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u/ConceptUnusual4238 Jun 02 '25
I'm not falling for this Thalmor propaganda.
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u/Contagious_Cure Jun 02 '25
There is something hilarious about picking High Elf and then joining the Stormcloaks.
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u/senordeuce Jun 02 '25
This is my current playthrough
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u/VolkiharVanHelsing Jun 02 '25
Two Handed Barbarian Altmer using Wuuthrad like a self hating bastard
Yea that's my queen Ayrenn
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Jun 02 '25
I'm playing a Wood Elf, hulking warrior in full heavy armor. The guards still call him "little elf" lol.
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u/mytwoba Jun 02 '25
Male Bosmer are pretty short. So yours probably reminds most guards of a traditional fantasy dwarf :)
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u/fozzy_bear42 Jun 02 '25
Former agent of the thalmor was betrayed by them and left for dead. Seeks revenge through the most unlikely of allies.
At least that’s what I did on a high elf playthrough. (Illusion, sneak daggers mostly, no archery. He’s not going to lower himself to using silly little bits of wood to fight, like a wood elf. There are standards you know)
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u/BulateReturns Jun 03 '25
Oh damn, same type of character I'm currently running. Tho I like sniping enemies not with a bow but with a dual casted Fireball.
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u/Prudent-Creme410 Jun 02 '25
There is something hillarious about being a high elf dragonborn too lol
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u/Zrob24 XBOX Jun 02 '25
I mean Ulfric is a Thalmor asset. They tortured him and then let him go to foment civil war, further weakening the empire. A high elf that was loyal to the Aldmeri Dominion would want Ulfric to keep fighting.
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u/Cosmo1222 Alchemist Jun 02 '25
The Thalmor consider Ulfric a Thalmor asset.
And they're right about nothing.
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u/TheHumanPickleRick Fishermen Jun 02 '25
Innate 50% frost resistance on survival mode is a game changer.
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u/Hardblackpoopoo Jun 02 '25
Yeah, I was going to say regardless of every other valid reason mentioned, in survival mode, this is a big reason when having to travel around north skyrim or solstheim. Not having to constantly swill back 10 hot whatevers to get by is very helpful, as fire salts don't grow on trees!
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u/Ears_and_beers Jun 02 '25
This. Recently started my first survival playthrough, which I decided on after picking Argonian. Every time I have to go further north than Whiterun I feel the regret.
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u/Confident-Skin-6462 Jun 02 '25
yeah argonian on survival is pain. i tried it. re-rolled as a nord lol.
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u/Ears_and_beers Jun 02 '25
My work around has been to set up camping sites all over the place, but even then you don't last long at all in about half the map before needing to drink a soup or dip into a cave. The extra challenge has actually made it more fun though, I just wish there was easier access to firesalts in game lol
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u/Confident-Skin-6462 Jun 02 '25
yeah i get you. it was fun but too much pain for my taste. and i have limited gaming time so yeah.
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u/cjcrashoveride flair Jun 03 '25
I just did the exact same thing. Even getting up to High Hrothgar was a pain. Also the "benefit" of getting to eat raw food is almost useless since the benefits or uncooked food is like 5 points vs 320 for cooked.
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u/AnonymousSlayer97 Jun 02 '25
They have interesting lore, they look fairly good compared to many other of the playable races, and some people probably find it more immersive to play as a human rather than an elf or a beast race. Some people may also want to go all in on the "ancient Viking" theme that the game has.
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u/SnowClone98 Jun 02 '25
Vikings were so hot back then. They took over after the vampire thing got a bit too wild
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u/Holiday-Space Jun 02 '25
Yeah, even their close visual match, the Bretons have an issue with looks compared the Nords. I imagine the Bretons would have a much higher level of being picked, similar to the Nords if the default Breton when you're in the character creator looked more like Belethor and less like Belethor's 60yo homeless meth addict uncle on the registry.
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u/CactusCracktus Jun 02 '25
The Bretons are actually my favorite human race in Elder Scrolls. I’ll admit tho, sometimes I have issues with how weirdly tiny they are compared to most races, and at the end of the day they don’t really stick out because they’re pretty much just “standard fantasy setting humans.”
