The Elder Scrolls Online contains a lot of NPCs, many of which are not particularly noteworthy. But some downright villains are hated by pretty much every player. We want to introduce you to those nasty characters here. And as a counterbalance, we will also present three really cool NPCs that pretty much everyone likes.
One of the great strengths of ESO is its deep storytelling. You experience numerous cool scenarios that often become interesting only due to quirky NPCs. Particularly memorable are the outright villains that you love to hate. And cool guys and gals that everyone seems to like, whose original characters make every scene an experience.
We from the MeinMMO-ESO team sat down and debated which three NPCs are especially loathsome and which three figures are our favorites. Enjoy our selection!
3 nasty NPCs that almost everyone hates
These three characters are just the tip of the iceberg of unlikability and malice. There are certainly more detestable villains in ESO, and perhaps some people don’t find the ones presented here so bad. Let us know in the comments if you disagree.
And watch out! The descriptions of the NPCs may contain various spoilers for the story of ESO, so read at your own risk!
Abnur Tharn
Who is he? Abnur Tharn is the Chancellor of the Empire and holds the title of Imperial Battlemage. He comes from an ancient imperial noble family, and his relatives are found in high positions within the Empire. His daughter Clivia is the Regent of the Empire, and his half-sister Euraxia enslaves the poor Khajiit in Elsweyr.
Abnur Tharn was one of the five companions and sought the Amulet of Kings together with the designated Emperor Varen Aquilarios to legitimize the emperor’s reign and reunite the Empire.
Why is he despised? The quest mentioned above went wrong because Abnur Tharn betrayed Varen with Mannimarco and seized power together with the necromancer. Abnur became Chancellor, his daughter became Regent, and Mannimarco controlled everything in the background through his “Worm Cult”.
Abnur Tharn comes across as an opportunistic traitor who later switches sides again and has to be saved by the player hero. Meanwhile, he insults and trolls us at every opportunity. Unfortunately, he has important information and skills without which we could never defeat Mannimarco and Molag Bal, and so we have to endure his malicious barbs.
What good can be said about him? Indeed, Abnur Tharn is a treacherous opportunist without a conscience, but he ultimately serves a higher purpose: the unity of the Empire. He is only willing to sacrifice quite a bit for this, including his friends, his personal honor, and various expendable followers.
Nevertheless, he ends up on the “good” side of his story and even helps us in Elsweyr to fight his even more disgusting sister. In the end, he even sacrifices himself to avert greater evils. One can both hate and love Abnur Tharn.
Mannimarco
Who is he? Mannimarco is an ancient Altmer and necromancer. He serves the dark Daedric Prince Molag Bal and leads a cult of fanatical necromancers known as the “Worm Cult,” of which he is the “Worm King.”
In the base game of ESO, Mannimarco is the supposed main antagonist before an even nastier opponent, his master Molag Bal, appears on the scene.
Why is he despised? Mannimarco is the main villain of the base game campaign of ESO, and the first thing our hero sees when starting the game is how he or she is “Sacrificed” by Mannimarco. The dark necromancer robs the soul of our hero and sets the entire misery in motion.
But not only does our character suffer under Mannimarco. The ruthless villain serves Daedra Molag Bal, under whom he wants to merge the world of Nirn and Molag Bal’s domain Coldharbour. For this, he has his Worm Cult summon demonic anchors everywhere, which are meant to gradually pull the worlds together.
Apart from the fact that Mannimarco wants to forever destroy the world as we know it and reshape it into a nightmarish realm, he is also personally a real piece of work.
Mannimarco respects nothing and nobody, all other living beings are mere tools to him, which he even exploits after death. Even his lord and master Molag Bal is just a means to an end for him, as he wants to acquire even his power in the end.
Even towards those who help him, he is still nasty. After his defeat in the game, he ends up in Molag Bal’s realm, where he is tortured and tormented for his betrayal. However, he can be freed, which Mannimarco only returns with mockery and derision. What a jerk!
What good can be said about him? Actually, nothing. This guy is just a bad piece of work and a villain who haunts two more Elder Scrolls games after ESO. He reappears after his presumed end in the ancient game Daggerfall and even in Oblivion at the end, where he causes havoc.
At least one can say he knows how to entertain as a villain because you simply hate this disgusting character.
Princess Belain
Who is she? Princess Belain is introduced in the story of Markarth as the chief advisor of the despot Ard Caddach. Oddly enough, nothing can be found out about the overly politicized lady.
The residents of Markarth apparently know nothing about her background or how she came to be at the side of the despot. Even though the Reach folk usually respect witches, she is described in her position with political influence rather unfavorably as the “Fortress Witch.”
Why is she despised? The unanswered questions about her origins arouse suspicion, and her rather cool politeness does not exactly melt hearts. She fulfills the role of a calculating diplomat.
