Why did the Dragonborn cross the border? (Sounds like the chicken crossing the road to me.)

To get to the other side?

Or ...

She was going to a Stormcloak Camp to apply for a job as messhall Cook. She didn't know a cheesey Khajit had stuck 6 bottles of Skooma in her backpack to smuggle into the Camp.

She was a "mule" unknowingly.

To keep it simple;

Jarathorn- Redguard spellsword

Like many Redguards, he had grown a hatred of both the Thalmor for their invasion of his homeland and the Empire for abandoning Hammerfell in their time of need. When he heard word of a rebellion in Skyrim against both the Thalmor and the Empire, he knew he wanted to help; especially with the prospects the College of Winterhold had to offer him. He was shocked to meet up with the high-ranking Stormcloaks on crossing the border, but got caught in the ambush.

Lendarin- Bosmer Archer

A solitary figure living in Valenwood, he one day receieved a vivid vision. A beautiful mountain, with a mighty tree springing out of it, was set ablaze by a massive, beastly figure he did not recognize (dragon). A voice told him to abandon his home and go to Skyrim, slay the beast, and stop the vision from coming true. A fairly devout religious man, he assumed it some kind of command from the Gods, and did as he was told despite his inexperience in dealing with non-elven folk. After a long journey on foot, he was caught crossing the border and dragged into a conflict he had no part in.

If Skyrim had Co-Op, Dahjiit (Kahjiit Knight/Paladin) would have been travelling with a childhood friend to visit a relative. But alas, the Imperials execute first then ask what the crime was later.

Off topic a mo': Is it possible that if someone chose the same race for every TES game, could you possibly claim to be decended from previous heroes?
As an example: I make a Nord who is the Champion of Cyrodil after the Oblivion crisis, then his decendent 200 years on is Dragonborn?
Sounds a bit Mary Sueish to have a family history based on famous Heroes of Tamriel, but curious anyway.

I was hoping to find a Taco Bell...

You could claim whatever you want. That'd be fairly reasonable...each character would probably end up with a pretty lousy life before becoming a hero though as they all end up in prison or are about to get executed prior to every new adventure.

Due to the Warp in the West, the hero of Daggerfall presumably dies because it is the result of one of the possible endings. But they never really say what any of the other heroes of the other games do directly after saving the world.

Mace Windu - Redguard veteran of the Great War

Was part of the Redguard army that drove the Aldmeri Dominion from Hammefell, in fact Windu was present when The Second Treaty of Stros M'kai was signed. Like many Redguards, Windu is no fan of the Empire feeling that the Emperor had betrayed Hammerfell to the Aldmeri Dominion to gain peace. When he heard about the civil war in Skyrim he decided to make the journey there to see if he could assist the Stormcloaks in securing Skyrim's independence from both the Empire and the Thalmor.

So....My Champion of Cryodil made love to a dragon and 200 years later his decendent is dragonborn? That....makes sense.

OT: My Argonian Blood-Tail was sent over the border to complete a contract for the Dark Brotherhood in Cryodil. But he got caught off guard while pretending to be a civilian.

My Dunmer didn't cross the border; everyone just assumes she did.

Karma is a male high elf who is a secret thalmor agent. The plan to get him into skyrim was to get him caught by the imperials then hijack the imperial caravan when it transported him to the chopping block. Whilst the Thalmor ambush was set up it was a failed attempt as Alduin destroyed the set up on his way to eventually meeting Karma.

My breton character (Maximus Decimus Meridius ) lost his father in the battle of the Red ring between the Empire and the Thalmors , he was born in High rock , after the death of his father they lost the farm and his imperial mother died the following winter from ataxia , the young boy was taken by a Khajit merchant on the road to Daggerfall and sold to a Dunmer brigand turned slavetrader after the eruption in Vvardenfell . The Dunmer quickly saw the potential of the boy when he resisted the calm spells used on him everytime he had to load him in the cage , so he decided to sell him for better money at the Arena of the city of Dragonstar in Hammerfell , bordering Skyrim where it was rumoured they paid good money for young tough little boys to turn into gladiators

After several years of tough training and bloody combats , he managed to survive not without a few scars , he became a crowd's favourite at the arena , but always longed for his freedom as he grew older , one night with the complicity of his best friend , an Argonian veteran gladiator , he got the chance to escape the arena and steal a horse to try to reach the border of Skyrim and finally be free , when he crossed the border however , not having eaten for 4 days , he accepted an offer of a small band of Stormcloacks to help raid a local imperial village in exchange for good money and ample food supplies , problem is they got ambushed by a massive Imperial patrol who had a snitch among the stormcloacks and was expecting the attack .... then he's taken to Helgen for execution ...

My own little Nord is a native of Cyrodil, whose Nordic merchant mother left Skyrim for the Imperial heartland chasing after a rougish Breton mage, whom she eventually found and married. They set up shop in the Imperial City, which was wonderful for a brief time until the Thalmor came. She was born ten years after the invasion, and both her bother and father still bear the scars from that event, including a deep seated hatred for all elven kind. She learned various bits of magic from her father, and her plan was to go to the College in Winterhold, or perhaps find some dunmer teacher, as the mage's guild in Cyrodil had been infiltrated by the hatred Thalmor. On the way to Skyrim she gets waylaid by the Stormcloaks and caught up in their battle with the Imperial army, getting unconscious and thus unable to plead her case as to why she shouldn't be killed. Also because the Stormcloaks are dikes and won't point out someone who isn't working for them.

