Imperial

The men of Cyrodiil, the heartland of Tamriel. Descendants of slaves, this blending of cultural groups rose to become the dominant force of the greatest empires in history. At the heart of a continental empire, the people of Cyrodiil are known for their diplomatic skills, high standards of living, and cosmopolitan attitudes toward their neighbor provinces. Imperial culture is a melting pot of conquered peoples and a syncretic faith.

The Nine Divines

The Imperial Cult is the primary faith of the Empire. Its pantheon is a mix of Nordic and Aldmeri gods, a diplomatic master stroke by the first Empress, St. Alessia. Eight Divines, ruled by Akatosh the Time God. In the past, the most powerful of the Emperors were worshipped as a Ninth Divine, with dynasty Emperors Reman Cyrodiil and Cuhlecain serving their time as the divine heads of state. In the early Third Era, Emperor Tiber Septim began to be worshipped as the god Talos. His cult quickly overtook his predecessors, and his descendants would instate Talos as the one true Ninth Divine.
The Imperial Cult is a branch of the state, with the Emperor acting as its head. It is not compulsory within the Empire, however membership and tithing are looked upon favorably. Daedra worship, however, is illegal in most provinces. Most faithful follow a specific Divine as their patron, and the major cities of Cyrodiil have a central Temple acting as the Archdiocese of each branch of the faith. The Imperial Cult preaches the importance of the Ten Commandments of the Divines.

• Stendarr says: Be kind and generous to the people of Tamriel. Protect the weak, heal the sick, and give to the needy.
• Arkay says: Honor the earth, its creatures, and the spirits, living and dead. Guard and tend the bounties of the mortal world, and do not profane the spirits of the dead.
• Mara says: Live soberly and peacefully. Honor your parents, and preserve the peace and security of home and family.
• Zenithar says: Work hard, and you will be rewarded. Spend wisely, and you will be comfortable. Never steal, or you will be punished.
• Talos says: Be strong for war. Be bold against enemies and evil, and defend the people of Tamriel.
• Kynareth says: Use Nature's gifts wisely. Respect her power, and fear her fury.
• Dibella says: Open your heart to the noble secrets of art and love. Treasure the gifts of friendship. Seek joy and inspiration in the mysteries of love.
• Julianos says: Know the truth. Observe the law. When in doubt, seek wisdom from the wise.
• Akatosh says: Serve and obey your Emperor. Study the Covenants. Worship the Nine, do your duty, and heed the commands of the saints and priests.
• The Nine say: Above all else, be good to one another.

St Alessia and the Amulet of Kings

In the early Merethic Era, Cyrodiil was a vast, wild jungle, inhabited by numerous tribes of men and beastfolk. Topal the Pilot was an Aldmer explorer who set out to chart the coasts of Tamriel in search of the mythical land of Aldmeris. He never found the lost elven homeland, but instead introduced the elves of Summerset to a vast, untamed frontier. The story goes that the first aldmeri colonists absorbed the culture of a race of birdfolk, and formed a distinct identity of their own. These Heartland High Elves, known formally as the Ayleids, spread their city-states far beyond the modern boarders of the province. These elves rejected the strict ancestor worship of their cousins, embracing both the Aedra and the Daedra as patrons. They achieved incredible feats of magic, science, art, and architecture. But they were brutal and cruel, enslaving the Nedic human tribes, erasing their diverse cultures, and took sadistic pleasure in torture and mutilation. They constructed the White Gold Tower and the giant ringed city around it in the heart of their civilization as a massive temple complex dedicated to all the gods. It became known as the City of a Thousand Cults.
When internal conflict had driven the Ayleid civilization to the brink of collapse, a slave known today as St. Alessia led a revolution which toppled the Ayleid states, and founded the First Empire of Cyrodiil. Most scholars argue her slave revolt succeeded primarily because it allied itself with the burgeoning Nordic Empire in Skyrim, and with several Ayleid city-states who had an interest in seeing their competitors defeated. Some consider her a diplomatic genius, crediting her for the development of the Eight Divines faith, a coherent pantheon that combines both elven and nordic deities, creating common ground between her two key allies, and giving her own people a unique identity to latch onto. The legend, however, is more compelling to the masses.
Akatosh, the Dragon God of Time, saw Alessia's worthiness. On her deathbed, He forged a covenant with her, drawing a drop of blood from His own heart and giving it to her, taking the form of a red gemstone set in a gold amulet. So long as Alessia's heirs sat on the throne, and used the amulet to light the dragonfires at their coronation, Akatosh would see fit to hold the Firmament, limiting the reach of the Daedra in Tamriel. Although the Alessian, Reman, and Septim Empires were separated by centuries, they each claimed dragon blood as proof of their right to rule. For only a dragonborn can wield the Amulet of Kings.

