There was no cure, except for the Nerevarine. Fyr will tell you that all the other patients he tried the cure on died. "If you return to Fyr at a later point in the game, he will tell you that the potion doesn't seem to work on the rest of his cases and that he killed two of his most desperate patients while testing it. Apparently you are an exceptional case, though as you may have found out, the Nerevarine is supposedly protected from this death by prophecy."

Yes, the Nerevarine was. However the messenger was killed before the Nerevarine entered the picture. Since the House quests play out no matter which House the Nerevarine joins, some variation on that quest happens, no matter what.

Um...no. The Great Houses never solve anything in a peaceful manner. Any "treaties" are usually obtained by kidnapping hostages to influence the outcome. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Great_Houses

The Great Houses were never in peaceful co-existence.

She was dead by that point....

Talking about the events of ESO, I'd imagine.

The Royal city of Old Mournhold was destroyed at the end of the First Era by Mehrunes Dagon. Almalexia and Sotha Sil came too late to prevent the destruction, but they managed to banish him back to Oblivion.

I take offense to outlanders questioning our peculiar institutions.

Two things:

1) If you saw your mortal enemies (who know some ridiculously advanced science and magic) use some tools and then disappear into thin air, would you want to examine the tools to figure out what happened, or just throw them in some lava and forget about the whole thing? What kind of idiot does the second option appeal to? We know the Dwemer won't come back, but a character in that world, at that time, would have been stupid not to keep the tools. Nerevar was stupid, but he had the power to stop the Tribunal, so he had to die. It's unfortunate, but true. If Nerevar had used the tools to become a god along with the Tribunal, neither Dagoth Ur nor Tiber Septim would have been a problem.

2) Without the Ministry crashing Morrowind wouldn't have become independent, wouldn't have taken Solstheim, wouldn't have gotten rid of the Temple hierarchy as fast, and would be lead by House Hlaalu and the Camonna Tong instead of House Redoran (whose leadership is and will be sorely needed when the Thalmor become a bigger threat).

The massive personality cult Vivec has among players is chilling, not to mention the near-rabid hate towards Azura.

Seriously, I don't understand how forewarning her worshipers about Red Mountain is in any way an act of evil on her part. She may not necessarily be benevolent, but it's obvious she looks out for her worshipers.

I'm not saying Vivec is a saint. I'm saying killing Nerevar was logical and that Baar Dau falling was better for Morrowind in the long run than Baar Dau being destroyed.

Azura is probably one of the best gods to worship, from the standpoint of a normal person. She answers prayers, gives nice gifts, and doesn't require any crazy sacrifices. That's better than any Aedra, and better than any Daedra provided you aren't the best fighter or thief in the world. Worshiping Boethiah and being literally the toughest person around would be sweet, but worshiping Boethiah and being the second toughest person or lower would eventually be terrible, for example.

Sort of. Kinda, I guess.

She isn't as bad as Molag Bal.

Five of her worshipers put their lives in danger killing a vampire and his followers. They were infected. Azura's reward for this selfless act?

Many years ago, five followers slew the vampire Dratik and its kin, but all were infected by the foul creature. Knowing their fate, they sealed themselves up in the vampire's lair. Their suffering weighs heavily on me. Travel to the Gutted Mine. The door will open to you. Bring the peace of death to my followers, and you shall earn my gratitude.

She thanks you for killing them, and puts 5 candles at her shrine in their memory. Personally I'd have rather gone in search of a cure for them, since vampirism can be cured, but Azura doesn't ask for that. Even the five worshipers didn't consider that, and they don't blame Azura. You find a note on one of the vampires:

My name is http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Ghola_gro-Muzgol. My companion's names are http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Aranolda, http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Nille_Elf-Daughter, http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Avita_Cassiana, and http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:Umar_gra-Khar.

The vampire Dratik died by our hands, but the price was dear. Those into whose hands we have fallen, we thank you, and pray your favor.

We served Lady http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Azura. Bring these, our last words, to the Her [http://www.uesp.net/wiki/UESPWiki:Spelling#Quotes] Shrine. We praise Her with the full fountain of our devotion.

