The best books of Elder Scrolls

[The Artificially Prolonged]

Or Immortal Blood [http://uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Immortal_Blood]

This. When I first read while playing a obilvion I was amazed how good the in game books where. Got to love that twist ending ;D

 

[Archl]

I like the series featuring Decumus Scotti,
A dance in fire
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:A_Dance_in_Fire,_v1
and The argonian account
http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Argonian_Account,_Book_1

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find all the books yet. Guess I have to play some more

 

[GmonXyZ]

I have to add Breathing Water

It's a nice short story.

 

[SajuukKhar]

The Song of Pelinal
http://uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The_Song_of_Pelinal

Just because it says, and was later confirmed by a game dev, that Pelinal was a time traveler from the future who could shoot beams of death out of his hands.

Pelinal Whitestrake
-Time traveler
-Avatar of Akatosh
-Avatar of Lorkhan
-Could shoot beams of death from his hands
-Could destroy entire armies by himself
-Had a giant hole in his chest and was missing his heart

One of the most badass badasses ever

 

[Calcium]

The first book which springs to mind is "Troll Hunting". I just like the humour of it. I have my bookshelves overspilling with books that I want to read though - just never seem to get round to it.

I think captcha is disappointed in me though... "lose face"

 

[RJ 17]

Actually - and I'm not taking away from anyone that imagines their character from Oblivion became the Sheogorath in Skyrim - Sheogorath in Skyrim can't be the player from Oblivion.

It's made quite clear in Shivering Isles that by taking Sheogorath's throne, no, you will not become an immortal Daedric Prince. You remain a mortal, you just wield the power of the Daedric Prince of Madness because you have his symbol: the Staff of Sheogorath.

The character from Oblivion died long, long before Skyrim.

Just because you are not a true Daedric prince does not mean you can't gain the appearance of one and gain immortality.

Daedra are Daedra because they didn't take place in the creation of Mundus, the mortal realm, no one IN Mundus could ever be a Daedra, but that does not prevent them from mantling a Daedra, turning into him in appearance, and gaining immortality.

Tiber Septim did it to the spirit Lorkhan/Sithis, the Champion of Cyrodil can do it to Sheogorath.

Furthermore the Sheogorath we meet in Shivering Isles wasn't the first one either, he was Arden-Sul turned into Sheogorath and he lived for thousands of years.

As amazing as the Champion of Cyrodil is meant to be, to assume that he could do something that only the man-god that started the Empire has done before him is a bit of a stretch.

Not to mention it would have to be a complete, 100% doppleganging of the Daedra, not just taking on it's appearance. Like I said, I'm not trying to take away from people that RP it that way because there is indeed wiggle-room, I'm just saying exactly what I said before: in Shivering Isles it's made quite clear that you're not Daedra, you're certainly not an immortal Daedric Prince, you're just a mortal with the power of a Daedric Prince.

Though personally I'd imagine that for the character in Oblivion to become the Sheogorath of Skyrim, that would mean that the character actually DID become a Daedric Prince.

Then there's the fact that, for all intents and purposes, Sheogorath shouldn't exist at all due to the way Shivering Isles ends. And for that matter, why isn't there a Jyggalag statue/quest in Skyrim?

 

[King of Wei]

A Game at Dinner is a must read whenever I fire up an Elder Scrolls game. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Morrowind:A_Game_at_Dinner

 

[SajuukKhar]

As amazing as the Champion of Cyrodil is meant to be, to assume that he could do something that only the man-god that started the Empire has done before him is a bit of a stretch.

Not to mention it would have to be a complete, 100% doppleganging of the Daedra, not just taking on it's appearance. Like I said, I'm not trying to take away from people that RP it that way because there is indeed wiggle-room, I'm just saying exactly what I said before: in Shivering Isles it's made quite clear that you're not Daedra, you're certainly not an immortal Daedric Prince, you're just a mortal with the power of a Daedric Prince.

Though personally I'd imagine that for the character in Oblivion to become the Sheogorath of Skyrim, that would mean that the character actually DID become a Daedric Prince.

