History Characters / SkyrimCivilWar

* ThisIsGonnaSuck: Her assessment of a possible dragon attack. Dawnstar is completely exposed, the buildings are all mode of wood, and arrows are in short supply.

* PuppetKing: The Empire would like to turn her into one. She's blissfully unaware of it.

* FantasticRacism: Some of them, but most commonly in Windhelm itself. They don't allow Argonians to live inside the city walls and they force the Dunmer population to live in the slum known as the Gray Quarter. Interestingly enough, it also possess a rather high Imperial and Altmer population who are more or less left alone, which would make sense before the civil war, (since they wouldn't want to pointlessly antagonise either the Empire or the Dominion), but seems strange when they're in a state of open rebellion. [[WildMassGuessing Maybe the Imperials and Altmer were allowed to establish themselves so well that they provide essential services, whereas the Dunmer and Argonians don't?]] Inverted by a Nord in Falkreath, who cites being an ex-Stormcloak as being the reason he is tolerant of strangers (unlike his brother, who is openly racist against a non-Nord Dragonborn).
** The WMG above about the possibility that the Imperials and Altmer are tolerated because they prove useful is more or less exactly what one Altmer tells you (regarding the Dunmer, if not the Argonians) if you ask her if she is treated as badly as the Dunmer.

-->''"The throne of [[OurFounder Ysgramor]]... The throne of my father... I can only hope that I prove worthy of it.

* ShootTheDog: Giving "large sections" of Hammerfell to the Dominion, as well as banning Talos worship, in order to stop the Great War. Needless to say, the Redguards were not pleased about essentially being sacrificed to the Thalmor, and they were able to drive out the Dominion themselves (this is used, both in-universe and by fans, as why the Empire was wrong to surrender). The Nords were likewise not happy about one of their most popular gods being banned, and this is one of the prime motivations for the Stormcloak rebellion.

* WithUsOrAgainstUs: He may espouse such views when talked to, but actions speak louder than words: He made a move on Whiterun, whose Jarl wished to stay out of the conflict.

* WithUsOrAgainstUs: Some people think he has this view point, [[UnreliableNarrator most of these people tend to be Imperial loyalists also]]. [[SubvertedTrope When you first see him]]...

* [[spoiler:SoreLoser: She is ''not'' happy when the Stormcloaks win.]]

* BenevolentBoss: To Brill. And to all of Whiterun when he's Jarl.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Discussed in-universe even. The Empire claims that it fighting against the Aldmeri dominion to defend its way of life is fine, but when the Stormcloaks do it against the Imperials (who are practically an invasion force themselves and have little claim to the land anyway, especially with Torryg's death) its baleful treason. Bonus points in that when Imperial loyalist characters in the game are confronted with this they literally have no counter-argument.

-->''"Well, for one thing. I wont drain the town treasury buying myself fancy clothes and expensive mead! Nor will I get involved with criminals trying to take advantage of honest folk!"''

* SpearCounterpart: To Maven Black-Briar. Both are the head of commercially successful families whose success is due to shady and illegal dealings (Thieves' Guild and Dark Brotherhood in Maven's case. Mercenaries to bully mine owners and Forsworn Assassins to silence enemies in Thongvor's case). Both are replacement Jarl for their respective hold if said hold changes side. In both cases, they have so much influence in the hold and have bribed the local guards so successfully, they arguably [[IOwnThisTown have more power over the town than the rightful Jarls do]]. Also, both of them have goons in town who will warn the player of their respective family's influence over the town (Maul and Yngvar the Singer respectively) and said goons become Housecarls if Thongvor/Maven become Jarl. Unlike Maven however, Thongvor is actually a good person and is mostly unaware of his family's shadier dealings.

* HeyItsThatVoice: Hey, it's [[13thWarrior Buliwyf]]!

-->Galmar: ''They call themselves Stormcloaks because they believe in you. Because they're the biggest, toughest sons of bitches Skyrim has to offer. And they want this. They want it as much as you. Perhaps they want it more.''

* WithUsOrAgainstUs: Some people think he has this view point, most of these people tend to be Imperial loyalists also. When you first see him...

* BetterTheDevilYouKnow: This is why he supports Ulfric; he's the only Stormcloak Jarl who will openly say he considers Ulfric a self-centered, power-hungry egomaniac who he doesn't trust as far as he can throw (and at his age, he probably can't throw Ulfric very far). Still, he'd rather deal with him, someone he knows what to expect from, than an emperor and a council seated a thousand miles away making decisions about a land they know nothing about. That said however, he ''is'' a crotchety old man who sees betrayal in every corner.

** JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Up to AlternateCharacterInterpretation depending on if you think he truly does want the best for Skyrim or is just interested in personal power.

