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* DropTheHammer: Wields the unique warhammer Aegisbane, which he stole from the Shatter-Shields.
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* DropTheHammer: Wields BrutishCharacterBrutishWeapon: A bandit lord who wields the unique warhammer Aegisbane, which he stole from the Shatter-Shields.
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* AncestralWeapon: Aegisbane is the family [[DropTheHammer warhammer]] that was stolen by Alain Dufont. While you can loot it from his corpse, there is no way to return it to them.
* AssholeVictim: Torbjorn and Tova are not exactly as innocent as they seem, though there is no way to see this unless you do "Rise in the East," a quest unrelated to the Dark Brotherhood. See CorruptCorporateExecutive and FantasticRacism below.
* AssholeVictim: Torbjorn and Tova are not exactly as innocent as they seem, though there is no way to see this unless you do "Rise in the East," a quest unrelated to the Dark Brotherhood. See CorruptCorporateExecutive and FantasticRacism below.
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* AncestralWeapon: Aegisbane is the family [[DropTheHammer warhammer]] warhammer that was stolen by Alain Dufont. While you can loot it from his corpse, there is no way to return it to them.
* %%zce* AssholeVictim: Torbjorn and Tova are not exactly as innocent as they seem, though there is no way to see this unless you do "Rise in the East," a quest unrelated to the Dark Brotherhood. See CorruptCorporateExecutive and FantasticRacism below.
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* YouCantKillAnIdea: While she's extremely bitter in the event of an Imperial victory and Ulfric's death, she recognizes that the dream of an independent Skyrim is ultimately greater than even Ulfric himself, and resolves to support whoever else arises to champion the cause.
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* YouCantKillAnIdea: YouCannotKillAnIdea: While she's extremely bitter in the event of an Imperial victory and Ulfric's death, she recognizes that the dream of an independent Skyrim is ultimately greater than even Ulfric himself, and resolves to support whoever else arises to champion the cause.
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* {{Fangirl}}: Of Ulfric.
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* {{Fangirl}}: Of Ulfric.Like most of Windhelm, she's one for Ulfric and treats him like a living legend.
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* YouCantKillAnIdea: While she's extremely bitter in the event of an Imperial victory and Ulfric's death, she recognizes that the dream of an independent Skyrim is ultimately greater than even Ulfric himself, and resolves to support whoever else arises to champion the cause.
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* MeaningfulName: War-Anvil, as he's a blacksmith who manufactures for the Stormcloak freedom fighters.
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* MeaningfulName: War-Anvil, as he's a blacksmith who manufactures arms and armor for the Stormcloak freedom fighters.rebellion.
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* AbhorrentAdmirer: Viola Giordano is trying to make a move on him, though considering that one of her pickup lines involves a Nord axiom about how the best way to get over a lover is to get a new one and Lonely-Gale is a ''widower'', yeah, that one didn't go over very well.
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* DeathByDespair: He wasn't a well man [[spoiler:but seeing that the White Phial he's dedicated his very long life to rediscovering has been seemingly damaged beyond repair breaks something inside him and he's confined to his sickbed thereafter. Even if/when the Phial is repaired, it's too late to save him]].
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[[caption-width-right:280:''"Only thing I hate worse than those scale-backs are them filthy gray-skins!"'']]
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! People of Eastmarch
Eastmarch is a hold in eastern Skyrim, with its primary geographical feature being its volcanic tundra, dotted with steam vents and hot springs, but there is also the highlands and boreal forests of Giant's Run. Its capital is Windhelm, a major port city situated on the mouth of the Yorgrim river leading out to the perilous Sea of Ghosts, bringing in commerce across the north of the continent. Windhelm was built by the Atmorans in the Merethic Era and so is the oldest continuously inhabited human settlement in all Tamriel, and many Nordic kings through the ages have called this city their seat of power, giving the city great cultural and historical significance. Dunmer and Argonians have a notably big presence in the capital due to the hold bordering Morrowind which lies across the Velothi Mountains to the east, but they find little hospitality from the locals. Its banner is a profiled head of a roaring bear on a blue background, an emblem shared by the Stormcloak Militia. Its Jarl is Ulfric Stormcloak, leader of the Stormcloak Rebellion.
----
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Alain Dufont]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/StephenRussell (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Eugene Waltz (Russian)[[/note]]
An infamous bandit lord that has taken over the Dwarven ruins of Raldbthar. Sometime before the events of the game, he took advantage of Clan Shatter-Shield's grief over Friga's death to con a large sum of gold from them and fled the city, leaving his fling Miuri to take the fall for the theft.
----
* AssholeVictim: Most Dark Brotherhood contracts are genuinely nice people who absolutely do not deserve their fates. Alain is ''not'' one of them.
* DropTheHammer: Wields the unique warhammer Aegisbane, which he stole from the Shatter-Shields.
* SequenceBreaking: It is entirely possible to come across Raldbthar and kill him and his men without ever even joining the Brotherhood.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ambarys Rendar]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/KeithSzarabajka (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Vladislav Kopp (Russian)[[/note]]
The innkeeper of the New Gnisis Cornerclub in Windhelm. He is a Dunmer supporter of the Empire and extremely vocal about his dislike of Nords.
----
* FreudianExcuse: His abrasiveness is due to Ulfric's mistreatment of the Dunmer.
* {{Jerkass}}: While his hatred of the Stormcloaks and the racist Nords in Windhelm is understandable, he extends this hatred to all Nords (even if the Empire, which he openly admires and has many Nord warriors, takes Windhelm) and treats his fellow dark elf Suvaris Atheron like a CategoryTraitor for working for Nords. He will also be snarky towards the player if they are non-Dunmer (especially if they are Nords themselves), but he will be otherwise [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold friendly]] to you if you are a Dunmer.
* MissingWhiteWomanSyndrome: Inverted. He is uncaring towards the victims of Windhelm's serial killer because they were Nords.
-->'''Rendar:''' None of that matters to me. Until someone takes a Dunmer, I let Windhelm deal with its own problems.
* NoSympathy: He is very inconsiderate towards Dunmer that work for Nords, as well as the serial killer's female victims.
* SociallyUnacceptableCollection: He has a display of Imperial armor on the second floor of his establishment despite it being in a staunchly anti-Imperial city, likely in protest at the FantasticRacism his people receive from the locals.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aventus Arentino]]
[[quoteright:236:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aventus_aretino_9906.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Reese C. Hartwig (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Irina Grishina (Russian)[[/note]]
A young boy whose mother recently passed away. Aventus was sent to the Honorhall Orphanage in Riften, but he flees back to Windhelm to escape Grelod the Kind's abuse, and rumors start circulating of his attempts to contact the Dark Brotherhood.
----
* CreepyChild: He's a little boy trying to contact a cult of death-worshiping assassins using what are heavily implied to be ''his dead mother's remains'' as the necessary body parts for the Black Sacrament. It's also clear that some time has passed between his mother's death, his stay at the orphanage, and his return to Windhelm - meaning that he would have had to go grave-robbing to retrieve her remains, if they are even hers.
* ConfirmationBias: InUniverse. When you speak to him, no matter how you try to say otherwise, he will refuse to see you as anything other than the Dark Brotherhood assassin savior sent to him by the Night Mother.
* {{Determinator}}: No matter how exhausted he is ("So... very tired..."), he won't stop chanting and praying the Night Mother until you put an end to his misery by talking to him.
* HeartwarmingOrphan: Bizarrely enough, he still manages to be this too. He's only contacting the Brotherhood because he wants to save his friends from Grelod's horrible abuse.
* HeroWorshipper: To the ''[[MurderInc Dark Brotherhood]]'' after you fulfill his contract. He tells you that he's going to become an assassin when he grows up, so he can help other children like you helped him.
* FolkHero: Becomes one to the children at the Orphanage, who cheer Aventus for getting the Dark Brotherhood to kill Grelod and leaves at least one of them musing on the things that can be accomplished through murder. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Nice work, Dovahkiin]].
