The Elder Scrolls and the recent Legend of Zelda games have plenty in common. Both are open-world games that encourage exploration. Their protagonists are silent, save for grunts and fall damage wailing. More interestingly, they both have an ancient race that seems to have disappeared out of nowhere: the Dwemer and the Zonai.
The games weave the existence of these ancient groups of people through clues in the environment, NPC conversations, and items. Through these hints, players can notice more similarities between the lore of the Dwemer and the Zonai. Both tribes have advanced intellect and technology, and they also played major roles in their franchise’s main plots.
The Dwemer’s Legacy Echoes in Skyrim’s Dungeons
The latest installment in The Elder Scrolls franchise, Skyrim, offers a glimpse of the life of the Dwemer through their ancient underground ruins. There are over 25 of them scattered across the icy tundras of the province. Players who go spelunking in these dungeons will be greeted by steam-powered robots designed by the ancient race’s genius engineers. They’ll also find Dwemer metal, which they can use to craft armor and weapons.
These encounters, along with the ruins’ intricate architecture, show how powerful and technologically brilliant the Dwemer were. However, much of The Elder Scrolls’ lore about this ancient race is in books like the Dwemer Inquiries and Nerevar at Red Mountain. Here, players will learn that the Dwemer were also referred to as “Deep Elves,” pointing towards their connections with the other elven races that still exist. They also rejected religion, devoting their lives to scientific advancement instead.
The books also highlight the conflicts that the Dwemer had with other races and kingdoms. The most notable one is The Battle of the Red Mountain referenced in Morrowind, where a Dwemeri Chief known as Kagrenac tried to harness the power of the heart of the god Lorkhan during battle. Doing so somehow caused the disappearance of his entire race.
The Mysterious Disappearance of the Zonai in The Legend of Zelda
Unlike the Dwemer, whose lore was established in previous TES titles, the Zonai weren’t mentioned in the games before The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. However, players can still learn a lot about Zonai lore because of their distinct ruins dotted across Hyrule.
The tribe seems to have had spiritual connections to Hylia, which distinguishes them further from TES' agnostic Dwemer. Their ruins connect to the Spring of Courage, which bears the goddess’ statue. Different shrine quests in The Typhlo Ruins and Lomei Labyrinth reward the player with pieces of the Barbarian armor set that belonged to an ancient tribe in Faron, which points to none other than the Zonai.
The game’s official art book, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Creating a Champion, expands on the Zonai way of life further. It states that the tribespeople were adept at using magic and may have also worshiped a dragon. Apart from these details, not much is known about the Zonai. However, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom puts the tribe front and center, so fans can expect answers as to why the tribe disappeared or if they were truly gone in the first place.
Discovering the ruins of a long-lost civilization is always a fun activity in open-world games when done right. The Elder Scrolls and The Legend of Zelda offer some of the best experiences for this type of exploration. It’s fun to pretend as an archeologist, piecing together equipment descriptions, books, and even NPC dialogue to form their understanding of the ancient tribe’s story. With new games for both series on the way, fans of the Zonai and Dwemer will surely get their fix for new lore.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom releases on May 12, 2023, for the Nintendo Switch.
