Skyrim, But It’s A Movie | The Last Dragonborn

[@Stonebru]

Hello, Stonebru here. As referred, I've been a part of the project since its inception, and my only direct role beyond general personal opinions throughout was lore control. Much like Xarthius, Skyrim was a big game for me in my younger years and inspired me likewise. I came into Skyrim having experienced Oblivion, and had high hopes which were not let down. Unlike him however, my love for the game did not extend to modding like his, and relied solely on the original game Bethesda gave us. Of course, I massively admire many modding achievements, but I have always preferred vanilla Skyrim myself. In this project and as a purist, I could not in good faith stray far from what was given. Of course there are creative leniencies that had to be made, and I hope that those leniencies for any of you die hard lore lovers are understandable. The world of magic in the The Elder Scrolls franchise is so open-ended that it felt like the best place to have taken small liberties for the sake of creativity, and to give Xarthius the tools to create something new out of something old. There were many a night and conversations where we would battle against one another over whether or not the lore could contain his ideas. We'd spend too long arguing over why it could; why it couldn't; why it should; or why it shouldn't. The story laid out here today is one that took a lot of time to craft, and I can confidently say satisfies my own purist tendencies. Even if something does not seem to make sense early on in the story, I would like to say I accounted for it due to it being within the confines of the lore. Please do enjoy it, there is a much bigger story planned here from Xarthius, and there's much more to come with the lore becoming increasingly more relevant.

[@RocketMan-1103]

Can't wait for a Part Two!

[@RK-tx5lb]

Beautiful story and very well done! 👍 Like you, i have played Skyrim vanilla since 2011, although i have started playing the mod extension quests only since a few weeks. For years, the vanilla game was enough to play and like and i played it several times over. This movie is a very pleasant surprise and i will be viewing it several times to come. The atmosphere, the lore, it all fits perfectly. Very well done! If there's a part 2 in the making, i will be eagerly waiting! Thank you! 👍

[@anthonycliftonjones2564]

A great introduction. As a Lore Master do you know if Ulfric has Dunmer Blood. I read somewhere or perhaps I dreamt about it, that Ulfric is descended from Barenziah and Prince Helseff of Morrowind. What are your thoughts, because I felt that the story never took his lineage into account with the zenophobic tendencies that the Nords of Windhelm had to the Dunmer settlers in the Gray Quarter.

[@Stonebru]

@@anthonycliftonjones2564 It is certainly not something that I am aware of within the game universes. Of course I am no omisicent all knowing man myself and I may simply not know about it. As far as the Stormcloak family line and my own knowledge goes, there is only 1 solid references to Ulfric's predecessors. That being Mera from ESO who the Vesitge meets and can work alongside. Seeing as the events of ESO are 2nd Era and Skyrim itself is 4th Era year 201 at the start, it is at least possible a Dunmer ancestor could exist in the bloodline somewhere between those Eras but I don't know of any confirmed/insinuated ancestors. Mera herself is similar in appearance to Ulfri, being fair skinned and having blonde hair which simply suggests to me that the Stormcloak line all follow the same characteristics visually, and it would appear are somewhat fully Nordic to me if such an appearance remains 2 Eras later. That is an assumption though of course.

[@jackvai2681]

IF ONLY BETHESDA LOVED SKYRIM AS MUCH AS WE LOVE IT!

[@TheJynxtherat]

They used to... At one time or another. Then some greedy bugger in a towering office realized just how much money they lost in profits from other games they produced because: "Nothing anyone makes, now, can compare to SKYRIM!"

[@dranzerjetli5126]

Their games are outdated af

[@lance7909]

Absolute CINEMA!!! This was 1000x more entertaining than most shows on Disney+ great work guys!

[@deadsoul7409]

This further proves that we need an elder scrolls show.......

[@vonkjbgames9739]

If done by HBO then hell yeah

[@iwanttobelieve9496]

Yeah, right. Any "professional" show would inform us of the MC's pronouns before the furst episode was 10 minutes in. No thanks.

[@filipsladecek270]

This is very nice - to see people doing this stuff because of their love for a piece of masterpiece

[@joshuabarnhart9028]

"There's something in the outhouse you must see" -Wilson "ohh no, I'm not falling for that one again".

