The Elder Scrolls 6 Taking Place in Hammerfell Could Be a Boon for One Unique TES Race

The Elder Scrolls includes many different races beyond the playable ones, and The Elder Scrolls 6 has the chance to showcase more of them in the mainline series. One such example are the Sloads, one of the oldest races who haven’t yet featured in any of the main The Elder Scrolls games yet, but could have a part to play if The Elder Scrolls 6 takes part in Hammerfell.

One of the most famous Sloads, N’Gasta, who was an ally of Mannimarco, lived on an island close to Stros M’kai, placing the Sloads in proximity to Hammerfell. The Sloads appeared in The Elder Scrolls Online as antagonists, and in The Elder Scrolls lore, they once wiped out half of Tamriel’s population. With The Elder Scrolls 6 possibly being the first game set in proximity to the Sloads in such a long time, it may be time for them to appear in a mainline game.

Sloads are an odd-looking, grotesque race that are fiercely intelligent. So far, they’ve been mentioned in most of The Elder Scrolls games, but have only actually appeared in The Elder Scrolls: Redguard and The Elder Scrolls Online. Despite the fact that they appear to be a “joke” race, with the appearance of giant slugs crossed with toads, Sloads in The Elder Scrolls lore are deep thinkers and are experts in necromancy. This is an area of magic that is severely limited in The Elder Scrolls and could use the development that Sloads could potentially bring.

One of the reasons Sloads haven’t appeared in The Elder Scrolls mainline games yet is because their homeland is not on Tamriel’s mainland. Instead, Sloads come from an island located in the Abecean Sea, which is located on the western side of Tamriel, alongside the provinces of the Summerset Isles, Cyrodiil, and Hammerfell. This proximity to Hammerfell, including Stros M’Kai, is one of the reasons why the Sloads may make an appearance in The Elder Scrolls 6 if it’s set in Hammerfell, particularly if Stros M’Kai is included.

Culturally, Sloads focus heavily on both seafaring and magic, particularly necromancy. Sloads are also proficient in teleportation spells due to their limited mobility on land. Both teleportation and necromancy magic were underdeveloped in Skyrim, and including Sloads would be a chance to develop them under the school of conjuration. As masters of necromancy, it’s unsurprising that, despite their relative isolation, they’re also associated with one of the most famous necromancers in The Elder Scrolls, Mannimarco.

The Sloads’ isolation may be partially due to their troubled history with the rest of Tamriel. Aside from the general distaste most of Tamriel has towards necromancy, the Sloads were responsible for engineering and unleashing a plague on Tamriel in the First Era. Known as the Thrassian Plague, it resulted in the deaths of half of Tamriel’s population.

In response, Tamriel’s forces sunk Thras, the Sload homeland, into the ocean using magic. Thras and the Sloads eventually recovered in time, but the two groups haven’t been friendly since. This animosity could be a source of tension in The Elder Scrolls 6, particularly along the eastern coastline of Hammerfell. Despite this, player characters could also perhaps learn necromancy and teleportation from a couple of friendly or neutral Sloads, which would add variety while still being true to the lore.

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Released

2026

ESRB

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Developer(s)

Bethesda Game Studios

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Publisher(s)

Bethesda Softworks

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