What happens when the player puts on the Gray Cowl?

Remember how the Vehk that was mortal didn't really happen once he became divine, instead becoming the deity that had been there from the beginning? A Dragon Break, I believe it's called.

The Prince of Madness prior to SI was named Arden-Sul.

The PC becomes a Prince of Madness named Sheogorath....and BAM...Sheogorath has been the Prince of Madness from the beginning.

Just like the tatters of the "true tale" of the Tribunal still flitted around in Morrowind, so do the lost remnants of the old Prince peek out through the notion of the dead Arden-Sul. Since a Prince of Madness is both Mania and Dementia, there are two tales about this great guy.

Now, we all know that "Sheogorath" has been the Prince through all the Elder Scrolls games,...but do we (as the PC) simply remember it that way now?

Reminds me of when the Gray Fox says "I just told you my real name three times, but you don't remember it."

The in-game books Zealotry of Sheogorath and Heretical Thoughts allude to Sheogorath having a mortal aspect named Arden-Sul and being a flesh and blood mortal respectively. Look at it this way, and, mind you, this is just an off-the-wall thought that I had and wanted to share:

What occurred in SI was that the Prince of Madness, Arden-Sul chose you to become his champion and [so on and so forth]. Arden-Sul was the Madness persona to Jyggalag's Order. The PC comes along and completes the MQ of SI, thereby doing the mantelling and all that. What happens at the moment of mantelling is that, all of a sudden, no one remembers that "Arden-Sul" was the Daedric Prince...it is now you, Sheogorath, and always has been in this new timeline. The name "Arden-Sul" is not completely erased from memory, though. In fact, some people remember the old Prince as a Duke of Mania. Some remember him as a Duke of Dementia. Some, such as the Zealots, remember him as the mortal (because he's dead now) aspect of "Sheogorath" (the Prince from the beginning in their eyes). Others, such as the Heretics, remember you, the PC, slightly from the pre-mantelling days. Something subconscious perhaps that makes them think that you are NOT a true god, that you are a mortal driven mad from consorting with the Daedra, which, by the way, is exactly what happened to the PC.

Don't forget...."Good Gods come and go, but all Lords eventually fall. A God can wake up mortal." The Ravings of Fenroy

The four notions presented by the in-game books are:

Mortal
Mania Duke
Dementia Duke
God

They represent all the possible stages in SI. Reminiscent of the Daggerfall Dragon Breaks.

So complete is the Break that even you, the PC, remember the Prince of Madness as "Sheogorath", although you do remember being mortal.

This theory doesn't touch on the Sheo=Jygg problem though, just what happens/happened to the Prince of Madness.

One final thought. In the text of Ravings of Fenroy, the verse goes like this:

Just You wait and see
Good Gods come and go, but
All Lords eventually fall
A God can wake up mortal.

Notice that all the capital letters spell "JYGGALAG"? I don't believe that that is a coincidence.

___The Word Merchant of Julianos

Hmm yes, Arden-Sul incarnate ruling the realm of Sheo. Quite problematic, because that would leave Sheo's realm without Sheo. Unless of course, according to popular theory, the player is just lulled into believeing (s)he is Sheo all the while real Sheo is ruling the realm. No, this scenario would just rise too many questions and problems. If not anything else, it would make the whole SI story totally pointless (okay, madness, but still). So better just think the player is Sheo and will eventually morph into him or something like that, makes the whole incindent that much less problematic

Something like this?

So the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal is a material manifestation of a Dragon Break?
....or not? IIRC, Elder Scrolls don't work with Dragon Breaks, yet there was an Elder Scroll which had power to alter the Cowl's effects.

So the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal is a material manifestation of a Dragon Break?
....or not? IIRC, Elder Scrolls don't work with Dragon Breaks, yet there was an Elder Scroll which had power to alter the Cowl's effects.

It came to my mind that Jyggalag was freed from the curse of Sheo and thus CoC became Sheo, So there is popular theory that teh CoC will eventually morph to Sheo, that is, become the silly old goat of a man that we know so well. This theory could work for the devs well obviously, because then they could wipe out the player's char in TES IV should TES V ever be made.

Now, I know that CoC is also guildmaster in all the noteworthy guilds in Tamriel. But that can be changed too. I mean perhaps Raminus comes the next
Arch-Mage ? And Modryn will perhaps become your successor in the FG? Dark Brotherhood's next boss after you is perhaps that elf lady who organizes the "quests" after you become the DB's boss? Arena guild, well there will always be new champion. Thieves guild is perhaps somewhat problem but it can probably be solved too, I mean perhaps Armand or Methedrel or that argonian male will be next gray fox (my bet is on Armand)?
And player's status as CoC, well that'll be forgotten by time and perhaps the statue in Bruma will be pillaged by some Nord war party attacking Bruma

So you see the player's char can be totally wiped out of next game as happened to Nerevarine. All problems pratically solved from devs's point of view (and for the great lament of lorists)

Edit: I forgot Knights of the 9, but they'll probably continue on their own, selecting new leader amongst them...

Sheogorath can change form you know...

Sheogorath can change form you know...

I meant that for all anyone knows sheo just happened to pick that form.
And eventually, maybe CoC will be able to. Who knows?

Unless Arden-Sul, who can arguably but logically be considered the "Mad God" before SHEOG, could do the exact same stuff he could do, then there's going to be a new Mad God doing the same stuff in a different way... if the devs make it that way, that is.

I keep saying he/she can't replace SHEOG because SHEOG already exists: if he became SHEOG, he's therefore JYG, who is currently JYG so SHEOG isn't in the forefront, that is "existing" in a superficial sense. Therefore there would be, once again, no one at the seat of Mad God, which would make the main quest utterly pointless.

I mean, come on: how can you separate something that is you?

I mean, come on: how can you separate something that is you?

I don't even think you can compare CHIM to this situation to the point where it is completely relevant. And I'm not even being a [censored] when I say this, but if the last journal entry did say that, then that would debunk my argument a little bit.

Like I said, all I've seen seems to support that the CoC is merely the Prince of Madness now and not SHEOG because JYG is SHEOG; they are (in) the same entity. If the CoC became SHEOG, he's then JYG in turn, which is illogical (in the way that things in TES can be illogical; not necessarily in the conventional sense).

JYG is lifted from the curse and nothing more; similar to how Trinimac is gone but still technically exists because he is Malacath. Is Malacath a completely different entity than Trinimac now? If so, then Trinimac isn't Trinimac and Malacath isn't Malacath; they are the same thing and require each other to exist.

If it works like you say it works, then Akatosh and Lorkhan aren't, and never were, the same person, which would throw so much of what the lore states out of whack. That means that they can separate which doesn't make sense.