Our destinies were written in the stars, that our souls and reason be slain, and our world lost forever.

None can escape Her Fate. But let us be remembered at Her shrine, and in the hearts of Her servants.

"It is only by fate

that any life ends,

and only by chance

that it is mine...

not yours."

In Morrowind, you had to petition Molag Bal for the cure, and he had to get it from Vaermina.

In Oblivion, getting the cure involves obscure ingredients - including a plant only obtainable in Oblivion itself - expensive reagents and killing a powerful vampire, and even then it was only known to one person in the entire province, and she only had enough for two people. Keep in mind that the vampires attack you on sight, and Azura can't simply step into Mundus and cure them.

1) Yes, if I saw someone use something that apparently eradicated themselves from existence, I would totally be jumping to be the next person to use it. The Tribunal went mad, Dagoth Ur went even more mad, and if Nerevar had joined them there would have been no Nerevarine to stop them. Also, since Dagoth Ur would still exist, I'm not sure how you think adding one more false god to the Tribunal would have prevented Tiber Septim's conquest of Morrowind.

2) Yes, Solstheim was an incredible value in exchange for Vvardenfell. Also House Hlaalu gets a lot of hate, but House Redoran has plenty of baggage of its own. And while you could point out Helseth, one could counter that Barenziah was also Hlaalu, and Bolyn Venym was Redoran. Hlaalu does have connections to the Tong, but those died with Orvas Dren.

This. Death is more compassionate than leaving them as vampires.

It was in Oblivion, and I never said I wanted it to be easy. There are good quests, then there are fedex quests. I'd rather have the good ones.

I guess I just wanted more than, "Thanks for getting rid of a powerful vampire and his followers. I'll send someone to kill you eventually, but only after a very long time."

Azura probably isn't overflowing with followers in Cyrodiil, the center of the Cult of the Nine Divines.

Basically, this. Did the Dunmer suffer under the Red Year? Yes. Did Vivec allow it to happen as 'punishment', and Nerevar cause it by dislodging the Heart? Yes. Did Azura send her Champion to cause Morrowind's destruction? Maybe. She also warned her faithful before the Red Year, so they could get out of the danger zone.

But you know what else all this did? It shattered the heretical stagnancy of the Dunmer and put them back on the path of the Endeavour. They're stronger and more bad-ass than they have been in centuries, without the pampering and protection of the Tribunal. Their TRUE gods are back on top, demanding not worship and adoration but results, strength and independence.

The Nerevarine and the Red Year did exactly what it was intended to.

How would yet another mad Kagrenac echo stop Dagoth Ur or Tiber Septim? The Tribunal gave Tiber Brass-Walks because it was useless to them. Tiber's the one that got it operational. It's also the point I figure Sotha Sil just threw up his hands and said "I Quit!"

As for who the option to cast the Tools into the lava...I'd happily be that idiot. If I just saw all the Dwemer up and vanish, I'd be loathe to even touch the things, let alone try and use them.

Having played through House Redoran's quests in Morrowind...do you honestly believe them better then Hlaalu?

Madness is never logical. They betrayed and murdered a man they'd sworn to serve and defend - all for their own personal glory and power. And the cost? The pride of their people, and their spirit. All advancement were to the glory of the Tribunal, and not to their people.

Wherever Vivec's tormented soul is in Oblivion, he can't scream loud enough.

Molag Bal doesn't strike me as the kind of Prince that would just hand over the cure to his "blessing" to spare Azura's followers.

Never forget that Vampirism is cured solely by consent of Molag Bal. It is not a true disease, but Daedric influence upon Mundus.

I like how everyone is saying it isn't the Nerevarine's fault when Vivec tells you that you will kill him when all is said and done.