The Prophet

The early years of the Alessian Dynasty are steeped in legend. They say that Alessia's lover was Morihaus the Man-Bull, a supposed demigod. By every description, the first emperors of her dynasty, their children and grandchildren, were Minotaurs. Later scholars argue that these descriptions were symbolic of their strength and ferocity. It was an age of hard-fought unity, with human-friendly Ayleid city-states serving the Empire alongside mortals of every race and faith. The capital, renamed the Imperial City, became a place of veneration and pilgrimage for elves, men, and beasts. The elven governments of the wider world found the downfall of Ayleid hegemony in the heartland an abomination. But its popularity among the oppressed could not be denied. The Eight Divines faith, created by Alessia, spread far and wide among any population oppressed by elven rule. Alessia's son, Emperor Belharza opened Cyrodiil up to all slaves, declaring universal freedom within their borders.
The Camoran Dynasty of Valenwood, which absorbed thousands of Ayleids who fled the new government, struggled to keep down its own enslaved population of Orcs. The kingdom sought ways to undermine this messaging. They saw how anti-elven sentiment led to a great deal of internal tension between the human and beastfolk peoples who flocked to Cyrodiil. Ayleid city-states still stood within its borders like testaments to the old ways. Elves found themselves increasingly unwelcome in the "land of the free." Tensions rose as the threat of war loomed. While the new empire couldn't hope to stand up to Valenwood, it had powerful allies among the Nords, and the ability to undermine their supply lines by arming their slaves against them. At long last, the Camorans finally found a weak link with the coronation of Emperor Ami-El.
The Camorans threatened war against the Empire if it did not allow safe passage of Ayleid refugees out of their borders. The heartland elves had been gradually fleeing Cyrodiil since the rebellion, but they often found themselves killed along the journey. Seeing an opportunity to appease his bloodthirsty subjects, Ami-El signed a treaty, guaranteeing the Legion would safely escort any elf who applied to leave the empire. In exchange, the Empire began spreading propaganda about the dangers of "wild" Orcs and Goblins, and to promptly return runaway slaves at the border. This act was popular among the increasingly xenophobic Imperials, but led to great outcry among Alessia's faithful outside the province. Among the fervor, a movement known as the Alessian Reforms began in Valenwood. Soon, a singular figure emerged within this movement. An Imga prophet known as Marukh.
In 1E 358, while Ami-El lead a campaign alongside the Nords in the Reach against the elven Direnni Kingdoms, Marukh and his cult quietly entered the Imperial City and began spreading their new gospel. When the emperor returned from the field the following year, he found the city had become unrecognizable. The outer wall was lined with the smashed busts of a thousand gods, homes had been burned, elves had been driven out entirely, and the Elder Council, the Emperor's closest advisors, had all been replaced. Ami-El met the prophet and his new council behind closed doors, and was never seen in public again. From then on, the Elder Council took over the day-to-day operations of the Empire, while Ami-El ruled by decree. The Dragonfires, the ritual symbol of Alessia's covenant to ward off the daedra, remained lit, so there was no doubt in the public's mind that the Emperor lived, and willed this.
Two years later, the Eight Divines faith was finally organized from a cult movement into a united state religion. By decree of Emperor Ami-El, this Alessian Order was entrusted to reform the pagan beliefs of Tamriel, and to rid the pantheon of its elven influence, in accordance with the true wishes of the blessed Saint Alessia. At the same time, the Imperial Legion marched on the remaining Ayleid city-states to oust their elven rulers, as their sovereignty were no longer recognized. Ami-El died in the year 372. His final decree was was to drive out all elves from the Empire altogether.

