» Fri Jul 06, 2012 11:16 pm
This thread again. As a real life redguard I feel the need to chime in yet again. Redguard are my favourite race, along with altmer, and one reason I always identifiedwith them as a kid was because they were....well like me. Heck, one of the hairstyles in Morrowind looks exactly like a low-res version of my awesome afro-jew-fro (I'm biracial). Yes their culture was inspired by arab and (to a lesser extent) feudal japanese culture as well, but at their essence they were always intended to be africanesque. Look at their concept art and you'll see clear references to african culture, motifs, dress, weapons, and even references to famous african civilizations like the Zulu. Michael Kirkbride, the man who wrote a great deal of redguard lore, did this on purpose as he knew it was rare for africans to have a place in fantasy stories. The way they were portrayed was so cool because they weren't offensive but they weren't overly politically correct either. It felt natural. He even gladly admits that Cyrus the Restless is his favourite character along with his other brainchild Vivec. Ever since the video game "Redguard" when elder scrolls lore was coming into its own and the characters were first given full voices, the redguards had a clearly african american voice-actor. I didn't find it offensive or unrealistic. I loved it. And to those who dont know: yes black people tend to have different voices. It's not a cultural thing or a stereotype. Our vocal cords just tend to be different. When I heard them in Skyrim.....I was pissed. They dont even have their own voice actors? Not even a north african or arab accent (which I would have LOVED)????? Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure ORCS have black voiceactors. What's more offensive? Haha. I felt ripped-off to say the least. They dont even sound TOUGH!!! Come on guys, these are people whose ancestors split atoms with their swords causing suicidal nuclear explosions! They literally turn combat into a science and you give them the wimpiest voice in the game? It aggrivates me to no end hearing them talk!