The Mysterious Letters from "A Friend" - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

[@Fizhy]

Big thanks to Raycon for sponsoring today's video, be sure to head over to buyraycon.com/FIZHY to listen to only the crispest fantasy music while on your own travels! Thanks for waiting for me with this one, I know I haven't posted in a couple weeks because I've been away but I'm back now so... enjoy!

[@TattooedPink]

I saw a video the other day about this, he said the woman you encounter on the way up to High Hrothgar is the 'friend'. I can't remember why (im an autistic goldfish lol) but it was a great video. Yours looks great too, cheers for the upload! And your cat is adorable 😊

[@SqualidsargeStudios]

Raycons are utter garbage, always have been. Never again

[@clingterthinker9040]

​@@SqualidsargeStudios thanks this is the first time I have heard anyone say anything about raycon without it being an add.

[@PermanentlyTemporary]

Did you consider it could be Partysnacks that leaves the Greybeards instructions, which then leave it in the chest and sends it back down the mountain via Klimmek, which is part of why there's such a big delay between them?

[@ninjasheep7492]

It isn’t actually a mystery, just a goofy name. The guy who sends you that letter is none other than Archibald Friend.

[@regulargoat7259]

Need a mod with that as a companion. Free pointers towards words of power every now and then without criming all over whiterun

[@ballinbalgruuf8198]

He invented friendship

[@davidlejenkins]

Bro cracked the code.

[@brucecanzoli3423]

gem comment

[@valorieya]

good ol' whatshisname

[@dinisnascimento4929]

Bro it's the courier, dude will travel to Soulstheim only to hand you a letter, your hands only, saying "you caused quite the commotion in Abandoned Shack when you used Whirlwind sprint and hit a wooden wall, signed a friend"

[@flameguy3416]

He's just an honest to Talos hard worker who will deliver all mail.

[@KitsuneRogue]

​@@flameguy3416 Come sleet or snow, ice or rain, hail of high water, nothing will keep the United Skyrim Postal Service from delivering your mail.

[@nickcurrie_]

Who wrote that in the abandoned shack, then was Astrid.

[@naughtyhieroglyph669]

@@flameguy3416 Or he is talos himself, who WAS at the ghostgate to give the nerverine a coin.

[@ChouLord-qg5wc]

Courier is the homie that's always there even in dangerous places such as bandit camp, he makes sure to personally deliver the dragonborn letters about deceased friends and a kiddy art written with "we know"

[@PhoenicopterusR]

It's Meridia trying to get you to find her beacon by opening more chests that inevitably end up in the general proximity to word walls.

[@miniespeon158]

My friend once made her mom (both skyrim lovers) a bday present, she made the beacon and put it in a cardboard box wrapped in paper 🤣 when she picked it up and unwrapped it she screamed “FUCK NO” 💀💀💀. We were dying

[@CanenLuke]

“A new hand has touched the Beacon…” 😂

[@PhoenicopterusR]

@miniespeon158 that's heinous, I love it!

[@Marvinuser]

@@miniespeon158 would have been fun if it had touch activation, which would start a voice recording saying : “ A new hand touches the beacon! Listen. Hear me and obey. A foul darkness has seeped into my temple. A darkness that you will destroy. Return my beacon to Mount Kilkreath. And I will make you the instrument of my cleansing light." not that this isn't hilarious as it is but, just an extra dawnbreaker for effort xD

[@EmptyTempest]

@@Marvinuserhonestly, just have the clip ready to play on your phone, they won’t be paying attention while opening their present

[@SleeplessSiren]

I'm pretty damn sure that the letters from a friend are from Hermaeus Mora. Not only does it track that he would want the Dragonborn as strong as possible since (assuming that the ending of Dragonborn is canon and they replace Mirrak) but this "unknown" person can even hear you shouting inside Azura's Star and I don't know of anyone who would be able to hear whats going on inside a deadric realm aside from the deadric lord of knowledge himself

[@venyogo2]

besides every other possible "friend" would reveal themselves sooner or later but hermaeus mora is the only one (that i can think of) that benefits themselves in keeping hidden

[@salmin1711]

I actually really like this theory, it's my personal headcanon now for sure!

[@AjMorganv16]

i dont think the last dragonborn would become a servant of Hermaeus mora because his soul is technically already owned by akatosh so if anything, akatosh would just take the dragon borns soul so he wouldn’t have to serve anyone

[@Nictator42]

I was thinking that a psijic would be the most likely but after reading this, yeah, no, its gotta be Hermaeus Mora

[@TheFalseJared]

​@@AjMorganv16 all dragon born are connected to akatosh equally, including Miraak, who was very much subservient to Hermaeus Mora

[@trentonghormley6750]

I need a 3 hour video on the Courier that ends with NO resolution.

[@youraverageenclavesoldier]

I'll remember this comment, you just wait

[@cassievania]

Sounds like a job for Camelworks

[@YourWaywardDestiny]

The curriers can cast the clairvoyance spell and have made delivering your letter their active quest, it's the only explanation.

[@AuroraIceFlame]

That makes a lot of sense actually haha

[@kingofpersia4559]

Haha that’s clever I’ve never thought of that

[@Longshanks1690]

Maybe the real mysterious friend was the friends we made along the way.

[@Fizhy]

The Dragonborn has Schizophrenia

[@Longshanks1690]

@@FizhyWould explain all the voices in his head that he thinks are Daedric Princes but are actually just his own delusions.

[@DemBigOlEyes]

@@Fizhy Wait... if its all in my head... THEN WHO THE HECK DID I SLEEP WITH LAST NIGHT? I still got the lover's embrace perk...

[@williambrown5934]

Friends made along the way..? Oh, the Jarl of Whiterun 😂 And Parthenax! 💪🏻 👍🏻 😎

[@teeess1909]

I sure hope so ❤

[@baritone_vocalist]

I may never know who this "friend" is but I am 100% sure that Nazeem sent those thugs after me for stealing his stuff.

[@CrustiesAuto61]

Nazeem is sending the letters

[@baritone_vocalist]

@@CrustiesAuto61 He's onto me👀

[@luckisluck]

My head canon is that the courier is the mysterious friend, who knows where you are, every time? courier. Who can get to literally anywhere on the map without fail. The Courier. Who probably would find you on sometimes on your way to high Hrothgar, which is the equivalent of Mt Everest.

