I wanted to know more lore on the land of Skyrim, so I went to uesp and I read about Ysgramor and his Five Hundred Companions and how they were able to drive all of the Falmer from from Skyrim. And I thought that must have been a pretty impressive feat to accomplish. Then I started to think and I was wondering if any of you lore buffs could maybe clarify this so, how was Ysgramor able to conquer all of Skyrim with just five hundred men?

First off, check out the http://imperial-library.info/content/five-hundred-mighty-companions-or-thereabouts-ysgramor-returned.

These were the early days of myth and legend, when heroes of epic stature strode out of the northern mists into the home of man.

Think of those five hundred as being like Odysseus and Achilles and Hector. And remember that feats performed in the far distant past tend to be subject to exaggeration or conflation. But on the other hand, the Spanish conquered the Americas with even fewer numbers, so make of it what you will.

Cortes took Tenochtitlan with around 800 Spaniards and tens of thousands of Mexican allies.

And Frontier, Conquest, Accommodation tells us Ysgramor was simply the last of a long line of Atmoran immigrants.

I was thinking Pizarro more than Cortes, but even so. Even with the (usually unmentioned) allied tribes, waltzing into a continent with 800 men and bringing down one of its greatest empires is a hell of an accomplishment.

It's because they were werewolves (berserkers).

They were dragons, not men. Certainly not dogs.

Frontier conquest was written by a deluded, imperialist butt-thumber.