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Description
My submission for the Scribes-of-Nirn Make Me Bad Contest! The theme is to imagine your OC as evil, and write them as the protagonist of their own Elder Scrolls DLC. I used Ysmir, of course. Who doesn't like to dress up their main OC?

I tried a different process for this one, still trying to get around the lack of working tablet and being constrained to printer sized pages. After sketching out the layout, I created the background and Ysmir on different pages, then combined them after scanning and cleaning the sketches. Once they were all together, I colored them in Photoshop. I found this more tedious than simply doing the entire drawing on one page, but easier to work with once scanned in.

Elder Scroll reference: Rustic Elder Scroll at Skyrim Nexus It had just the perfect angle of the Scroll! Used the wiki image for the coloring reference.

DLC Dragon Break details:

A disorienting visual effect involving the world lurching and the inside of an Elder Scroll flash across the screen after the player both reaches level 20 and completes the main quest. A message tells the player, "You feel a brief, shooting pain that dims but lingers" and the PC’s health, stamina, and magicka are all diminished by 10%, similar to disease or poison effects. This reoccurs every three game days.

The character gets a letter one game day after they first suffer the effect, saying someone knows what is happening to them and can help. The player is instructed to go to the Temple of the Divines in Solitude, and the quest “Find the Priest of Akatosh” is started. In one of the unused sitting rooms upstairs, the Priest of Akatosh waits. His clothing is tattered and he is obviously in great pain. The player can offer him a health potion or spell that will ease this effect on the Priest for the duration of the conversation.

The Priest tells the PC that they are in the midst of a Dragon Break, an unwinding of Time itself into several strands. Each strand holds a different Last Dragonborn, in the hopes that one will be able to defeat Alduin and Time continue. Usually, the world of a Failed Dragonborn simply ceases to be after the Dragonborn is defeated, but in this case, the Dragonborn was actually prevented from facing Alduin by the foolishness of mortals more interested in their own wars and machinations. Feeling cheated of her destiny, the Failed Dragonborn used an Elder Scroll to forge a weapon that could sunder time, in order to break into another Last Dragonborn’s timeline and replace them.

The pain they feel, the Priest tells them, is because they are being erased from time, and the only reason they still exist is because of their Dragon Blood. Dragons are the Children of Akatosh, and thus attuned to the currents of time. The Dragonborn can temporarily cure the leaching effects by sacrificing a dragon soul. The player loses one dragon soul, goes back to full health until the next three game days have passed.

The Priest instructs the Last Dragonborn to seek out the wisdom of Akatosh before he starts to fade. As he vanishes, the quest “Akatosh’s Guidance” is added to the quest log, instructing the player to pray at three Shrines of Akatosh. At the third Shrine, a portal will open, allowing the player to enter the DLC dungeon.

The player finds themselves in the shattered remains of Whiterun. The city is burning, rocks and debris float in the air, and the sky is replaced with the swirling dark clouds of Alduin’s Meteor Shout. Maddened Hold Guards and Citizens attack, and meteors fall from the sky. Clear Skies can be used to stop the meteors for a time. The Gildergreen has the Word “Tiid” graven in it. The first word of “Close Time Tear,” Time, has been acquired. The player must reach the Ruins of Dragonsreach to go through the next portal. The portal will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

Through the portal the player finds themselves in the Ruins of Windhelm. Once again, they must fight Maddened Citizens, Stormcloaks, and raining meteors to reach the Palace of Kings, where they can proceed to the next portal. The second Word of “Close Time Tear,” “Vaaz,” Tear, is etched into the city keystone formerly glorifying Ysgramor. The portal will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

The last Ruined City is Solitude, where Imperial Soldiers and Thalmor war as yet more meteors fall. The player must fight their way through to the Blue Palace, which they may enter. The Palace is deserted and filled with fog. An Altmer in Justiciar robes lays dying at the foot of the stairs. If talked to, he will express regret that they targeted the Dragonborn to prevent her from fighting Alduin, believing they could control the dragon and return to being aedra themselves. He can be killed or left to die. The final Word of “Close Time Tear,” “Feim,” or Fade, is carved into the Throne, upon which a note stating only “The Blood of Akatosh will show the way” rests. Behind the Throne the Palace is gone, leaving a chasm of mists and swirling sky. Approaching the mist will reveal the prompt “The Blood of Akatosh.” The PC slices their hand, and the final portal opens. The prompt will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

The player finds themselves in a stone room with several arches on the opposite side, beyond which a sandstorm rages. Clear Skies opens the way, leading them into a large space with a sand floor dotted by the remains of buildings. At the far end, a break in the flowing sands holds a Throne before a copy of Alduin’s Wall. Above it all is a massive, broken hourglass, pouring sand into the room, and a storm that rages overhead. Ysmir sits on the Throne holding an Elder Scroll, which she explains is the Scroll of Time, the only Elder Scroll containing no prophesy, but the secrets of Time Itself. The writings on the Scroll allowed her to craft Eternity’s Flaw, a one-handed sword that drains Health, Stamina, and Magicka. In her hands, she used it to cut the threads of time and enter the player’s. She explains that if she kills you with Eternity’s Flaw, she can replace the player as the Last Dragonborn of their world. The quest objective “Get Eternity’s Flaw from Ysmir” is added.