[@reladjoe]

Thoroughly impressed. Great job from both a technical and storytelling aspect. Looking forward to more of your content. Thank you for sharing this.

[@xarthius]

@@reladjoe Thank you so much, that means a lot. Being able to share it with the community is my pleasure honestly. I hope you’ll enjoy what’s to come as much as I’ve enjoyed creating it!

[@slm8025]

ESO FAN HERE, Milo gets my vote for the Academy Award actually. Just a wonderful production- without the beheadings, this could be seen as PG! LOL!!!! US Army Retired- I loved it! great job!-SLM

[@-Reminiscence]

Lovingly crafted masterpiece with a fresh outlook and oh so beautiful music. I will be back for more. Thank you so much for this.

[@Fwd99]

That's totally an amazing movie, great job guys 🫡🫡

[@mirabal73]

Anyway this would be the closest to a proper movie we could have, nice job!

[@anthonycliftonjones2564]

I have actually played a dnd roleplay of both Oblivion and Skyrim and set up stories for my friends, acting as the DM. I always felt there was more to the story and the history than was represented in the games. As a former archaeologist i tend to think about how ordinary people lived in the kingdom of Skyrim and would often roleplay in game as a simple hunter, ranger and hedge knight.

[@mlodyvergil6958]

Bro that's not a movie that's a freaking MASTERPIECE! I can't even describe how I feel right now. Definitely waiting for more.

[@xarthius]

@@mlodyvergil6958 Wow I’m honoured, thank you! I hope it only gets better!

[@manaturipa4017]

an actual elder scrolls movie would be epic with proper screenwriters and one of the best directors with top of the art cgi it would be expensive but worth it I can see a movie like that would millions maybe even billions

[@jacobhowton9160]

Brilliant, absolutely amazing I love it 10 out of 10

[@messiah24ms]

I can't wait for the second part

[@thegamingdutchman2280]

I remember having this idea months ago, nice that someone actually did this

[@raysgonefishing3271]

Holy cow thats the best Skyrim i have ever seen. Hope there's more soon.

[@aaronaaron8604]

You did a great job! I love how you twist the story in unexpected ways! Please keep making this stuff!

[@xarthius]

@@aaronaaron8604 Thank you, that means a lot! I wanted to tell a slightly different story from the one we all know and love, but I didn’t wish for it to lose what makes it feel like Skyrim. I hope I found a nice balance, more coming soon!

[@happymom73]

Amazing job. Looking forward to seeing more. Thank you so much for sharing this with the rest of us.

[@xarthius]

@@happymom73 Thank you! It’s really my pleasure. I hope I can turn this something the community can be proud of :)

[@t-d0ggofficial540]

Wow. Just wow. Wilson seems to have some type of ability with the eyes. Milo, what a good name for the dog, the twist with the dragon fight, the mods you used just to make this, damn….. all I can really say now is PART 2!!! I’ll definitely be waiting for it.

[@ldcraig2006]

My favorite guard at 45:05. "We're so dead." 🤣😂 Clever use of helmets, masks and long-distance shots so you wouldn't have to animate mouths for talking. Unless I'm mistaken, this seems to be a send-up of all the characters you've played who were Dragonborn, all rolled into one story, with the main theme being this mysterious mage using whatever available body they can get to deposit the Dragonborn's soul into. Oops, the Nord died; let's stick him into the Redguard. Oh, the dragon ate the Redguard...hmmm...this Orc is available. It's like Akatosh and Arkay are scrambling to keep the Dragonborn in the game.

[@xarthius]

This is the comment right here! In regards to animating the dialogue, you're correct. When I first started, I wasn't actually sure if I could lip-sync custom dialogue. It took *too* long to figure out how to do it, but the masks and helmets obviously saved a lot of time in that regard, similarly with some shots being further away- If the lip-sync doesn't come out too well for a certain section of dialogue, for example. Cicero is the funniest in that regard, because the only reason I felt it necessary to cover his face was because the Skyrim lip-sync animations are utterly incapable of accurately expressing the voice actors performance- it was a real mess lol. In reference to the overall plot of the story- I wanted a way to incorporate all of the different faction storylines into a single comprehensive narrative, in a way that didn't make the Dragonborn appear to be a total psychopath. There's a lot more lore behind the nature and mechanisms of the switching to be revealed, and I'd like to think me and my lore-master Stonebru have done a good job at keeping the precise details of the mystery under-wraps for the time being. Rest assured though- Every detail of the story has been mapped out in its entirety, and if things go to plan I think it'll be a story well worth telling!