[@FrightenedPeasant]

He doesn't know where you are all the time. The first words out of his mouth are, "I've been looking for you."

[@miniespeon158]

@@FrightenedPeasant nahhh that’s his cover up, he stalks you with dark daedric magic

[@bustasmoke]

i think the reason why the courier can find the player locations is because he got a pip-boy

[@VelaiciaCreator]

@@FrightenedPeasant He says this even for things that JUST happened.

[@eatsoup5914]

Bro he only looks for you in city’s

[@cadence4527]

There is a theory among the fans that the friend is Herma Mora. My own personal theory is that it is actually Shor. The comment that "skyrim needs a true hero" really stands out to me. Delphine wouldn't care about Skyrim needing a true hero, nor would Herma Mora. Shor would have a vested interest in seeing the Dragonborn succeed as Sovngarde, Shor's domain in Aetherius, is constantly under attack by Alduin. It is considered lore that Shor will occasionally walk about on Tamriel, usually in the form of a fox. I would also like to point out that when you get to Sovngarde and enter the Hall of Heroes, you can find Shor's Throne at the table, but he himself is NOWHERE TO BE FOUND (he didn't even have the decency to meet with the Dragonborn). Prior to initiating the battle with Alduin, Tsun mentions that Shor is watching us. Shor really does make the most sense of all the characters. He wouldn't say who he is to the courier, he would know where all of the Words of Power are, he would say that 'Skyrim needs a true hero right now' as Skyrim is plunged into a civil war, he would want us to succeed as a dragonborn because he needs us to come to Sovngarde to defeat Alduin, because Alduin is devouring all of the souls that he himself is meant to protect. Now I admit, this is one that is grasping at straws and could just be chocked up to the AI being momentarily asleep, but occasionally I'll come across a fox that will just stand there and stare at me for a good long while before running off, while there are other foxes that will run off immediately. These foxes that are delayed in running away, I mean I can walk right up to them and have a staring contest with them for several seconds before they take off and as part of my roleplaying I will greet them as Shor.

[@seanforbes1034]

Dude I love this. This is now my Head cannon tyvm. And I also always thought something was behind those foxes watching me 😂 honestly cool theory

[@youraverageenclavesoldier]

The fact that foxes usually run off to places of interest for you to discover and loot also supports this theory. Try it, you'll see it for yourself

[@yukari_katsuragi]

Shor is dead though, his rotting corpse can still be seen in the sky and the heart was ripped out his chest in the Dawn Era, used to power a GIANT MECHA in the first and second eras, and destroyed by the Nerevarine in the third era.

[@anthonycliftonjones2564]

The Dragonborn is an avatar of Shor. On occasion the gods like to live mortal lives.

[@anthonycliftonjones2564]

The Dragonborn is probably sending the letters to themselves. This suggests that the DB has a split personality or has a god guiding them.

[@Lauren007E]

My headcanon in one save file was that my Khajiit bareknuckle boxer in heavy armor was raised in a Nord orphanage (hence the lack of traditional Khajiit speak in her dialogue) and one of her childhood friends who was a nord himself made plans that once they aged out of the orphanage they'd sneak back into Skyrim and become great legendary companions! Of course then a war broke out so they changed up to joining the stormcloaks to fight for the nations independence. Before the game, they got split up when they stumbled into an imperial trap for Ulfric himself. He got away, but Khajiit was caught. That's why when word spreads of a Khajiit she-warrior who fights bare handed and in heavy armor, joined the companions and became the dragon born he obviously knew who it was. And while he was hiding and living rough trying to avoid imperials and all other craziness in Skyrim he makes note of any word walls or dragons and sends them her way.

[@ShadowMoses900]

That's a very creative roleplay.

[@Lauren007E]

@ShadowMoses900 I played it for well over 700 hours lmao I had a lot of time to day dream to fill in plot holes

[@cesicario8463]

What are their names I'm invested in this badass bark claw khajit

[@benwilson6256]

Bro cooked.

[@TheAntiburglar]

Wait wait wait, what's all this about "Graybeards" and "Blades" and "Horns of Jurgen Windcaller"? Is this some obscure sidequest I've missed?

[@GlitchedMuse]

Yeah. It's a really convoluted quest that you have to start by first talking to Jarl Balgruuf. He's the jarl of a really small hold called Whiterun. I doubt you've spent much time in it if any at all. Then he tells you to talk to the Cort wizard, who asks you for a thing called The Dragonstone, which you find in an obscure dungeon called Bleak Falls Burrow. After that, a dragon attacks, you eat its soul, and then the Greybeards call you up to their tower on a mountain.

[@Balinux756]

@@GlitchedMuse I'm glad you understood the mission.

[@BoJangles42]

It’s a cool side quest but don’t let it distract you from collecting every wheel of cheese in Skyrim

[@JDO6715]

I only play the dark brotherhood quests

[@slightexag]

@@GlitchedMuse what the hell are you talking about? I've heard of Whiterun but I didn't make it more than a few steps before getting the main quest of killing Nazeem. That guy patronized me for not going to the "Sky District" whatever the hell that is and now I'm on a 25 hour journey of finding the most convoluted way to kill him.

[@mylongschlong8262]

"The dragonborn has schizophrenia" - Fizhy, 2024

[@Fizhy]

One of the many things I’ve said

[@YeTism]

Tyler “Dragonborn” Durden

[@retroking8280]

Tyler durdenborn

[@IgN5P]

Schizophrenia means you see or hear things other can't. It's multiple personality disorder many men when they say that.

