Sotha Sil Speculation

WhiteCoatSyndrome · September 2017

Spoilered for size:

Judging by the concept art, his left arm is artificial. So speculation time: did he do this on purpose, or is this the result of some injury?

Tyrobag · September 2017

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

starkerealm · September 2017

Tyrobag wrote: »

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

Or intentionally replaced it so that he could use Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard. As I recall, Vivec keeps the Gauntlet, while the tools themselves are up in the Dwemer Ruins.

Drakkdjinn · September 2017

DC will nightcap then log off.

Amirite?

Jacen_Veron · September 2017

My biggest issue is his lack of shoes.
Clockwork metal floors must get cold, right?

Tyrobag · September 2017

starkerealm wrote: »

Tyrobag wrote: »

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

Or intentionally replaced it so that he could use Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard. As I recall, Vivec keeps the Gauntlet, while the tools themselves are up in the Dwemer Ruins.

Keening and Sunder were only in Odrosal and Vemynal because they were taken from Almalexia and Sotha Sil by Dagoth Ur's forces. Vivec still had Wraithguard because he wasn't with Almalexia and Sotha Sil when they were attacked. Up until then the AlmSiVi each kept one of the tools. The tools weren't taken from the AlmSiVi until the third era, so as of right now they should still have them.

Eporem · September 2017

I speculate:) an injury, which showed him how vulnerable flesh and bone can be.

MythicEmperor · September 2017

Tyrobag wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

Tyrobag wrote: »

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

Or intentionally replaced it so that he could use Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard. As I recall, Vivec keeps the Gauntlet, while the tools themselves are up in the Dwemer Ruins.

Keening and Sunder were only in Odrosal and Vemynal because they were taken from Almalexia and Sotha Sil by Dagoth Ur's forces. Vivec still had Wraithguard because he wasn't with Almalexia and Sotha Sil when they were attacked. Up until then the AlmSiVi each kept one of the tools. The tools weren't taken from the AlmSiVi until the third era, so as of right now they should still have them.

Established and sensible lore? Bah, that has no place in ESO

starkerealm · September 2017

Tyrobag wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

Tyrobag wrote: »

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

Or intentionally replaced it so that he could use Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard. As I recall, Vivec keeps the Gauntlet, while the tools themselves are up in the Dwemer Ruins.

Keening and Sunder were only in Odrosal and Vemynal because they were taken from Almalexia and Sotha Sil by Dagoth Ur's forces. Vivec still had Wraithguard because he wasn't with Almalexia and Sotha Sil when they were attacked. Up until then the AlmSiVi each kept one of the tools. The tools weren't taken from the AlmSiVi until the third era, so as of right now they should still have them.

Then that would still leave Sotha Sil with a tool and the inability to handle it, so, we're back to him having a very valid reason to replace his arm.

Tyrobag · September 2017

starkerealm wrote: »

Tyrobag wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

Tyrobag wrote: »

Could have just been a part of his endeavors to attain perfection, we know he eventually replaces most of his body parts. Its also possible that in his early experiments with Karenac's tools, he may have attempted to use Keening or Sunder without Wraithguard and been injured.

Or intentionally replaced it so that he could use Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard. As I recall, Vivec keeps the Gauntlet, while the tools themselves are up in the Dwemer Ruins.

Keening and Sunder were only in Odrosal and Vemynal because they were taken from Almalexia and Sotha Sil by Dagoth Ur's forces. Vivec still had Wraithguard because he wasn't with Almalexia and Sotha Sil when they were attacked. Up until then the AlmSiVi each kept one of the tools. The tools weren't taken from the AlmSiVi until the third era, so as of right now they should still have them.

Then that would still leave Sotha Sil with a tool and the inability to handle it, so, we're back to him having a very valid reason to replace his arm.

I was just correcting that you thought Keening and Sunder were always left in Odrosal and Vemynal, which is not correct.

Personally, I believe that replacing his arm was simply the first step in his journey towards perfection. But if it was due to injury, it would have had to have been from one of the tools, as he could have simply healed any other injury with magic.

