I’ve seen some people claim that General Tullius can’t be blamed for the opening scene of Skyrim, in which the player character is nearly executed without cause in Helgen. After all, he was across the courtyard – he probably didn’t hear the captain say, “Forget the list, (s)he goes to the block.”

But after listening to several other lines of dialogue, learning more about the laws involved, and observing a few other events, I’ve concluded that Tullius was almost certainly both aware and guilty of the Last Dragonborn’s attempted murder. Here’s what led me to that conclusion:

1. General Tullius probably MADE the list.

For the list the LDB wasn’t on to exist, someone must have written it. The most likely candidate for this role is the mission’s commanding officer: General Tullius.

Even if he didn’t make the list himself, he should’ve at least been aware of who was on it, so he shouldn’t have needed Hadvar or the captain to tell him the LDB wasn’t on the list.

2. Tullius knew the LDB was there.

If you speak to him in Castle Dour, and tell him that you’ve already met/you were at Helgen, he’ll comment that you were “One of the prisoners, if I recall correctly.”

So not only was he aware of the LDB’s presence, but he noticed them enough to recognize them days, weeks, or even months later. And yet, even if they looked nothing like a Stormcloak, he couldn’t be bothered to say, “Hold up, who’s that and why are we killing them?”

3. The LDB wasn’t charged with a crime.

In the aforementioned Castle Dour conversation, upon being satisfied that the LDB is there to sign up with the Legion, Tullius says, “I’m sure your being imprisoned was all a terrible misunderstanding.”

In other words, he had NO knowledge of any crimes the LDB had committed. He didn’t offer a pardon, or demand that they pay off their bounty; he simply acknowledged that they’d done no wrong that he was aware of.

If he had no reason to believe they were guilty in Castle Dour, then he had no reason to believe they were guilty in Helgen. He just couldn’t be bothered to find out whether or not they were.

To Tullius, the life of a potentially innocent person simply wasn’t worth the bother of finding out whether or not they’d even committed a crime, let alone one worthy of death – not that a crime’s worthiness of death matters to Tullius, given that…

4. Look who else was on the list.

According to Imperial law, as outlined in the book Legal Basics:

“Any act of stealing, taking, or, without explicit written or verbal permission (or what a reasonable person would infer as implied permission) an item or items from a person, group of persons, or entity a reasonable person might assume to be sentient's place of residence, business, person, or other location a reasonable person would assume is secured from looting. The punishment for this crime may include a fine or incarceration, or a fine and incarceration.”

And yet, Lokir, a horse thief, was on the list to be executed. No other crime of his was mentioned, so it seems that Tullius knowingly sentenced a man to be killed for what a Legion general should have known was a crime worthy of a fine and/or incarceration, not death.

5. This isn’t Tullius’ only questionable execution.

Roggvir, the man who’s executed when the LDB first visits Solitude, claimed that Ulfric’s killing of Torygg was no murder – Ulfric challenged the High King to ritual combat, which was legal in Skyrim.

His claim is supported by Sybille Stentor, who’s firmly against the Stormcloaks’ goals. She acknowledges that “By Nord custom, once the challenge was issued in court, Torygg had no choice but to accept. Had he not, Ulfric would have had cause to call a new moot and a new vote for High King.”

She claims there was “no choice,” but in reality, Torygg had a choice: he could have refused, and allowed the moot to choose a new High King. He chose his career and his honor over his life, and consented to the duel.

Whether the way Ulfric won the duel was honorable or not is a subject for another discussion. Killing Torygg instead of incapacitating him was, in my opinion, unnecessary and therefore wrong, but that doesn't change the fact that the High King recognized the legality of the fight and consented to it.

Therefore, the duel was legal under Skyrim’s laws, and by extension, so was Roggvir letting Ulfric leave.

Now, there is some ambiguity as to whether Roggvir’s execution was ordered by Tullius or Jarl Elisif, but given Elisif’s kind nature and Lokir’s execution by legionnaires, Tullius seems like the more likely candidate.

One could argue that the duel, while legal under Skyrim’s laws, was illegal under the Empire’s. But Tullius didn’t declare the duel illegal. He simply pretended it never happened, and had Roggvir killed under false pretenses.
​
All in all, the Last Dragonborn's wrongful near-execution wasn’t one-off mistake.

