During your side quests and main quest you encounter the main villain numerous times. You sometimes win sometimes lose in battles, able to witness the main villain's setbacks or victories to build an emotional link with the villain. End fight is epic but also feels like the villain is a tragic character rather than a I want to rule/destroy the world because I want to type of boss.

Certainly not a encounter once in the end of the main quest and that's it. E.g. Mehrune Dagon. Ok so I have to save the world but I felt no emotional link with Mehrune or that stupid high elf. In Morrowind sure there was a emotional link with Dagoth Ur but I would have preferred encountering him several times throughout the main quest, or maybe during a dream, instead of just finding him in the end.

How do you want the main villain to be?

The main villain as in Alduin? I'd want him to be nigh on non-existant until we engage him in glorious battle. With only the odd whisper and rumour about him.

As for him being a sympathetic character; he's a prophesised world-eater, very hard to establish empathy with him.

http://images.wikia.com/forgottenrealms/images/f/fa/Jon_Irenicus.jpg

How would you fight Alduin and survive if he beats you? I'm not saying your idea is dumb, but how would it work?

Not sure if Alduin is the main villain or someone else who's responsible for resurrecting him. Would be cool if like Neverwinter Nights 2 you think someone's Alduin and find out you just killed the only good dragon God who can stop Alduin. Then it's time to make amends and try to stop Alduin all by yourself.

I want Alduin and I want him to be epic and big. Like when you see him for the first time you'll piss your pants.

Companion sacrifices him/herself to buy you time to run for it to live another day to have your revenge? Alduin doesn't think you as a threat and spares you, and you later grow stronger after levelling up and finding artifacts. Or maybe Alduin has better things to do. :hubbahubba:

the whole 'meet the bad guy in small fights multiple times and survive' is a bit too anime'ish for me
seems cheesy, especially when the main baddie is a world eater
we may see him once shortly before the end battle, but thats about it

I want to be the main villain. :sadvaultboy:

I quite like psycho goth woman villains, like Bodhi in Baldur's Gate 2, Lady Grey in Fable, the nutty women in ME2, Helena Bonham Carter in Harry Potter movies, or Lerotra'hh (bet no-one knows who that is).

Sounds like someone from Overkill. If that's right I have no idea where that came from.

My guess is that Alduin is actually a metaphor some cataclysmic event and has nothing to do with cosmic dragons eating the world, so I really cannot relate.

OT: That emotional link touch would be really nice for other questline villains for sure, but I'm not sure how it will fit into the main quest.

God dang it dude, I had just finished neverwinter nights 1. Frigging spoiler man. :banghead:

I think it would be difficult for Alduin (assuming he is the main antagonist) to be portrayed as "tragic". There is not enough motivation behind his actions. Alduin's baby sister wasn't killed by some corrupt Skyrim Jarl, causing him to only attack out of a sense of grief and familial duty.

Alduin is a powerful aedric spirit, akin to a god, and his primary purpose is to end the world in some fiery fashion. There is not any room to wonder whether Alduin wants to eat the world, or feels bad when he does it. He just does.

That being said, I don't believe we will ever go toe to toe with Alduin. I don't see how they could make it different enough from a normal dragon fight, or have Alduin presented in any form that makes it actually seem like he could end the world, but still allow you to fight him. We will probably see him at different points through the MQ, but slashing a sword at a god doesn't seem like it would do much.

If there is going to be some type of emotional link in the story, it will probably end up being with the people of Skyrim you are supposed to protect. (If the MQ is good, and actually tries to build these ties). I think the secession from the Empire and the civil war will be a pretty major secondary plot in the MQ, and should offer the differing viewpoints of the rebels and the loyalists, and allow you to become attached to either group as you see fit.

Why would you encounter Dagon or Aludin? I Doubt there Avatars would visit Tamriel to Have a chat and a cup of tea with you
Unless they wanted to take the form of a Mortal, Then that would work, But Still.

... Nobody else is responsible for resurrecting him, I don't think you can resurrect Akatosh.

One does not simply resurrect a god.

its hard to just 'bump into' Alduin, a giant Dragon God set on eating to entire world... In fact he probably doesn't care about you

True, it depends on how much of a threat he considers a dovahkiin to be.

Maybe, if we're lucky, absolutely everyone will wet their codpieces touting Alduin as a baleful and pitiless ender-of-eons, a ghastly force that chills the heart of man at its forlorn approach.

Then we finally meet him, and he's another pencil-neck Altmer who comes apart easily as wet toilet paper.

Kind of like Saren and Sovereign in the first Mass Effect?


Sure, I'm cool with that.

I want to have to fight him upwards to 10 times during MQ getting closer each time to defeating him until the very end of MQ where I do defeat him.

I would think Aludin would get right on that world eating kick of his as soon as he appears, so multiple encounters would just seem weird to me, you'll probably fight his servants the whole game who are preparing for his return, then fighting him right when he appears (at endgame). Similar to Oblivion now that I think of it.

You would lose that bet my friend.

well in the trailer it does say, he is the only one they fear.

If you look at it from the Dragons' perspective, YOU are the main villain.