* UpperClassTwit: He doesn't do much of anything except enjoy the privileges of his station. Fortunately, his altmeri steward Nenya knows what to do so the hold doesn't fall apart.

* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized
* TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified: At least not by Skyrim's eastern half and a great deal of its western.

* TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified: At least not by the Eastern half of Skyrim (mostly).

* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: Let's just say that the Dunmer and Argonians aren't as grief-stricken as other Windhelm residents after Ulfric's death.

** If you ask him about it when joining the stormcloaks as a non-nord, he notes that race isn't anywhere near as important as ''loyalty''.
** According to the Dark Elves of Windhelm, their lives have actually gotten worse since Ulfric became Jarl.
** Strangely, while Argonians and Dark Elves are segregated in Windhelm, they are generally treated normally in most other Stormcloak align holds. In fact holding high positions as Steward and Housecarls in Winterhold and Morthal, respectively. Apparently, he doesn't care how the other Jarls deal with minorities so long as they generally follow orders. So maybe this is more like 'Fantastic Indifference'.
* FriendlyEnemy:. Right up until they directly lay siege to Windhelm, an Empire-aligned Dragonborn can walk up to the leader of the enemy forces and make small talk, without acknowledgement that the Dragonborn is the reason the Stormcloaks are in such dire straits.

** There's also their repeated claim that "What the Stormcloaks like to forget is that the Empire is the only thing keeping the Dominion out of Skyrim.", which ignores that Hammerfell did a fine job of repelling the Dominion without Imperial backing and there isn't a lot of reason to think Skyrim couldn't do the same.

* FantasticRacism: While it cannot be disputed that they are the ''least'' racist faction in the setting, they do generally express a low opinion of Nords, thinking them to be primitive, lawless, brutal savages.

* {{Expy}}: Of JuliusCaesar.

* FantasticRacism: He considers Nords and their culture foolish. Unlike Ulfric though, Tullius doesn't let his views influence his policies.
* FriendlyEnemy: See Ulfric's entry. You're welcome to come into Castle Dour and chat him up despite being the reason why the Legion is almost routed from Skyrim. Taken further than Ulfric in that if you're a Stormcloak and on Avulstein Grey-mane's quest, you can request Tulius to release a Thalmor prisoner. He sarcastically tells you that it's impossible, but hey.

* {{Jerkass}}

* TheStrategist: He masterminded Ulfric Stormcloak's capture and had a [[SpannerInTheWorks dragon not attacked Helgen,]] he likely would have succeeded in snuffing out the Stormcloaks then and there. Hadvar notes that, since taking command, Tullius managed to turn the situation in Skyrim around, from a complete rout for the Empire to a near victory... [[spoiler:before Alduin [[SpannerInTheWorks interrupts]] before Ulfric can be executed.]]

* TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Alvor notes that if it weren't for the Stormcloak uprising, the Empire would be content to pretend that the Nords didn't still worship Talos in the closet. The Stormcloaks raising a fuss over it has given the Thalmor the excuse they needed to crack down hard in Skyrim.

* MakeAnExampleOfThem: "Torygg was merely a message to the other Jarls." Related to this, Galmor and Balgruuf mention that if Ulfric wanted to, he could just challenge the other Jarls and kill them to earn the right to rule their holds much as he challenged Torygg, but now Ulfric seeks to prove the power of the Stormcloaks, not his Thu'um.

* ModestRoyalty

* NobleBigot: Depending on how the player feels about him, he may come across as this.

* SlouchOfVillainy: While everyone who uses a throne takes this position, Ulfric stands out for two reasons: firstly, he can end up as the BigBad depending on what path the player takes, and his throne is ''huge'', making him look like he's slouching more than he actually is.

* UnwittingPawn: Ulfric was a high-profile POW during the Great War, and special attention was given to him by interrogators; [[spoiler:Ambassador Elenwen, no less]]. Such time with the Thalmor and being subject to their "reeducation" methods leads to questions as to whether his mind is his own: Both the Markarth incident and the Civil War as a whole played right into the Thalmor's hands. The Markarth Incident essentially made it impossible for the Empire to simply pretend the Nords didn't secretly worship Talos in the closet, and the civil war dragging out sapped both Skyrim and the Empire, both being very much to the benefit of the Thalmor. However, the Thalmor dossier on him indicates that while they consider him an "asset" they've lost direct control over him and cannot risk contacting him directly. They're also worried about Ulfric actually winning the war, though it is not clear if this is because they want to prolong the war to further weaken the Empire, or if they're afraid of what Ulfric might do with a united Skyrim behind him. Finally, at the end of the civil war, Ulfric states that defending Skyrim from Thalmor attacks is one of his highest priorities and quickly puts Galmar in charge of training additional troops so that Skyrim is as prepared as possible for such an event. Which shows that he's likely not at all under the Thalmor's thrall per se.

