The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim has a lot of mysteries in its expansive world lore, mysteries that are explored over the course of the game. Between all the Skyrim-based books, quests, and other troves of knowledge waiting to be discovered around the world, it's possible to put together a lot of Tamriel's history - even the things that aren't "public" knowledge.
One of Skyrim's mysteries is the fate of the ancient snow elves, otherwise known as Falmer; it's a race of Mer that has almost entirely been eradicated from Tamriel. The snow elves once inhabited all of Skyrim, but then rapidly declined due to multiple factors. What really happened to them? Where are they now? And what might their future be? Let's take a look at the ultimate fate of the snow elves.
Once upon a time, back during the Merethic era of Tamriel history, snow elf society nearly rivaled that of the Altmer from the Summerset Isles. It was advanced, prosperous, and wealthy. They were the very first race of Mer to inhabit Skyrim, and they were present long before the arrival of humans from Atmora. Their troubles as a nation and race began after the humans began to settle Skyrim.
Initially, elves and humans were able to peacefully coexist on the continent, but it didn't last. Snow elves considered themselves to be the superior race, and in an attack later called the "Night of Tears," they destroyed the Nord city of Saarthal; everyone in the city perished except for Ysgramor and his two sons. In retaliation, Ysgramor gathered his Five Hundred Companions, intent on driving the snow elves from Skyrim for good. And that's where the snow elves' permanent run of bad luck began: the conflict grew into a war of extermination with both sides attempting to totally annihilate the other.
Side note: it's possible the Eye of Magnus (that all-powerful orb in Skyrim's College of Winterhold quest line) had something to do with the hostility between Nords and snow elves.
Regardless, when Ysgramor returned the war began in earnest, and though elves and humans continued to fight for years, the humans gained the upper hand. Eventually, during the battle of Moesring, an elf only known as the Snow Prince was slain by humans, causing the rest of the snow elves to lose any remaining hope and flee. After that, the elves' military power was largely destroyed, and Nords proceeded to kill snow elves by the thousands.
But that wasn't the end of the snow elves, not entirely. Their resistance crushed by humans, the snow elves sought help from the Dwemer, their underground cousins. Dwemer, also known as dwarves, had thus far maintained an uneasy alliance with the snow elves, but when the snow elves turned to them for help, the Dwemer showed their true colors.
The Dwemer agreed to shelter the snow elves underground, but at a terrible price. The snow elves were forced to eat toxic plants in order to live underground, plants that eventually destroyed their eyesight. And once the snow elves were vulnerable, the Dwemer enslaved them completely. Of course, not all snow elves agreed to this, and smaller splinter groups remained across Skyrim who attempted to find alternatives. Unfortunately, most of those alternatives didn't work out, and any remaining snow elves either were killed or gave in and took the Dwemers' offer. Thus, at the hands of both humans and Dwemer, the snow elves ultimately met their demise, and the Falmer were born.
After the snow elves' enslavement at the hands of the Dwemer, they lost any sense of history or culture, their predicament wearing them down until they became a primal, bestial people. Many believe that the snow elves were actually tricked into being blinded and subjected to the whims of the Dwemer, given what happened to them afterward, but the truth remains murky. What is known is the ensuing revolt, when Falmer turned against their masters and began a war that lasted decades.
The War of the Crag was fought entirely underneath Skyrim in areas like Blackreach, and surface-dwellers had no idea. Then, by 1E 700, the Dwemer had completely disappeared from Tamriel; subsequently, the Falmer were freed. However, by that point the damage was done: they were heavily deteriorated and utterly bloodthirsty. So, the Falmer remained underground, inhabiting the deepest parts of the world, and by 2E 582, the snow elves were a near-forgotten legend to the rest of Tamriel.
However, that wasn't the end of the snow elves - not completely, anyway. In Skyrim's Dawnguard DLC, the Dragonborn eventually comes across what is likely one of the only living snow elves left in the world: Gelebor, a Knight-Paladin of Auriel. It is through Gelebor that we learned a few groups of snow elves may have managed to avoid the ultimate fate of their race and could be living hidden away in seclusion as Gelebor is.
As for the Falmer, such as they are, Gelebor expresses pity for them, referring to them as "the Betrayed." Gelebor also doesn't identify as "Falmer." He prefers the term "snow elf" for himself, drawing a line between himself and the twisted creatures that people now know to be Falmer. Currently, it is unknown how many other snow elf sanctuaries could be hidden in Skyrim or if any others have endured as Gelebor's has. Then again, many tomes also state that some snow elves fled the continent when they were vanquished, meaning that the remainders of the race could also have settled and be living on distant shores.
The important points are as follows: that the snow elves were hunted, betrayed, and transformed into Falmer. But through it all, the possibility of surviving snow elves has never entirely been discounted, and it could very well be that players of future Elder Scrolls games will stumble across more remnants of the once-great people. For now, only time will tell.
Skyrim is out now on all major platforms.
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