I have nothing against the Dunmer, but there is something about them that irks me. Personally, I think they are treacherous little weasels. As soon as I turn my back, I feel like I'm going to get robbed, stabbed or lit on fire. I've met one too many Dunmer who tried any of those things. Hell, the first Dunmer you meet in Oblivion doesn't exactly make a nice first impression. Are Dunmers usually like this, or did Bethesda make them like that just for Oblivion? People like Raynil Dralas, Felas Serendas, Relmyna Verenim(sadistic as hell)

Will they still have that treacherous feel in Skyrim, or am I just being a racist in Oblivion?

They're supposed to feel that way, haven't you played Morrowind?

Dunmer are supposed give that impression, it's part of their lore.

"They are often proud, clannish, ruthless, and cruel. Young female Dark Elves are well known for their promiscuity. Despite their powerful skills and strengths, the Dunmer's vengeful nature, age-old conflicts, betrayals, and ill-reputation prevent them from gaining more influence. Those of them born outside of Morrowind or ones who grew up in the Imperial tradition are, however, usually much friendlier than their native-born counterparts." - UESP Wiki

You didn't enjoy Oblivion's little baskets of sunshine? I shudder to think how you'd react towards the natives in Vvardenfell(In Morrowind)

A lot of refugees in that vein in Skyrim is probably a sureshot. Their not going to be the happiest bunch I can tell you.

But yes generally they do come across unsavory or treacherous like that. Although not all are. Also they do face discrimination outside of Morrowind by Imperials and others.

Dunmer are my favourite race. Argonians are the ones that you should watch out for, treacherous lizards. Their presence alone makes me feel dirty.


In all seriousness though, I love all the races, but dunmer are my favorite

I dislike them because, they're elves and dunmer fans are more unbearable than Chicago Cubs fans (not a good thing in the least bit).

Also, play Morrowind. Oblivion hardly did a thing to showcase what a real dunmer is like.

They are basically a cursed people, so that may explain their bad attitude. I loved the Dunmer in MW and just couldn't get enough of their deep lore and exploring their land. Daedric and Dwarven ruins, strange creatures, tombs to their ancestors everywhere. Loved it and the people.

But even in MW, most would call you a name and the Dunmer mages of House T were particularly mean.

It depends on the individual Dunmer :tongue:...

They called me n'wah one time too many. My feelings were hurt.

True but also outside of Morrowind technically Dunmer in Imperial lands are supposed to be friendlier. Morrowind showcased the people well though.

Also I'd deal with Cubs fans over the Red Sox or any one frm Philly any day of the week.

I've never met a dunmer I've liked. I hate them all. The only good Dunmer is a dead Dunmer.

YOU'RE GOING TO DIE IN HERE IMPERIAL, YOU'RE GOING TO DIE

Treyster, at least the Red Sox won in the last decade, so they can have some leeway on being annoying. The Cubs have been fail for over a century, and Cubs fans still flock and worship them as if they're the Yankees, or some other team that wins almost all the time. A woe to anyone who criticizes the Cubs for being the biggest fail in all of baseball.

i hate them so much!!! not only therye complete and utter [censored]s but theyre ugly as hell!!

PS ARGONIANS FTW

They're great to play as - good with a blade and destruction - but yeah, not very nice people

Not so much Dunmer as their fans, sort of like Portal. Now Dunmer were (intentionally) written to make people a little uncomfortable. The Dunmer mainstream culture is very racist and fairly hypocritical, openly musing whether or not any non-Dunmer are capable of enlightenment or even have souls or rational thought and treating the obviously sentient Argonians as though they were beasts of burden. They are not written as evil, however, just with a culture that is very different from our own that is difficult to change into something less racist because any changes in culture are called evil corruptions of "beasts and lesser races" by Ashlanders and temple alike. However, instead of realizing this frankly fascinating cultural exploration, a lot of Dunmer fans took this at face value as "nope, the Dunmer are right, humans, Argoniand and other elves are plainly inferior." Which leads to another interesting question: what is it about making people red-eyed, grey-skinned and pointy-eared that makes characters so much easier to bond with and being sympathetic to than any normal-looking human could ever hope to be?

Seriously, watching Dunmer fans is like looking at someone reading "Song of Ice and Fire" and agreeing with Randyll Tarly that Brienne is some kind of abomination of nature for being a woman who isn't in a kicthen or a bedroom. It's fairly disturbing.

This times a thousand

Dunmer are just dark natured and surly, which is why they're so awesome
Argonians and Khajiit are the ones who make me tighten my ass cheeks when they're around.

feel the same

Well said. As it regards your question, I think it has less to do with identifying with or against humans as it does a new generation's insistence on wanting to stand out and be different. Look at the huge success behind Harry Potter and Twilight--films and stories built around the notion of being different, but in a good way. These kids root for the underdog because they want to be the underdog--it's more exciting. I think people are unhappy with being the same old person doing the same old thing their parents did, and becoming the outcast or the hated is a way to jump right out of that situation and be something different.

So I don't think it makes red-eyed, grey-skinned, and pointy-eared characters more sympathetic, it just makes them the easiest way to not be "you."

I don't think it's so much the lore as it is the fact that almost all races in Morrowind aside from dunmer looked like crap. Dunmer got all the cool faces, cool voices, most of them wore very cool looking armor and clothes. All of that pretty much got taken away in Oblivion, but people still remembered the good old days. Now with every race looking pretty badass, I'm thinking we'll start seeing more and more fans of other races. Argonians in particular may just win me over.

You feel like you're going to get stabbed in the back because you probably are. That's what Dunmer do. They're, uh, not very nice.

But as for disliking them--not at all. Played a Dunmer since Daggerfall, and will do so again come November.

Dunmer are one of my favorite races. There lore and natural abilities are both great. I love there harsh, snobbish, rough attitude. They can be a very cold sort, makes them great assassins. I think they look great as well. Dunmer are pretty balanced, allowing you do almost anything with them. Altmer on the other hand, they are self absorbed, egotistical, and freakishly tall! Actually I am just kidding again, I love Altmer. I think they have a right to be the way they are. Most of the Tamrielic language is derived from Almter language. Most of the empire's arts and sciences are derived from the Altmter as well.

now when i see that last screenshot i see a tricky goblin

You should meet an Ordinator, OP, and then see if you still dislike Dunmer :flamethrower:

So are we critiquing Dunmer or Dunmer fans in this thread? :facepalm: