Lore:Sea of Ghosts

The Sea of Ghosts (also known as the Ghost Sea,  or the Northern Sea)  is the body of water that consists of the northern coast of Tamriel,  and the southern coast of Atmora.  It is a part of the Padomaic Ocean, which consists of the north and east seas of Tamriel. The Sea of Ghosts is not easy to navigate. It took some time for the people of Tamriel to explore these misty waters, which are often riddled with glaciers and icebergs.   It is unknown how the Sea of Ghosts acquired its name, however, the ancient tale of Skyrim, known as Yngol and the Sea-Ghosts refers to the death of Ysgramor's eldest son, Yngol, at the hands of the "Sea-Ghosts".  The Sea of Ghosts host its own variety of animals that are not commonly found in other parts of the continent, specifically the  s and the  s.   

History
thumb|left|Yngol Barrow (Skyrim)
In the mid- ,  i explorers sailed across Tamriel, charting the continent's waterways and sea lanes. The most well-known was  , who explored all of Tamriel's coast, but most notably the  .  Aldmeri explorers mapped the island of  , building several wizards towers along the coast, specifically in  ,  ,  , and  . But these towers were eventually abandoned as the  , and the early   began to establish the   and the  . 

In the late Merethic Era, Ysgramor the Harbinger and the Atmorans sailed across the Sea of Ghosts from the port city of   when civil war broke out on the northern continent. They landed on  , where they built the colossal city of   and met the  . However, the Snow Elves sacked the city and drove the Atmorans out of Tamriel in an event known as the  .  Outraged by their betrayal, Ysgramor and his   sailed back to Tamriel, however, their fleet was caught in the   and the Harbinger's eldest son, Yngol, was killed in the raging storm in the Atmoran Strait.  In legend, it is said that Yngol was claimed by the "Sea-Ghosts".   Yngol's body was recovered by Ysgramor and buried in a traditional Atmoran barrow on the   estuary, where it meets the Sea of Ghosts. Ysgramor looked to the south and decided to have a great city built near the estuary. This city of kings,  , was made to have   viewable from the castle.  As time went on, more Nordic cities were built along the coastline, such as  ,  , and  .

The cities of   and Solitude maintained a summer route, with no waypoint between each location. That was when the   entrepreneur,   discovered shores for an ideal harbor at the base of   in the 9th century of the  . The deep waters were able to accommodate large merchant ships, and on the northernmost point, Flowdys built the town of Northpoint. As time went on, Yric Flowdys adopted the name of the mountain as his family name,  . They later attained the title of Barony from Empress   of the  , and became a prominent power in the Kingdom of  . They have extensive ties with the Court of Solitude. 

An army of vampires and lycanthropes known as the Gray Host once occupied a castle on the remote island of Grayhome in the Sea of Ghosts. The island was left abandoned following the defeat of the Gray Host circa  .  

There have been two instances where the   of the eponymous   have invaded Tamriel, both of which arrived on the continent's shores the same way. The   landed on the north coast of both Skyrim and Morrowind, cutting a bloody swathe all the way to the   in the  . By  , General   defeated the   and established the  .  In case of another threat, Reman I built strongholds across Skyrim's north coast as his bulwark.  In any case, the   rarely took place in Skyrim's coast. This invasion led by   traveled across the Sea of Ghosts, bypassing  , the  , and  , only to land on the shores of  . Here, Dir-Kamal's forces sacked the city, killing the High Queen of East Skyrim,  , and her shortly-lived successor,  . From there, his armies traveled southeast into the region of   in  . As history knows it, the Akaviri were defeated and gave rise to the  . 

In  , Emperor   explored the Sea of Ghosts and conquered the island of  , as of his several campaigns to expand the Empire.  Roscrea is found off the coast of   and it was converted into an Imperial fiefdom. The history of the territory is unknown, however, it was later claimed by the Kingdom of Solitude in the late years of the Third Era, in  , to further expand their power. After marrying the Queen   of  , King   held a majority of control of Skyrim's northern coast. Under his reign, the island had been used to further chart the sea's mysterious waters. 

Society
thumb|left|A reaver raiding party on Solstheimthumb|right|A Sea Giant longship
The people who inhabit the Sea of Ghosts are known as out-islanders. They spend most of their time at sea, journeying from the far north on their ships to raid the coasts of northern Tamriel. The Nords refer to these raiders as  s. They generally target one-hut settlements and hunting camps, dropping off small raiding parties rather than beaching their ships for fear that their vessels would be stolen or burned.  Raiders are known to make base on remote frozen islands in the Sea of Ghosts; for example, the Frostbite Raiders once inhabited an icy island off the   of northeastern Hjaalmarch. 

In addition to reavers and other raiders, the Sea of Ghosts is home to the elusive Sea Giants, a species of giant rarely seen on Tamriel. They allegedly only make landfall during the coldest winters, and never stay for long. They slaughter and pillage, then vanish into the ice and fog.  Sightings of their longships have been reported over the centuries, but generally sailors who witness the Sea Giants do not live to tell the tale.  Sea Giants sometimes come into conflict with raiders and invade their territory.  They are also known to interbreed with the people of Tamriel, producing offspring known as  s who accompany them on their raids. 

The Sea of Ghosts was once home to the infamous Vampire Lord Falgravn. Said to have once been a pirate, Falgravn traveled the Sea of Ghosts since the reign of King Ysmir, disappearing for hundreds of years at a time before being sighted again.  Circa  , Lord Falgravn mounted an invasion of   with an army of vampires and Sea Giants, but he was killed by the   and the island liberated. 
 

