We Were Wrong About the Falmer... - The Secret Dwemer Scheme - Elder Scrolls Lore

The Snow Elves were NOT poisoned. The truth is so much worse... This is how the Dwarves turned the Falmer into the corrupted creatures we see in Skyrim
Patreon: / drewmora
Twitter: / drewberrymunch
Discord: / discord
Twitch: / drewmora
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
2:55 - The Falmer
3:37 - Into the Deeps
5:00 - Nords, Eye of Magnus, & The Night of Tears
10:15 - The Last Stand
11:30 - The Snow Prince is Come!
14:12 - The Fall of the Snow Elves
14:54 - Dwarven Cities & Automatons
18:14 - The Forgotten Vale
19:42 - Touching the Sky
21:04 - The Snow Elf Deterioration
22:52 - What Made The Falmer Change?
23:21 - Toxic Mushrooms
26:34 - This is Where Things Get Interesting...
27:25 - Calcelmo's Stone
28:49 - The Truth... The Elder Scrolls
32:49 - War of the Crag & Blackreach
33:49 - Dwemer Disappear...
35:11 - Faire Agarwen's Fate
36:46 - Vyrthur, Gelebor, Vampires, & The Tyranny of the Sun
39:32 - The Last Living Snow Elf
40:06 - Can the Falmer Recover?

[@BoldCaster]

I never made the connection between the Falmer's blindness and the elder scrolls, thats crazy

[@savagex466-qt1io]

This video makes me want to start a new game. I never finished the vampire expansion missions. Il make a old man magic brenton but with light armour on max hard.

[@realzachfluke1]

@@savagex466-qt1io do it, I support you in that decision hahaha

[@himoragenma6416]

I did about 5 years ago, on another channel called EpicNate, turns out he's NOT SO EPIC!!!😆 Many fans of the channel just commented DUMB SHIT at my suggestion, without pondering it's validity!!!🤨 I also mentioned the eyes of Falmer, the Elder Scrolls, etc., SOME FOLK JUST DON'T PAY ATTENTION!!!!👍👍👏

[@ondolemarthejusticiar]

@@savagex466-qt1io Breton? At least that race of man has high elf in them.

[@nekomochi486]

@@himoragenma6416 bitter, much?

[@badluck5647]

*M'aiq the Liar* _"M'aiq knows why Falmer are blind. It has nothing to do with the Dwemer disappearing. Really."_

[@Raycheetah]

Let us not forget that the Falmer have *white* souls, unlike the sapient races. That speaks to a powerful, mystical change, more than mere poison could effect. With regards to Calcelmo's translated stone, it might refer to liberating the divine part of the Falmer race to dwell among the Aedra, leaving behind only the raw, animal part of their beings, the Falmer called "The Betrayed." ='[.]'=

[@jagaskins]

I’m glad someone mentioned that. To me it was the most jarring part of the transformation. I’m a little disappointed the video didn’t mention it.

[@Hammers_Peace]

I kinda doubt it was intentional

[@sirreginaldfishingtonxvii6149]

​@@Hammers_Peace Perhaps not. But if it's in the games it's canon. We have to work with what we got.

[@juicecan6450]

I have thousands of hours on this game and somehow drew and your comment have shown me a new possibility.Sheesh. Although as a Morrowboomer my research and speculation was mostly around the disappearance of the dwemer from the lens of dragon breaks and the Almsivi betrayal. But to my knowledge, the only theory that's supported by lore is that of poisoning and malnutrition, but that too can be called into question if there was tonal manipulation involved. But there's also the speculation of "what decides the nature of one's soul in TES?", sentience? just being a particular race? the latter makes sense based on what the game shows for the most part. But what if the soul is no more than a medium of transportation for the consciousness, like data that rides on radio waves? And the fact that the falmer lost all sense of self, there's nothing to transport, so their soul is white?

[@nicholasmorgan7609]

Are they truly animal though? There's some level of intelligence greater than animal. They make tools, weapons, staves, shelter and traps in a savage, but still evidently intelligent manner. I vaguely recall a line from Gelebor mentioning the betrayed were improving or something along those lines. Does that mean they're going to become sapient again, or is this like a P Zombie thing?

[@Kinfure]

When the solo career goes harder than the band

[@chadgoose7886]

True. Fudge muppet started making boring Skyrim builds and other lame Skyrim stuff whereas drew kept making cool lore stuff

[@lucasthompson4171]

Man.

[@jeremycarnes1656]

I got bored with FudgeMuppet ages ago when they started making the same video over and over again. I'm glad Drew started making his own stuff, he was the best part. And he doesn't narrate with that Australian game show host "wot is ahp ladies and jeh-oh-men let's meet our contestants" cadence, that drives me nuts.

[@Angelo-nd4lg]

@@jeremycarnes1656 easy friend

[@Quizzmet]

Drewmora is Fudge Muppet's Deuce

[@charlieboone1298]

I love this theory. The Dwemer using the Snow Elves as an arcane version those wee devices you use to view a solar eclipse without burning your retinas out is such a neat explanation of how the latter fell and the former rose.

[@thalmoragent9344]

Literally used as lab rats... sad but true

[@philipcain5093]

“Arcane version those wee devices”

[@HGeorge1993]

The idea the dwemer had the falmer reading elder scrolls is genius! I dont care if its speculation, drew youve outdone yourself this time.

[@cambriaofthevastoceans6721]

I didn't catch if he mentioned the dwemer transcriber you get the main quest scroll out of. Would have made using falmer not just unnecessary but a security risk

[@HGeorge1993]

@@cambriaofthevastoceans6721 yes he did mention it, but anyway here is the uesp:" Long ago, the Dwemer devised a means to extract knowledge from the Scrolls without requiring someone to sacrifice their sight. Complex machinery interfaces with the Scroll and draws out information, inscribing it onto a metal Lexicon which can then be read by those with the requisite knowledge.[11] It is unknown how the quality or quantity of the information gained this way compares to that when read directly from a Scroll." So maybe they needed the falmer for other types of information, or maybe their use predates the transcription tech. Either way I'd rather retcon their tech and have this be the way they read scrolls, because it's Hella metal 👹

[@mailleweaver]

@@cambriaofthevastoceans6721 Perhaps the Falmer were used to develop the technology for reading scrolls.

