An Analysis of Altmer Crime In The Late 420's [The Weirder Scrolls]

[Part two of my altmer society posts can be found here. This is a continuation of my mostly altmer-centric lore stuff based on Tamriel Rebuilt, The "old" lore, and some of the cooler stuff from ESO. The idea of raiders comes from the "barbarian tribe" described in "De Rerum Dirennis". ]

Crime in The Summerset Isles is as complex and ritualized as everything else in in their society. Before we can understand Altmeri crime, we must distinguish between “House Wars” and “true crime".

House Wars

A House War is any officially sanctioned action taken against another house. These actions can only be approved by the Kinlord. House Wars can be as petty as vandalism, or as extreme as mass murder. There are ancient regulations surrounding Honorable House Wars, particularly when it comes to their escalation. In most cases, House Wars begin non-violent. They’ll often progress to violence as the war goes on, but rarely do they become lethal. Even when blades are drawn, little attempt is made to intentionally kill a rival. They avoid death not out of any love for their rivals, but to avoid retribution. Altmeri chivalry stems from the Honorable conduct of retainers during House Wars. Tales abound of clever kinfolk using illusion, mysticism, or a silver tongue to defeat their foes.

True Crime

A “true crime” is any action taken against another house without the sanction of your kinlord, or less often, crimes committed against one’s own house. Inter-house crime is handled “within the family” in various painful, humiliating ways, followed by re-education. Murdering one’s kin almost always results in Ousting.

By contrast, Altmer couldn’t care less about crimes committed against other houses, so long as you’re not caught. To commit a crime without your Kinlord's sanction suggests disorder and weakness within the house. Those who commit crimes against other houses are officially condemned, left to whatever fate befits their crime, but Secret Honor compels one’s kinfolk to support their criminal kin behind the scenes. Prisoners often receive "anonymous" gifts to make their stay more comfortable.

If possible, kinfolk prefer to punish their wayward kin on their own terms. These punishments have little to do with the morality of the crime committed. It is Honorable to disrupt the affairs of a rival house. What’s important is that they got caught, and therefore brought shame to their Kin.

Raiders

Whether by House War or dishonor, Kinships never truly disband. If a Kinship loses its territory, it becomes nomadic, attacking other Kinships to survive. Rarely, these “raiders” completely take over a small kinhold, at which point they’re treated as any other Kinship. More often than not, they continue wandering, morphing and merging with other clans into a sprawling criminal network.

The most sophisticated raiders work behind the scenes, with cells in the major city-states posing as traders and bureaucrats. Because the government keeps extensive records on everyone, these facades don't last for long, and these mer are constantly trying to remain one step ahead of the bureaucracy. In general, they have the most freedom in the vast swathes of rural, sparsely populated wilderness in the isolated regions of Summerset. Recently, raiders have begun pledging allegiance to Sorcerer-Kings, who accept them as guards, retainers, and spies.

Reavers

In general, Workers live in utopian conditions, without the deadly responsibilities of the upper castes. As their basic needs are met, they have time to ponder their existence, and their place in society. Many feel a void of meaning within their lives, and try to fill it with material-goods and frivolous entertainment. Others find purpose in family, in serving one’s kinfolk and improving their lives in their own small ways.

Others become reavers.

Berserking madmer, reavers are broken Workers driven mad by a lack of purpose. Often, reavers are born during particularly violent House Wars, when Workers are caught in the spell-fire. For a caste so removed from hardship, feeling something real, even if that feeling is sorrow and hatred, is exhilarating for an Altmer.

Soon these mer begin seeking these emotions. Anything to break the creeping ennui of their meaningless lives. Isolation, nihilistic thoughts, and self-harm are early signs of this mental degredation. This phenomenon is disturbingly common after a house war, but thankfully one’s kin will intervene and counsel these sick mer. In other cases, they simply disappear, vanishing in the dark of night.

If they’re ever seen again, they are broken husks of mer, wild-eyed vessel’s for Sithis’s entropic rage. They retain enough sanity to spare their kinfolk, but nothing else is spared from their perverse desires and murderous intent. Autopsies suggest physiological changes to a reaver's body, including increased muscle-density and some form of dementia. How and why this happens is unknown.

Reavers seek to debase themselves, to shock and horrify their increasingly desensitized minds. In this way, they quickly spiral into moral, spiritual, and eventually physical self-destruction.

Revears are almost unheard of in lands controlled by Battlereeves. These regions are highly militarized, with strict curfews and dictated schedules for Workers. Because they feel dedicated to a tangible cause (the defense of their kin), and have little time to philosophize, there's simply no opportunity for reavers to develop. Many fringe Youth tongs like The Thalmor see this as proof that a united, organized, militant society is the best way forward.

According to legend, reavers were among the first to join the prophet Veloth in his quest for a more austere life away from their decadent homeland. To test themselves against the world, to suffer for a purpose, finally gave them some semblance of peace. The details of this event are shrouded in dogma and parable, but to this day dunmer pirates call themselves “reavers”.