Morrowind:Factions

Below you'll find detailed information on each of the factions in the game. Despite conflicts between many factions (especially across Imperial and native lines, e.g. Mages Guild versus Telvanni, or Imperial Cult versus Tribunal Temple), it is usually possible to join and advance in whichever factions you choose, if you are mindful of the conflicts and work around them. See the Reaction Table below, and be aware that you may have to notably raise Personality and its associated skill Speechcraft to mitigate negative faction reactions.

Great Houses

The Great Houses are the large establishments, throughout the Morrowind province, of extended lineages of "civilized" Dunmer, with many non-Dunmer retainers (and sometimes officers). The Great Houses' traditions derive from ancient Dunmer clans and tribes, but they now function something like political parties. Of the Empire's five recognized Great Houses, only three have a governing and commerce presence on the island of Vvardenfell in particular. A fourth, House Indoril (not covered below, as it is not coded as a faction in Morrowind), supplies the majority of the Ordinators.

Houses	Favored Attributes and Skills	Notes
House Hlaalu	Speed Agility Speechcraft Mercantile Marksman Short Blade Light Armor Security	Joinable The most Empire-friendly of the Great Houses in Morrowind, and the most focused on commerce and politics, House Hlaalu is also the easiest Great House on Vvardenfell to join and advance within for a non-Dunmer outlander (one of the top Hlaalu people in Morrowind is of Imperial stock). Everything is business to the Hlaalu, and the house is ultimately controlled by the Dunmer Hlaalu family, some of whom possess titles of Imperial nobility.
House Redoran	Endurance Strength Athletics Spear Long Blade Heavy Armor Medium Armor Armorer	Joinable. A Great House primarily of warriors, though with business interests that clash with those of House Hlaalu, the Redoran have an eye to reestablishing Morrowind's former, pre-Imperial glory, though they stop short of open revolt against the Empire. House Redoran has deep ties to the native culture, despite their civilized veneer. The Redoran, politics aside, have mutual respect for and from other warrior-caste groups, such as the Fighters Guild and the Imperial Legion (below).
House Telvanni	Willpower Intelligence Mysticism Conjuration Illusion Alteration Destruction Enchant	Joinable. An isolationist Great House led by a council of mages (not all of whom are exactly friendly to one another), the Telvanni are the Great House that is least accepting to outlanders of any kind. House Telvanni has come into conflict with the Mages Guild (below), for control of magic-related services and resources. Advancement to the higher ranks of the Telvanni requires impressive magic skills and intelligence.
Sixth House	Endurance Strength No favored skills	Not Joinable. Disgraced an age ago, and long thought to have been utterly destroyed, this ancient House is rebuilding itself and is allied directly with Dagoth Ur and the Daedra. It recruits necromancers and mercenaries to take control of Daedric Shrines and other abandoned sites that can be defended, including underneath established cities. The Sixth House has mutual antipathy with most other factions in the game, and no allied factions.

Notes

• You can (without cheating) usually only join one of the three Great Houses. However, there is an exploitable bug that makes it possible to join Hlaalu and either Redoran or Telvanni.
• House Indoril is noted for making up a large percentage of Ordinators, and a member of House Indoril, Mehra Drora, can be found in Gnisis. House Dres has no in-game impact on the province at all. Neither House appears as a faction in the game.
  • The original story featured all five houses of the Dark Elves, including your ability to join House Indoril and House Dres, but due to its scope this had to be cut.

Imperial Factions

The Imperial factions are all establishments relating to Imperial traditions and politics. Most such factions originate from Cyrodiil and have made their way to Vvardenfell.

Factions	Favored Attributes and Skills	Notes
Blades	Intelligence Personality Speechcraft Marksman Light Armor Sneak Restoration Long Blade	Joined automatically during the Main Quest. The Blades are the Emperor's elite espionage, military, and diplomacy service. Within the Morrowind game, only the intelligence operations are experienced directly. Regional Grand Spymasters of the Blades (like Caius Cosades, who will be your "handler") receive instructions directly from the Emperor.
Census and Excise	Intelligence Personality Speechcraft Mercantile Marksman Light Armor Sneak Long Blade	Not joinable, and only a few related quests. These tax collectors are a functionary branch of the Imperial government, and also control immigration, prisoner release, port customs, demographics, and other border-control, population, and revenue matters. Customs and Excise Officials are also empowered to investigate local criminal offenses.
Dark Brotherhood	Agility Speed Acrobatics Alchemy Light Armor Marksman Short Blade	Not Joinable. Despite being related to several quests, the faction does not technically exist without the Tribunal expansion. A renegade guild of contract killers, with clients at the highest level, the Dark Brotherhood has been around for centuries, and remains the mortal organizational enemy of the more principled Morag Tong (below).
East Empire Company	Personality Willpower Speechcraft Mercantile Security Long Blade Medium Armor	Joinable, but only in the Bloodmoon expansion. This crown-chartered company is a monopolistic mercantile operation.
Fighters Guild	Strength Endurance Axe Long Blade Blunt Weapon Heavy Armor Armorer Block	Joinable. This guild is a mercenary organization engaged in bounty hunting, protected delivery of trade goods, debt collection, pest-creature control, and bodyguard work.
Imperial Cult	Personality Willpower Speechcraft Unarmored Restoration Mysticism Conjuration Enchant Blunt Weapon	Joinable. The Imperial Cult is the chief religion of the Empire, worshipping the Nine Divines. Despite being in competition with them for worshippers, the Imperial Cult mostly takes a "let sleeping dogs lie" approach toward other religious groups (below), aside from the Sixth House (above).
Imperial Knights	Endurance Personality Athletics Long Blade Blunt Weapon Heavy Armor Armorer Block	Not Joinable. This is an elite, aristocratic order of the Imperial Legion (see next entry).
Imperial Legion	Endurance Personality Athletics Spear Long Blade Blunt Weapon Heavy Armor Block	Joinable. The Legion is the army of the Empire, and (in settlements with a strong Imperial presence) its principal police force.
Mages Guild	Intelligence Willpower Alchemy Mysticism Illusion Alteration Destruction Enchant	Joinable. This guild provides training and services in the magical arts, including enchanting and spellmaking, and desires to exclude House Telvanni (above) from this business.
Talos Cult	Endurance Personality Athletics Spear Long Blade Blunt Weapon Heavy Armor Block	Not Joinable. A secret sect within the Imperial ranks, most of whom would regard the Talos Cult as heretical and treasonous.
Thieves Guild	Agility Personality Marksman Short Blade Light Armor Acrobatics Sneak Security	Joinable. Specialists in the procurement of desirable things without direct confrontation, be it outright larceny or recovery of previously stolen goods. Tolerated by Imperial forces to a degree, and locked in a turf war with the Camonna Tong (below).

Notes

• It is possible to join multiple Imperial guilds even when they conflict to an extent (e.g., both the Thieves and Fighters Guilds, or both the Thieves and Mages Guilds). See the individual faction and quest articles for more details.

Native Morrowind Factions

These factions are mostly establishments with long-standing regional Dunmer traditions, and usually have to do with reclaiming Morrowind for the Dunmer, and resisting the colonial Imperial culture. There are some internecine conflicts among these native factions (e.g., between the Ashlanders of Vvardenfell and the Tribunal Temple, and enmity between Ashlander tribes). The real odd one out is Twin Lamps, which is recent, comprised primarily of non-Dunmer in the region, and opposed to a particular Dunmer practice. Of Morrowind's endemic factions, only the Morag Tong has the character of a guild, and of them it is the only one with a history and presence outside Vvardenfell.

Factions	Favored Attributes and Skills	Notes
Ashlanders	Agility Endurance Alteration Light Armor Marksman Medium Armor Mysticism Spear	Joined automatically during the Main Quest. There are four Ashlander tribes — Ahemmusa, Erabenimsun, Urshilaku, and Zainab — but only one Ashlander faction. Your membership in the faction will put you on friendly terms with all four tribes (though scattered outcasts may still be aggressive). The Ashlanders are traditionalist, rural, nominally migratory native tribes of the Dunmer of Vvardenfell, who are opposed to outlanders' influence, and to that of the comparatively recent and Morrowind-wide Tribunal Temple (below). In the Ashlander view, even the "settled Dunmer" of the Great Houses (above) are outlanders and are usurpers of native land and resources, as well as worshippers of false gods, the Almsivi Tribunal.
Camonna Tong	Strength Agility Marksman Light Armor Acrobatics Sneak Long Blade Blunt Weapon	Not Joinable. Vvardenfell's organized crime syndicate, pre-dating the Imperial occupation, the Camonna Tong is in direct competition and conflict with the outlanders' Thieves Guild (above). Lately, it has been looking to make allies within the Fighters Guild.
Morag Tong	Speed Agility Acrobatics Illusion Marksman Light Armor Short Blade Sneak	Joinable. An ancient guild of assassins, with a strict code of ethics, the Morag Tong has a long history intertwined with that of the Great Houses, who regularly employ the organization in the House Wars. The Morag Tong is as native to Morrowind as to other provinces, and is not a recent colonial import. Its only real enemy is the Dark Brotherhood, a far less scrupulous set of killers for hire.
Nerevarine Cult	Personality Luck Speechcraft Marksman Restoration Mysticism Spear Block	Not directly joinable, and hidden from the player. The Main Quest ultimately connects the player character to this faction in important ways, though you will not technically be a member of it. A Dunmer sect, primarily but not exclusively among the Ashlanders, the Nerevarine Cult is persecuted as heretics by the Tribunal Temple (below). The cult's faith centers on a prophecy about the return of an ancient hero of the Dunmer. The reaction table below shows no faction reactions by Nerevarine Cultists; as all the important NPCs in this faction are Ashlanders, their Ashlander faction membership controls their reactions to other factions, and most factions' reactions to them, the Tribunal Temple being the exception.
Tribunal Temple	Intelligence Personality Alchemy Blunt Weapon Conjuration Mysticism Restoration Unarmored	Joinable. The newest of the Dunmer religions, it is tolerant of and has assimilated the original ancestor worship and "Good Daedra" cults to the extent it can, while focused on servitude to a trio of living gods, the Almsivi Tribunal. It is markedly hostile toward the Nerevarine Cult (whom the Temple ruthlessly suppress) and toward the Sixth House (above). While the Temple is vying for converts with the Imperial Cult, the two religions largely just maintain non-interference with each other. Some people are in the congregations of both faiths, and various locations have both a Tribunal Temple shrine and an Imperial Cult altar in fairly close proximity. As a player character, you can join both factions with little direct conflict of interest.
Twin Lamps	Intelligence Speed Athletics Security Sneak Speechcraft Unarmored	Not directly joinable, though quests can be performed in support of it. An anti-slavery movement, it is Argonian-led, with support from Khajiit, some humans, and (importantly) a handful of progressive Dunmer aristocrats. Its opposition to the traditional reliance on slave labor in Morrowind (the last province of the Empire to still permit the practice) puts Twin Lamps in conflict with some Great House interests, especially those of the Telvanni (above).