The Middle Dawn

The alleged Minotaur rulers came to an end after Ami-El passed without an heir. The Order appointed a human successor, ostensibly descended from a relative of Alessia. The Tharn family rose to prominence as the de-facto head of the Elder Council. After Marukh's passing, the Order abandoned its pretenses of being the religion of the oppressed, driving beast-folk out of public life. Minotaurs, whose connection to Morihaus threatened the crown, were especially persecuted, forced to hide in the decaying ruins of abandoned Ayleid catacombs. Busts, tapestries, and statues of the Bull Emperors were torn down and replaced by depictions of them as men, while official records were purged.
Near the end of the first millennium of the First Era, a more fundamentalist sect within the Order began to take shape, the Marukhati Selectives. The Selectives developed a monotheistic view of the pantheon, seeing the Divines as Saints, and treating Akatosh as a lesser aspect of The One. They also saw Shezarr, an Imperial understanding of the supposed trickster god Lorkhan, as another aspect of The One who was somehow "displaced" from The One's cosmic personhood. Missing, yet "Doubly-Venerated". The obvious syncretism between elven and human religion became an unbearable spiritual burden on the staunchest adherents of the doctrine. This fanaticism culminated in a ritual performed atop the White-Gold Tower at the heart of the Imperial City designed to excise the "Aldmeri Taint" of Auri-El from Akatosh.
The ritual resulted in a period of chaos, where time itself seemed to fracture and recombine, as numerous contradictory timelines occurred at once across the known world. This Dragon Break lasted nearly one thousand years, from the 13th until the 23rd centuries of the First Era. While the indescribable madness of this Middle Dawn era is recorded by every culture in Tamriel, is mere existence is contentious among scholars. Many of the same figures who existed before the event are recorded as being alive after, and few memories or records agree on what occurred during this period. Some scholars believe that some cultural upheaval occurred during this time, tainting records, and that the actual event lasted only 150 years. The inconsistencies in the calendar are ascribed to the way the Alessian calendar was partially based on the irregular cycles of the Vision Trances, which were performed by the High Priestess of the Order. With the unchecked power of the Selectives during this period, it is plausible that the Church disregarded the normal rules of recordkeeping, and advanced the year with each new Vision Trance performed, which could last days, weeks, or months.
The long reign of the Alessian Empire ended in the 24th Century. After High Rock successfully seceded from the Empire in 2305, the Order overthrew the Emperor to preserve its power. Arch-Prelate Politus Tharn was named High Proctor of the Empire. His reign was as short as it was brutal, resulting in the War of the Righteous, a civil war which brought the Empire to a deserved end. The Tharn family, distancing themselves from the brutality of Politus, founded a confederation of merchant-kingdoms in the west called the Colovian Estates. The Empire technically survived in the East under Nibenese rule, but it did so only by abolishing the remnants of the Order. It survived under direct rule of the Elder Council rule without appointing an Emperor.

The Age of the Diamond

Centuries after the fall of the Alessians, a legendary figure arose. According to myth, a Colovian King named Hrol made love to a hill at Sancre Tor, where the spirit of St. Alessia rested. The king died in the act, but from the hill, an infant was born. The child of West and East, found clutching the long-missing Amulet of Kings, was named Reman, a name the great Pelinal Whitestrake dedicated his purges to, 2500 years earlier. The child of the Red Diamond was destined to save all of Tamriel from oppression.
As fate would have it, in 1E 2703, invaders from a continent to the east arrived on the shores of Tamriel. They were the Tsaesci, vampiric serpents who ruled the empire of Akavir. The Akaviri Invasion landed on the western shore of Morrowind from the Inner Sea, and carved its way through Dawn's shattered Beauty. They felled all resistance until they met the combined forces of Colovia and southern Skyrim, where Reman had established a series of fortresses to halt their progress.
Lord Vivec, one of the living gods of the Dunmer, joined forces with the Dreugh kings of the Sea of Ghosts to cut off the Akaviri army from their supply lines. The Akaviri were routed, and took shelter at Pale Pass along the border of Skyrim and Cyrodiil. Reman pressed this advantage and ordered his troops to lay siege. It was in this battle that Reman's divine nature was revealed. A faction within the Akaviri turned on their brethren, slaying their commander, and forcing their army to surrender early. When Reman marched into the keep, he was met by the conspirators on their knees. Swearing allegiance, they said they had come to Tamriel in search of one such as he. A dragonborn.
Evidence of Reman's greatness flowed from his conquests. Flanked by his Akaviri Dragon Guard, he conquered and divided the Reach so that it could not rise against the civilized peoples of Skyrim and High Rock. He united the Jarldoms and was named High King. He formed allegiances with the petty kings of the Bretons. He cut a swath through the sacred forests of Valenwood and shouted fire which threatened to burn it down unless the Wood Elves surrendered. The Crowns and Forebears of Hammerfell separately pledged fealty to him to conquer the other. Finally, he conquered the coastline of Black Marsh, satisfied by controlling the exports of the unconquerable swamp.
Before Reman could conquer Morrowind, his campaign was cut short by a Morag Tong assassin. His son Kastav was crowned the first official Emperor of the Reman Dynasty. The accomplishments of his father would be remembered in song and story for millennia. A cult even hailed him as the fabled Ninth Divine, gaining legitimacy throughout his Empire.
Cyrodiil, and the very idea of a human empire as it exists today, was shaped by the Remans. The Blades, an extension of the Akaviri Dragonguard, became a network of spies throughout the continent, enacting the Emperor's will from the shadows. With their help, the once fearsome Dragon race was brought to near extinction. Cultures from throughout Tamriel and beyond were welcomed into the cosmopolitan melting pot of the Imperial City, giving rise to a reformed Nibenese culture, influenced by Altmer, Bosmer, Breton, Redguard, and Akaviri bloodlines. Although Morrowind and Summerset were never conquered in this time, they became more a part of political affairs throughout the continent thanks to the Remans' diplomatic efforts.