Then there's the fact that, for all intents and purposes, Sheogorath shouldn't exist at all due to the way Shiver Isles ends. And for that matter, why isn't there a Jyggalag statue/quest in Skyrim?

-The Champion of Cyrodill is a Shezzarine, an avatar of Lorkhan, exactly as Tiber was, exactly like all the heroes of the games are. He was bound by fate and destiny to be super powerful.

-Not really, the process of mantling can change the appearance of someone and give them god-like powers without actually 100% doppleganging them. Talos is just Lorkhan/Sithis/Shor reborn yet people dont see him or call him Lorkhan or Sithis or Shor. The CoC can look like Sheo, be immortal, and have Sheo's powers while not being a Daedra.

Furthermore mortals can become immortal through various means, mostly CHIM, which is something that all the player-characters have to some extent.

CHIM is the lore explanation for why time freezes when characters open up the inventory, and why you can suddenly come back to life by loading saves. CHIM is also the lore explanation for the construction kit and why people can modify the world yet no one in the world seems to notice the modifications.

-Also Jyggy was most likely reabsorbed into the new Sheogorath

the best explanation is here
http://imperial-library.info/content/arden-sul-1

Just as Akatosh and Lorkhan, two kings, and two rebels, have killed each other, which is to say killed themselves since Akatosh and Lorkhan are the same person, across time so to must the two kings, Sheo and Jyggy, kill each others Rebels across time.

Just as Ysmir and Tiber, two kings, and two rebels killed the other in the founding of the third empire to make Talos

and Just as two generlas and two rebels killed the other at the end of the Skyrim civil war.

It is a pattern of mythic echo stretching back to the dawn time.

 

[Fijiman]

Out of all the books I've read, the only one I can remember liking (mostly because I can't remember most of the books I've read) was [a href="http://uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Vernaccus_and_Bourlor"]Vernaccus and Bourlor[/a].

 

[SajuukKhar]

The Five Songs of King Wulfharth
http://uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Five_Songs_of_King_Wulfharth

The Arcturian Heresy
http://uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The_Arcturian_Heresy

These two books are great because they expose Talos for what he really is, not one man become god, but three who merged into one to become Lorkhan that is Sithis that is Akatosh reborn.

All hail the three in one, the King, the Rebel, and The Observer, but fear not if you cannot tell who is the real king and the real rebel for they are the same, killing each other.

 

[Doubler]

Since most of my favourites have already been mentioned, I'm just going to mention the Songs of the Return [http://www.imperial-library.info/content/songs-return] as my favourite contribution from Skyrim.

 

[SajuukKhar]

Do books made by devs but are not actually found in-game count?

There's a WHOLE BUNCH of lore texts that were made by Devs, but not put in the game, yet are still canon, that I could post.
.
.
Loveletter From the Fifth Era, The True Purpose of Tamriel
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/loveletter-fifth-era-true-purpose-tamriel
A breif description of what is to come in Elder Scrolls 6 or some Skyrim DLC

Nu-Mantia Intercept
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/nu-mantia-intercept
A series of letters detailing how White-Gold tower, Numidium, the Throat of the World, and other mythic objects are keeping the world up and how their destruction is causing Mundus to sink into Oblivion.

Shor son of Shor
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/shor-son-shor-full
A story of how Shor once went to the underworld to speak to Lorkhan, his father/son, also called a mirror-brother

The Seven Fights of The Aldudagga
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/seven-fights-aldudagga
A series of stories set in Skyrim, talks about how Dagon the razor was cursed by Alduin amongst other things.

The Five Hundred Mighty Companions or Thereabouts of Ysgramor the Returned
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/five-hundred-mighty-companions-or-thereabouts-ysgramor-returned
A story about the original 500 companions

Vehk's Teaching
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/vehks-teaching
A series of texts detailing much about the cosmology of the ES unvierse

 

[AstylahAthrys]

I love the royal family of Morrowind, namely Barenziah and Helseth, so my favorites are The Real Barenziah (already linked) and A Game At Dinner, which is why I preach he is the most underrated character in the series (http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:A_Game_at_Dinner) I freaking love Helseth.

