I'm still pretty firmly in the Eye of Magnus being the stone of Snow-Throat tower, but this is just kind of a fun what-if alternate theory. Let me know if it's too out there or if there is a serious fundamental misunderstanding of the lore on display. I'm very tired and a little tipsy, so sorry if it doesn't read too well.

Each metaphysical tower serves a duel purpose-- it is a pillar, the unbinding of which would in turn unbind Mundus, and allow it to return to the void; but it is also a ladder, to be used by the race who created it to transcend their physical existence. However, Snow-Throat is unique, in that it is designed to be unbound, so that Mundus can continue.

How is this possible, you might ask? The answer, simply, is Alduin.

Why was Alduin so small and weak in Skyrim, if his role was to devour the world? When you defeat Alduin in Sovngarde, his armor falls away and the truth is revealed-- Alduin the dovah is an egg, housing the unborn soul of Alduin the god. Not convinced?http://i.imgur.com/U3w0N.png The resemblance to a fetus is not, I think, coincidental. Alduin the dragon would nurture the god inside of it, by the worship and faith of the dragon cult and the outright consumption of the souls in Sovngarde, until such time as the divine Alduin was born, and would be hatched from its physical body as a giant golden dragon, a rauaging firestorm that would eventually consume all reality. But not immediately.

Alduin, is still the dragon god of time, merely its Nordic interpretation. As such, his birth is really just a formality, and linear time is no impediment to his movements. Upon his birth, he travels back to the creation of the universe, where he plants himself in the belly of the Throat of the World, to wait for the time when the kalpa is ready to be ended. As such, even as you fight Alduin the dovah on the summit of the Throat of the World, Alduin the god is sleeping miles beneath your feet.

This makes Snow-Throat a very important shield to the preservation of reality. When mortals, through their personal quests for power, cause too much damage to Mundus and the Towers collapse one by one, it triggers a systemwide warning system and Alduin awakens. He performs his duty and ends the current kalpa, issuing in a new age with new gods, new races to populate Mundus, and shiny new towers to reinforce the new reality.

The prophesy of the Dragonborn refers to Snow-Throat being "sundered, kingless, bleeding." It was interpreted to be a metaphor for the division in the Nordic people during the civil war, but it is far more literal than that. Alduin's return will be heralded by Snow-Throat cracking apart like the shell of an egg, bleeding fire over the countryside as Alduin takes to the skies. That is the natural function of the tower. It also allows transcendence through a systemic duplicate of the Dreamsleeve. Just as mortal souls are recycled endlessly until they reach some higher stage of being, entire races are recycled through the kalpas until they can break free of convention, at which point, they can step outside the cycle of rebirth. This was the origin of the dreugh-- a remnant of a previous kalpa, a race who was able to leave reality behind, leaving mindless, bestial husks in their stead.

However, discerning readers may notice that toward the start of this, I referenced how this was its function under "normal circumstances." Each Elder Scrolls game has resulted in the deactivation of a tower, and Skyrim is no different. Alduin was thrown forward in time through the use of an Elder Scroll, which meant that in the fourth era, he was still an infant. This is why Dovahkiin was able to effortlessly defeat him. But when Alduin the dragon died, Alduin the god died with him. At that moment, he was erased from history, and when the Dovahkiin returned to Skyrim, seemingly victorious, it came at great cost; Snow-Throat is now hollow, its power as a pillar of reality stripped away. This kalpa shall be the last, for the world-eater no longer slumbers in its depths. Mundus will continue to be weakened as the pillars are knocked out one by one as the war between man and mer rages on, and eventually, it will dissolve altogether.

interesting theory, though im not sure what to make of all it

however you might have mixed up alduin with in being the dragon god of time. as far as i recall this role was and still is filled by akatosh even in nordic beliefs

alduin is his firstborn and fills the role of 'world eater'

2 quite different roles

• for my english poor，I‘ll make it short

I think the function of the snow tower is to break time，make things jumping to the next kalpa

yes，remember alduin in the final fight of dragon war？remember dagon keep some pieces of previous kalpa and alduin can never find it in the seven fights？remember how nord describe the throat of the world，“men were formed on this mountain when the sky breathed onto the land”？people were not created，they just jump to the present kalpa，and “sky breathed on the land”，which means “kyne” breathed on the land，and it recalls me the final fight of dragon war again

A rather interesting theory.

very good read and I dont see were it nreaks lore at all. But me personally id like to think that alduin infant stage was destroyed only to be reset or go back to slumber.