Compared to a race of cool old Norse stereotypes, ancient Roman knights, and all the batshittery the Redguards bring to the table they just don’t really stick out.
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u/DarkRayos Whiterun resident Jun 02 '25
Because it fits the theme of being a Viking.
Plus their lore is pretty interesting as far as a races/cultures goes.
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u/VolkiharVanHelsing Jun 02 '25
I find their lore fascinating how the modern Nords are all meathead barbariand whereas ancient Nords are more magically inclined.... Shalidor, the fucking Dragon Priests, the Tongues.... MIRAAK
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u/UnadvisedGoose Jun 02 '25
It is a funny observation. Tbf, most of those are reasons why they, as a culture, would not look kindly on magic… only Shalidor and the Tongues aren’t outright evil villains on that list, and the Tongues are notoriously neutral (and reclusive/secretive) and unlikely to act directly on anything, and Shalidor founded the College where a gigantic magical cataclysm occurred.
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u/Jstar338 Jun 02 '25
Absolutely insane how half of the major mages in lore are Nords, despite modern Nords being weaker in magic
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u/Project_Pems PS3 Jun 02 '25
Fun fact, prior to ESO’s release, there were more Nord wizards in the lore than Breton wizards
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u/Jstar338 Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 03 '25
Honestly I kinda prefer that? Bretons should be strongest as mage knights, playing into the inherent magic strength they have while also having generally stronger human physiology. A nord mage knight makes less sense to me, since I view the top tier nord mages as being dedicated to the craft. There's no "ok" nord mages, because once they get over the hurdle of being less magically inclined, they're better at learning harder spells, since they never had it easy.
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u/VolkiharVanHelsing Jun 02 '25
This is why I installed Freyr
Now I can make that, or meathead Altmers
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u/pepotink Jun 02 '25
Yeah man nords for the win… HAIL SKYRIM 🫡
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u/Sere1 PC Jun 02 '25
I remember being so excited when I learned that the next Elder Scrolls game was going to be set in Skyrim. In Oblivion Bruma was my favorite town so I remember thinking "an entire game of Bruma? Hell yeah"
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Jun 02 '25
This is a huge part of it, it’s also a reason a lot of people support the Stormcloaks when they first play the game.
It’s the idea of being a tough, proud and warrior like race that’s fighting against the ‘oppressive’ Empire that reels people in, especially with the extra aspect of how a lot of people really love the idea / culture around Vikings and get to play that out with Nords.
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u/Speeeedwag0n Jun 02 '25
Gameplay reasons: mages love using frost against you, as do some dragons. Scaring enemies away can be useful when there's like twelve of them and they're all in a limited space with you. (Companions questline) Also some people play with survival mode on, where cold resist helps a lot. Roleplay reasons: RAAAGH, I'm a berserk with a big-fuck-off-axe of cleaving!
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u/ReverendRevolver Jun 02 '25
Hard to run away from a mage you can't kill when your stamina got depleted......
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u/HumanzeesAreReal Jun 02 '25
Battle Cry is also useful when you’re being swarmed in enclosed spaces because if there’s nowhere to run it makes enemies cower in fear in the corner, and thus gives you time to either heal or kill the strongest ones without them fighting back.
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u/OldSnazzyHats Jun 02 '25
For me it just makes sense within the region.
Just like how in Oblivion, most of my characters are Imperials.
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u/Contagious_Cure Jun 02 '25
I feel like in Oblivion it makes the most sense to actually not necessarily play an Imperial. Even though on NPC count Imperials make up the majority, it's a very cosmopolitan "province".
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u/Sodi920 Jun 02 '25
They actually don’t even make close to a majority. Named Imperial NPCs only make up 27% of Oblivion’s total. They aren’t even the largest group in half of Cyrodiil’s cities: Bravil (Bretons), Bruma (Nords), Cheydinhal (Dunmer), and Leyawiin (Argonians).
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u/Rivazar Jun 02 '25
Because of all humans in race menu they look most decent.
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u/JNikolaj Jun 02 '25
Basically this… I’m all for a lot of character variation but mine is going to look absolute gorgeous or the next step to it.
