Tsaesci Tsaesci ( pronounced " Say - es - see " or " Say - chee " ) are a race of vampiric serpent folk , and / or humans , hailing from the continent of Akavir . They originated from the Wandering Ehlnofey , just as the Atmoran s and Yokudan s did . History . The First Tsaesci Invasion . For thousands of years , the Tsaesci lived , and presumably thrived , on Akavir , without disturbing or being disturbed by Tamriel . Late in the First Era , around 2703 , the Tsaesci invaded Tamriel , at a time when the Cyrodilic Empire was still fairly small . This invasion is usually credited with forcing the Colovia n Empire to officially join the Cyrodilic Empire , under then - Emperor King Reman I . The invaders managed to fight their way through northern Tamriel , into the Jerall Mountains near modern - day Bruma . Reman eventually defeated the Tsaesci , trapping them at Pale Pass and cutting off their supply lines until they died or fled back to Akavir . After their defeat , the Empire granted amnesty to many of the remaining Tsaesci men , including taking them on in key political and military roles . The Tsaesci presumably bred into the Imperial families , as Tsaesci surnames are now considered a thing of pride among Imperial nobility . There are rumored to be small clans of " true " Akaviri still on Tamriel , though the details are inconsistent . The military prowess of the Tsaesci was one of the key reasons the Empire was able to expand as successfully as it did . A Serpent King . At the end of the First Era , in 1E 2920 , a Tsaesci Potentate named Versidue Shaie was advisor to Emperor Reman III as part of the emperor ' s attempt to conquer Morrowind . A theory states that the Potentate was secretly plotting to eliminate the royal family ( another possible source of their depiction as " snake - men " ) , and eventually succeeded . The heirs of Reman III were all killed , in battle or by hired assassins , and eventually Reman himself died without a successor . The Potentate assumed command of the Empire , and ruled for over 300 years before being assassinated by the Morag Tong . His son then ruled for another 100 years , before he was also assassinated and the Elder Council put an Imperial back on the throne . At that point , the Tsaesci and Akavir in general disappeared from historical record , until the time of Uriel V and his Akaviri invasion . Uriel and the Tsaesci . Around 3E 290 , near the end of his reign , Emperor Uriel Septim V launched an invasion of Akavir . Uriel had mostly succeeded in stabilizing his empire on Tamriel , including retaking lands recently lost to revolt , and was anxious to focus the might of the Empire outside of itself . Relying primarily on information retained from the First Era Potentate s , and extensive reconnaissance of the areas between Akavir and Tamriel , the Emperor launched a military initiative to conquer the small island kingdoms in the Padomaic Ocean , to the east of Morrowind . When he finally reached Akavir itself ( roughly 4200 miles east of Tamriel ) , he landed in the kingdom of Tsaesci , on the southeastern Akaviri coast . According to the official record of the invasion , it was initially successful , but primarily due to a lack of Tsaesci resistance . Once the Tsaesci armies decided to put up a fight , the Imperial armies were routed in short order , with nearly the entire invasion force lost . Only a fraction of one naval fleet managed to return across the ocean to safety back home . The Emperor himself was killed before he was able to flee Akavir , and to date there have not been any subsequent attempts to invade the continent . In addition to the obvious military prowess of the Tsaesci , there are persistent rumors that the Tsaesci mages possess very potent abilities , including changing the weather patterns off the Akaviri coast , and large - scale disruption of magical communication lines . Anatomy . The continent of Akavir , in general , is the least understood of all of Nirn ' s continents . Only three times in recorded history have inhabitants from the two continents mingled , all three being military invasions , two of which involved the Tsaesci . Thus , the Tsaesci are the only race on Akavir that the majority of Tamriel has even heard of . What little we do know about Akavir ' s other races mostly derives from accounts related to the Tsaesci Potentate s during the late First and early Second Eras . Even though the Tsaesci are the best known of Akavir ' s inhabitants , very little is known about them , and much of it is contradictory or cryptic . Within the current lore of Tamriel , there are two quite different depictions of the Tsaesci . Some evidence seems to indicate that they are human s , much like the Nord s and Redguard s from their respective continents . Other evidence , however , paints a much stranger picture , as vampiric snake - like creatures that feed on humans . One source says that the serpentine beings are tall and beautiful with golden scales . Serpentine folk . Early depictions of the Tsaesci almost invariably describe them as having the upper body of a man but the lower body of a snake . The most direct evidence of these " snake folk " comes from " Mysterious Akavir " , which claims that the vampire snakes of Tsaesci ate all of the humans that once lived on Akavir . The reputability of this book is frequently questioned , however , as few of its other claims have been independently verified . A much more reliable source is the series of 2920 books that describe the events that ushered in the Second Era . One of the key elements of this series is the plot by the Tsaesci Potentate , a close adviser to Emperor Reman III , to have the king and his heirs assassinated , and assume the throne in his place . Though the books are written in a narrative , as opposed to a historical style , they are extensive , detailed , and the author is considered to be quite