Vivec City Vivec City , Vivec , Vivace , or The City of Swords , is one of the four major cities located in the Vvardenfell district of Morrowind and is the capital of both the Ascadian Isles and the Island of Vvardenfell . The city of Vivec is one of three settlements created in honor of the Tribunal , namely Vivec , the Warrior - Poet . Description . Geography . The city of Vivec is located on the southern side of the Inner Sea , a large body of water that separates the mainland of Morrowind from the Isle of Vvardenfell . Vivec is situated on the open bay of the Ascadian Isles , the inner grazelands of Vvardenfell that consist of several different islands and lakes such as Elmas Island and Lake Amaya . Vivec consists of several mer - made islands called Cantons , which were built by Dunmer of House Hlaalu during the Interregnum of the Second Era . The Cantons are made of several levels that are populated by local traders and artisans ; they can be compared to towns , especially since the stronghold of Molag Mar is a canton in Molag Amur . Cantons serve different purposes and are occupied by some of the Great Houses of Morrowind . The Foreign Quarter of Vivec is where many foreign interests are located in the city , the Fighters Guild and Mages Guild have halls in the canton . Originally , foreigners were not able to enter the city and so , the Foreign Quarter was made for foreigners . Nowadays , anyone can arrive into Vivec and bask in its glory . Three of the cantons are occupied by Houses Hlaalu , Redoran , and Telvanni from west to east respectively . The Hlaalu Canton was one of the first out of the three to be built during the Second Era , it leads into the Bitter Coast and the fortress city of Ebonheart . The Telvanni Canton in the east was the last one , by 2E 583 , the Telvanni canton was merely a large square hole in the Ascadian Bay . The Redoran Canton is located inward from the city , much closer to the city center . Further downward , the St . Delyn and St . Olms cantons are closer to the Palace of Vivec and is where the nobility live in . The Temple Canton is more south and is where the Hall of Justice and the Library of Vivec , the Ordinators are headquartered here . The Palace of Vivec is located on the southernmost end of the city and is a large building resembling a Xanmeer from Black Marsh . This is where Vivec the Warrior - Poet lives and is where he governs the city . History . First Era . The Foundation of Vivec City & the Buoyant Armigers . The city of Vivec was founded by Vivec himself , Vivec watched over Horde Mountain and witnessed its hulking figure and the clouds sprouting out the summit . Vivec planned to attack the large structure but before he could do anything , a trio of lower house Velothi trapped the monster with a net of doubtful doctrine . Vivec praised these brave souls and celebrated their victory . It was a display of love and triumph around the captured beast , Vivec was in the middle , with a headdress made of mating bones . It was there , Vivec named these three warriors the Buoyant Armigers . Vivec grabbed Muatra , a spear of mystical origins that represents Vivec ' s love , coincidentally , and stabs it into the massive monster , creating a big bag of bones in the process , this became the foundation of Vivec City . The net fell over the bones and became the city ' s bridge , segmenting the city and making the perfect streets in all of Tamriel . Almalexia and Sotha Sil came to the city and gave it their blessing . Vivec City was officially created . The Star of the Mad God ; The Baar Dau . The city of Vivec thrived in the province of Resdaynia and is beautiful amidst the realms of Ascadia . On one fateful day , Sheogorath , the Daedric Prince of Madness was bored . Sheogorath would pull a meteor from the depths of the Void and fling it into Nirn ; he had no place in mind , he simply threw it and wanted to know where it landed . This meteor was Baar Dau otherwise known as Lie Rock or the Ministry of Truth . Baar Dau traveled across the planet and was landing onto Vivec City . The Ashlander s prayed to Azura for safety while the denizens of Vvardenfell were wailing and shrieking , fearful for their lives . The Dunmer prayed to the Three , and Vivec heard their prayers , with his benevolent powers , Vivec was able to hold the meteor and left it suspended far in the air . The city was saved , for now . The Baar Dau meteor would be repurposed into the Ministry of Truth , the maximum prison of Vivec City . The large rock would become a reminder of the Tribunal ' s power and their importance because