Vampire Clans

Vampires are reestablishing themselves more openly on the island of Vvardenfell, after a long period of near-extinction and hiding. Each is dominated by a particular race, though with a mixed group of minions. The Vampire clans have no faction allies, not even other Vampire clans. There are three clans of Vampires that have made the greatest progress in staking out territory:

Clans	Favored Attributes and Skills	Notes
Aundae Clan	Willpower Intelligence Acrobatics Unarmored Mysticism Conjuration Illusion Athletics	Joinable after becoming a Vampire of this bloodline.* The Aundae clan is a clan of dark mages, and is controlled by Altmer.
Berne Clan	Willpower Speed Marksman Short Blade Acrobatics Sneak Unarmored Athletics	Joinable after becoming a Vampire of this bloodline.* A clan focused on stealth, Clan Berne is controlled by Imperials.
Quarra Clan	Strength Endurance Hand-to-hand Acrobatics Unarmored Destruction Athletics Long Blade	Joinable after becoming a Vampire of this bloodline.* This brute-force warrior clan is the least secretive, and is dominated by Nords, though founded by an Imperial.

* Automatic after becoming infected by a member of the clan. However, you are not truly a member of the clan – while it's possible to use their services and feed from their "cattle", the clan will not appear in the faction list.

Notes

• In lore, there are over 100 kinds of vampires with different powers and weaknesses, and at least three different diseases that can cause vampirism. All three clans on Vvardenfell (along with independent vampires there) are of the same type and from the same disease.

Reaction Table

The following table describes the reaction values when dealing with NPCs from other factions. Find the NPC's faction on the lefthand column, then matching it up with your faction on the top row. Note that the values are not always reversible; for example, the Census people hate (-3) the Ashlanders, who are hard to find and tax, while the Ashlanders don't care about (0) the Census people, whom they rarely encounter. Positive (green) numbers indicate that the faction from the leftmost column likes the one from the top row, while negative (red) numbers mean the former dislikes the latter. The approximate level of like/dislike is listed below:

• +3 = beloved ally
• +2 = ally
• +1 = friendly
•   0 = neutral
• -1 = hostile
• -2 = enemy
• -3 = hated enemy
• -8 = enemy hated with a consuming passion

The reaction values are used to calculate the disposition (based on a 0 to 100 scale) adjustment on the following formula:

Disposition Adjustment = (Reaction * 5) * (0.5 + (FactionRank * 0.5))

