Before the Merethic Era was the Dawn Era, which cannot be counted as time wasn't fixed or even linear back as long as the gods were there. It is thus impossible to say how long the Dawn Era lasted, because any answer is equally true as all others. The Merethic Era begins with the departure of Magnus and the other gods from Nirn and lasted precisely 2500 years. It was followed by the First Era which lasted 2920 years. Then the Second Era, shorter with just 896 years. Now the Third Era in its 433rd years. Total: 6749 years.

Given the fragile nature of time, though, it may vary locally... See Dragon Break.

Darwinian natural selection could very much still be valid. Slight alterations would need to be made, consider Nirn's existence has been much shorter then Earth's, but it is still very much possible to occur. Remember, Darwin never insisted or extrapolated genetic mutation as being the initiator of natural selection. Replace DNA and solar radiation with magic, and Darwinian concepts could still be very much valid.

Well, I went walking around in the Ashlands and..

Found 2 Corpses of Stilt Striders by the Quarra Den
1 on the Way to Korgorun
2 on the Way to Zaniab Camp
1 IN Zaniab Camp
1 in Urshilaku Camp


....I believe the Developers laziness trumps lore in this case, and there are wild stilt striders...

In other words the Dawn Era might have included aspects that were billions of years long and those same aspects might also have lasted microseconds - Bingo Bongo Bango back to evolution 'plasticity' may then be explainable as a factor of this based on Darwinian evolutionary patterns. In exempla: in the space of a microsecond a couple of hundred million years of evolution might take place - all that in the Dawn Era and we have the results in the Metheric Era onwards.

Also although it looks less likely (read totally unlikely ) a giant floating jellyfish could mutate into a gigantic floating flea during the Dawn Era - especially if Sheogorrath was involved ... but really in the Dawn era would it necessarily have to have anything to do with Shoegorrath?

If Netch and Silt Strider evolved from each other before Convention, they were always separate, for all intents and purposes.

Truth there in game terms ... but in theory why and why not?

The Dawn Times as presented seem totally insane in current mortal terms - and that leaves a lot of leeway. Be interesting if they get clarified in any way - might happen only if a future TES takes place in the Dawn Ages. So the two phila could actually have come from the exact same creature who evolved part if itself into some of the one and then evolved some of those into the other. Why? Ask Sheoggorath why the Aedra and other spirits did these crazy things at all? But it seems more likely that if they came from the same creature then they were created for very different reasons.

What amazes given descriptions of the Dawn Ages is that what we see is so honogenous.

When you get that deep, in theory netch and silt striders are part of the same fractured, amnesiac being anyway, so you're going to need to find a consenting advlt to discuss that one with.

Come to think of it. The Anuad describes an evolution from gods, unfit to survive the mortal plane in to lesser, smaller beings able to do so.

Though as an explanation why there are certain creatures in certain places it might not be suitable. You'll end up explaining how the devs created certain creatures. Which is pleasantly congruent with the creation of Nirn but also unpleasantly obscure. Though the same can be said about Darwinian selection.

edit:

That last sentences refers back to the first sentence in the paragraph, not the second.



Aah. Crap. I've been citing the wrong figure by almost 800 years?

For what it's worth though 'WWYWTD' mentions that moon phases are constant during a Dragon Broke. That is how they got to the thousand and eight years.

Maybe Darwin didn't know about DNA but in his theory the mutations are random and if it should work on magic it won't be Darwinism it will by Lamarckism or something different.

Lamarkian Evolution is cultural - so that might be very true


Speculatively so far the Lore seems to see those early Gods as connected to the arrival of creatures and maybe plants, and we have Lore stating that Yffre is an Earthbone , along with various others.

But what if that was misinterpreted and each Province and all in it was originally the actual the body of a God? That could make Yffre the original being of Valenwood in a deeper sense than previously thought or give a more substantial reason for his sacrifice to become an Earthbone as in assisting a weakening Elder God and might also place Shor/Lorkhan and various events in a different light.

Heart of the World and Satakal the Worldskin have it as well. From Shezars Song, the Daedra apperently repeated the trick of making children, though didn't give them the same independence.

Seems well beyond speculation.