[@cambriaofthevastoceans6721]

@@mailleweaver still doesn't really fit the turning of an entire race.

[@thecrimsonfuckeralucardlor5087]

@mailleweaver this makes the most sense

[@finnirbjrneklo1246]

I don't know why but the story of the snow prince is legitimately my favorite piece of lore in the elder scrolls and Drew's narration does it absolute justice

[@Gnome-kc7pr]

It sure does. Perfect

[@realzachfluke1]

I love how the writers chose to deliberately give the Snow Elves a final ounce of hope with the Snow Prince, only to _crush it again_ almost immediately with him being killed by a newly-orphaned child. It's my favorite part lol.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​@@realzachfluke1 Well, that's kinda dark mate... I find it tragic that he died last minute, it was a terrible fate for their people

[@thalmoragent9344]

I agree, it's my favorite part of the Lore as well. The Snow Prince's story got me invested into the story

[@cellem6216]

There's a dungeon in ESO (Morrowind expansion I think) that has a dwarven machine that affects/degrades the mind using tonal magic just by it being accidentally activated.

[@fenrir5741]

It might be the dwemer weaponizing the blinding effect of reading the elder scrolls although I don't really see the mmo style Bethesda games being canon especially fallout 76

[@cericat]

Yes, in the Gnisis Kwarma mine.

[@koghs]

@@fenrir5741 dude you are absolutely clueless

[@redwolf4611]

@@koghs not really. Eso is made by a different developer with Bethesda's permission. It's essentially like final fantasy brave exvious only in mmo form. A collection of references and themes based of the main titles but in itself its own thing. Personally i found it very ADD with no focus.

[@thalmoragent9344]

Yeah, I assumed the Dwemer tricked the Falmer leaders with this, and the rest of the race followed

[@oshii3585]

144p, and with the most flimsy connection in the world. But after more than 7 weeks, I can finally watch a Drewmora video. I'm genuinely shedding a tear as I write this. This civil war has destroyed my country probably past the point of recognition. I miss when I went to bed listening to one of your videos while I thought about my day at uni tomorrow. Now all of that is gone but I still have this channel. I joke around a lot but these videos are seriously very special to me. Thank you, Drewmora. (I shall wake my mother soon)

[@cxx23]

You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.

[@nataliehartigan]

what country are you from?🙏may you be protected ❤️

[@Nemesis9K]

Hope you find your own safe Chantry ❤

[@DionysusleapNbounds]

Are you still among the living? God bless

[@shawnberry760]

How long have we been playing Skyrim? How much longer will we still be amazed by it? This is a truly wonderful game and a truly wonderful series.

[@Allantitan]

*20 years later * hmm yes this comment has aged like the finest of wines

[@voradorhylden3410]

Your late. I was amazed by morrowind

[@Mothromance]

@@voradorhylden3410ok morrowboomer

[@baldeagle1171]

​@@Mothromancethe 6th house will rise again....

[@wildfire_gaming]

My theorie when reading Calcelmo's text, is that the dwemer weakened the Snow Elves to the point that they were no longer seen as 'higher beings'. That way the dwemer could trap their souls in the more common, white soulgems and use them to power their automatons. The falmer becoming part of the automatons could be what the text meant with their new eternity, as the automatons would guard their cities forever.

[@ItJustWorks420]

Let me further solidify your theory: Black Soul gems weren't even around yet when the Dwemer vanished. So turning them into white souls, wouldn't just have been more convenient, it would be a necessity, if they wanted to farm SnowElf souls.

[@michaeldiekow3912]

“The warm redness draining from each corpse carved causeways down the battlefield, and formed pools rapidly cooling of coagulate.” That wonderfully crafted sentence gave me goosebumps! Drew, you are a wordsmith. I am inspired by you to incorporate more epic and poetic language in my own writing.

[@thalmoragent9344]

Drew is legendary

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

I like your Divine Curse Theory. I dont think that Auriel would be able to do it, given the whole shtick with Gods being unable to directly effect the world. However, Magnus fled creation before losing his power and as The God of The Sun he was probably rather miffed at Vyrthyr creating what essentially amounts to a "Fuck the Sun" prophecy. Cursing the whole race might seem to be overkill, but Azura did it to the Dunmer and Boethia did it to the Orsimer, so there is a precedent for godly beings cursing whole races at a time. On a side note, both Azura and Boethia have also made races before. Those races being the Khajiit for Azura and the Chimer for Boethia(who were later turned into the Dunmer by Mommy Azura). Now that I think of it, it seems as though only Elves have been changed in such a way. Maybe some blessing from Shezzar, Who Is Shor, Who Is Lorkhan, keeps Man immutable and bound to their form?

[@EJDubbz]

I assume it's a molag bal thing due to the prevalence of vampirism among them.

[@jansonshrock2859]

I think it's possible, but it's also just as possible since we know that the dwemer could literally mimic divine power that they made their own divine curse, as I believe that Magnus would only curse the vampire-turned snow elves

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

@@jansonshrock2859 Honestly, I feel the most likely scenario to be a bit of column s and a bit of column b. The Dwemer started the degeneracy with fungus and Elder Scrolls, and then Magnus finished it off by turning the non-degenerate Falmer in the vale into degenerate Falmer as well because of what Vyrthyr did.