without Vivec , Vvardenfell would be destroyed . Second Era . The Jewel of Vvardenfell ; Construction on Vivec . During the Interregnum in 2E 583 , the city of Vivec was halfway through completion , with only the Hlaalu and Redoran cantons halfway done , the Telvanni Canton ' s formation was not complete , only a large hole in the middle of the bay was there . The foreign Canton was not created , it was likely in planning at this time . The city of Vivec , along with the other Tribunal cities and Western Vvardenfell , Vivec was a part of the Ebonheart Pact , although they did not have headquarters there . Vivec ruled the city along with Archcanon Tarvus and Canon Llevule . Vivec soon became ill , and his powers were draining from him . Vivec sent an Outlander called the Vestige to find the source of this disturbance before he loses his powers and the Baar Dau continues to fall . The Vile Hound ' s Plot ; Enter Chodala the Nerevarine . The source was from an Ashlander from Ald ' ruhn named Conoon Chodala who came into possession of a powerful staff called the Sunna ' rah . Chodala was the Ashkhan of the Urshilaku Tribe and believed he was , in fact , the Nerevarine . Chodala would be defeated in the ruins of Kaushtarari by both the Vestige and his sister , Seryn . The Vestige took Sunna ' rah and traveled back to Vivec City , to reverse the effect by giving Vivec his powers . The Tarvus ' experiment backfired , resulting in Vivec losing his power quickly , to the point where his spirit had left his body . It was revealed the Archcanon Tarvus was actually Barbas , the Daedric Hound of Clavicus Vile and was planning on using Vivec ' s power to open the gates of the Clockwork City . The Baar Dau started to fall again from the air , causing pandemonium in Vivec City , people began to lose faith in Vivec . Barilzar , Sotha Sil ' s former apprentice traveled to the Clockwork City along with the Vestige , and defeated Barbas within Seht ' s Vault . Vivec ' s powers were restored but this would not be the last we see of the Daedric Princes as a Great War would come . The Talosian Conquest into Resdaynia . In the waning years of the Second Era , Tiber Septim launched a campaign all across the continent of Tamriel in the efforts to unite the provinces under a single banner . After the Hammerfell Civil War and the signing of the First Treaty of Stros M ' Kai , the Septim Army moved pass the Velothi Mountains and Valus Mountains to take control of the province of Morrowind . The defense against the Septim Armada consisted of soldiers from the Great House Redoran , House Indoril , and House Dres . House Telvanni was neutral in the conflict while House Hlaalu proposed some sort of accommodation for the Empire . The Septim - Morrowind War ravaged western Morrowind by hitting several locations including the city of Blacklight and the fortress of Silgrad Tower . Both Indoril and Dres dropped out of the conflict , seeing no apparent victory , leaving the War House of Redoran to fend for themselves . Things would come to an end when Vivec himself appeared before his people in Vivec City and proclaimed a negotiation of a treaty . The result of this would be the Treaty of the Armistice which was held by Zurin Arctus and with opposition from some of the Houses . Indoril resisted the treaty till their demise alongside Dres . Redoran and Hlaalu wanted this conflict to end so they gracefully accepted the Armistice . Telvanni , indifferent to the situation , went along with the treaty , and so the Imperial Province of Morrowind was created . Third Era . The Flourishing Age of Vvardenfell and Vivec . In 3E 414 , High King Athyn Llethan revoked the orders , the Armistice had set up , to open trade within the Vvardenfel District . With this news , a new influx of foreigners began to enter the District and new settlements sprung up in the span of several years . In cooperation with the city of Vivec , the fortress city of Ebonheart administrated the entire province and proclaimed it a Duchy in the Empire . The leader of Ebonheart was a Dunmer i Noble name Duke Vedam Dren , who was a member of the Great House Hlaalu . The Vivecian foreign quarter was no longer the only place for visitors to travel to ; Eventually , the entire city was accessible for foreigners . In 3E 427 , the city of Vivec prospered along with the other three cities in Vvardenfell . The city was under the administration of Archcanon Tholer Saryoni , but of course , the city is watched over by the Great Vivec , from his Palace . Saryoni was the patriarch of the Tribunal Temple and was able to keep