* TakeThatAudience: His quest, and the overall introduction to the Dark Brotherhood, is carefully designed to make you feel a little ashamed of yourself. In ''Oblivion'', it was possible to be contacted by the Brotherhood by accident, but not so in this game. Specifically, you must break into Aventus's home, get mistaken for or pretend to be someone you're not (although the only other choice is to walk away and leave the quest unfinished), murder an AssholeVictim in cold blood, and then return to a child and tell him that you just solved all of his problems through murder. He also tells you, quite happily, that he's going to grow up to be an assassin like you so he can help children, too. Also, due to a bug, he'll never actually return to the orphanage so you can't adopt him (with the ''Hearthfire'' DLC) and potentially guide him towards a nobler path.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Arentino's childish attempts to contact the Brotherhood ultimately determine the future of the Brotherhood itself, ranging from [[spoiler:its potential destruction]] to [[spoiler:the death of the Emperor]].
* VagueAge: Not counting [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld Babette]], he's the sole aversion of this trope among the children in Skyrim. A letter in his house very clearly states he was 10 when his mother died, making him either 10 or 11 during the events of the game.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Calixto Corrium]]
[[quoteright:240:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/npc_calixtocorrium_4889.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' George Coe (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Mikhailov (Russian)[[/note]]
The eccentric proprietor of Windhelm's House of Curiosities, where he has an interesting variety of items on display. And a very dark secret.
----
* AffablyEvil: He's pretty friendly [[spoiler: for a brutal murderer.]]
* AlasPoorVillain: [[spoiler:The reveal from his journals that he was trying to resurrect his sister elicit some sympathy for him.]]
* AngstySurvivingTwin: If asked, he talks about his departed sister Lucilla, whom he's still mourning. [[AllThereInTheManual The official strategy guide mentions that they were twins.]]
* BewareTheNiceOnes: His cheery and eccentric demeanour masks a core of ''stone-cold lunacy''.
* BrotherSisterIncest: This may have been the case, though it's not confirmed. After [[spoiler:you confront and kill Calixto at the end of the quest, you can loot his body]] to get the key to his personal trunk, then enter his house/museum and go upstairs to unlock said trunk. Inside is his journal, in which he writes as though speaking to his sister, and some of the wording is a little {{squick}}y.
* ChekhovsGunman: When you first come upon a murder victim in Windhelm, he'll be one of the witnesses, and the game sets him up as just a random bystander. Turns out, he's a just little more important than that...
* CollectorOfTheStrange: Among other things, he's collected some embalming tools from ancient Nord barrows, a shelf full of rare alchemy ingredients, several soul gems, a 'Book of Fate' (which looks blank to you, but it's supposed to reveal your future[[note]]There is a reason why the Dovahkiin would only see blank pages in the Book of Fate even if Calixto is telling the truth about it showing one's future: [[http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Hero the Dovahkiin]] doesn't exactly ''have'' a defined destiny in the way most others have.[[/note]]), and a supposedly mystical flute whose tune could make any listener dance uncontrollably.
* FreudianExcuse: He lost his sister while adventuring, and [[spoiler:committed the murders as part of a ritual to resurrect her.]]
* MemeticBadass: He tells a story about an in-universe one: Ysgramor, who was able to eat soup with a ''fork''. And he has the very implement on display! (It's even labelled 'Ysgramor's Soup Spoon' despite being a fork.)
* MisanthropeSupreme: [[spoiler:His disdain for the people of Skyrim is made evident in one of his journals. The one person he ''doesn't'' hate is his sister.]]
* {{Necromancer}}: Speaking with him about the mysterious amulet found in Hjerim suggests that despite his supposed ignorance, he knows a great deal on the subject. [[spoiler:It's later revealed that it's actually the infamous Necromancer's Amulet and belonged to him, with his Butcher journal revealing that his entire killing spree was to acquire parts to resurrect his sister.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: His cheerful persona and (according to Wuunferth) ignorance of most of the magical items in his shop are revealed to be a ruse, designed to deflect suspicion off himself.
* RedHerring: Bring him the Strange Amulet you find among a murderer's possessions and he'll identify it as a Wheelstone, tokens given to some court mages upon their appointment to the position. Describe it to Windhelm's actual court mage and he'll all but {{facepalm}} at the misidentification. [[spoiler:Of course, this is entirely deliberate on Calixto's part - he's throwing you off the trail. The Amulet is a powerful necromancer's token.]]
** Astute players might SpotTheThread if [[spoiler:you show it to Jorleif, the steward in the Windhelm court, who pretty much says, "I dunno what it is, take it to Calixto." That he doesn't recognize it as an heirloom of the Windhelm court is telling.]]
* RetiredBadass: Journeyed all over Tamriel with his sister.
* SerialKiller: [[spoiler:He targets women (or wo''mer'') and surgically removes parts of their bodies for use in his ritual to resurrect his sister.]]
* SiblingTeam: He and his sister apparently went on all sorts of adventures in the past.
* TooDumbToLive:
** Many probably won't notice it, but he is without a doubt one of the most worthy people of this trope in the game. He somehow thinks he can get away with [[spoiler:murdering someone right ''in the middle of the market area'' of Windhelm]], and what showers him with this trope even more is the fact that he isn't wearing any robe, hood, or mask, and is attempting the murder barely a dozen yards from a permanently posted guard. Even at night, he'd be hard to miss.
** The person he attacks is this too. [[spoiler:If you go to the Steward instead of the Court Mage, the Mage gets imprisoned and Calixto somehow manages to get away with that murder.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Him being [[spoiler:the Butcher of Windhelm]] is not initially made clear and has to be pieced together throughout the "Blood on the Ice" quest.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: He adored his sister and desperately searched to find some artifact or method to bring her back to life; eventually, he did find one. Unfortunately, that's proven a little problematic, leading him and sanity to say [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope goodbye to one another]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jorleif]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Paul Ganus (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Artyom Kretov (Russian)[[/note]]
Ulfric Stormcloak's steward, tasked with the day-to-day operations of the hold, as his own mind is focused on the civil war.
----
* HonestAdvisor: Ulfric occasionally asks for his counsel, even on matters on which he isn't an expert, because he doesn't hesitate to speak his mind.
* HypercompetentSidekick: He is basically in charge of Windhelm, because Ulfric and Galmar are too occupied with the war.
* LoyalToThePosition: Unlike other stewards, Jorleif remains in his position when the Jarl is deposed and continues his day-to-day duties. His post-Civil War dialogue has him expressing relief that it's over even if the Stormcloaks lost.
%%* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Wuunferth the Unliving]]
[[quoteright:218:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sr-npc-wuunferth_the_unliving_5980.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/{{Jim Cummings|1952}} (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Kuznetsov (Russian)[[/note]]
The Court Mage of Windhelm, and a master of the Destruction school of magic. He has a a bit of a ferocious reputation, but is a mostly decent fellow aside from his anti-social ways. By his own admission he does little around the castle, but Ulfric allows him to stick around and work undisturbed due to their friendship with each other.
----
* BadassBookworm: He's an extremely capable Destruction Wizard, and provides training in that school.
* BadassBoast: Makes one when you meet him.
-->'''Wuunferth:''' Whatever you've heard I can do is probably true.
* CourtMage: To Ulfric, but Ulfric has little need for magic on account of his mastery of the Voice, so Wuunferth is mostly allowed to work on personal projects.
-->'''Dragonborn:''' Does Ulfric have much need for magic?\\
'''Wuunferth:''' No. But then, I have little need for Ulfric. We mostly just leave each other to our work.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Despite living in the darkest part of the Palace of Kings, and his sobriquet implying he may be a Necromancer, he's actually one of the most reasonable and sensible wizards to be found in Skyrim. And unlike Farengar, he doesn't let the Nordic suspicion of magic turn him into a passive-aggressive asshole.
** His potentially being a Necromancer -- or at least well-versed in the subject -- isn't even illegal, according to the Mages in the College of Winterhold. They admit that even when it was banned by the Mages' Guild, the law was ''never'' enforced in Skyrim.
