Elder Scrolls 6 was first officially announced way back in 2018, but with Bethesda having not revealed much in the way of information since, it makes sense to revisit Skyrim and look for Easter eggs that may hint at the next game's location. The fifth Elder Scrolls game was filled with detail and new information surrounding the series' lore, some of which may event point toward its future. There has already been some speculation regarding the setting of The Elder Scrolls 6, but using clues found in Skyrim may help narrow the search down.
With no firm Elder Scrolls 6 release date or location details, fans have been poring over everything they can get their hands on to look for clues. Elder Scrolls fans have many theories about where the next installment will take place, with the leading contenders being the provinces of Hammerfell and High Rock, the former the home kingdom of the Redguard people, and the latter belonging to the Bretons.
Bethesda has previously hidden clues in its games that point to the next installment in the franchise, and it's possible that the location of The Elder Scrolls 6 has already been teased in Skyrim. Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind had the End of Times cult, which foreshadowed the Daedric invasion seen in Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion and references the return of Alduin and dragons as seen in Skyrim. Oblivion referenced dragons through M'aiq the Liar's riddles and hinted at Alduin's return in its DLC, The Elder Scrolls 4: Shivering Isles. It was hard to determine the significance of those clues at the time, but scrutinizing Skyrim may help in speculation surrounding its sequel.
Minor Dialogue Hints In Skyrim That May Hint At Elder Scrolls 6
One of the most overheard phrases players will hear the Whiterun guards of Skyrim say, apart from talking about their knees and arrows, refers to some foreign visitors they have seen. The guards seem fascinated by their weapons, which prompts them to say: "You see those warriors from Hammerfell? They've got curved swords. Curved. Swords." This piece of dialogue has become something of a joke amongst Elder Scrolls fans, but it is interesting as the guards make a point of mentioning the specific origin of these warriors.
Another small piece of dialogue that hints at Hammerfell can be overheard in the Soul Cairn. The Soul Cairn is a location visited by Skyrim players during the main quest of the Skyrim DLC Elder Scrolls 5: Dawnguard. Once there, the player can overhear a distressed soul say: "I yearn to see the great dunes of Hammerfell once again." This soul is one of only three who reference a specific province or place in Tamriel, the continent where most of the Elder Scrolls series is set. Interestingly Arvak's master, another soul who will give the player a quest to get a skeleton horse, is the only Redguard soul seen in the Soul Cairn.
Skyrim Side Quests That May Hint At Elder Scrolls 6's Location
A quest that offers some hints is In My Time Of Need, which can trigger at any time once the player returns to Whiterun after the ill-timed attack by one of Skyrim's dragons on the Western Watchtower in Dragon Rising. The player may also start the quest by randomly encountering Redguard warriors on the road, where they are usually harassing a random Redguard woman. These are the Alik'r warriors who will explain they are searching for a traitor to their homeland, Hammerfell.
After speaking to the Alik'r and their leader Kematu, the player will learn that the woman is wanted for treason after selling her people out to the Thalmor. However, upon speaking to the woman, she will tell the player that the Alik'r are actually the Thalmor agents. Through the course of this fun Skyrim side quest, the player must decide whether to side with the Alik'r or the Redguard woman they are after.
Another example of conspicuously important Redguards is the Ebony Warrior. Players encounter the Ebony Warrior once they reach level 80, and he will challenge the Dragonborn to a fight to the death. He explains that he has fought all the foes, completed all quests, and now seeks to die in honorable combat in order to get into Sovngarde. Once defeated by the player, his last words will be, "At last, Sovngarde...". However, when the player visits Sovngarde as part of the main questline, they will not find the Ebony Warrior, as he is a Redguard, and Sovengarde is for Nord heroes.
Other Skyrim Hints That Point Toward TES6's Hammerfell Setting
In the Elder Scrolls world of Tamriel’s timeline Skyrim is set 200 years after the Oblivion Crisis of Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, so a lot has happened in the world that the players haven't directly experienced, much of which is conveyed through NPC dialogue and books the players can find. The most significant clues to the location of Elder Scrolls 6 in Skyrim are found throughout the game. NPCs and books will inform the player about Hammerfell's current political state, which could be a massive hint to the location of Elder Scrolls 6 and its plot.
Skyrim is in the middle of a civil war when the Empire captures the player at the very beginning of the game. This civil war was a direct result of the Mede Dynasty rulers of the Empire in Skyrim signing a peace treaty with the Aldmeri Dominion, and this treaty was called the White-Gold Concordat. This agreement ended the Great War, but not all provinces of the Empire agreed to it, with Hammerfell and Skyrim being the most vocal in their disagreement.
Under the White-Gold Concordat, the Empire gave a large part of Hammerfell's southern region to the Aldmeri Dominion, which obviously upset Hammerfell. The Redguard continued to fight, forcing Emperor Titus Mede II to release Hammerfell as an Imperial province. Eventually, the Redguards were able to resist the Dominion to bring the conflict to a stalemate and finally signed their own treaty with the High Elf forces of the Thalmor called the Second Treaty of Stros M'kai.
After this treaty, the Dominion withdrew from Hammerfell completely, but the damage had been done. After over five years of war, Hammerfell was left in a ruined state but remained an independent province, with many Redguard feeling abandoned by the Empire. With the Aldmeri Dominion and their role in Skyrim's civil war playing such a big part of Skyrim's overall storyline, continuing that in the next Elder Scrolls game makes sense.
Skyrim is over 10 years old at the time of writing, so it could be seen as unlikely that Bethesda would plan clues in one game to hint at another with such a large gap between release dates. However, as both Morrowind and Oblivion hinted at the next title in the series, it is not entirely impossible that there are clues sprinkled throughout Skyrim that point to the location of TES6. In the end, though, all fans of the Elder Scrolls series can do is wait until Bethesda release more information to know for sure.