Companions summed up: "Hey, you! You barely look good enough to hold a sword! Come with me to this tomb!" "Hmm? Werewolf? YOU? HAH! Only the best of the best get this gift of blood!" "Congratulations, you are now in the inner circle, my werewolf brother! Let's hunt down those Silver Hand guys!" "Well, you're the boss now. Those were an exciting 2 days, right?"

“Speak to Eorlund if you want a better weapon than... whatever that is.” “It’s Mehrune’s Razor.”

The 'promising your soul to Hircine' thing gets progressively funnier the more times in skyrim you do that. It'd be funny if TES6 says Skyrim was destroyed when the gods all went to war over the Dragonborn's soul.

Farkas and Kodlak seem to be the only "true" Companions, it never feels like they were in it for the gold, rather to help as much as they can

I like how i walk in as harbinger in full dragonescale armor and they ask me if ive ever seen a dragon, YES I HAVE IM WEARING HIS BONES

Vikas: “be careful. This sword probably cost more than you yourself.” *hands me a steel sword*

I felt like the Circle trusted you wayyyy too easily with their "big" werewolf secret. "Well, this newbie we barely know did a few things for us. Better introduce them into the inner circle and to our most deadly secret mystery. We totally trust them not to rat us out to everyone."

The worst part is that you don't really need to be a werewolf to play the story, you can finish it without transforming even once so it doesn't make sence that they force you to be one of them, it should be a reward after you complete a lot of missions not forced.

Vilkas: "Apologies. But perhaps this isn't the time. I've never even heard of this outsider." Me: Dragonborn, Arch Mage of the College of Winterhold, Guildmaster of the Thieves Guild, Listener of the Dark Brotherhood, Thane of Everything....

tbf, "I'm going to find whoever did this" is just a generic line NPCs say when finding a dead body. I once accidentally killed Lydia while fighting bandits, then left the area, and then came back to find one of the bandits standing over her corpse vowing vengeance upon whoever killed her

I think most problems of Skyrim come down to three things the Toddhead decided to remove: The Fame System, the Infamy System and Guild Ranks. This would also heavily improve Guard Monologue. Two Examples: "Hands to yourself, sneak thief." - I never stole anything, I just sneak thru dungeons because I don't like to fight. When Infamy would be a thing, there could be a different "dialogue" for when it is 0. "You're that one from the College. Heard about you." - How? I just joined, I wasn't even in Saarthal jet. This could be only enabled once a specific Rank is achieved.

Aela: “Well that’s taken care of, no thanks to you.” *Me standing a thousand feet away*

The stupidest part is that the silverhand has never just walked into whiterun and exposed the companions as werewolves. Pretty certain nobody wants a pack werewolves a neighbour's.

When you marry Aela, “Something has shifted in the moons, Brother” takes on a whole different meaning.

I feel like it would have been so much cooler of you refused to become a werewolf, and so many days later, a member of the Silver Hand finds you and recruits you into their faction which actually revere Ysgramor and consider themselves the True Companions. Then you could go on a quest to rid the Companions of Lycanthropy either by killing those who won't turn or banishing them and perhaps even convincing others that the Silver Hand are the good guys and the Companions have lost their way

I wonder how the elf in the group feels about the group recovering a battle axe used to killed elves

Player: *Happened to walk by as the Companions kill a giant* Aela: "Wow, you're useless." Player: "What? I was just walking by!" Aela: "Whatever. Hey, want to join the Companions?"

Aela :- They make easy prey . Silver hands :- Literally whole of their stronghold is just filled with dead werewolf heads and bodies .

One thing I always hated about the Silver hand is that you could run into them despite not being a werewolf and they'd still attack you like normal bandits rather than just asking you to leave their base.

The thing I never understood is the lack of involvement of the Vigilants of Stendarr, like that would have really added some depth to that storyline too

This whole questline is just fetching pieces of Wuuthrad and killing the Silver Hand. No history developed, no choices, no unique characters.