* WithUsOrAgainstUs: Read the book [[http://www.imperial-library.info/content/skyrim-bear-markarth "The Bear of Markarth"]] to see how his liberation of Markarth was not at all as rosy as the Stormcloak sympathizers in the town make it out to be. However, note that this book is written by an Imperial, and thus may be exaggerating the events. Though when you meet up with Stormcloaks he tells a frothing at the mouth Galmar to be lenient with the commoners who do not support them as they are still 'weighing things in their hearts' as he puts it. This could either mean two things, the book is outright lying about his brutality and is mere character assassination, or in the interregnum he came to realize that this trope wasn't a good way to go about things and decided to be more understanding towards those who don't outright cast their lot for independence.

** On the other hand, the Empire was never a part of the Aldmeri Dominion, and never claimed to be loyal to them or agreed to follow their laws, while Skyrim has been a part of the Empire for centuries. Also, killing Torygg doesn't automatically make Ulfric High King unless the moot proclaims him to be, so him telling the Empire to get out doesn't have any validity, especially when there are more Jarls supportive of the Empire staying in Skyrim (4, 5 after Ulfric's ultimatim forces Balgruuf to choose a side) than there are supportive of Ulfric in wanting them to leave (3, 4 if you include Ulfric himself). However, it is admitted even by Torryg's court that Ulfric's challenge was lawful and had Torryg refused, the Jarls would have been honour-bound to take him off the throne and convene the Moot, thus it is heavily implied that under normal circumstance Ulfric ''would'' be High King at this point, had the Empire not intervened and imposed itself on Skyrim's internal affairs.

* ShutUpHannibal: During the peace treaty, after Ulfric makes a speech about how he considers being present with the Empire an insult, he has this to say.
-->''"Are you done? Did you just come all the way to make speeches?"''

* HeyItsThatVoice: He's voiced by Michael "[[BattlestarGalacticaReimagined Saul Tigh]" Hogan. Bonus points for being in a similar line of work and having a similar attitude.

* GuileHeroine:

** Strangely, while Argonians and Dark Elves are segregated in Windhelm, they are generally treated normally in most other Stormcloak align holds. In fact holding high positions as Steward and Housecarls in Winterhold and Morthaal, respectively. Apparently, he doesn't care how the other Jarls deal with minorities so long as they generally follow orders. So maybe this is more like 'Fantastic Indifference'.

* [[spoiler: DyingMomentOfAwesome]]: [[spoiler: The assassination of Titus Mede was supposed to put the Dark Brotherhood back on the map, but there sheer nobility he shows when he faces his death made the assassination end up being the redemption of Titus Mede. You will find yourself resisting the urge to stab Montierre.]]

* [[spoiler:LastRequest]]: [[spoiler:Before you kill him, he asks that you kill the man who contracted you to kill him.]]

* MakeAnExampleOfThem: "Torygg was merely a message to the other Jarls."

* WarriorPrince: He was an officer of the Imperial army before he became a Jarl. And later on pretty much drove the Forsworn from Markarth single handed as well.
* WouldHurtAChild: Notable aversion: he's often stated as killing the child-king Torygg, though Torygg isn't an actual child so much as he's just very young for the title of High-King.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Just wants to see the Empire and Thalmor driven from Skyrim and the restoration of one of his people's most adored deity. If you win the war for the Stormcloaks, he fully makes it clear he intends to see Skyrim as glorious as it was when it was the heart of the First Empire.

* SophisticatedAsHell: When you meet up with him at the camps, he'll make deep observations on motivation and such. When he's in the thick of battle and Imperial lapdogs scream 'For the Emperor', he shouts back, 'The Emperor can kiss my ass!'

* WeUsedToBeFriends: Served with Rikke during the Great War. Offers her the chance to stand down at the end of the Stormcloak Campaign.
* WarriorPoet: Ever so much.

* TheEmpire: Them being a foreign power who controls different nation, with a different culture, is used for drama.
* FantasticRacism: While it cannot be disputed that they are the ''least'' racist faction in the setting, they do generally express a low opinion of Nords, thinking them to be primitive, lawless, brutal savages.

* BadassGrandpa: A talented general, he managed to encircle the entire Dominion army occupying the Imperial City during the Great War and obliterate it. He then captured Lord Naarfin, the Thalmor commander, and hung him from the White-Gold Tower, alive, for thirty-three days before having him killed. One account suggests the Thalmor commander was carried off by daedra on the thirty-fourth day.