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Cyrodiil was quite different before Oblivion was released in 2006. The Pocket Guide to the Empire described it as an “endless jungle.” In the East, socialites wore “garish costumes, bizarre tapestries, tattoos, branding, and elaborate ceremonies,” while the Colovians in the West preferred “immaculate uniforms.”
The heart of the Empire was said to have many cults, including those worshipping the Ancestor-Moth, Heroes, Tiber Septim, and Emperor Zero. Villagers sent their dead down rivers on paper boats, and homes featured Akavari designs. Dragons reportedly flew over the Imperial City while the Emperor looked down from the towers on the walls.
Thousands of workers cultivated rice fields after flooding and cleaned up the jungle during dry seasons.
However, when Oblivion launched after 12 years, we saw a different Cyrodiil. It was filled with wide plains and mountains, influenced by Roman culture and fantasy elements. The “endless jungle” was gone, and the only cult of significance was the villainous Mythic Dawn.
Many were surprised by the sharp contrast between the Cyrodiil from earlier games and the one they experienced in Oblivion, including lore master Kurt Kuhlmann. In an interview on YouTube, he mentioned returning “during the end of pre-production” after world-building was finished. He and designer Michael Kirkbridge originally envisioned “a much weirder place than what you see in Oblivion.”
The Lord Of The Rings Completely Changed Oblivion Lore
Kuhlmann, who joined Bethesda alongside Michael Kirkbride in 1996, remembered how he drew inspiration from “Dune vibes and the Dark Crystal vibes” while working on Morrowind, one of the most unique fantasy RPGs ever. He and Kirkbride also wrote the Pocket Guide during Redguard’s development, which was distributed as a physical booklet with the game.
Though he left the series in 1998 during Morrowind’s pre-production, he contributed several in-game books in 2001, earning a “special thanks” credit. Kuhlmann and Kirkbride laid the groundwork for much of The Elder Scrolls’ lore, but when Kuhlmann returned in 2003 for Oblivion, things had changed. He attributes this shift to the popularity of The Lord of the Rings and the fact that Todd Howard preferred simpler stories.
Kuhlmann has no hard feelings towards Howard or the changes. He stated, “If you’re in charge of spending all this money and want your studio to last and pay salaries, you have to create a successful commercial product.” He acknowledged that while Skyrim wasn’t “all that weird,” it did have “more dark corners than Oblivion.”
Still, many fans can’t help but miss the Cyrodiil that could have been.
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