[@bobSeigar]

No. Schizoaffective has no visual or audio hallucinations. It has rapid emotional destabilization though. Also, MPD has not been a diagnosis in almost 2 decades. Nor are Identity disorders common in males, affective (cluster-B) are the most common. ​@@IgN5P

[@nicks4903]

I like the idea of it being the future last dragonborn sending letter to his past self to strengthen himself to try and break from herma Moras Grasp

[@facelessnameless]

Heremes is the prince of fate and knowledge, that would just be playing into his hand imo. It’s paradoxical

[@nicks4903]

@@facelessnameless But that just makes it fit so much more wouldnt it? EDIT: Also what would you call what Mirrak was doing? Hermes knew he was tryna break free but let him. I dont doubt hed let the LDB do the same

[@emiliorico5632]

@@nicks4903 but isnt one if the endings of dragonborn breaking out of his grasp with Mirrak and fighting him off and the influence he has on the two of you i swear thats what i did

[@katiewalker3164]

@@emiliorico5632i’m like 60% sure that’s a mod, i think you can only kill miraak in the base game

[@emiliorico5632]

@ i think it is as well

[@RealBradMiller]

It is actually chickens. The chicken you see in every village isn’t just for decoration. It's secretly an ancient, telepathic being with knowledge of the Thu’um. Unable to speak, it guides the Dragonborn through letters. It knows all because chickens have been silently observing humanity for centuries.

[@cesicario8463]

That's why they will raise your bounty also

[@flabbergasted6231]

Of course! I completely forgot about the chicken spy network! That explains everything. Inigo talks a bit about his theories involving them.

[@Reptar01]

Why does this actually make sense😂😂😂

[@kingofpersia4559]

That’s actually really deep

[@rcschmidt668]

And there is the term of writing called chicken scratch, so it fits. 😂

[@TheMoonShepard]

I tend to believe the Mysterious Friend may be someone similar to Ulfric, someone the Greybeards once taught about the Thu'um, but felt their way was too passive.

[@YeTism]

Bro your videos just remind me that we’re not gonna get ES6 until I’m on my deathbed

[@Fizhy]

Understandable

[@DemBigOlEyes]

I'm afraid to tell you that ES6 wont be out until your grandchildren's deathbed.

[@Blandy8521]

​@DemBigOlEyes that's optimistic

[@gudmundur-heimisson]

There were 5 years and 6 years between Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim. Enough time for someone to play all 3 and still be a teenager. It’s now been 13 years since Skyrim came out. By the time TES6 comes out anyone who was a teenager when Morrowind came out will be at least in their late thirties, which is insane.

[@ShadowMoses900]

The problem is the outdated engine they're still using. All the time in the world doesn't matter when their engine is fundamentally broken. Starfield is proof of that, and ES6 is going to be using the same exact animations, assets, and coding. That, and the Series S is going to severely hold it back further. I want to be optimistic, but Bethesda has not earned my trust.

[@MangoMan139]

I always theorized it says “a friend” cause bethesda likely cut out a character that helped the dragonborn find new words when they cut like 60% of the content from the game

[@alexsm3882]

The friend is clearly Todd Howard speaking directly to the players lol

[@pigeonmanepic]

Godd Howard is the Godhead

[@Andrew-xv8zq]

One way to rule out the greybeards is that im pretty sure the letters keep coming even if you kill parthanax im pretty sure they wouldn’t consider you a friend after that

[@tristansmith5000]

I'd personally believe that it's Talos, he's a huge influence in the setting of Skyrim. From what I recall he was also a dragonborn as he is Tiber Septim. He's also a god so he may have knowledge of stuff seen and unseen. But sadly I think my headcanon can be thrown out the window with the "Dragonborn is Talos reincarnated." Theory which holds some weight.

[@VelaiciaCreator]

I mean, Shor is conspicuously absent from the mead hall when you visit...

[@tristansmith5000]

My point exactly, Shor/Talos is missing, which is a big reason people believe the the "Dragonborn is Talos reincarnated" theory

[@Spewb]

​@@tristansmith5000 I can easily believe that the dragonborn is a Shezarrine but not an avatar of Talos, it just wouldn't make any sense.

[@Zinlain]

@@tristansmith5000 Shor isnt Talos, he is Nord version of Lorkhan, IIRC. Lorkhan is the Aedra who convinced the others to make Nirn(aka the world Tamriel is a continent on). Much like Auri-El/Auriel is the Snow Elf(or the Races of Mer's) name for Akatosh, Shor is one for Lorkhan. Talos's whole thing is he was Emperor Tiber Septim the First and ascended a few millennia AFTER the world was made, making him the youngest of the Nine Divines. While Shor would be one of the gods who made the world.

[@roxxybabee]

@@VelaiciaCreator He's not really "conspicuously absent", he's just dead. Shor is Lorkhan, the dead god.

[@HelFrostKara]

Galaxy Brain Idea: The friend is Uriel Septim VII ghostly trying to intervene in the plot of TESV since he got to be involved in the previous main games' plots lol

[@plaguenplay3516]

I like that theory and it's gonna be my headcannon now

[@yukari_katsuragi]

Okay this one is hilarious. I love it.

[@RelativelyBest]

I say it's Calcemo. Think about it: You buy a single dwarven arrow in like Windhelm or something and this half-senile old wizard holed up in a ruin on the other side of Skyrim _immediately_ knows about it. He's clearly keeping a very close eye on you somehow. So he has a courier track you down - just like the mysterious friend - to let you know he wants you to go all the way to Markarth so he can buy this completely ordinary dwarven item from you at a huge markup. It's not like it's a rare artifact or anything, he even specifies that you can just get another one if you don't have the original anymore. So, he clearly doesn't actually care about the item itself but does really want to buy it from you specifically. So, yeah, I think the whole quest was just an excuse to meet you in person, maybe just to see what sort of person the Dragonborn is. The guy is probably an undercover Psijic or something and the "eccentric old codger" thing is just an act. If so, he fits the profile: He's a scholar, he's male, he apparently has the means to know what the Dragonborn is doing at all times, and he has some reason to want to keep his identity secret.

[@ChanterYT]

5:43 the dry, completely straight reading of "Squindibbly Pringles" just out of the blue destroyed me.

[@apocalypticpioneers2116]

I think it's Akatosh; hear me out. There is precedent of the Aedra walking Nirn, such as the Shezzarine. Some people speculate that the Dragonborn from Skyrim IS Akatosh or an Akarine if you will, but I don't think there's enough evidence of this. Akatosh absolutely would want his agent to grow as strong as possible, he sent you there to do his bidding where he could not.

