Background stories for your character

[Sahdira]

Of course background are important. How else does one know where she goes if she does not know where she came from?

For example, Sahdira's Grandmother was born into slavery and freed by Imperial soldiers. She is a citizen of the Empire. So Sahdira sees the side of the Imperials more than she understands the plight of the Stormcloaks. She lost her mother in childbirth and was abandoned by her father. So she knows she sympathizes with grieving families and she has an underlying sense of rejection, which is masked by arrogance. She was raised by her grandmother who was taught to be an alchemist and her kin's patriarch who was trained to be a game warden. So she knows she favors these skills and has a sense of curiosity and reverence for nature. And because of this she wears practical clothes and is often dirty. So she is the subject of mockery by those who value money. So, she knows she is prejudiced against the rich. She is generous to those who are poor and hard working. And she came to Skyrim by accident and she was separated from her clan. So she knows that she is lonely. She seeks out friends. And she will do anything she can to get home.

 

[Rimfaxe96]

My background story? Well, uhm...

Violating the law, in a way. If the damned Stormcloaks hadn't been around my escape route it would have worked. ><
Ah well, at least Princess Peach is safe from the Thalmor now.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

My background story? Well, uhm...

Violating the law, in a way. If the damned Stormcloaks hadn't been around my escape route it would have worked. ><
Ah well, at least Princess Peach is safe from the Thalmor now.

Mario or Luigi? probably Luigi - he's skinny enough to sneak.

 

[Black Ice]

Runic is an Imperial/Nord escapee Dark Brotherhood assassin from Cyrodil after someIsome imperial soldiers stumbled across and ransacked his sanctuary. His father stayed behind to cover Runic and his brother and mothers escape and is presumed dead. After that his family lived in the wildness along the border of Cyrodil and skyrim for around a few years where Runic perfected his techniques with his older brother Azurel. One day him and Azurel were out wandering when they stumbled upon a cave with 2 hagraven. Azurel managed to save Runic from one but was mortally injured in the process. Runic decided to fight the other hagraven alone and in the process got easily knocked aside and also acquired a three gash scar on his face from where the hagraven swiped him. After he was easily defeated Azurel ran in to defense of Runic even though he was dying. The hagraven killed Azurel via decapitation. As Runic saw his brothers head roll to his feet, he picked up his twin daggers and rushed the hagraven again. Minutes seemed like hours as magic flew, screams echoed, and bloodshed splattered painting the walls of the cave. In the end the 14 year old Runic stood over the hagraven ready to deal the final blow. But before he could do it Runic was cursed with a lycanthropy spirit named Z, yel which now lives in his inner world. Forever trying to devour him. A year later Runics last living relative, his mother had died of rock joint. Afterwards Runic in nothing but rags decided to cross the border into skyrim.

^ that's just a brief overview. The much more detailed history can be found in the character profile link in my signature.

You know the rest from there.

 

[Rimfaxe96]

Mario or Luigi? probably Luigi - he's skinny enough to sneak.

Mario? Luigi? Pfft, nah, Rimfaxe! Without my assistance those two fellas would be dead by now!

 

[jarif]

The only one that does not have a proper back story is my canon Dovahkiin. I have ideas for him but don't expand him. I use the dialogue given in the game and small details.
What I normally do for pretty much anything. I have a general idea and I make it up as I go along as a draft than I go to see what I like and dislike but this it is still in its draft stage. Than I pretty much rewrite or think in your mind the whole story but using your draft. Or...... You can get a extremely awesome and nice person to do it for you (If you are that person, this is a compliment)

 

[Harc]

Indaryl is a wizard of house Telvanni. But is the cousin of Arch-Mage Aren. So Indaryl lurks around the college. He wants to work with another one of his Telvanni brethren instead of working with an annoying Thalmor and novice students. So Savos sends him to work for someone that Indaryl will regret to "work with"

 

[Anouck]

I created a wood elf hunter. I want to write down some background information about him, but I don't really have inspiration. I am looking for a reason why this character left Valenwood (maybe violation of the Green Pact or problems within his tribe?). Since he is a skilled archer I really want archery to be an important part of his history.

Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[LotusEater]

I created a wood elf hunter. I want to write down some background information about him, but I don't really have inspiration. I am looking for a reason why this character left Valenwood (maybe violation of the Green Pact or problems within his tribe?). Since he is a skilled archer I really want archery to be an important part of his history.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Maybe something happened to the migratory tree city he was living on. Maybe it stopped migrating and he needs a certain artifact to get it walking again. I dunno, I rarely go back that far in character backstory but I like them wood elf hunter builds. Perhaps you need to soak 100, 200, 500... whatever amount of Taproots in the Headwaters of Harstrad and take them back to heal/revive your tree. Maybe he manned a post on the tree or was even in charge of the archers protecting it.

Hey, you asked for ideas... you said nothing about good ones.

 

[Wildroses]

I created a wood elf hunter. I want to write down some background information about him, but I don't really have inspiration. I am looking for a reason why this character left Valenwood (maybe violation of the Green Pact or problems within his tribe?). Since he is a skilled archer I really want archery to be an important part of his history.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Valenwood is part of the Aldmeri Dominion, so you have the option of him running to Skyrim because he's in trouble with the Thalmor. There are a lot of options for 'in trouble with the Thalmor'. Maybe he was actively working against him and got found out. Maybe he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and the Thalmor incorrectly decided he was working against him. Or maybe it was a relative or close friend who pissed off the Thalmor so much they've decided to punish their innocent family and friends as well.

To make archery important, what I'd probably do is make this character be taught by or practiced archery with someone he loved very much (you have a choice of parent, sibling, childhood friend, or lover there), whom the Thalmor recently murdered. Your archer clings to archery in honour of their memory. If you feel your character needs to up a level in badassery, maybe he's fleeing Valenwood because he killed the Thalmor who murdered the person he loved in vengeance.

There are some ideas. Feel free to use them or not.

 

[DrunkenMage]

Sometimes the simple back story is the best, over think it and you get into the weird. Not every back story needs to be morbid or depressing, your Bosmer Hunter could simply be going across Tamriel to kill something in every province. Perhaps to prove his worth to Hircine or maybe his family had already lived in Skyrim.

One of the things that some people tend to do is assume when making a back story is just because you're that race, you left Valenwood.

Your character could have been born in Skyrim and learned to hunt from his parents. Don't always need a grand story.

 

[jarif]

Finally decided to create a backstory for my main Dovahkiin character. It's been written quite simple and not very detailed so enjoy
Name: Humza
Age: 23. - 25 after a possible time skip
Moral: Pacifist
Occupation: Adventurer, harbinger, scholar

Back story:

There was once a prince, a prince of Atmora. Where a war blazed in one part of the region. Witnessing wars at a young age and the death of his parents at the age of 5 with his own eyes. Forced into poverty and being a orphan, starving for months; he was
lucky to been able to survive by scavenging food, even if it was through stealing from dead
corpses and drinking water from all kinds of places for 2 years.

Months after months, the prince traveled acrossed the land which to his demise he feinted
after severe starvation but in his luckyness, by chance; he stumbled upon a man with grey
robes as he woken up into a bed of hospitality. The prince was soon taken in and eventually
found a new home as the man in the robes soon became his beloved uncle.
The wise uncle passed knowledge to the prince, which he was home schooled.

The prince was token into Cyrodil at the age of 16 but a year later at that time, the
princes uncle had passed away from old age, the prince had went to a college and lived in
there. Since the prince had been old enough, he was persuaded to take some mead by a fellow
Imperial who hated the Thalmor meaning he got the prince drunk along with some skooma which
led to him punching one of the Thalmor ambassadors, kicking another ones balls and setted
the place on fire. Their was a slight amnesia but it ultimately led the prince to go on the
run. After a couple of years, his travels led him to go to Skyrim.