* GrumpyOldMan: He's polite, but kind of irritable.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Over the course of the questline to find the Butcher, the player can go to him and tell him what they've found. While he takes offense to being suspected of necromancy, he quickly gets over it and starts readily sharing some very extensive knowledge that proves integral in capturing the murderer, and holds no hard feelings to the player for [[spoiler:idiotically suspecting him of being the culprit with no proof]].
* RedHerring: [[spoiler:For the "Blood on the ice" quest. When you find the killer's diary detailing his past at the College of Winterhold, Wuunferth is the obvious suspect, since he is the only known mage in town and spends nearly all of his time [[PoorCommunicationKills brooding alone in his room in the palace]], and both Viola Giordano and Calixto Corrium will tell you to immediately go to the steward and have him arrested. This is all a trap to lead you off the trail of the real killer.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: To Ulfric. Everybody else can go hang, far as he's concerned.
-->'''Wuunferth:''' If Ulfric needs a favour, he has it. Anyone ''else'' better pay well for the service.
* WizardBeard: By far one of the most traditional-looking wizards in Skyrim.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Clan Shatter-Shield]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/WilliamSalyers (Torbjorn); Martina Lotun (Tova); Corri English (Nilsine) (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Dmitry Tarnover (Torbjorn); Tatyana Shitova (Tova); Daria Frolova (Nilsine) (Russian)[[/note]]
A family in mourning, they are trying to cope with a pair of recent tragedies. First, Friga Shatter-Shield was murdered by the Windhelm serial killer, and then they were robbed, seemingly by a family friend.
----
* AncestralWeapon: Aegisbane is the family [[DropTheHammer warhammer]] that was stolen by Alain Dufont. While you can loot it from his corpse, there is no way to return it to them.
* AssholeVictim: Torbjorn and Tova are not exactly as innocent as they seem, though there is no way to see this unless you do "Rise in the East," a quest unrelated to the Dark Brotherhood. See CorruptCorporateExecutive and FantasticRacism below.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: They paid the Blood Horker pirates to attack traders of the East Empire Trading company.
* DrivenToSuicide: If Nilsine dies by the time of "Mourning Never Comes", Tova commits suicide in her grief, leaving her husband Torbjorn as the only surviving member.
* DrowningMySorrows: Torbjorn Shatter-Shield has taken to alcohol to cope with his daughter's death.
* FantasticRacism: They only pay the Argonian dock workers a fraction of Nord workers' pay. Some of the workers admit to stealing cargo from them, but this is clearly only a result of said wages.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: You can find Alain Dufont, kill him (regardless of whether you're with the Dark Brotherhood or not), and take the stolen Shatter-Shield family weapon from his corpse. But there's no dialogue option that lets you return it to Torbjorn to prove Muiri's innocence.
* ItsAllJunk: If you eavesdrop on conversations in the Windhelm marketplace, Tova requests to bring some of Friga's belongings to Revyn Sadri to sell, noting that "my daughter doesn't need them anymore." He very gently assures her he'd be happy to look at them whenever it's convenient for her.
* MeaningfulName: Aegisbane, the warhammer, is definitely one for a clan named "Shatter-Shield".
* MiscarriageOfJustice: Muiri, a family friend, came to share in the family's grief, only to be charmed by the bandit Alain Dufont. He managed to rob the family ''and'' [[{{Frameup}} convince them that Muiri did it]], ruining their relationship. [[spoiler:[[FromBadToWorse Muiri took this so hard that she puts Nilsine as a bonus objective for her Dark Brotherhood contract on Alain - her fuzzy logic is that with both of their real daughters dead, Torbjorn and Tova will look on her as their daughter instead.]]]]
* PetTheDog: If you speak to Torbjorn about the dock workers' pay disparity, after helping him ease his wife's grief with an Amulet of Arkay (it's supposed to remind her that their daughter is in a better place), he agrees to drastically increase their pay with no protest - primarily out of respect for you.
* TraumaCongaLine: A particularly tragic example. Friga Shatter-Shield was murdered by The Butcher. Shortly afterwards, a bandit named Alain Dufont stole the family warhammer, Aegisbane. If the player joins the Dark Brotherhood, Nilsine Shatter-Shield is one of the earliest targets, and her murder results in the clan matriarch Tova committing suicide, leaving Torbjorn the only survivor.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Captain Lonely-Gale]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Paul Ganus (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Artyom Kretov (Russian)[[/note]]
A retired Nord ship captain that can often be found in Candlehearth Hall. He was meant to replace Jorlief as Windhelm's steward if the Imperials win the Civil War, but a bug prevented this. Version 1.3.2 of the Unofficial Skyrim Patch fixes this.
----
* HonestCorporateExecutive: When asked why [[spoiler:Brunwulf chose him as Steward]], he says it's because he always knew how to keep his men loyal, and always knew when to either spend or save coin, both of which come in handy for [[spoiler:Brunwulf's goal to refill Windhelm's coffers to renovate the Grey Quarter, as well as working to ease the tensions between the Nords and Argonians.]]
* TheRival: To Viola Giordano, who is also his AbhorrentAdmirer.
* UndyingLoyalty: When asked about the important people of Windhelm, he speaks of Ulfric with downright reverence in his voice.
-->'''Captain Lonely-Gale:''' ... And of course, there is Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Nurelion]]
[[quoteright:252:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nurelion_3853.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/{{Jim Cummings|1952}} (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Kuznetsov (Russian)[[/note]]
The Altmeri proprietor of The White Phial in Windhelm, he's spent his entire life searching for the legendary alchemy flask of the same name.
----
* DespairEventHorizon: After learning that [[spoiler:the White Phial is broken, and the knowledge to fix it is long gone]].
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: No matter when you retrieve the White Phial from its hiding place, Nurelion will not [[spoiler:start dying until after you've proceeded far enough in the main quest to be able to visit Paarthurnax on the Throat of the World, which is where one of the components required to repair it is located]].
* GrumpyOldMan: Generally rather rude.
* HopeSpot: You finally find the phial and return it to him. However, see DespairEventHorizon above for how that turns out.
* IncurableCoughOfDeath: His very first 'words' when you enter his shop and see him and his assistant talking.
* InsufferableGenius: Lampshaded by his assistant, who mentions that once you get past all the abrasiveness, Nurelion really is a ''brilliant'' alchemist. He's so well-regarded in his field, his assistant came all the way from Cyrodiil just to learn from him.
* {{Jerkass}}: His assistant, Quintus, admits that Nurelion can be rather abrasive. After you show Nurelion [[spoiler:the broken Phial]], he [[DudeWheresMyReward only tips you five gold]] for your troubles, which is just insulting. Then again, Nurelion ''is'' facing the prospect of dying with his lifelong dream unfulfilled. [[spoiler:Quintus apologizes for his master's manners and gives you a more substantial reward.]]
* LastRequest: He knows he's dying and wants the chance to experiment on the phial before he goes.
* LetThemDieHappy: [[spoiler:Quintus eventually repairs the Phial with your help (mostly), and is able to show it to him seconds before his last breath.]]
* RetiredBadass: He used to be an adventurer but has settled down after years of disappointment in his quest for the White Phial.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Oengul War-Anvil]]
[[quoteright:238:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/skyrim_npc_oengul_war-anvil_2377.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MichaelJGough (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Denis Shvedov (Russian)[[/note]]
The local blacksmith. A huge supporter of Ulfric, so much that he wants a copy of a sword given to a legendary Queen of Skyrim to give to Ulfric to have as High King. He wishes to prove that he is the best smith in Skyrim. He has an apprentice, Hermir Strong-Heart.
----
* {{Determinator}}: Openly states that he'd gladly smith a thousand swords and shields for the Stormcloaks if it helps win them the war.
* HeroicBSOD: Gets one if the Stormcloaks lose the Civil war, considering dropping his trade and just leaving (though where he would go is never explained). He decides to stay for the sake of his apprentice.
* MeaningfulName: War-Anvil, as he's a blacksmith who manufactures for the Stormcloak freedom fighters.
* TheRival: Sees himself as this to Eorlund Gray-Mane.
* UnknownRival: But Eorlund never even mentions him.