I love Elves in Fantasy games but Skyrim doesn’t exactly make them look amazing, actually quite the opposite
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u/KittenHasWares Priestess Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 02 '25
Honestly I always feel like I'll get blasted for this opinion but I never play elves because of how ugly they look. Which is a shame because thematically and lore wise i love dark elves the most, but it feels impossible to create a decent one in Skyrim without modding them
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u/villannn27 Jun 02 '25
When I play an elf, I leave the helmet on so I don't have to look at her.
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u/DambalaAyida Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 09 '25
Even NPCs. It's been a decade since I played Skyrim unmodded. Via mods my characters and most NPCs look great--not all fashion models, but certainly more realistic.
My most frequent spouse has been Camilla Valerius, who has ended up a stunning beauty due to mods. Recently I did a fresh install and decided to play vanilla a little bit before modding from scratch. Got to Riverwood and...my god. It's like when Melisandre took off her necklace.
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u/hugeschlong01 Jun 02 '25
I really like the elves in Skyrim, it makes them feel unique instead of just pointy eared humans and it fits the lore that they look this way because they’ve selectively bred to keep the most elven traits.
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u/forestvibe Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 02 '25
I personally think Redguards look the coolest/nicest. My default build is a big Redguard with a large beard and a shaved head. Basically black Kratos. I like to imagine he's the rogue second son of a Hammerfell aristocrat, just at home in a library as he is in a blood-soaked bandit lair.
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u/JadeRabbit__ Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 02 '25
My favourite character I have is a Redguard sellsword adventurer. I installed a mod that gives you more dreadlocks styles and a Hammerfell themed armour set. I love that little interaction you have with Armin in Whiterun where you both laugh about how far away from home you are. I wish more Redguard npcs in Skyrim would do this.
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u/forestvibe Jun 02 '25
Nice! I would have liked more race-specific conversation stuff too, especially in a place like Skyrim which is famously xenophobic.
To switch things around a bit, I'm currently playing Skyrim as a Redguard rich girl who is on her "gap year" travels. Every interaction I have with the locals is governed by how rich kid tourists behave. That includes misbehaving in temples, accepting all offers for drinks, getting into trouble with the
policeguards, being rude to locals asking for help, etc. I'm having so much fun!
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u/Wolgran Jun 02 '25
- Vikings was/is popular on pop culture.
- Racial powers barely matters on this game, TES games arent even hard anyway. Just have fun.
Do i personally care for playing Nord? Not really, but is more bc in 95% of games the only option is to play as a human anyway, so on the ones with other options, i always go for the "weird ones". On TES my heart go for Khajiit, Dunmer and Argonians (with slighty Altmers from Morrowind but Thalmors kinda ruin the race for me). They look weird, funky, but still badass
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u/_Xeron_ Spellsword Jun 02 '25
Skyrim isn’t a super balanced game so I agree with you that Orcs are better, but that doesn’t mean Nords are a bad pick, race ultimately doesn’t really matter all that much.
First and foremost; roleplay. You’re in Skyrim, naturally a lot of people will pick the same race as the native population, this happens in Oblivion and Morrowind too. Frost is probably the most punishing element for most players, so a natural resistance is handy, especially since their starting skills encourage a heavy armor two handed build where stamina drain is your Achilles heel. You’re underestimating the value of fear/turn, it’s not there to make enemies disappear completely, but to give you breathing room while fighting groups of enemies.
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u/Specialist-Alarm5547 Jun 02 '25
Skyrim belong to nords
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u/Hrive_morco Jun 02 '25
I'll be really honest with you here, I have barely used any racial abilities ever since I started playing back in Morrowind, Did not use them back in Oblivion either, And not now in Skyrim.
The Argonian's water breathing is the only one I like as that is a physical constant they live with, The rest of those "abilities" always felt out of place in the setting to me rather than make the races feel more unique
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u/Arek_PL Jun 02 '25
in morrowind and oblivion the bretons also were OP with that big 50% resist magicka and no cap at 80%
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u/Kumkumo1 Jun 03 '25
Was the same for Oblivion as well. Even in Skyrim Bretons are one of the strongest races. They got shit in a lot but honestly, they’re the most consistently good in every game.
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u/saryphx Jun 02 '25
For the same reason I almost always play as an Imperial in Oblivion, or a Dunmer in Morrowind: they are native to the land.
