The Elder Scrolls: The Dominion. [Casual-Advanced]
"And you're certain that you wern't followed?" The mans tone, who couldn't have been any younger then eighty, was hushed, despite the safety of the College. He knew all to well that these very walls would crumble at the might of those who might seek this treasure... No, this power. This unstoppable, infinte power that now lay mere meters away from his frail form. Decades of preparation and work, accumulating into this very moment. And yet, so much more remained to be done.
The barbarian of a man that stood before him huffed, almost insulted. "It'll take more than a few Elves to beat me and my men. Now, where's our gold?" The old man almost laughed; this barbarian on an Orc thought he held power in this room, but he couldn't be more wrong. No, the only power here lay within that engraved chest that the bandits had carried in, along with their repulsive odour. It was almost insulting to the old man, who could feel the magicka inside him desperate to strike this fool. But, he held restraint. He was too close to risk it all.
"Here," The old man scoffed, throwing an amulet towards the man. "That should fetch a more than worthy price for your labours. Now, be gone with you." He ordered, not give them another look. The bandits muttered harsh words, brutishly marching from the chamber. The old man, despite his feeble appearance, moved to swiftly to that chest awaiting in the center, that you'd think him an assassin. Now standing inches away from it, he could feel the power radiating from its presence, as he closed his eyes and treasured the moment. Even with all his work, he never imagined that it might actually come to be in his possession.
The first Elder Scroll. The raw power of the Aedra.
The old man scurried to his study; he had last minute preparations to make. Before him lay a list of names, names given to him by another Elder Scroll. These names were the key, but in which way, he had no idea. These names would, in the coming months, play critical roles in the saving of Tamriel from the Aldmeri Dominion. The old man pulled out a quill, and began writing. Time was against him, and as he wrote each letter personally, he knew that the Elves were preparing for their final push against Man.
Timeline:
4E 201: The events of TES: Skyrim take place. The DragonBorn defeats Alduin, and in doing so, destroys himself, becoming a legend amongst the Nords. The Empire defeats the Storm Cloak rebellion, but is left severly weakened in Skyrim.
4E 204: The Aldmeri Dominion threatens to disband the White-Gold Concordat, under the pretense that Skyrim has violated its terms. Faced with either all-out war, or removing Skyrim from the Empire, with Titus Mede II was forced to make a terrible decision; he disbands the Concordat personally, and war with the Elves begins again. Skyrim, honored by the Emperors actions, dedicate all their forces to defending Cyrodil.
4E 205: The Empire seemingly underestimated the Dominions forces; acros the entire Eastern flank of Cyrodil, constant war errupts. Anvil and Kvatch are both lost to the Elves, becoming mass military camps. The refugees from these cities withdraw to Skyrim, which becomes home to hundreds of Empire citizens escaping the war.
4E 210: After five years of holding ground against the Dominion, the Empire makes a push to reclaim the cities of Kvatch and Anvil. The 'Battle of Kvatch' takes place, a battle so grand that the Empire loosely roughly one tenth of its entire force. The fighting lasts for days, unending and brutal, both sides losing countless soldiers. The Dominion, however, pushed harder then the Empire, and seemed to have victory insight, were it not for the aid of Hammerfell, which turned the tide of the battle. The Redguard aided the Imperial and Nord soldiers, and managed to push back the Dominion to Anvil, reclaiming Kvatch. From here on, the Redguard, Norm and Imperial soldiers form a line between Kvatch and Anvil, refusing to break it.
4E 215: Titus Mede II steps down as Emperor, replaced by his son, Titus Mede III. Titus proves to be an aggressive leader, pushing forward against the Dominion, using his allies to his advantage. Because of this, they fail to see the Dominions plan of action: During the winter months, the Elves flank into Hammerfell, bringing the brunt of its force. For the next ten years, Hammerfell would be a battle-ground, the Redguard suffering heavy loses and having to withdraw from Cyrodil. Titus sends what he can, but ultimately, although noone says it, Hammerfell is left to fend for itself.
4E 217: Nearly all of Hammerfell's cities are in ruin, pillaged and reduced to rubble. The Redguards refuse to leave their home land, and using guerrilla warfare to challenge the Dominions occupation of Hammerfell. Meanwhile, the Dominion, still under control of Elsweyr, commands the Khajiit to take up arms and attack Cyrodil. Coming to the aid of the Empire, the Argonians of Blackmarsh hold off the Khajiit in Elsweyr, beginning the 'Morning Wars' between the Khajitt and Argonians.
4E 220: With nearly every province at war, other then Morrorwind, which had so far been sending whatever it could to aid the Empire, it seemed that the fighting had no end in sight. Hammerfell completely falls to the Dominion, with the Redguard withdrawing to Skyrim and Cyrodil, promising to one day reclaim their land.
4E 222: After nearly twenty years of near non-stop war, the Dominion withdraw all their forces from Cyrodil and its surrounding provinces, except for Hammerfell, most likely due to the difficulty it took to claim it. The fighting ceases, with the Empire deciding it unwise to take the war to the Elves with their current state. Nobody knows why the Elves withdrew, but one thing is certain; the war is yet to finish. The Empire begins to rebuild while it can.
4E 225: The Empire continues to rebuild from the damages of the war. The entire Eastern side of Cyrodil remains mostly destroyed, including Kvatch and Anvil. Hammerfell remains under Dominion control, whom have yet to return their forces to Cyrodil.
This is where our story begins. The year is 225, Forth Era. Although we don't know it yet, we are all far more important then we realise. A mysterious man, living within the safety of the flourishing College of Winterhold, uncovers a mysterious chest, which seems to hold great importance to him. One by one, we all receive a note, labelled simply from 'an ally', suggesting we head to the College, and that it be our first priority.
We aren't ordinary, nor have we ever been; our names have been fore-told in the Elder Scrolls, that we would save Tamriel from the Dominion of Elves, or die trying. It doesn't say how, but that's just another obsticle to over-come. It doesn't matter who you are, or what you've done, but you're going to play a critical role in the coming months; word has reached our ears that the Dominion is readying its largest force yet, ready to claim Tamriel in one final push, to crush Man. With the Empire in its current state, it would be unable to defend such an attack. Knowing this, an old man has obtained something he deems the most powerful artifact on Mundun; the first Elder Scroll. It is unsure how this will aid us in stopping the Dominion, but it seems this is the only chance we have.
War is coming, and we have to lead the charge.
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To sum up, this Roleplay will revolve around defeating the Dominions future assault on Cyrodil. Our character will be heros; stronger then the average NPC, but not overly. The roleplay will revolve around our characters, travelling across anywhere in Tamriel (Although the majority will take place in Skyrim and Cyrodil), in an epic quest to save Man. We will have to form allies, complete quests, gain the help of the Daedra, and so much more, just to ensure the survival of the Empire. All of the guilds still exist, having grew unprovoked whilst the Empire fought the war. I'll write in detail about the guilds if this develops interest. So, anyone interested?