WhiteCoatSyndrome · September 2017

I like the idea that it was due to tool usage, but there's one issue with it: Almalexia doesn't have a similar arm.

starkerealm · September 2017

WhiteCoatSyndrome wrote: »

I like the idea that it was due to tool usage, but there's one issue with it: Almalexia doesn't have a similar arm.

She's also not a tinkerer, the way Sotha Sil is. Also, there's the vanity factor with her.

WhiteCoatSyndrome · September 2017

starkerealm wrote: »

She's also not a tinkerer, the way Sotha Sil is. Also, there's the vanity factor with her.

Irrelevant; that would not have stopped her from being injured by her tool. And they made that pilgrimage on a yearly basis, so any injury being sustained by either of them is minor enough it can be healed away. Thus, while it's not impossible for Sotha Sil to have decided, 'hey, I'm tired of burning my hand every time I pick this thing up, let's replace that limb with metal' - that's still a conscious decision on his part to replace it because he wanted an upgrade, not a limb replacement because he had no other choice.

It's admittedly not impossible that he tried to do something out of the ordinary with the tools (as far as the word 'ordinary' has any meaning when applied to artifacts used to strike the heart of a dead god), but the Tribunal's 'normal' usage shouldn't be enough for one of them to require a limb replacement.

One possibility I haven't seen spelled out yet is that he lost the arm to a Daedric Prince. Mehrunes Dagon ought to have been capable of inflicting a serious enough injury to require limb replacement, and Sotha Sil helped fight him a few centuries back.

Tyrobag · September 2017

WhiteCoatSyndrome wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

She's also not a tinkerer, the way Sotha Sil is. Also, there's the vanity factor with her.

Irrelevant; that would not have stopped her from being injured by her tool. And they made that pilgrimage on a yearly basis, so any injury being sustained by either of them is minor enough it can be healed away. Thus, while it's not impossible for Sotha Sil to have decided, 'hey, I'm tired of burning my hand every time I pick this thing up, let's replace that limb with metal' - that's still a conscious decision on his part to replace it because he wanted an upgrade, not a limb replacement because he had no other choice.

It's admittedly not impossible that he tried to do something out of the ordinary with the tools (as far as the word 'ordinary' has any meaning when applied to artifacts used to strike the heart of a dead god), but the Tribunal's 'normal' usage shouldn't be enough for one of them to require a limb replacement.

One possibility I haven't seen spelled out yet is that he lost the arm to a Daedric Prince. Mehrunes Dagon ought to have been capable of inflicting a serious enough injury to require limb replacement, and Sotha Sil helped fight him a few centuries back.

He was referring to the fact that she would have been far less tempted to meddle with the tools. Also, if Sotha Sil was injured by them, it would have been early on while he was trying to figure out how they worked, meaning he would have had all of the tools.

Additionally, I don't believe that a limb replacement would stop one from getting wraithburn, If physical distance between yourself and the tools was all that was required, then any gauntlets would work and Wraithguard wouldn't be necessary. The Wraithburn from the tools isn't really a burn, its likely the tools attempting to draw out your power as they would the Heart of Lorkhan.

Xaramasa · June 2021

Eporem wrote: »

I speculate:) an injury, which showed him how vulnerable flesh and bone can be.

He did get injured by Mehrunes Dagon. According to Volume 8 of The Truth in Sequence, Dagon managed to slash Sotha Sil's jaw with one of his razors before the Tribune banished him. Could be the left side of his face since that's what his half-mask covers. Could also be what inspired him to replace his fleshy parts.

warg_derpin_gdf · June 2021

...

I had speculated he replaced his arms intentionally. My biggest actual theory for intentional replacement is for precision and speed with repair and creation, different arms for different jobs, etc, less wear, less tear. How would he get replacement ones on if he lost them otherwise? Plus there would definitely be mention of how they were . . . helpfully replaced if it was by Tribunal magic, right?