* WorthyOpponent: He has the utmost respect for Eorlund and regards him as a great smith. His observation that the Skyforge does give Eorlund a certain advantage over other smiths is not incorrect in the slightest, since the forge is described in several sources as being magical. His opinion of the man is nevertheless ''overwhelmingly'' positive.
* YouBastard: While he doesn't outright admonish you following an Imperial victory in the Civil War, he does become noticeably passive-aggressive towards you, even calling you a "Milk-Drinker". His apprentice, however, is ''much'' more open about her anger towards you.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hermir Strong-Heart]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Corri English (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Daria Frolova (Russian)[[/note]]
Oengul's apprentice, and a huge supporter of Ulfric and the Stormcloaks.
----
* {{Fangirl}}: Of Ulfric.
* HiddenDepths: But should the Imperials win the war, she'll freely admit to still supporting the Stormcloaks and any leader they might have in the future, showing that she cares more about Skyrim's freedom and what Ulfric represented for her than about Ulfric himself.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Rolff Stone-Fist]]
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rolff-stone-fist_1984.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Thor Edgell (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Yaroslav Agikyan (Russian)[[/note]]
Brother to Galmar. Rolff is seen when one first enters Windhelm bullying a Dunmer, Suvaris Atheron. He spends his days at or around the Candlehearth Hall drinking, and his nights in the Grey Quarters shouting racist insults at the local Dunmer populations, whom he is convinced are all Thalmor or Imperial spies.
----
* TheAlcoholic: Often gets drunk before shouting abuse at Dunmer or Argonians.
* BullyingADragon: Rather rude to [[OneManArmy the Dragonborn]] when they could theoretically kill him several times over.
* ButtMonkey: Owing to his essential status for many Thieves' Guild quests, he can't be killed and therefore is a great target for VideogameCrueltyPotential. He's also this InUniverse for many Dunmer owing to his alcoholic stupidity. In fact, several mods exist which take away his "essential" status, while many other PC players opt to kill him with console commands, just because of how annoying he is.
* DefeatMeansFriendship: Beat him in a brawl and he'll consider you a friend, even if you are a Dunmer or Imperial. Unfortunately, he won't actually shut up about his racism, even if it's the reason you kicked his arse in the first place.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The first thing you see him do is bullying a Dunmer and threatening her.
* FantasticRacism: He proudly proclaims his entirely unfounded hatred of Dunmer and Argonians, even if you belong to one of the races, and he walks about the streets of Windhelm at night shouting racial slurs even if no one is there to hear him.
** If you're a Dunmer, the first thing he'll say to you is "You damn gray-skin. Go back to Morrowind!"
* {{Hypocrite}}: He complains the Dunmer must be spies because they do not support or help the Stormcloaks... yet he himself does not do anything to help them, either. He also claims they are parasites, thieves and just living off the Nords - big accusations from a man who does not actually have a job and spends all his days at the inn drinking. Note that unlike his friend, the beggar Angrenor Once-Honored, Rolff doesn't have the excuse of having suffered a debilitating injury on the front line of the rebellion.
* InsaneTrollLogic: He believes that all Dunmer are Imperial spies... owing to the fact that an entirely different species of Mer is manipulating the Empire. He also has no proof that the Dunmer are spying whatsoever.
* {{Jerkass}}: He really does and says everything he can to make you ''not'' want to like him. Frankly, it's a wonder he's related to Galmar at all.
* PatrioticFervor: Not in a good way, unfortunately, as his definition of patriotism is "be a dick to any non-Nords in the nearby vicinity".
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Not exactly ''evil'' per se, but he definitely makes other Stormcloaks (or sympathisers in his case) look downright liberal. To keep this in perspective, his brother and Ulfric will allow you to join regardless of race and you can rise to the second-highest rank possible regardless of race. Rolff will just shout abuse at you until you punch him in the face, and even after he doesn't moderate his views to anybody except you.
* RightForTheWrongReasons: Possibly. Rolff reached his conclusion that all Dunmer are Imperial or Thalmor spies based entirely on his FantasticRacism. However, if you poke around the Dunmer-operated New Gnisis Cornerclub, you'll find Imperial armor and memorabilia prominently displayed, indicating that a few Dark Elves might indeed ''be'' Imperial spies. (Some of them might also be retirees from the Legion, or just like to collect Imperial memorabilia, but there's some ground for suspicion, at least.)
* SiblingYinYang: Galmar Stone-Fist is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure for the Stormcloaks who's willing to accept any recruit, regardless of race, and often has to pull Ulfric's head out of the mythic clouds and back down to reality. Rolff is a drunken slob who does basically nothing other than persecute Dunmer.
* VeryPunchableMan: The ''only'' meaningful interaction you can have with the guy is to start a fistfight with him over his racist attitude, which earns you some gold if you win (and you probably will). That's right, the game ''wants'' you to punch the crap out of him.
* WeHaveWaysOfMakingYouTalk: He threatens various Dunmer with this.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Niranye]]
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/600px-sr-npc-niranye-1_359.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Julianne Buescher (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Bella Co (Russian)[[/note]]
An Altmer merchant in the Windhelm marketplace. Some of her dialogue at first appears... less-than-trustworthy, and for good reason once you find out that she has ties to the Thieves' Guild as well as their rival guild, the Summerset Shadows.
----
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Trafficking stolen goods is just fine, but stealing from the dead is not.
* FriendInTheBlackMarket: She has connections to the Thieves' Guild as well as the Summerset Shadows. After dealing with the latter, she goes back to dealing with the Guild and acts as a fence for you.
* MobWar: Finds herself in the middle of one between the Thieves' Guild and the Summerset Shadows. With enough persuasion, she'll sell out the Shadows to you, since they're a lot less honorable than the Guild and they forced her to work for them in the first place.
* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: You can witness her conversation with Jora, wife of Lortheim; the couple are a Priest and Priestess of Talos. She subtly offers to have them smuggled out of the city if the Thalmor were to strike in some way, and even though they refuse, they are grateful for the consideration.
* PetTheDog: Offering to smuggle Jora and Lortheim out if the Thalmor attack certainly counts.
* RobbingTheDead: This is the Summerset Shadows' M.O., and what makes them so detestable to Niranye.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's rather cute and, being a Altmer, is taller than anyone else.
* TechnicolorEyes: In the Special Edition, her eyes are so brightly golden that they almost glow.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Shahvee]]
[[quoteright:185:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shahvee_skyrim_8065.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Renée Victor (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Catherine Novoaydarskaya (Russian)[[/note]]
One of the many Argonians working at Windhelm's docks, who can ask the Dragonborn's help to get her stolen Amulet of Zenithar back. She is the only female Argonian available for marriage.
----
* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[VideoGameCaringPotential If you choose to marry her.]]
* HeelFaithTurn: [[spoiler:If you complete her quest, she will confess she used to be a thief before starting to pray to Zenithar, and teach you some of her old tricks as a reward.]]
* HotGuyUglyWife: Potentially, if you marry her, though whether you find Argonians ugly or not really is a matter of personal opinion and whether or not you're playing an Argonian yourself.
* NiceGirl: Always salutes you politely when you engage conversation with her, and unlike other Argonians in Windhelm, she doesn't seem to feel any grudge against Nords.
* ThePollyanna: She lives in miserable conditions, in a province where [[FantasticRacism her species is ignored at best and despised as worse]], on the dock of a city she is not allowed, and paid pittance to do back-breaking labor. She ''still'' manages to keep a happy and cheerful attitude.
-->"Sometimes life puts you in difficult circumstances you didn't choose. But being happy or unhappy is a choice you make, and I've chosen to make the best of things that I can."
* RagsToRiches: Invoked by the player should a wealthy Dragonborn marry her, especially if she moves into one of the nicer houses in the game.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Revyn Sadri]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexander Kovrizhnykh (Russian)[[/note]]
A Dunmer merchant running a pawn shop in the Gray Quarter, who accidentally becomes involved in criminal activity.
----
* BadLiar: He continually insists that "all [his] goods are legitimate," before admitting his guilt: he had accidentally purchased a ring before realizing it had been stolen from one of the city's more wealthy and prolific citizens.