[@Stonebru]

Without either of us spoiling anything yet, you're on the right track. It is a story that will feel more comprehensive as it becomes more fleshed out.

[@michelspedding2032]

Wow! That was amazing. The production, the scipt, the beauty of the scenes. That's a lot of work, but worth it. Keep up the good work, really breathtaking.

[@capnhowdy3406]

Spectacular! Can't wait for more!

[@devil-in-law]

bravo! this is freaking fantastic! i cannot wait to see how you guys have woven something completely new out of all the familiar plotlines & story arcs we already know if not love, lol. definitely now subbed & eagerly awaiting more!

[@xarthius]

@@devil-in-law Thank you! There’s a lot more story and lore to come, old and new!

[@Late_Kill]

Damn it, i had planning to make this kind of video for skyrim but someone already make it. Its alright, you have done well my friend. Great job indeed.

[@dm_brad]

I had been planning something similar too. You still could make your own take on it. I know I would watch it.

[@Detective97]

Just started watching, but love this! I always imagined that the dragonborn was illegally crossing the border, along with some other criminals like Lokir. I assumed the stormcloaks were smuggling something across the borders too and that's when Ulfric and Ralof were caught by the imperials. The Imperials decided to hand out immediate judgement and not hold trial for everyone involved because an investigation would take time and this was too sensitive a matter. So they decided to execute everybody caught at that border dispute to get rid of Ulfric.

[@Blackthorne-y7q]

Loved the video! Very well done!

[@BorgWolf359]

Okay this was very unique! I love the crossing of the Factions in your storyline! I am looking forward to more! Liked & Subbed!

[@sheriroach8254]

Wow this movie makes me love Skyrim even more, great job!!

[@spookydovah1441]

This was very well done congrats 🎉 I very much enjoyed that. I'm playing Skyrim now and we were almost in sync from Bleak Falls Barrow to Mirminur. I'm looking forward to more of this and you have a new subscriber. 🙋‍♀️

[@Boubi15]

Damn, I don't know what to say. This game has been my favourite for 7 years, I have more than 2000 hours on it and have seen many videos about it and this, this was probalby one of, if not the best video I have seen since I started picking an interest for Skyrim. I can only say bravo for all the efforts you must have put into it. Keep going fellow Dragonborn !

[@xarthius]

@@Boubi15 That means so much, thank you! I really poured my heart and soul into making it as good as I possibly could. Plenty more to come though!

[@Boubi15]

@@xarthius Can't wait for what comes next 🤩

[@tijmensmulders574]

This is some of the best skyrim content I've seen yet. Truely impressed. I really like the fresh flair you bring to the story. Even though I've heard all of that dialogue a hundred times, I couldn't keep my eyes of the screen. Great work, can't wait to see more. Also your sub count is criminal, will be sharing ;).

[@xarthius]

Thank you! It's so nice to finally be able to share it with the community. When I came up with the idea, the first thing that came to mind was "How has nobody done this yet?". It's safe to say after four years and many, many hours later- I understand why lol. It's been a pleasure though, plenty more surprises I hope!

[@SenturosGaviannus]

Very nice. Welcome to the Story world. Its alot of fun telling a story that you think would fit Skyrim. So it myself with like 8 main characters but like 12. It can be hard work. But its sure fun to through out there.

[@dangauldin6497]

"There's something in the outhouse you must see" *checks outhouse* "LOL just kidding its a big poop!!!!" Sad it wasn't Meeko instead of Milo. But I wouldn't want to go anywhere without my dogs at my side. With that said, I totally LOVED this. Please more. And as someone said, Skyrim could totally become a TV show with its size, lore and background. 13000 views can't be wrong.

[@quinnw6795]

Amazing video love everything please please do another video I absolutely adore Skyrim!!

[@xarthius]

@@quinnw6795 More coming soon!