[@jansonshrock2859]

@@Im-Not-a-Dog I can agree with that, maybe the dwemer even made some kind of deal with vyrthur to make the prophecy real i.e. creating the elder scroll with it

[@crafterofdoom]

i always assumed elves are a bit mutable. Bosmer got that whole Green Pact and Wild Hunt. and i dont actually know how they relate to Aldmer, Altmer, or even Khajiit. Still makes 'Elves can change" kind of a trope

[@Gensolink]

i remember finding the snow prince story and I really loved it. He felt like the Umaril of the snow elves and seeing him die in such a mundane and unexpected way, because of the rage of a child who lost their parent and that the atmorans honored him, always left an impression on me.

[@moch.farisdzulfiqar6123]

I argue about this in some KZbin comment and calling it a Nord propaganda rather than historical record, then someone pointed out that the child could be as big as the Skyrim giant or at least as big as the Prince. Yeah... of course.

[@Gensolink]

@@moch.farisdzulfiqar6123 that's possible and wouldnt be too much of a stretch. But it also wouldnt take much to kill him if he left his guard down and the snow elves thought they won. It's something we will never truly know.

[@Nexus23able]

Didn't Gelebor say that there may be pockets of Snow Elves hidden away in the mountains?

[@Whitebreadonly]

I believe so. There “may still be other conclaves of Snow Elves hidden away” was the way he put it, if I remember correctly, in the various discrete reaches of Nirn. I can’t remember the whole quote, but I do remember him using the word “conclaves” very distinctly. There’s no telling when we’ll ever see any of them, if ever though.

[@cericat]

@@Whitebreadonly yeah. What will happen to the Chantry now? "While it would fill me with joy to see the Chantry back to its former glory, that time has long since passed. Now that my brother's dead, it's quite possible I'm the last of our kind." Then I've contributed to your kind's extinction. "There's no need for that kind of talk. I said it was possible. It's also quite possible that there are some other isolated conclaves of snow elves nestled elsewhere on Nirn. I'll also assume Vyrthur didn't exactly give you the option to stay your hand." What will you do then? "For the time being I will remain here, on the overlook and continue trying to keep the Sanctum free of the Betrayed. You're always welcome to return here at any time, of course."

[@elizawulf8180]

Most likely (and in the project I'm working on), the Ice Tribe who lived in an Ice Cave - a maze of lifts and puzzle doors around a crashed Ayleid airship - were one such group.

[@RMCbreezy]

​@@elizawulf8180ayleids had airships?

[@funfungerman8401]

It makes honestly no sense that all snow elves despite this one in the vampire dlc are dead or degraded to falmer since they lived in skyrim not just a few years so they probably went everywhere where you could lived and since there is no telecommunication in the world of elder scrolls how should we or other races as demer or nord knew that there in the mountains is a village full of snow elves

[@Erimioa]

No wonder the Snowelf prince lost against a child. They are immortal in skyrim.

[@m.m.5448]

An absolute banger of a video as always. Anything about the Falmer and Dwemer is an instant win in my book.

[@badluck5647]

Could the Dwemer have blinded the Falmer to make their senses more attune to tonal magic?

[@PattPlays]

yea what if they *listenned* to the scrolls and tied down so they couldnt cover their ears and put to a metal rack to conduct the sound into your BONES like a ROCK CONCERT SPEAKER at POINT BLANK while you can hear like a person who was born blind- and you're on LSD.

[@sporeham1674]

@@PattPlays Bro how high are you

[@igncom1]

@@sporeham1674 less high then the writers.

[@jessejamison-oq4oe]

You know I was scrolling through some of the comments while I was waiting for the commercial, not just happened to find your question to be very interesting... You know, I never asked myself why the falmer are blind... I always thought it was an oddity but I came to the conclusion that they were blind because of being deceived by the Daedra when they entered into some kind of pact to prevent their own extinction or it was caused by the dwemer in order to gain an advantage in enslaving them in order to conduct experiments on them. The blindness was probably a means to heighten their other senses... I have to believe this is more likely the scenario that took place because the dwemer were working on tonal magic... I suppose they sought the falmer as the Invaders and took advantage of them, It was an act of cruelty.

[@PattPlays]

@@igncom1 accurate, I have never done LSD.

[@jeremycarnes1656]

The Falmer are the coolest take on the Dark Elves concept. The drow are neat, the Warhammer dark elves of Naggoroth are pretty cool, but the Elder Scrolls really did the Elves the best of any setting. The Falmer being a degenerate, savage remnant of a once prosperous and dominant civilization that live underground in complete darkness is inspired. Edit: I'm referring to the real-life Nordic mythology concept of Dark Elves, not the Dunmer.

[@crafterofdoom]

i always felt it was more like 'ofcourse they gotta shove the Falmer in, despite Falmer being extinct' but i'll agree, Elder Scrolls Dark Elves best Dark Elves

[@lorewalkercho7291]

people always trash skyrim's original lore but i think falmer are the coolest part. the writers did a great job working with what was a footnote in morrowind.

[@samiamtheman7379]

Technically speaking, Dark Elves are a different race of Elves from the Falmer.

[@jeremycarnes1656]

@@samiamtheman7379 I'm referring to the Nordic Dark Elves. The original concept. Predates the Elder Scrolls by a few millennia. And the Falmer are very, very obviously Bethesda's take on it, with some nods to the drow of Dungeons and Dragons with the insectoid/arachnid theme. I mentioned the concept as a whole, not just contained within the milieu of Nirn. I am curious who you're thinking of, though. I'm guessing the Dunmer, who are also pretty obviously inspired by the drow in appearance, though not culture. That would make sense, since the base name for them in-game is Dark Elf.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​@@lorewalkercho7291 I wish the Snow Elves had more Lore around their race before their final years

[@savagex466-qt1io]

I loved fighting the Falmers. They really are fun to fight on hardest mode. Playing magic with no armour on hardest id say is the trickest.

[@Gnome-kc7pr]

True thats definitely much harder than archery

[@FramerMichlee]

My current arch mage has ebony flesh. But tbh, I'm not playing the new edition on Legendary difficulty. Not until I play an entire campaign at least twice. I did win original platinum on PS4 on two accounts. At least one of them was entirely Legendary difficulty. Skyrim is by far my fave console game.