It was part of an ongoing pattern of questionably legal executions, ordered or knowingly permitted by a man who almost certainly knew that the random traveler who wasn’t on the list was about to be killed, but who couldn’t be bothered to find out whether they or his other victims deserved to die.

If the title of this post pisses you off, I understand. Brunwulf is an immediately likable character, and when a person seems willing to stick up for the downtrodden, we want that to be real.

But the more I play Skyrim, the more I notice that some of his claims just don’t line up with my firsthand experiences, and I tend to believe observable events over unverified hearsay. So today, I thought I'd take a break from talking about my art and stories, and share my musings about someone else's.

In this post, I’ll share a few of Brunwulf’s claims, and the experiences that caused me to doubt them. If you have any lore that supports or contradicts my observations, please feel free to chime in!

Claim 1:

“He’s tough, loyal to his men and a good leader, but if you’re not a Nord, Ulfric will never trust you.”

My experiences and observations:

I’ve played through the Stormcloak questline as an Altmer and a Dunmer – two of the races Ulfric’s detractors would expect him to distrust the most. By having Galmar ask “Why’s an (insert race here) want to fight for Skyrim?”, the developers went out of their way to make it clear that the Stormcloaks know what you are.

And yet, once you’ve proven your mettle and commitment, you’re entrusted with delivering a message to Whiterun, acquiring enemy intel and delivering a forged replacement, blackmailing a government official, and more. I think it’s safe to say that Ulfric – or at minimum, Galmar – trusts you.

Claim 2:

“Whenever a group of marauders attack a Nord village, Ulfric is the first to sound the horn and send the men. But a group of Dark Elf refugees gets ambushed? A group of Argonians, or a Khajiit caravan? No troops. No investigation. Nothing.”

My experiences and observations: 

A few days before I wrote this, I collected a bounty on the giant at Steamcrag Camp. For those who aren’t familiar with it, there are a few things you should know:

1. It’s nowhere near Nord land.

2. There’s an “Official warning” sign nearby, which says:

“Attention citizenry

The giant here has been given leave to keep his camp. Please do NOT attempt to make trade, disrupt the mammoths, gawk at, or otherwise disturb the giant. Resting here is not advised.”

This implies that the giant has been behaving himself, until the events of #3.

3. Right beside the giant camp, there is a dead Khajiit, and a wagon whose severely smashed-up state strongly suggests a giant attack. There’s a second dead Khajiit inside the camp, as well as horse meat, presumably taken from the travelers’ slain horses.

4. Someone put a bounty on the giant who lives there, and it wasn’t Brunwulf. It was Ulfric.

Now, one could argue that “kill the giant” is a radiant quest, so it doesn’t really reflect on Ulfric’s character or intentions. But is that really going to be your in-universe explanation?

A giant who was officially allowed to keep his camp gets a bounty on his head after killing two Khajiit and their horses, and the only reason Ulfric put a bounty on him is because the Random Number Gods made him do it? You’re free to choose your own headcanon, but that’s sure not the one I’m going with.

And yes, one could argue that Brunwulf was right about Ulfric not sending the troops to deal with it, but how often do we actually see ANY Jarl on EITHER side of the war send their own troops after bandit camps, giants, or other such menaces outside their city walls? In Skyrim, leaving some paper at the inn and waiting for a random bounty-hunter to solve the problem is a bipartisan strategy.

That said, I do know of at least one instance where Ulfric (or someone under his command) DID send the troops. It’s an unmarked location known as “Trolled Stormcloaks Darkwater Overhang,” and in it, you find two dead Stormcloaks and the troll that killed them, as well as a note that says:

“Captain,

There have been multiple complaints about attacks near the river northwest of The Rift. We could use some more civilian support from that area for the war effort, so send a few men to investigate. It's probably just a couple of wolves, so you'll only need to send at most two men.

Happy hunting”

It doesn’t say anything about the race of the people complaining. It just says they need civilian support for the war – something settlements are better equipped to provide than travelers.

