Character Profile – Nitter

Kris Takahashi Character Profiles 1 Comment

When we all transfer our DNA into hard drives and live in a virtual paradise, the one thing that is certain is that it will be full of beautiful people. Sure, there will be times when we all get bored of being hunky/sexy supermodels and role play a club-footed midget, but for the most part we are lazy and it is simply easier to live our daily lives as a more ideal version of ourselves.

We will all be beautiful. We will all be confident, for whatever weaknesses we had could be erased with the appropriate software. We will all be more or less perfect.

While there’s a Stepford-ian quality to such a utopia, this is not a bad thing. There will still be diversity, it will simply come from our various interpretations of beauty. There will also be Orcs and Khajiit and Fairies and Hobbitses, and that outweighs any fears of the kind of banality we now associate with the suburbs. In fact, the analogy probably works better in reverse. The virtual world will be full of breasts, beauty, beasts, and blood. It will be total hyperbole, and we will forget all the plain ol’ folks we left back in the real one.

The modding world is but a teaser for this dichotomy.  It adds to Skyrim hordes and hordes of beautiful, talented, badasses and quirky, adorable companions. For creators of smaller NPC mods, it makes sense, as there’s a marketing aspect to consider.  However, if you combine them all together, what you end up with is a Skyrim less like it was intended to be, and more like our virtual playground of the future.

That is to say, no one will want to download a companion mod featuring an insecure, submissive man with a bird for a haircut. In a vacuum, this person would not stand out. However, in a world full of beautiful, amazing, and eccentric people, the universe’s last pathetic weakling seems almost refreshing, and Nitter (Tom Shortridge) is all kinds of pathetic.

While Hjoromir‘s weaknesses are almost masked by his unwavering bravado, Nitter is no such thing. He is an obvious submissive, making himself an easy target in a city full of cutthroats. For the PC, Jaree-Ra is at best a partner and at worst someone entirely beneath you. For Nitter, he’s a chance for acceptance. He’s a friend. So while all the warning signs are there, he chooses to ignore them. Moreover, he has an incentive to ignore them. It’s not so much the loneliness that drives him, as he’s become numb to the feeling. It’s the joy of having someone muss his hair, even when the fingers are coarse. Nitter will commit crimes, he will act against his own interests, because for him, nothing was as euphoric as that feeling he belonged.

Which is why the only cure for his destructive behavior was true acceptance. In Ma’zaka, he found someone who not only forgave him, but understood him. After all those years cooped up in an old lighthouse, perhaps they needed each other. Sure, the relationship mirrors a mentor and his student, but in terms of their friendship, Ma’zaka is the first person to ever see Nitter as a peer. So while the pairing may not be perfect, and there will be days they annoy each other, in the end, having each other’s company is something they both find ideal.

Meet the Actor – Anna Castiglioni (Anduniel)

Kris Takahashi Meet the Actor 6 Comments

Handsome Man's GrottoWhen it comes to commitment, there are all types. Some voice actors are incredibly reliable but like to take their time, so I give it to them. Others have an insatiable appetite for lines, so I tend to keep them fed, provided they have the talent, versatility, and recording quality goodness that we all strive for.

What makes Anna Castiglioni remarkable is not only does she check off all those boxes, she does so while working tirelessly on her own companion mod and about 178,237 other projects. While I believe her husband would object, if her and Jay ever had children they would probably have enough energy and dedication to end world hunger, build a bridge to mars, and develop an equation for quantum gravity. They would save the world. SAVE THE WORLD. The rest of us would just live in it.

In between rescuing the planet and working on the mods – all of them – she took some time to provide us with another literacy-free interview.

Character Sheet – Gorr

Kris Takahashi Other 13 Comments

Gorr. He likes fighting and eating. And beards.