* FailedASpotCheck: He will continue to remark that he only deals in legitimate merchandise and doesn't need trouble with the law, which crosses into this trope if his spouse the Dragonborn is leader of the ThievesGuild and Dark Brotherhood.
* NiceGuy: Usually friendly and good-natured, and appears to be very charismatic and generous. He thanks the player profusely, should they help him in his dilemma; however, his demeanor takes a sharp turn if you choose to tattle.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: His sister, Idesa, really just looks like a modified version of his model; they even wear the same (gender-specific) outfit.
* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Emphasizes to visitors that he buys his goods fairly and legitimately; all it really takes is a suspicious look to make him immediately backtrack.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Susannah the Wicked]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Susan Eisenberg (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Olga Kuznetsova (Russian)[[/note]]
A barmaid working in the Candlehearth Hall in Windhelm and the most recent victim of a serial killer who already killed four women.
----
* IronicNickname: For someone known as the Wicked, she is actually kind of sweet. In contrast to [[ChildHater Grelod the Kind]]...
* NiceGirl: She is one of the few Nords that shows sympathy for the Dunmer's plight, and while her interactions with the Dragonborn are limited, she is very complementary and welcoming.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: Her death at the hands of the Butcher is scripted to kickstart the "Blood on the Ice" sidequest, and there is nothing that can be done to prevent it. Due to the way the sidequest works, [[PosthumousCharacter it's entirely possible for Susannah to turn up dead as soon as you first set foot in Windhelm]].
* TheTease: She is rather flirty, but according to Elda, it's just to get better tips.
[[/folder]]
Eastmarch is a hold in eastern Skyrim, with its primary geographical feature being its volcanic tundra, dotted with steam vents and hot springs, but there is also the highlands and boreal forests of Giant's Run. Its capital is Windhelm, a major port city situated on the mouth of the Yorgrim river leading out to the perilous Sea of Ghosts, bringing in commerce across the north of the continent. Windhelm was built by the Atmorans in the Merethic Era and so is the oldest continuously inhabited human settlement in all Tamriel, and many Nordic kings through the ages have called this city their seat of power, giving the city great cultural and historical significance. Dunmer and Argonians have a notably big presence in the capital due to the hold bordering Morrowind which lies across the Velothi Mountains to the east, but they find little hospitality from the locals. Its banner is a profiled head of a roaring bear on a blue background, an emblem shared by the Stormcloak Militia. Its Jarl is Ulfric Stormcloak, leader of the Stormcloak Rebellion.
----
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Alain Dufont]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/StephenRussell (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Eugene Waltz (Russian)[[/note]]
An infamous bandit lord that has taken over the Dwarven ruins of Raldbthar. Sometime before the events of the game, he took advantage of Clan Shatter-Shield's grief over Friga's death to con a large sum of gold from them and fled the city, leaving his fling Miuri to take the fall for the theft.
----
* AssholeVictim: Most Dark Brotherhood contracts are genuinely nice people who absolutely do not deserve their fates. Alain is ''not'' one of them.
* DropTheHammer: Wields the unique warhammer Aegisbane, which he stole from the Shatter-Shields.
* SequenceBreaking: It is entirely possible to come across Raldbthar and kill him and his men without ever even joining the Brotherhood.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ambarys Rendar]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/KeithSzarabajka (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Vladislav Kopp (Russian)[[/note]]
The innkeeper of the New Gnisis Cornerclub in Windhelm. He is a Dunmer supporter of the Empire and extremely vocal about his dislike of Nords.
----
* FreudianExcuse: His abrasiveness is due to Ulfric's mistreatment of the Dunmer.
* {{Jerkass}}: While his hatred of the Stormcloaks and the racist Nords in Windhelm is understandable, he extends this hatred to all Nords (even if the Empire, which he openly admires and has many Nord warriors, takes Windhelm) and treats his fellow dark elf Suvaris Atheron like a CategoryTraitor for working for Nords. He will also be snarky towards the player if they are non-Dunmer (especially if they are Nords themselves), but he will be otherwise [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold friendly]] to you if you are a Dunmer.
* MissingWhiteWomanSyndrome: Inverted. He is uncaring towards the victims of Windhelm's serial killer because they were Nords.
-->'''Rendar:''' None of that matters to me. Until someone takes a Dunmer, I let Windhelm deal with its own problems.
* NoSympathy: He is very inconsiderate towards Dunmer that work for Nords, as well as the serial killer's female victims.
* SociallyUnacceptableCollection: He has a display of Imperial armor on the second floor of his establishment despite it being in a staunchly anti-Imperial city, likely in protest at the FantasticRacism his people receive from the locals.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Aventus Arentino]]
[[quoteright:236:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aventus_aretino_9906.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Reese C. Hartwig (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Irina Grishina (Russian)[[/note]]
A young boy whose mother recently passed away. Aventus was sent to the Honorhall Orphanage in Riften, but he flees back to Windhelm to escape Grelod the Kind's abuse, and rumors start circulating of his attempts to contact the Dark Brotherhood.
----
* CreepyChild: He's a little boy trying to contact a cult of death-worshiping assassins using what are heavily implied to be ''his dead mother's remains'' as the necessary body parts for the Black Sacrament. It's also clear that some time has passed between his mother's death, his stay at the orphanage, and his return to Windhelm - meaning that he would have had to go grave-robbing to retrieve her remains, if they are even hers.
* ConfirmationBias: InUniverse. When you speak to him, no matter how you try to say otherwise, he will refuse to see you as anything other than the Dark Brotherhood assassin savior sent to him by the Night Mother.
* {{Determinator}}: No matter how exhausted he is ("So... very tired..."), he won't stop chanting and praying the Night Mother until you put an end to his misery by talking to him.
* HeartwarmingOrphan: Bizarrely enough, he still manages to be this too. He's only contacting the Brotherhood because he wants to save his friends from Grelod's horrible abuse.
* HeroWorshipper: To the ''[[MurderInc Dark Brotherhood]]'' after you fulfill his contract. He tells you that he's going to become an assassin when he grows up, so he can help other children like you helped him.
* FolkHero: Becomes one to the children at the Orphanage, who cheer Aventus for getting the Dark Brotherhood to kill Grelod and leaves at least one of them musing on the things that can be accomplished through murder. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Nice work, Dovahkiin]].
* TakeThatAudience: His quest, and the overall introduction to the Dark Brotherhood, is carefully designed to make you feel a little ashamed of yourself. In ''Oblivion'', it was possible to be contacted by the Brotherhood by accident, but not so in this game. Specifically, you must break into Aventus's home, get mistaken for or pretend to be someone you're not (although the only other choice is to walk away and leave the quest unfinished), murder an AssholeVictim in cold blood, and then return to a child and tell him that you just solved all of his problems through murder. He also tells you, quite happily, that he's going to grow up to be an assassin like you so he can help children, too. Also, due to a bug, he'll never actually return to the orphanage so you can't adopt him (with the ''Hearthfire'' DLC) and potentially guide him towards a nobler path.
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Arentino's childish attempts to contact the Brotherhood ultimately determine the future of the Brotherhood itself, ranging from [[spoiler:its potential destruction]] to [[spoiler:the death of the Emperor]].
* VagueAge: Not counting [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld Babette]], he's the sole aversion of this trope among the children in Skyrim. A letter in his house very clearly states he was 10 when his mother died, making him either 10 or 11 during the events of the game.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Calixto Corrium]]
[[quoteright:240:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/npc_calixtocorrium_4889.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' George Coe (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Mikhailov (Russian)[[/note]]
The eccentric proprietor of Windhelm's House of Curiosities, where he has an interesting variety of items on display. And a very dark secret.
----
* AffablyEvil: He's pretty friendly [[spoiler: for a brutal murderer.]]
* AlasPoorVillain: [[spoiler:The reveal from his journals that he was trying to resurrect his sister elicit some sympathy for him.]]
* AngstySurvivingTwin: If asked, he talks about his departed sister Lucilla, whom he's still mourning. [[AllThereInTheManual The official strategy guide mentions that they were twins.]]