[@quinnw6795]

@ thank you 🙏

[@manaturipa4017]

or a tv series since there so much lore to cover a tv series would probably be best

[@Blackthorne-y7q]

The music used in the video is hauntingly beautiful.

[@xarthius]

@@Blackthorne-y7q I spent a lot time making sure the music fit as seamlessly as possible, so thank you!

[@lonelysoldierlong5815]

Truly a piece of art I loved it. Can't wait to see more

[@katblack5067]

fantastic, I'm glad there's more

[@xarthius]

A little editor’s note! For anyone experiencing issues in which certain scenes appear too dark- I wanted the lighting to feel as realistic as possible. If viewed in a low-light environment, you should find it to be a much better viewing experience. Thanks for all the support guys! - x

[@Are3thur]

Wow! That was AMAZING!🤯

[@JENNIFERJHABERSATTTaintedfury]

Absolutely enjoying this 😊🎉

[@NemoHood]

I would love to find a way to do something like this for a character I've been working on

[@palantirlotr5623]

Well done! Look forward to seeing more from you!

[@xarthius]

@@palantirlotr5623 Thank you! I won’t keep you waiting too long :)

[@Kripplespak]

"Shutup and lets get this over with!" So impatient

[@deanwinchester1990]

I already like it so much! And I hope that story will go on!

[@riasgremory9262]

Good job guys. Skyrim is love, Skyrim is life

[@xarthius]

@@riasgremory9262 Forever Skyrim! Skyrim for you! Skyrim for me! Skyrim for everyone!

[@moacyrboiago1653]

Fantastic! Great job 🔥

[@RocketMan-1103]

Wow...subscribed!

[@AvatarV]

Fantastic job 🤙🏽 great storytelling

[@InTheLightDJ]

this is pretty cool my guy, your worth alot more than 100 subs but i gave ya one

[@cavalcadeofcatpower]

I love that you killed off the main character... and how. I had no intention of watching all of this when I first clicked on it. I thought, I'll just watch for a minute. An hour later.... It's excellent work. Thanks.

[@stevenjlafountain7362]

Quantum Leap in Skyrim Love it.

[@xarthius]

Hah! I distinctly recall making a similar remark to @Stonebru during one of our storyboard conversations. It wasn't a conscious influence at the time, but certain aspects of Quantum Leap defintiely crept in!

[@mahmoud90208]

Well done❤ keep going

[@julianhughes8616]

So pleased to see this. Subscribed. ❤

[@mindscaped4099]

Irileth a vampire? Great work - looking forward to more...

[@Mule_1]

I hope we get more Gems like these in the future!

[@chris22121]

Love it!

[@kurtvanderweg9147]

Outstanding!

[@MCPunk55]

She's properly cooked...

[@mjslack3073]

This better be Part 1 of many

[@xarthius]

@@mjslack3073 Oh there’s *a lot* more to come.

[@edinhasic2059]

Very nice 👍👍👍👍

[@thENDweDIE]

I used to make videos like this... Until I took a knee in the arrow..!!

[@ThatGeordieBloke]

Great work. Love from Harald x

[@xarthius]

May the real Harald Firebeard please stand up🧡

[@TinaLynn]

👏👏👏

[@TimothyPatrickJr-u4b]

This is really well made and all, but why is the main character dressed like a samurai? Also didn't the main character survive his initial execution?

[@xarthius]

@@TimothyPatrickJr-u4b In the original game the main character does indeed survive the execution at Helgen, and the choice of armour for the Stranger is intentional :)

[@Dhz70]

nice hope for more movies

[@jefferydraper4019]

Do you get to the Cloud District very often?

[@naji_aka_Tracey]

Colour me intrigued. Count me as subscribed 👍🏻 I have to know what is going on.

[@xarthius]

All will eventually be revealed...

[@youandme6199]

Skyrim is my home!🌲❄️🏔

[@dadipangani1902]

This was absolutely beautiful! Any idea when part 2 will come out?

[@xarthius]

Thank you! I wouldn't like to set a hard deadline, given the nature of the creation process. What I will say is that I plan to transition the story into a more television based format, with shorter episodes in an 8-10 episode series; each episode of a season releasing on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. I'm currently working on the first season of that, and I'd expect to be finishing up with it in around 2-3 months. I'll be sure to post an update on my channel page and Twitter once I know the definite release date, along with a little teaser. I'm delighted with it so far though, and I think it'll be well worth the wait!

