Dagoth Ur
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Dagoth Ur is the main antagonist in the computer fantasy game The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. Until his death in the late 3E, he lived primarily in the crater of the volcano Red Mountain, which is itself called Dagoth Ur. Local legends referring to "terrible demons of the mountain" probably refer to Dagoth Ur and his cohorts. Although he is an important character and nemesis, he does not directly appear until the third game in the Elder Scrolls series which deals directly with him, together with the discovery of the continued threat he poses to the peoples of the world. He does, however, make a small yet important appearance in the first game where he seemingly helps the player.
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[edit] Life
Historically, Dagoth Ur, who at this point was Lord Voryn Dagoth (the name Dagoth Ur did not come about until he awoke in Red Mountain), was a friend and loyal ally of Indoril Nerevar, and aided him in his endeavours. After the Battle of Red Mountain, which ended the long War of the First Council, he was temporarily entrusted with the Dwemer tools Keening and Sunder (a dagger and a hammer), as well as Wraithguard (a gauntlet), which would permit an individual to manipulate the Heart of Lorkhan with safety, and channel its power in some way. During this period, Nerevar consulted with his Tribunal of advisors, Almalexia, Vivec and Sotha Sil, as to the proper course of action regarding the tools. However, Dagoth was tempted by the power of the Heart, and when Nerevar returned to destroy the tools, Dagoth refused to relinquish them. A conflict ensues which left Dagoth Ur seemingly dead and Nerevar mortally wounded.
Being in possession of the tools, Dagoth Ur's life was sustained by the power of the Heart, and though his body was discarded by Nerevar and the Tribunal, he continued to live, gradually feeding on the power of the Heart, eventually becoming a living god. Sotha Sil, Almalexia, and Vivec would later attain the same state through similar means. Wounded and corrupted, Dagoth Ur began to see these three persons as his enemy. This is possibly because of the rumours that the three of them betrayed and murdered Nerevar. As Dagoth Ur slept, however, he began to see all of Tamriel as being full of enemies, and that the only way to 'save' the world would be to conquer it completely. To this end, he begins a millennial campaign to defeat all those things he sees as threats. He steals Sunder and Keening from the Tribunal so that they may not continue to draw their god-hood from the Heart of Lorkhan. Slowly, he begins subverting the population of Morrowind through his enhanced psychic powers and he builds a power-base for himself in the form of a cult who act as his physical servants. His fortresses are rebuilt in secret and domesticated beasts are bred as war animals; diseases are bred by Dagoth and his close associates to weaken the bodies and souls of those whose minds he seeks to dominate (called the Blight; the worst of which is called Corprus); and his cultists begin construction of a second Numidium in an attempt similar to that of the Dwarves which resulted in the War of the First Council to begin with.
At the end of the 3E, Dagoth Ur was finally killed by the reincarnation of Indoril Nerevar. Depending on player choices, Dagoth Ur may or may not be told that his slayer is, in fact, the reincarnation of his former general.
[edit] Dagoth Ur's plans
Here is a list of Dagoth Ur's plans within the story.
Basic Objectives
- 1. Establish a theocracy in Morrowind based on the worship of the new-born god Akulakhan (Second Numidium) to be created by Dagoth Ur from the heart of Lorkhan and a body constructed according to the principles and rituals pioneered by the Dwemer Kagrenac (this was in fact the cause of the War of the Council to begin with). Establish the ancient heirs of House Dagoth as the god-priests of Akulakhan, and the Sixth House of Dagoth Ur as the dominant political power in Morrowind. Through charismatic conversion, unite the Dunmer under the guidance of Dagoth Ur to battle against the foreign animals (the Empire of Men under the Septim Dynasty) who hold Morrowind in subjection. (Note: Dagoth Ur has apparently adopted the views and motivations of the Dwemer High Craftlord Kagrenac. In effect, he recapitulates the ancient blasphemous folly of the Dwemer)
- 2. Expose the false worship of the Tribunal and destroy the ecclesiastical authority and political power of the Temple. (How much the Dissident Priests or the Cult of the Nerevarine may be controlled or influenced by the Sixth House in this regard is open to speculation.)
