I understand that if you side with the Empire and finish the CW on their side you start seeing Thalmor agents on the road? Thing is, what happens if you start slaughtering them when you're in the middle of nowhere? Do you get a criminal record for this?

If you kill all the witnesses, probably not.

Unless they are hostile on sight, you will probably get a bounty for killing them outright (unless there are no witnesses, as already noted).

However it's possible to make many of them go hostile just by engaging them in conversation and having the issue of Talos worship come up. Not the best solution of you prefer the sneak approach though.

The above holds true whether you do the CW or not, there will always be Thalmor agents about at least in Imperial territory altho I have yet to see any wandering around freely in Stormcloak-held areas. Their presence may increase over the whole of the province if you win the war for the Legion but I can't confirm that as I haven't played on very long with any character who did that.

Really I'd like to redesignate them all as automatically hostile on a par with monsters (which they are) and other evil beings in the game so that, not only will it not get me a bounty for killing them, but also my followers will automatically recognise them as enemies as well. I'm sure this must be possible, if not through the console then through a mod?

Technically, it's still murder.
I killed a Thalmor group marching off with a prisoner, and I wound up with a bounty in Falkreath, but it went away when...I accidentally killed the prisoner...Idiot ran in front of my sword...

Despite being generally hated by a majority of the populace of Tamriel, and quite literally being the James Bond Villains of a fantasy setting, looking to rewrite existence to bring about the new Age of the Elves, they are still begrudgingly a government agency in "league" with the Empire, making it illegal to slaughter them wholesale.

That's why you cast rage and make them kill each other!

I've considered this as well, it's probably possible but tricky as designating the entire faction as hostile to the player would surely cause problems. There are points in the game where you must interact with or at least be in the presence of Thalmor without killing them in order for quests or gameplay to proceed properly. For instance it would complicate going into Understone Keep if the Thalmor who are in residence there tried to kill you every single time, especially since IIRC one of them is essential due to being a quest-giver in his own right and will only disappear from the game if you take Markarth for the Stormcloaks.

If you thought out all the possible consequences and then made allowances for them - like, not enabling the mod until ALL unique and "necessary" Thalmor in the game were no longer necessary or already dead, plus making the ones you no longer need for that playthrough non-essential if they aren't already... I suppose it would be doable.

---Sir, I have no idea what you're talking about, and I never hide in bushes casting such spells on unsuspecting, but proud and noble members of the Aldmeri Dominion.

I thought you were serious until I read the "noble" part.

I find that if you talk to them and make them hostile and have a follower with you just let them do the killing and you dont have to worry about a bounty and still get rid of them and get all their stuff

I think this sort of mod would only be logical after you finish the bulk of the vanilla game, as I have. Maybe it'd be possible to make all Thalmor outside cities to be hostile? Inside they'd have diplomatic immunity, you could say. But outside they'd be fair game for any highway bandit or, er, angry Dragonborn who they might come across.

I don't know, I haven't looked at all the factions for them. There might be a separate faction to which free-roaming Thalmor belong that does not include NPCs like Ancano, Elenwen, Ondelamar, etc.

However much it might improve gameplay, though, I'm not sure it would be very realistic, to be openly and immediately hostile to a citizen "just because" really isn't the Thalmor's style. If they have a reason to target a certain individual, yes, but when they are out to get the player they send designated hit squads after him/her and hope that it can be taken care of in a relatively quiet manner... and the ones giving the orders make it clear that the hit squads will be disavowed by their superiors if caught. Having them be hostile to you by default under all circumstances, even in the presense of witnesses who would otherwise be their allies, doesn't fit their style at all.

Stormcloaks will never put a bounty on you for killing Thalmor. That is why you side with Stormcloaks. Not the Empire. Stormcloaks...

Joke aside, yeah you will get bounty if there are witnesses. And outside of town they will not attack you unless you talk to them and claim to praise Talos. Than, they will go Thalmor up your [censored]. Than you return the favor ofcourse.

You'll never get a bounty if you talk them into being hostile, since they will attack first then (and you are just innocently defending yourself... )

Hmm, some interesting options there. Rather than play crude bandit play "Nazi with a Nazi" by harassing and provoking them...

Is that really true?

yes, you just have to act like the biggest lover of talos and they will attack you.

Yes, most Thalmor you encounter in "the wild" - particularly those escorting prisoners - have dialogue options that will end with them assuming you are a Talos worshipper... either because you admitted it or refused to admit it, they don't really care, just bringing up the subject is enough. Once you get to that point they will attack and killing them will not get you a bounty because they went hostile first.

Ye, I knew they would attack for I worship Talos, especially when Thalmor are near
But I didn't know I won't get no bounty for it.. That's just great... Oh, I am so patroling around Markrath and Solitude for a while.



That's a perfect scenario. I'll make it come true. Very soon.

Heh, heh, heh...

I prefer just eating them alive as a werewolf. No bounty.