That, combined with the bounty on the Khajiit-killing giant, makes me wonder if Brunwulf is mistakenly assuming that Ulfric’s troop deployment decisions are based on race, when they’re really based on wartime strategy.

Claim 3:

“If Ulfric had his way, anyone who wasn’t a Nord would be shipped right out of Skyrim.”

My experiences and observations: 

I’ve finished the Stormcloak questline twice, and the only indication that anyone besides the Thalmor and the people still fighting for the Empire was getting deported or otherwise kicked out, either during the questline or after, was the following line of dialogue from Stormcloak commanders:

“Soon we’ll rid Skyrim of elves, their bloody Justiciars, and the Jarls in their pockets.”

I can definitely see how that would lead people to assume that all elves will be unjustly deported, and it is undeniably wrong of these commanders to make innocent elves worry for their futures like that.

But I can’t recall hearing or reading a single line of dialogue from Ulfric or Galmar that indicates that either of them intends to banish any elves besides the Thalmor. In fact, an Altmer named Niranye is heavily implied to have moved into Windhelm and bought a house there during Ulfric’s reign, and the people who mix Windhelm’s medicines are an Altmer and/or an Imperial.

Based on those facts, I believe that by “elves,” those Stormcloak commanders meant “Thalmor.” If that is the case, of course, they should just frikkin’ SAY “Thalmor,” but the fact that they’re careless with their phrasing doesn’t mean Ulfric is going to deport all non-Nords from Skyrim, or even that he wants to.

Claim 4:

“All I did was talk to Ulfric.” (I couldn’t find a line of dialogue that neatly encapsulated the whole thing, but several related lines of dialogue indicate that Malthyr Elenil asked Brunwulf to talk to Ulfric about the Windhelm Dunmers’ problems, and Brunwulf claims that he did so.)

My experiences and observations: 

I believed this one was true, until I heard the following dialogue:

Jorleif: “Sir, there continues to be unrest in the Gray Quarter.”
Ulfric: “Blasted dark elves. I don’t suppose you could tell them that I presently have larger concerns? Such as all of Skyrim?”
Jorleif: “They don’t seem to be very sympathetic to our cause, sir.”
Ulfric: “Let me know if you hear anything more substantial.”
Jorleif: “Of course, my lord.”

While this isn’t a great response to the revelation that your citizens are upset, it strongly implies that Ulfric doesn’t know the specifics of the Dunmers’ concerns, but that he actually WANTS to. Why would he ask for more substantial information if Brunwulf had already given it to him?

Ambarys Rendar’s line, “I tried to get Ulfric to even come down here to see the squalor, but the High Lord of His Mightiness couldn’t find the time,” implies that Ambarys – not Brunwulf – told Ulfric about the Dunmers’ displeasure with the state of the Grey Quarter.

But given that even the steps leading up to the Palace of the Kings are in disrepair, AND the fact that Brunwulf himself isn’t able to start repairs right away if the war ends with him becoming Jarl, I think it’s safe to say that, as with the deployment of troops, the decision not to renovate the city in the middle of a war is based more on tactical and logistical considerations than racial ones.

All in all, I can’t help but question whether Ulfric has even been made aware of the issues, such as Rolff and Angrenor’s harassment, that he could realistically address during a war.

Did Brunwulf actually speak with him, and if so, did he give him anything specific and realistic enough to even be actionable? Given all the other questionable claims he’s made, I’m not convinced that he did.

Add in the fact that he's in love with the blatantly racist Elda Early-Dawn, and his credibility sinks even further.

So, what do you think?

Is Brunwulf Free-Winter lying? Is he telling the truth, based on information I missed? Did he make a few superficial observations, base some sweeping assumptions off of them, and never bother fact-checking them before sharing them with anyone who would listen?

If you’ve got any lore to support or further refute his claims, I’d love to see it.

After all these years of drawing a kid in baggy clothes for Just Cause, I was starting to miss drawing muscles, and it's been too long since I let myself just sketch without smoothing every line and adding shading and coloring.

In fact, it had gotten to the point where I was letting the time commitment intimidate me out of drawing pictures I wanted to draw, so I decided to just go for it and remind myself that I could.

