The Elder Scrolls 6 is a highly anticipated game of the next few years, and debate surrounding its potential setting has predictably been heated in the community. It is heavily rumored that the relatively unexplored province of Hammerfell will be the primary setting for the game, meaning Hammerfell's unique locations and factions may play a huge role in the title's world-building.
Thanks to this, The Elder Scrolls 6 will have a fresh batch of political factions that will likely influence the game's story, much in the same way that the civil war within Skyrim directly impacted its plot. Hammerfell is quite similar to Skyrim in terms of geopolitical tensions, with two distinct and powerful political factions forming in the province for a variety of reasons.
The Elder Scrolls 6: Hammefell - The Forebears
The first of the two major political factions in Hammerfell are known as the Forebears. They are quite an ancient political faction, originally being formed in the First Era. The Forebears are comprised of Hammerfell's dominant Redguard race, tracing their heritage back to the original Ra Gada population who first immigrated to the province. The Redguard came to Hammerfell from their native continent of Yokuda, which mysteriously sank into the sea towards the end of the First Era.
While still largely embracing their traditional culture, the Forebears are typified by their higher level of acceptance to Cyrodiilic culture. For example, The Forebears have integrated the religion of Cyrodiil into their own, marking the increased level of cultural merging that the Forebears are happy to indulge in with their neighboring province. Being a militaristic political faction, the Forebears hold most of their territory in the south of Hammerfell, where their ancestors originally landed in the First Era.
The Elder Scrolls 6: Hammefell - The Crowns
The other primary political faction that dominates the Hammerfell province are known as the Crowns. Also created in the First Era, the Crowns were also formed as a result of the sinking of Yokuda and the mass migration of the ancient Ra Gada people to Tamriel. An antithesis group to the aforementioned Forebears, the Crowns are entirely faithful to their origins and cultural roots.
The Crowns refuse to adopt any Cyrodiilic deities into their pantheon of Gods, and remain utterly dedicated to preserving and expanding Yokudan culture. Predictably, this juxtaposition in core values has led to a significant amount of historic tension between the Crowns and Forebears, culminating in a civil war between them in the Second Era. The Forebears were initially overwhelmed by the Crowns before requesting aid from Cyrodiil's Septim Empire. The war thus ended with the Crowns in defeat and Hammerfell was subsequently annexed by the Empire, although it loosened its grip in the following years.
The delicate relationship between The Forebears and The Crowns has been conveyed in the popular MMO The Elder Scrolls Online, in which the two groups form an uneasy alliance to face the threat of the Daedric Prince known as Molag Bal. Despite their directly opposing core values and tenets, the shared land and history that the two groups possess can act as a unifying force when the province is faced with a much larger threat or crisis.
That being said, the stark disagreements that the two factions share are palpable, and would no doubt be the cause of some serious friction in The Elder Scrolls 6, should it be set in Hammerfell. Since such large societal factors such as religion and culture are at play, it is no wonder that feuds between the Forebears and the Crowns have been so commonplace over the course of their shared history.
The Elder Scrolls 6 is currently in development.