Altmer
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The Altmer, also called High Elves, are a race in The Elder Scrolls series. They are taller than the other races and have a golden skin color. They tend to be proud and consider themselves the most civilized race. Some TES players consider them to be a weaker race, for their weakness to elemental magic, but they boast the greatest magicka bonus of all the races, and their 'pure' bodies give them greater resistance to diseases.
Altmer is the elven name of their race, meaning High Folk, and most likely a derivation of the name of the first race of elves, the Aldmer, meaning First or Elder Folk. They consider themselves the successors of the Aldmer and the highest of all races. Unlike men, who believe themselves to have been created along with the world by the gods, Elves believe themselves to be descended from these gods, calling them the Aedra, "Ancestors". Imperial propaganda (presented in the leaflet 'A Pocket Guide to the Empire' which shipped with the game Redguard) initially portrayed them as arrogant in their superiority and depraved to the point of inhumanity, suggesting that they euthanize nine out of ten children in their search for genetic 'perfection'. In truth the same leaflet makes many other such anti-elven statements in a manner akin to real-world state-sanctioned racism. A new edition of the same fictional 'guide' was shipped with Oblivion which contained a much more favourable view of the Altmer, mentioning deep class and social struggles in which the 'young' (a loose term for the Altmer according to the guide) were rebelling against the notion of their race's superiority in general and the superiority of the Altmeri nobility in particular with many even abandoning worship of the traditional Altmeri pantheon of gods altogether.
The arrogant nature of the Altmer resulted in many long wars since their first encounter with humans. Apparently despising men as being 'fallen' versions of themselves, they created empires across Tamriel and often enslaved any men who came to settle Tamriel. Eventually all the Aldmeri kingdoms on the mainland of Tamriel were overthrown save for the tiny island of Balfiera, which even in the time period of the games is ruled by an Altmeri 'Castellan'. They are also known for creating goblin armies by more or less taming the chieftains of goblin tribes.
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| Races of The Elder Scrolls | |
|---|---|
| Mer (elves): | Altmer | Bosmer | Dunmer | Dwemer | Orsimer |
| Human: | Breton | Imperial | Nord | Redguard |
| Beast: | Argonian | Khajiit | Sload |
| Divine: | Aedra | Daedra | Dremora |