[@yukari_katsuragi]

The main plot of Skyrim being a highly elaborate s-icide plot by Akatosh/Alduin where an avatar of his Alessian form kills his Atmoran form and then in another questline steals the bow of his Elven form is an amazing theory

[@apocalypticpioneers2116]

@@yukari_katsuragi BUT HEY, THAT'S JUST A THEORY

[@tzvikrasner6073]

@@apocalypticpioneers2116 A SKYRIM THEORY

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

What about Lorkhan/Shezzar/Shor? Fought Alduin before, is known to put aspects of himself onto Nirn, married Kynareth/Kyne who gave mortals the thu'um and is pretty much the goddess of nature. A huge interest in opposing Alduin on one side, and a huge interest in not having the world be destroyed on the other.

[@camelkingclarith]

Shezzar is closer to a Daedra than an Aedra, I think. Probably.

[@Naruku2121]

There is a rather compelling theory that it's Karita a pilgrim on the 7,000 steps one who appears but is never seen again. Though there's speculation that Karita may be an incarnation or an avatar of Kyne/Knynereth. What with the Throat of the World is essentially 'her' mountain she is also credited to have aided teaching mortals the Thu'um in the past and had requested Paraathnax to assist. She also appears around the time you're able to receive letters from a friend I think too. Also if you are a believer that the Last Dragonborn is also a Shezzarine (An incarnation or aspect of Lorkhan/Shor) then Kyne reaching out to TLDB gains even more credence as to why she would reach out to them. As Kyne is essentially a widow of Shor/Lorkhan after his defeat against Auri-El and Trinimac. So she would not only be one who knows the Thu'um intimately as being credited among those who gifted the knowlege to mortals therefore sensing or knowing the where-abouts makes sense, she would also have a personal somber interest in the Last DB well being and personal growth. And although the courier said it was a man that sent the letter, it could easily be a middle man on there be half, or maybe they could of appeared differently to the courier to not raise suspicion. There's other things to bridge the connection, though it was one youtuber I saw a while back that I've seen posed this theory.

[@SilverSurrepstitious]

I beleve its the ebony worrior, but could be 100% wrong lol

[@EyeOfTheWatcher]

it makes sense, as he wants the new dragonborn to grow strong enough to kill him. He would be a problem for him to go through and find all the word walls.

[@XXavierSin-XXs]

Easy to test. Kill him and see if you still get letters

[@isaac_aren]

Why does no one ever mention the fact that Wulfgar has a paper, quill and ink in his inventory, the only Greybeard to have them. That's pretty damning evidence to me

[@johng3029]

This is huge

[@PatternRecognitionNotRacism]

"One way to rule out the greybeards is that im pretty sure the letters keep coming even if you kill parthanax im pretty sure they wouldn’t consider you a friend after that"

[@isaac_aren]

@PatternRecognitionNotRacism They would already be going against the teachings of the way of the voice by secretly wanting you to grow your power

[@Sunny-ek8sx]

@@isaac_areni could be wrong but killing their ally might just be a step too far for them whereas allowing the dragonborn to use thuum as self defense is more justifiable

[@isaac_aren]

@Sunny-ek8sx Self-defence is well within the way of the voice and you can test this yourself by attacking the Greybeards. The letter from a friend mentions that some are nkt eager for the return of the dragonborn, but they want to see the dragonborn's power grow. That fits one of the Greybeards to a T

[@bacd-nn2lg]

You can get those letters even before meeting Greybeards just after Dragon Rising. I think that it's going to be Akatosh or another Aedra, since those letters are considered a quest item, and the corpses won't despawn, if you put them into their inventory (this is a good way to keep the bodies for your dead thralls).

[@bobSeigar]

Akatosh is Alduin.

[@connorblack99]

@@bobSeigarish. Akatosh is Auriel+Alduin *maybe* because I guess there’s some evidence that Auriel was a bit Draconic before the combo. Also, the gods kinda resemble what you see in them. If you see Akatosh as a Dragon, they’re a Dragon. If you see Auriel, they’re Auriel.

[@bobSeigar]

@@connorblack99 Yeah, no. Headcannon ≠ Cannon.

[@connorblack99]

@@bobSeigar that’s not headcanon, that’s actually the lore lol

[@thekingoflastdemands2574]

My headcanon was that it was the guild of carriage drivers. They must hear the rumors about word walls from travelers and see the DB as he enters the cities, (maybe not Riften). It's the most logical answer to a illogical game mechanic.

[@st.anselmsfire3547]

My favorite theory is that it's Kyne, via an avatar, and that Karita, the cagey pilgrim on High Hrothgar, is said avatar. And then there's a member of the cult of Hermaus Mora.

[@yukari_katsuragi]

i like this idea. not to debunk it but rather to elaborate on it, why would Kyne wear an Amulet of Talos and be interested in the Arcturian Heresy?

[@Practitioner_of_Diogenes]

@@yukari_katsuragi Because said book has to do with Wulfharth, AKA Breath of Kyne. Kyne is also the wife of Shor. Shor is basically Lorkhan from the creation myth but for Nords. Okay, following the logic here? Lorkhan is also called "Shezarr" in the Imperial pantheon. Shezarr's "avatars" (or, rather, incarnations) are called Shezarrines... and Wulfharth was one of them (so was Tiber Septim (You know... the guy that became Talos?), but ehhh). Wulfharth has many names... one being "Ysmir"... And what do the Graybeards call us? Ysmir... It's rather messy when it comes down to it, but the idea is Karita (AKA, Kyne) is helping us because we're an incarnation of her husband. The messy part is the courier says "he", not "she".

[@yukari_katsuragi]

@@Practitioner_of_Diogenes There's a theory I'm partial to that Talos is actually a result of the combined souls of (iirc) Tiber Septim, Ysmir, and Zurin Arctus, which were liberated from the Numidium all at once during Daggerfall's dragon break, with so much combined energy from their exceptionally powerful souls that they pierced the mantle (as it were) of godhood and retroactively became united with the Aedric Energies, as Talos (which would explain why no one had ever heard of Talos being a god prior to the dragon break but afterward he had been worshipped for centuries). Also if I remember correctly, I believe all three have been called shezzarines. Shezzarine is a bit of an obscure concept to begin with, given that Shezzar "the missing god" is extremely dead with his heart ripped out and his corpse floating in the sky, and does not act, but seems to express residual more-or-less impersonal energy through these avatars. Ofc, if Talos is a product of the theosis of three (or even just one!) shezzarine, that would give Kyne a definite affinity for Talos, although it's probably worth noting that Talos is a product of the Imperial Cult and not the Atmoran/Nord pantheon, although many Nord cultists adopted him before the widespread wholesale adoption of the Alessian religion in the fourth era. Perhaps not Kyne, but actually Kynareth? Or perhaps Talos became an authentic part of the Atmoran pantheon at the same time he became a part of the Alessian pantheon? It's all extremely nebulous. This is assuming there's a meaningful distinction to draw between Kyne and Kynareth in the first place, but given that it's implied that Akatosh empowered the Last Dragonborn (or perhaps even that the Last Dragonborn is an "Akatine" of a sort) to defeat his own Atmoran counterpart, it seems likely that this distinction is real. All very interesting! The lore really has no bottom and can be discussed about as much as real religion!