[@grungehog]

Interesting bit of art. The cinematography and editing are often very good, however, there's way too much uncanny valley going on, AI voice tone is weird, also narratively you rely too much on fake outs and twists, while that does mean that it's more gripping in some ways due to the created tension, it also means you don't get attached to characters properly. I assume you're likely a fan of films like no country for old men, judging by what you've made here. Kudos for the creative use of those animations from loverslab btw, though you really could do with using more mods to change some of the low quality armours from the base game and get more natural expressions with some fixes. This film was probably a 7/10 taking into account the medium and technical feats, it gets bonus points because the medium is difficult to work with. I'm not a fan of your writing style but honestly you have potential, with some refinement you'll go far :)

[@xarthius]

This is a fantastic comment, thank you! As I mentioned in the description, this was personally a mammoth challenge. I have no background in filmmaking, and whilst I am a lover of film as an art, I really didn't know the first thing about how to create something like this. I must admit, it took a very long time to get it to this standard. I must've scrapped hundreds of hours of footage in the process. Whilst I'm happy with the standard of the film, there's of course things I know I can improve on. Unfortunately, a lot of the issues I faced came at the consequence of the medium in which I was creating it in, as you mentioned. Skyrim's Creation Kit is incredible in many different aspects, and there's no other game engine I can think of in which something like this is possible- in large parts also due to the modding community. With that being said- There were countless shots in this film that at the time, I generally considered to be impossible. For that reason, quite a lot of the editing choices are a direct consequence of the script engine. Specifically the way in which it constructs certain scripted scenes as I reload the game whilst filming takes. If there exists a world in which I'm able to make some income from this, I'd probably look to hire an editor. It would allow me to focus on my personal favourite aspect of the creation process- direction and cinematography, which would no doubt massively increase the production value. As a sidenote- I also hope to work with some people familiar with animating Skyrim models in Blender in the future, as animations are one thing really holding me back from acheiving some of the more complex scenes I have in mind for the future. Narratively speaking, I did intend for this to subvert a lot of the expectations people might've had coming into it. I know a lot of the people who watch this would've likely played Skyrim, so I felt it necessary to create my own original story that would add to the experience, but still retain the core aspects of the world and story. There should be buckets of character development to come though, and *slightly* less twists and turns- But no promises! In regards to my writing style, this was initially one of my biggest hurdles. I intended for Wilson to be a hero in every sense- Worthy of the title Dragonborn. It was only after writing the script, I realised something was immediately off. I couldn't take him, as being an existing part of the world, seriously. It felt forced and inauthentic. It's for that reason, I decided to take the opposite approach. I wrote Wilson, by all definitions- to be an idiot. He doesn't take the world in which he lives seriously, and I feel as if that satircal element to his character, alongside his slighty weird, robotic tone, make him to be quite a lovable idiot. Of course, humour is subjective, so it's no surprise that some people might find my comedic writing not to be very funny, which is obviously perfectly reasonable lol. Lastly on the point of the AI voices, it's another area in which I would've loved to hire voice actors, but for many reasons it was the only feasible route I could take. They're not perfect, but neither is some of Skyrim's voice acting to be completely fair lol. All I can hope for is that as the technology improves, so will the quality of the AI voices in the show. I really appreciate you watching in it in it's entirety, and for the constructive critisism. I hope you stick around for the ride!

[@royaltywilliams1380]

This was awesome, also What armor mod is that, it looks cool

[@xarthius]

Thank you! The armour is a mash-up of the Dust Adept mod and the Redoran Exile mod, with a minor tweak to the helmet to match up the colours :)

[@royaltywilliams1380]

@@xarthius thanks! And keep up the Good work! Once again this was amazing

[@xarthius]

@@royaltywilliams1380 I really appreciate that! Plenty more to come!

[@MSgtSunshine]

Well Done, Well Done!

[@meanwhileonhastings...]

His name is Wilson?!?!?!

[@Chuxgold]

MORE!!!

[@PonderLust]

wtf, how this channel have only 28 subscribers?

