have no soul. ZOS should have rewritten those lines for vet content but they were being lazy. My Bosmer only fell out of the sky once, not every single time and she fought Molag Bal so she is not souless.

So make up whatever story you want because the lore doesn't matter. First, one can not actually lose their soul more than once with Molag Bal being defeated but it seems that everyone still thinks we are. Bosmer in Pact territory, never, but oh well, it's how the game goes.

Feanor · February 2018

VaranisArano wrote: »

They backed Ranser in his rebellion against Emeric and it was, ahem, politically expedient for them to leave on a sudden vacation to other climes when Emeric won.

Ranser you madman! Ah. Good times.

greylox · February 2018

Seems weird that you wouldn't have the odd few characters that don't live in their faction. Maybe they have a grudge, are free spirits and don't want to be tied down, have a lover they want to be with no matter the obstacle, or simply go where the money is.

Multiculturalism, just like our world, even if certain sides are at war. It's weird to think it's so black and white.

Highlor3 · February 2018

In 246 years, Hjalti Early-Beard won't have a problem with that.

Kierro · February 2018

Well, Bretons in a sense are half breeds, right? They came from ancient Elves forcing themselves on Nedic women. Now does that mean their Elven/human bloodline needs to be thousands of years old, or could it be few decades to s few hundred years? Maybe one of their grandparents were an Elf and a Nord, so your Breton would want to support her/his ancestral home. It's like me (all of us really) I have multiple ancestry, but I more care about my German and Irish ancestry. I don't care about my other ancestry. Your Breton could be the same, as they identify with their Nordic ancestry then their Elven ancestry.

WildRaptorX · February 2018

To support the argonians. Because Emeric isn’t fit to rule. Because they only believe in the pact. Because they want provinces to be independent and not controlled by the empire

MythicEmperor · February 2018

In TES: II, the Breton kingdoms competed for control of the Iliac Bay. Maybe your Breton doesn’t like Wayrest calling all the shots.

WhiteCoatSyndrome · February 2018

What class is he or she? My Redguard Templar is in Pact territory for the purpose of preaching under the Tribunal's collective noses. "Forsake your evil ways, embrace the Eight!"

MythicEmperor · February 2018

Knowledge wrote: »

Dagoth_Rac wrote: »

How would an Italian person fit into the United States of America during WWII? Seems like you are making this more complicated than needed. Just like in real life, people immigrate or their ancestors immigrate and they become emotionally and culturally connected to their new home. Your Breton living in EP lands might be just as "EP" (or more so!) than one of the ethnic groups native to the EP zones. If your character feels at home in EP lands and feels loyal to EP, I don't think you need to explain yourself to anyone.

Counter argument would be being a Japanese person in the USA during WWII. They were all rounded up and sent to internment camps. If the same was happening in EP to Breton's, it would be a bit lore-breaking to be "cool with everyone."

Yeah, a lot of people don’t realize that all just about all countries of the era promoted discrimination. It’s never really talked about in American schools. The same goes for the Allied bombings of civilian cities like Dresden and Köln. In a war, all sides commit atrocities against their opponents. The grim reality of war is rarely explored in games, and it leaves people with the faulty idea that war is something to be taken lightly.

In ESO, outside of Cyrodiil, we hardly ever see any evidence that a war is actually occurring. Sure, there’s the odd quest here and there about an enemy ‘invasion’ boasting an attack force of a dozen, but there is never anything making the war feel present or impactful. It’s just something we hear about occasionally so we don’t forget.