It would not make sense to make a black Nord. PLEASE don't take that as racism, I'm just viewing this at a lore standpoint. It would be breaking the lore if there was a black Nord (again, please don't take that as racism.) It's like me wanting to play as an Indian, but wanting him to be white. That does not make any sense at all.

its going to be very relevant this time around considering that there wont be any attributes u will no longer be able to make up for racial differences like u culd in oblivion. i think the differences in playing races will become much more obvious now since we dont have attributes. like in oblivion if u pick a race that has plus 10 to a skill that can easily be made up for at the end of the day 100 on that skill is going to be 100. or if u pick a race that has lesser magika but than u pick a class that makes up for that u can balance it out. there are no more classes or attirbutes so any differences between the races will be harder to make up for. And i was simply using nords and redguards as an example. u also have their history to worry about. i want a character with a nord history but to appear black. i dont think its alot to ask for considering how many white races u get to choose from. i just want their to be good tweaking so i can make a nord character who is beleivably black. i dont want a nord who looks like he's supposed to be black but u can tell he's not meant to be that color. also i think it should change a few things like their noses and etc to make them appear more black. i dont see a need to change hair all too much. at the end of the day this is going to be a single player game so however little sense my one nord out of a thousand makes to u it will only be mine and nobody else will have to see it. i dont see why people seem to be so againts the idea becuz u can all make ur white colored nords if that makes more sense to u but its not liek u will ever encounter mine at any point. it helps my immersion and there are others who feel the same way i do.

there are 7 human and elf races.

i decided to re-write this thread so it is much more clear and understandable. In The Elder Scrolls Universe there are 7 human and elf races. Only 1 of these races appears to be Black. Another are dark elves and the rest appear to be white (high elves and wood elves only to a certain extent). For Immersion purposes i would like the option to be able to make any other race appear to be black. This was an option in oblivion but you could not make them look realistically black and they came out very goofy and ridiculous. You should have the option to make better tweaks to the facial structure and color option for every human and elf race (excluding dark elves) within the game. I do not beleive this makes other races look like redguards because redguard is not necessarily proxy for black. I never complain that nords look too much like imperials based on their skin color so i figure it should be possible for their to be a dramatic difference between a black imperial and a black nord. this game is a personal experience so even if people think it breaks lore which i highly disagree with since most of the lore does not state the color of any race HAS to be any specific way it should not matter because only the player character should be able to make large differences in appearance. One thing that worries me is that attributes and class are gone so it is going to be increasingly difficult to make up for racial differences by using class and attiributes so lets say if i want to be as good as magic as a high elf and still appear black i cannot pick a mage class and get high intelligence to help catch up. I would love to have a dark apperance and still share the history and advantages of being a nord and in my opinion i can still loook like a nord. A nord is supposed to be like a scandanavian but this is nirn and not earth so its okay for them to look a little different because scandanavians did not fight dragons or use magic so one more difference can't hurt. I hope this one is alot more clear to understand than my version of the post.

I don't want to be rude, but nothing you said makes any sense whatsoever

I don't want to be rude, but nothing you said makes any sense whatsoever

I get what the guy is saying, though I am unsure if it will be, or should be, implemented. The races of Men; Breton, Nord, and Imperial are synonymous with the evolutionary differences between 'races' here on earth. That is, our Scandinavians look like they do because of an evolutionary track. Of course it's more fantastical in Nirn (what with Bretons having elf blood), but the reason for skin color is evolutionary. Essentially Redguards are dark skinned because of some evolutionary trait their species picked up. Until a new group of humans that have evolved a high amount of melatonin is found on Nirn, I don't think we'll be seeing black humans.

This isn't racist, and it isn't meant to say only white people are in Nirn, it's simply that at this point and focus in the history of Nirn there hasn't been a dark skinned human race involved in the struggles of Tamriel. (The Redguard, as far as I understand it, aren't technically human.)

You shouldn't get too bent out of shape about your own skin color not being represented to all races. I don't want Argonians or Redguard to be caucasian; I want them to be what they are in the lore. I roleplay to become another character. So, go try a pale skinned nord for a time. Maybe you'll have a lot in common; maybe skin color isn't so important.

Different ethnicity (Slight differences in appearance, size or even cultures and places they live on) would add a little bit of extra flavor and depth.

I wouldn't mind it that way, in fact I'd welcome it.

But from reading the OP I think the thread title should have been "Black versions of each race", quite misleading title.