Interesting indeed, but nothing in the lore supports this. It's not impossible, but it hasn't even been referenced in the slightest at any point, so it'd be a pretty huge leap to end up at this conclusion.

The opera ain't over till the fat lady sings.

First: [NUMINIT]

Second: I like it, and think it's an interesting way of explaining why the world could persist into the 9th Era; Landfall could literally be Mundus splitting apart (awwesoooooooome.) All I can add to your point is that, regardless, Paarthurnax states something to the effect of "Perhaps those who seek to hasten the end shall delay it, and those who seek to delay the end may bring it closer." The Dovahkiin stops the Alduin-aspect from eating the world, and in so doing, condemns it to dissolution.

Only contradiction I can think of is that Snow-Throat was built by mortals, to uphold Convention. I would think that Snow-Throat is more like Alduin's prison, rather than his nest/incubator, and it's purpose is to delay the World-Eating, not to give him a place to grow and become strong.

This is predicated on Alduin bein' Akatosh's Norden aspect, isn't it? Other than a separate creation of Akatosh.

In which case, I find it hard to swallow that the Dovakiin ended the Nordic Akatosh completly. Just its current manifestation.

What's to say there aren't innumerable Alduins?

http://www.imperial-library.info/content/alduinakatosh-dichotomy

I like this. I like this a lot. The only thing I have a problem with is the permanent destruction of a god, as the Aedra are dead to begin with. However, if the Nords believe he is dead, like Tsun, he may end up with a similar fate. I think the op's evaluation of the state of Snow Throat is the best I've read so far though, as I feel the eye of magnus is not a very good possibility as a stone. Kudos.

I like.

I had been thinking something in the same lines last week, but not as well thought through as that.

They pretty much say right in game what's going to happen. The player didn't absorb Alduin's soul, so Alduin didn't actually die, and he'll be allowed to return when the end of the world is near.

Ald didn't die, because he never lived but returned as a man who never lived. So ends the story of Olaf the liar, a thief and a scoundrel we of Solitude commit to the fire.

Veeeerry interesting indeed! But only because it explains how yet another Tower is destroyed. Not much else completely adds up...

Could all this happen anyway if Alduin didn't have any time traveling abilities (i.e. is a separate being from Akatosh)? He could've been planted into the Throat to begin with, and then let this lesser dovah aspect swoop around for the lulz. Or?

How does this supposed Akatosh-Alduin "plant himself in the belly of the Throat of the World" anyway? Does Alduin have dual consciousness? How can the dragon-shell be a host for a thing if the thing is already sleeping underneath the mountain? Even with time twisting, there could still be only one soul of the God-Alduin, isn't this not so?

And even if the soul could be inside the dovah and the mountain at the same time, why would this duplicate(?) soul of a God underneath the mountain die if the dovah carrying the other part dies?

Most interesting theory!

But his death model doesn't look much like a Fetus to me.

None the less, a well written theory. A nice case of "Nice job breaking it, Hero."

Where've I seen that before?

ha, i asked myself the same question when i read it. so i googled it and the first link was to tvtropes.com. it's a trope where the hero saves the day and everything is expected to be better now but in reality his actions have caused something much worse to happen. that might be where you've seen it.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NiceJobBreakingItHero

edit: also, now that i think of it (and see the second link in that goole search) it might be a direct quote from GLaDOS in Portal. if so, that's more likely where we heard it.

See also: Champion of Cyrodil; Nerevarine...

The UESP should read:

From [Hrothgaar], he serves as the leader of the Greybeards, who are fiercely protective of his identity. It was Alduin who taught the first Tongues, Tok-Belt, Magnar and Shor, to turn the tide in the Dragon war. During Paarthurnax regency across time, he was able to flex his draconic instincts and entered Secret Pact with the Greybeards by sharing with those traitors the Way of the Voice - the ability to wield the Thu'um.

There are presently five Greybeards, because three rebelled. One of whom went missing to return again. Go unto the Dragon Paarthurnax as a friend.

Now, the Stone of the Throat of the World is the very Heart of the World. Snow Throat is a secondary terminal.

The past rebellion of those three was our own, present Dragon War. Delphine, Esbern, and we were the ones in the Scroll. Our Anticipations. We betrayed mankind to Paarthurnax. We brought him the Elder Scroll.

The Blades and Dragonborn as Tribunal? I likee.

It's a bit too grandiose for me.

Almsivi is unique. The Blade's don't even come close. The Dovahkiin is just a dragon, of which there are many.

ALMSIVI's uniqueness, the Sharmat's uniqueness, is their most interesting facet. In a world of cycles and subgradients, here Is something profoundly, blasphemously new.