- 3. Extirpate all remaining individuals of inferior and mongrel races (non-Dark Elves and humans) from Morrowind.
- 4. Drive the Empire from Morrowind.
- 5. Recover ancient territories stolen by Skyrim and Argonia.
- 6. Extend the worship of Akulakhan to all nations of Tamriel through subversion and conquest.
Plans to Establish and Expand the Sixth House
- Phase 1: Secure Red Mountain against Tribunal intruders. Deny Tribunal access to the Heart, weakening the Temple while securing Red Mountain for the creation of Akulakhan. Keep the construction of Second Numidium a secret.
- Phase 2: Create passive servants in ever-widening circles around Red Mountain by broadcasting compulsions couched in dream imagery to susceptible subjects in their sleep. Establish a major operational base at Kogoruhn for further operations in the ash wastes. Establish smaller bases near small port villages and in lower-class waterfront districts in Vivec. Infiltrate and subvert smuggling syndicates. Recruit willing followers from disaffected populations, including the underworld, the poor, and rabid anti-Imperial activists.
- Phase 3: Expand from smaller bases to other towns and villages, and recruit and indoctrinate subjects made susceptible by dream sendings. Occupy abandoned towers and ruins, and train cultists as raiders and irregular troops. Identify, discredit, and decimate possible sources of political resistance.
- Phase 4: Use assassination and terror to weaken, distract, and disrupt the Legions and the Imperial bureaucracy, along with their Hlaalu sympathizers. Inspire popular uprisings of the native poor against the foreign rich and powerful. Summon Sleepers and Dreamers to Dagoth Ur to work on Second Numidium.
[edit] Inferring Dagoth Ur's Perspectives
As a god or a god-like being, Dagoth Ur possesses the qualities of transcendence and immanence: his body exists in space-time, but his mind encompasses reality as opposed to the opposite state of affairs for mortal creatures. As such, he thinks primarily on an epic scale -- for the most part, in the outside-of-time scale of the divine consciousness. He thinks that only obstacles of mythic proportion are worth consideration. He believes he is fated to rule Morrowind, to free Morrowind of the Empire, and to become the new hard-loving Father of Morrowind. Given that perspective, the only opposing forces Dagoth Ur worries about are the Tribunal, the Daedra, the Septims, and the Incarnate.
With the Tribunal's loss of Sunder and Keening, and with the diminishing resources of Vivec, Almalexia, and Sotha Sil, Dagoth Ur believes he has permanently gained a decisive strategic advantage. On a mortal timescale, the battle may last for centuries, but the outcome is not in doubt. And Akulakhan may be a device for dramatically reducing the time scale for a decisive victory.
The myth of dynamic invincibility of the Emperor and the Empire has long been an unquantifiable and intimidating threat, but recent rumours of unrest in Cyrodiil, of the Emperor's failing health, and the unsettled question of the succession have diminished the scale of that threat. Nonetheless, the revelation that the Nerevarine is a pawn of Imperial intelligence, hand-picked and sent to Morrowind by the Emperor himself, may cause Dagoth Ur considerable anxiety.
The Daedra represent no coherent obstacle to Dagoth Ur, and for the most part they seem to have little interest in his actions, being more concerned with their own affairs on. Nonetheless, their personal abilities and their influence upon their fanatic followers is considerable, their motives and actions obscure, and Dagoth Ur remains concerned about them. Undoubtedly, Daedric cultists would rapidly oppose Dagoth Ur and his mission if they felt it was a threat to them, as the old Daedra worshipping Dunmer did in the case of the Dwarves during the War of the First Council.
The Incarnate represents Saint Nerevar, a mythic force that has previously defeated Dagoth Ur, and Dagoth Ur is obsessed with this threat. At the same time, Dagoth Ur knew Nerevar personally, knew that he was a mortal man with faults and weaknesses. Dagoth Ur may have some hope of seducing or negotiating with Nerevar's reincarnation. Further, when Nerevar and the Tribunal defeated Dagoth Ur, they were strong and allied; now the Nerevarine and the Tribunal are weak, opposed, and divided. Therefore, though the Nerevarine and the Tribunal represent the most serious threat to Dagoth Ur's plans, he still has good reason to believe that this time he will prevail.