[@yukari_katsuragi]

@@Practitioner_of_Diogenes And I'm not worried about the pronoun. If it was Kirita, maybe she had the "watch out for wolves" guy at the first emblem pass on the notes, or Klimmek from the village on his way up.

[@jimcalhoun361]

@@Practitioner_of_Diogenes I think that the courier is so busy running around delivering the mail that he never learned the difference between genders.

[@AJUniverse]

It could still be Delphine. I don't think it is because it would go against her track record of being useless, but discrepancies in the language could be explained by her dictating the letter to further separate herself from it, and her "so you're the dragonborn" remark may not mean that she didn't know who the "dragonborn" was, it could've been just a generic skeptical greeting. After all, she now knows two things about you: that people say they saw you absorb a dragon soul (and that the greybeards summoned you but she doesn't respect them so she wouldn't factor that), and that you answered the note in the barrow, so you seem to believe yourself to be dragonborn, too. However, she still hasn't seen you absorb a soul with her own eyes, and people can learn the shouts without being dragonborn. So the letters could even start as something of a test. She sends you to a word wall, and if you come back knowing the word there, you must be dragonborn. Except she can't be sure that you hadn't already studied that word, so she still insists that she see you absorb a dragon soul. And then, once she has, she keeps the charade of the letters going because she doesn't want you to know she was manipulating you. Or because she's obsessed with secrecy. Or because she's an idiot. Or all three.

[@WillfulWonders]

My personal theory is that it’s the Godhead itself… or Sheogorath. Because Sheo would do it just to try to make us go insane, and bonus points for it potentially being the remnants of the HoK wanting to help Martin’s successor

[@yukari_katsuragi]

what's funny is in a certain sense, the godhead is correct. the sleeping godhead does not act and has no personality, but there is nothing in Aurbis that is not the godhead. especially if you're like me and you believe that all the talk of the godhead is just a poetic in-universe way of talking about the CPU the game is being played on

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

I would expect Sheogorath to send the Dragonborn into dungeons without word wall just ti mess around while having a laugh. Turning it into a game. Is there a word wall? Is it just a joke? But if there is one and the Dragonborn doesn't check, they miss out and it will sit in the back of their head for the rest of their lives. That sounds a lot like the Skooma Cat.

[@ThrawnFett123]

I have a theory: we know the greybeards will take in others to train as greybeards, and that people are free to leave due to Ulfric Stormcloak training to be a greybeard then leaving. We also know that someone had to train the Ebony Warrior in the Way of the Voice, and assuming that he was running adventures simultaneously with us for powering up that person was presumably not a greybeard at high hrothgar since we never run into him. Finally we know that the greybeards are surprisingly tight lipped about information about themselves and members thanks to the Parthanax reveal. Combined with the fact we know greybeards can sense the dragonborn and words of power whispering, my theory is that the Friend is a former greybeard that was busy training the Ebony Warrior in between adventures. He uses his power to locate the dragonborn for the courier explaining why he always seems to know where you are, in exchange for the favor of delivering his letters. He "never said who he was" because he CAN'T say to the courier without killing him, so handed him a note saying "I'm a friend and you can find him in whiterun" etc. The reason we never meet him is because he is busy training the Ebony Warrior before we face off with him, and he never introduces himself after we defeat him because he's sad about his student even if he remains dedicated to helping the dragonborn as a student of the Voice

[@BobTheReaper]

The main issue with the whole "Our future selves sending these notes" is that the sender is always referred to as a male. Even if you play a female character. Of course, the whole middle man bit could be used here. Idk I've heard that theory for years now, and it's never felt strong imo

[@Spewb]

Female dragonborn transitions confirmed

[@BobTheReaper]

@@Spewb based

[@WooShell]

21:30 the letters keep coming even if you kill Paarthurnax and Arngeir no longer talks to you.. so maybe one of the other Greybeards still wants to help you without arguing with his boss?

[@ShadowMage]

The mysterious friend is none other than Todd Howard himself. He hacks into our games and sends the letters.

[@TheSpecterN7]

Fizhy: Our friend, Delphine- Me: *Laughs in Dragonborn* Fizhy:... Me: Oh wait, you're serious?

[@mochammadarsy6119]

My personal headcannon is that it is Tiber Septim who gives you these letter, as we understand that he too can manifest in mortal realm (which he did as Wulf in TES 3) and giving criptid messages to the player or in this case the Dragonborn

[@Fastwalker27]

When i joined the dark brotherhood, in the quest in the abandoned shack, i used shouting to kill one of the people astrid asked us to (in fact i killed all 3 of them) so the only witness left was astrid . So when i received the letter claiming i made a mess shouting in the abandoned shack, I assumed it was astrid. (Also, the only other time i had seen the courier before was the "we know" letter) So it being the dark brotherhood in general makes sense, even after astrid dies , others could still continue. So during my playthrough at least this was no mystery

[@marinagaul]

Unfortunately, that doesn't work since you can destroy the dark brotherhood by siding with the Penatus Oculotus, and then there are none left to send the letters.

[@irmelinsundragon8860]

It was the children, all of them, and Lucia is their leader. Only the children are "everywhere" and able to know when the Dragonborn shouts.... Or, perhpas the letters come from a horse.

[@livibeat123]

That theory is giving Varys and his spiders from GOT. I like it!

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

And they would be able to go into the dungeons and caves without dying, for children are essential and thus immortal.