[@genxmonk70]

58 now 😊

[@moacyrboiago1653]

Moon Knight in Skyrim

[@xarthius]

@@moacyrboiago1653 I love Moon Knight, definitely some inspiration there!

[@Jeff-n6x4b]

How long did this take?

[@xarthius]

@@Jeff-n6x4b It took around two years to really get the baseline of this film created, and then another two spent refining it and working on what’s to come. I’m a lot more efficient at it now though, so something this length would likely take me around 1-2 months.

[@redfire174]

Loved it.

[@muhammad.naqiuddeen544]

Oh please put Jesper the bard, one of Whiterun's Guard. He's funny alright. It will make a good story plot. Best Regards

[@WyvernLP]

Man, the story, the edits, the recording, the visuals, everything is good except for the AI voice, it bothers me a little, no offense to you of course since actors aren't easy to get. Its just I've heard AI voice so much that no matter how good it gets, my trained ears can still pick up the stiff static emotionless tunes.

[@xarthius]

That’s reasonable! I definitely would’ve preferred to hire voice actors, but as you say, it wasn’t a realistic aim given the costs involved. I think I got it about as natural as I could, but there’s obviously a few parts where it’s more noticeable. I think it helps that the voice acting in Skyrim is a little weird sometimes anyway, so hopefully as the technology improves it’ll be less noticeable down the line!

[@arcane3464]

Too much night setting is making hard to see what's happening. Everything else seems good.

[@augustuse.3071]

What are the mods used in this "Last Dragonborn"?

[@xarthius]

@@augustuse.3071 I’d love to publish a modlist, but given how much of a mess mine is, and the fact that some mods directly spoil things I have planned for the future, it isn’t really viable. I’m happy to let you know about any mods specifically though!

[@therakshasan8547]

All the night time portions were totally black out .

[@xarthius]

@@therakshasan8547 I did try to make the night scenes a little darker, but they shouldn’t be too dark! For anyone with a similar issue- I suggest watching the movie in a low light environment for the best viewing experience.

[@AwareWolfOnWheels]

The voice of the first guard is amazing, the voice of the protagonist sounds like AI. Kind of off putting... as are the countless mods. I would of preferred this to be done with zero visual mods to maintain the true Skyrim art style.

[@saiyanjerry8678]

nice

[@thorodinsson5684]

😂😂is ulfric supposed to be evior from ac Valhalla I use the same hair for my characters 😂

[@sunnyinamorata6574]

This is a movie lol

[@xarthius]

@@sunnyinamorata6574 Indeed!

[@Heemeyer-vs2pj]

some of the ai voices worked some did not! overall good attempt

[@xarthius]

@@Heemeyer-vs2pj I plan on refining them for the future, so it should be more consistent hopefully!

[@runkorko]

main character voice ruins it for me

[@DevonRomero-s1b]

Ok so this video was way below my expectations. Too much of the story is twisted around from the original. There wasn’t enough time devoted to the dragon attack on Helgen. That bonemeld armor doesn’t look good on the dragonborn in my opinion. That hat/helmet in particular looks completely stupid. That sword does not look like an Elder Scrolls sword. It looks more like a Zelda style sword. Also, I really don’t see the need for a dog following the dragonborn everywhere, and more ridiculously, for him to talk to! Unless he’s that Daedric Prince dog who’s name I forget, but I still wouldn’t even want that dog following me around. And the dragonborn’s soul hopping around from body to body every time he dies? Completely silly! I’d rather see a more story-conformant movie. Unless this movie gets redone properly, I won’t be watching the next one. 4 years to make this one? Too big of a waste I’m sorry.

[@xarthius]

@@DevonRomero-s1b Every detail of the story serves a purpose. The armour and sword of the Stranger have lore relevance- the sword is already an established part of Elder Scrolls canon. It’s in Morrowind and ESO. Milo was necessary as a means of Wilson conveying exposition, and Wilson being unable to die is the single most pivotal aspect to the story that I’ve created. If not for that, what’s to follow this would simply be impossible. Sure, I could’ve made a simple 1:1 remake of the original story, but I wanted to tell my own story in the sense that I planned for it to be my final *comprehensive* Skyrim playthrough. It most certainly has not been a waste from my perspective :)

[@tompresley639]

Too dark