hmm, i own every elder scroll game but in 0 of them i can choose between nord and bretons i love human-like characters with a nice background story. what i like about nord = that they are 1handed and 2 handed users and light/med armor + block. but i hate the story of them the consept of norn's etc.

bretons = i like that they are human + elve. but i hate that they are magic based..

so what should i do in eso go for the norn or breton. i like to stealth and use shadow etc + using a shield+axe and all with medium/heavy armor. none of them have what i need only norn with block etc. hmm not easy to pick one

maybe somthing else what race is your fav one and why?

Unfortunately, Imperials (or Cyrodiils) are unavailable as playable characters in TESO. Up until Skyrim, they were humanity's option for a silver-tongued, light-armored stealth build (Nords and Redguards be Heavy and Medium weight fighters respectively, and Bretons being wizards).

However, TESO has, like the single-player games, the feature of allowing any race to become equally skilled in any class. You can build Orc mages, for example, or Khajiit knights, or roguish Nords. So if your only gripe against Bretons is that they are magic users...have no fear. You are allowed (and can) build a stealthy Breton assassin if you so desire.

Also, remember Nord. It's important because another MMO, Guild Wars, has a race called the Norn. While both share inspiration from real-life Scandinavian cultures, the Nords and the Norn are very different races hailing from very different worlds.

What's a Norn?

I am going to make a breton, with some nord aspects. I like the breton style, but dont like them hanging out with high elf scum.

As above, assuming you're meaning Nords, I'm thinking you'll probably swing for Bretons. No official info has come out regarding Breton racials, but magiccy stuff is pretty much guaranteed. That said, you're certainly not forced to use them, and if you hate Nordic lore so much, you might be better off rolling Breton. No-one's forcing you to get into any of that sorcerous nonsense unless you want to.

If you choose Nord, you will be to big to explore every cave. I tried playing Morrowind with one and I got stuck a lot on caves with low ceilings and low hanging woodworks. Same goes for High elves. I would go for Breton, but that just because i cannot choose Imperial. Breton's might be more magewielders in TES lore. But i can roleplay quite good so i will play as a Breton who has the lowest value of midichlorians ever.

As if it is guaranteed that ESO will have the exact same issue with tall characters... Im sure that most dungeons in eso will be more wide and have more space. Its a multiplayer game after all.
OT: If you dislike nord lore, I personally wouldn't play a nord. Bretons are just as good a sneaky character as any other race, apart from maybe a racial passive. Every race has access to the same abilities. I personally prefer Bretons over nords because I dislike how Nords think about other cultures and peoples. And I generally think lots of Nords are quite dimwitted and narrowminded. Bretons seem more intelligent and better with words, which fits the style of sneaky character/thief better imo.

There is simple solution for that problem and it is called redgards!

I have the slight feeling that Redguards are discriminated for some reason.




Huge Nordic themed barbarians in GW2.




As for the OP:
As far as I understood all of the racial skills are optional. You might choose them but you might as well choose other skills instead. So the race could give you some kind of headstart but in the end you'd choose other more effective skills.
(please correct me if I'm wrong)

Norn

Hoelbrak's agreeable enough, I suppose. For a Norn village.

why is everyone calling them Norns?

you should try a Redguard

They're not norns?

GW2's name ripoff for the viking/hardy type race.

http://www.quickmeme.com/p/3vpu9s

It also seems that they are actually some badass chicks in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norns.

Who knew?

If you don't like the Nord culture/story, then by all means go Breton - just because they have a magical tinge to their culture/history doesn't mean EVERY Breton is a spell-slinging wizard.

Another thing to consider --- there will likely be some "rogue" abilities that require magicka, in which case the Breton's affinity for magic may make them a better rogue, in that regard, than a rogue who has no particular skill in magic. Like, a Nord rogue might be more resistant to cold (yay?) but a Breton rogue might have more magicka available to cast the in-combat brief invisibility spell that (I think) Nightblades get...

Nord Thief for me because I want to hang in Riften.

You own every ES game, yet you call them norns? The distinction between the two is basically this

Bretons-french inspired "half elves". Their culture and society is mostly similar to western Europe.

Nords- Nordic/germanic inspired, essentially their culture resembles northern European/Scandinavian culture(vikings).

The thing about ESO that I believe someone has already mentioned, is that the suggestion racial roles have been considerably softened so that all factions are more or less congruous. The game only includes a slight edge for the traditional race/class choices, bretons for example will be just slightly better at being spell oriented, and nords will probably be the better of the two for a straight up warrior build. The bad news for non-magic players is that all classes use magic in one form or another.

Not an issue. Especially since you can choose hieght and size for ANY race

Not sure that Riften was a thief hang-out 1000 years before they had a down-on-their-luck thieves guild.

nords norns norn all the same but i found a better option, i'm gone play a woodelf that whas my verry first character in tes: arena so gone stick to that one

Oh oh!1 I did! You really should read some Skaldic poetry.

Technically, if you go by their abilities in previous games, Bretons were the most powerful race no matter what. The ability to resist/absorb Magicka attacks (especially with the extent they had) with literally no drawbacks is completely Overpowered. Every Play-style can use this to their advantage and no other class has any buff close to this universally useful and powerful.

Also, Norns do not exist in Elder Scrolls, Nords do though.

I'm afraid my poor old brain goes into thermonuclear meltdown when presented with old Norse / Germanic vocabulary. Waaay too many consecutive consonant. Hell, I read through it, stop at a name and stare at it for 5 minutes before I finally give up and call him Joe.

In TES, there is usually someone to pronounce it for me. Aside from the tombs. For them I just associate it with the first letter and a number. Or copy and paste it from the UESP when posting.