Well, it does to me. You're making toons which "feel" right to you for "look" - but maybe they're the real tough-guy type. My girls are all "pretty" in a way - but they of course all are just as deadly as the male versions would be. And my rp attitude is that these are people who are a part of MY rl psyche - which wouldn't EVER kill something that didn't deserve it, or wasn't food. (Yes, I hunt IRL, for meat.... NOT for trophies....)

If it's intentional, then it makes no sense to me at all. The only way I'm able to rationalize their position is a sort of "all or nothing" mentality when it comes to dragons. If it's something more personal with Paarthurnax, then I don't even know what that is.

Believe me, I'd like to make a good looking, well meaning looking sort of character.. but I'm not sure how to do it. My Nords look either like the trailer character kind of, or Ozzy's guitarist, Zakk Wylde. Kind of a biker look. I like Orcs too... they never look friendly. I guess I could try a Bosmer, but then... I'd just be tempted to make them look like an emasciated savage or something.

Yeah, they definitely should have put the Dovahkiin and his wishes as their top priorities. They were the emperors guard and spies... not dragon slayers. I mean ORIGINALLY, and through time their ANCIENT priority was slaying dragons.. but they developed into imperial agents.. not dragon slayers with that coming before everything else..

Personally I thought their desires were fairly derpy, especially since they were seasoned vets of war, and would probably have the empires/dovakhiins priorities as their primary ones..

It would have been nice to see more Thalmor conflict with them, as opposed to "exterminate the dragons or we won't talk to you" conflict. Didn't seem to make much sense, but w/evs.

I *think* it's probably hard with a male toon in this game. Most of the NPC males just look like wrestler apes from whatever that tv show is (I don't DO tv....) and seem to have about as much intellect - or they're "sleazy" as Belethor is supposed to be. Or elven creeps like Ancano and the Thalmor Justiciars....

*shrug* Try a fem?

The question I have is, if you aren't meant to like the Blades, who are you meant to like? Anyone? Where are the nice people in this world? It's just as unrealistic to have a world with nothing but nasty people as to have one like a Care Bears cartoon.

i can see that, at the same time ud figure that they had more pressing matter as in the dragons that are actually causing damage. For the simple fact they dont help out with fighting dragosn whatsoever AND they are willign to throw away thier whole "blades" reason of existence PLUS the fact of theworld for a message that i dunno coulda waited til after the main Quest or hell just up there.....ud kinda figure that they being "dragonguards" and all...snicker snicker.....they would actually...i dunno...wanna go slay dragons.....dragosn that are actually being devastors and all...not dragosn just lyin around doing nothing...

Good point.

I like Balgruuf. I like Wylandriah. I like Balimund. Beirand and Sayma. I like Elisif, who's really a casualty - a waif. And.... upon further thought about the "hot males" thread.... Falk Firebeard.

As far as factions though.... I don't like any of the available ones. And my toons won't bother with any of them. I realize that Beth is going to make something "canon" and as a result, my lone Dovakiin will wind up in bed with some faction she really probably HATED....

But that's life in TES.

I see them as no different than the stormcloaks and imperials and greybeards. They're a faction. A composition of naturally flawed people with naturally flawed ideas pushing a naturally flawed agenda. You're just picking the faction you think has a less stupid agenda, or rather, fewer stupid people.

I went with the Greybeards and the stormcloaks even though there are more parallels between the greybeards and imperials. (Greybeards more pacifists against dragons, Imperials more pacifist against the Thalmor). But it's two different situations, and the opposition in this case being the Blades, are too extremist and personally invested to be clear headed or rational. Even though the Blades are against the Thalmor, they're still against me, as they would put it. Simply because I won't carry out one menial, petty task for them and stab a friend in the back after everything I did to earn my jockstrap.

In this case it is the enemy of my enemy is my nemesis.

Mjoll the Lioness is a saint of Skyrim. Also, Carlotta Valentia's daughter is sweet.

No, I don't think he is the ultimate good guy. You could say the same thing about Ulfric and Tullius. You can't really say either of them are the bad guys, nor can you say they are the good guys. Both of them make good/bad decisions.

He is almost COMPLETELY neutral. He was evil, he is now good. Puts him somewhere right in the middle.

I like Sky Haven Temple a LOT, and I like Esbern too. I liked Delphine for a while, but then once I started "The Fallen" I just have no respect for her character.

I don't hate the Blades, we just disagree and they're the ones who decide to take their ball and go home. They can find themselves another Dragonborn.

they need to leave the keys behind! i spilt blood for a sweet ass hideout and i want the keys to it!

Perhaps we'll get a batcave dragoncave in an expansion.

What I found most ironic about the Blades is how they say that the Greybeards do nothing but pray all the time and study the voice.

