A map of Tamriel featuring many major cities.
Tamriel is the continent which serves as the primary setting for all of The Elder Scrolls games. It consists of 9 territories called Provinces.
Cyrodiil
- Main article: Cyrodiil
Cyrodiil is the home of one of the four Races of Men: the Imperials. It is located in the heart of the continent. It serves as the capital of the many Empires since the First Era. Cyrodiil is covered largely by forests in the interior; humid marshes south of the Lower Niben; vineyards and farmsteads surrounding County Skingrad; the rolling amber hills of the Gold Coast to the west; and jagged highlands and tundra of the Jerall and Valus Mountains to the north and east. The capital city, the Imperial City and White Gold Tower, is located on the City Isle in the middle of Lake Rumare. It is the heart of the Imperial Empire and the seat of the Emperor's power and the Elder Council.
Morrowind
- Main article: Morrowind
Formerly Resdayn, Morrowind is the home of the Dunmer (Dark Elves) and is located in the north-east corner of Tamriel.It consists of Mainland Morrowind, where the capital city of Mournhold is located, as well as the ruling political body therein, and the large isle of Vvardenfell where the volcano Red Mountain dominates the landscape. Vvardenfell in particular has a very diverse topography ranging from the marshes of the Sheogorad region and the dense tropical mushroom forests of the Ascadian Isles to the rolling, golden plains of the Grazelands and the choking dust, harsh winds, and ash storms of the volcanic Ashlands region which dominates the center of the island. Morrowind as a whole is famous for its unusual flora and fauna, in particular the giant insectoid and arthropodan life and towering fungal growths.
Skyrim
- Main article: Skyrim
The original home of Men in Tamriel, Skyrim is located in the frigid north of Tamriel, between Morrowind and High Rock, and is the home of the oldest race of men, the Nords. Skyrim is a rugged, harsh, and unforgiving place of snow-capped, jagged mountains and wind-blasted ice fields standing in contrast to the verdant forests of the Rift and Falkreath Holds. The Fourth Era saw a dramatic change to Skyrim's northern coast during The Great Collapse of Winterhold when the glacier on which the capital city was built shattered and fell into the sea, taking much of the city with it. The College of Winterhold was unharmed however, and this has fostered a great deal of anger, suspicion, and resentment between the local Nords and the College Mages who insist they had nothing to do with the Collapse. The fact that the Nords have continued to dwell here is testament to their resilience and fortitude.
Black Marsh
- Main article: Black Marsh
Called Argonia by its inhabitants, Black Marsh is home to the reptilian race of the Argonians. It is located in the south-eastern corner of Tamriel and is covered by vast, festering marshes, rainforests, waterways, and immense, impenetrable forests of Hist and mangrove trees. Due to the topography of the land, travel of any distance is difficult for seemingly anyone that isn't Argonian which is a definite factor as to why Black Marsh has never been successfully invaded or mapped. Many cities of Black Marsh, such as Gideon, were originally founded by the Ayleids. Little else is known about this mysterious and ill-documented place.
Elsweyr
- Main article: Elsweyr
Elsweyr is the home of the feline race of the Khajiit and is located in the south of Tamriel, between the Provinces of Cyrodiil and Valenwood. Elsweyr is, for the most part, a desert land with majestic, rolling dunescapes and sun-drenched dust plains in the interior and thick forests and jungle surrounding it along its borders with Cyrodiil and Valenwood, with the Tenmar Forest covering a large area in the south of the Province.
Valenwood
- Main article: Valenwood
The ancestral homeland of the Bosmer (Wood Elves). It is located in the south-western corner of Tamriel, west of Elsweyr. Valenwood, as its name suggests, is a land covered, for the most part, by forests.The topography is hilly and the west coast is choked by seemingly endless mangrove forests and tropical rainforests.The largest Bosmer villages and cities are built high in the boughs of ancient migratory trees which have the ability to move the settlements, in their entirety, wherever they venture.
Summerset Isles
- Main article: Summerset Isles
Located in the Abecean Sea, the Isles are the home of the Altmer (High Elves). The main Isle, called Summerset and home of the capitol city of Alinor, and the smaller Isle of Auridon are verdant landscapes dotted with towns and cities of ancient mansions and enchanted towers, similar to those of the Telvanni mages of Vvardenfell, Morrowind. The Isles also include the island of Artaeum, home of the Psijic Order, and are also home to the Crystal Tower.
Hammerfell
- Main article: Hammerfell
Hammerfell is the home of the Redguards, the fourth race of Men, who came to Tamriel after leaving their original homeland of Yokuda. Hammerfell has an arid climate and much of the Province is desert, namely the great Alik'r desert in the west, with a few forests on the coast and provincial borders with grasslands dominating the south around the Cyrodiil border, and the Dragontail Mountains located along the border with Skyrim. One of the most notable cities in Hammerfell is Stros M'kai. Stros M'kai is famous for its orrery, which is the only known fully functional orrery outside the Imperial City, in Cyrodiil.
High Rock
- Main article: High Rock
Located in the north-west corner of the continent, west of Skyrim, the homeland of the third race of Men, the Bretons. High Rock is a land with a cool, calm climate and rolling hills covered in heather which flow to the foothills of the Wrothgarian Mountains and the plateaus of North Kambria. High Rock is a land that is no stranger to battle. The warlords of various Breton clans and houses have been at war on and off for thousands of years. Notable cities include Daggerfall and Wayrest. The Adamantine Tower sits on an island called Balfiera in Illiac Bay.
Orsinium
- Main article: Orsinium
The home of Orsimer, more commonly called "Orcs", officially a territory or city-province and not currently recognized as an independent nation and therefore not shown on any modern official map, encompasses a small area in the Wrothgarian and Dragontail Mountains within the province of High Rock. A difficult environment to thrive in as much of the landscape lies above the tree line, there are few abundant resources aside from rock and metals that require mining. Its geography, however, make it a place easy to defend against skirmishes and invading armies. This is fitting as Orsinium is no stranger to conflict and bloodshed which is exemplified in the ancient conflict which resulted Orsinium's "birth" and the ascension of the Orsimers' king Gortwog gro-Nagorm in 3E who rediscovered the ancient location and reclaimed it for the Orcs of Tamriel.