the city together during the third era . It was at this time ; the Nerevarine Prophecy came to fruition and the Nerevarine began to roam the land , to fulfill the long - awaited prophecy . Throughout the year , the Nerevarine managed to unite the Ashlander tribes as well as becoming the Hortator of the Great Houses inhabiting the region . With the completion of the Fourth and Fifth trials of the Prophecy , the Nerevarine traveled to Vivec City , to seek an audience with Vivec himself . The two discussed a plan to defeat Dagoth Ur , the one responsible for unleashing the Blight onto the denizens of Vvardenfell . Vivec and the Nerevarine devised the Plan to Defeat Dagoth Ur , where they would raid his territory within the Ghostfence and defeat him within the depths of Red Mountain . The Nerevarine traveled north to find Dagoth - Ur . The Fall of the Tribunal and the Morrowind Reform . The Nerevarine Prophecy would not end with the death of Dagoth - Ur . The original purpose of the Prophecy was to set an end of the Tribunal Era with Morrowind , by having each member of the Tribunal perish by the Nerevarine . Way back in the First Era , the great warrior known as Indoril Nerevar would be slain by Vivec and lost his chance at godhood when the Tribunal used the Heart of Lorkhan to given them divinity . Azura would change the Chimer ' s skin into an ashen gray , resulting in the modern - day Dunmer . The Nerevarine ' s real purpose was the avenge their past life by slaying the three that took it from them . The Nerevarine traveled to the city of Mournhold , deep within the Deshaan Plains where they met Almalexia . The warrior became Almalexia ' s Champion until she realized how this person actually was . In an attempt to keep sovereignty , she killed Sotha Sil and unleashed his Fabricant s onto the people of Mournhold . The Nerevarine would be sent by Almalexia to defeat Sotha Sil until they discovered his dead body . Almalexia planned to frame the warrior , to have them executed for treason against the Tribunal . But this proved to fail , as the Nerevarine battled Almalexia with the Clockwork City , killing her in a battle of destruction . And so ended the Nerevarine Prophecy , the following years would shape the province of Morrowind in a way that would last for a very long time . With his divinity stripped away , Vivec became mortal and disappeared from his domain . He , however , did continue to watch over and protect Vivec City until he had vanished , sometime around the Oblivion Crisis in 3E 433 . With the Tribunal religion gone , a new religion was implemented in Morrowind called the New Temple , which worships the original Dunmeri gods which consists of Azura , Boethiah , and Mephala . The Nerevarine vanished as well , rumors during the waning years of the third era revealed that they have traveled to the continent of Akavir , located in the far east , across the Padomaic Ocean . Vivec ' s disappearance would not take toll until several years later , into the Fourth Era of Tamriel . Fourth Era . The Red Year and the Crash of Baar Dau . With the disappearance of Vivec , came one of Tamriel ' s most tragic events . Several years after the Oblivion Crisis in 4E 5 , the Baar Dau atop of the Vivec City atmosphere began to crash down onto the city slowly . The area around the city became quiet , devoid of any noise ; even the local fauna was silent . The Baar Dau obliterated Vivec and leaving a crater that encompasses the majority of the Ascadian Bay , the Scathing Bay as it was now called , was a desolate area of bones and ash . Ideally , the Baar Dau would have fallen the moment Vivec disappeared from Nirn , which was not the case . Vivec disappeared sometime around the Oblivion Crisis , which was 3E 433 , the Dunmer of Morrowind needed an alternate solution to keep the Baar Dau suspended in the sky . They have created the Ingenium , a powerful machine that requires souls to be fueled , this device would hold the meteor for five years and proved to be effective , with a cost of innocent souls . Things would forever change when a Dunmeri woman named Ilzheven was the next person to be sacrificed to the Ingenium , her lover , Ezhmaar Sul did not want this to happen . And so , in a series of unfortunate events , the Ingenium exploded , causing the death of Ilzheven and sending Sul and Vuhon into Oblivion , where Vuhon would discover the floating city of Umbriel . Caused by a tragic display of two star - crossed lovers and their inseparable love , destroyed both Vivec City and the entire Morrowind province . This year would be dubbed the Red Year .