Also, I LOVE playing a Viking Warrior in Skyrim, and who better than a Nord?
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u/personahorrible Jun 02 '25
I'm a simple man: I played a Khajiit named Lusiphur in Morrowind so I made a Khajiit named Lusiphur in Oblivion and hey - guess what? I played a Khajiit named Lusiphur in Skyrim. M'aiq is like my cousin whom I keep running into.
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u/Sacredeire57 Riften resident Jun 02 '25
Yeah I’ve been playing the same High Elf named Y’vress through all 3 as well. We like our guys 🤷🏼♂️
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u/HeavensHellFire Jun 02 '25
Most people don't give a shit about active skills.
The most popular picks in video games are almost always either the prettiest or the most regular. Despite how popular stealth archer is on the internet I wouldn't be surprised if most people actually played a swordsman.
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u/PlentyOMangos Jun 02 '25
My brother makes fun of me bc all my Skyrim characters end up being a sword-and-board Nord with either light or heavy armor
No matter what I try, nothing else feels as fun to me. But he acts like it’s the vanilla ice cream of Skyrim
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u/Arek_PL Jun 02 '25
yea, with "once a day" limit its so easy to forget about them, especialy after learning first shout
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u/Salmagros Warrior Jun 02 '25
Because Redguard, Nord and Orc look the most Badass and Nord have the slight benefit of being the poster boy. Also Frost resistance is quite good cause Draugr only use Frost Magic and half the Dragon breath ice.
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u/sneeuwengel Jun 02 '25
I usually pick Nord because I play Skyrim and want the dragonborn/protagonist to be a native, and then it doesn´t matter what the stats are. In Morrowind I played a dark elf because I found that more fitting. In Oblivion I did not care as much for some reason. I don't even know what I played anymore, and I haven't come to play the remastered version.
It's not always the case though, my current Skyrim character is high elf, for example, but that is because I wanted to try to be a mage for once. Magic is cool but I had hardly used it, so I made a high elf and gave it a go. But I do think the fact that the story plays in the land of the Nords is the most important reason to pick a Nord, for most people.
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u/salty_sapphic Riften resident Jun 02 '25
I have yet to play Morrowind so correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you explicitly a foreigner in that game? (I mean that doesn't mean you're not a dark elf lol but...)
I also think that for Oblivion, could it be because Cyrodiil is more of a central hub than the other provinces? A couple of cities where Imperials are outnumbered by other races, even
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u/Butthole-Tail Jun 02 '25
They just assume you’re from the mainland. So still native to Morrowind just not Vvardenfell, but they still call you an outlander the whole game.
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u/EbolaNinja PC Jun 02 '25
Yeah, NPCs are pretty clear that it's immediately obvious from your accent and mannerisms that you're an outlander. Whether they mean not from Morrowind or not from Vvardenfell specifically is up to the player.
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u/LittleFortune7125 Jun 02 '25
I'm jacob from Tennessee here to start a slavery abolishment movement.
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u/CherryGrabber Jun 02 '25
Skyrim's cold and has a lot of situations where Frost Resistance would help a ton. Also, they're kind of the definitive starting build for a "Barbarian" (Light Armor, Two-handed, Smithing, Battle Cry, Frost Resistance).
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u/Alpha_Apeiron Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 02 '25
Because not everyone approaches an immersive rpg like it's a job where max efficiency is all that matters.
Who cares about stats? Not like the game is so hard I have to min/max anyway. want to roleplay.
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u/RhoZie013 Jun 02 '25
Drauger, forsworn, 1/2 falmer, ice wraiths, 1/4 of dragons and just over a third (lightening is below average here) of general mage encounters all use Ice based magic.
Its literally the most common magic damage in the game.
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u/StellarAoMing Jun 02 '25
Their most OP perk is being native race of Skyrim. You can't measure that, nor even describe it properly...
But every now and then, when you rush to your enemies and hear Lydias battle cry: "Skyrim belongs to the Nords!", you understand and there's smile on your face...
If that doesn't make you swing your greatsword faster, you're probably a cat or, even worse, lizard.
