Hello, hello; I have been lurking this particular forum for a while, and have decided to finally show myself; more importantly to ask your opinions on a question of mine:

I know that when lesser daedra's physical forms are destroyed, they are cast back into oblivion; however my question is, what classifies as 'destroyed'? Obviously, removing said daedroth's head, or disintegrating their body would do it; but what biological requirements does their body have to meet for their physical form to keep living? Would they require their "organs" to be functioning? Would they require mundane things, such as breathing or eating to maintain their physical form? (At least while in the mundus; while in their respective planes of Oblivion, I doubt it matters.)

What do you think? I myself wouldn't count on them requiring food or drink; but I do think that at least in certain ones, such as dremora, you could cause them to bleed to death with a large enough wound; implying that they require that blood...

None. Daedra are immortal beings, made from divine substances. NOT mundane substances. They just ARE.

In the Shivering Isles, Sheogorath's daedric servants do not need to eat or sleep. Most other daedra are probably the same way. Strangely, although they have no ability to reproduce, the innate desire is still there for some daedra, such as Molag Grunda and her Frost Atronach consort.

Oh, and have a http://www.uesp.net/w/images/Fishystick.jpg! All new members get one.

I'd imagine that taking corporeal form requires them to take on the rules of the Mundus. Their spirit may be immortal, but the body manifested has to adhere to the rules of the realm.

They may not need to eat, but something tells me that there has to be some form of energy to keep them going. I'm curious how long the corporeal forms of the Auriel and Mazken would continue in the Shivering Isles without the Wellsprings, as I have a feeling the magical energy is the only thing allowing them to exist without eating/sleeping.

Then again, I'm no expert on these matters. Just stating what I see.

With the wellsprings simply blocked up, they all became incapacitated almost immediately. I doubt they could exist for long if the wellsprings were actually destroyed.

I think one of the Mazken mentions drinking or toasting their victory Cylarne and I remember some lady in morrowind who was going to get eaten by winged twilights so I think they do have biological impulses. Also they are vulnerable to poisons which work by suppressing metabolic processes so there must be something going on. but I don't think they have the same requirements as beings on mundus. different daedra most likly have different needs, hungers for example didn't have a wellspring but when the Mazken/Aureals loose theirs they all fall down.

And yet, when you hew them in two, they suffer banishment.

Their physical bodies usually "die", which is not the same as physically destroying them.

Consider the lesser Daedra as having a biology similar to mortals but of a higher durability. When you do the things to them that would cause them to die if mortal, such as bashing in their skull with a fat mace until it cracks, the Daedra is cast into the waters of Oblivion and his corporeal form kinda crumples to the ground. It doesn't disintegrates or anything because the hero can still loot it. It just kinda lies there. I dunno if it eventually rots or what. The lore never goes into that.

ALTHOUGH, when the Aurorans get cast down at Garlas Malatar, their spirits seem to return to the same bodies over and over again. If that's lore correct or simply game mechanic is not known to me.

I reckon this question can really just be summed up as "what constitutes death". Humans do not undergo 'recycling' after death like the Daedra (though I won't be touching the broader peripheries of that subject with a 20-foot pole), but we still need a rather artificial point at which we can say "this person is deceased". This is why we can simply state "Daedra go back to Oblivion when they die".

A different view: No diff, except one is coarser than the other.

I always thought that if the mortal shell, which is their body, becomes too damaged to hold onto their spirit, the mortal shell dies and the spirit flies off.

I do not know if their mortal bodies need anything though, i don't think so myself, but i'm not sure.

What about the Frost Atronachs imprisoned by Aesliip for we don't know how long? They had nothing to eat down there.

What really puzzles me is what are their reformed mortal bodies made of? Matter can't manifest from nothing. Everything needs raw material, even flesh golems.

My guess is that when a Daedra like a Dremore is reforged, he's made from extra Creatia which happens to exist in the waters of Oblivion or the sphere he respawns in.

Your quess is as good as mine, i figure it's some sort of divine/daedric substance that hasn't been examined before.

If anyone knows a bored Telvanni mage, give him a call and let him examine some Daedra corpses, we might just get something interesting out of it.

Considering in the Elder Scrolls universe that most spells that don't affect the fabric of existence don't require components to pull off, the idea of pulling matter from nothing doesn't apply.

For example: You don't need a handful of tinder to evoke a fireball.

That would be the most plausible answer, especially if you take into account that recreation normally isn't instantaneous.

The elemental Atronachs are different, as their corporeal form is not a flesh-and-blood body but some sort of condensed form of their element. That explains their immunity to poisons, but the questions of just what sort of sustenance an animated rockpile held together by lightning would require, or just what is involved in Nomeg Gwai getting it on with Molag Grunda, are too taxing without more caffeine.

Or the Dremora that gaurds the shrine in the Puzzle Canols underneath the Palace of Vivec. He's been their for a very long time.

Maybe corporeal Daedra draw their sustenance from the same energies used to form Welkynd Stones. Who knows?

In Oblivion, they might be more pure Daedric essence than if they were summoned permanently to Mundus. When conjured, they are taken directly from Oblivion, and when killed, they vanish. When existing in Mundus, they subscribe to mortal laws, bleeding, dying and leaving corpses. Obviously they have to be in a different form.

Hmm... I had an idea, lingering in the back of my head, that perhaps a daedra's form of "food" would simply be the fulfilment of their respective spheres. Would certainly explain why in Morrowind, I've seen flame atronachs wandering around in the highly volcanic Molag Amur region... But then again, I'm no lore buff, here...

Interestingly, in Morrowind, daedra were immune to normal weapons. But in TES 4, they have no such immunity.

From a game standpoint, Oblivion forces the PC to fight more Daedra, so mechanically, the Oblivion Crisis would require a vast bastion of soul gems.

I didn't get one

Probably because my first post was a year after i joined, nobody knew i was new i suppose. I joined to be able to use the search button.

I have a theory on that. I believe that all Daedra may be "linked" to their respective Lord (Azura, Molag Bal, Maerhunes Dagon, etc.). I think that Daedric Lords somehow give their followers energy, they're dependent upon the power of their lord for sustenance. The feed off of their lords power/aura/whatever.

That would explain why Daedra seem to follow their lords blindly. Afterall, Daedric Princes have so many Dremora that they could easily overthrow them if they desired to.

Even if they thought they couldn't win, the honour gained defeated somoeone/something so powerful would be more than enough of an incentive.

Seeing as Dremora delight in battle, I doubt they would obey the Daedric Lords simply because they're stronger then them.
There has to be something they need from their Lord (IE their continued existence).