Hahaha. I don't mean use them right away. Sotha Sil (I think) was the first to suggest keeping them to study. The decision to use them came later. I know I would want to try to figure out what happened. If the Dwemer had achieved apotheosis, throwing the tools away would have doomed all of the Chimer.*

If Nerevar had decided to study the tools, he wouldn't have left Dagoth Ur alone with them. Boom. No Sharmat. And hey, while we're at it, if the Tribunal had allowed Nerevar to destroy the tools then Dagoth Ur would have become the only god in Morrowind (and there would be no chance for a Nerevarine, or anyone, to destroy the enchantments on the Heart, because only the tools could have done that). That would have been a much worse outcome.

Also, if Nerevar had become a god with the Tribunal, and there was no Dagoth Ur (or Dagoth Ur had become a god, too, since they were all buddies at the time) then would Tiber have really stood a chance? It's possible, but I really doubt it.

But the ideals of Hlaalu are bad when it comes to the Thalmor and the Endeavour. Redoran is more in line with Veloth. When you're dealing with a group of sadists hell-bent on destroying the world, do you want the slimy negotiators or the (admittedly potentially dikeish) tough guys with spiritual aspirations?

*For Coda people, Numidium does come back. Can we say the Dunmer would have fared better without Vivec's insights? Azura is great and all, but does she sound like the kind of god who would teach about Amaranth and Chim? Again, not saying Vivec is a 'good' person, but in the world he inhabits he is among the least terrible that has the power to act.

The onus is still on Vehk.

Vivec says a lot of things. As with all good personality cult leaders, Vivec hopes the sheer deluge of his words will suffice to carry enough truth to be fulfilled in reality. Telling the Nerevarine to kill him is just one more of his power fantasies where he can control the will and whims of mortals.

EDIT: Cleaned up my response a bit. I can dial back on the hate of a fictional character a bit, I think.

Ah, I misunderstood you; you're positing Nerevar + Tribunal + Voryn Dagoth as gods. Yes, that would be different; presumably they would have prevented Tiber Septim's conquest of Morrowind since only the awakening of the Sharmat caused the Tribunal to sign the treaty in the first place. But that still leaves Morrowind under the dominion of false gods, benevolent or not.

I don't see the Hlaalu deferring to the Thalmor. They deferred to the Empire because it was politically expedient and the Empire had already been welcomed in by the Tribunal. Given that the Dunmer only conceded to the Empire because the Empire was the lesser evil as compared with Dagoth Ur, with Dagoth Ur defeated I don't see the Dunmer capitulating to the Aldmeri Dominion--whose values they intrinsically reject--for any reason. The Hlaalu aren't cowards, they're pragmatists; there is no pragmatic reason to negotiate or come to terms with the Dominion at the cost of Dunmeri sovereignty.

Some of the things he says are correct. You kill every single member of the band who betrayed nerevar except for Vivec? You really think Azurah's final vengeance ends just before Vivec dies?

You're seriously underestimating how petty Azurah is. No Daedra - especially not Azurah - is good.

Zaarin, 'false gods' doesn't mean anything bad to me. They're not as petty as Azura, and they don't command their followers to murder each other for sport like Boethiah does. In fact, they set up Tamriel's only functioning welfare system. That's pretty cool. If they didn't give Tiber the Numidium then there likely wouldn't be a Thalmor, because he wouldn't have been able to take Summerset on his own.

Also, the Hlaalu were calling for accommodation well before the armistice was signed. They also had no idea about the situation with Dagoth Ur and the Tribunal. They just wanted an advantage. Maybe while they were the de facto ruling party they would be less likely to surrender, but they certainly don't have a good track record.

Azura strikes me as the kind of Daedra that would make Vivec's punishment a lot more subtle, given it was Vivec himself that humiliated her. Leaving him alive with his powers slowly waning, only to watch helplessly as the Oblivion Crisis swept over Morrowind with him powerless to do anything but wait for Azura to come for him.

Seems the kind of thing she'd do.

Uh...the Thalmor arose from political obscurity due to the Oblivion Crisis, not Tiber Septim. If Tiber hadn't conquered Summerset, the Thalmor would have never left.

Having the Nerevarine kill him quietly, leaving his followers to believe that he abandoned them seems like something she would do.

It is possible, of course, that you are overestimating Azura's pettiness. Anyone with eyes can see she's one of the least malevolent Princes.