A simple question regarding Argonians.

Post » Thu Apr 25, 2013 2:22 pm

Are they cold blooded or warm blooded?

I very much apologize for what seems like a ridiculously idiotic question and yes I have used the search function, but I did not find any threads regarding this topic.

I look through various forums and guides and I run into nothing but contradictions and neither side has sources. On official material, it is never explicitly stated, on UESP even the Imperial Library (Which I am still sifting through,) doesn't seem to have an actual say in Argonian heat retention or generation. In fact, it's not said at all. Thehttp://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore_talk:Black_Marsh has a small discussion about the question of cold blooded or not, but is inconclusive. On that talk page, one person speculates that Argonians use a heat generation system that is comparable to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endotherm#Facultative_endothermy.

Additionally, I have seen a post on a roleplaying community site for ESO that states quite surely that they are cold-blooded, but fails to list sources.

However, despite all the many contradictions between players and no actual statements that assuredly say whether they are or not, I have come across one possible source.

"We are the People of the Root, called 'Argonians' by the warmbloods. We go where we will, wet or dry, and the currents of blood magic run swift in our veins. In our native land, we hunt to live, masters of the marshes. Hunted and enslaved by softskinned enemies, we snare and slay them by stealth, spell, and steel."

- Nine-Toes

While that leads me to be willing to accept that they are cold blooded, the dispute in discussions as well as official pages as well as the pages on UESP and the Imperial Library don't actually state what I believe would be a rather important fact leads me to this query. Is the entire thing about Argonians being cold blooded or not unknown and thus anyone who comes to the conclusion of whether or not they generate their own heat just speculation? I am more than willing to accept that they are cold blooded based on that little quote above from a character in Morrowind, but I would simply like to make sure, especially for the sake that as a Roleplayer who plans to play an Argonian in the upcoming MMO, I'd like to know about what can very possibly be my character's primary limitation.

So I ask you guys here, is there an actual, conclusive source that I just haven't found and can feel dumb about? Is there nothing concrete and thus we can only speculate based on what we do know of their physiology? What are your opinions?

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this.
User avatar
Poetic Vice
 
Posts: 3440
Joined: Wed Oct 31, 2007 8:19 pm

Return to The Elder Scrolls Series Discussion