Elder Scrolls Lore » Discussions


The Dragon Cult Reexamined

  • Member
    October 21, 2014

     Allow me a minute to subvert what we think we know about the Dragon Cult.

    So, in the Merethic Era Ysgramor and his companions established settlements in Skyrim

     ...his people brought with them a faith that worshipped animal gods...Foremost among all animals was the dragon. Grand temples were built to honor the dragons and appease them. The Dragon War

    This continued a tradition already long established in Atmora.

    In Atmora, where Ysgramor and his people came from, the dragon priests demanded tribute and set down laws and codes of living that kept peace between dragons and men.

    It's hard to establish any sort of timeline of events here, but it can only assumed that the building of temples and monuments important to the dragon cult took many years, if not generations. So this is where it gets interesting. In the books Five Songs of King Wulfharth and Varieties of Faith, we get the following information:

    Orkey, a loan-god of the Nords, who seem to have taken up his worship during Aldmeri rule of Atmora. Nords believe they once lived as long as Elves until Orkey appeared; through heathen trickery, he fooled them into a bargain that 'bound them to the count of winters'. At one time, legends say, Nords only had a lifespan of six years due to Orkey's foul magic. Shor showed up, though, and, through unknown means, removed the curse, throwing most of it onto the nearby Orcs.

    Shor "shows up" because Wulfarth summons him:

    Wulfharth pleaded to Shor, the dead Chieftain of the Gods, to help his people. Shor's own ghost then fought the Time-Eater on the spirit plane, as he did at the beginning of time, and he won, and Orkey's folk, the Orcs, were ruined.

    Granted, the text does say that it was "in Atmora where he (Orkey) stole their years away." However, we also get this from Before the Ages of Man:

    the legendary immortal hero, warrior, sorceror and king variously known as Pelinal Whitestrake, Harrald Hairy Breeks, Ysmir, Hans the Fox, etc., wandered Tamriel, gathering armies, conquering lands, ruling, then abandoning his kingdoms to wander again.

    Notice how Atmora isn't mentioned but Tamriel is? I propose that during the time of the Dragon Cult Nords lived a life span comparable to mer. This would explain why so much seems to be achieved in such a short space of time, from the erection of temples to the downfall of the cult during the Dragon War, all the while being under the control of the same dragon priests. There is a loading screen from Skyrim which throws this into the mix:

    Legend holds that the highest ranking Dragon Priests were granted magical masks - strange artifacts that defy the laws of time, and grant their wearers powerful enchantments.

    Is it the masks which gave the Priests a long life span, or was it the natural long life of the nords back then as I propose? Or is it both? Either way, it seems the rise, golden age and fall of the Dragon Cult in Tamriel covers a very long period of time.

    So how did it fall? The Dragon War has this to say:

    In Tamriel, they (Dragon Priests) were not nearly as benevolent. It's unclear if this was due to an ambitious dragon priest, or a particular dragon, or a series of weak kings.

    I propose we use the information contained in The Guardian and the Traitor to plug this gap:

    According to the legend, one such Dragon Priest was seduced by a dark spirit named Herma-Mora, an unmistakable analogue for the Daedric prince Hermaeus Mora. Lured by promises of power, this treacherous priest secretly plotted against his dragon master.

    It's a day of proposals, this one being that the fall of the Dragon Cult can be traced right back to Miraak, the First Dragonborn. Gasp! That can't be, I hear you cry.

    Let me explain. I posit that the meaning of Dragonborn way back in the day was different than we know today. Not long after Ysgramor and his kinsman established the dragon cult in Tamriel, Miraak was born.

    Miraak was the first Dragonborn, but not by much. We know other Dragonborn were of his time because we see them in his own personal shout, Dragon Aspect. When this shout is used, you take on the form and powers of a dragon while summoning an Ancient Dragonborn to fight for you. How was Mirrak able to bind the souls of other Dragonborn into this shout if they didn't exist?