[@greydragon9082]

I want the last Falmer to meet the last Dwemer. Imagine the conversations they'd have.

[@R0ckmans]

So... Yagrum Bagarn meeting Gelebor. That would be quite something indeed.

[@3DRC-707]

A snow elf so badass they gave him a proper burial. Savage

[@stiffnastyz]

You're doing so well on this solo channel, Drew. Happy for you man.

[@RanaAgens]

I'm confused about why the blindness of the Falmer would be hereditary if it's caused by exposure to the Elder Scrolls. TheEpicNate has a theory that I quite like about how Falmer are somehow connected to the Wisp Mothers, which have Elven-shaped ears and are classified as undead according to the Turn Undead spell. The involvement of Dwemer tonal magic might explain why the Wisp Mothers make musical chiming sounds, and the creation of ghost-like beings from the souls of the Falmer might explain why modern Falmer have white souls -- part of their very being could have been removed and used to create the Wisp Mothers. This might have been a prototype or trial-run of what the Dwemer later tried to do when using the Heart of Lorkhan to ascend to godhood themselves. When Arniel Gane tries to simulate what the Dwemer did to themselves in lab conditions he ends up becoming a ghost too.

[@Etticos.]

I love how Drew’s scripts are so poetic and well written.

[@derekrichardson7853]

What if the Falmer weren’t purposely morphed into what we see in Skyrim, but simply evolved into that after being trapped underground for centuries after the dwemer suddenly vanished. Leaving the falmer ignorant on how to open the doors and work elevators to get themselves back to the surface. Trapped in the dark, with nothing to do but evolve(or devolve)or die.

[@SephTheHuntress]

What if the tones were left on when the dwemer disappeared. Like, they were in the middle of testing some experimental tones, and that's what really drove the falmer to savagery. Becoming what they are now due to not knowing how to turn the devices off.

[@danielwolf8365]

@@SephTheHuntress That makes a lot of sense. Everything is still running down in the Dwemer ruins, why wouldn't their tonal technology also persist? Clever :)

[@Urssaff]

Considering the falmers are now blind and a lot of underground living animals are blind it adds to the credibility of the theory

[@marco0445]

I think it might be a mixture of natural evolution and forced one. Keep in mind Falmer CAN raid the sueface as described.

[@Lyndonmaman]

"Though I've embellished her story throughout this video..." Nah bro, you just elaborated on it. I'm choosing to believe the parts about Faire's story are canon now. You're an incredible storyteller. Also, not correcting you or anything, I know it's super subjective with written sources blah blah blah, but the coolest pronunciation I ever heard for her name was in a shoddycast video, and was pronounced 'fah-EAR', and that sounded so cool to me that I actually started a character in Skyrim RPing as her being a sort of re-ascended Snow Elf that still used a Falmer playstyle (poisons, falmer weapons, etc). It was a lot of fun

[@louthinator]

I have a different theory on this, I believe they were fed a poisonous mushroom like what is told, but this mushroom was kinda like cordyceps. It got into their system and killed off the part of their mind that made them a civilized race, and then it proceeded to alter their souls putting them into a state of undeath. If you notice draugr in skyrim also have white souls despite being people, but those people, like the falmer, have been reduced to something animalistic. Another thing to note is the gaunt and withered appearance of the falmer that seems to match the draugr too, and the fact that the falmer have survived for thousands of years almost unaging yet there's no evidence that they have children. Even elves age in the elder scrolls universe, unless they somehow extend their lifespan through other means, one of those means being delving into the realms of undeath like vampires and draugr. It seems the dwemer were using them as undead servants to fight and work for them as slaves, the main difference being because it was achieved via this mushroom and not via the usual necromantic methods, they are immune to turn undead. If true that feeds into another theory that I have that when an undead is created, the body is bound to the ideal masters who are the ones that animate it and the turn undead spell, a fragment of the power of arkay, can repel their influence. With the mushroom version they skipped the middle man. With them not under the influence of the ideal masters, then the power of arkay will no longer push them back, and in the case of the shamans they can even wield that power. The dwemer achieved something truly twisted with the falmer, the perfect corruption of life.

[@CNNBlackmailSupport]

"No child needs throwing swords! Weapons of war are for soldiers!" "You see why the 2nd alteration is so important to us, Barbarians, child."

[@sigigle]

It's the endless mystery which makes it my favorite setting of all time. It lets people theory craft about it almost endlessly, there's never a time where you feel like you understand everything about it with confidence. The mystery and depth makes it so there's always things to speculate about and be discussed.

[@BiTurbo228]

You know what I love about this theory? Not only does it fit perfectly with the lore, but it offers a harrowing potential future for the Imperials if they get desperate and start abusing their elder scrolls and moth priests. I do love a good harrowing potential future that people can't see coming in the present.

[@wearytaco1641]

I think it wouldve been nice to hear your thoughts on the theory The Epic Nate talks about. Also, I think its referred to as poisoned from the mushrooms a lot, but I feel a lot of peeps forget about malnutritions awful impacts. I have a family member (has passed a couple yers back) who lived during the Great Depression and they literally had to boil/eat grass just to survive. My great grandma was physically fine, but her sister lost her hearing and sight. She had to use sign language on her hand similar to Helen Keller I suppose. I cant imagine only having mushrooms to eat would be beneficial to a whole civilian who was used to a large array of foods. I mean I could see how the Nords and Elves and such would see it as intential poisoning just reading diary entries and such, but in context i cant imagine just mushrooms is super nutritional.