Ysmir is a spellsword class that can summon Flame and Storm Atronachs. If the player is a higher level, she can also summon Dremora. She uses Fire and Lightning spells, as well as Restoration magic on herself. She can use Unrelenting Force, Whirlwind Sprint, Become Ethereal, Slow Time, and Fire Breath Shouts. Dragon Rend will cause her to stagger, but she is immune to Bend Will and Soul Tear. When she falls below 50% health she is susceptible to the Disarm Shout, though Unrelenting Force will also cause her to lose her grip on her sword. Eternity’s Flaw is doubly effective on her. When she reaches 0 health, she will collapse, and the player can talk to her. She can either be slain with Eternity’s Flaw, or convinced to start a new life in the Last Dragonborn’s world.

If slain, the player gains: 10 Dragon Souls, plus however many Souls sacrificed to stay at full health earlier, Eternity’s Flaw, and the Crown of Akatosh, a circlet that grants the player an activated effect Flame Cloak that costs no magicka and can be used once a day.

If convinced to surrender: Player gains ability to recruit Ysmir as a follower. When following the player, she can heal herself and the player, pick leveled locks, and sneak. She does not mind crime, and can be married or made a steward. The player is granted Eternity’s Flaw, but the Crown of Akatosh remains with Ysmir.

After making a decision, the quest objective “Enter the Sands of Time” appears. Using Eternity’s Flaw, the player strikes the figure of Alduin on the Wall, behind the Throne, and a portal out appears. After going through, the world shakes, and the player must use the “Close Time Tear” Shout to seal the rift between timestreams. With that action, the “Dragon Break” DLC ends.

Please leave a comment if you enjoy this piece and concept. I need validation lately.

Description
My submission for the Scribes-of-Nirn Make Me Bad Contest! The theme is to imagine your OC as evil, and write them as the protagonist of their own Elder Scrolls DLC. I used Ysmir, of course. Who doesn't like to dress up their main OC?

I tried a different process for this one, still trying to get around the lack of working tablet and being constrained to printer sized pages. After sketching out the layout, I created the background and Ysmir on different pages, then combined them after scanning and cleaning the sketches. Once they were all together, I colored them in Photoshop. I found this more tedious than simply doing the entire drawing on one page, but easier to work with once scanned in.

Elder Scroll reference: Rustic Elder Scroll at Skyrim Nexus It had just the perfect angle of the Scroll! Used the wiki image for the coloring reference.

DLC Dragon Break details:

A disorienting visual effect involving the world lurching and the inside of an Elder Scroll flash across the screen after the player both reaches level 20 and completes the main quest. A message tells the player, "You feel a brief, shooting pain that dims but lingers" and the PC’s health, stamina, and magicka are all diminished by 10%, similar to disease or poison effects. This reoccurs every three game days.

The character gets a letter one game day after they first suffer the effect, saying someone knows what is happening to them and can help. The player is instructed to go to the Temple of the Divines in Solitude, and the quest “Find the Priest of Akatosh” is started. In one of the unused sitting rooms upstairs, the Priest of Akatosh waits. His clothing is tattered and he is obviously in great pain. The player can offer him a health potion or spell that will ease this effect on the Priest for the duration of the conversation.

The Priest tells the PC that they are in the midst of a Dragon Break, an unwinding of Time itself into several strands. Each strand holds a different Last Dragonborn, in the hopes that one will be able to defeat Alduin and Time continue. Usually, the world of a Failed Dragonborn simply ceases to be after the Dragonborn is defeated, but in this case, the Dragonborn was actually prevented from facing Alduin by the foolishness of mortals more interested in their own wars and machinations. Feeling cheated of her destiny, the Failed Dragonborn used an Elder Scroll to forge a weapon that could sunder time, in order to break into another Last Dragonborn’s timeline and replace them.

The pain they feel, the Priest tells them, is because they are being erased from time, and the only reason they still exist is because of their Dragon Blood. Dragons are the Children of Akatosh, and thus attuned to the currents of time. The Dragonborn can temporarily cure the leaching effects by sacrificing a dragon soul. The player loses one dragon soul, goes back to full health until the next three game days have passed.