[edit] A Recent Timescale of Dagoth Ur's Activities
Before 2E 882: Dagoth Ur and his kin lie dreaming beneath the sills of Red Mountain in a death-like state common to mortal beings who have attained god-like status known as the Long Sleep (Zurin Arctus, Liches and Ancient Vampires are also known to spend a great deal of time in the Sleep).
- 2E 882: Dagoth Ur and his ash vampires awake refreshed and emerge from lower Red Mountain into the Heart Chamber. Dagoth Ur ritually binds himself and his brethren as heartwights in a ritual of his own devising. First stages of construction of Second Numidium [conceived during the Long Sleep] are begun by heartwights and atronach constructs in a chamber near the Heart of Lorkhan. Keeping the Second Numidium project a secret from the Tribunal is a high priority.
- 2E 882: The Tribunal arrive at Red Mountain for their annual ritual bathing in the heart's power. Dagoth Ur and ash vampires ambush the Tribunal. The Tribunes are driven away, and prevented from restoring themselves with Kagrenac's tools at the Heart of Lorkhan.
- 2E 882-3E 417: Intermittent Tribunal campaigns assault Red Mountain. The Tribunal and supporting forces seek to force access to the Heart Chamber, but are repeatedly driven back. Dagoth Ur recruits Sleepers and Dreamers through dream sendings. Cultists are recruited through dream compulsion. Weaker cultists become corprus beasts; stronger cultists advance through stages towards the powers of the Ascended Sleepers.
- 3E 400: Kogoruhn reoccupied by Dagoth Uthol and fortified as an advance base for Sixth House operations. Blight storms more frequent and widespread. Soul sickness spreads in regions close to Red Mountain.
- 3E 410: Sixth House bases founded near Gnaar Mok and in waterfront areas of Vivec. Sixth House operatives exploit smuggler organizations and communications to spread their influence among victims unbalanced by Dagoth Ur's dream sendings.
- 3E 415: Small cells of Sixth House cultists appear in every town in Vvardenfell. Larger Sixth House operations are concealed in remote dungeons where creatures are bred and cultists are trained for the coming struggle.
- 3E 417: Almalexia and Sotha Sil lose the artifacts Keening and Sunder to Dagoth Odros and Vemyn. Vivec rescues Almalexia and Sotha Sil, but failing to recover Keening and Sunder, the Tribunal retreat from Red Mountain in disorder. Surviving Buoyant Armiger companions know the Tribunal was forced to retreat, but do not know how serious a reversal the Tribunal has suffered. The Three Tribunes return to their respective capitals and continue to perform their ritual functions. The Tribunes continue to grow weaker without access to the Heart, and because of resources required to support the Ghostfence (the Ghostfence was the largest Spirit Wall ever created, built around Red Mountain with the purpose of limiting Dagoth's capacity to project his influence outwards. If it were not for the power of the Ghostfence, Dagoth would undoubtedly have enslaved most of Morrowind by the end of the Third Era). The inner circle of the Temple priesthood has begun to suspect the Tribunes have suffered seriously from wounds and demoralization in the wake of reverses at Red Mountain, but do not recognize the scale of the problem.
- 3E 426-427: Campaign of Sixth House assassinations of prominent Imperial citizens and Hlaalu Imperial sympathizers. Sudden increase in number and seriousness of attacks by cultists and victims deranged by soul sickness.
Noted with Concern
- 1. Dagoth Ur can apparently perceive and communicate directly through his cultists. Sleepers and Dreamers are often reported speaking as with Dagoth Ur's voice and intention.
- 2. Little is known about the features, scale, or stage of completion of Akulakhan Second Numidium. No one has gained entrance to the Heart Chamber since 2E 282. In 3E 417, Keening and Sunder were captured, and may substantially aid in Akulakhan's construction.