* BewareTheNiceOnes: His cheery and eccentric demeanour masks a core of ''stone-cold lunacy''.
* BrotherSisterIncest: This may have been the case, though it's not confirmed. After [[spoiler:you confront and kill Calixto at the end of the quest, you can loot his body]] to get the key to his personal trunk, then enter his house/museum and go upstairs to unlock said trunk. Inside is his journal, in which he writes as though speaking to his sister, and some of the wording is a little {{squick}}y.
* ChekhovsGunman: When you first come upon a murder victim in Windhelm, he'll be one of the witnesses, and the game sets him up as just a random bystander. Turns out, he's a just little more important than that...
* CollectorOfTheStrange: Among other things, he's collected some embalming tools from ancient Nord barrows, a shelf full of rare alchemy ingredients, several soul gems, a 'Book of Fate' (which looks blank to you, but it's supposed to reveal your future[[note]]There is a reason why the Dovahkiin would only see blank pages in the Book of Fate even if Calixto is telling the truth about it showing one's future: [[http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Hero the Dovahkiin]] doesn't exactly ''have'' a defined destiny in the way most others have.[[/note]]), and a supposedly mystical flute whose tune could make any listener dance uncontrollably.
* FreudianExcuse: He lost his sister while adventuring, and [[spoiler:committed the murders as part of a ritual to resurrect her.]]
* MemeticBadass: He tells a story about an in-universe one: Ysgramor, who was able to eat soup with a ''fork''. And he has the very implement on display! (It's even labelled 'Ysgramor's Soup Spoon' despite being a fork.)
* MisanthropeSupreme: [[spoiler:His disdain for the people of Skyrim is made evident in one of his journals. The one person he ''doesn't'' hate is his sister.]]
* {{Necromancer}}: Speaking with him about the mysterious amulet found in Hjerim suggests that despite his supposed ignorance, he knows a great deal on the subject. [[spoiler:It's later revealed that it's actually the infamous Necromancer's Amulet and belonged to him, with his Butcher journal revealing that his entire killing spree was to acquire parts to resurrect his sister.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: His cheerful persona and (according to Wuunferth) ignorance of most of the magical items in his shop are revealed to be a ruse, designed to deflect suspicion off himself.
* RedHerring: Bring him the Strange Amulet you find among a murderer's possessions and he'll identify it as a Wheelstone, tokens given to some court mages upon their appointment to the position. Describe it to Windhelm's actual court mage and he'll all but {{facepalm}} at the misidentification. [[spoiler:Of course, this is entirely deliberate on Calixto's part - he's throwing you off the trail. The Amulet is a powerful necromancer's token.]]
** Astute players might SpotTheThread if [[spoiler:you show it to Jorleif, the steward in the Windhelm court, who pretty much says, "I dunno what it is, take it to Calixto." That he doesn't recognize it as an heirloom of the Windhelm court is telling.]]
* RetiredBadass: Journeyed all over Tamriel with his sister.
* SerialKiller: [[spoiler:He targets women (or wo''mer'') and surgically removes parts of their bodies for use in his ritual to resurrect his sister.]]
* SiblingTeam: He and his sister apparently went on all sorts of adventures in the past.
* TooDumbToLive:
** Many probably won't notice it, but he is without a doubt one of the most worthy people of this trope in the game. He somehow thinks he can get away with [[spoiler:murdering someone right ''in the middle of the market area'' of Windhelm]], and what showers him with this trope even more is the fact that he isn't wearing any robe, hood, or mask, and is attempting the murder barely a dozen yards from a permanently posted guard. Even at night, he'd be hard to miss.
** The person he attacks is this too. [[spoiler:If you go to the Steward instead of the Court Mage, the Mage gets imprisoned and Calixto somehow manages to get away with that murder.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Him being [[spoiler:the Butcher of Windhelm]] is not initially made clear and has to be pieced together throughout the "Blood on the Ice" quest.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: He adored his sister and desperately searched to find some artifact or method to bring her back to life; eventually, he did find one. Unfortunately, that's proven a little problematic, leading him and sanity to say [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope goodbye to one another]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jorleif]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Paul Ganus (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Artyom Kretov (Russian)[[/note]]
Ulfric Stormcloak's steward, tasked with the day-to-day operations of the hold, as his own mind is focused on the civil war.
----
* HonestAdvisor: Ulfric occasionally asks for his counsel, even on matters on which he isn't an expert, because he doesn't hesitate to speak his mind.
* HypercompetentSidekick: He is basically in charge of Windhelm, because Ulfric and Galmar are too occupied with the war.
* LoyalToThePosition: Unlike other stewards, Jorleif remains in his position when the Jarl is deposed and continues his day-to-day duties. His post-Civil War dialogue has him expressing relief that it's over even if the Stormcloaks lost.
%%* ReasonableAuthorityFigure
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Wuunferth the Unliving]]
[[quoteright:218:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sr-npc-wuunferth_the_unliving_5980.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/{{Jim Cummings|1952}} (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Kuznetsov (Russian)[[/note]]
The Court Mage of Windhelm, and a master of the Destruction school of magic. He has a a bit of a ferocious reputation, but is a mostly decent fellow aside from his anti-social ways. By his own admission he does little around the castle, but Ulfric allows him to stick around and work undisturbed due to their friendship with each other.
----
* BadassBookworm: He's an extremely capable Destruction Wizard, and provides training in that school.
* BadassBoast: Makes one when you meet him.
-->'''Wuunferth:''' Whatever you've heard I can do is probably true.
* CourtMage: To Ulfric, but Ulfric has little need for magic on account of his mastery of the Voice, so Wuunferth is mostly allowed to work on personal projects.
-->'''Dragonborn:''' Does Ulfric have much need for magic?\\
'''Wuunferth:''' No. But then, I have little need for Ulfric. We mostly just leave each other to our work.
* DarkIsNotEvil: Despite living in the darkest part of the Palace of Kings, and his sobriquet implying he may be a Necromancer, he's actually one of the most reasonable and sensible wizards to be found in Skyrim. And unlike Farengar, he doesn't let the Nordic suspicion of magic turn him into a passive-aggressive asshole.
** His potentially being a Necromancer -- or at least well-versed in the subject -- isn't even illegal, according to the Mages in the College of Winterhold. They admit that even when it was banned by the Mages' Guild, the law was ''never'' enforced in Skyrim.
* GrumpyOldMan: He's polite, but kind of irritable.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Over the course of the questline to find the Butcher, the player can go to him and tell him what they've found. While he takes offense to being suspected of necromancy, he quickly gets over it and starts readily sharing some very extensive knowledge that proves integral in capturing the murderer, and holds no hard feelings to the player for [[spoiler:idiotically suspecting him of being the culprit with no proof]].
* RedHerring: [[spoiler:For the "Blood on the ice" quest. When you find the killer's diary detailing his past at the College of Winterhold, Wuunferth is the obvious suspect, since he is the only known mage in town and spends nearly all of his time [[PoorCommunicationKills brooding alone in his room in the palace]], and both Viola Giordano and Calixto Corrium will tell you to immediately go to the steward and have him arrested. This is all a trap to lead you off the trail of the real killer.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: To Ulfric. Everybody else can go hang, far as he's concerned.
-->'''Wuunferth:''' If Ulfric needs a favour, he has it. Anyone ''else'' better pay well for the service.
* WizardBeard: By far one of the most traditional-looking wizards in Skyrim.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Clan Shatter-Shield]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/WilliamSalyers (Torbjorn); Martina Lotun (Tova); Corri English (Nilsine) (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Dmitry Tarnover (Torbjorn); Tatyana Shitova (Tova); Daria Frolova (Nilsine) (Russian)[[/note]]
A family in mourning, they are trying to cope with a pair of recent tragedies. First, Friga Shatter-Shield was murdered by the Windhelm serial killer, and then they were robbed, seemingly by a family friend.
----
* AncestralWeapon: Aegisbane is the family [[DropTheHammer warhammer]] that was stolen by Alain Dufont. While you can loot it from his corpse, there is no way to return it to them.