credible . These books explicitly describe the Tsaesci Potentate , and his son , in serpentine terms ( as " eels " , moving by " slithering " , etc . ) An obscure text known as " And We Ate It To Become It " purporting to be the Tsaesci ' s version of the creation myth , is strongly steeped in snake - like and reptile - like symbolism and phraseology . In , a reward for a quest in Stonefalls to bless the bones of those who died in the Second Akaviri Invasion has the following description : " These gauntlets were designed to choke the scaled throats of the Akaviri invaders . " More evidence of this serpentine physiology comes from veterans of the Second Akaviri Invasion : Fedrasa Andrethi , who has become terrified of any reptile she sees since the war , especially lizards , and Denskar Earth - Turner , who refers to the Akaviri as " the Snakes " . It is also supported by Priestess Brela , who states the Akaviri were " Snake men " . Men . Other written accounts of the Tsaesci seem to contradict the popular legend , however . A religious text on the Imperial creation myth , The Annotated Anuad , lists the Tsaesci alongside the Redguard and Nedes as one of the races of men . A detailed report of Uriel V ' s invasion of Akavir , which first attempted to conquer Tsaesci , describes them as mounted men , and makes no mention of snake - like qualities . In addition , the Tsaesci had a very strong influence on Imperial culture dating from the early Second Era , including being the genesis for the Fighter ' s Guild and Imperial Blades . Despite this , there are no pictorial depictions , or any other physical evidence , that would indicate that the Tsaesci were anything other than human . The question has been further complicated by a recent re - discovery of a Tsaesci fortress , deep in the Pale Pass on the Cyrodiil - Skyrim border . The remains of the Tsaesci found inside , including the apparition of a Tsaesci officer , all appeared entirely human . The Tsaesci also interbred heavily with the aristocracy of the time . Modern - day nobles consider it a high honor to possess a Tsaesci surname and facial features . During one of the invasions , the Akaviri built Sky Haven Temple as explained by Esbern during the events of Skyrim . And inside the Temple lies Alduin ' s wall , built during their occupation of Skyrim . In the third panel , the Akaviri are kneeling before the Dragonborn and are depicted as humanoid figures which may mean they are human . Theories . There are a variety of theories that attempt to explain this contradiction . The most clear - cut are simply that one or the other of these conflicting images of the Tsaesci are simply wrong . Many scholars have attempted to reconcile the contradiction in a more practical manner . Some of the better - known theories are : Culture . Regardless of which of the views of the Tsaesci people are correct , there is a good bit of information available on their culture , dating from the time of their first invasion . They were known as powerful warriors , especially when mounted , and are very disciplined soldiers . Their battle prowess made them ideal as guardsmen , and by the Third Era , the descendants of Akaviri men were training nearly the entire Imperial Army , Imperial Guard , and made up the bulk of the Fighter ' s Guild and the Emperor ' s personal guard . The Emperors of Cyrodiil also traditionally kept a Tsaesci advisor , or Potentate , on hand . The Tsaesci fought with daikatana blades , and wore dragonscale armor , their army gear became the source of most of the traditional raiment and banners of the Blades . They also apparently had tamed , and perhaps even rode , the Akaviri dragons in battle . The red dragon was eventually adopted as the main symbol of the Imperial Septim Dynasty . Of particular note , Reman I was the Emperor who instituted the tradition of lighting the dragonfires and was ruling Cyrodiil at the time of the Tsaesci invasion . In addition to being powerful individual warriors , the Tsaesci are very potent as a unified military force . A relatively small invasion force managed to fight its way through all of Skyrim , and into the northern Jerall Mountains , before ultimately being stopped only by the combined armies of Cyrodiil , Colovia , and their allies . When Uriel V invaded Akavir , with as large an army as he dared pull out of Cyrodiil , he was soundly defeated by a Tsaesci army that , by all reports , was barely even seen before they struck . The military prowess of the Tsaesci so impressed Reman I that he granted amnesty to any Tsaesci left on Tamriel after their failed invasion and promoted a Tsaesci adviser to the high political office of Potentate . They seem to make buildings of stone as evidenced by Cloud Ruler and Sky Haven Temple . They have blood seals that can only be triggered by a specific kind . The Tsaesci appear heavily based on both Imperial China and feudal Japan . The Chinese influence in the Tsaesci culture can be seen from their architectural style as well as their status as the most powerful kingdom in Akavir , which reflects pre - modern China ' s traditional status as the most powerful kingdom in East Asia . The Japanese influence can be seen from their weapons , the katanas , and dai - katana , which are traditional Japanese weapons , as well as their armor designs . They use hieroglyphic - like murals for story telling . In a book called " Annals of the Dragonguard " , a map with their written language can be seen . Lifespan . Not much is known regarding the Tsaesci ' s lifespan , but the member of the race Versidue Shaie was known to have been alive from at least 2E 1 – 2E 324 until his assassination . From this it can be known that the Tsaesci can live for hundreds of years . Because the cause of death was assassination it is unknown how long the natural lifespan is . According to some sources , the Tsaesci are in fact immortal .