(Btw at this point, he isn't a big problem for the Thalmor, maybe a little bit because they were humiliated and Humza did damage a expensive College)

This was mainly inspired by the video game Prince of Persia: Sands of time but also Gophervids character of Richard (it is a slight ripoff)

 

[Amaryllis]

Sometimes the simple back story is the best, over think it and you get into the weird. Not every back story needs to be morbid or depressing, your Bosmer Hunter could simply be going across Tamriel to kill something in every province. Perhaps to prove his worth to Hircine or maybe his family had already lived in Skyrim.

There's no reason it NEEDS to be morbid and depressing, but considering the situation Skyrim throws you into, it certainly helps with immersion. Unless you're using an alternate start mod (I do, personally, but I know a lot of people don't), are there really very many good reasons to randomly be in a prison cart with some of the most notorious men and women in all of Tamriel? If you're some tourist from Valenwood, then what's the deal? I mean, realistically, if you happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time cavorting through the forest, maybe they'd grab you just to be safe, but to just straight up EXECUTE you? And not just that; you're literally the first person they send up to the block (the guy before you basically shoved his way up there), before confirmed war criminal Ulfric Stormcloak and his major lieutenants. They aren't perfect by any stretch, but the Imperials are never portrayed as bloodthirsty savages just killing people for the hell of it. You did something, or at least were suspected of doing something. Even if they were just afraid of you as a witness to Ulfric's unjust execution (you know, how they skipped giving him any sort of trial), it would make more sense to just keep you prisoner. There's a record of you SOMEWHERE, and there's going to need to be some sort of justification as to why you suddenly don't have a head anymore. So it's either a flaw in the narrative (to treat you like you were born the very second the game opened with no past at all), or you need a reason. Being in trouble with the Thalmor would even be a pretty good reason: they saw you, and it was their influence that got you sent to the block first. It would also make a good reason for the Imperials to cut the execution and be buddy-buddy with you the second the dragon attacked, as once the direct pressure from the Thalmor let up, they were all too happy to let you live. General Tullius doesn't care that you killed some Thalmor in a completely different empire.

Obviously, if you start in any way other than the conventional one, you don't need to rationalize the Helgen scene. However, having a traumatic past is still generally more interesting than 'was born in Rorikstead, and has lived there forever' unless you're just planning to play a very limited, specific portion of the game for RP purposes. Random farmer on his way to Markarth to sell leeks might get attacked by marauders and find his way into some adventure, but the likelihood of them also becoming the most famous bounty hunter in the land, Thane of five holds, and spearheading the Imperial offensive in the civil war is probably not on the list.

 

[DrunkenMage]

You were captured in the same ambush as Ulfric and his men, being in the same general radius of the capture. You were suspected of being a Stormcloak, hence why Lokir is pleading with Ralof to denounce yours and his involvement.

The crime you're suspected of would be accessory to high treason. Ulfric's execution wasn't unjust, that was merely Ralof's opinion. Ulfric's crimes and the Stormcloaks who are with him, their punishment is death. Has been since the game Daggerfall. There isn't a need for a trial, they know Ulfric killed the High King, Ulfric doesn't deny he killed his High King. Also, trials rarely happen in the provinces, especially in Skyrim which violence is acceptable part of Nordic culture.

There wasn't a need to keep you as a prisoner, it was a misunderstanding and you were thought to have been a rebel. Also law in Tamriel is 'Guilty until proven innocent' so unless the Stormcloaks had denounced you as one of their ranks, then the Imperials would have to follow that up or they would be in the wrong. Simply not being on a list isn't enough.

The Thalmor were in Helgan trying to stop the execution to save Ulfric Stormcloak, so the Thalmor sending you to Helgan would be unlikely. Unless you violated the White-Gold Concordat, the Thalmor can't force the Empire to arrest an Imperial citizen. Markarth is the perfect example where the Thalmor can't arrest one Nord without evidence, so they ask you to break into his house.

