I was thinking that as bad as the White Gold Concordat was for the Empire, it may not have been any better for our gold-skinned Stormtroopers. We're mostly seeing it from the Imperial perspective where they lost Southern Hammerfell and had to ban the worship of Talos but it strikes me the Thalmor didn't really gain ANYTHING except that religious strike.

After all, the Emperor deeded them territory they couldn't successfully subdue let alone add to their Empire. Likewise, while the Thalmor have time to rebuild their military forces, so has the Empire. Even the Thalmor's persecution of Talos has only stirred up worship of the Hero-God in many places as matrydom is won't to do.

It's quite possible that the Thalmor are only posturing when they think the WGC was a big victory on their behalf as it gave away their best chance for victory against the Empire.

The WGC allows the Thalmor to enforce the ban if they so choose, establish embassy's all throughout Imperial territories, and was given southern Hammerfell as well. Meanwhile, the empire boasts...nothing. Diddly. Squat. Even its detractors note that the concordant was practically similar to the list of concessions they presented to the Empire in the first place. If there was some benefit to it, we should've heard it through the course of the game.

Don't forget the destruction/outlawing of the Blades.

As to the benefit to the Empire, they were given a withdrawal of the Thalmor from all their territories save for Southern Hammerfell. Given the Thalmor managed to get to the Imperial City, that's a pretty big concession there. The embassies and Talos Ban are important but don't really do much more than allow the Thalmor to be nasty to individuals within the Empire.

If the Thalmor had a military objective of exterminating mankind to undo Nim. Well, they failed miserably.

And this is why you don't think like the Thalmor does.

Long. Cons.