[@himoragenma6416]

I commented this very thought YEARS AGO on EpicNate, only received DUMB comments from FANBOIS of the channel!!!😆

[@juicecan6450]

It's been ages since I played the game, so I cant recall if we get to pocket the mushrooms that the falmer ate as an ingredient so we can know it's effects (i dont think we do). The falmer are a race that lost sight, which would mean that they needed the sound of their language to communicate even more than they did before. So why did they devolve into something like the chittering Ghuls of Middle Earth? I think that the mushroom also had effects on the brain, like a hallucinogenic and turned them into crackheads effectively, servile crackheads under the Dwemer, while the effects of long term malnutrition also kick in, forcing their power hungry brains to idle so the body may live off what little nutrition it got from those mushrooms. But then they rebelled against their masters by going down to Blackreach, and with the only sober party to communicate with gone, the degradation of their mind went into freefall, until warfare and rudimentary craftsmanship were the only things they were left with, as those were vital in the war against their Dwemer saviour-captors. Language? A sharp screech meaning a specific command was more effective than an echoing shout across a cavern, and so their failing minds adopted a more primitive form of communication, for that was all they needed in war, any more and their now enfeebled brains couldn't handle it. And then one day, the Dwemer vanished. The Falmer just, went on pause if you ask me, having lost so much of themselves that they do not even have the cognition to realize that they're no longer under the threat of the torment they endured. And so they roam the cave complexes, eternally in search of those who must be killed. Why? they no longer know. Edit: The Elder Scrolls theory is interesting as well. Maybe they experimented on the Falmer, to use them as guinea pigs for an hypothesized path at ascension, but stopping short of the final condition lest the servant ascend before the master. And maybe it seemed to be a success, twisting the Falmer en masse and turning them blind. But because this final condition for ascension was not tested, something went awry. There's too many holes in this though and a hint to the Elder Scrolls having anything to do directly with the turning of the proud mer of snow was never given iirc. But there is evidence of that nature for the poisoning and malnutrition theory.

[@Ilovevidgames123]

This is an awesome theory, Drew. I love the idea that Falmer were used to try to read Elder Scrolls and that this is part of the blinding. Perhaps they were the subjects of Dwemer experimentation to figure out how to prevent the blinding? Maybe the fungus was reverse-engineered from the Elder Scrolls themselves to mimic their blinding effect, so that it would be easier to conduct mass experimentation on how to stop it?

[@LeortisBooks]

The Snow Prince’s spear reminds me of Gil-Galad’s spear. I can’t remember it’s Sindarin name but I remember it meant ice-sickle. He used it alongside Elendil to fight Sauron. Probably a reference

[@Mephiles343]

Aeglos.

[@OuterRimPride]

*actually* the oldest living mortal would probably be King Orgnum of the Maormer. He was alive before Mer even left Aldmeris.

[@JamesMadisonsSpiritAnimal]

Drew you really out did your self on this one. I thought theres nothing new to add to this, thatd youd bring up the same tired 2 possibilities....elderscrolls...OF COURSE! Their very own Moth priests! Brilliant!

[@DarkVeghetta]

It is a good day when I find a channel that comfortably passes the requirements for my preemptive like policy.

[@Hirohitorunguard]

man, your lore videos are some of the best i've seen. They are so incredibly immersive and let me scratch that weekly elder scrolls itch.

[@unslaadkrosis3489]

Nobody ever talks about the feral Falmer in the forgotten vale that are significantly more beast like than most falmer and may even have a type of vampirism. They may be considerably older than most Falmer you see in Skyrim.

[@oshura2506]

I believe the game heavily implied or even said that they were infected with vampirism, and it might have been the snow elf who had done it

[@thalmoragent9344]

Likely Vyrthur's doing, making them follow his commands

[@alexanderrahl7034]

"the chantry was purposely made in a place that would require the upmost piety to reach." that sounds cool until you try to imagine... you know... the actual construction effort lol.

[@ianjames1754]

I just imagined speaking to the Jarl’s steward or an innkeeper and telling them that you’re looking for work and they just hand you something like this… Job vacancy Labourers and professionals are required for a large, bespoke construction project in the Forgotten Vale area, located in the Northwest region of Skyrim. Applicants are required to be reasonably physically fit and to be appropriately equipped and armed for an unusual and potentially hazardous initial commute, as the site is located in a remote, mountainous location with no motorway or public service access or parking facilities. Both a capable and competent understanding and practice of personal self-defence is strongly advisable. Previous experience traversing large cave systems in almost complete darkness would be advantageous. Applicants should be able to swim. Successful applicants, however; will be granted access to magic portals following the completion of their on-site induction for future convenience. Rates of pay are negotiable depending on relevant skills and experience. Please express your interest by forwarding your application with an attached copy of your CV to [e-mail] and a member of our recruitment team will contact you within seven working days. Yeah… Think I’ll just chop firewood or pick some spuds instead mate. :D

[@Andrew-vz7fj]

I kind of always assumed that the Night of Tears was because the Nords were found the Eye of Magnar and had planned on using it in some way, similar to the War of Red Mountain was because the Dwarves were going to use the Heart of Shor in their machinations. Both events pissed off the local, more traditional elves, and both involved using a body part of an old god. Now with the whole translation of Calcemo's wall, I am convinced of it. I think the meaning of Calcemo's wall is," We do not need you to say thank you. However if you would like to show your thanks, then abandon your old ways and join us in our quest to become gods once more." In this interpretation the diet of mushrooms to weaken the Snow Elves so when the learn how the dwarves operate, the y would have more difficulty rising up. The Snow Elves started the war of the crag because they found out either about the Heart of Shor or some other alleged heresy. We know from the lexicons the Dwarves were actively studying Elder Scrolls in Skyrim, that may have been the heresy.

[@jeremycarnes1656]

The Eye isn't literally Magnus's eye. It's a remnant from the previous kalpa. It's thought to be a mining robot.