Tullius changed his mind and headed into Helgan, they were heading for Cyrodiil at first. Though the Thalmor would hardly let their plans be stopped by a very slow moving prison convoy, they did show up in Helgan quite quickly which meant they were watching very closely.

The Empire and the Thalmor are not exactly friendly with each other, Tullius hates the Thalmor with a passion. Almost enough for he himself to commit treason.

It is also a recurring theme to start of as a prisoner in an Elder Scrolls game, allows you to create your own back story. There is a record of you, Hadvar writes your name on the list when you finish character creation.

 

[Amaryllis]

Being in the same general radius means what? Being in roughly the same quadrant of Skyrim? You weren't sharing a cookfire with the Stormcloaks thinking they were just dudes chance met on the road when the Imperials swooped down on you. They got ambushed, presumably while attempting to stage an ambush themselves, or attack something (this is stated in game). Would you have been following them? It's doubtful. And it makes no sense that they'd have 'suspected you of being a traitor' because you happened to inhabit the same forest at the time. That's ridiculous. You're in your underwear. Are they assuming you were the newest Stormcloak, just in for your hazing right while Ulfric and Co. attempt to carry out some secret mission nextdoor? And Lokir is begging because he's supposed to be a coward, to outline how brave everyone else is (and also endear you to Ralof, since you're the one not moaning endlessly). If they actually DO suspect you of being Stormcloaks, they're certainly not going to spare you just because the guys harrying them with surprise guerilla raids say that you're totally not. Oh no, Imperials, they're DEFINITELY not with us. *wink*

Yes, the Thalmor are in Helgen at the time to try and stop Ulfric's execution. It doesn't affect anything potentially related to you in this scenario (which is why I said it). The Thalmor attempting to stop Ulfric's execution does not prevent them from noticing you while they were there. Whether or not Tullius intended to listen to them with Ulfric, it could have easily been an attempt to placate them by having you executed anyway so as to lighten political backlash, since he has no idea who you are and you don't seem to 'cost' anything. A compromise that gets tossed out the window as soon as the dragon attacks, because he didn't actually ever have anything against you anyway.

I'm aware that ES games always start you out as a prisoner. That doesn't mean it still isn't horrifyingly dumb if you take it at face value. It's not really an attempt to let you make your own backstory, it's just 'what Elder Scrolls games do.' It would be easy enough to let you make your own backstory by letting you select some vague general things when you made your character. And so, there are holes all over every ES game's opening that you have to fill yourself. The GAME assumes that you are a morally erratic, obsessive-compulsive nutcase, if we're taking the way it frames you as some kind of canon.

The point being, you have to make up for the game's shortcomings, and its treatment of you as a CHARACTER (as opposed to a vessel for the player to do quests with), is probably the shortest...coming of them all.

 

[DrunkenMage]

Being in the same general radius means what? Being in roughly the same quadrant of Skyrim? You weren't sharing a cookfire with the Stormcloaks thinking they were just dudes chance met on the road when the Imperials swooped down on you. They got ambushed, presumably while attempting to stage an ambush themselves, or attack something (this is stated in game).

You were caught in the same ambush, with them. What is stated in game is that "Hey, you. You're finally awake. You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there."

There is no mention they were attempting to stage an ambush or attack anything.

Would you have been following them? It's doubtful. And it makes no sense that they'd have 'suspected you of being a traitor' because you happened to inhabit the same forest at the time. That's ridiculous. You're in your underwear. Are they assuming you were the newest Stormcloak, just in for your hazing right while Ulfric and Co. attempt to carry out some secret mission nextdoor? And Lokir is begging because he's supposed to be a coward, to outline how brave everyone else is (and also endear you to Ralof, since you're the one not moaning endlessly). If they actually DO suspect you of being Stormcloaks, they're certainly not going to spare you just because the guys harrying them with surprise guerilla raids say that you're totally not. Oh no, Imperials, they're DEFINITELY not with us. *wink*

Lokir is begging because he is about to be executed for treason. Hence why he is begging Ralof to say you and him aren't with the Stormcloaks, that you aren't rebels.