The Age of the Serpent

The First Common Era of Tamriel came to an end in the year 2920 when Reman III and his only heir were killed by the Morag Tong. Without a clear successor, Reman's chief advisor, an Akaviri named Versidue-Shaie, was named Potentate of the Empire by the Elder Council. Shaie's reign was fraught by constant questioning of his legitimacy as ruler. However, he was able to maintain the empire admirably, and brought about reforms over his considerable lifespan, which carry into the Fourth Era. Most famously, the Guild Act of 2E 321 which formally brought the myriad guilds in Tamriel under the jurisdiction of the Empire, and codified rules by which they must be run.
The Akaviri Potentate kept the Reman Empire alive in the Second Era for over 400 years. It finally ended in 2E 430 when Potentate Savrien-Chorak was also assassinated. With the end of the Potentate, the Reman Empire quickly dissolved, and the long age of the Interregnum began. The Tharn family seized the opportunity to secure the heartland. Ulrich Tharn was named Emperor by the Elder Council. Taking advantage of the xenophobic fervor brought about by the chaos, the Akaviri families were driven from Cyrodiil, taking refuge in the kingdom of Rimmen, or disappearing into the abyss of Black Marsh.
Tharn's reign lasted only five years before the first of many warlords swept through the valley, and numerous short-lived dynasties rose and fell throughout the remaining Second Era. One such dynasty was the infamous Longhouse Emperors, heralded by the Reachman Emperor Durcorach the Black Drake. Although his dynasty lasted only 40 years, his militaristic reforms reforged the Imperial Legion into an unstoppable powerhouse, which would later conquer all the known world.

The Arena

In an era of bloodshed, no period left as many scars on Cyrodiil as the Three Banners War. Three alliances, the Aldmeri Dominion, the Daggerfall Covenant, and the Ebonheart Pact all vied for the seat of Cyrodiil. The spark which set Tamriel aflame was the betrayal of Emperor Varen Aquilarios, who was slain during a ritual which was meant to make him Dragonborn. The interruption of the ritual caused the Amulet of Kings to shatter, destroying the Firmament keeping Oblivion out. In a plot orchestrated by the Daedric Prince Molag Bal, Dark Anchors were constructed throughout Tamriel, concentrated in Cyrodiil, allowing His demonic machines to attempt to merge His realm with Nirn. The largest of these ritual sites was the Imperial City itself, where the realm of Coldharbor began bleeding into the mortal world.
The three factions of the war set their differences aside long enough to unite against this daedric plot. The Amulet was restored and Tamriel was saved, but Cyrodiil was not. The land remained the site of a protracted war for decades until each of the alliances in turn fell apart from internal conflicts. Though this long conflict never officially ended, the Imperials had a chance to gradually pick up the pieces of their broken empire and rebuild.
Centuries of constant war created a new Cyrodiil, beyond recognition from what it once was. Countless acres of forest and jungle were cleared, either to build siege engines, or blasted by spellfire. The barren fields remaining would later become lush farmland. But the devastation was felt deepest in the souls of the Imperial people. Colovians and Nibenese alike, without ever leaving, were now far removed from the lands of their ancestors.
The Amulet of Kings again disappeared in the final petering years of the Three Banners War. As the Imperial City began to rebuild, the reformed Elder Council knew that the Ruby Throne would always tempt ambitious warlords, and sought out a way to protect their seat of power long enough to recover. They found an ally in a battlemage called Zurin Arctus. Considered by some to be the greatest mage who ever lived, Arctus traveled to Aetherius itself, and returned with a crystal called the Mantella. He constructed a spell circle at the top of the White Gold tower, and used the artifact to seal the city in a bubble of time. No army or spell on Nirn could force entry into the frozen city as it stood in vigil for over 200 years. The Elder Scrolls prophesied that the city would be released when a dragon perches atop White Gold.