* AssholeVictim: Torbjorn and Tova are not exactly as innocent as they seem, though there is no way to see this unless you do "Rise in the East," a quest unrelated to the Dark Brotherhood. See CorruptCorporateExecutive and FantasticRacism below.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: They paid the Blood Horker pirates to attack traders of the East Empire Trading company.
* DrivenToSuicide: If Nilsine dies by the time of "Mourning Never Comes", Tova commits suicide in her grief, leaving her husband Torbjorn as the only surviving member.
* DrowningMySorrows: Torbjorn Shatter-Shield has taken to alcohol to cope with his daughter's death.
* FantasticRacism: They only pay the Argonian dock workers a fraction of Nord workers' pay. Some of the workers admit to stealing cargo from them, but this is clearly only a result of said wages.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: You can find Alain Dufont, kill him (regardless of whether you're with the Dark Brotherhood or not), and take the stolen Shatter-Shield family weapon from his corpse. But there's no dialogue option that lets you return it to Torbjorn to prove Muiri's innocence.
* ItsAllJunk: If you eavesdrop on conversations in the Windhelm marketplace, Tova requests to bring some of Friga's belongings to Revyn Sadri to sell, noting that "my daughter doesn't need them anymore." He very gently assures her he'd be happy to look at them whenever it's convenient for her.
* MeaningfulName: Aegisbane, the warhammer, is definitely one for a clan named "Shatter-Shield".
* MiscarriageOfJustice: Muiri, a family friend, came to share in the family's grief, only to be charmed by the bandit Alain Dufont. He managed to rob the family ''and'' [[{{Frameup}} convince them that Muiri did it]], ruining their relationship. [[spoiler:[[FromBadToWorse Muiri took this so hard that she puts Nilsine as a bonus objective for her Dark Brotherhood contract on Alain - her fuzzy logic is that with both of their real daughters dead, Torbjorn and Tova will look on her as their daughter instead.]]]]
* PetTheDog: If you speak to Torbjorn about the dock workers' pay disparity, after helping him ease his wife's grief with an Amulet of Arkay (it's supposed to remind her that their daughter is in a better place), he agrees to drastically increase their pay with no protest - primarily out of respect for you.
* TraumaCongaLine: A particularly tragic example. Friga Shatter-Shield was murdered by The Butcher. Shortly afterwards, a bandit named Alain Dufont stole the family warhammer, Aegisbane. If the player joins the Dark Brotherhood, Nilsine Shatter-Shield is one of the earliest targets, and her murder results in the clan matriarch Tova committing suicide, leaving Torbjorn the only survivor.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Captain Lonely-Gale]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Paul Ganus (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Artyom Kretov (Russian)[[/note]]
A retired Nord ship captain that can often be found in Candlehearth Hall. He was meant to replace Jorlief as Windhelm's steward if the Imperials win the Civil War, but a bug prevented this. Version 1.3.2 of the Unofficial Skyrim Patch fixes this.
----
* HonestCorporateExecutive: When asked why [[spoiler:Brunwulf chose him as Steward]], he says it's because he always knew how to keep his men loyal, and always knew when to either spend or save coin, both of which come in handy for [[spoiler:Brunwulf's goal to refill Windhelm's coffers to renovate the Grey Quarter, as well as working to ease the tensions between the Nords and Argonians.]]
* TheRival: To Viola Giordano, who is also his AbhorrentAdmirer.
* UndyingLoyalty: When asked about the important people of Windhelm, he speaks of Ulfric with downright reverence in his voice.
-->'''Captain Lonely-Gale:''' ... And of course, there is Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Nurelion]]
[[quoteright:252:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nurelion_3853.png]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/{{Jim Cummings|1952}} (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexey Kuznetsov (Russian)[[/note]]
The Altmeri proprietor of The White Phial in Windhelm, he's spent his entire life searching for the legendary alchemy flask of the same name.
----
* DespairEventHorizon: After learning that [[spoiler:the White Phial is broken, and the knowledge to fix it is long gone]].
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: No matter when you retrieve the White Phial from its hiding place, Nurelion will not [[spoiler:start dying until after you've proceeded far enough in the main quest to be able to visit Paarthurnax on the Throat of the World, which is where one of the components required to repair it is located]].
* GrumpyOldMan: Generally rather rude.
* HopeSpot: You finally find the phial and return it to him. However, see DespairEventHorizon above for how that turns out.
* IncurableCoughOfDeath: His very first 'words' when you enter his shop and see him and his assistant talking.
* InsufferableGenius: Lampshaded by his assistant, who mentions that once you get past all the abrasiveness, Nurelion really is a ''brilliant'' alchemist. He's so well-regarded in his field, his assistant came all the way from Cyrodiil just to learn from him.
* {{Jerkass}}: His assistant, Quintus, admits that Nurelion can be rather abrasive. After you show Nurelion [[spoiler:the broken Phial]], he [[DudeWheresMyReward only tips you five gold]] for your troubles, which is just insulting. Then again, Nurelion ''is'' facing the prospect of dying with his lifelong dream unfulfilled. [[spoiler:Quintus apologizes for his master's manners and gives you a more substantial reward.]]
* LastRequest: He knows he's dying and wants the chance to experiment on the phial before he goes.
* LetThemDieHappy: [[spoiler:Quintus eventually repairs the Phial with your help (mostly), and is able to show it to him seconds before his last breath.]]
* RetiredBadass: He used to be an adventurer but has settled down after years of disappointment in his quest for the White Phial.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Oengul War-Anvil]]
[[quoteright:238:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/skyrim_npc_oengul_war-anvil_2377.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MichaelJGough (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Denis Shvedov (Russian)[[/note]]
The local blacksmith. A huge supporter of Ulfric, so much that he wants a copy of a sword given to a legendary Queen of Skyrim to give to Ulfric to have as High King. He wishes to prove that he is the best smith in Skyrim. He has an apprentice, Hermir Strong-Heart.
----
* {{Determinator}}: Openly states that he'd gladly smith a thousand swords and shields for the Stormcloaks if it helps win them the war.
* HeroicBSOD: Gets one if the Stormcloaks lose the Civil war, considering dropping his trade and just leaving (though where he would go is never explained). He decides to stay for the sake of his apprentice.
* MeaningfulName: War-Anvil, as he's a blacksmith who manufactures for the Stormcloak freedom fighters.
* TheRival: Sees himself as this to Eorlund Gray-Mane.
* UnknownRival: But Eorlund never even mentions him.
* WorthyOpponent: He has the utmost respect for Eorlund and regards him as a great smith. His observation that the Skyforge does give Eorlund a certain advantage over other smiths is not incorrect in the slightest, since the forge is described in several sources as being magical. His opinion of the man is nevertheless ''overwhelmingly'' positive.
* YouBastard: While he doesn't outright admonish you following an Imperial victory in the Civil War, he does become noticeably passive-aggressive towards you, even calling you a "Milk-Drinker". His apprentice, however, is ''much'' more open about her anger towards you.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hermir Strong-Heart]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Corri English (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Daria Frolova (Russian)[[/note]]
Oengul's apprentice, and a huge supporter of Ulfric and the Stormcloaks.
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* {{Fangirl}}: Of Ulfric.
* HiddenDepths: But should the Imperials win the war, she'll freely admit to still supporting the Stormcloaks and any leader they might have in the future, showing that she cares more about Skyrim's freedom and what Ulfric represented for her than about Ulfric himself.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Rolff Stone-Fist]]
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rolff-stone-fist_1984.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Thor Edgell (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Yaroslav Agikyan (Russian)[[/note]]
Brother to Galmar. Rolff is seen when one first enters Windhelm bullying a Dunmer, Suvaris Atheron. He spends his days at or around the Candlehearth Hall drinking, and his nights in the Grey Quarters shouting racist insults at the local Dunmer populations, whom he is convinced are all Thalmor or Imperial spies.
----
* TheAlcoholic: Often gets drunk before shouting abuse at Dunmer or Argonians.
* BullyingADragon: Rather rude to [[OneManArmy the Dragonborn]] when they could theoretically kill him several times over.
