Miraak being Dragonborn has nothing to do with Hermaeus Mora. I'm fairly positive that both say as much in the MQ. HM sheltered Miraak from the wrath of the Dragons and taught him the Bend Will shout (possibly others).

So what's the timeline of it?

Dragonborn>Dragonpriest>Worships Hermaeus Mora?

Yup. Dragonborn dragonpriest who was seduced by Mora.

I did not like Apocrypha at all, it was creepy as hell and super depressing. I do agree that Miraak was not the main antagonist and Herma was.

So... He was the very first Dragonborn who decided to become a Dragonpriest... I wish they would at least tell of his motivation to decline Akatosh's gift and be on the side of the dragons.

Were you expecting a different Apocrypha? It did lack in the rainbows and butterflies department but Hermaeus Mora is a creepy Daedra.

It's not really a large step, to be honest.

The Dragon Cult used to be rather peaceful. People like Ysgramor were 'members'. The PC doesn't know he (or she) is Dragonborn until after defeating a Dragon. Tiber Septim didn't know (likely) that he was Dragonborn, until conversing with the Greybeards.

i think it was a dragon priest, who discovers with help of hermaeus mora that he is dragonborn, finds out what that means, and goes power mad. the dragons stage a all out assualt on his temple, during which it appears he kills easily a dozen of them, if the bones surrounding are anything to judge by, and hermaeus shelters him when the dragons overwhelm him.

This I can get behind.

that was the explenation i gathered from the MQ. Hermy i think hints at more knowledge was given than simply the mind control words. Hermaeus didn't necessarily give you all the knowledge he gave miraak, just what was needed to defeat him and usurp him.

I really wish we learned more about Miraak and his purpose as Dragonborn, particularly being the First (in contrast to you, as the Last). In what little we learned about him, he was interesting, which makes me want to know more.

I personally think that Miraak became a Dragonborn using the knowledge obtained from Hermaeus Mora, rather than him having been born one.

I like the concept that anyone could potentially become Dragonborn or wield the power of one, using the souls of dragons to augment their power. It would also help explain why such a big focus on Hermaeus Mora was made, he is the daedric prince of knowledge and fate so it should be easy for him to determine how an individual may awaken such power, which would explain why Miraak would have turned to him. Miraak was probably jealous of the power the dragons wielded, seeking out Hermaeus Mora, he found out how to obtain it and how to control those who sought to control him.

The reason why I like this explanation so much is because it helps remove "fate" from the equation. You don't have to be lucky enough to have been born with this power, you can go out and earn it (obviously after a lot of hard work).

It doesn't though, because it's not really luck in the first place plus.. you're not dragonborn unless you're born with it. I don't think there's anything to really support the idea of a dragon soul being attainable by mortals.

It's an open door really. I mean, we're talking about Forbidden Knowledge here. What's more forbidden than obtaining Dragonborn status. But that's Bethesda's call really... To leave it open/vague. Since they don't really connect Akatosh to this DLC at all, one could say that Herma Mora has a backdoor to Akatosh's blessing.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but there isn't anything to support that it isnt possible either. I mean, we can already obtain souls of other beings quite easily, plus, with training and proper knowledge, we can use the power of the voice, would it be such a great stretch to say that we couldn't learn how to absorb a Dragon's soul? And, if we learnt the same language the dragon's speak ( which Miraak through virtue of being a dragon priest probably would have) couldn't we then be able to easily learn new shouts?

The only difference between the Greybeards and the Dragonborn are that they cannot absorb souls and that to use the shouts they must practice it over and over until it is one with them (or something along those lines).

Keeping that in mind, it would make sense that Hermaeus Mora has this information, given his sphere.

Also I do think it is luck in regards to being born Dragonborn, much like being rich from birth. You did nothing to obtain such wealth yet there it is, you could have easily been born to poor parents. I like to think Miraak was one of us poor bastards and worked to obtain his "wealth."

Probably why Bethesda left it so vague... Like our own beginnings, they left it open for us to roleplay. God I hope that's not the case. I've exhausted my brain on conjuring up a solid backstory and roleplay direction for my own character, I don't have it in me to create one for an NPC.

The issue I have with Miraak becoming Dragonborn through Hermaeus Mora is the question as to how every other Dragonborn came about. Every other Dragonborn came through Akatosh, as, to quote the Elder Scrolls wikia:

"Dragonborn scarcely exist, and it is rare for more than one to appear within an era. They can belong to any http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Races_(Skyrim) or gender, since the Dragon blood is a "gift" bestowed to certain mortals favored by Akatosh."

So being a Dragonborn does come through Akatosh, for sure. If Miraak wasn't the first Dragonborn, this could be reconciled that he became Dragonborn through knowledge from Hermaeus Mora, but since he is indeed the first, as stated EVERYWHERE, then we are left to believe what role Akatosh actually played.

I'm going to make a rather educated guess here as to how this came about:

1. Is a very righteous and moral Dragon Priest on Solstheim.
2. Learns that he is Dragonborn, leads a rebellion against the dragons that is successful for a time.
3. Hermaeus Mora, wanting to know more about the nature of the Dragonborn, makes a deal with Miraak to give him extra power in exchange for his servitude/study.
4. With this, Miraak becomes a megalomaniac and makes his followers worship him.
5. The dragons fight back with great force and almost defeat Miraak, perhaps with the help of one named "the Guardian" (another Dragonborn?)
6. Miraak is saved by Hermaeus Mora.
7. Miraak plots his return to Tamriel/Solstheim thousands of years later.

But even that leaves a lot of questions. And these aren't the kind of questions that you have fun trying to answer, like the personal ones for your PC's background, these are the ones left behind by lazy and thoughtless writing.

I didn't really get dissapointed that Miraak was tied so much to Hermaeus-mora. But I was dissapointed you didn't get much back story on Miraak though and that the final "boss" battle with Miraak ended with HM rolling in taking my kill from me.

Mk implied hes going to work Miraak.

Also I loved the mora stuff.

Well that's the point: Too much focus is put on Hermaeus Mora, and too little on Miraak.
Who implied what?

And I loved the Hermaeus Mora stuff, too. I just feel that it doesn't belong in the main questline.

He is saying that Michael Kirkblade mentioned he might write something in relation to Miraak. That's all good and well, and who isn't a fan of MKs?, but if he happens to write anything (I'll be interested in reading it regardless) it'll only be fan fiction not official lore (unless Beth have contracted him to do it, which seems unlikely at this conjuncture). So (BigBossBalrog) going around posting that MK might be writing something in threads where people are wanting official lore doesn't really help anyone.

I honestly feel like Mora is the most interesting Daedric prince. I liked the story, I just felt it was too short.

Not fanficiton, obscure text...

Call it what you want, my point remains.

Yeah, I've never heard of this MK guy. I'm not very active on these forums, and am only here as of late to voice my opinion on Dragonborn. I assume he's well known by more active members?