[@Andrew-vz7fj]

​@@jeremycarnes1656 It is thought to be a mining robot according to an out of game source. Even though KINMUNE was written by Michael Kirkbride, it is not in game, and not cannon. There is nothing in game that says what the eye of Magnus is, but in game it only reacts to the Staff of Magnus. According to Yagrum Bagarn, the only known Dwemer still in Tamriel, the staff of Magnus belonged to Magnus himself, which leads me to believe the Eye of Magnus at a minimum at minimum belonged to Magnus as well even if it isn't his literal eye. I wonder why the god who designed and created the Mundus would need a mining machine? Why would the thing from which all magic exist need a mining machine?

[@jeremycarnes1656]

@@Andrew-vz7fj why, I've no idea. Why do Dwarves need to make steam and magic powered robots, why do giant oak trees need to walk, why do sentient hive mind trees need to turn lizards into people? I dunno.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​​@@jeremycarnes1656All that is different though, a God needing a Mining bot from a past Era... makes far little sense than all of the others.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​​​​@@Andrew-vz7fj Fair points; And even in THAT story, the Night of Tears happened AFTER Ysgramor and the Nords had done something regarding to the Eye, so I mean... I don't think the Snow Elves are the ones who started the conflict. I've taken to the idea that perhaps the College of Winterhold quest line. Someone tampered with the Eye, and it lead to a cataclysmic event, one seen from miles away Imagine if the Snow Elves awoke one night to see the skies stormy, and a massive sphere of light around Saarthal, leading to a magical storm that threatened the lives of many living in Skyrim. Falmer, Dwemer, Nede, and Nord alike? That would make the Sacking of Saarthal make a lot more sense. A mass slaughter of an entire city is something only done with a burning hatred. What if the Snow Elves felt betrayed by the Nordic lack of trust? And threatened by the Nordic Clevermen now using an artifact of divine power? Like how the Dwemer had plans of tampering with the Heart of Lorkhan, and the Chimer saw this as a heretical, dangerous act... That makes a lot more sense than "yeah, let's slay all the Nords we had little issue with at all, at night, with no negotiation or anything". We don't have the full story, and who knows what Ysgramor isn't telling us or his kin.

[@soapminer7099]

These lore videos are just so chill and relaxing. Listen to it when I got chores to get done playing games cooking.

[@coykeaton2284]

Dude, this made me REALLY wish I knew how to build mods. I would love to make a massive mod that leads the Dragonborn on a long quest, ending in the redemption of the Snow Elves and bringing history full circle for Nord Dragonborn. A Nord led the forces that nearly destroyed the falmer, and a Nord now grew them from their subsequent nightmare, returning them to the sun in this arguably more cosmopolitan age.

[@thalmoragent9344]

The Snow Elves returning in one way or another, wouldn't work well with Nords in Skyrim. The hatred of the Ancient War would resurface, and unless we bring Gelebor and other hidden Snow Elves to Atmora and give them a shot there, well, I doubt we'll ever get that

[@timtaylor9298]

@@thalmoragent9344 I don't think it would be as much of a problem as it would seem. There would be distrust for sure, but an all out war would be unlikely. If anything, the Snow Elves would face greater problems from the Thalmor who would most likely perceive them as a threat in some twisted way.

[@patrickfields1640]

Incredible how fast your channel is growing, Drew. Keep it up my guy!

[@jadedj5385]

More like Drewmaeus-Mora. Glad the algorithm tossed this my way. Big fan of the content from Fudge Muppet.

[@swamite5553]

I'm wondering if maybe, and I can't remember if it's a theory or whatever but that Auriel and Akatosh were fused later in the whole Allessian Theocracy stage of the first Cyrodiilic Empire, and I also don't know if it's stated when the Chantry fell, but I'm wondering if maybe Auriel and Akatosh's fusion is the reason that Auriel failed to protect Vyrthur from being infected.

[@CNNBlackmailSupport]

"This is Mr. Beast at... a cave? This can't be ri... hello? HELLO! I'm paying for lasik surgery and I was given your information!... oh, I hear someone coming now!" - Last Testament of Sir Beast

[@ronaldcounterman5812]

Heartbreaking story, well told. I learned a lot that will enhance the fun in game. Great job.

[@mattharris8811]

This gave me chills bro. Incredible

[@michaelrobb9542]

Another banger, Drew. I'm looking forward to the next video.

[@devachris]

Well done, very nice work, learnt quite a lot

[@utterlymilked]

Quickly becoming my favorite channel

[@Blazuchan]

Thank you for the amazing video Drew.

[@joshuabarker5703]

Drews videos are pure poetry. So much so i cant listen to them without falling into a lucid dream.

[@martinbeckdorf4565]

This just makes so much sense. Would it be possible to restore Falmeri sight and perhaps even intelligence through the Elder Scrolls? Since they are artifacts that exist outside of time, I am thinking they could be used to revert the effects they had on the entire race. Perhaps bringing their sight through time back to them. It might require tapping into a powerful additional artifact like the Heart of Lorkhan. *IF* using the Heart made the entire dwemmer race vanish (assuming they didn't just Zero SUmmed), another artifact like the Eye of Magnus could change the Falmer back and restore their connection to the light.

[@michaelcooksey4695]

thank you for these in-depth lore videos u make, really helps me get super immerse in play throughs as well as makes me eager to learn more

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

My biggest takeaway from this is that if you write something on an Elder Scroll it becomes a prophecy. The Imperial Library better start writing "The Aldmeri Will Fall and The Cyrodilic Empire Will Reign Again." on all of the Elder Scrolls they have.

[@MidoriOfTheShuinsen]

And also write that the Snow Elves will regain their eyes

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

@@MidoriOfTheShuinsen Eyes and Civility. Otherwise, we're just making the Falmer even more dangerous.

[@MidoriOfTheShuinsen]

@@Im-Not-a-Dog Well, yes. That too.

[@thalmoragent9344]

Meh, Aldmeri don't need to fall, just "the Aldmeri will be halted and thrown back". This way, we don't get the Altmer and Bosmer races being wiped out or anything. Granted, I'd rather the Thalmor win, and manage to free the Anuic souls trapped in Lorkhan's realm.

