Ok so i'm walking through Solitude, worst city in the game, filthy Imperials all over the place and then i see a Stormcloak solider, and another one, and another one. I'm like that's odd, i've yet to complete the civil war quests... why are there storm cloaks in solitude? i walk up to one and it turns out he's imperial.

so i guess that the storm cloaks and empire have the same fashion designer, just different colors because that's the only difference while on guard duty, the storm cloaks are in blue, while the empire is in red... why would bethesda not make different cloths for guards on both sides of the civil war? it gets confusing.

thoughts?

EDIT: what i mean is the difference between the guards in Windhelm and the guards in solitude look, in fashion wise, the exact same, you would think that one or the other would switch their style more then just red and blue. there is the obvious difference while on the battlefield yes, but i'm talking about the town guards...

Those are town guards wearing (probably) traditional Nord guard 'uniform' (a mail shirt with an aketon/scaled armour, and a bit of coloured cloth over it). The Stormcloaks wear the same traditional nordic armour. The imperial army looks completely different, they wear roman stuff - and those soldiers who occupy towns during the civil war quest line also wear that army outfit.

Before the civil war questline starts, however, every town has regular Nord guards wearing regular Nord guard armour. They are neither Stormcloaks nor Imperials, they're just normal Nord guards. The colour is different for every town.

The Imperials wear those Roman-looking suits. Stormcloaks use a differently-colored version of the city-guard armor. I guess when the Stormloaks started, they didn't have time or resources to make brand-new uniforms for everyone, so they took what they had the most of which was Windhelm guard outfits.

Apparently the OP can't tell the difference between an Imperial soldier and a town guard. I never had a problem with it myself.

The thing about civil war is that it's people fighting their own families to a large extent. There are many Nords in the Legion in Skyrim and in the Stormcloaks. It's often difficult to tell who you're fighting in a civil war, brother against brother. The similarity in uniforms would show that too.

You probably need to look a bit harder then...

Pretty much what Garrison said, but judging by the OP's response to Imperials, I figure he's completed the Civil War quest by siding with the Stormcloaks. If you wrap that questline up by siding with the Stormcloaks, all the hold capitals you take from the Imperials have Stormclock guards from then on.

Feeling sorry for the OP right now, ... Massive fail.

This.

There is nothing confusing about them.
/thread

I've booked the OP an appiontment with Specsavers

Nords used to wear ancient Nord armor but now seem to wear scaled armor & iron / steel armor (& wolf armor for companions). That or we see the later style wore by the city guards which is the same style worn by the Stormcloaks.
The other Nord designs are Nordic mail (major disappointment that its not featured in game as of yet), fur armor or scaled armors, or those made from bones such as trollbone (not featured in Skyrim as of yet) and maybe dragonplate / dragonscale. Its a shame Crusader style armor (as seen in Knights of the Nine) hasn't made a return as that to me also looks later Nord.

I think the Nord light armors such as studded and hide look a bit of a joke. To me they look more African than something I'd expect to see on a Nord. When I first arrived at Whiterun and saw the Redguard wearing it I thought it was a native armor from Hammerfell, lol.


Imperials wear armor influenced more by Italy and Greece etc such as the Roman looking armor seen on the Imperial Soldiers. Notice the Imperial helmet on one of the start up screens which looks more Greek. I personally think Steel Plate and Ebony etc are also Imperial influenced armor designs but the latest styles imported and traded via the East Empire Company only to those that can afford.
Italian armor = http://warandgame.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/gothicarm-1.jpg http://museumpublicity.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Italian-Armour.jpg

What your seeing is the common Skyrim military armor as worn by the city guards