Silver hand: "Which one is that?" Silver hand: "Doesn't matter. He wears that armor, he dies!" Farkas standing there in normal steel armor

Sky forged steel should've been significantly stronger than it was, as it's barely better than steel. Every companion should've worn ancient Nordic (or wolf if they're in the circle) armor. As well as had at least one sky forged weapon. Silver hand needed something other than "silver sword" and "silver sword but bigger" to make them seem like a unique faction. Such as a blessed silver necklaces that provides resistance against werewolf attacks.

Only fighters faction forces you to be a werewolf even after explaining being a werewolf could bar you from your peaceful afterlife, almost half of the quests are radiant, enemy faction has literal 0 characterization like gee wouldn't it be neat to know why they are doing what they do or heck even maybe join him if you don't like the idea of forced lycanthropy

6:00 This is one of the biggest disappointments about Skyrim in general for me. It does not matter how powerful or famous you are, all of the NPCs treat you like you are a nobody.

The fact that you can't say no to the beast blood always pissed me off. "No one rules anyone" my ass.

I always found it weird that the first guild players are likely to encounter, with Whiterun essentially being the first city you are meant to go, forces players to become a werewolf so early in the game. It is really possible to become a werewolf before you even fight your first dragon, without taking a detour from the main path. It would be like playing Oblivion and the fighters guild third mission turning you into a vampire. Just finished killing rats in the basement, did a dungeon and boom now you're a vampire! Hurhur.

I know this is an old video and no one is likely to read this BUT, the final companion quest should be delayed until you've been to / got access to sovengarde. You then help Kodlack launch his invasion of the hunting grounds to free the companions completely of Hircene and with the curse removed the Silver Hand end their war with the companions.

Honestly Farkas was and still is my favorite Companion member. He straight up says at the start of the questline that he's the butt of their jokes and is actually happy you're there. He's really the only one that shows he gives a shit about you at the start. Him saying he's scared of spiders honestly gives him character, so he isn't completely one-dimensional like the others

the problem with the companions questline is that it's only 3 quests to get into the Circle and become a werewolf

There’s an interesting mod in development that gives more dimension to this quest line. The Conflict Under the Crescent Moon. It turns the Silver Hand into former Companions seeking to purify them. Just did a play through a few days ago and it’s come a long way. Mod Author updated saying that they’re developing the choice to save them or purge them. Highly recommend giving it a play-through.

I think the Companions would've been a neat way to involve the Falmer pre-Dawnguard. Imagine the Companions are told of an oddly organized raid on a random town. Seeing this as a chance to see what you're made of, the Companions decide to send you and Farkas to this town. You go to this town, and find that these raiders are not bandits but oddly elven looking. After slaughtering the Falmer party, you get a small exposition about the Falmer and mutterings about how bold these specific Falmer seem to be. After a couple of misc. quests, Aela approaches you, saying that, between your quick progress and what she assumes is the attack pattern of this group of Falmer, that perhaps it's right for you and her to hunt down Fragments of Wuuthrad ("We need to remind these Falmer why they cower underground, and what better way than the axe of the man who forced them there in the first place"). After a few Nordic Tomb dives (made unique the presence of Falmer and Chaurus), and another skirmish with the Falmer where you met the Companions, Wuuthrad is reforged and entrusted to you (with a unique one-liner triggering if you're either a Nord or the elven races). With it in inventory, you and the Companions head to the last known site of these bold Falmer: the ruins of Saarthal (though they are not deep enough in to reach where the Eye of Magnus is). Recreating what seems to be the most important conflict in Tamrielic history sounds more appropriate for a Nordic fighters' guild than admittedly fun werewolf shenanigans.

It was a rushed storyline, with a mellow ending. It was also weird how there was only one funeral considering how two members of the circle died.

I’m still salty at Aela for yelling at me for not killing a giant I didn’t know existed until after it’s death.