     As the first First Dragon priest he is given Solstheim to rule and soon has a temple and his own subservient priests

    Although this conflicts with the book Guardian and the Traitor, it is asserted in dialogue with the Skaal in the events of TES V. The decidedly Herma-Mora inspired look to all the masks worn by Solstheim's priests indicate Miraak's dominion over them.

    The Dragon Priest Miraak learned the power to bend the will of dragons from Hermaeus-Mora. Using this knowledge and his innate ability to devour the souls of dragonkind, he turned on his winged overlords and killed a great number of them.

    When the populace rebelled, the dragon priests retaliated. When the dragon priests could not collect the tribute or control the masses, the dragons' response was swift and brutal. So it was the Dragon War began.

    Naturally, this caught the attention of the heroes, Hakon, Gormlaith and Feldir. According to Miaak they approached him:

    They wanted to use me to deal with Alduin - Hakonand the rest. I chose otherwise.

    So I'm interpreting the high ranking and powerful Miraak to be a figure men wish to rally around. Regardless if the Dragon War went on for a long time or had only been in action for a little while, people would take notice of this act. So I argue that Harkon and the others approached Miraak not because he was a Dragonborn but rather because of his power. Bend Will, Soul Devour.

    His refusal forced their hand so Dragonrend was born.

    So if Hakon didn't seek out Miraak because he was Dragonborn, what's up with that? I put it to you that what it meant to be Dragonborn was different in those days and that all the known priests priests who came after were also Dragonborn.

    What evidence is there for this claim? Well, the dragons would grant their priesthood power as described in The Dragon War:

    Dragons granted small amounts of power to the dragon priests in exchange for absolute obedience.

    Much how Paarthurnax grants The Last Dragonborn the power of fire atop the Throat of the World?

    How could all the priests seen in TES V Skyrim also be Dragonborn when they can't even shout? It should be noted that their subordinates, the Deathlords and the like could. It stands to reason that their masters could too but was probably a gameplay decision to have them silent. Besides which, Guardian and the Traitor describes both Miraak and Vahlok being able to use the thu'um:

    The two fought a mighty battle that lasted for days, each hurling terrible arcane energies and thu'um shouts at the other.

    Now, I know shouting in itself does not a prove one is Dragonborn but consider the hierarchy of the cult and view it from a mortal's eyes.

    In the Lore Questions thread, the subject of Akatosh as the Dragon God was raised. How could he be the dragon god when he wasn't "created" until the First Era? Even if he retroactively always existed, how would this effect dragons who don't perceive time as mortals do? Before the cult turned to corruption, it was comparatively benevolent as it was in Atmora. The priests revered the dragons as being the embodiments of the Dragon God of Time who was Bormahu, Father.

    "Dragons have existed since the beginning of Time, as some kind of kindred spirits to (crossed out text) -- ???? & lesser relation to him or his children or part of him that split off when Time began or ---. In the beginning, dragons were wild and uncivilized, like everything else. Alduin was the creator of dragon civilization - the Firstborn and the". The subsequent paragraphs remain indecipherable at this time. Shalidor's Insights

    If Bormahu is at the top of this hierarchy, the dragons below him and the priesthood below the dragons, it fits that mortals would elevate Dragonborn to a higher status.

    So what went wrong? What was going on with Alduin? Why was he suddenly causing trouble? Had he only just arrived? Or are we to believe that the Dragon Cult was a tyrannical regime from the very start?

    Shalidor's Insights says Alduin "was the creator of dragon civilization". So why did he ruin it? We know from TES V that Alduin's pride got the better of him. I propose that the same thing happened to Paarthurnax too. This is what started the war, when dragon turned against dragon, picking sides in the battle and the reason why Paarthurnax earned the Blade's eternal enmity. Before he wised up and had the idea of using men as an army, he was as bad as Alduin.

    Early on in the war the priests succumbed to the same thing. It is almost inevitable that the Dragon Priests would "feel the will to dominate" too as it is in their blood to do so, as Parrthurnax describes.

