Release Date: 11/11/11
It has been 200 years since Martin Septim sacrificed himself to permanently seal the barriers between Nirn and Oblivion.
With the death of the last Septim, the Empire lost its last legitimate leader. As each province tried to reassert its independence,
it pulled itself apart. It was the dawn of the Fourth Era, but there was no Empire left to greet it.
Much has happened since then. The Mane was assasinated in Elsweyr. The Argonians, tired of chafing under Dunmer slavemasters,
revolted and conquered the south of Morrowind as Red Mountain erupted in the north. The Dunmer scattered to the winds. Titus Mede
conquered the Imperial City. The Thalmor arose in Valenwood and reestablished the Aldmeri Dominion. Umbriel, a floating city
fueled by the souls of its victims, drew a swath of destruction across all of Tamriel. The High King of Skyrim was murdered,
plunging Skyrim into a bloody civil war.
As the sons of Skyrim spilled their own blood, the Elder Scrolls' final prophecy was fulfilled. The chain of events set in motion by
the Eternal Champion came to a grinding halt. The Staff of Chaos, the Warp in the West, the rise of the Nerevarine, the opening of
the Oblivion gates; all these events were omens that our time on this world is limited. And now our time has run out.
Amidst the chaos of war, dragons have returned to Tamriel. These ancient creatures are the heralds of our end, their message
one of fire and death. Now, they sweep across Tamriel, paving the way for their master: Alduin the World Eater, who will
bathe the world in flame until nothing but ashes remain.
But, there is still hope. There is one the dragons fear. In their tongue he is "Dovahkiin"... Dragonborn.
The Pocket Guide to the Empire: Fourth Edition
From the quills of the Imperial Geographical Society
It has been exactly 200 years since the previous edition of this Pocket Guide was released. Since then, many things
have changed: an Empire has fallen and been reborn, borders have been redrawn and wars have been fought. So far,
the Fourth Era has been a time of great turmoil. However, we at the Imperial Geographical Society are convinced
many conflicts can be avoided with some simple common sense and knowledge. After all, one who knows what the Green Pact
is won't be so eager to accept an invitation to a Bosmeri banquet! That is why, on the 200th anniversary of our previous
guide, we bring you this new, updated version. This is not a simple update, but a complete rewrite, to paint an accurate
picture of Tamriel as it is today. We hope this guide keeps you informed, and more importantly, safe.
Excerpt: On Tamriel
Tamriel. It is a name we all know and all take for granted. Yet our continent has had many names over the course of history:
the Arena; Starry Heart; Dawn’s Beauty. It has seen great unity and great strife. During the last years of the third era, in the
time leading up to the Oblivion crisis, the land was relatively peaceful. To be true, even then there was unrest between
the provinces, but the Elder Council handled their grievances while the Legion kept their more violent client states in line.
After the collapse of the Empire, however, unrest between the provinces increased. Black Marsh annexed part of Morrowind,
while the rest became an uninhabitable wasteland when Red Mountain erupted. Valenwood has agents in every province, looking
to expand its dominion outward. A new Empire has arisen in Cyrodiill and now slowly tries to recapture the grandeur of the old,
unfortunately meeting resistance every step of the way. These are uncertain times, for all of us.
Excerpt: On Skyrim
Skyrim has an abundance of two things: freezing cold and ancient history. Long ago, the rugged land was inhabited by ancient elves.
When humans first arrived in Tamriel from the northern continent of Atmora, they arived on Skyrim's frozen shores. There, they
came into contact with the Snow Elves. Despite their differences, the races were initially at peace with one another. As time went
on, however, the elves began to feel threatened by the ever increasing human population. In an event that later came to be known as
the Night of Tears, the elves attacked, nearly wiping out all humans in the process. Only King Ysgramor and his sons escaped
with their lives. They returned to Skyrim with a new Atmoran fleet and drove the elves away in a bloody war of conquest.
And so, Skyrim became the first human kingdom on the continent.