[@mjslack3073]

Tbh everytime I hear about these, I believe you’re overthinking it. It’s just some citizen that heard the Dragonborn shout and knows the location of a word wall, it would be intimidating to just approach the Dragonborn as a regular citizen so they send us fan mail

[@Pystoria]

That’s my answer. It’s a lot more interesting to me and makes the world feel much larger

[@Treble453]

I just imagine it being some superfan that constantly follows the DB around and writes occasional fan mail.

[@diffsnicker]

​@@Treble453some might even say an ... adoring... fan 😉

[@BlueDragonKnight77]

Very based take with a very based profile picture I think we should just take those letters at face value. The fact that you can get them in very weird places is not some grand hint at a conspiracy, but just Bethesda and their spaghetti code. It's like getting a letter of inheritance if you killed a mercenary you just hired, it's not the Daedric Prince Mephala congratulating you on an evil scheme (minus taxes for the Jarl, of course), it's the weird letter system trying to work as intended. And I love Elder Scrolls theories, like the part about Fultheim, there clearly *are* hidden and interesting things in these games and I absolutely love that, those letters just don't seem to be one of those

[@traficantededolly9922]

I always thought the same, the ideia of a randon scholar, who learns where the word walls, by studies of ancient nord places, whe know that the word walls are some sort of ancient nord grave or burial ground, so the idea that the information of where there are located, can be found in old books or scriptures don't seen absurd to me

[@frogmastiff8198]

It’s the guy that has to keep all the dungeons candles torches and braziers lit, he guides you along and you clear out all the draugr spiders and skeletons and whatnot whilst he waltzes in after and refreshes any candles burning a bit low

[@ryanhouk3560]

So I actually kinda think it's Jarl Balgruff. 1. He clearly has a background in adventuring, knows the graybeards, and has an interest in dragons returning enough that he puts up with faringar and Delphine. 2. He is neutral on the war so it doesn't matter to him if you're a stormcloak or imperial, so he's your friend either way. If you do claim the city from him, he still may feel like helping you is useful enough he can tolerate it. 3. As stated in the letter, he thinks your progress is good, and no matter what it furthers the ultimate goal of kicking the thalmore out. If you're imperial, it may also mean a worthy emperor might return. If you're a stormcloak, it may make a Skyrim able to defend itself from everyone, which I think he'd be on board with, even if he's no longer on the winning side. 4. With his hold being the most centrally located and one of the most powerful, it stands to reason the courier could work for him, have a general idea of all times where you're at, and be able to get to you much easier than others.

[@VirtualAxiom]

That actually makes a lot of sense at face value, considering you can't even shout until you've met him and done the Mirmulnir boss to absorb your first soul and trigger random dragon spawns. After that point, I don't think it's unreasonable to say Balgruff is your friend, considering how appreciative he is for you saving the city from a potential disaster with no obligation to do put yourself at risk like that, and of course being the Jarl, he would have connections that would allow him to hear about your use of the Thu'um from basically anywhere in the province, and all he needs to do is say "Proventus, have someone take this letter to a courier in secret", and that's it. He's also got Farengar who's researching dragons, so it would stand to reason that even if Jarl Ballin himself doesn't have knowledge of the word walls, his court mage could be discovering them, and that information is being forwarded to the Dragonborn. The mechanic triggering in response to you using shouts would just be a way to give you control over it, rather than it being random. His motivation for doing it anonymously would just be to keep it low-key and not stir up any unwanted political issues, like making the other Jarls think he's grooming a demigod to be his personal weapon.

[@satellitebreakfast]

Doesnt he claim that he once made the pilgrimage to High Hrothgar? Maybe he learned more there than we realise.

[@Neognostic-pk5wu]

Not likely. I got a letter from the "friend" after Balgruuf was imprisoned in Solitude.

[@LastDovahCHIM]

I think the answer is easily Jarl Balgruuf. He’s one of few characters canonically who will acknowledge us as Dragonborn. (In the base game). He knows where we are because he has his court wizard scrying and spying on us, which is what Solitudes court wizard does with Wolfskull cave. He’s flagged as essential and cannot die. Although Farengar can die (even in a quest) it’s optional and he doesn’t have to die. Yes, we can betray him when we side with the Stormcloaks but I don’t think he’d stop secretly helping us because he loves his homeland and recognises that only we can truly stop the dragon crisis. And it’s only with his quest where we find out we’re Dragonborn do the letters start arriving. Personally I think it works better in his favour to hide his identity and involvement for political reasons.

[@st.anselmsfire3547]

One thing that's easily forgotten is that you can piss off both the Greybeards and the Blades and the mysterious friend still sends you letters. I still think it's a friend of the Mysterious Stranger from Fallout, possibly the human version of Nick Valentine. That's the most logical explanation.

[@crimzonempire4677]

You can’t keep putting out Skyrim videos I already went through my 2 month Skyrim ultra modding more than I actually played phase this year!

[@teddylyon1189]

The ebony warrior seems the most likely to me. He has mastered shouts as a non dargonborn, which takes years to master if you don’t have the ability, thus implying that he has been adventuring and gaining power long before the Dragonborn starts his journey. His end goal always seems to be to get to sovengard, and hearing of the possible resurgence of a Dragonborn would definitely catch his interest. He has the skills of s warrior on all respects, and many of those skills can be matched by mages, archers, warriors, and the like. But no one warrior matches his shouts, well, no one except the Dragonborn potentially. And who better to send a warrior to sovengard than the mythical Dragonborn of nord culture fame?

[@Darksamus51]

My theory is that it’s either Todd Howard or another Dev. Some people theorize that Tom Bombadil is a stand in for Tolkien in Middle Earth which would explain why he’s such an anomaly. It could be that this friend knows so much and wishes his identity go undiscovered for a similar reason. Obviously this is pure spitballing and Tolkien said he was not Tom but it’s still an interesting way of thinking.

[@thememecartextras9638]

Got to be Paarthurnax because the idea of a large ancient dragon writing a tiny letter would just be so funny.

[@theholypineapple3558]

Farengar, Jarl Ballin’s court wizard, could also be a candidate for the friend. He has a knowledge of dragons and researches them, and he could be considered a friend to the player because of your help to him.

[@aszapata10]

Farengar wouldn’t care about “Skyrim needing a true hero.” Dude just likes to study and do his research.