I tried to do an honorable warrior play through and it was SO HARD. The game forces you to be an evil person or at the very list just shady with loose morals. Your point about being a hired thug reminded me why I had my character just straight up abandon that faction. I didn’t like that I was just beating people up for money. I was also forced to side with the cannibals because I just wasn’t strong enough to beat them all and I couldn’t escape and opt out.

Started playing Oblivion this year, and Oblivion’s side quests and builds are soooooooo much better

Companions: "HEY YOU! JOIN OUR GUILD!" me, a mage: yea sure alright

The Companions doing the whole “hi, nice to meet you would you like to be the guildmaster?” really set the stage for Fallout 4. Bethesda seems to have a thing for organizations that are completely incompetent and just trust randos of the street.

What I liked about the Danwnguard DLC was that you could choose who to join, vampires or Dawnguard. I wish the same choice was available to the Companions questline. At least for the Dark Brotherhood you could choose to wipe them out rather than join should it suit you.

17:17 The Companions, the faction you get teased on when approaching Whiterun, the first hold the game guides you to as part of the main quest. The faction most players are likely to get involved with, and likely to be the first. With rapid advancement through the ranks. And this is the animation they use for them. The Thieves Guild has the animation of the previous guild master taking an eye out of a statue, never used anywhere else... and after several re-releases, where they can fix bugs and glitches, and this animation is still the one for filling the bowl, something many players are likely to see. You can't even assume it's a bug.

“I’m gonna find whoever did this” is a line said by EVERY NPC whenever they find a dead body! I’ve had bandits say it about MY body!

Leader of a major elderscrolls faction: exists *Random prisoner shows up in the area* Faction leader : *intense sweating*

Radiant quests would be way cooler if the world itself had more random events. Like if Nazeem would randomly decide to go to the cloud district instead of harassing the merchants in the square. Instead of the companions saying “hey this person has been kidnapped, go rescue them,” someone new might enter town at a certain time, and actually kidnap the person. Then, a person who has ties to the kidnappee would run into Jorvaskar and tell you, or someone else if they’re closer or you’re not there, and they’ll tell you about it, or maybe another member will do it. You could go to a bandit camp and find a person from a town that you had no idea was kidnapped. Maybe when elder scrolls 6 comes out in a millennia we will have something like that

Random thing I just noticed, the Skyforge has a raven motif. Raven Rock (which did appear in the Dragonborn DLC but ignore that for now) first appeared as part of the Bloodmoon expansion. The expansion that added werewolves. Odin has wolf and raven companions, as wolves and ravens often appear together in the wilderness. So the raven styled forge is a subtle hint that there be wolves.

I remember I got a quest to beat up Mjoll. She is literally one of the most honorable and heroic characters in Skyrim. The person who probably hired the companions to beat her up was probably a thief or someone corrupt who she was trying to root out. The citizens of Riften seem to love Mjoll because she sticks up for them, so I can only presume it was someone who wasn't a good person. This to me is huge supporting evidence that the companions have fallen from honorable warriors to common mercenaries that will do almost any job if they are paid enough, without asking many questions. Even the people who give you jobs seem more interested in the coin than the honor. I still personally enjoy the companions (being a mercenary is cool), but they definitely aren't as honorable as they make themselves out to be. Ysgramor would be ashamed.

All of Skyrim's factions seem to be in a state of decay. - The Blades are all but wiped out, and don't know whether to revert to die-hard Dragon slayers or serve the Dragonborn (Paarthurnax Dilemma). - The Companions have gone from honourable Nordic warriors to thuggish mercenaries that dabble in cursed magics. - The Thieves Guild have become petty criminals that serve as Maven Black-Briars errand boys. - The Dark Brotherhood have become a shell of their former selves after all but abandoning Sithis and the Night Mother. - The Volkihar Clan hide in their castle and have done nothing to further their agenda for thousands of years. The College seems ok in this sense, the quest line isn't good but they are just doing their magical studies as one would expect. And the Dawnguard is actually on the rise due to Isran's efforts.