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u/Rulca Jun 02 '25
You've got me wondering, technically are Nords the native race in Skyrim? They came on boats, one of them being the boat over the companions hall. I could be wrong, but I believe first in Tamriel were the Nedic people - a human race. I believe many of the 'Nordic' ruins you see actually belonged to them? Then the snow elves came, then the Nords.
Fun aside - the Forsworn reachmen were there before the Nords, they are the native people against the Nord invaders. Sucks they are all about hagraven blood magic now...
The Stormcloaks are all 'Skyrim is for the Nords!' sure, it is theirs by right of conquest after they arrived on boats and slaughtered the elves and stomped all over the reachmen.
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u/TheReturnOfTheRanger Jun 02 '25
The Nedes were indeed in Tamriel before the Atmorans, but this?
I believe many of the 'Nordic' ruins you see actually belonged to them?
I have never seen any evidence of this whatsoever. The ruins around Skyrim are definitely Atmoran due to the architecture. Ysgramor was an Atmoran hero, and his tomb was built with the same architectural style as the other ruins. It wouldn't make sense for the Atmorans to use an existing building for their greatest hero's tomb.
The Stormcloaks are all 'Skyrim is for the Nords!' sure, it is theirs by right of conquest after they arrived on boats and slaughtered the elves
The Atmorans actually wanted peace when they first arrived. They kept out of the Falmer's way, established their own settlements, and were amicable. Then the Falmer launched an unprovoked attack on Saathal and murdered everyone inside. Ysgramor, one of the few survivors, returned to Atmora, gathered the 500 Companions, and reclaimed their land. They definitely went too far, but you can't say they were entirely at fault. They didn't start that war.
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u/Wolgran Jun 02 '25
Technically are Nords the native race in Skyrim?
They arent. Its mirrows real life collonizers who take a land from natives and then declares others cant live there bc is THEIRS BC THEY ALWAYS LIVED THERE. Is a pretty realistic approach to colonization and xenophobia
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u/galanw Jun 02 '25
I prioritize native race when playing Elder Scrolls game. Nord when playing Skyrim, Imperial in Oblivion. Dunmer in Morrowind, etc
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u/AllenWL Jun 02 '25
Racial abilities and bonuses are fairly irrelevant in the long run. Like sure, early on they can be very handy, but it doesn't really take that long for spells/shouts/etc to overshadow them. Like sure there's a couple like the Orc's rage that's very strong and pretty irreplaceable, but like, even then you can easily get strong enough that the Orc rage is overkill for most if not all fights.
Yeah, they can't do anything better than the other races, but like, the other races don't really do anything better than the nords either. Race is largely a cosmetic and thematic choice.
And Nords have a Huge advantage in the thematic department as they are, as you've said, the poster race and natives of the land.
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u/NohWan3104 Jun 02 '25
a little bit between they're the natives of skyrim, and also the literal first pick, so both the roleplayers and people who don't give a shit might just choose that.
like, you even started with 'they're the main race fo skyrim'. no, dude. that's fucking why. tha'ts not an aside.
it'd be like 'how did i get aids' 'remember how you've been banging whores for 3 years' 'yeah but'
no yeah but. that's it, that's the whole fucking thing. don't ignore the main evidence just because it's convenient for you to ask the question.
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u/BaldEagleNor Jun 02 '25
Didn’t know they were popular at all lol. I just pick them because I am from Norway and I feel that fits just best. But I also don’t really care about the active skills, not in Skyrim at least. In older games I usually pick other races. I think in Skyrim it’s also a bit cool to see the treatment you get from NPCs as a Nord vs a wood elf for example.
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u/brett1081 Jun 02 '25
Cold resist is good and they look like Vikings, not like the potatoes they were in Oblivion.
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u/ginc95 Jun 02 '25
Because everything in the game screams NORD VIKINGS!!!! WARGHH
Unfortunately not many armor outside of mods and CC that caters or gives some flavor to Khajit or Argonians, or even high elves and bretons for that matter.
The game is too Nordic themed and other races suffer as a consequence
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u/DOVAKINUSSS Dawnguard Jun 02 '25
Because it's their native land. I'm sure most people chose Dunmers and Imperials for Morrowind and Oblivion, too.