[@vshiki4872]

​@@aszapata10 While I do not subscribe to this theory, Farengar would probably be interested in studying the dragonborn, and he could just be saying that so that he pushes them to actually seek out the places he suggests, stroking their ego and such. We shouldn't take everything the letter says at face value, because ink hides a lie better than any voice ever could.

[@efeozer676]

I actually dig that its the ebony warrior grooming us, since it may be that he finished his quests long before us. He also seems capable of learning where the words are located with killing a single draugr.

[@KAPTAINmORGANnWo4eva]

I think that if they allude to the Dragonborn being aligned with Hermaeus Mora in TES 6, that will be "confirmation" that the Daedra grooming Miraak's replacement is as reasonable a theory as you can have. Just like how Sheogorath being all but confirmed as the Champion from Oblivion in his Skyrim quest alludes to what's canon and what's not in that game.

[@fmc7774]

I’m almost 100% sure it’s Hermaeus Mora. He would definitely have access to the knowledge of where the dragon words are, and he obviously wants the Dragonborn to be as powerful as possible, in order to replace Miraak as his servant. Sure letters via courier isn’t the traditional way daedra (and specifically herma mora) communicates with Mortals, but I think it’s definitely possible that Herma mora sent the letter on purpose in order to stay anonymous… maybe he thought the Dragonborn wouldn’t want to find the words if he thought they were given to him by a daedra? Idk… but I think Herma Mora is the most likely suspect Also maybe the courier is a servant of Herma Mora, and that’s why he always knows how to find the dovakin… the lord of knowledge just knows, and tells him where to find us

[@mat6tehpokemon946]

I originally thought it was delphine, thinking rather than "she knows where all the words of power are" I thought when she uncovered the location of a new word of power, she would send it to me.

[@gamer47e17]

I think that it's multiple people, using one guy as a courier to the courier. Specifically, I think it's a thalmor agent, one who has a large network of spies and contacts. Whether they're trying to get one side of the war to win, or just wanting the Dragonborn to grow and inevitably cause chaos, they're using their network of adventurers, spies, and lore masters to determine where words of power may be, and sending the dragonborn to it.

[@Starius65]

I've never really thought about it all being the same person, the way I have always viewed it is the people sending the letters are always just the random villagers around, ones who have heard tales of strange dragon walls through legend or traveler and legitimately want to help you for the reasons stated. It just ends up always being so similar because of Bethesda's usual lazy design of "one cut fits all"

[@VeryScarySmile]

Paarthurnax is totally using telekinesis to hold a pen so he can write the notes

[@Stumpher]

Someone talked about this exact topic and mystery recently and they suggested it is Kyne AKA Kynareth. They had good proof it is her too. Her human form is the girl you stumble upon on the seven thousand steps up to the Greybeards, the girl with blue eyes and a Gold circlet with green gems. The blue eyes represent Kyne’s blue divine statue gem, the green gems represent nature, which Kyne is highly related to aswell. You find her in front of the only carved rock that mentions her name: Kyne. She is only there when the Greybeards call the dragonborn, and she’s there meditating and waiting for the dragonborn to pass by so she can see him. You can only encounter her once too.

[@artsyhoodies]

I like to think it's the godly entity only known by his mortal name, The Courier. Mayhaps he is working for a higher being or just himself. Truly, the bestest friend to have would be one so omniscient and powerful. (/hj)

[@dialaskisel5929]

Personally, it makes most sense to me that the sender is Wulf... or some other aspect of Tiber Septim. He was dragonborn himself in life and would, especially after his apotheosis, absolutely know the location of every word wall. Through his manifestation as Wulf in Morrowind, we know he seems to prefer to interfere only in subtle ways, and that he could and would very easily be able to do something as innocuous as send a letter via a mortal incarnation. As to why, well things aren't going so hot for him right now due to the Thalmor pressuring the empire to ban Talos worship. Helping to tip the balance of power in Skyrim would likely reinvigorate the opposition to the Thalmor, eventually leading to a war where the imperial side would likely gladly reinstate the worship of Talos, thus re-empowering him;

[@wearytaco1641]

"ignore the fact the couriers can track you down wherever you are in this game, that's weird....," *says man who was literally just SHOUTING at the top of his lungs so fiercely it can push anything in it's path* yeah... It's a mystery how he found you 🤣

[@facelessnameless]

Black Rose has a great video on the topic. I won’t spoil it here but I’ve never heard it anywhere else and is quite compelling!

[@bonedragon7665]

The courier is Gaunter O’Dimm. Alduin made a deal with good ol’ Master Mirror to come back to the past and well, he needs assistance to collect his debt.

[@chipstick3856]

Master Mirror? Nah, this is Lord Letter

[@lampostsamurai2518]

I always assumed it was talos. Mans always showing up and helping main characters

[@CJ_F0x]

The 'Hermaeus Mora' theory is the only one that makes sense to me. Heck, he could even be the fucking courier for all we know. Daedra can do some crazy things with a mortal's mind, especially now that technically there aren't any dragonfires lit to keep the daedra out. I know it would've been possible to interact with the daedra before the oblivion crisis, but isn't it also noticeable how they are a lot more present and involved with mortal business at the time of Skyrim? Tamriel has become their playground a lot more in recent years. So yeah, Mora is interacting with us by either appearing as a courier or at the very least controlling him.

[@devinpitt]

Idk why but i think its miraak, he was the first dragonborn hes done been through it he knows where all the words of power are, and with hermaus mora he could theoretically listen anywhere at anytime ❤

[@ForWeAreMany]

alright, im at 2:00 and my thoughts on the matter was that it could only be Akatosh

[@AerynKDesigns]

an actual BEAUTIFUL ad that I didn't have to skip through on top of the usual great quality video? what even is life rn?

[@actually-Fr3sa]

I personally think it's the Ebony Warrior.

[@lykophobetor]

So glad I found your channel, these Skyrim videos really bring back a lot of nice memories! I want to know tho: What mods are you using currently ? Thanks in advance and keep up the great work!

[@070spacecowboy]

I thought it’s Ebony Warrior, he is helping you so that he can get the fight he wants…

[@abyssalfoxxx]

when the dragonborn first goes to high hrothgar, they are forced to go through training in unrelenting shout. shouting down ghostly forms of the greybeards. so for your argument about paarthurnax being unable to write nor send letters to the dragonborn. or the greybeards themselves struggling to communicate with the courier, ulfric himself could utilize this shout or similar shouts to write letters during his busy wartime efforts. i personally believe its been one of the mute graybeards as it explains why the dragon priests and draugr armies still exist guarding them. good video !!

