Organizations of The Elder Scrolls

The organizations in The Elder Scrolls series (also known as "guilds" or "factions") are an element of play that The Elder Scrolls games have had in common since The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall. Daggerfall, along with The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim contains a series of fictional factions, many of which are available for the player character to become a member of. These factions have become a key feature in the game, with the main plot of Morrowind revolving around being a member of certain factions.
The joining of factions is an optional element of the games, reflecting the open-ended, sandbox nature of The Elder Scrolls series. Joining organizations offer players a number of advantages, primarily being given quests by other members then rising through the ranks of the guild. While some organizations (especially the guilds) appear in numerous games, others (such as the noble houses in Morrowind) are unique to their own game.
Development
The guild system was introduced in Daggerfall, replacing the more rigid class system that had been in place in The Elder Scrolls: Arena. However, Todd Howard said that the only thing that he would change if he was redoing Daggerfall was the system of factions, which he believed did not work as advertised. Guilds and organizations in Morrowind took inspiration from real-world historical groups, with the Imperial Empire reminiscent of the Roman or British empires, The Elder Scrolls III: Bloodmoon ' s East Empire Company taking inspiration from the East India Company and the architecture of House Hlaalu showing Arabic influences. Joinable factions were retained in Oblivion, where each joinable guild was given one head designer. Once they had designed a quest, they presented it to the entire development team of around 50, after which time the team gave feedback, allowing for the quest to be tweaked.
Gameplay
A player is able to join certain organizations (especially guilds and houses) giving them certain benefits. In Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, there were five joinable guilds- the Fighters' Guild, the Mages' Guild, the Thieves' Guild, the Dark Brotherhood and the Arena. There was also one "secret" joinable guild- the Blades. Guild quests are separate from the game's main story, and so though the main plot may feature the factions, a player does not need to work their way through them. As such, the player can choose to ignore the main plot or the factions as they please. In Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, being a high rank changed little apart from the way that other guild members addressed the player, while in Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion certain services are not available to players until they are high up in the guild- for instance, enchanting is not available to players unless they are of a certain rank in the Mages' Guild. In Morrowind, joining a guild would result in members liking you more, leading to cheaper goods and services. This also worked in reverse, with members of opposed guilds liking you less. The Bloodmoon expansion introduces one new joinable faction, the East Empire Company, a group of settlers on the island of Solstheim.
While many factions have a rivalry, and some are openly opposed or even violent towards one another, such as the Dark Brotherhood and the Morag Tong, there is only a minimal amount of direct opposition, in which doing a quest for one guild would damage a player's standing in another.The Elder Scrolls III: Tribunal also did not feature as much inter-faction gameplay.
Main Guilds/Factions
*The Blades (Main Quest)
*The Ashlanders (Main Quest)
*The Fighter's Guild
*The Thieves' Guild
*The Mage's Guild
Houses
*House Hlaalu
*House Telvanni
*House Redoran
Other Factions
*The Dark Brotherhood (Cannot join)
*The Morag Tong
*The Imperial Cult
*The Tribunal Temple
*The Imperial Legion
*Various Vampire Factions
Expansion Pack Factions
*The East Empire Company
Joinable organizations in Oblivion
In The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, there are five major factions that the player is able to join, each with their own unique storyline. The three main guilds return; The Fighters Guild, is shown to be a deteriorating guild of mercenaries which is being cheated out by their shady rival guild, the Blackwood Company; The Mages Guild, which is currently under heavy attack by a vicious cadre of necromancers; and The Thieves Guild, a complex network of thieves, fences, and beggars who are led by the mysterious Gray Fox. The Dark Brotherhood also returns, and The Arena, an organization of gladiators who fight in a grand arena in the Imperial City, is introduced.
The Blades, which plays a role in the game's main plot line, rather than being a conventional guild organization, is joinable.<ref name="oblivionportal"/> The same is true of The Mythic Dawn, a daedric cult may be joined for a short time during the main quest line. Other minor joinable factions are The Order of the Virtuous Blood, a group of vampire "hunters" in the Imperial City, The Order of the White Stallion, created by Count Marius Caro of Leyawiin, on completion of the "Mazoga the Orc" quest and The Knights of the Thorn, a group of knights created by Farwil Indarys, son of Count Andel Indarys in the 3E 431. The player character is inducted into the Knights after closing the Oblivion gate outside Cheydinhal and saving Farwil Indarys.
Expansions to the game introduce two new factions, though neither are joinable in the typical sense. In Knights of the Nine, the player forms and joins The Knights of the Nine. In the second expansion, Shivering Isles, The Court of the Prince of Madness is introduced. It is not a formal faction but comes with its own set of activities and benefits post-game as the player works to replace Sheogorath, the Prince of Madness.
Main Guilds/Factions
*The Fighter's Guild
*The Thieves Guild
*The Dark Brotherhood
*The Mage's Guild
*The Arena
Other Factions
*The Blades (Main Quest)
*The Mythic Dawn (Main Quest)
*The Knights of the Thorn
*The Order of the White Stallion
*The Order of the Virtuous Blood
Expansion Pack Factions
*The Knights of the Nine
*The Court of Madness
Joinable organizations in Skyrim
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Director and Executive Producer Todd Howard confirmed that the game will contain three major factions; The Companions (warrior faction), The College of Winterhold (mage faction) and the Thieves' Guild will all be joinable. During the gaming convention QuakeCon, in early August 2011, three more factions were confirmed. A note with a Black Hand imprinted on it, with the subtitle "We Know" encountered during the video demo was confirmed by Todd Howard to mean the return of the Dark Brotherhood, a group of assassins. A rebel group known as the Stormcloaks are based in the city of Windhelm. The Imperial Legion, the military force deployed from Cyrodiil to combat the rebels, have their headquarters in Castle Dour, in Skyrim's capital city of Solitude.
Main Guilds/Factions
*The Companions
*The College of Winterhold
*The Thieves' Guild
*The Dark Brotherhood
*The Bard's College
*The Dawnguard
*The Volkihar Vampire clan
Civil War Factions
*The Imperial Legion
*The Stormcloak Rebellion
Other Factions
*The Blades
*The Forsworn
*Various Daedra follower groups
*Tribal Orcs
*The Nightingales (connected to the Thieves' Guild)
Non-joinable Factions
*Cult of The Ancestor Moth (Dawnguard DLC)
*Dragon Priests
*The Vigilants of Stendarr
*Greybeards
*Skaal (Dragonborn DLC)
*Cult of Miraak (Dragonborn DLC)
* The Psijic Order

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu