I'm wondering, does anything happen outside player cell in skyrim, or is everything player-centered? I mean suppose I created some imperials using the creation kit and set them on a path north, and created some stormcloaks and set on the exact same path but going south, then I take the player character to some far away place or to an interior cell like an inn; when the stromcloaks and imperials pass one-another, will they fight each other? Or suppose I meet a merchant caravan on the road, and then we go our separate ways. Is it possible for that merchant caravan to be attacked by for example bandits when they are far away from me? Or is impossible because events don't occur outside player cell?

Q: "Why does this matter to you?"

A: Ok I know this might sound dumb to some people. After all they are in some far away cell, so what do I care? But the things is, I DO care. It's weird and I can't really explain why, but I really like it when the player is not the center of the universe; when the characters in the world can interact with each other (like bandits attacking a caravan) whether I'm there or not. That just massively improves my immersion. For some reason I also don't like it when a game tries to fake dynamicness by things like random events.

This was a feature in Oblivion. It's called low-level processing. Actors (such as Quill-Weave in Oblivion) would continue to perform actions even when they are on the other side of the game world. I haven't researched the subject in Skyrim yet so I can't tell for sure if it is also in this game or not. But I assume it is. I know I've seen Dragons circling far, far, away from where my character is standing (much farther away than the high-level processing radius of five cells).

The reason this isn't used often is that it is a tremendous strain on CPUs. Consoles (and most computers) have a difficult enough time processing AI packages within the immediate five-cell radius as it is. Adding even more actors outside this radius could really cause massive slowdowns and even possibly CTDs or freezing on all but the most powerful computers.

Spammy answer: Have you seen Toy Story?

I'm not sure if it works out to the correct answer or not. But I figured if npc's, like dragons and horses can fall outa the sky then at least some events are happening outside the PC's radius. Those could be a random scripted event IDK. JMO

I was going to bring up the same point.....

I have been walking the roads and out of nowhere bodies of bandits or even a farmer or two come falling out of the sky. I know why they are falling, twas a giant that sent them to the moon. But IF nothing happens without the player being there, then why is it that bodies will fall from the sky even though I have NOT witnessed a giant sending them to the moon?

I'm sure everyone has experienced this, have any of you been wandering around and hear the sound of someone jumping but no one was around? You know the sound the characters feet make when you land after a jump. Well if you have that's bodies falling out of the sky, you just where not quick enough to catch a glimpse of the falling body(ies). So if nothing happens without the player being there then why is it that you can witness the outcome of a bandit Vs giant fight without ever being there?

IMO some events do take place without the player being in that cell, not all but some.

Use to be in Oblivion, if an NPC was to travel to a different town, they would in fact walk to that town across the world map. It was cool to follow them sometimes. I think in Skyrim, they just disable them as they leave the current cell and enable them in the location. But, I have also come across Serena walking home a couple of days later several cells away after I dismissed her one time. So, maybe they still do this on some NPCs.