Skyrim is a timeless masterpiece with an incredibly fleshed out world. Considering that there is enough lore in Skyrim for players to get completely lost in, its no wonder that some questions have been left unanswered. One of the biggest points of contention has been the Falmer. An ancient elven race that has fallen from grace.
The Falmer and their loyal pets, the Chaurus, are considered by many to be some of the toughest enemies in the game. In addition to the challenge they present players, they have a very deep and compelling story, that left most players with more than a few questions,
10 The Source Of Their Magic
The Falmer seem to have an incredible association with magic. Considering magic is one of the most powerful tools in the world of Skyrim, this makes them quite the foe. In their current state they seem to still be very acquainted with advanced Ice spells, while their previous civilization had the ability to teleport and control other aspects of nature. Where did the Falmer receive this affinity for the arcane arts, and how have they managed to hold 0nto it in their current enslaved and blind form?
9 Falmer Armor
Armor is incredibly important in Skyrim. Falmer armor is drastically different than what was worn by their people before their transformation. The current armor they wear is made out of the their loyal Chaurus pets. The question players are left with, is how the materials are gathered from the Chaurus? Are they slaughtered for the production of the armor, or are the materials gathered from those who died in battle or from natural causes?
8 Religion Of The Falmer
The Falmer worshiped Auri-El, who is the Elven version of Akatosh. This is interesting as it makes their historical beliefs much more aligned with other elven faiths as opposed to the Nordic traditions of the region. Additionally the importance of Auri-El to modern day Falmer is never explained, though they have shown a tendency to occupy historical places of worship for their previous deity. Whether this is due to geographical or religious importance, is never explained.
7 Pre Settlement Origins
While the origins of the Falmer as Snow Elves are that they had been forced underground by the Nord's is relatively well documented, the origins of the elves before their settlement of Skyrim is nonexistent.
Human documents from the Atmoran settlers document the Snow Elves existence and interrace relations, however there is no documentation of where they came from. This question is never answered, though considering their elvish race, and style of religion, it could be possible they are the descendants of other Mer races.
6 War With Atmora
The beginning of the downfall of the Falmer would be their war with the Atmoran, or the predecessors to the Nord and Imperial people. What started this war is widely accepted as the Falmer attack on the first major human city of Saarthal. What is debated is the reasoning behind this unprovoked attack, were the Falmer afraid of the large city being built, or did they feel the humans had found something dangerous beneath it's construction? Another one of Skyrim's great mysteries.
5 Accepting The Dwemer Deal
The Falmer were a proud and powerful people, that later after accepting Dwemer rule were able to successfully rebel. Which begs the question, why did they not do so earlier? Why did they wait through generations of slavery and forced consumption of Blackreach fungi to rebel? Had they done so earlier they would have been able to avoid the transformation which caused their blindness, physical weakness, and pure madness.
4 Why Have They Not Been Eradicated?
The Country of Skyrim has it's fair share of threats, from vampires, to evil mages, and even power hungry humans, not to mention the dragons. It would be hard not to put the Falmer on this list. In the current era the Falmer have become more aggressive, with some scholars believing they are planning a major attack against the inhabitants above.
This threat has been noticed, yet throughout the game no one seems to be paying any serious attention to it, except for maybe the Dragonborn, who has a whole list of other enemies to slay.
3 Are The Falmer Sentient?
The Falmer as elves are supposed to be sentient creatures. Sentient creatures such as the races of man, and other elves, have black souls, while non-sentient creatures have white souls. The Falmer possess white souls. Does this mean they have lost their sentience, and can no longer be considered elves? Could their transformation have truly been so severe that they have lost all form of self awareness and the kind of souls they possess change?
2 Can The Transformation Be Reversed?
The Falmer have been observed to have an increasing intellect. Leading many to speculate that they are beginning a slow evolutionary process of returning to their former selves. However the extent of this reversal, and if it even is possible, is highly questionable, and never fully explored.
1 Can They Be Reasoned With?
As an improvement of intelligence has been observed in the Falmer, this begs the question, could some form of communication be established, and if so, could they be reasoned with? The game lore makes it very clear that the Falmer are creatures filled with hate and anger at the topside world, however this pure rage could come from their current lack of development. Could this change with generational development, and could the Falmer potentially hold peace talks with the leaders of Skyrim?