[@thalmoragent9344]

​​@@MidoriOfTheShuinsenHow about "the Betrayed and Corrupted shall rise once more, with returned sight and great knowledge, in body and spirit" This allows for the message to be less vague. Perhaps Gelebor will find the last of his kind, and gather them all to the Chantry of Auriel, and this would allow for it to be restored/rebuilt.

[@danwizzle91]

Still killin it with your vids man!

[@nor4205]

Awesome, thanks for this tale. This was a random algorithm video and your well-spoken narration drew me in (as well as my interest in Falmer that was never properly satiated). I have learned today ^_^

[@matthewbrewer7174]

The fact that the 500 respected The Snow Prince so much, despite being an elf, that they gave him a proper warriors burial is very fascinating.

[@cave_hag]

Amazing story telling as usual.

[@Slavic_Sky]

Amazing storytelling and visually pleasing too. I listened to this story with bated breath, like from a storyteller in a darkened corner of an inn.

[@Gardenstategreat1225]

As a side note, I forget just how influential LOTR is to fantasy. I keep hearing parallel to it watching these.

[@JohnTibbitt]

You sir, blew my mind. Thanks.

[@supermelon928]

It seems like at the time of the snow prince solstheim would not yet be separated from the mainland

[@st.anselmsfire3547]

I like the idea of them being warped by an Elder Scroll because the dwarves wanted to break reality. It would actually make sense from a game play perspective, too, since the Falmer have white souls and all sentient life has black souls. Their souls were even degenerated.

[@WorldEaterZero]

You're a good storyteller Drew

[@Josh-db2kf]

Drew this video is awesome man 👌

[@ConservativeSatanist666]

Nice job. Great narration 😊

[@ConservativeSatanist666]

First time I heard the Elder Scrolls involved in the experiments.. interesting idea.

[@ConservativeSatanist666]

I still think the other experiments, like the ice wraiths; is a good theory too. It explains why their soul size changed to the same as an animal.

[@dragonberrymead9525]

I like the theory that the Falmer were made to read the Elder Scrolls. "unbinds your bones to the earth before, and sets your final path to the music of your new eternity." Sort of reminds me of what Dagoth Ur did with his followers, as they turned into Ash Ghouls and Sleepers they first lose their eyes on their path to "enlightenment". And of course their affinity for music.

[@RealBradMiller]

I read an Elder Scrolls one time and my game crashed. 😭

[@mark5222]

Could it be that the whole Saarthal thing was planned by the Dwemer? Mzulft, one of the Dwemer structures, has the means of locating both the eye and staff of Magnus. My theory is that the Dwemer themselves were the ones who attacked Saarthal or manipulated some Snow Elves to do so. And because the Snow Elves are the most known Elves in Skyrim, they were the "Elves" that were blamed for the massacre. The Dwemer knew that the Falmer had no chance in winning a war with the Atmorans because although the Snow Elves are gifted with magic, they were not militaristic due to several centuries of peace. In time, the Snow Elves were forced to retreat to the Dwemer, which effectively made them their elder scroll lab rats.

[@Riptide-rw7wp]

Oooo love this theory ❤

[@thewimp9630]

Sometimes I feel like the background events, which we don't play through in the different games, are some kind of tabletop-campaigns ^^

[@JamesMadisonsSpiritAnimal]

Ok this actually blew my mind wow

[@Grimm0549]

Congrats sir. You are an absolute MASTER of your craft. FANTASTIC work. Knew there was a reason we kept you around☺

[@crandleberrysadie]

By the Divines... Just what I needed. You're a good Drewmora Drew. TY 💖 🙏

[@laser8389]

I don't discount your final conclusion about the Elder Scrolls, but another possibility that I came to from your lead-up (particularly the Falmer's connection to Magnus and from Calcelmo's stone) is that the Falmer, separated from the light of Magnus, were deteriorating in mind and/or body and then the Dwemer showed mercy by making it happen faster/more completely. They may have then used the ES and torture beds to experiment on the corrupted Falmer, noticing how (as said below) they now no longer have black souls (this could have been an attempt to understand the transformation or to find a way to reverse it, perhaps as a way to engineer their own ascent to a higher form of soul - divinity).

[@albertcapley6894]

What if the Falmer caused the Dwemner messing with the heart of Lorkhan to backfire, what I mean is, if the Dwemner were reading the elder scrolls through Falmer subjects and using that information in their tonal magic, what if the Falmer altered the scrolls in such a way that made their calculations (which had been correct) to now be catastrophicly wrong and bad and doing such a thing is how they were cursed to be mute and blind as a species. Like if Magnus was all "ell nah, ya'll tried to genocide Nord's, and now y'all un-created the dwarves"

[@TheWaluigiman1]

The fate of the Falmer shows just some of the absolute monsters that the Dwemer were. Unlike their Aylied cousins who were cruel for the sake of satisfying some needs for excess, the dwemer did what they wanted to know more. Nothing was out of bounds, no science to far and no experiment too cruel. They wanted to not just poison the Falmer for their reading of an Elder Scroll, but also to see how far they can brutalize an entire race of Mer, to see how lowly and unholy they can get. They would subject an entire race to thousands of years of suffering just to know if they can.

[@Gumbo1]

The reiklings of solstheim learned to speak and tame boars in a similar fashion. Maybe reiklings are similar to the falmer but the only difference is they can see. They are both on the island too and have similar housing constructions of small huts from what they can forage and from tame boars, not to mention they both have white souls and even then the reiklings have a language and can even speak broken english. Maybe the falmer are slowly evolving into something like a reikling

[@dmwelchdw]

I have an idea that I know probably doesn't match up, but I think could have been awesome. The Dwemer basically took the Falmer as slaves, and its common for slaves to be "abused". The dwemer interbred with the Falmer, and when the Dwemer were removed from Mundas, the minds of the Falmer were torn in half and taken as well, since they would be half dwemer as well.