Lokir: "No! Wait! We're not rebels!"
Ralof: "Face your death with some courage, thief."
Lokir: "You've got to tell them! We weren't with you! This is a mistake!"

Lore wise, Lokir's crime as a thief isn't something you are executed over. You were captured with Ulfric and the Stormcloaks.

By law they would have to follow it up if the Stormcloaks denounced you. Hence why I said if they didn't the Legion would be in the wrong, had Ralof denounced you as one of them and the Imperials ignored it. Then it would be unjust, since by Imperial law there is doubt on your crime.

It makes perfect sense they suspect you of being one of the Stormcloaks, there are only two laws in the Empire that if broken the punishment is an execution. Tullius and Hadvar both tell you it was a misunderstanding that you weren't supposed to be on the cart with the Stormcloaks.

Yes, the Thalmor in Helgen at the time to try and stop Ulfric's execution. It doesn't affect anything potentially related to you in this scenario (which is why I said it). The Thalmor attempting to stop Ulfric's execution does not prevent them from noticing you while they were there. Whether or not Tullius intended to listen to them with Ulfric, it could have easily been an attempt to placate them by having you executed anyway so as to lighten political backlash, since he has no idea who you are and you don't seem to 'cost' anything. A compromise that gets tossed out the window as soon as the dragon attacks, because he didn't actually ever have anything against you anyway.

The Thalmor can't pressure the Legion into having someone executed, unless they breach the White-Gold Concordat. The execution in Helgen wasn't a planned event, Tullius was heading for Cyrodiil when he suddenly changed his mind.

I'm aware that ES games always start you out as a prisoner. That doesn't mean it still isn't horrifyingly dumb if you take it at face value. It's not really an attempt to let you make your own backstory, it's just 'what Elder Scrolls games do.' It would be easy enough to let you make your own backstory by letting you select some vague general things when you made your character. And so, there are holes all over every ES game's opening that you have to fill yourself. The GAME assumes that you are a morally erratic, obsessive-compulsive nutcase, if we're taking the way it frames you as some kind of canon.

The idea of the prisoner was to give the player a blank canvas for role play. You create your own back story as to how you got there. The game doesn't assume you're anything, the point is that it is their trade mark starting as a prisoner, but also if you do have some imagination even a limited imagination there are lots of ways to create a back story.

"In Elder Scrolls IV you start in prison and if you want to think you’re a good character then this is obviously a mistake." - Todd Howard

Your character can be a criminal or they're not, that is up to you.

You can create any story you wish, though my original post was towards Anouck who wants a lore correct story.

 

[Amaryllis]

I honestly don't see where you're disagreeing with me at this point. You think a less 'traumatic' story with less tragedy and murder and betrayal and likelihood of sad Evanescence songs playing in the background would be a welcome change, and you are totally entitled to this opinion. It's certainly an option.

I'm just saying, it's hard to have that make sense in light of the opening (the circumstances of which are much less defined than you seem to think). I'm sure it isn't impossible, but you're definitely going to have to do some narrative gymnastics and a healthy bit of squinting to get things looking the right way. I could sit here and point out the inconsistencies all night with everything in the opening, and how if taken at face value it seems utterly and completely detached from literally everything else in the world, like a piece of fanfiction was tacked onto the front of some other story. Even that dialogue you quoted. But will it mean anything to you? Or will this just end up becoming something silly in a thread that was made for people to flex their creative muscles with their newly made toons? I'd rather not totally derail the thing.

One thing though, and it will be my last piece of input in this topic (unless it's to be all WHEE CHARACTER PROFILE).