Islands













High Rock
thumb|right|Northpoint (ESO)
At some point, the Sea of Ghosts meets the   to the west, as the town of   is considered  's gateway to the Eltheric Ocean.  The coast of   and   are at least considered part of the Sea of Ghosts. The port-cities of  ,  , and   are the largest settlements on the northern coast. Although, there are some small harbors across the coast, such as the  , home to the eponymous   clan of smiths. Formerly, the once great city of   was found on the shores, hidden from the rest of Rivenspire by the  . It is now known as  . From the east to the west, the Sea of Ghosts becomes more hospitable as glaciers are less common. Where the regions of Rivenspire and Wrothgar meet on the mainland is the  , a water basin with several shipwrecks and stones jutting out. Further northeast into the frozen north, traversing is much more difficult. The   is a ship graveyard held together in an icy wasteland. Wrothgar's coast is notably populated by the Chub Loon, mysterious flightless birds that came from Atmora.  In the seas surrounding Rivenspire and   is a notorious creature known as the  , a leviathan that preys on the people of the coast.  The royal   are the ancestral rulers of Northpoint and are known for their maritime endeavors. They founded the settlement as a waypoint on the summer route between   and Solitude. The shores around the city are notably deep, which made the location all the more favorable for a checkpoint. 

Morrowind
thumb|left|Khuul (Morrowind)
Morrowind's coast is shared between the Great Houses of   and  . The cities of   and   are found on the coast, as well as, minor settlements, including  ,  ,  , and  . The Sea of Ghosts empties into the  , which separates the island of   from the rest of mainland Morrowind. It is believed that the eruption of  , known as  , caused the Inner Sea to form and separate the region.  All the while,  i mythology indicate that the Inner Sea was created by  , the Brass-God of the  .  Bypassing Firewatch leads into the rest of the Padomaic Ocean, all the way to distant  . The coast of Vvardenfell is ridged and volcanic, both the   and the   empty into the Sea of Ghosts. The archipelago of   is found off the coast of the Black Isle. These scattered islands are surrounded by the large island also known as Sheogorad. These islands have only one known settlement, the town of  . The remote fishing village of   no longer exists, but it was found on the westernmost point of the Sheogorad region, on the second-largest island. There is an uninhabited island between Sheogorad and the coast, west of   known as  . As mentioned earlier, there are several fishing villages across the coast, such as Ald Redaynia. These villages are built on wooden foundations are often controlled by House Redoran.

Skyrim
thumb|right|The Great Arch of Solitude
Skyrim's northern coast consists of the cities of  ,  ,  , and  , as well as their respective holds ( ,  ,  , and  ). Each of them are prominent cities that are often utilized by the East Empire Trading Company. The latter two, Solitude and Windhelm are built where two great rivers empty into the Sea of Ghosts. The   runs across Haafingar as well as  , while the   starts from   in southern Skyrim and descends northeast into Eastmarch. However, the city of Winterhold is not a port city. It is built atop of the  , where it overlooks the entire sea from the highest bluffs. A large chunk of the city fell into the sea after the Great Collapse.  Beyond the cities, there have been little to no settlements on the coast of Skyrim. The only known example is the small town of  .  It is not uncommon to find wrecked ships across the northern coast. The most infamous case of this is the  , a graveyard of ships off the coast of Winterhold. Islands off the coast are sparsely-populated, much less so than in Morrowind, but there are still people nonetheless. The   of  s live in an ancient castle on an island north of Haafingar. East of Winterhold is Serpentstone Isle, which contains the eponymous Serpent Stone, one of the   of Skyrim. The Sea of Ghosts transition into the region of   through the  , which takes a large portion of Hjaalmarch and ends toward the towns of   and  . Along the coast can be found various ruined forts built during the time of Emperor   of the  . As a defense measure for another invasion from  , he built several strongholds across Skyrim's northern coast.  Further from the coast, the   is a rare fish that is hunted in schools for food.   are also found here and are attracted to the Merringar's blood. 

Other
thumb|left|Map of Solstheim (ca. 3E 427)
There are several territories in the Sea of Ghosts that are not traditionally part of their neighboring provinces. The most well-known example is the island of  , perhaps the largest island off the coast of north Tamriel. Even though it has a history with the   of Skyrim and the   have been the indigenous people of the island since those ancient times, it is not a traditional territory of Skyrim. When the East Empire Trading Company claimed the island in the late Third Era, the island was considered a part of Skyrim, but when the High King gave the island to the Dunmeri refugees in the early Fourth Era, it was controlled by House Redoran through the mining-town of  . The island contains several riverways that all empty into the Sea of Ghosts. The   begins from the   and meets the   to the north, where they both empty into the sea. The Isild starts from  , the largest lake on the island, found on the  . The   also begins from Lake Fjalding and moves south through the  . 

There are several other islands in the Sea of Ghosts. The island of   is found off the coast of Solitude, and it was one of many islands claimed by Emperor Uriel V in  .  The territory was later claimed by Solitude in the late years of the Third Era.  Another is the island of  , which is roughly a day's trip from Winterhold. It is an island of necromancers that once contained a large city. However, it was abandoned and used as a mass graveyard by  . Gravestones riddled the city's streets and the island was forgotten in time.  Between Skyrim and Morrowind is the small and insignificant  . It is far from any main trade routes between the nearby locations. The people that live on Bleakrock Isle are Nordic fishermen and farmers, removed from the surrounding nations.  Less than a day's sail from the northwestern coast of Skyrim lies the little-known  , a long-abandoned pirate haven rumored to be haunted.   Northeast of Winterhold is a small and inhospitable island called  , named after the eponymous   of Dawnstar that built a citadel on the hilltop, only to die from isolation and hunger. 
 

Gallery
 

See Also
For game-specific information, see the Morrowind and Skyrim articles.

Books


References