    So did Miraak's defection to Hermaeus Mora spark the idea of rebellion in the other Nords? Did seeing that dragons could be defeated make them braver? Was this the turning point wich prompted Paarthurnax to switch sides?

  • Member
    October 21, 2014
    This is quite well done, I love how you go into detail about this. Interesting how Orkey dealer all the Atnorans to six years old
  • Member
    October 21, 2014

    I was still editing and hit "add" by mistake. I was going to use Miraak's personal shout, Dragon Aspect, as proof of other Dragonborn during his lifetime:

    The Shout, Dragon Aspect, is very similar to Martin Septim's shattering of the Amulet of Kings, albeit much, much scaled down. Consider: What is a Dragonborn if not a living version of the AoK, a soul gem made up of previous dragon souls? When this shout is used, you take on the form and powers of a dragon while summoning an Ancient Dragonborn to fight for you. How was Mirrak able to bind the souls of other Dragonborn into this shout if they didn't exist?

    I also planned on expanding the bit about him being a priest:

    Miraak was the first Dragonborn, but not by much. As the first First Dragon priest he is given Solstheim to rule and soon has a temple and his own subservient priests. I put it to you that this happened before the war and as proof that what it meant to be Dragonborn was different in those days.

  • Member
    October 22, 2014

    Thanks Chris. I'm really struggling trying to convey some of my thoughts on this so it is a bit of a jumble right now.

  • Member
    October 22, 2014

    Fantastic analysis, Phil. This will take me several reads to digest everything properly. I do have a question:

    I put it to you that what it meant to be Dragonborn was different in those days and that all the known priests priests who came after were also Dragonborn.

    I probably missed the answer, but what did it mean to be dragonborn back then? Was it the mere fact that dragons granted the priests a certain amount of power in exchange for obedience? If so, are we saying that "dragonborn" back then was synonymous with being a Tongue (chieftains with the ability to use the thu'um - or something like that)? Surely, the other priests did not have the power to absorb a dragon soul like Miraak. 

  • Member
    October 22, 2014

    Thank you Vaaljorn  

    Sorry about the confusion, I'll try an make it clearer but in answer to your question, here are my thoughts:

    If Bormahu is at the top of this hierarchy, the dragons below him and the priesthood below the dragons, it fits that mortals would elevate Dragonborn to a higher status.

    Miraak we know was the first Dragonborn but we also know he was a Dragon Priest. We see this as unusual because we know Dovahkiin as being dragon slayers. If there were no Dragonborn before Miraak, this connection wouldn't be the only one to be made. Rather, I think they were elevated into a higher position in a society dedicated to the worship of dragons. As there were no positions higher than priest, it seems fitting that the entire priesthood be dragonborn.

  • Member
    October 22, 2014

    Makes sense considering that the priests (some, anyway) guard Word Walls, which provide one particular word of power. This corresponds to the assertion in The Dragon War that dragons provided the priests with a small amount of power in exchange for obedience. And if these priests received the power in the same way that the LDB received fire from Paarthy, then they could actually absorb dragon souls. However, all except Miraak (guided by Hermaeous Mora) probably did not know they had this potential.  

    This is still itching at the back of my skull:

    In the Lore Questions thread, the subject of Akatosh as the Dragon God was raised. How could he be the dragon god when he wasn't "created" until the First Era? 

  • October 22, 2014

    Very interesting thoughts although for a second I thought you were talking about Harkon and not Hakon and got super confused lol.

    I'm still under the impression that Paarthurnax is doing exactly what Alduin tried to do but doing it in a much smarter way. I think he's trying to start his own Dragon Cult with the Greybeards.

  • Tom
    Member
    October 22, 2014

    If he is, he has failed miserably. The Way of the Voice is focused around worshipping Kyne, and their members are a sum four with barely a mention of having many more than a handful throughout their history.

  • Member
    October 22, 2014
    That seems rather likely to change after the end of the game.