I really don't see what you're asking for then, because it seems like it was in Oblivion. Yeah, as you mentioned, the skin tone in general in Oblivion was bad, and obviously Skyrim is going to fix that. So I don't think you really have much to worry about.

I also really don't understand how you like Nords for their attributes in Oblivion but not Redguards. They were very similar, but Redguards are better melee fighters. Plus, attributes aren't even in Skyrim, so it's even less relevant.

There are four humans races, (Redguard, Breton, Imperial, Nord), four elf races, (Orc [Orsimer], High Elf [Altmer], Wood Elf [Bosmer], and Dark Elf [ Dunmer]), and two beast races (Argonian and Khajiit).

I couldn't agree more and I couldn't have said it better. I'm not saying the option shouldn't be there, but it makes no sense lore-wise.

why does that really matter when Skyrim is a single player game? i'm just asking for better race customization so when i try to make a nord character look black he does not look ridiculous. this game is a singler player game so it does not matter if it breaks the lore. the nord npc's will all be typical nords i would just like the option for better race customization so i can make my characters appear how i want.

It's not necessarily your fault if you dont like the stats that come with Redguards and I get that a lot of people struggle when it comes to making characters look like them (myself included). The fact remains that in most games, white people take center stage and have for more options and detail put into their models. Although I think TES has gone above and beyond what most franchises do, this is still evident.

So when you consider the fact that Redguards dont even have "wiry" hair, like in the lore (perhaps a few hair styles are afro textured but not the majority), I dont expect BGS to make that option available for Nords. The most you could do is create a tan Nord; his hair wont look like yours regardless. So would you be content with making a bald character?


If you want to make a chracter that looks like you, it will probably have to be a Redguard. And I kinda like it that way because I prefer to keep lore intact.

I created a red orc once for funsies. I named him Hellboy.

To be honest I havn't thought much about mixed races, though I support mixed race marriages and babies.

The thing is though... This is Nirn. Not Earth.

Also, Imperials are portrayed as the imperialistic whites, Nords are portrayed as the brutish Scandinavians, and Bretons are portrayed as these high class, British gentlemen. It's in the lore.

It would not make sense to make a black Nord. PLEASE don't take that as racism, I'm just viewing this at a lore standpoint. It would be breaking the lore if there was a black Nord (again, please don't take that as racism.) It's like me wanting to play as an Indian, but wanting him to be white. That does not make any sense at all.

This is a silly argument and a silly idea. The OP is asking for Bethesda to change lore that is more or less implied if not explicitly stated anywhere. The Imperials are a rip-off of the Romans, yes. Romans were white. While it's true that the Imperials are not actually Romans and so Bethesda could make exceptions if they want to, it wouldn't make any real sense.

OP, races are races. If a race is a white race, then the whole race is a white race. If you could make the same request in the real world you would be asking for the option to make a black white person, or an asian black person. You can't mix races like that. If you play a white race, then you're white. If you play a black race, then you're black. You dont' get the option to pick a race, then pick a ... race color? That's not how races work.

If you want to adjust the skin tone, then adjust it. That's always an option. If you want Bethesda to improve the quality of the skin tone editor then that's a great suggestion too, I would agree with you. The entire facial editor, if they have it at all, needs an overhaul.

Even so, asking to be a black white person is silly. Please don't phrase it that way.

And alas, I am not racist, I'm as black as anyone I know. It just doesn't make sense.

This is a silly argument and a silly idea. The OP is asking for Bethesda to change lore that is more or less implied if not explicitly stated anywhere. The Imperials are a rip-off of the Romans, yes. Romans were white. While it's true that the Imperials are not actually Romans and so Bethesda could make exceptions if they want to, it wouldn't make any real sense

OP, races are races. If a race is a white race, then the
whole race is a white race. If you could make the same request in the real world you would be asking for the option to make a black white person, or an asian black person. You can't mix races like that. If you play a white race, then you're white. If you play a black race, then you're black. No white person on Earth can say to God, "hey I'd like to
stay a white person, but actually be black." It makes no sense. You don't get the option to pick a race, then pick a ... race color? That's not how races work - unless you're Michael Jackson.
If you want to adjust the skin tone, then adjust it. That's always an option. I understand that characters look goofy if you do this. So, if you want Bethesda to improve the quality of the skin tone editor then that's a great suggestion too, I would agree with you. The entire facial editor, if they
have it at all, needs an overhaul.

Even so, asking to be a black white person is silly. Please don't phrase it that way.

And alas, I am not racist, I'm as black as anyone I know. It just doesn't make sense.

i want to play a black character im forced to pick redguard.