Ondolemar from Skyrim has been on my brain for a while, in case you couldn't tell by the fanfic, and I've recently been enjoying the idea of him meeting a cat.

Given how fast he gets attached to the Dragonborn if they help him, I think he'd be the type to get adopted by a kitten, even if he initially objected.

And so, this picture was born.
​ 

 
Ondolemar: "Absolutely no time to deal with wild animals these days. Go away."

*Kitten jumps onto his lap*

"Hmph. Fine."

*Kitten starts to rub against him*

"You're awfully affectionate, aren't you? I like that."

*Kitten moves in with him, cries at his door when he's in the bath, and greets him when he comes out*

"There are so few pleasures in life as fine as your cuddles."

Of all the characters I would've expected to latch onto my mind and not let go until I wrote his story, Ondolemar from Skyrim was NEVER on the list.

Erandur, sure - he's friendly, interesting, and complex, with an intriguing backstory and a lot of dialogue. There's a reason I have a partly-finished story about him in my WIPs.

But Ondolemar? The leader of the Thalmor Justiciars, whose job is to arrest people for their faith? The arrogant religious fanatic Elven supremacist with just a handful of spoken lines and NO backstory beyond what we can guess from his rank? WTF?

It's Tumblr and YouTube's fault. They introduced me to a few voice lines I'd never heard before, because I'd never helped him arrest a guy for worshiping Talos.

After the hostility, condescension, insults and murder attempts I'd gotten from pretty much every other Thalmor I'd ever encountered, I was surprised to find out that:

1. If you've helped him, Ondolemar greets you as "my friend," no matter what race you're playing as.

2. If you've helped him AND you have a high enough speech skill, you can get him to cause a distraction for you during a party. In the Thalmor Embassy, no less. He'll even lie to Elenwen for you.

3. When his distraction gets an innocent human in trouble, he'll immediately take the blame for the incident rather than get said human thrown out of the party, despite his belief in Elven superiority and his moon-sized ego.

This, and the fact that he seeks proof before arresting a "heretic", is a surprising contrast to the Justiciars who label you a heretic and try to kill you just because they don't like you.

(Sure, you could argue that he isn't legally ALLOWED to arrest Ogmund without proof, but the Thalmor have no problem trying to have the Dragonborn illegally assassinated, so clearly extralegal options aren't off the table for the people Ondolemar works for.)

4. Sometimes he'll comment, "There are so few pleasures in life as fine as your company" - once again, regardless of what race you are. And if you think it's because he's a skilled manipulator, clearly you haven't heard his other voice lines.

If you want a brutally honest opinion from a Thalmor officer about the Empire or the political situation, he's the place to find it. This dumbass has precious little filter between his mouth and brain.

5. Whether you've helped him or not, he is happy to chat with you, both in Markarth and at the party. He also seems very sincerely focused on the religious aspects of the Talos ban and the civil war, whereas the other Thalmor make me suspect that it's more of a means to a political end.

Combine all of that with my observation that Talos' shrines and amulets follow the same game mechanics as the implements of the divines that the Thalmor recognize, and it made me wonder what would happen if this unusually friendly Justiciar were to be told - VERY tactfully - about the evidence that his faction might be lying to him about a matter of religion.

Over a century of indoctrination, his whole self-flattering worldview, and the risk of being killed for questioning his totalitarian government, vs. the evidence. FIGHT.

When I first started writing, I'd expected it to be one quick conversation that I just wanted to get out of my head and onto the screen. But then it grew. And grew.

I saw a picture of Ondolemar being captured, and I felt that would bring a great new level of emotional tension to the story. So I added it in.

While I was writing a scene in which Ondolemar tried to defend his point of view, I realized I was knocking down a strawman. So I looked deeper into the lore about the Thalmor and their rationale and goals. And the story grew some more.

Next thing I knew, I'd written almost 35,000 words about a character I never thought I'd give a crap about, and gotten into his head far deeper and more effortlessly than I'd ever thought I would. And the story was still growing.

I never would have guessed that he'd be a character who practically wrote himself, but he is, and I thoroughly enjoyed writing him.

Now the story is finally done, and you can read it on this website here.

And you can read it on Archive of Our Own here.