Today, Skyrim is the home of the descendants of those first humans to set foot on the continent: the Nords. It is a cold land,
but far from the frozen wasteland it’s sometimes made out to be: from the grassy tundra of Whiterun to the rocky badlands
of the Reach, Skyrim is a province with a diverse geography. The province is divided into nine Holds, each ruled by a Jarl.
Above the Jarls stands the High King, a Jarl elected to the highest seat of office by his peers. However, the land has been
leaderless since the untimely death (or, to be more precise, assssination) of the previous High King. The Jarls will not agree
upon a succesor, as some - like the charismatic Ulfric Stormcloak - seek to rid the land of Imperial influence. Others believe
the return of the Empire is a blessing, and wish Skyrim to remain an Imperial province. This disagreement between Imperial
loyalists and seperatists has sparked a civil war. The Empire seeks to quell the Stormcloak Rebellion before it can inspire other
provinces to revolt, but the Stormcloaks are determined to reclaim their land for their own. Both sides await the coming of a hero
that can change the tide of the war...
The Stormcloaks and Imperials are not the only factions in Skyrim. The Blades, the ancient protectors of the Dragonborn Emperor,
have survived well into the fourth era, though greatly diminished in number. Skyrim’s mages have organized into the
College of Winterhold. The Companions offer swords and axes for hire. The Thieves Guild, hidden in plain sight, is always
looking for new ways to make the poor richer and the rich poorer. The Dark Brotherhood, shrouded in shadows, recruits
individuals with a knack for ending lives. And atop the Throat of the World, the highest mountain in Tamriel, reside
the enigmatic Greybeards, masters of the Voice.
Excerpt: On the Way of the Voice
A wise man once said that words are wind. The Nords of Skyrim interpret this quite literally. Every word they speak, every whisper
they utter, every shout they bellow: all are proof to the Nords of the existence of their goddess of wind and storm, Kyne.
In the Empire, Kyne is better known as blessed Kynareth, a member of the Eight Divines. Worshippers of Kynareth have, long ago,
developed a form of magic that honors Kyne every time it's used. Using the Voice, practitioners - often called Tongues -can form
a thu'um - a shout. Depending on the words used in the shout, a large variety of effects can be achieved: from sharpening
one's weapons to setting an enemy ablaze. Mastery of this craft comes with a great cost, however, as even talking in day-to-day
matters can potentially cause great destruction. For this reason, the most potent Tongues are often kept gagged to avoid any accidents.
Excerpt: On the races of Tamriel
The Empire's influence may have declined, but its multiculturalism has endured. Many races inhabit Tamriel. While each has their own
home province, small populations of each can be found throughout the entire continent. Variety, as they say, is the spice of life.
Skyrim is powered by the Creation Engine. Developed in-house by Bethesda, the new engine is built
upon the foundation of Gamebryo, but with significant improvements and optimizations.
Features:
- Craft your own character
- Become Dovahkiin, slay dragons and absorb their souls
- Learn the Dragon language and use it to form a Thu’um, a “Shout”
- Explore the nine holds of Skyrim, on foot or on horseback
- Delve into more than 150 hand-crafted dungeons
- Get lost in Skyrim’s five major cities, or the many towns and villages scattered about
- Aid the Empire or the Stormcloak Rebellion in the ongoing civil war
- Never grow bored with the new Radiant Story system, which crafts quests tailored specifically to your character
- Dual wield weapons and even spells with the new combat system
- Sprint to get away from danger or up in your enemy’s face
- Pick a perk every time you level up, make your character truly unique
- Oblivion's 21 skills have been condensed into 18 and include a few new additions like Pickpocketing
- Oblivion's 8 attributes have been streamlined into 3 (Health, Magicka, Stamina)
- You no longer choose major skills, each skill increase helps you level up
- Birthsigns are no longer chosen at the start of the game
- You can choose your character’s build, give him a beard of an impressive set of tattoos
- Different level-scaling system, more akin to Fallout 3 and New Vegas
- Fast-travel to undiscovered cities now costs gold, you can still fast-travel to locations you’ve discovered using your in-game map
- New conversation system takes place in real-time
- You can get married to NPCs of either gender
- Radiant A.I. has been improved
- Wildlife no longer automatically attacks you
- Armor and weapons no longer degrade
- Chestplates and greaves have been combined into one armor piece
- Bows are more powerful, but arrows are a lot more rare
- Lockpicking functions more like in Fallout 3/New Vegas
- Spells have to be equipped before being used, much like in Morrowind
- Third-person camera has been significantly improved
- Backwards running speed has been severely reduced
- Sneak status is a combination of Oblivion’s and Fallout’s system
- Health now slowly regenerates outside of combat
Minimum:
- Windows 7/Vista/XP PC (32 or 64 bit)
- Processor: Quad-core Intel or AMD CPU
- 2GB System RAM
- 7GB free HDD Space
- DirectX 9 compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with 1GB of RAM (Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or higher; ATI Radeon 4890 or higher).