---

As for Y'ffre, I doubt it. Nature isn't limited to Valenwood, though that shouldn't prevent certain sects of Bosmer from claiming it is.

Interesting

I was thinking that the other Earthbones might be province-linked to different provinces too - back to my feeling that each Province is actually separate more than politically or racially.

That question stems from which parts of the Mundus were banged together in its formation or added on by the Leaping Demon-king and his accomplice

Since everything is a mindshard from the Godhead, silt striders are netches (and everything else as well). At least they are if they have found CHIM in order to realize that they are.

Not sure Siltstriders are really known for having brains ...

That would be justifying almost arbitrary lines on a map with even more arbitrary divine causes.

There have been no major changes the last 400 some years because the Empire rules all and defines where the province boundaries are. Even if the kingdoms with in fight and expand their borders, for example see the result of the Warp in the West in High Rock, the tribal areas of the Khajiit expanding in Valenwood.

You might want to look up some historical atlases of medieval Europe and near Asia to present to see how fluid borders can be.

Also as a fantasy setting the concept of races reflect their peoples cultural attitudes to some extends, not so much their actual race. It and every thing related too it should be taken in the same way as the concept was used in the 1940ties, with a fair amount of salt.

http://www.euratlas.com/time2.htm

What? Of course they have! They're even famous for having fiddly sticks stuck into it so that we can drive them like with a joystick.

Granted, being puppeteered by someone tugging at your brain cells with a stick probably creates an environment that isn't conducive to philosophical and metaphysical enlightenment resulting in godhood. But hey, you never know...

Technically still Darwinian as long as the mutations are inherited- which they seemingly are.

Just like on Earth when we can observe small-scale evolution ( human skin color for example, or that whoel clique example with the moths in industrial England) it is pretty observable on Nirn. The Breton's current physiological attributes are based on it and the Redguards have darker skin then the Nords.

And then then there's what Prowler said, though that's definitly pretty large-scale. I mean, with the glaring similarities between Nirn and Earth, the mechanism for biological change seems pretty clearly Dawrinian, though certainly not the same kind of Darwinian mechanisms as we find on Earth ( again to the drastic differences in time, the presence of magic and the possibility of DNA not even being present in Mundane creatures).

I imagine netches and silt striders evolved seperately. Silt striders have chitinous flesh and have insect characteristics (including a simple nervous system), whereas netches have air sacs, leathery tissue, and have jellyfish characteristics.

Mudcrabs are much more closely related in body structures and functions, and the habitat their name hints at, but if you proposed that, it would sound even sillier.

"The miniature silt strider run Pelagiad!"

In Lamarckism the mutations are inherited as well.

Lamarck's theory was the hereditary transmission of acquired characteristics. It has a lot of intuitive appeal, as proved by all the mythologies were something that happened during someone's life affected all their descendant. Just look at how "Adam's Apple" in men's throats is called. (Or how for a long time people were taught that boys have one less rib than girls...)

To a very limited extent, Lamarck isn't completely wrong. An acquired characteristic can be transmitted by the mother to her children during gestation, for example if she has AIDS... (The counter-argument would be that a disease isn't a characteristic. Anyway.)

The way how Lamarckism is more mythically appealing makes it more probable in a myth-built universe like TES.

That's true. But Lamarckism isn't exactly possible either. If that were the case, scars, injury and skills would be transferred to children, which they clearly are not. Lamarckism really never works in a world where the intelligent races behave as similarly to humans as of the ones in TES.

I would say it is still Darwinism. The mantra of Darwinism is "survival of the fittest" while the Lamarckism mantra is "use it or lose it".

Now that I think of it, Darwinism may not be entirely correct. Darwinism relies on RANDOM mutation, while in TES, many mutations that are intentional do indeed exist.

Because their cultural and racial memories determined it. You use it, and you can lose it, as did the Mythic Dawn who killed their mothers and joined Mankar.

Just a dumb question... Why does everyone call it sTilt Striders, when they're called Silt Striders in the game?

Stilt makes sense if you look at the creature, but so does Silt.

Yea it must be! How are you supposed to become a great lumberjack and take revenge on the tree that killed your father when the greatest lumberjack isn't around to teach you? Fight shrubs?