* ButtMonkey: Owing to his essential status for many Thieves' Guild quests, he can't be killed and therefore is a great target for VideogameCrueltyPotential. He's also this InUniverse for many Dunmer owing to his alcoholic stupidity. In fact, several mods exist which take away his "essential" status, while many other PC players opt to kill him with console commands, just because of how annoying he is.
* DefeatMeansFriendship: Beat him in a brawl and he'll consider you a friend, even if you are a Dunmer or Imperial. Unfortunately, he won't actually shut up about his racism, even if it's the reason you kicked his arse in the first place.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The first thing you see him do is bullying a Dunmer and threatening her.
* FantasticRacism: He proudly proclaims his entirely unfounded hatred of Dunmer and Argonians, even if you belong to one of the races, and he walks about the streets of Windhelm at night shouting racial slurs even if no one is there to hear him.
** If you're a Dunmer, the first thing he'll say to you is "You damn gray-skin. Go back to Morrowind!"
* {{Hypocrite}}: He complains the Dunmer must be spies because they do not support or help the Stormcloaks... yet he himself does not do anything to help them, either. He also claims they are parasites, thieves and just living off the Nords - big accusations from a man who does not actually have a job and spends all his days at the inn drinking. Note that unlike his friend, the beggar Angrenor Once-Honored, Rolff doesn't have the excuse of having suffered a debilitating injury on the front line of the rebellion.
* InsaneTrollLogic: He believes that all Dunmer are Imperial spies... owing to the fact that an entirely different species of Mer is manipulating the Empire. He also has no proof that the Dunmer are spying whatsoever.
* {{Jerkass}}: He really does and says everything he can to make you ''not'' want to like him. Frankly, it's a wonder he's related to Galmar at all.
* PatrioticFervor: Not in a good way, unfortunately, as his definition of patriotism is "be a dick to any non-Nords in the nearby vicinity".
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Not exactly ''evil'' per se, but he definitely makes other Stormcloaks (or sympathisers in his case) look downright liberal. To keep this in perspective, his brother and Ulfric will allow you to join regardless of race and you can rise to the second-highest rank possible regardless of race. Rolff will just shout abuse at you until you punch him in the face, and even after he doesn't moderate his views to anybody except you.
* RightForTheWrongReasons: Possibly. Rolff reached his conclusion that all Dunmer are Imperial or Thalmor spies based entirely on his FantasticRacism. However, if you poke around the Dunmer-operated New Gnisis Cornerclub, you'll find Imperial armor and memorabilia prominently displayed, indicating that a few Dark Elves might indeed ''be'' Imperial spies. (Some of them might also be retirees from the Legion, or just like to collect Imperial memorabilia, but there's some ground for suspicion, at least.)
* SiblingYinYang: Galmar Stone-Fist is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure for the Stormcloaks who's willing to accept any recruit, regardless of race, and often has to pull Ulfric's head out of the mythic clouds and back down to reality. Rolff is a drunken slob who does basically nothing other than persecute Dunmer.
* VeryPunchableMan: The ''only'' meaningful interaction you can have with the guy is to start a fistfight with him over his racist attitude, which earns you some gold if you win (and you probably will). That's right, the game ''wants'' you to punch the crap out of him.
* WeHaveWaysOfMakingYouTalk: He threatens various Dunmer with this.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Niranye]]
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/600px-sr-npc-niranye-1_359.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Julianne Buescher (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Bella Co (Russian)[[/note]]
An Altmer merchant in the Windhelm marketplace. Some of her dialogue at first appears... less-than-trustworthy, and for good reason once you find out that she has ties to the Thieves' Guild as well as their rival guild, the Summerset Shadows.
----
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Trafficking stolen goods is just fine, but stealing from the dead is not.
* FriendInTheBlackMarket: She has connections to the Thieves' Guild as well as the Summerset Shadows. After dealing with the latter, she goes back to dealing with the Guild and acts as a fence for you.
* MobWar: Finds herself in the middle of one between the Thieves' Guild and the Summerset Shadows. With enough persuasion, she'll sell out the Shadows to you, since they're a lot less honorable than the Guild and they forced her to work for them in the first place.
* MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch: You can witness her conversation with Jora, wife of Lortheim; the couple are a Priest and Priestess of Talos. She subtly offers to have them smuggled out of the city if the Thalmor were to strike in some way, and even though they refuse, they are grateful for the consideration.
* PetTheDog: Offering to smuggle Jora and Lortheim out if the Thalmor attack certainly counts.
* RobbingTheDead: This is the Summerset Shadows' M.O., and what makes them so detestable to Niranye.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's rather cute and, being a Altmer, is taller than anyone else.
* TechnicolorEyes: In the Special Edition, her eyes are so brightly golden that they almost glow.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Shahvee]]
[[quoteright:185:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shahvee_skyrim_8065.jpg]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Renée Victor (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Catherine Novoaydarskaya (Russian)[[/note]]
One of the many Argonians working at Windhelm's docks, who can ask the Dragonborn's help to get her stolen Amulet of Zenithar back. She is the only female Argonian available for marriage.
----
* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[VideoGameCaringPotential If you choose to marry her.]]
* HeelFaithTurn: [[spoiler:If you complete her quest, she will confess she used to be a thief before starting to pray to Zenithar, and teach you some of her old tricks as a reward.]]
* HotGuyUglyWife: Potentially, if you marry her, though whether you find Argonians ugly or not really is a matter of personal opinion and whether or not you're playing an Argonian yourself.
* NiceGirl: Always salutes you politely when you engage conversation with her, and unlike other Argonians in Windhelm, she doesn't seem to feel any grudge against Nords.
* ThePollyanna: She lives in miserable conditions, in a province where [[FantasticRacism her species is ignored at best and despised as worse]], on the dock of a city she is not allowed, and paid pittance to do back-breaking labor. She ''still'' manages to keep a happy and cheerful attitude.
-->"Sometimes life puts you in difficult circumstances you didn't choose. But being happy or unhappy is a choice you make, and I've chosen to make the best of things that I can."
* RagsToRiches: Invoked by the player should a wealthy Dragonborn marry her, especially if she moves into one of the nicer houses in the game.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Revyn Sadri]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Alexander Kovrizhnykh (Russian)[[/note]]
A Dunmer merchant running a pawn shop in the Gray Quarter, who accidentally becomes involved in criminal activity.
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* BadLiar: He continually insists that "all [his] goods are legitimate," before admitting his guilt: he had accidentally purchased a ring before realizing it had been stolen from one of the city's more wealthy and prolific citizens.
* FailedASpotCheck: He will continue to remark that he only deals in legitimate merchandise and doesn't need trouble with the law, which crosses into this trope if his spouse the Dragonborn is leader of the ThievesGuild and Dark Brotherhood.
* NiceGuy: Usually friendly and good-natured, and appears to be very charismatic and generous. He thanks the player profusely, should they help him in his dilemma; however, his demeanor takes a sharp turn if you choose to tattle.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: His sister, Idesa, really just looks like a modified version of his model; they even wear the same (gender-specific) outfit.
* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Emphasizes to visitors that he buys his goods fairly and legitimately; all it really takes is a suspicious look to make him immediately backtrack.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Susannah the Wicked]]
->'''Voiced by:''' Susan Eisenberg (English)[[note]]'''Other Languages''':Olga Kuznetsova (Russian)[[/note]]
A barmaid working in the Candlehearth Hall in Windhelm and the most recent victim of a serial killer who already killed four women.
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* IronicNickname: For someone known as the Wicked, she is actually kind of sweet. In contrast to [[ChildHater Grelod the Kind]]...
* NiceGirl: She is one of the few Nords that shows sympathy for the Dunmer's plight, and while her interactions with the Dragonborn are limited, she is very complementary and welcoming.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: Her death at the hands of the Butcher is scripted to kickstart the "Blood on the Ice" sidequest, and there is nothing that can be done to prevent it. Due to the way the sidequest works, [[PosthumousCharacter it's entirely possible for Susannah to turn up dead as soon as you first set foot in Windhelm]].
* TheTease: She is rather flirty, but according to Elda, it's just to get better tips.
[[/folder]]