The thing about sending you for the fragment... Whitemane does say "You look familiar", and later down the storyline admits he had dreams about you curing him of the wolf spirit. So there is an arguement to be made for you getting prefered treatment, and seeing action sooner than others.

In regards to you being rushed up the ranks, that can be explained by Kodlak's journal. He has a dream about you before you arrive, dreaming that you'll set him free from lycanthropy. He's eager to see you rise to a point where you can do that, so he "advises" the circle members to allow you into the circle so quickly, saying that he sees great martial prowess in you. Even Aela agrees with him that you're a powerful and skilled fighter

Companions Should have been THE faction of Skyrim. They should have had a Questline just like what the Dawnguard had.

The best part of the Companions in Skyrim Aela: "We are the Companions" Player: "Cool how can I join?" Game: "Join the Companions" Aela: "We are the Companions" Player: "Companions? Doesn't sound very interesting" Game: "Join the Companions"

I agree with many points, but in fairness a constant theme of Skyrim was that things are not like they used to be. Every group has lost their original identity and glory like the nation itself. So I can't really fault that concept, but I can fault the execution.

the part where u go crazy on whiterun after transforming always was weird to me as well

Imagine an exhibitionist walking around town fully nude and saying "some cowards in this land can't stand the sight of glory before them" as the police shows up to arrest them.

"That was a tough fight. No thanks to you." "Who are you exactly?? What fight??"

Most of these criticisms can easily be said of all the factions, although in some of them you do have the binary option to join two opposing factions, or the the case of the DB, just destroy one faction for a cash reward. I really felt the bit about the quests you go on not feeling like the kind of thing you should be doing. I love the intro to the College of Winterhold with Tolfdir giving lectures and advice and even an interactive tutorial on Ward spells, but then after Saarthal you just do a bunch of dungeon crawls and there’s not much to make you feel like a student, or teacher, let alone an inventor if magic. There are some amusing side quests involving other characters experimenting with magic, which are fun, but there really should have been more of that stuff. And more classes, with dialogue of other students asking advice, especially when you become the Arch-Mage. You know what? I’m just gonna make my own wizard school role playing game, with blackjack, and hookers.

I joined because I knew about the werewolf thing ahead of time and I was going to join the Dawnguard, and as a werewolf it’s impossible for you to accidentally contract vampirism

That one quest when we help that woman, Anska, find a scroll proving her lineage to Ysgramor would have been a perfect opportunity to make the Silverhand a real faction. Imagine you help Anska prove she is related to Ysgramor, and then she offers you another job: to help her reclaim the legacy of Ysgramor from a bunch of unworthy werewolves. The Companions. If you've already joined or finished the Companions as it is, there could be a few options to betray them, such as reveal their lycanthropy to Yarl Balgruuf, needing to convince him if you aren't on good terms with him. Leading to a raid on Jorrvaskr by the Silverhand & Whiterun guard. Depending on where you were in the companions, the results could differ. If the companions were cured, all but Aela could be slaughtered. She could flee and lead to a werewolf faction opportunity, depending on your influence with her, or she could hunt you down later. If you haven't helped or completed the companions, then the Silverhand could give you quests to hunt the remaining members after they flee, having been discovered. Ultimately, Anska reclaims Jorrvaskr and Ysgramor's legacy, the Silverhand are recognized as the true warriors of Skyrim, and we get more factions in the game.

I actually liked the amorality of the Thieves Guild questline. Beating someone for protection money felt more genuine to the organized crime theme than the Robin Hood vibe in Oblivion. But that doesn't work for the supposedly honorable Companions, who should care who it is they're beating and why.

