The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim provides players with a beautiful fantasy world and nine major cities to explore, but there is one city that's worse than all the others. Jarls govern each Hold, create laws, and uphold order in their respective territories. As players progress through the Skyrim Civil War quest, cities suffer varying damages, and Jarls are replaced with members of the same allegiance. Each significant city also features a unique questline that encourages players to explore their surroundings and meet essential characters. Skyrim's cities feature different designs representing their terrain, culture, and populace, but not all are enjoyable places to linger.
Skyrim’s nine major cities are Whiterun, Falkreath, Windhelm, Solitude, Riften, Markarth, Dawnstar, Morthal, and Winterhold. Players usually encounter Whiterun first after being directed there following Aludin's attack on Helgen Keep. However, after reaching Whiterun and unlocking the ability to use Dragon Shouts and absorb dragon souls, it's likely for players to begin exploring more freely. Skyrim's nine Holds make exploration simpler, dividing territories into different biomes and allegiances. Unfortunately, one city missed the mark in creating a welcoming, safe environment.
Markarth is one of Skyrim's most interesting cities and one of the most historical locations in the game, but it's the worst city by far. Built within the ruins of a Dwarven city, Markarth is a mining city separated into social castes based on the height of each location. Miners and poorer citizens are trapped underground, unable to see the sun nor secure wages high enough for better housing. In contrast, the Jarl and upper-class citizens enjoy the Dwemer's advanced technology and abundant resources. While this creates an interesting social dynamic and an example of Skyrim's injustices, Markarth is still the game's most unpleasant city to explore.
Skyrim's Markarth Has Terrible Organization
Like other Dwarven settlements in Skyrim, the organization of Markarth is a headache to navigate. The identical color palette of walkways, staircases, and bridges is blocked by the high-reaching, golden towers of essential locations. Though practice makes perfect, players can often find themselves running in circles to locate their objective. Skyrim's map and waypoint system also struggle to compensate for Markarth's many levels, leaving some players to leap off ledges and risk extreme fall damage to escape its clutches. This flawed organization is worsened by the many threats located in the city's walls; from ambushes to corrupt guards, players are constantly at risk of dying and being forced back to previous saves.
Players can buy (and sometimes build) homes in each Skyrim city and Hold, but Markarth's is the most disappointing and confusing. Given the Dwemer aesthetic of the city, most indoor settings are far dimmer than other homes. In addition, the lack of windows and glass means the cold, stone exterior prevents many players from feeling at home. Instead, the house available for purchase feels like a prison cell, complete with an uncomfortable stone bed.
Though upgrading the house can make it seem more comfortable, it doesn't compare to the other houses in Skyrim's cities of Whiterun, Falkreath, or Solitude. Additionally, Markarth's market and vendors are scattered throughout the urban center, forcing players to sprint from one side of the city to the other to acquire the best prices for their wares. In contrast, other cities organize their markets close to player homes or essential locations.
Markarth Provides Skyrim Players With Brutal Murders And Raids
Though Skyrim is in the middle of a Civil War, most significant cities enjoy relative peace within their walls, with Markarth being the exception. When players first enter the city, they witness a brutal assassination in the market by a Forsworn agent. Though the guards swiftly kill the man, everyone seems to brush the incident off in a few moments. Unfortunately, interrogating the locals only brings more questions about Skyrim's mysterious Forsworn faction (which include the Briarhearts), and players are left scrambling for answers in a chaotic cesspool of corruption and murder. The saying "there's no second chance at a first impression" couldn't apply more to Markarth, as the bloody welcome players receive upon arriving sets the tone for the city's lifestyle.
Markarth presents a unique conflict within its walls against Forsworn Agents and citizens intent on upholding the current government. It's liable for innocents and guards alike to suffer attacks from the Forsworn. Even when peacefully confronting the Forsworn agents, the Dragonborn suffers devastating attacks that leave them outnumbered and cornered. Furthermore, defending oneself from attacking parties can result in the guards turning against the Dragonborn. Markarth also punishes players for giving into heroic urges, often forcing the Dragonborn into violence as they try to improve the lives of less fortunate citizens.
Skyrim's Markarth Questline Is Filled With Betrayal
There is no way for players to "win" when it comes to Markarth's main quest in Skyrim, forcing players to battle a corrupt government and a ruthless band of rebels by themselves. A concerned citizen recruits players to expose the Forsworn conspiracy and the Jarl's corruption, but as players uncover the truth, he is killed, leaving the Dragonborn framed for the murder. Once stowed away in Cidhna Mine, the Dragonborn must work with the Forsworn who've unleashed chaos on the city, enlightening players to the injustices departed on the Reach's natives. The prisoners are exploited for labor and forced to mine silver, overseen by corrupt guards who refuse to give their charges neither sympathy nor sustenance.
No matter how players progress throughout Markarth's Forsworn-riddled side quest story in Skyrim, it's likely for the Dragonborn to procure a hefty bounty before they leave. Additionally, quests completed for the Jarl and his Court Wizard are of no use, as the city's nobility are equally guilty of upholding a broken system that benefits them. Without the existence of the ultimate good, players cannot claim victory or resolve the many injustices of Markarth. In a twisted way, Markarth represents the volatile society Skyrim has become during the Dragon Crisis but presents a conflict the Dragonborn cannot solve.
With Markarth's general layout often forcing players to take swan dives off walkways and the sheer brutality of the city's society, it's unsurprising that this city is the worst out of Skyrim's major settlements. Thankfully, the main questline and Skyrim's many side quests give players plenty of objectives outside Markarth and the Reach. Additionally, Markarth isn't the only place to experience Dwemer architecture and dastardly coups, ensuring players can avoid Skyrim's worst city. Those who side with the Imperials in Skyrim's Civil War can also exert some changes for Markarth, assuming the Civil War is completed after the Stormcloaks are traded the city during negotiations. It's unknown how Bethesda plans to model cities in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim's sequel, but hopefully, players can avoid another Markarth.