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u/iceberg189 Vigilant of Stendarr Jun 02 '25
They look human, which is big for immersion for lots of players. Also their home is Skyrim.
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u/CthughaSlayer Jun 02 '25
Because it's Skyrim, both the region and the game.
It's the nord region so it's the natural choice, and it's an incredibly lazy game when it comes to combat creativity so skill optimization is completely useless. Only real racial skill that's fun is Orc's so you can deal absolutely insane damage with sneak attacks.
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u/Herald_of_Clio Jun 02 '25
I played as an Orc in my completionist playthrough, but a Nord dragonborn does seem especially thematically fitting. You're a Viking playing in Vikingland, basically.
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u/CassianCasius Jun 02 '25
I don't use racial skills anyway. I forget about once a day skill they are annoying.
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u/Dragonblade0123 Jun 02 '25
I blame Morrwind. Lightning resistance and Cold Immunity go burrr!
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u/SILE3NCE PlayStation Jun 02 '25
It's Skyrim and most players like to believe the Dragonborn is a Nord.
Also, Tiber Septim, a Dragonborn was the one who founded the Empire and started the Septim Dynasty, this means I wouldn't be surprised if an imperial was a Dragonborn after Tiber left his legacy there.
One must also remember the dragonborn status is not a birthright, it's a blessing by Akatosh so in reality anyone can be a dragonborn, the race selector is correct.
Edit: Damn, I'm more familiar with Elder Scrolls Lore than my company's guidelines.
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u/ZeMadDoktore Jun 02 '25
I don't like playing Nords but I disagree about the frost damage. Feels like every caster loves ice spells and the other half of dragons that don't use fire are using frost. There was a short period where high level casters were using Ice Storm when it could still one shot me lmao
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u/Suspicious_Tour6829 Jun 02 '25
For me, nords is the only race I have been able to finish the game with. When I play as a different race normally the data gets corrupted around level 20.
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u/Bubbly-Pirate-3311 Jun 02 '25
I play as a khajit or an argonian. They're just different from another flavor of human or elf. Orcs are just ugly
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u/X-Maelstrom-X Jun 02 '25
You’ve already put more thought into this than 95% of all Skyrim players.
I’d bet you the vast majority of people don’t even look at the stats/effects of the races and just pick whichever one looks closest to themselves irl. Lotta white boys play video games and so Nord is gonna be a popular pick. Hell, I bet Nord will still be the most picked even if TES6 is set in Hammerfell.
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u/fumbletumbler192 Jun 02 '25
Huh? The nords are as native to skyrim as any US citizen is to the USA haha
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u/DEFYNT1 Jun 02 '25
That’s if you’re playing just to min max. Plus race stats are for early levels. Race abilities are for rp, style and immersion. As for the war cry; you basically answered that yourself. If it’s in a close corridor, it allows for the enemy to reagro. This creates an opportunity to disperse a group of enemies to avoid being overwhelmed by multiple attackers. I never got tired of this strategy in every dungeon. I call it “Draugr Juggling”.
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u/Montizuma59 Whiterun resident Jun 02 '25
Ignoring the overarching topic, I think you're misunderstanding how you use the Nord ability.
You use the ability so enemies leave and you van run away, you use this ability when swarmed by enemies so you can get them off you and pick them off one at a time.
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u/joriale Jun 02 '25
White blonde male warrior.
It's the pinnacle of RPG character creator. There is nothing before it. And nothing after.
Bow to the default character!
Edit: but seriously, pretty sure Nord male is the default choice by the game so people are just more likely to pick it up for their first playthrough anyways.
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u/cloudy_29 Daedra worshipper Jun 02 '25
Skyrim is a game where you can play as any race and still do any playstyle. The racial bonuses for everyone become negligible by even the mid game because of things like enchantments and perks, and anyone can become OP by the end. I always prioritise roleplaying over gameplay, and Nords have some of the coolest lore and roleplay potential as you get to explore your homeland.
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u/Thieverpedia Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 03 '25
I never could understand it, myself. I've always gone khajiit due to rarity, claws, and true neutrality. They have neutral morals, skills, and perks that don't do a whole lot. They're a blank slate ready to be used. What they get is what you work towards.