The Priest instructs the Last Dragonborn to seek out the wisdom of Akatosh before he starts to fade. As he vanishes, the quest “Akatosh’s Guidance” is added to the quest log, instructing the player to pray at three Shrines of Akatosh. At the third Shrine, a portal will open, allowing the player to enter the DLC dungeon.

The player finds themselves in the shattered remains of Whiterun. The city is burning, rocks and debris float in the air, and the sky is replaced with the swirling dark clouds of Alduin’s Meteor Shout. Maddened Hold Guards and Citizens attack, and meteors fall from the sky. Clear Skies can be used to stop the meteors for a time. The Gildergreen has the Word “Tiid” graven in it. The first word of “Close Time Tear,” Time, has been acquired. The player must reach the Ruins of Dragonsreach to go through the next portal. The portal will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

Through the portal the player finds themselves in the Ruins of Windhelm. Once again, they must fight Maddened Citizens, Stormcloaks, and raining meteors to reach the Palace of Kings, where they can proceed to the next portal. The second Word of “Close Time Tear,” “Vaaz,” Tear, is etched into the city keystone formerly glorifying Ysgramor. The portal will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

The last Ruined City is Solitude, where Imperial Soldiers and Thalmor war as yet more meteors fall. The player must fight their way through to the Blue Palace, which they may enter. The Palace is deserted and filled with fog. An Altmer in Justiciar robes lays dying at the foot of the stairs. If talked to, he will express regret that they targeted the Dragonborn to prevent her from fighting Alduin, believing they could control the dragon and return to being aedra themselves. He can be killed or left to die. The final Word of “Close Time Tear,” “Feim,” or Fade, is carved into the Throne, upon which a note stating only “The Blood of Akatosh will show the way” rests. Behind the Throne the Palace is gone, leaving a chasm of mists and swirling sky. Approaching the mist will reveal the prompt “The Blood of Akatosh.” The PC slices their hand, and the final portal opens. The prompt will not appear if the Word has not been obtained.

The player finds themselves in a stone room with several arches on the opposite side, beyond which a sandstorm rages. Clear Skies opens the way, leading them into a large space with a sand floor dotted by the remains of buildings. At the far end, a break in the flowing sands holds a Throne before a copy of Alduin’s Wall. Above it all is a massive, broken hourglass, pouring sand into the room, and a storm that rages overhead. Ysmir sits on the Throne holding an Elder Scroll, which she explains is the Scroll of Time, the only Elder Scroll containing no prophesy, but the secrets of Time Itself. The writings on the Scroll allowed her to craft Eternity’s Flaw, a one-handed sword that drains Health, Stamina, and Magicka. In her hands, she used it to cut the threads of time and enter the player’s. She explains that if she kills you with Eternity’s Flaw, she can replace the player as the Last Dragonborn of their world. The quest objective “Get Eternity’s Flaw from Ysmir” is added.

Ysmir is a spellsword class that can summon Flame and Storm Atronachs. If the player is a higher level, she can also summon Dremora. She uses Fire and Lightning spells, as well as Restoration magic on herself. She can use Unrelenting Force, Whirlwind Sprint, Become Ethereal, Slow Time, and Fire Breath Shouts. Dragon Rend will cause her to stagger, but she is immune to Bend Will and Soul Tear. When she falls below 50% health she is susceptible to the Disarm Shout, though Unrelenting Force will also cause her to lose her grip on her sword. Eternity’s Flaw is doubly effective on her. When she reaches 0 health, she will collapse, and the player can talk to her. She can either be slain with Eternity’s Flaw, or convinced to start a new life in the Last Dragonborn’s world.

If slain, the player gains: 10 Dragon Souls, plus however many Souls sacrificed to stay at full health earlier, Eternity’s Flaw, and the Crown of Akatosh, a circlet that grants the player an activated effect Flame Cloak that costs no magicka and can be used once a day.

If convinced to surrender: Player gains ability to recruit Ysmir as a follower. When following the player, she can heal herself and the player, pick leveled locks, and sneak. She does not mind crime, and can be married or made a steward. The player is granted Eternity’s Flaw, but the Crown of Akatosh remains with Ysmir.

After making a decision, the quest objective “Enter the Sands of Time” appears. Using Eternity’s Flaw, the player strikes the figure of Alduin on the Wall, behind the Throne, and a portal out appears. After going through, the world shakes, and the player must use the “Close Time Tear” Shout to seal the rift between timestreams. With that action, the “Dragon Break” DLC ends.

Please leave a comment if you enjoy this piece and concept. I need validation lately.