I actually really liked the ending, gels well with the main quest eventually taking you to Sovngarde to be fair. People really thinking about their lives now vs their eternal lives. Some people follow Hircine and don't mind the idea of hunting for eternity but others want for Sovngarde. Jon Battle-Born is right, everyone in Skyrim IS obsessed with death- or at least what happens afterward.

One of the problems with this quest line is that it's meant to be done really early in your playthrough. For most players, especially new players will go to Whiterun right after Helgen. The game should have done more incentives you to join when you first come to Whiterun for continuity so you don't show up after killing Alduin, Miraak and Harkon and get treated like so. I remember enjoying it on my first playthrough since I happened to join very early and Wuuthrad looked cool af and Aela was hot lol.

Once a guard killed me, and before respawning the same guard said, “I’ll find whoever did this”...

One thing that really annoys me about this quest line is that you can’t really say no to being a werewolf. In oblivion’s dark brotherhood vampirism was on option not forced on you.

I wish all of the guild questlines were longer or branched more. They’re so short and end with you as the leader within in-game days. Oblivion did these far better IMO.

When I was turned into a werewolf, I just went back into the secret room thats under the skyforge and left in the wild through the tunnel thats on the right 🤣 No innocent people ended up dying, just a random werewolf running around in the wilderness

Speak to eorlund if you want a better weapon, than whatever that is. It's Auriels bow :/

The problem with the companions: Elves aren't afraid of Wuuthrad. Can you imagine, showing up to that peace treaty in the Throat of the World with Wuuthrad on your back and the damn Thalmar agent just noping out? Yeah, that should have happened.

The moment they suggested the silver hand being a breakaway splinter faction I felt my soul rip in two at what could have been

the companions questline was cool the first few times but i honestly couldnt get past the fact that its the only way to become a werewollf . on the other side of the coin you can become a vampire at anytime in the game which i found more appealing since its not locked to a questline as a requirement.

Aela attacked me for turning into a werewolf right after she turned me into one and told me to wipe out a Silver Hand hideout with Krev The Skinner. Even Serana protected me from her; the whole thing has left me bewildered.

A whelp is a puppy. It's the first hint about the whole werewolf thing. It isn't a rank. It's basically the Companions' way of calling someone a rookie.

I minor thing that bugs me is that a guard says I’m a newcomer and asks if I fetch the mead, and the very next line they respect me as a harbinger

What also would have made the companion's questline more appealing to do in multiple playthroughs, is if you have to chose someone to replace Skjor on the circle, and depending who you choose, a different quest triggers where they have to prove themselves, and/or some of them go on rampages in whiterun when they are turned and get slaughtered by guards, and then you have to pick a new one etc.

My first playthrough, I was excited about joining the Companions to become an honorable warrior... and then my first quest was to beat up Danica Pure-Spring. Beat up a priestess of Kynareth, for no reason, right across the street from Jorrvaskr! Beating up a priest is the kind of thing you see in a bad mafia movie to demonstrate just how badly the Don's son has lost his way, a lazy way to communicate to an audience that a character is irredeemable. After all that talk of honor, they made me beat up a priestess of one of the Aedra most revered by the Nords, whose history and culture they supposedly value so much. So much for the roleplay. SMH.

>Transforms into a werewolf >Everyone starts attacking you while you just stand there. I'd like to ask, who is the blood crazed here?

The guilds feel like a mix of last minute additions and elaborate side quests with a ton of content missing. The Companions could have been a full length DLC and have more to work with. I usually spend time around Vilkas and Farkas and feel like there's a lot missing with those two. Vilkas feels like he should be there while Farkas feels like he shouldn't and is only there because of Vilkas, his twin. Even then Vilkas acts like he doesn’t want his brother around, he does say that he loves him but then states his brother isn't very bright. I know there was a lot cut from Skyrim so maybe there should have been more concerning the guilds but chances are we may never fully know.