But this is told to me by two people who do nothing but COMPLAIN all day about why I haven't killed Paarthunax, and if I did, I guess they'll still complain and not join you in quests.

Their logic is so utterly flawed as well; they want you to kill someone who seeks redemption for their past wrongs...sorry, but i can't do that, not even to a fictional character; I mean, nobody's perfect, we all have done stupid things and becides, the Greybeard fellow said that the dragons had no choice but to follow Alduin, if one said "Hang on, I'm not killing humans and Elves", they'd get set upon and killed on the spot...It's like in world war 2, many Germans only fought in the war simpily because they had no choice: either fight for Hitler or be branded a coward and traitor and die along with the enemy.

I also wouldn't trust the Blades. I'm dragonborn, I have the soul of a dragon, so I may be reborn as a dragon in my next life, or be one in the aftelife...I may have the body of a mortal, but I am a dragon in spirit...henceforth, A DRAGON!

The Blades may even want to kill you when all dragons are dead, just because they will think you will become a bully...No way will I help two loonies; i prefer Paarthunax's plan to educate dragons...after all todays enemy can be tomorrows friends.

In my opinion it would have been better if rather than allowing the issue to linger, after a certain period of inaction, the next time you visit Paarthurnax both Esbern and Delphine force a confrontation there...where we possibly get more feedback from Paarthurnax and the blades regarding the details of the matter, and then are given a final decision as they all begin fighting, that being who to kill while they are all killing each other.

That would be great, but I have a random feeling that the blades will back in the next game, and it's likely that Delphine and Esbern play some role in making them return to at least part of their former glory. Having them being killed would make that a lot more difficult. Or it's just another case of Bethesda using the essential status way to much.

I finished the MQ last night for the first time. I chose not to kill Paarth. I didn't think my character would choose to kill someone who had helped him because of crimes that someone had committed thousands of years before my character was born. Delphine is just not a likeable character, but as some have pointed out, this is understandable given her backstory. Esbern, I do like a lot, and when I talked to him after the truce conference, he seemed to be very sympathetic that what they were asking me to do was very difficult but he said something like "justice demands that Paarth pay for his past crimes." I'm not totally writing off the Blades perspective, but I chose to go the other way. After all, I was hardly real fond of the Greybeards perspective of "Well, if Alduin's return means the end of the world, maybe we're supposed to just sit back and let it end." A little too much religious fanaticism for me. They did help, but I always got the feeling they were just doing what I asked because I was Dragonborn and not because they agreed with me.
Oh, well. I know some will (and already have) disagree with me, but it seems to me that if this topic can create the debate in thread (which I think is the best thread I've read in my short time here), then Beth did a great job with this part of the story line. JMO.

I think they will be. The Blades have launched the main quests of Morrowind, Oblivion, and now Skyrim, so I would I expect them to be present in the next installment. Its probably why you aren't allowed to wipe them out because they are a faction which Beth wants to preserve for continuity. There is no messy "what if the player killed them all" possibility.
If Beth wants to do something like TES IV: Summerset Isles, the future Blades would be a useful faction to get the pc into the story as an undercover group, as they have already been set up Skyrim as an opponent of the Thalmor.

Uh, really the choice here would be to help the "blades", and kill paarth. Or to not help the blades and just sit back while they die, because they would die, no way they could take on paarth and live without your help.

Yes, that kind of thinking annoys me too. I wouldn't call it fanaticism though... It's just fatalistic and typical of pacifists. I understand how people hate the blades, but at least, they believe you're an agent of change. Esbern deserves some credit for being the guy who doesn't see Alduin as more powerful than the dragonborn. He interprets the prophecies differently.

Anyways, everyone around here makes me feel guilty for this game decision. I think I'll make another attempt to make a good guy who sides with the Beards. I hate you all.

If you can't beat us, join us. *Everyone starts surrounding you chanting "Join us".*

Delphine and Esbern are not the last two Blades in the world. They are the only known Blades. There could be more, hiding in Argonia, North Morrowind, Cyrodiil, even Akavir itself. The Nerevarine was a Blade (or at least the assistant of a Blade) and she's in Akavir (and she's immortal)...

Actually, there's an old guy in a tavern by Windhelm.. I got in a fight with a Stormcloak courier, and this old guy attacked me as well. When I looted him, he had a Blades sword. The bartender said he didn't talk much and had a lot of bad memories of the past.

....If people would just understand that NOT everyone has the same opinion than this back-and-forth bickering wouldn't happen.

I actually listened to the story..Paid attention to all the dialogue and came up with my OWN judgement when it came to Parthurnax and i just don;t rust a mass murderer.. And just because you don't like my opinion of it you assume i don't pay attention to anything?? lmao.

I have multiple characters... Depending what i play i choose a different mind set and view of the world around me. This is a RPG isn't it?