The Stormcrown

With the greatest prize in Tamriel out of reach, Cyrodiil was left in relative peace for the first time in centuries. The petty kingdoms of the heartland formed around great city-states, which commanded the fertile fields and secure trading ports, becoming again the economic center of the continent. Then, in 2E 840, the Imperial City was suddenly unsealed. Zurin Arctus and the mantella were no where to be found. The citizens of the capital city found themselves centuries removed from the world they knew, into a prosperous Cyrodiil. They heard the prophecy, and concluded another dragonborn, like Reman and Alessia, had been born into the world, but no one could be sure who it could be. The kingdoms of Cyrodiil poured their resources into rebuilding the city, claiming it as neutral ground in which all may share the benefits of the trading hub. It was not long before warlords began to consolidate power and bid for the throne, but it was not until the year 852 that any of them gained momentum.
Backed by the legendary knight Chevalier Renald, and an ambitious young general from Alcaire named Hjalti Early-Beard, the colovian warlord Cuhlecain quickly began his conquest. This king of Falkreath rapidly conquered the Colovian Estates, and then formed an alliance with the western jarls of Skyrim against the Reachmen. While a fierce and uncompromising leader, the true secret to Cuhlecain's success was his right hand man. General Early-Beard was a talented Tongue, a warrior trained in the art of the Thu'um. It is said that he could summon a swirling thundercloud overhead, magnifying his power in battle, earning him the nickname Stormcrown. Before Cuhlecain could set his sites on the Imperial City, an alliance of Bretons and Nords sought to end his reign before it could begin. They called themselves the Sentinels of the Interregnum, named after their fear of a return to the madness of those days.
This war culminated in the Battle of Sancre Tor, where the Breton and Nord generals had made their headquarters during a brutal winter. The ancient keep was well-defended, and its entrance was magically concealed. To the Imperials it was sacred ground, an unthinkable place to make war. From their secret base, the Sentinels cut off Hjalti's men from their supply lines from Falkreath. The Colovian cities were isolated and besieged, communication was cut off from their king, and Hjalti's detachment were trapped in the lowlands with few rations, and hostile Nibenese settlements to the east.
Supposedly, a turncoat revealed to General Early-Beard where the Sentinel leaders had hid, and a plan was put into motion. Hjalti's forces were spotted making a break for the friendly citadel of Kvatch. Caught out in the open, they were flanked by the full force of the Sentinels. While the doomed battle raged, Hjalti and a small contingent of his most elite snuck into Sancre Tor and captured the vulnerable Sentinel generals. Impressed by his prowess, and disillusioned by their Breton counterparts' ambitions, the Nord generals all swore their loyalty to General Early-Beard and ordered their troops to stand down. The surviving Bretons fled while the Nordic troops joined forces with Cuhlecain's army. When spring rolled in, Hjalti returned to Falkreath with his numbers multiplied. He also brought a gift for his king. Something he found deep within the catacombs of Sancre Tor. The Amulet of Kings.
When they marched into the Imperial City

The Fourth Era

In the year 3E 433, Emperor Uriel Septim VII and all of his heirs were assassinated by a cult known as the Mythic Dawn. While emperors have been killed before, and the Amulet of Kings has disappeared and reappeared throughout history without incident, this event was planned by greater forces than mortal kind can comprehend. Within days of the assassination, fiery gates began appearing across all of Tamriel. Out of these gates poured hoards of bloodthirsty daedra serving the Daedric Prince Mehrunes Dagon. For months, cities burned, people were slaughtered, and all hope seemed lost.
But there was one last hope. A humble priest of Akatosh arrived in the Imperial City, wearing the Amulet of Kings. The Blades hailed him as Martin Septim, the lost heir to the throne. He was delivered to the Temple of the One to relight the Dragonfires and close the gates. But, it was too late. Dagon, a four-armed titan, had already shattered what remained of the firmament and walked the Imperial City. Too late to light the Dragonfires, Martin took drastic, fateful action. He shattered the Amulet of Kings. Its power engulfed him, and a golden dragon burst open the Temple and defeated the Prince of Destruction. This Avatar of Akatosh banished the remaining daedra and restored the firmament. This time sealing away the full might of Oblivion for good. The dragon turned to stone. In that moment, the Oblivion Crisis, the Septim Dynasty, and the Third Era came to an end.

The Fall of the Eleventh

Ten years have passed since St. Martin's sacrifice. The Empire endures without an emperor under the reluctant leadership of Potentate Ocato and the Elder Council, but the years have not been kind. Rimmen, a small kingdom in Elsweyr, declared independence from the Empire just months after the Crisis. The Eleventh Legion was sent to crush this rebellion. The Legion's forces were overwhelming. But soon, the discipline of the soldiers broke down. With the horrors of a year-long war against hell itself fresh in their minds, the Eleventh dissolved into a frenzy. For three days, they massacred the city, wreaking as much death and destruction as any Oblivion Gate had during the Crisis. This shameful bloodlust was stopped by Ocato himself, backed by a battalion of Battle Mages. Erecting a ward around the Rimmen Queen's bunker, Ocato harangued the gathered mob, and vaporized the first man to talk back to him. The potentate ordered his legion home and then personally escorted the queen through a portal to the Imperial City to discuss the terms of the Empire's surrender.