“Don’t let the new guy see you cry Vilkas…”

Honestly it feels like they stitched together what should have been two factions into one without considering context. Ideally there should have been a werewolf pack and the Companions with an unease truce between them going back a few hundred years after Hercine's gift was placed upon them. And the whole quest-line should have been built up as new blood learning of this secret and negotiating between these two factions as the Silver-Hand came to the region and disrupted the truce. With the ending being a choice of multiple ending dependent upon which faction you choose to side with. Side with the Pack and leave the Witches alive in return for a chance to challenge the dominate member of the pack for leadership with Hercine's favor. Side with the companions and cure Kodlak well scattering the pack by killing it's leader resulting in more random werewolf encounters. ..... Yes, I get that I'm suggesting they should have pulled a Dawnguard with the core factions.

No.1 Problem with this Faction They have never heard of you even if you killed Alduin

For all the non-dlc guild/faction quests, it seems to me the thieves guild definitely got the most attention, followed by the dark brotherhood and the civil war. After that the rest seem seem to either have been rushed or had a lot of content cut. I know there is a fair bit of content on the Nexus that expands these, particularly for the war with some even having possibilities of whichever side you join actually loosing.

Two things about the companions that I never liked is People only get two chances to become a werewolf unlike the vampire lord where you can change back and you cured as much as you want Plus the game doesn’t allow Hybrids so that kind of sucked only way to become sort of like a hybrid is through mods or glitches

"A true warrior would relish at the chance to take on a giant" "Why would I care?"

To be honest, the whole “blood of the wolf” thing would have gone SO WELL if there was a genuine cult in Skyrim dedicated to Hircine. Yes, we take part in one of Hircine’s great hunts, but that’s all we really see of the Prince of Beasts. Like, maybe you start out as a “pup” and through a bunch of quests you gradually become more powerful. Maybe at some point you become/can become a werewolf, and at that point the Cult contacts you. Maybe there’s a mod for that.. If not, someone better get on it.

I agree with what you said about the companions. (Except Aela, I don't love her. I do love Farkas though