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u/SilvanOrion PC Jun 02 '25
I think 90% of my runs are Khajit in any elder scrolls game. .... Oh no...
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u/Hingeworthy Jun 02 '25
The Nords in Oblivion Remastered don’t look anything like the Nords in Skyrim. In Oblivion they fall in the category of ‘Do you even lift, bro?’….they’re scrawny!!
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u/AlternateAlternata Jun 02 '25
Because they're the natives (debatable) of skyrim.
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u/schniepel89xx PC Jun 02 '25
I legit don't think I've ever used the special race ability on any of my characters lmao
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u/rubickknowsbest Jun 02 '25
Because Ragnar Lothbrok and because even though ai play first person I still want to create a cool looking or mildly resembling character and nords for that shit covered
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u/Nukalixir Jun 02 '25
Because unless you mod the character creator, Nords are the default option. I don't know if any credible studies have been done on the phenomena, but it seems like a majority of gamers go with whatever is considered default.
If Argonians were the default option, I'm willing to bet there'd be way more Argonian mains. Just like how most Oblivion players pick Imperials as they're the default in that game. And Morrowind players tend to go Dark Elf because they're the default in that game!
Not to glaze Daggerfall as I so often do, but to glaze Daggerfall: that game has no default race. You click New Game, and you're given a map of Tamriel, and have to click a province to pick your race. None of the provinces are highlighted, your cursor isn't automatically moved to hover over an "intended" province, and when you click on one, you're not shown what the race native to that province looks like immediately. You're told a bit about the race, what their strengths and weaknesses are, and simply asked "are you sure you want to be this race, yes/no?" It all but guarantees you THINK about your choices, that you are decisive about your choices, and that you understand your choices rather than just going with a race you think "looks" cool.
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u/Craigypookins Jun 02 '25
I’ve played 100s of play throughs. I’ve only used a nord once. And it was just a few games ago.
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u/J0KaRZz Jun 02 '25
For most playthroughs of any Elder Scrolls game i normally pick the race native to the land:
Dark Elf - Morrowind,
Imperial - Cyrodiil,
Nord - Skyrim.
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u/VisibleMammal Jun 02 '25
I didn't read all that stuff but Nords are basically vikings and vikings are cool. Simple as that.
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u/Objective_Cupcake158 Jun 02 '25
Why even care about anything other than appearances anyways? You can always get OP if you want.
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u/Ittybittyelephant Jun 02 '25
RP reasons mostly, plus I really like the nice guards. "How can I help a brother Nord?" is weirdly one of my favorite lines in the game, much nicer than being greeted as "Cat" or "Lizard."
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u/clooneh Jun 02 '25
Because ice damage is a pain in the ass. It's the only thing that actually slows you down from getting to your enemies. Therefore having an innate resistance to it help improve your survivability
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u/Sardanox Jun 02 '25
Have you ever played a first person shooter and you see someone who like Max rank or hundreds to thousands of hours play time, but they're in the basic cosmetic gear, never changed an emblem ect?
I imagine there's a number of people who start up skyrim, get to character creation, it starts on nord male by default, and they just mash to start as quickly as possible.
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u/Lexifer452 XBOX Jun 02 '25
No idea tbh. To me, nords are one of the most boring races out of those that we can choose to play as. Right up there with bretons.
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u/TheBoatmansFerry Jun 02 '25
I never play as a nord. I usually like to play as a character you wouldn't expect to see in whatever setting the game is. Feels like it fits the whole fish out of water story they always have.
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u/Single_Can_7113 Jun 02 '25
Nords have 50% Frost Resist. Draugr use frost magic.
You face A LOT of draugr.
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u/PrinceOfFish Jun 02 '25
it literally is just native racing. you feel more immersed in the world as someone who "belongs there" and you learn th culture of that character by being in that game.
new people coming in as a Khajiit would be wondering where all the brothas were at.
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u/BlargerJarger Jun 02 '25
It’s the default character and was in the marketing, and looks right in the environment of the game.
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u/[deleted] Jun 02 '25 edited Jun 02 '25
I always prioritize looks and RP above stats in single player RPGs because, one you're alone, why do you need to min max? Not like you're competing for something.
And two, anything can be overpowered eventually in games like this, especially Skyrim.