by yifan

The Eleventh Legion was disbanded. Every member, whether they participated in the riot or not, was dishonorably discharged and sent home. Many did not have the money or resources to make the trip. After the Oblivion Crisis, most simply had no home to go to. This humiliating defeat for the Empire continues to be the focus of the split in public opinion in Cyrodiil. Entire provinces have since seceded without challenge. Disgraced members of the Eleventh Legion are scattered through Cyrodiil, some are vagabonds, some have become bandits, and others have become political leaders agitating for a return to the glorious days of Imperial rule and conquest. Ocato's popularity sinks lower every day, and the Elder Council cannot agree on an appropriate successor to give the crown. Without a legitimate ruler, the Third Empire of Tamriel is a powder keg with soldiers, heroes, and foreign kings all preparing to vie for the throne the moment the Potentate is out of the picture. All across the Empire, its people are picking sides, preparing for the inevitable war.

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

Aia, Ariela, Arnora, Arriana, Astia, Astinia, Augusta, Aviera, Avresa, Britta, Bronsila, Buntara, Caelia, Caldana, Cargas, Carmana, Casta, Caula, Ciirta, Dumania, Dynari, Erina, Etira, Faustina, Gruiand, Herminia, Isa, Ita, Janonia, Jantus, Jastia, Jastira, Javolia, Julitta, Lenka, Lucina, Lyra, Marana, Mariana, Marlena, Martina, Millona, Narina, Naspia, Perennia, Pista, Praxedes, Rena, Renee, Restita, Romana, Rona, Rosentia, Rusia, Salonia, Schlera, Selena, Sibylla, Silana, Simplicia, Tertia, Una, Viera, Vilena, Vinicia, Ysabel

Masculine names

Acilius, Annulus, Antonius, Arrianus, Ascutus, Augurius, Borgusilus, Brenus, Caccino, Castus, Chaero, Claudius, Clavides, Corax, Crantius, Cuseius, Decumus, Dolcettus, Dorald, Faustillus, Fervidius, Florin, Geocrates, Gian, Glabrio, Horicles, Imbrallius, Justinius, Liodes, Livillus, Mhorus, Ministes, Modellus, Ovidius Celatus, Parnon, Parteron, Peladius, Pletius, Praxis, Quintus, Reglius, Regulus, Rellicus, Rislav, Silanus, Simocles, Spatior, Teo, Tendixus, Theophon, Thoricles, Turpis, Vilius, Villius, Vitellus

Family names

Attius, Caprenius, Caro, Cuontus, Larsus, Memmius, Oprenus, Platorius, Primus, Sextius, Silius, Terentius, Tripitus, Vineben

Culture

Funerary and Memorial customs

Imperials bury their dead in graveyards, crypts, and undercrofts of Chapels of the Divines. Before burial, they are anointed and blessed by Priests of Arkay, who protect their bodies from being violated by Necromancy. The Imperial Cult consciously avoids any particular teachings on the nature of the afterlife, only that the just ascend to Heaven, and that sinners go somewhere worse. The colonial ambitions of the Cult relies on conquered peoples to project their own traditions and beliefs onto Imperial gods. Without an orthodoxy, ideas of the afterlife vary in Cyrodiil, but can largely be broken down into broad Colovian and Nibenese versions.

Aetherium and Shezzar

Colovian traditions, pre-dating Ayleid enslavement, spoke of a Mountain of the Gods connecting mortal Nirn with the heavens. After a thousand years of enslavement, the Aldmeri idea that mortals could join the gods if they were worthy influenced their conception. In Colovian mythology, Shezarr came to the gods on Mount Aetherium with a proposition. He taught them the idea of becoming mothers and fathers, being responsible, and making great sacrifices, with no guarantee of success. And so, many of the gods banded together, cutting off parts of themselves to make a new world at the base of their mountain. But this cost them their youth and their power, and some grew resentful of their sacrifice. They became the Aldmeri Gods who united to kill Shezzar for introducing the idea to them, and sought to destroy the mortal world and all the children born on it. The other gods, the Divines, protected their children and fought them back, trapping them on Mount Eton, separating the lands surrounding it from the mainland.
The jealous gods sat atop their smaller mountain, furious that they had sacrificed so much and did not even have their children to show for it. From their island, they called out to Tamriel, begging their own children, who had been welcomed by the Divines as their own, to join them in exile. Those who did not heed the call of their parents were cursed to take the form of half-beasts, but they were embraced by the Divines all the same. Those who remained loyal to their parents set sail, becoming the first elves. Their gods were not kind, and taught them that their worth is determined by how close their blood is to their divine ancestors. They raised the elves to seek revenge against the children of the Divines, and while their gods could not reach beyond their minor domain, their people were free to attack and enslave mankind to sate their petty jealousy.
Shezzar's body was buried beneath the world He worked so hard to create, and from the hollow space inside His chest, a realm of shadow and warmth formed. Those who die sink below Nirn to join their creator in eternal peaceful slumber. But if a soul is tainted by sin, they will have fitful nightmares which draw the attention of the covetous Daedra, who refused to create the mortal realm out of pride, but desire the love and attention of mortals all the same. Sin invites the Daedra into the hearts of man, and they may snatch their victims right out of Shezzar's protection. Occasionally, a mortal of extraordinary grace will walk the world of man. So blessed they are, that in death, the spark of divinity inside their souls shines like a crimson beacon inside the cavernous underworld, awakening them and their fellow inhabitants. The Saints lead any dead who would follow them out of Shezzar's comfort, to face the many trials on the path to Atherium. The perilous journey may cost many souls, but those who are worthy will join the gods themselves in eternal paradise.