But what truly incites displeasure is her betrayal of the Reachfolk in the story of Markarth. At the court of the despot, she pretends to care about the safety of the people while secretly acting in the service of the Grey Host.
For this vampire horde, she wants to sacrifice the entire population of Markarth to the black heart of Skyrim. If that isn’t truly evil…
What good can be said about her? Just as one side views her as a traitor, she is on the other side a loyal ally. Of course, in some respects, she is forced by her vampiric nature to support her kind.
It also seems that Rada al-Saran, to whom she is subordinate, treats her with respect. Therefore, her loyalty to him is even understandable from her perspective.
And she is certainly an interesting personality who knows how to use her intelligence. So you could never accuse her of being an uninteresting or awkward character.
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3 likable NPCs that almost everyone likes
As a counterbalance to these three villains, we have summed up three nice characters from ESO here that pretty much everyone finds likeable.
And watch out! The descriptions of the NPCs may also contain various spoilers for the story of ESO, so read at your own risk!
Sir Cadwell
Who is he? Sir Cadwell should be a familiar name to every ESO player, as the quirky old knight meets you even in the tutorial of the base game. He is a former imperial knight who has lost both his head and his soul and now hangs around Coldharbour as a soul thief.
He helps the player hero escape from Coldharbour and appears again later. Even in Elsweyr, he has an important story.
Why is he so great? Sir Cadwell still dresses appropriately in armor, it’s just that he has made it out of various cooking utensils. He wears a massive cooking pot on his head and protects himself with pans and baking trays. You can even obtain the pot as a helmet in the game.
Besides his quirky attire, Cadwell seems to be rather absent-minded. He rambles on about strange things and has a very convoluted way of speaking. This comes across very well in the original version, as the legendary British comedian John Cleese voices him and seems to thrive in the role of the quirky, slightly insane knight.
When Cadwell appears, bizarre scenes and many laughs are guaranteed.
What dark secrets does he have? In the story surrounding Elsweyr, Sir Cadwell appears again, and we finally learn more about his past. The quirky knight was once known as “Cadwell the Traitor” and was a notorious villain who even returns through necromancy during the course of the story. Thus, the lovable crazy man is also a dangerous villain.
Razum-dar
Who is he? Razum-dar, friends just call him “Raz,” is a sleek Khajiit and the chief of intelligence in service of the Queen of the High Elves. He gladly takes care of the dirty work himself and personally deals with sensitive matters. This includes rescuing your hero when you join the side of the Dominion. He is unconditionally loyal to his queen, even if his disrespectful, direct manner doesn’t sit well with everyone.
Why is he so great? Imagine James Bond as a cunning cat and add a few funny lines, and you have an idea of Razum-dar. The Khajiit is always on hand when it comes to uncovering a complete story or cleverly thwarting the machinations of enemies.
Thanks to his charming and mocking nature, Razum-dar has won the sympathy of many ESO fans and is considered one of the most popular NPCs in the game. On top of that, there’s a healthy dash of humor when we find out in Elsweyr, for example, that Raz is regarded as a lazy good-for-nothing by his family and that they know nothing about his highly important job as a master spy.
And the story of how Razum-dar must save himself from his three fiancées is one of the coolest quests in the game.
What dark secrets does he have? Razum-dar’s many affairs have not always been without consequences. Therefore, he has at least one adorable Khajiit kitten as offspring, which he probably does not want to raise himself, but gives as a “pet” to your hero. That’s pretty dark!
Naryu Virian
Who is she? Naryu Virian is a notorious agent of the Morag Tong, the assassin guild of the Dunmer. She is cunning, cheeky, and highly efficient. Unlike other members of her profession and many of her peers, she has a sense of dark humor and a cheeky, seductive manner.
Why is she so great? Naryu is a cool assassin who always greets her victims with a mocking smile. She has a generally disrespectful and cheeky demeanor but does not shy away from playfully flirting and provoking her counterpart. Moreover, she finds something funny even about the most terrible things.
She embodies this role so well that there is even a unique animation set in the game inspired by her. While the regular assassin set depicts a grim knifer, the animations inspired by Naryu’s “impertinent assassin” are precisely that: The movements of a cheeky person who has no respect for anything or anyone.
What dark secrets does she have? Naryu is known by the nickname “the beautiful darkness,” which stems from her affiliation with a ruthless assassin guild. The Morag Tong are a sort of legitimized assassin troupe that carries out official “honorable” murder contracts on behalf of the noble houses of Morrowind. Naryu is, therefore, despite her likable demeanor, a cold-blooded murderer with numerous victims on her conscience.
So much for our selection of nasty and likable NPCs. Some of them also appear in our list of the 5 funniest NPCs from The Elder Scrolls Online, but we have gathered a few other fun characters under the aspect of humor. Just take a look and enjoy their wit and quirky quests.