I just started playing Skyrim for the first time and the Companions quest was actually a storyline I really enjoyed. I completely agree some parts of it didn't make sense or felt too rushed, but some of the critiques you mentioned were exactly why I enjoyed it. I actually thought the character of Kodlak was pretty complex. If you read his journal found in the drawer next to the fragment you're meant to retrieve from his room, you'll discover he had a prophetic dream about your character. This explains why he accepts you into the faction upon meeting you for the first time. I also thought he was a great stand-in for the ethical dilemmas the Companions guild creates. The ambiguity and lack of identity I feel are actually key parts of the Companion guild. Like you mention, the guild seems to have progressed to something that is far beyond what it was originally created for. While the members may say they fight for honor, the guild seems more like a sanctuary for lost wanderers looking for a sense of comradery and family. While the Companions emphasize fighting for glory and honor, I would argue they value solidarity with one another just as much, if not more. In your initiation, there's a great emphasis in the speech not just about fighting, but also about how members will drink with you and celebrate your name after death. As someone who was low-level at this point in the game, I felt drawn to the guild because of how early it's introduced. As someone low on supplies and storage, it was nice having the choice to have a bedroom and weapons if I were to join their guild. I think this also added to the moral dilemma of the Companion’s quest line. The fact that you must complete murderous crusades and take on the werewolf curse can feel like a form of peer pressure. You don’t have to partake in these actions, but you are alienated from the group if you don’t. Because of this, it can feel like you have no other choice but to engage with these moral dilemmas, and I think this discomfort is purposeful. I think this also helped explain the animosity so many of the other guild members had about your character being newly initiated. For me, it felt less like I had to prove my "battle skills" to them, and more that they were just extra protective over anyone new being inserted into this family space. It wouldn't have mattered how powerful my character was, the animosity was because I was an outsider and therefore someone others couldn't trust very much. The promise of stability and comradery are what make the Companion guild alluring to its members, in my opinion. For me, this explained why, while the guild emphasized honor, most of its members spoke only of the joy of fighting or fighting for coin. In other words, the value of "honor" is a farce, with its definition changing from member to member, which falls back to why it seems impossible for each guild member to agree on what it really means to be a Companion. For instance, Aela presents you with missions under the guise of “honor” and “justice”, which involve taking out the Silver Hand. However, like you mention, the player knows next to nothing about the Silver Hand guild. This makes the mission feel even more unethical as you slaughter these people. I feel the entire point is that the player is made to feel uncomfortable about the mission. Sure, there’s evidence of torture that can help the player feel more justified in their crusade, but it’s not enough to solidify any real moral answer. I think this moral ambiguity is then validated by Kodlak’s disappointment in your player and Aela for going on this mission. He points out how cyclical vengeance is, and how needlessly people were murdered. His point of view validates all of your previous discomfort with the mission and makes you realize you may have done something unethical, not “glorious”. It also reveals that Aela is not the be-all mouthpiece of the Companions like you may have trusted her as. Again, this shows how differently people understand the purpose of the guild and its identity. However, there seems to be a bit of irony when Kodlak then sends you on another quest for vengeance alongside a look for the cure. I don’t think it’s coincidental that Kodlak dies while you’re on a mission carrying out this crusade. Kodlak was blinded by his own deep-seated resentment at the witches for his curse and his focus on carrying out their deaths resulted in his own passing. While Kodlak portrayed the voice of reason and caution, he was still a victim to his ego, which is symbolized by the quest for glory and vengeance among the guild. I think this is why the final part of the quest worked for me, where the player is not meant to kill real beings, but instead proves their worth fighting ghosts. It’s a first example of what the guild is truly searching for, which is a chance to prove your strength and receive glory. In his death, Kodlak realizes his mistakes and accepts the consequences of his greed. However, you are still able to finally cure his soul so that he can continue the quest in the afterlife. At the end of the quest, the player can go through Kodlak’s journal and learn that Kodlak had already been planning on mentoring you for the rest of his years to be the leader of the Companions. In his words, the player is not too vengeful like Aela and not too kind-hearted like Farkas. His untimely death explains your character’s unexpected rise to power, and gives it a bit more foreshadowing. I also think it’s telling that after the final quest is complete is when the guild members are finally friendly with your character. It was the final action of taking care of their mentor’s well-being that puts you in good graces with the guild members. I felt this made sense with what we had seen from the guild, which is that they would be more motivated to accept you based on your ability to look after fellow guild members. I understand the Companions quest is not perfect by any means, but personally, it was one of my favorites from my play through.

"Vilkas says you're the new Kodlak. I don't know what that means."

I think it would be interesting if: 1) The other whelps would rise in the ranks with you. The way I would make it, Ria would end up trapped in that stage and grow bitter towards you, especially since she was so eager. 2) Part way through, you can decide to betray the Companions and join the Silver Hand. They will explain the history, and try to cure you of your lycanthropy. 3) That we could have a chill mission that isn’t a dungeon. Being a werewolf is super unique, I would love a mission where we actually go out (animal) hunting as wolves in the night. Maybe it goes awry and it ends up being a much more story changing mission by surprise.

I have never minded being a werewolf. I welcomed it. Being a Vampire however was a major pain. As for the first transformation I stayed behind the building till it was over...

I only ever join to be a werewolf. It's a pretty fallback for when your 9n fights you cant win, and you can still absorb dragon souls as a werewolf. They also feel WAY more versatile than vampire lords

Easy answer: Their introductory event outside of Whiterun kinda makes whats-her-name seem like a jerk tbh

"They were easy prey" Me as werewolf dies over and over because of silver greatswords :(

the reason i’ve always appreciated and loved this channel is because you judge the character developments and faction development and not critique on how fun it is because we all wouldn’t be here if we didn’t play that quest

4:21 a whelp irl is slang for wolf pup, so they basically called you a child. (it’s also kinda foreshadowing that they’re werewolves)

Level 81, master warrior. Slain Alduin, cleared every. single. dungeon., and defeated Miraak. Companians: ha, loser.

