How Morrowind's world building found it's way to Skyrim

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim needs no introduction. It is one of the most widely recognized and played games of all time. Exceptional world building is a hallmark of the Elder Scrolls series, especially Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim.

The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind was a huge leap forward for the series, taking it into a fully handcrafted open world, without the use of procedural generation for it's locations. Morrowind's vast open world was full of exciting locations rich with lore, much like Skyrim and Oblivion.

Large towns and cities are found in all three games, but Morrowind and Skyrim had something in common which Oblivion did not. Oblivion had some of the best cities in the entire franchise, But it did not have smaller settlements, tied to lore.

Morrowind featured the Ashlander Camps, small camps inhabited by Ashlanders, dark elves who follow the traditional way of living in Morrowind, before the Empire. Skyrim took inspiraiton from the Ashlander Camps in the form of the Orc Strongholds. Much like the Ashlander Camps, there are four Orc Strongholds, which play a similar role to the Ashlander Camps.

The Orc Strongholds may seem unsuspecting, but they have a lot of lore and story behind them. The Orcs lived n Skyrim, originally part of a kingdom of Orcs, until the days of the Nords and the Empire. The Strongholds focus on Orcs living the old fashioned way, with their culture intact, against the wishes of the Stormcloaks. Much like how the Ashlanders live in their camps and keep the Nerevarine Cult alive, despite the wishes of the Tribunal Temple.

While the Orc Strongholds serve little purpose to the main quest of Skyrim, unlike the Ashlander Camps in Mororowind, they add a lot to the game. The lore and storytelling that these Strongholds provide is hard to overstate, and they go a long way to making Skyrim feel like a truly diverse and storied place, much as the Ashlanders did for Morrowind.