 

[OneCatch]

Title should say it all; one of my favorite aspects of the Elder Scrolls series has been the ability to find and read a number of short-stories and the like. What are your favorites? Here's mine:

I always liked The Axe Man [http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Morrowind:The_Axe_Man]

 

[Jynthor]

Do books made by devs but are not actually found in-game count?

There's a WHOLE BUNCH of lore texts that were made by Devs, but not put in the game, yet are still canon, that I could post.
.
.
Loveletter From the Fifth Era, The True Purpose of Tamriel
http://www.imperial-library.info/content/loveletter-fifth-era-true-purpose-tamriel
A breif description of what is to come in Elder Scrolls 6 or some Skyrim DLC

I refuse to take that as canon, if they base a game around it this series will be dead to me.

 

[SajuukKhar]

I refuse to take that as canon, if they base a game around it this series will be dead to me.

Why? whats wrong with it?

Nothing said in it hasn't been hinted at before in the ES series before.

 

[Doclector]

Lusty Argonian Maid anybody? No? Oh, well.

I can't remember the name of the book and I can't seem to be able to find it easily. It was about some guys who went vampire killing, if I recall correctly. And they hired a mage who specialised in illusion. But then tried to double cross her.

EDIT: Found it! Incident in Necrom [http://uesp.net/wiki/Morrowind:Incident_in_Necrom].

Heh, I remember finding it on an altar in the middle of the pale.

And it was from that moment that I decided to put more work into illusion.

My favourite has to be my personal bible, "The blessings of sheogorath".

Spoiler

For Our Lord Sheogorath, without Whom all Thought would be linear and all Feeling would be fleeting.

Blessed are the Madmen, for they hold the keys to secret knowledge.

Blessed are the Phobic, always wary of that which would do them harm.

Blessed are the Obsessed, for their courses are clear.

Blessed are the Addicts, may they quench the thirst that never ebbs.

Blessed are the Murderous, for they have found beauty in the grotesque.

Blessed are the Firelovers, for their hearts are always warm.

Blessed are the Artists, for in their hands the impossible is made real.

Blessed are the Musicians, for in their ears they hear the music of the soul.

Blessed are the Sleepless, as they bask in wakeful dreaming.

Blessed are the Paranoid, ever-watchful for our enemies.

Blessed are the Visionaries, for their eyes see what might be.

Blessed are the Painlovers, for in their suffering, we grow stronger.

Blessed is the Madgod, who tricks us when we are foolish, punishes us when we are wrong, tortures us when we are unmindful, and loves us in our imperfection.

Oh, and the Argonian account. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:The_Argonian_Account

One of the things I love about the elder scrolls books are that, especially in skyrim, you can often try to find things related to the stories.

 

[Jynthor]

Why? whats wrong with it?

Nothing said in it hasn't been hinted at before in the ES series before.

Personally I really don't like this futuristic crap in my fantasy. That's it really.

 

[SajuukKhar]

Personally I really don't like this futuristic crap in my fantasy. That's it really.

It really isn't futuristic, its more magi-tech, which ES has PLENTY of.

I mean we already have
-Time-traveling war-machine terminators that are avatars of dead gods
-Spaceships made to colonize the moon
-Giant robots that contain the souls of the entire Dwemer race
-A entire floating island powered by a giant mechanical device that feeds on souls
-Mining robots sent back in time from the 9th era due to a war between The hist and The Jills

 

[Jynthor]

Personally I really don't like this futuristic crap in my fantasy. That's it really.

It really isn't futuristic, its more magi-tech, which ES has PLENTY of.

I mean we already have
-Time-traveling war-machine terminators that are avatars of dead gods
-Spaceships made to colonize the moon
-Giant robots that contain the souls of the entire Dwemer race
-A entire floating island powered by a giant mechanical device that feeds on souls
-Mining robots sent back in time from the 9th era due to a war between The hist and The Jills

Could you provide sources for:
-Mining robots sent back in time from the 9th era due to a war between The hist and The Jills
-Time-traveling war-machine terminators that are avatars of dead gods
-Spaceships made to colonize the moon

I'd be most interested.