My breton was just out for a walk. She didn't even know she had crossed the border, it wasn't marked. Some countries take that more personally than others, I guess

My Khajit crossed the borders recently to restore The Dark Brotherhood, he also thought he would check for a Thieves Guild in the area since he aint that bad of a Thief as it is.

My argonian heard the call of aludin and plans on being the suprem dragon and wiping the monkey vermin of the face of skyrim

Ever last one moaha ha

Ooooh this is fun!

She was a noblewoman in with the Empire (she's imperial), who killed her uncle by baiting him out into a river in a boat then drowning him. Then found out later it wasn't really him who commited the crimes that she punished him for. Instead it was another family member, the Emperor. She was chased out and lost her title, then she was captured going over the border and lost all her money and supplies becoming penniless. She joined the DB, killed him (and her cousin) and finally got judgement for those who had suffered but was so consumed with guilt by killing to get up the ranks of the DB, she decided to save the world and kill Alduin, even though, she thought it would be better to let the world die. She also backed the Empire in the war, hoping it would be better with the Emperor gone.

To live the skyrimican dream. I didn't know the penalty for illegally crossing the border was death.

Ermenrich was a Nord Legion veteran that was mustered out due to injuries, and eventually healed. He had never been to Skyrim, being born to Nord parents in Bruma and he wants to retire there. And then he's caught at the border, where Ulfric and his lieutenants are also caught. The Imperials don't recognize him, and he tries to escape, getting knocked on the head hard. He wakes up in a cart going to Helgen. He no longer trusts the Empire, but he thinks Ulfric is a @#&%. Eventually he'll have to make a choice to help the homeland he's a stranger in.

CBP Officer: So why were you crossing the border?
My character: No speake the English senor.

We were somewhere around Helgen on the edge of the desert when the skooma began to take hold. I remember saying something like "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive...." And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the cart, which was going about a twenty miles an hour with the top down to Whiterun. And a voice was screaming "Holy Talos! What are these [censored] animals?"

Then it was quiet again. My shield-brother had taken his shirt off and was pouring mead on his chest, to facilitate the tanning process. "What the hell are you yelling about?" he muttered, staring up at the sun with his eyes closed and covered with wraparound Redguard sunglasses. "Never mind," I said. "It's your turn to drive." I stopped the cart and aimed the Big Brown Beast toward the shoulder of the road. No point mentioning those bats, I thought. The poor bastard will see them soon enough.

My Bosmer is a bit of a scholar and treasure hunter, so she figured with a civil war going on, the locals might not notice her poking around the local ruins. Since under more peaceful circumstances, they might look down upon that a little.

Astral - Dark Elf
Battle Mage
Home: Cyrodiil, 200 years prior

Story:

I dont remember much.. But from what has come back to me so far, 200 years before the events of Skyrim, after closing the Oblivion gates, becoming the Hero of Kvatch, Champion of Cyrodil, ArchMage of the guild, Arena champion, AND Sheogorath, I had been sent a message from the Elder Council requesting my expert knowledge in the field of ancient/modern magic. I was told that recently a weapon forged by every daedra prince had been discovered and needed to be destroyed urgently, before it destroyed all of Cyrodiil.
During the ritual, I was betrayed. The council had silenced my magic and pinned me down faster than a Nord eating a sweetroll, the tables had been turned on me. The weapon I was trying to destroy was actually an ancient relic designed to incinerate even the most powerful of Heroes and apparently even a god, though the downside being it could only be used once and it also required 100 souls from any elf race. In their opinion, I had gained to much popularity and hold/leverage in the empire and they were afraid id take over the Council.
After it was activated there was a flash of black and purple light, and next thing I know, im in a run down version of the Imperial City, with no memory of how I got here or any other prior knowledge (the gods must have had mercy on me). I made a run for it after seeing these hooded black elves torturing some citizens, and after days of running and hiding I came to Serpents Pass. I quickly climbed through the mountains, next thing I know, im being led to my execution.

My memories have been returning slowly, it seems whenever I hear or experience something from my past, I begin to recall events similar. Ive regained most of my memory and now im out for Imperial Blood...
KILLLLLLLEMALLLLLLLL!!!!

Name:Daris
six:Male
Race:Imperial
Backstory:A orphan growing up in Cyrodill.As a child he was bullied,beatened,& alone.As growing up he fights back.Age 15 he beats all of his bullies to near death to be charged with assault & battery.Rotting in a cage he is released by a guard he built a friendship with.At age 27 as a blacksmith he gets word of the friend who released him was murdered.In rage he seeks revenge.He kills them all in which 3 were corrupt guards & is wanted for murder.His only choice is to have a new life so he crosses the border to be knocked out by thieves 4 hours before the ambush.He wakes up with all of belongings gone & caught in the middle of ambush & captured.Trying to escape Imperials knock him out & put him in the carriage.

First pc -- thief who ran afoul of dangerous gang headed out of dodge. Second, wanna be Mage on way to winter hold

My aspiring Khajiit mage did so to head to the College of Winterhold. Since just as male two-legged Khajiit aren't usually mages neither are Nords, and he figured he'd have more to relate with from people that have to try as hard as him to master spells.

Jeremiah Aureon was a breton nobleman whose father was in charge of a decently-sized port town in high rock until his brother usurped the throne of the city (murdered their father) and framed him for the murder. after 5 years of living in the slums of the imperial city with his mother and sister after they fled there, he decided to reclaim their home for his family, not himself. knowing that the empire itself will not expend the troops to retake one city, he went to skyrim looking for help. he got caught during a war and was not able to come up with an explanation that the imperial troops would be satisfied with.

will come up with more as i make other characters.