[@oogliebooglie8796]

My headcanon is that the Dragonborn has dementia and he keeps forgetting that he’s mailing letters to himself

[@imlegend8108]

Maybe its Llavados from Sotha Sil. He seems to know a lot and pulling strings behind the action

[@tabbitee]

'Hey, mellon-nose!' - Dragonborn who is somehow also a LotR fanatic, yelling a terrible Throw Voice pun at the friend if they ever find him

[@ImRedyy]

Baby wake up the kids, Fizhy just dropped another masterpiece

[@Fizhy]

Wouldn't go that far, but more to come!

[@TheTartanFox]

what i love is your deep within a cave or dungeon and you get one, like how did they even hear it lol

[@facelessnameless]

The courier being a supernatural force is a lot of fun

[@vid2422]

18:50 that loud choir gave me a headache, I had to skip the whole section. please don't use that again

[@emeraldkoala2]

So I was playing Skyrim while watching this video and right when you said "The Greybeards" at 18:53 I got the loading screen with a Greybeard shouting. Just thought I'd mention that. Mostly just commenting for the sake of the algorithm or whatever. Great video.

[@lachlanbold8319]

My personal theory is that the friend is Lorkhan. He is known to manifest on Nirn, he has a vested interest in stopping Alduin, he is a god so he could know where word walls are and he is conveniently absent from Sovngarde.

[@facelessnameless]

Glad to see this series is still going. Got notifications on now 🤝

[@ikninja1hd]

Love your skyrim videos. Been binging them.

[@Fizhy]

Love a good binge

[@spaghettibird5135]

I always thought it was Arngeir. There’s the quest to deliver supplies to the Graybeards, so I imagine they could leave letters that way to be picked up and brought into the mail service. It would make sense for the Graybeards to know about your shouts wherever they are, and for them to only give you limited information at a time.

[@backflipsteff]

Our mysterious friend is non other than Todd Howard himself injecting these letters directly in our games because it just works.

[@noodles24601]

I do like the Karita theory, but personally I'm inclinced to believe that it isn't one specific person which I'm glad you mentioned since a lot of people just skip over that idea.

[@sebastianmoua2526]

Answer is easy, Todd Howard is sending you massages

[@poolofbile6409]

FUCK! Beat me to it

[@dravenlei1870]

IDK... i still think it's Delphine. Fultheim of Nightgate Inn carries a Blades sword. Perhaps he is the go between Delphine and the Carrier. Or possibly Orgnar of the Sleeping Giant Inn who seems to take orders from Delphine until she leaves for Sky Haven Temple and bequeaths him the Inn. First off, Delphine acquisitioned that Dragon Burial map from the court wizard of Dragonsreach. The is translated from the Dragonstone you find at Bleak Falls Barrow. If she is smart enough to obtain this on her own without Esbern, then I would imagine she is smart enough to also know of Word Wall locations. It also makes the most sense in regards to the choice you have to make later to grow The Blades upon killing Parthanax. Parthanax being the Greybeards leader, the Greybeards will show you word wall locations to build your shout library whereas, "A Friend" will also show you word wall locations. I think A Friend is to Blades showing you these locations as the Greybeards do... two opposite sides of the same coin. Furthermore, we know that it is possible for non-Dragonborn to learn shouts as we know Ulfric Stormcloak shouted and killed King Torygg. It's possible that Delphine simply put a request to be on the lookout within each hold for anyone showcasing a shouting ability. After all they know of Dragonborns with their organization being built around a Dragonborn, an Emperor who shouted down Reman Cyrodill in the First Era during the Akavari invasion. Given that there is a Blades temple (Sky Haven Temple) within the lands of Skyrim with Alduin's Wall... I would think they have a rich history of understanding Dragon lore and sites like word walls as they relate.

[@grantryder352]

Okay some parts of the backing track were giving serious doctor who to me for some reason! Love it!

[@coledavidson5630]

27:16 this is entirely paradoxical but it is Skyrim so I'm not fully dismissing it either lol

[@orionmerkwan304]

I mean the dragon born as far as I’m aware has the elder scroll of time so he could be able to use it to send the letters

[@lilithr254]

My head canon is that it's the ebony warrior trying to beef you up for the eventual fight

[@totallyrandomuser5760]

It is one of the Grey Beards. One of them carries around paper and ink for letters in the inventory, Grey Beards can hear whispers of word walls and Dragonborn shouting(the monks live in the highest place in Skyrim). The people that deliver supplies to them could maybe act as middlemen for giving letters to the courier(the only thing I'm not certain about)

[@MoonlitTheft]

I always thought the Greybeards being able to 'feel whispers' answered "how did this 'friend' know I was using it" rather well. And always thought it was the one who carried paper in his pocket, which none of the others do. They're closed off from the world, but will still require things to live, so it's not unusual to think they DO have a channel of sorts to the outside, even if it's more on bias of 'need', so I always figured that he just made use of this channel to have someone drop off his letter to the courier.

[@oddsmile1234]

I love the idea that it's actually nobody in particular, it's just someone who likes you heard a rumor of it but thinks you won't remember them since you meet so many people

[@40kbrit47]

Dont worry Fizhy, were all mental here.

[@quintenboosje2437]

actually.. on my current playthrough i haven't visited the greybeards yet, and i used a shout on a remote place where everybody around to hear it was soon dead. INSTANTLY got the letter after a fast travel

[@kingloucifur8086]

I believe the 'Friend' mentioned in the letters is Hela Thrice-Versed, who wrote the in-game book 'Dragon Language: Myth No More'. In the book, she describes visiting many of the word walls throughout Skyrim in an attempt to decipher dragon language and the burial traditions of the ancient nords. She even mentions having felt a pulsing power from the symbols and laments that this power may never be understood since dragons no longer exist. It would stand to reason that someone with that experience and knowledge of the word walls would help the Dragonborn in his quest, especially after the Dragonborn displays the power to produce a Thu'um publically.

[@ShadowDragon-cw7wb]

Its the Courier. He's everywhere. He even breaks into houses with me sometimes.