This is why I usually do a bunch of the smaller random quests inbetween the main quests. Makes the guilds feel a bit longer.

I actually love that theory about the Silver Hand, I really wish they had been more fleshed out in the actual game. The idea of refusing to join the Circle and leaving the guild, then being approached by a member of the Silver Hand who asks you to help them take back Jorrvaskr for the true followers of Ysgramor would have been awesome to play through. Hopefully they don't make the same mistakes in ES6.

That's probably my biggest issue with the whole game. No matter what you do people will just be rude to you or think they are tougher than you. A guard will say "omg that was amazing you are the dragonborn!" And then turn around and ask if someone stole your sweet roll. I could easily see some people being jerks no matter what but after a certain ammount of accomplishments you should get some damn recognition

Bad writing aside, my biggest gripe with the questline is the lack of choice (this is across the board when it comes to the factions in Skyrim, but oh well). Like you can't just tell Skjor and Aela to rack off with their werewolf bullsh*t. (beware: 12 am, spitball idea below) Like how awesome would it have been to be able to refuse their "gift" then continue on with the questline with the pair being all "you're too weak as a mere mortal, blah blah", sowing doubt into the player's mind. As the questline progresses the PC will go through some scripted losses, the losses prompts a bit of a crisis point to where Skjor and Aela subtly pressure the PC into accepting the gift, at which point the PC can either buckle under and become a werewolf or steels their resolve and continue on as a mortal. If you remain mortal, it builds a bond between the PC and Kodlak (which the game was hinting at) thus endearing/inspiring Vilkas to be more trusting of the PC and he's more willing/open to the idea of not needing to be a werewolf in order to be strong and that if a random stranger can resist the lure of becoming stronger through lycanthropy, then perhaps it's time he became mortal and he will be able to go to Sovernguard when he dies, like all true Nords (be strong in the pride). However, if the PC becomes a werewolf, it turns Vilkas away from the idea of curing his lycanthropy and reinforces the pack mentality. Though if the PC becomes a werewolf and then cures themselves it'll prompt the same conversation in the normal game where Vilkas wants to become mortal for the sake of himself and Farkas, who'll follow where his brother leads.

Half the companions are part of the circle it seems, the lack of scale in faction/ event representation in-game is an issue that plagues Skyrim or Elder Scrolls in general - but it just sticks out even more in Companions' quest line.

My only complaint about the Companions questline is that there is no main antagonist like Ancano in the College of Mages, Mercer in the Thieves Guild and Commander Maro in the Dark Brotherhood. It would be cool if during the Companions quest line at the end of each quest we fought with the leaders of the Silver Hand clan who have their own personality

5:37-6:04 That's pretty much exactly what happened in my run through. I was new to open world games, so I just stayed on the main quest line. Stayed neutral in the war. Didn't go up to the Companions at all until I got bored one time in Whiterun, missed the Bannered Mare and found their base. Talked to a couple npcs there trash talking me and I just noped out. Serana wasn't impressed either, and we made our way to Solstheim. On another playthrough I got the "you didn't help out with this giant" deal after I had taken the offer. Not a good first impression. When I followed that quest and wound back up at the same place, I rolled my eyes and thought, "Oh, these jerks. Great." Did the playthrough to get it out of the way. Almost said no to becoming a werewolf out of spite, why would I want to join this pack of bullies, maybe I can turn myself into the Silverhand and we can take down the Companions like every other faction quest in the game. Nope. Not an option. Screw the Companions. They're a failed secret organization with a front of a fighting club, who don't even help out during the siege of Whiterun. Cowards and bullies the lot of them. True Nords would back up their barbed words, but not those curs, running off with tails between their legs.