Gorr
Encounter Riverwood
Locations South of Ivarstead, Markarth, Various
Race Redguard Gender Male
Level PC×1 Class CombatWarrior2H
RefID XX02d6e7 BaseID 0202D184
Health Levels with PC Magicka Levels with PC
Stamina Levels with PC
Primary Skills Two-Handed, Heavy Armor, Block, Archery
Morality Violence Against Enemies Confidence Brave
Inventory Iron Armor, Hide Boots, Hide Gauntlets, Iron Warhammer, Horker Meat, Horker Stew
Voice Nile Zam Jones (Zammuel)

Gorr the Wanderer
Upon recruiting Gorr as a follower, you have the option of asking him where to go next. This conversation will effectively enable his wandering quest. Progressing through this quest will result in unlocking Gorr’s marriage dialogue, his personal quest, and setting him to wander.  It should also be noted that Gorr’s marriage question, It’s funny how the fates keep bringing us together, while accessible only by wearing an Amulet of Mara, is deliberately ambiguous. This way, you can hear the story while still avoiding a romantic overture by responding with That’s right. We’re great friends.

Gorr the Wanderer (DialogueGorr)
Stage Information
10 Gorr wanders to the camp south of Ivarstead. This video will show the exact location of the camp.
20 After meeting at Ivarstead and dismissing, Gorr will head to the Silver-Blood Inn in Markarth
30 This stage will unlock the above mentioned options and set Gorr to wander to the following locations:

  • Sundas – Anga’s Mill
  • Morndas – Orotheim
  • Tirdas – Hela’s Folly
  • Middas – Morthal
  • Turdas – Broken Tower Redoubt
  • Fredas – Whiterun Drunken Huntsman
  • Loredas – Clearpine Pond

Pit Dogs
After reaching stage 30 of his wander quest, Pit Dogs will be available by talking to Zora Fair-Child, or by bringing Zora to Gorr and speaking with him. The quest has two possible outcomes, as well variable rewards determined by the dialogue choices.

Pit Dogs (Gorrquest)
Stage Information
1 Help Zora find Gorr. This stage will be skipped if Zora is brought to Gorr and he is spoken to.
20 Gorr makes a reference to the Ivarstead conversation, that someone is casting aspersions on his character. Zora mentions a suspicious character headed toward Whiterun.
30 At the Drunken Huntsman, the player is introduced to J’Sharr, who is the character mentioned in Gorr’s marriage request dialogue. He mentions an underground pit fighting ring in Fort Sungard, and asks the group to attend his match.
40 J’Sharr will proceed to poison the Dragonborn. The PC will wake up in a cage, after which J’Sharr will quickly free the PC and usher him/her to the pits.
70 After watching Gorr defeat a combatant, the player has the opportunity to mingle. 3 NPCs, Valenor, Ignatius and the Fair Lady will have conversation strings. Talking to the Fair Lady will advance the quest.
75 The PC is partnered with J’Sharr and must battle 2 Alik’r Warriors in the Pit. Before the fight, J’Sharr attempts to fool the player with faulty math, at which point he/she can call him on his mistake, deny payment for the fight, or accept the amount J’Sharr says the PC will win.
100 After defeating the warriors, J’Sharr provides a key to the exit and reveals Zora can be found at Skytemple Ruins. Through Gorr’s dialogue, the option will be given to kill J’Sharr now, or prioritize rescuing Zora. This will affect the outcome of the quest.
105 Killing J’Sharr immediately will result in a delay that ends Zora’s life. Eliminating her killers will end the quest.
110 It is revealed Zora did not have a match, but was sold to a necromancer. If J’Sharr is ignored she can be saved.
135 The group returns to the Pit to find out information on J’Sharr’s whereabouts. The player can progress the quest by convincing Valenor you want to make a deal or bribing the Fair Lady.
140 J’Sharr’s location is revealed to be Orotheim. In the cave, the player finds a Khajiit and three henchmen, along with any bandits generated by the vanilla game.
200 Upon killing the Khajiit, a scene will trigger and the quest will complete.

Notes: J’Sharr is the Khajiit mentioned in Gorr’s marriage dialogue and his initial foray to Ivarstead. The Khajiit in the cave bears a striking resemblance to J’Sharr, but is unnamed for a reason. It is unlikely that J’Sharr would be careless enough to trust the player or divulge the information to the Fair Lady, and it is implied he escaped. Killing J’Sharr is possible if the PC is willing to sacrifice Zora.  Zora’s death, however, will result in breaking a number of quests with which she is involved in.

For more information about Gorr, check out his character profile here.