Most Arrogant Elder Scrolls Characters

Summary

• Sheogorath, Ulfric Stormcloak, and Ancano are among the most arrogant Elder Scrolls characters, being incredibly dismissive of others.
• Miraak, Mankar Camoran, and Vivec showcase arrogance through self-proclaimed superiority and god-like complexes.
• Nazeem comes off as an especially annoying character, degrading the player with pompous remarks in Skyrim.

In a post-Lord of the Rings world, few fantasy universes have reached widespread knowledge quite like it. In the realm of video games, the world of Tamriel in The Elder Scrolls games may be the best successor so far, particularly in terms of mainstream success.

However, exploring a fantasy world will inevitably lead players to uncovering arrogance all around, whether it’s from all-powerful mages, devious Gods, or just straightforward infamous jerks. There’s plenty of arrogance to share in the world of Tamriel, but some characters are arguably a little more arrogant than others. Here are the most arrogant Elder Scrolls characters that players can encounter.

8

Sheogorath

The King of Madness

• Appears in Morrowind, Oblivion, Daggerfall, Online, and Skyrim.
• The Daedric Prince of Madness.

Though Oblivion is well-regarded in the gaming community already, its expansions are particularly beloved, especially The Shivering Isles. In this expansion, players travel to the domain of the Daedric Prince for inevitable madness and mayhem.

Sheogorath himself is sometimes delightful but always arrogant. He has no conception of being anywhere near the level of power of the player character, and he mostly sees them as toys to be played with. He’s a very dangerous friend to have, and he’s full of weird facts and secrets to discover.

7

Ulfric Stormcloak

A Rebel Leader

• Appears in Skyrim.
• The leader of the Stormcloak rebellion.

Ulfric Stormcloak is set up at the beginning of Skyrim to be a hero. After all, what kind of gamer would prefer to align themselves with the sprawling empire over the plucky rebels? However, as the player gets to know the Stormcloaks a little better, their concept of racial purity gets a little suspect.

Much of that stems from Ulfric, the Jarl of Windhelm. Though he does seem to fight for Nordic independence, many players believe that his ideals are mostly a pretext to in-built racism and a desire for the High King throne of Skyrim itself. That comes through with his general arrogance towards the player, particularly if they’re not a Nord, making him one of the most contentious characters in the game.

6

Ancano

The Thalmor Incarnate

• Appears in Skyrim.
• The Monitor of Winterhold.

The Altmer in Skyrim are controversial to say the least. As the predominant peoples making up the Thalmor and the Aldmeri Dominion that has influenced the Empire itself, Ancano is the personification of the very worst of Altmer superiority.

Ancano is arrogant from the moment the player meets him, constantly saying that the college of Winterhold is nothing compared to Altmer magic and being incredibly dismissive of the player’s efforts or abilities. Fans don’t just love to hate him; they really do just hate him, making him a brilliant bad guy for the Mages Guild questline.

5

Miraak

The First Dragonborn

• Appears in Skyrim.
• The self-proclaimed First Dragonborn.

When the player arrives in Skyrim, it takes no time for them to become one of the most important people in the land. That’s because they’re dragonborn, which means that they’re capable of communing with dragons and using their powers for themselves. As far as the Nords know, the player is the first dragonborn for a very long time.

It eventually turns out, however, that the player will get to meet the very first Dragonborn (or so he says). Miraak is his name, and he is arrogant at every turn. He constantly looks down on the player character for being weak compared to him and not living up to the title of Dragonborn. This makes kicking his butt all the sweeter.

4

Mankar Camoran

The Oblivion Gate Big Bad

• Appears in Oblivion.
• The founder of the Mythic Dawn cult.

Throughout the main quest of Oblivion, players attempt to hunt down the leader of the Mythic Dawn, the strange faction responsible for murdering the Emperor in the game’s tutorial level. Their leader is a great mystery until, finally, Mankar Camoran reveals himself.

Though eloquent and formidable, Mankar is an incredibly arrogant mage who, through his functional immortality, has come to see everyone else as beneath him, resulting in one of the franchise’s darkest characters. His sneer is practically glued to his face, making him one of the most arrogant characters in the entire game.

3

Vivec

A Self-Proclaimed God-King

• Appears in Morrowind, Online, and Legends.

Vivec is one of the most complex characters in The Elder Scrolls and is broadly beloved by fans, even if he is one of the most arrogant people in the entirety of Tamriel. Once a mortal but now turned into a God, Vivec revels in his own deification and speaks in ridiculous riddles and paradoxes.

He is arrogant, believing himself beyond the plight of mortals. On top of that, he’s so arrogant that he doesn’t actually attempt to avert the cataclysm of Morrowind, assuming that it was all part of a plan he’d already foreseen. He’s likable and annoying in equal measure, and he is also full of secrets for players to uncover.

2

Dagoth Ur

Awakened Lord of the Sixth House

• Appears in Morrowind, Arena, and Legends.
• Arguably the series’ best villain.

There is perhaps nothing more arrogant than someone who believes in divine destiny where nothing can stop them. Dagoth Ur is the personification of this horse-blindered mentality to the world, believing himself to be all-powerful and insurmountable, regardless of what the player character has to say.

Dagoth Ur claims that only he can bring Morrowind to a place free from foreign rule and that he cannot be beaten, talking down to any opponents and proclaiming himself a god. Thankfully, this results in his fall being all the sweeter, especially since he is one of the most compelling villains in an open-world RPG.

1

Nazeem

The Cloud District Enjoyer Supreme

• Appears in Skyrim.
• One of the biggest annoyances in all of Tamriel.

Many of the most arrogant characters in The Elder Scrolls are self-proclaimed Gods who believe themselves immortal or unstoppable, which is a testament to just how annoying arrogant Nazeem is. He is the resident commentator of Whiterun and a punching bag for the internet at large.

Infamous for his “Do you get to the Cloud District very often? Oh, what am I saying, of course you don’t” phrase, spat in a nasally spew of arrogance, Nazeem never fails to degrade the Dragonborn whenever they wander by. Yet, despite his pomposity, no one in the city seems to know who Nazeem is, making his arrogance all the more annoying and self-aggrandizing.