Alyssium and the River Archon

Some vestiges of the traditions of the old Nibenese River Peoples survive in the cosmopolitan Nibenese Imperial culture. Each family tells its own variation on the legend, however some broad motifs can be derived.
Archon is the goddess of death, who watches the many rivers of the world. It is said that all waterways eventually lead to Her eponymous river, which spills out into the Underworld. When a person dies, their soul seeps into the ground, and finds its way into the water. When they reach the River Archon, the Fisherwoman's assistants pull them out. Her assistants are Shondar and Molgar, two fish-men who swam the river eating souls until Archon gave them noble purpose. In ancient times, the dead were expected to pay for their passage with a coin. If the Fisherwoman accepts their payment She will guide the party to the Underworld, a great cavern at the center of Nirn, dominated by the Lake of the Damned. The dead find shelter in the caves and pathways surrounding it, where they seek out their loved ones. Those whose hearts weigh them down will thrash and struggle, but will not reach the surface to be saved. In a final desperate attempt to survive, they rip their sinful hearts out. But the affect of this is the loss of their humanity. These heartless souls lose their will to fight, and drift down the river to spend eternity in the swirling Lake of the Damned. If they are lucky, they may be fed to Shondar or Molgar.
One day, a handsome thief was rescued by Archon. The thief had been killed, stripped, and left to rot alone in the woods, and so had no offering to give Her. She was just about to throw him back, when the thief convinced Her to hear the tale of his life. Should he be condemned, at least his story could live on in the memories of an eternal being. She agreed, and heard him weave an elaborate tale of his life. His story was an odyssey of fanciful adventure, Archon knew to be mostly false, but She was amused by his creativity and bravery. She sat for hours, enraptured by his imagination. When he finally finished with his heroic death fighting the dragon-god Aka-Tusk Himself, She applauded and thanked him.
Sadly, the thief was still destined for the waters. She stood and prepared to cast him back, but he halted Her. Begging Her forgiveness, he presented a coin which he supposedly had after all. The goddess realized that he had picked Her pocket during the story without Her noticing. So impressed was She by his cunning, that Archon made a counter-offer. She could not accept a stolen coin as a legitimate offering, but She could do one thing to preserve his clever heart. She touched the thief's chest, and when She opened Her palm, his heart was within it. As the thief slowly went pale, he looked in astonishment, as Archon combined the coin and the heart, creating a baby girl. The goddess asked the thief, in his final moments of free will, what he wished to name their daughter. The thief smiled and named her Alyssium. He bent down to kiss her forehead, thanked the goddess for hearing his tale, and dove willingly into the water.
Little Alyssium was so filled with light that She became a place, and the strongest souls of the Underworld dug a path through the earth until they reached the surface. They placed Alyssium there, under the sun, and from then the dead had a new destination. They awaited their loved ones in the underworld, and would journey together to the sunny fields of Alyssium. Although those weighed down by sin were still condemned, the toll of all the dead had been paid, for all time, by the noble thief whose heart was stolen by Death.

Historical figures

• St. Alessia - Founding Empress of the First Empire of Man. Born a slave, she allied herself with elves, nords, and demigods in order to free her people, and build the foundations of a brand new culture. The details of her reign are clouded by myth, and overshadowed by the war which led to it. She is more revered for her role in establishing the Eight Divines faith, and for establishing the Covenant with Akatosh, granting the dragonborn emperors their divine right to rule.
• Pelinal Whitestrake - A mythological figure, thought to be an incarnation of Shezarr, the god who fought and died to create the mortal world. With armor gifted to him by the Divines, and a red diamond in place of his heart, Whitestrake slaughtered any elf in his wake in his endless quest to free man-kind from their clutches. His greatest achievement was defeating the Ayleid demigod Umaril the Unfeathered, but was ambushed after the battle by cowardly elven kings.
• Reman Cyrodiil - founder of the Second Empire of Man. Legends say he was born from the union of King Hrol and a hill possessed by the spirit of St. Alessia. He rose to power as the leader of an alliance against invading forces from Akavir. His enemies recognized him as Dragonborn, and turned to join him instead. With Akaviri advisors and his combined military in tow, he was able to conquer Cyrodiil, and much of mainland Tamriel. His rule introduced Akaviri weapons and customs to the continent, and also established the Blades, an organization of spies who loyally served the dragonborn emperors until the Oblivion Crisis.
• Martin Septim - Raised an orphan, Martin became a daedric cultist in his early life, but turned from darkness to become a priest of Akatosh in Kvatch. Unknown to him, he was targeted by the first breach in the Oblivion Crisis. He was rescued and informed that he was the last surviving son of the late Emperor Uriel Septim VII. His expertise with daedra proved pivotal in the war against the Daedric Prince Mehrunes Dagon. Martin ultimately sacrificed himself, his dynasty, and the Amulet of Kings to end the Crisis.

Major organizations

Imperial Legion - the military force of the Empire, including an army and a navy. Conquered peoples can earn their citizenship either through taxes, or through serving in the Legion. Existing citizens can earn colonial land through service. The Legion is the most powerful military force in the known world, with a presence in every province and even in lands beyond.
The Blades - In public, they are the Dragon Guard, the emperor's personal bodyguards. In reality, they are a vast network of spies and agents seeded throughout Tamriel. Their organization is the continuation of a faction hidden within the Akaviri army, who sought out the Dragonborn, the only being able to truly kill dragons. They found Reman Cyrodiil and turned on their own people in order to serve him and his decedents. Since coming to Tamriel, the Blades have had a hand in nearly every major historical event.
The Imperial Cult - Serving the Emperor as the head of their church, the Nine Divines faith has missions in every province on the continent. They are organized into nine Diocese, devoted to each Divine, led by an Bishop, who in turn commands their own knightly order. The Archbishop of Akatosh is both bishop and defacto leader of the Cult, who interprets the spiritual directions of the emperor as the Manifested Divine Will. Numerous monastic orders and convents serve the Divines independently of the diocese as well. The Cult is the primary religion of Cyrodiil, High Rock, and is increasingly prevalent in Skyrim.

Imperial Traits

Imperials have adapted the greatest qualities of each of their neighbors. They're famous for their diplomacy, their militaristic prowess, their art and culture, and their devotion to the Nine Divines

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Ability Score Increase

Your ability scores each increase by 1.

Age

Humans reach adulthood in their late teens and live less than a century.

Alignment

Humans tend toward no particular alignment. The best and the worst are found among them.

Size

Humans vary widely in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of your position in that range, your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Voice of the Emperor

You always roll with Advantage when haggling.

Languages

The Imperial language is the Lingua Coventus of Tamriel, and is sometimes simply called "Tamrielic" or "Common". It is a synthesis of the old Nibenese tongue, Nordic, and Aldmeri. In addition, Imperials typically learn the languages of other peoples they trade with, and are known to sprinkle the language they use with words and phrases learned from other peoples. Dunmeri curses, Khajiiti sayings, Redguard idioms, and so on.
You can speak, read, and write Cyrodiilic and one of the following languages of your choice: Nordic, Dunmeri, Jel, Ta'agra, Bosmeri, Altmeri, or Orcish.

Colovian

The fair-skinned Imperials of the North and North-Eastern regions of Cyrodiil. The hearty Colovians take largely after their Nordic cousins. Many Colovians become adventurers, or join the Legion in order to serve their Empire and to see the world. Many others, however, prefer to be left alone. Their ancestors escaped from brutal slavery and want nothing more to do with the world outside their isolated mountain hamlets.

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Star of the West

Once per Long Rest you cast the spell Beacon of Hope as an Action. This ability replaces the Voice of the Emperor Trait.

Nibenese

Olive-skinned descendants of the myriad tribes of druidic river-peoples of south-eastern Cyrodiiil. Today, Nibenese Imperials are wealthy merchants and powerful nobles. Breton, Akaviri, and Redguard nobility have intermixed with the old Nibenese family lines, creating the existing ruling class of the prosperous heartland of the Empire, far removed from their mystical roots. Though some isolated groups still practice the Old Ways, especially in the lowland rainforests and swamps in the Blackwood region at the mouth of the Niben.

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The Red Diamond

Increase your Charisma and one other Attribute by 2. This replaces the standard Ability Score Increase for Imperials.

Parent ethnicities

• Nede

Related Organizations

• The Imperial Cult
• The Third Empire of Man

Languages spoken

• Cyrodiilic

Related Locations

• Cyrodiil