Ex‑Elder Scrolls loremaster says team agreed on TES6 setting long ago — won’t say

Kurt Kuhlmann, Bethesda’s former Elder Scrolls loremaster, says he won’t reveal where The Elder Scrolls 6 is set, but remembers the team had largely agreed on a location back in the Fallout 4 timeframe. Kuhlmann left Bethesda in 2023.

“From when we were talking about it way back in the Fallout 4 timeframe,” he tells us, “there was a sort of consensus amongst a few people that were talking about it.” He clarifies he doesn’t know if that’s still the case, that it wasn’t completely locked in, and that he’s been out of the loop for a couple of years.

Kuhlmann also says he hasn’t been involved in that level of the story side since Skyrim. He had expected to be lead designer on TES6 after serving as co‑lead on Skyrim, a role Todd Howard initially promised him, but Howard changed his mind after Fallout 4, Fallout 76 and Starfield; Kuhlmann’s hopes were dashed near the end of Starfield’s development.

He did share a story concept in which TES6 would play like “The Empire Strikes Back,” with players achieving victories but the game ending with the Thalmor taking over Tamriel and setting up a high‑stakes TES7. Fan theories still point to regions like Hammerfell or High Rock, but those guesses are based on speculation and an eight‑year‑old teaser.

There remains no official word on where The Elder Scrolls 6 will be set, and it’s unclear whether the early consensus Kuhlmann recalls still stands. For now, fans will have to keep guessing.

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