I was always disappointed when Skyrim didn't include a moot. Sure, if you complete the Stormcloak questline Ulfric Stormcloak is likely to gain the crown but still...
I also wondered who was the best Jarl and which one I would, if I was one of the Jarls, vote for.
So I decided to take things into my own hands.
I present to you, the fourth Moot of Skyrim!
The Moot
Throne by Chrisgoddard85.
The Jarls:
Skald,
Siddgeir,
Dengeir of Stuhn,
Igmund,
Thongvor Silverblood,
Igrod Ravencrone,
Sorli the Builder,
Laila- Lawgiver,
Maven Blackbriar,
Elisif the Fair,
Balgruuf the Greater,
Vignar Greymane,
Ulfric Stormcloak,
Brunwulf Free-Winter,
Korir,
Kraldar.
And now we have our jarls, vote for the one you would like to become High King or High Queen. Reasons would be nice but not necessary.
Author's note
Thank you to UESP wiki and the artist ChrisGoddard85.
I know these jarls aren't jarls at the same time and this moot is not how it would be ingame but I have to give you every option.
Please tell me if I did something wrong.
Also, if Maven Blackbriar wins...
I'm leaving Skyrim.
There's a lot of bad options here - I never realized just how little I liked the jarls of Skyrim until I saw all the options listed!
My shortlist candidates are the following:
Idgrod Ravenscrone, Jarl of Morthal - She's a canny old lady with apparently no political ambitions. She's apparently open-minded (Falion) yet doesn't force her ideas on her people or flaunt her views, preferring for her positions to be proven right "in time", on their own.
Balgruuf the Greater, Jarl of Whiterun - A stand-up guy with some political acumen. Biggest flaw is his indecisiveness regarding the Civil War question. A good mid-level manager, but maybe not a good candidate for king - but at least he's not a jerk.
Brunwulf Free-Winter - An older man with some perspective & experience. Both a warrior and a thinker.
Honestly, though, I don't know about any of these people. I'm aware that I've chosen the 3 jarl figures who are friendliest to the player, so that's certainly playing a role in my decision making. Still, I wouldn't say that any of them is a slam dunk. If pressed, I'd probably pick Balgruuf, and hope he rose to the occasion.
Anyone else think Maven wouldn't be that bad? She'll probably have a secret police and an evil agenda, but her business mindset and ambition could either build Skyrim into a vast, wealthy land (with possible expansion into other lands, but due to war usually being bad for business it's unlikely), or make it crumble due to her selfish wishes.
Elisif gets my vote. She is already in a strong position to secure unity, has both good relations with the empire and the opposing faction. No matter which side wins the civil war, Elisif is the best person to mend and heal. I think she is more than a puppet and can actually make a big difference once she overcomes her grief.
I really need to brush up on my knowledge of all the Jarls, but's here's a few that jump to mind:
Ulfric could certainly be a good High King, at least in my opinion. From what I can tell, most of the dislike towards him stems from his dislike, or rather lack of caring, towards other, non-Nord races. And while this would most likely cause problems in the future, he does what's necessary to stand up for his own people.
I could also see Brunwulf making a decent High King, with his open mindedness and such. And he most likely has some knowledge of the battlefield from his time in the Great War, which could prove useful if ever there's another rebellion/uprising, etc.
I could see Elisf doing well, too. She seems to be relatively neutral on the Civil War, if bordering more towards the Empire, and she is already in a fairly strong position of power.
I have to say that Maven and Siddgeir are undoubtedly my least favorite choices; Maven because she's, well, Maven, and for some reason I get a sort of Joffrey vibe from Siddgeir.
For anyone undecided about who deserves to be High King/Queen, here is a quick brief:
Skald - A crazy old man willing to conscript townsfolk.
Brina - An ex war veteran who has experience with leading men and more concerned about protecting the people of her hold.
Siddgeir - A spoiled brat who at least knows what goes on within the hold and listens to council.
Dengeir - A crazy old man lost to his own paranoia, believing everyone around him are Imperial spies.
Igmund - A man who understands the needs of his people must come first before vengeance.
Thongvor - A Silver-Blood thug who is overly fond of violence.
Idgrod - A mystic who has successfully run Morthal Hold for years.
Sorli - A miner uneduated with running Morthal and only cares about herself.
Laila - A puppet too inept to run Riften when she's not too busy covering her eyes to the crimes going on around her.
Maven - A woman who was already running Riften from behind the scenes and controls the crime.
Elisif - She simply let her advisors second-guess her in front of the whole court.
Balgruuf - A man who retains his Nordic customs while still keeping an open mind.
Vignar - A stuck-up old warrior, set in his ways, blinded by pride.
Ulfric - He has misplaced angst towards the Empire, causing the deaths of thousands and fueling Alduin’s power, instead of fighting off just the Thalmor.
Brunwulf - A man who wants to repair and maintain open relationships with other races in his hold.
Korir - A man who hates magic enough to want to remove the mages from the College entirely from his hold and by extension all of Skyrim.
Kraldar - A man who understands the importance of magic and doesn't want to remove all mages in Skyrim.