[@j2c695]

Great job Andrew :)

[@BlackHoleForge]

As soon as his calm voice started talkin, I knew I was home. Thanks for that.

[@herewardthewake13]

My day has been made

[@reuben87331]

Azura, Nerevar, and Dagoth-Ur reduced the Dwemer to ash, they mention it in a book in Morrowind. "Dagoth-Ur slew Kagrenac and took the tools the Dwemer used to tap the power of the Heart. He went to his dying lord Nerevar and asked him what to do with these tools. And Nerevar summoned Azura again, and she showed them how to use the tools to separate the power of the Heart from the Dwemer people. And on the fields, the Tribunal and their armies watched as the Dwemer turned into dust all around them as their stolen immortality was taken away." -Nerevar at Red Mountian, Tribunal Temple

[@gerbenvanegmond4007]

What a great piece of lore!

[@venepskeuten9206]

Falcels can't handle that dwechad energy

[@moltenmermaid1517]

I want to believe there are more untainted snow elves out there, or hope, unlike the Knight Paladin, that with more exposure to the sun and surface, they as a species will regain their sight and mind.

[@awesomechicka17]

Thank you for another fantastic video! I've been following you and fudgemuppet for a while now and it's always fun diving deeper into elder scrolls lore. A bar near me is going to have an elder scrolls party, and whoever gets the most trivia right wins. I'm going to have to binge/ re-watch to make sure I take home that trophy!

[@thalmoragent9344]

Heck yeah, wish you the best of luck

[@awesomechicka17]

@@thalmoragent9344 thank you! I just found out it'll be on Memorial Day weekend here in America, so fingers crossed.

[@thalmoragent9344]

@@awesomechicka17 Heck yeah man, don't forget to ask about theories while you're there, see if we can get a few more out there in the community, or at least discuss already existing ones as you guys go through trivia. What's the name of the Bar, or the group doing these Trivia events?

[@awesomechicka17]

@@thalmoragent9344 Dogmud Tavern is the name of the bar

[@Awesomewithaz]

I didn't realize you were the good half of FudgeMuppet. Glad I found the part of that content that I actually enjoyed

[@Kikuta1Kotaro]

Pretty cool theory about the Dwemer using the Falmer to read the scrolls. However, it has several critical flaws. Firstly, the Dwemer never needed slaves to safely read the scrolls. They had already found a way to do that with their lexicons (as seen during the main quest of Skyrim, and even alluded to in this video). Secondly, without proper training and/or being destined to posses an Elder Scroll, the knowledge they bestow is worthless, for the reader cannot possibly comprehend it and therefore use or talk about it in any way, shape or form(as seen in Skyrim´s main quest, the Dawnguard DLC and Oblivion´s Thieves Guild questline). And even in the unlikely case of it actually working, they would never allow their new "toys" to read the scrolls as the both esoteric and powerful knowlededge they might impart could be used against them. And thridly, they would have needed to have every Falmer man, woman and child, to potentially read a scroll multiple times for them to go blind, not to mention that instead of merely going blind, many more would have died instantly or turned insane and thus go berseker on their masters and kin alike.

[@East16]

I like to think that the falmer now are so blind, and so out of touch with language, that they just have ptsd and think the nords are back to cleanse them, as the only others they knew were the dwemmer, who are gone, and the other snow elves, who they probably believe to be forever gone

[@thalmoragent9344]

Always a treat to hear more surrounding the Snow Elves and the Twilight years of the Merethic Era. Their Lore, lacking as it may be, was what got me into the Elder Scrolls Lore so heavily. Especially the tome "Fall of the Snow Prince", my favorite book in the series. The Dwemer involvement was also very telling, how they used their own Cousins as lab rats, test subjects. It's also possible, as theorized and hinted at, that the deception was brought upon the Ancient Falmer by those Dwemeri machine's that affect the mind. Using them to lie/manipulate the few Snow Elven leaders left, and who then relayed the deceptive message to their remaining kin. I just wish Bethesda would make some content around the Snow Elves, given they dropped the ball a few times in the Dawnguard DLC. Maybe we'll find out what truly happened that lead to the Night of Tears one day, and see what truly started this gruesome conflict.

[@Snowman794]

The use of the Elder Scrolls being the cause for their blindness is interesting, I've not come across that one before. It would make sense though as reading the Scrolls wouldn't be something the Dwemer could have their automatons do and they'd need test subjects to make the machines to read them. The changing of the Falmer's souls is one thing I have wondered about, maybe its something that the Falmer accidentally did to themselves as they lived with the hatred of the Nords and then the Dwemer for generations, they forgot everything else except that hatred and it twisted them.

[@Universexy1]

I wish Bethesda would make secret characters, armor & weapons unique in design so you know they’re something special unlike finding a claymore with a “special” name but still looks like any other claymore

[@qryvein]

it is also mentioned in skyrim dawnguard dlc that part of their blindness is due to dwarven price they had to pay to avoid being murdered from those that hunted them, for shelter. and both vampirism and dwarven experimentation is what lead to the conversion to the falmer as in "the betrayed".

[@stagthechainsawbeserker3926]

I would love to play the Falmer in the next game a quest for revenge or redemption.

[@jdm8702]

The falmer going underground into a "vault" built by the dwemer...

[@jugnerforest2448]

Excited to dive into another Drewmora production!

[@tevinramon5763]

I cant decide what's more egregious--------- The Ayleid Art Torture or devolving a race for study.

[@OleDirtyMacSanchez]

The brother isn't truly dead, after all Vampires have no souls, and are not only in servitude of Molag Bol (whether they like it or not, willingly or unwillingly), but they are bound to him and as such are not permanently dead much like Deadra, but unlike Deadra they were born of Mundas, and were only cursed by Deadric power. This means there's a possibility of them being brought back, if either from some ritual, or by the whim of Molag Bal.