The wait forThe Elder Scrolls 6seems especially long thanks to the popularity and success ofSkyrim. The titular country ofThe Elder Scrolls 5set a high bar for whatever follows, as the combination of dragons, Nordic lore, and of courseElder Scrollsfantasy brought together a lot of winning elements. As it stands, it seemsThe Elder Scrolls 6seems likely to take place in Hammerfell, but every now and then, some will argue the franchise should leave the continent of Tamriel behind and travel somewhere like Akavir. However, for a few reasons, that’s probably never going to happen.
For the uninitiated, Akavir is a continent far away from Tamriel that has little lore nods and hints scattered throughout the franchise. It is something incredibly foreign and far removed from the events of Tamriel, though Akavir representatives, warmongers, and empire-builders have come to Tamriel a time or two throughout history. That’s the closest it’s probably ever going to get though, as the foreign races, land, and structures required to accommodate those will drive away players, just asSkyrim’s straightforward approach brings fans in. The Akaviri races would make for greatElder Scrollsstories, but the actual continent would not support the gameplay of the franchise.
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Akavir is a Land of Monsters in The Elder Scrolls
There are no human or elven races located in Akavir; in fact, the only real lore connected to this is that men lived in Akavir once, before they were consumed by the Tsaesci. Unlikethe current setting of Tamriel, which features a host of human, elven, and beast races, Akavir is dominated by hard-to-imagine beast races. For example, the Kamal are said to be “Snow Demons,” but exactly what that means is uncertain. It could be they are some Yeti-like creatures, but beyond that, their entire race also apparently freeze in the winter before awakening in the summer to wage war.
The aforementionedTsaesci are among the most mysteriousElder Scrollsraces, as they have been seen before in Tamriel, but accounts of their appearances vary. Some claim all Tsaesci have black hair and scaly feet, many versions of them appear to be bipedal humanoids, but other accounts suggest they are more serpentine in nature with a serpent lower half. ForDungeons and Dragonsfans, their appearance could look akin to a Yuan-Ti, yet their culture is also very heavily inspired by Japanese mythology, with a reverence for ancestors and water. Oh, and there are also claims that the Tsaesci are shape-shifters at that.
Also in Akavir are the Tang Mo, a race of Monkey-like humanoids said to live in the Thousand Monkey Isles of Akavir and said to be insane. To make matters worse, that claim in the lore is backed by nothing and left for players to interpret. Appearance-wise, they are probably something akin to the Chinese mythology of Sun Wukong, which also influencedDragon Ball Zand the upcomingBlack Myth: Wukong. Finally, there are the Ka Po' Tun, who are tiger-basedcat-like folk perhaps comparable to the Khajiit, but with the apparent ability to turn into dragons. It is also rumored to have extinct races or unknown-to-Tamriel races that are popular Akavir, and there’s a reason anyone from Tamriel avoids the place beyond just the difficult journey.
Akavir Wouldn’t Translate to The Elder Scrolls Gameplay
With the races of Akavir in mind, the continent begins to take shape. It would seem that the Kamal demons are located to the north, and because the race freezes when Winter sets in, it’s likely large open fields of endless snow to protect these beings. It’s also possible there are towns within where everyone freezes, but unless they were awake and waging war, this entire area begins bland for exploration.The Tang Moare isolated to their islands, which means their homes and abodes are likely in trees (if not massive trees) that would require players to travel like a monkey, and then whatever dangers they pose are intensified.
The sea surrounding Akavir is dominated by the Tsaesci who reportedly have a strong naval military, but also they probably eat anyone who gets close. The tiger-people-turned-dragons are the most likely to fit into Skyrim, the most normal of Elder Scrolls society seen in Akavir, but even then it probably has its secrets. And that’s what aBethesda gamein Akavir would hurt most: the gameplay would be difficult, if not completely untranslatable, and the secrets that make Akavir so daunting would be undermined. There’s enough knowledge about theseElder Scrolls races to make them terrifying, but more or less would alter their mythos significantly.
Skyrim Embraces Fantasy, but Akavir Sounds More Like a Horror Survival Game
For something to work on Akavir, its plot would likely need to focus on escaping the place, which lends itself to more horror survival games. Running from dangerous foreign enemies in a dangerous land could make sense in that regard, butThe Elder Scrollsis a fantasy franchise, not a horror one.Skyrim’s Chosen One narrative around being the Dragonborn, its intriguing steps into the dark with the Dark Brotherhood, Vampires, and so on, and itshuman-centric Civil War between the Stormcloaks and the Empireall push that fantasy identity forward. Bringing Akaviri enemies into Tamriel would maintain that, but going to Akavir would completely break that spell.
Now, it’s entirely possible Bethesda decides to take that leap someday, but it does feel incredibly unlikely. Not only does Akavir have a lot working against it as a potential setting, but with The Elder Scrolls 6 heavily implied to be set in Hammerfell, then it couldn’t happen unless it was a spin-off or untilThe Elder Scrolls 7comes around. AndThe Elder Scrolls 6’s release date is already pushing the 2030s, if not beyond.