- DirectX compatible sound card
- Internet access for Steam activation
Recommend:
- Windows 7/Vista/XP PC (32 or 64 bit)
- Dual Core 2.0GHz or equivalent processor
- 4GB System RAM
- 7GB free HDD space
- Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 512 MB of RAM
- Internet access for Steam activation
So far, two pieces of DLC for Skyrim have been announced. These will be comparable in size to the DLC for Fallout 3 and New Vegas.
These first two pieces will be released on Xbox 360 first and remain exclusive for 30 days.
The review embargo ends on November 11, 2011.
There are three different editions of Skyrim, one exclusive to the Australia and New Zealand branch of EB Games.
Standard Edition:
Includes the game and a standard paper map. Pre-orders get a premium synthetic cloth map.
PC: €49,99/$59.99/£27.99/AUD 89.99
Consoles: €59,99/$59.99/£39,99/AUD 99.99
Collector’s Edition:
Also known as the “Who needs food, anyway?”-edition. Includes the game, a synthetic cloth map, a “Making of Skyrim”-DVD,
a 200 page art book and a statue of Alduin.
All platforms: €149,99/$149.99/£129.99/AUD 199.99
EB Games Collector’s Edition:
Exclusive to Australian retailer EB games, this Collector’s Edition includes the game (in a steelbook case), a synthetic cloth map,
four collectible art prints and a 100pg notebook embossed with the Skyrim logo, because everybody needs to write, right?
PC: AUD 88.00
Consoles: AUD 108.00
To summarize:
Skyrim: Prima Official Game Guide
Contents (bolded is Collector's Edition-exclusive):
- A large map poster, labeled with important locations, major roads and Hold capitals
- Multiple character builds, to make a character exactly how you want it to be
- A comprehensive list of all collectibles hidden in the land of Skyrim
- A full-blown atlas of Skyrim, with more than 130 detailed maps
- A list of every weapon and spell available and the best tactics to use them with
- The whereabouts of every trader, caravan, blacksmith, innkeeper and trained in the game
- The location of every companion and all buyable properties in the game
- A code for access to an interactive world map
Skyrim: Original Soundtrack
Composed by Jeremy Soule, this 4-disc set features a breadth of music: from the icy sounds inspired by the game's highest
mountain peaks to the powerful themes capturing the magnificence of the dragons. This compilation set will ship the week
following 11.11.11, exclusively from DirectSong.
PLEASE NOTE, all orders placed before December 23rd will be personally autographed by composer Jeremy Soule.
People who pre-order the game at Amazon.de get a bonus disc with five preview tracks on it.
Custom covers
Do you think the regular box art is too bland for your tastes? Do you believe game covers shouldn’t be cluttered
with needless ratings and logos? Our very own GAF [url="http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=442713"]Custom Cover-crew[/url] has just the thing for you.
By Rengoku and Urbanrats, respectively
Did you play Oblivion and do you want to know what happened after the game ended? Want to freshen up on your lore
before getting lost in Skyrim? Or are you a new player, simply interested in the multitude of stories this big-ass universe offers?
Then check out these novels, they might be just what you're looking for.
Ploid's note: THE STORY SUCKS IN THESE GAMES!
- The Elder Scrolls.com
- Bethesda Blog
- The Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages
- The Imperial Library
- Screenshot Gallery
I stole this post, thought it looked organized and we have a Fallout thread, so why not Skyrim.
)
