Poll: Skyrim: Empire or Stormcloaks?

[Loonyyy]

I leant towards the Stormcloaks. They have their problems. Sorta racist, very unlikely to successfully fight off the Thalmor. But the Empire seems happy to enforce the Thalmor's will, and I don't really see them as being particularly different. At the start of the game, they're busy lopping the heads off political dissidents and want to take yours (Especially ironic, since you could end up serving them, so it isn't as if you're canonically a Stormcloak). I don't think the Empire really has any plan bar appeasement.

But I never end up going far down either path of quests, and sort of walk a middle ground and do the negotiations bit instead.

 

[WonkyWarmaiden]

Empire.

Everyone in this thread is giving smart and well thought out reasons why but for me it boils down to only a few things. First of all, most of the Nords in Skyrim are xenophobic and racist douchebags. Secondly, Oblivion is my favorite game ever so I'm terribly biased when it comes to the Empire. And third, there is a huge difference between the Empire and the Stormcloaks attitude towards the war, the Empire seemed to be scrambling to keep Tamriel as unified as they could so the Thalmor couldn't just sweep through with another war but the Stormcloaks really only ever cared about Skyrim.

 

[Aetrion]

I'll have to say Empire as well.

The Empire has a long tradition of fostering cooperation between the races and respecting other cultures, the Stormcloaks on the other hand seem really racist and xenophobic. On that note alone I think the Empire wins out. Every culture in Tamriel has a lot to offer, and recognizing that is what makes the empire such an enduring force.

Yes, the empire got more or less beaten by the Thalmor and had to accept an extremely unfavorable treaty, but as it turns out, the whole Talos thing is not only specifically about breaking up the Empire and the Nords, but they also set up Ulfric to start the rebellion. The Stormcloaks are ultimately much more the Thalmor's puppets than the Empire, which is desperately trying to preserve it's fighting strength for the next conflict, while the Stormcloaks are happily letting themselves be divided and conquered.

There is also the fact that the Empire is the creation of Tiber Septim, aka. Talos, so if you are a genuine Talos worshipper it's kind of questionable why you'd want to break up his legacy and greatest accomplishment. Yes, the Septim line is dead, but the Empire is still the most tangible manifestation of what Talos actually wants, because he created it.

 

[Godhead]

House Redoran obviously, gotta keep the way of the Warrior strong.

 

[Reincarnatedwolfgod]

eh I don't care who wins. This due to a mixture of utter apathy and civil war quests being boring.

I played skyrim purely to explore. Talking to most ncp's was engaging as talking to cardborad cutout. I Would not need more then 4 fingers to count the amount of ncp that I even slightly cared about for the whole game. For the the rest I felt apathy towards or mild amusement followed by some apathy. I ended up playing it for many hours; but I never felt like I was part of the world.

 

[Bat Vader]

The first time I played I started to side with the Stormcloaks but once I saw how Ulfric and many of their members were racist I decided to go with the Empire.

 

[Silvanus]

When I played, I sided with the Stormcloaks. The racism rubbed me the wrong way, of course (and I was rolling a Khajiit), but I was playing a character who would seek extreme vengeance for the Empire's attempt to have him executed. He didn't take shit. Killed the Dark Brotherhood leader when she came to recruit him, because the D.B. had sent an assassin after him earlier. Never forgive!

Not sure who I'd pick if the choice were genuine, and I was making it myself. Both have deal-breaking flaws: the Stormcloaks' racism, and the Empire's appeasement of the Aldmeri Dominion.

 

[spartan231490]

Stormcloaks.

I will concede that the combined forces of the Empire and the people of Skyrim (Nords) will make for a more formidable force, when the Empire strikes back [small](hurr hurr hurr, see what I did there?)[/small] against the Thalmor.

However, there is one big problem with this. Is the Imperial Emperor ever going to declare war on the Thalmor? Of course he fucking isn't. The Thalmor have him over a barrel.

I look at it this way; if the Thalmor are the Nazis, then that makes the Empire the equivalent of Neville Chamberlain (who famously tried to make peace with Hitler), whereas the Stormcloaks would be the equivalent to Winston Churchill.

Beat me to it. The empire is corrupt, weak, and appeasing. The stormcloaks openly oppose the thalmore.

Also, the majority of the people of skyrim you find don't want to be a part of the empire, those that side with the empire usually do to avoid a war, or some other "big picture" or "greater good," and I'm a big believer in the right to self-governance.

 

[ThreeName]

I can just sabotage everything? Let's go with that, the other two factions are fucking rubbish.

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

People say Stormcloaks are racist, and maybe a lot of Stormcloaks are and maybe Ulric favors Nord problems too much.... But they dont have a racist policy. They hire non nords just as willingly. The Empire on the other hand is actively opressing a religion as part of its policy. Also Ive always hated the idea of people being ruled by foreign powers. Dont forget the Nords are a country that was subjugated by an empire.

