Nerevarine Cult The Nerevarine Cult is an outlawed Ashlander cult whose members believe that Nerevar will be reborn to cast down the Temple and drive the outlanders , namely the Imperials , out of Morrowind . The cult has not much influence with most Ashlander tribes . It is most strongly connected to Urshilaku Ashlanders . Their relations to other important factions in Morrowind are strained , the Dissident Priests being the only ones not disclaiming the cult ' s beliefs altogether . The cult plays an important part in the main questline of . Background . The Nerevarine Cult must be seen in the context of the Ashlander ' s Ancestor cult practices : Before the dispartment of the Dunmer people into Ashlander and settled Dunmer , the Ancestor cults were the traditional cults of the Dunmer ' s forefathers , the Chimer . Now , these practices live only within the Ashlander customs . In this context , the Nerevarine cult can be understood as an ancestor cult worshipping the great khan and warleader of the House People , Nerevar . Nerevar himself , although not born as an Ashlander , honored the ancestor cult practices and the traditions and laws of the tribes . The events surrounding the Battle of Red Mountain and its aftermath , leading to the disappearance of the Dwemer , the transformation of Almalexia , Sotha Sil and Vivec into gods and that of the Chimer into Dunmer , can be seen as the historical background of the Nerevarine cult . Different traditions and interpretations of these events form the foundation both of the Temple and the Nerevarine cult beliefs . Most importantly , the Ashlander accuse the three gods of the Tribunal of murdering Nerevar and ignoring Nerevar ' s promises to the Ashlanders . Beliefs . Nerevarine cultists believe that the incarnated Nerevar , the Nerevarine , will return to honor ancient promises to the Ashlanders . The foundation of this belief can be seen in the written records about the Daedric Prince Azura cursing the ALMSIVI directly upon their transformation into gods , and also her foretelling the return of Nerevar through her own powers . The foretellings express themselves in the Nerevarine prophecies , that are passed on by the Ashlander tribes . The wording of Sharn gra - Muzgob in his " Nerevarine Cult Notes " suggest that hese prophecies derive from dreams or vision of Ashlander wise women . The importance the cult lies on these prophecies and the interpretation of dreams by seers show that it can be considered as a mystical cult . In the context of the Battle of Red Mountain , great general Nerevar convinced the Ashlander tribes to join the House people in the field , promising them to honor the ways of the Spirits and rights of the Land in return . According to the Ashlander ' s tradition , the Tribunal gods murdered Nerevar in the course of the events and neglected Nerevar ' s promises to the tribes . The Nerevarine cult believes that Nerevar will return and restore the glories of ancient Resdayn and reestablish the traditions of the prophet Veloth . They believe that he will cast down the false gods of the Tribunal . He will also make good his promises to the Tribes , honoring the Spirits and driving the outsiders from the land , all with the help of his magic ring , Moon - and - Star . Spread of the Nerevarine cult . As the Nerevarine cult is a secret cult , it is hard to judge how widespread it is among the Ashlander , or whether it may even have followers outside of the tribes . However , the return of the reincarnated Nerevar appeals to many Ashlanders . For them , it symbolizes a longed for and largely romanticized Golden Age of Nerevar ' s Peace , when the nomadic tribes enjoyed equality with the settled Dunmer , and before the Dunmer people had for the most part abandoned traditional ancestor worship for the autocratic theocracy of the Tribunal Temple . But although this is true for most Ashlander people , the majority doesn ' t seem to believe in the Nerevarine prophecies and don ' t follow the Nerevarine cult . Thus , the cult is of small consequence in the Ashlander culture . The cult has most influence with the Urshilaku tribe , a group residing in the forbidding regions of the norhtern Ashlands and West Gash . Their Ashkhan Sul - Matuul is the Warrior - Protector of the Nerevarine cult , while their wise woman Nibani Maesa is their seer . Relation to other factions . Empire . The Ashlanders generally tend to have a hostile attitude towards all outlanders , which have come to Morrowind following the occupation by the Empire . The Nerevarine cult anticipates a time , in which the Nerevarine will drive all the outlanders , including the Empire , from the land . Thus , the cult sees the Empire and the emperor as their foes and is hostile to both . The Empire obviously can not accept the existence of a cult openly hostile to them . For this reason , they outlaw the cult , repress its practices , and threaten its members with death or imprisonment . The Empire also grants the Ordinators a free hand when dealing with the Nerevarine cult . Tribunal Temple . The Ashlander in general and the members of the Nerevarine cult in particular have always seen the worship of living Dunmer as an abomination , thus suspecting the Temple of heresy and accusing the Tribunal of being false gods . The Nerevarine prophecies even foretell the downfall of the Temple upon the return of the true Nerevarine , thus making clear that the Nerevarine cult is hostile to the Tribunal Temple . This fact influences the Temple ' s attitude towards the Nerevarine cult : While generally rather intolerant , they are inclined to tolerate Ashlander ancestral cult practices . But the Nerevarine cult to them is not only a primitive superstition , but due to their hostile attitude towards the Temple a possible threat . As a consequence , they punish Nerevarine claimants with the approval of the Empire with death or imprisonment . Despite this negative relations , the Temple honors Saint Nerevar , not least as a companion of the three Almsivi gods , Almalexia , Sotha Sil and Vivec . What they reject , apart from the hostile attitude towards the Temple , obviously , is the cult ' s mysticism and prophecies , which they consider primitive superstition , and the notion that the Incarnate Nerevar will walk the earth . Dissident Priests . The Dissident Priests are a group that have separated themselves from the Temple , criticizing many of their practices and dogmata . One point where their opinion differs from that of the Temple is the handling of the Nerevarine cult : They reject the persecution of the Nerevarine and the Nerevarine cult , and condemn this persecution as being unjust and politically motivated . This does not mean that the Dissident Priests follow the Nerevarine cult themselves or believe in the Nerevarine prophecies . In fact , there is no consensus within the group about the genuineness of the prophecy . But they acknowledge mysticism , revelation and prophecy as part of the religious experience , and many amongst them have started to study the Ashlander ' s Ancestors Cults , in particular the rites of the Ashlander seers and wise women , the Nerevarine prophecies and other prophecies recorded in Temple archives . During the events of , the support of the Dissident Priests for the notions of the Nerevarine Cult increases . As their leader , Gilvas Barelo states , the order ' s interest in the cult started as a matter of principle , a willingness to consider the validity of the mystical insights connected with it . However , while Dagoth Ur gets stronger , they see the Incarnate Saint Nerevar as the best hope for salvation . Sources . Characters . When the Nerevarine has reached a specific point in the questline , many citizen and Ashlander on Vvardenfell can give them some information about the Nerevarine cult . The following are characters with unique information about the cult :