RE: that one guy saying stuff about Elder Scrolls IV being 'open'

In Oblivion, your imprisonment was COMPLETELY general. Absolutely nothing was told to you about how you ended up there, why you were there, how long you would be in there (that Dunmer hardly being a credible source), what would happen to you. You COULD have come there by mistake. You could have been the Count of Monte Cristo betrayed by your friends, you could have been a stone-hard killer in for life, or you could have been some putz that accidentally grabbed a ham off a store counter while trying to levitate it, and you didn't have the money to pay off the guards. NOTHING was decided, because the Imperials had not committed anything to you. You weren't tortured, you weren't slated for execution, they never even spoke to you at all (as far as we know in the game). You could have been scheduled to get out that afternoon, as soon as your lawyer got all the paperwork straight. Their only reaction was to be like WHO DIS?! when they were trying to escort the Emperor, which seems like a natural reaction regardless of who you were. In Skyrim, you are on a cart in a convoy of high traitors on their way to execution, even though they 'don't know who you are.' Sans unexpected dragon intervention, there is only one possible conclusion to this story, and it's up to each of us to try and make the lead up to it not sound as ridiculous as possible. Hence all the trauma and such.

 

[DrunkenMage]

The point of my first post was that sometimes the simple back story can be the best. I wasn't saying you shouldn't have super sad, heartbreaking background. I wasn't disagreeing with you that you can have a morbid back story, I was disagreeing to certain parts that were lore related because you replied to my post that was directed to Anouck. Who has been wanting a lore correct background.

You can role play anything you desire, I was simply making sure Anouck got what she wanted when it comes to her background that fits in without contradiction of lore.

When it comes to Oblivion, I always found it strange how your character knew the exact punishment for necrophilia but was clueless to everything else. Our crime 200 years ago has been solved, our character was a sick bastard.

 

[ZPfor3]

Bump because I want to hear more interesting stories!

 

[Jeremius]

Hello again. I do a bit of a backstory for my characters. Namely my Nord warrior:

Jorunn Wolf-Heart's family has a seat on the elder council, which is owned by his hot-headed younger sister. When someone sent an assassin to kill her, Jorunn caught the assassin and chased the cretin to Skyrim where he was captured on false charges of attempted murder.

 

[Matsuu]

Right now I'm playing a Nord, Mattis, who grew up along the border on Cyrodiil's side. He very much has Nord pride and detests the Aldmeri Dominion and the Thalmor, having now slain many Thalmor Justiciars in his travels. That said, he's otherwise well-reasoned and understands why the Empire is conducting matters the way they are; this places him on neutral ground.

His father was full-bred Nord, a master craftsman for the Empire who had honed his skills in various related trades, but had moved the family to the countryside for a more solitary, agrarian life. He was, however, well-read, which is what won the affection and love of his wife, Mattis' mother. She was half Nord, half Imperial, though it's suspected that some of her family's features bear Redguard similarities, such as their kinked and curly, albeit light hair. She was an astute scholar and writer with a piercing intellect, though the countryside and agrarian values called to her as well.

It is believed that Mattis' father came from a bloodline of peasants who nevertheless bore a few clever children with a knack for problem-solving and, more often, problem-creating--They loved mischief, especially regarding the affairs of nobles and Jarls. They were, however, rarely unconscionable or irreverent towards the chair and in matters of Nord security, they were fiercely loyal to their leaders (granted those leaders were just).

Mattis' mother came from a long line of well-educated scholars and scribes, many of whom were also knights and, much later in Cyrodiil's development, soldiers.

Mattis himself was educated primarily by his parents on the homestead, but he took countless trips to the academies and made a few close friends. He trained extensively in his favorite tools of combat, the sword and shield, even developing his own style of shield-and-katana. He also learned much about black- and gold-smithing from his father, and a love of literature was fostered in him by his mother.

Mattis loved adventure and hiking, and was out beyond the border into Skyrim doing just that when he was captured alongside Ulfric and his small group of Stormcloaks. With the arrival of Alduin at Helgen, and because he was too far from the border to simply return home, Mattis sought shelter in Riverside. It was there that Mattis decided he would at least warn Jarl Balgruuf of the dragon before his return home, but after slaying Mirmulnir--a feat of immeasurable luck--and subsequently discovering he was Dragonborn, his fate became bound with that of Skyrim's.