 

[IceForce]

I'm a big believer in the right to self-governance.

Same here.

It also may have had something to do with the fact that when I played Skyrim for the very first time, it was around the same time all those Middle East uprisings were happening, where Middle Eastern leaders were being overthrown because the populace had come to the realization that their leaders were no longer serving in their best interests.

 

[Thoughtful_Salt]

Stormcloaks, I just have a thing for their armour k.
Empire has the moral high ground and stuff, but their armours are just ugly.
Yes I can be petty

 

[Drakmorg]

Empire 100% over here.
I mean, the best legit argument I could come up with for supporting the Stormcloaks is that maybe your character hates the Empire because they tried to cut your head off that one time? Seriously, that's it. There's literally no good reason to support the Stormcloaks unless you're roleplaying a character that is either incredibly vindictive, incredibly stupid, or a secret Thalmor plant, because the game and lore is basically screaming "Hey, the Civil War is bullshit, it's all just a Thalmor plot" at you as hard as it possibly can. Which just makes the entire conflict dumb and pointless because there's no way to ever stick it to the Thalmor apart from supporting the biggest thing standing between them and total domination of the planet, AKA the Empire.

 

[bliebblob]

800+ hours in I've yet to join either even once. What can I say? I just don't give a toss. Aggressively so, seeing how I've come to dislike these exact choices in gaming. "Ooooh it's so polarizing, isn't it polarizing? Look at all this moral ambiguity! Hoo boy, it's a conundrum innit? hey, while you're at it, why not argue about it on the internet?" Sod off games industry. -.- At least skyrim gives you the option not to partake, so I gladly do. And thank Asura for mods that skip the original intro.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

I join the Stormcloaks, as any true son of Skyrim should! Toss out the spineless Imperials! Crush the Thalmor aggressors! RIP AND TEAR! YOU'RE HUGE, THAT MEANS YOU HAVE HUGE GUTS! RIP AND TEAR YOUR GUTS!

Ahem, Vikings>Romans

EDIT: It should be pointed out that the Thalmor getting Talos banned is how they plan on DESTROYING REALITY, and the Empire just rolls with it. Hammerfell fought of the Aldmeri, Skyrim can too!

 

[Auberon]

Big picture, (dying) Empire. Smaller, I went Stormcloaks with my first Dunmer - they abandoned Vvardenfell and Morrowind when shit hit the fan, so it's just returning the favour and Dunmer are a bag of dicks anyway you n'wahs.

Otherwise, I go Empire for long-term benefits over Ulfric's passionately short sight with recent conquest of Windhelm. And if I ever break out the thief's neutrality, Empire is better for continued trade and profits.

 

[Porygon-2000]

There was always something that made me think regarding the overarching conflict, as it were.

Say Skyrim goes independent, right? What if, at a later date, the Dominion senses weakness in the Empire, and invades Cyrodiil again to finish it off.

Wouldn't Skyrim STILL move in to defend their southern neighbor? I mean, the uber nationalism and return to the old ways Ulfric preaches sort of mandates a bit of Viking elf slaughter. Besides, I can't imagine the High King would want the Dominion right on it's southern border. The Devil you know and all that, yeah?

I mean, just because the U.S. rebelled against Britain, doesn't mean they won't fight together ever again, right?

 

[IceForce]

I mean, the best legit argument I could come up with for supporting the Stormcloaks is that maybe your character hates the Empire because they tried to cut your head off that one time? Seriously, that's it.

Pretty sure you're forgetting the whole banning of Talos worship thing.

 

[Grouchy Imp_v1legacy]

From the Thalmor dossier on Ulfric:
"Status: Asset (uncooperative), Dormant, Emissary Level Approval
Description: Jarl of Windhelm, leader of Stormcloak rebellion, Imperial Legion veteran
Background: Ulfric first came to our attention during the First War Against the Empire, when he was taken as a prisoner of war during the campaign for the White-Gold Tower. Under interrogation, we learned of his potential value (son of the Jarl of Windhelm) and he was assigned as an asset to the interrogator, who is now First Emissary Elenwen. He was made to believe information obtained during his interrogation was crucial in the capture of the Imperial City (the city had in fact fallen before he had broken), and then allowed to escape. After the war, contact was established and he has proven his worth as an asset.The so-called Markarth Incident was particularly valuable from the point of view of our strategic goals in Skyrim, although it resulted in Ulfric becoming generally uncooperative to direct contact."

TL;DR - Ulfric was broken by the Thalmor under interrogation and his interrogator is now the Thalmor advisor to the High King (to Ulfric if the Stormcloaks win). In other words the Stormcloaks are, albeit unknowingly, dancing to the Thalmor's tune so siding with the Empire is the only real choice under those circumstances.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

I work for the stormcloaks because I'm happy to watch the country burn if it means getting back at the bastards who tried to kill me.
Which is also why I like the criminal organisations in TES. I feel like I'm a problem for the idiots in power.