	Ashlanders	Blades	Camonna Tong	Census and Excise	Clan Aundae	Clan Berne	Clan Quarra	Fighters Guild	Hlaalu	Imperial Cult	Imperial Knights	Imperial Legion	Mages Guild	Morag Tong	Nerevarine	Redoran	Sixth House	Talos Cult	Telvanni	Temple	Thieves Guild	Twin Lamps
Ashlanders	+3	-1	-1	0	-3	-3	-3	-2	-2	-1	0	-2	-1	0	0	-2	-3	0	-1	-1	-2	0
Blades	-1	+3	-2	0	-2	-2	-2	0	0	+2	0	+2	0	0	0	0	-3	0	0	-1	0	0
Camonna Tong	-1	-2	+3	0	0	0	0	-1	+1	-1	0	-2	-1	0	0	-1	-1	0	0	-1	-3	0
Census and Excise	-3	+2	-1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clan Aundae	-3	-2	0	0	+3	-3	-3	-2	-2	-2	-2	-2	-1	0	0	-2	-3	0	0	-3	-1	0
Clan Berne	-3	-2	0	0	-3	+3	0	-2	-2	-2	-2	-2	-1	0	0	-2	-3	0	0	-3	-1	0
Clan Quarra	-3	-2	0	0	-3	-3	+3	-2	-2	-2	-2	-2	-1	0	0	-2	-3	0	0	-3	-1	0
Fighters Guild	-2	0	-1	0	-2	-2	-2	+3	+1	+1	0	+2	+1	0	0	+1	-3	0	0	-1	0	0
Hlaalu	-2	0	+1	0	-2	-2	-2	+1	+3	+1	0	+1	+1	0	0	-1	-3	0	-1	+1	-1	0
Imperial Cult	-1	+2	-1	0	-2	-2	-2	+1	+1	+3	+2	0	+1	0	0	0	-3	0	-1	-2	+1	0
Imperial Knights	-2	+2	-1	0	-2	-2	-2	+1	+1	+2	+3	+2	+1	0	0	+1	-3	0	-1	-2	-1	0
Imperial Legion	-2	+2	-2	0	-2	-2	-2	+2	+1	+2	0	+3	+1	0	0	+1	-3	0	-1	-1	-1	0
Mages Guild	-1	0	-1	-1	-1	-1	0	+1	+1	+1	0	+1	+3	0	0	-1	-3	0	-3	-2	+1	0
Morag Tong	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	+3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Nerevarine	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Redoran	-2	0	-1	0	-2	-2	-2	+1	-1	0	0	+1	-1	0	-4	+3	0	0	-1	+2	-1	0
Sixth House	-3	-3	-1	0	-3	-3	-3	-3	-3	-3	0	-3	-3	0	0	-3	+3	0	-3	-3	-3	0
Talos Cult	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Telvanni	-1	0	0	0	-1	-1	-1	0	-1	-1	0	-1	-3	0	0	-1	-3	0	+3	-1	0	0
Temple	-1	-1	0	0	-3	-3	-3	-1	+1	-2	0	-1	-2	0	-8	+2	-3	0	-1	+3	-1	0
Thieves Guild	-2	0	-3	-1	-1	-1	0	0	-1	+1	0	-1	+1	0	0	-1	-3	0	0	-1	+3	0
Twin Lamps	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	-3	0	0	0

Notes

• If you are already in House Redoran when you become the Nerevarine, the faction reaction between the Redoran and Nerevarine factions becomes +4; the reaction value for the Tribunal Temple is also changed to +4, if you are already a member.
• The reaction value for being in the same faction nullifies the reaction values from other factions. Thus, you suffer no disposition penalties for being in two opposing factions. However, you also lose any disposition boosts from being a member of an allied faction.

Rank Titles

The below table lists all the titles for the ranks of all the factions in the game.

Faction	Rank 1	Rank 2	Rank 3	Rank 4	Rank 5	Rank 6	Rank 7	Rank 8	Rank 9	Rank 10
Ashlanders	Clanfriend	Hearthfriend	Brother	Initiate	Clanholder	Guide	Champion	Gulakhan	Farseer	Ashkhan
Blades	Novice	Apprentice	Journeyman	Finder	Traveller	Operative	Agent	Spy	Spymaster	Grand Spymaster
Camonna Tong	Bully	Tough	Thug	Brute	Lifetaker	Chiller	Hammer	Old Man	Strongman	Kingpin
Census and Excise	Novice	Apprentice	Clerk	Taxman	Taxtaker	Operative	Agent	Excise Officer	Inspector	Grand Inspector
Clan Aundae	Cattle	Neonate	Minion	Servant	Stalker	Bloodkin	Reaver	Lord	Elder	Ancient
Clan Berne	Cattle	Neonate	Minion	Servant	Stalker	Bloodkin	Reaver	Lord	Elder	Ancient
Clan Quarra	Cattle	Neonate	Minion	Servant	Stalker	Bloodkin	Reaver	Lord	Elder	Ancient
Fighters Guild	Associate	Apprentice	Journeyman	Swordsman	Protector	Defender	Warder	Guardian	Champion	Master
House Hlaalu	Hireling	Retainer	Oathman	Lawman	Kinsman	House Cousin	House Brother	House Father	Councilman	Grandmaster
House Redoran	Hireling	Retainer	Oathman	Lawman	Kinsman	House Cousin	House Brother	House Father	Councilman	Archmaster
House Telvanni	Hireling	Retainer	Oathman	Lawman	Mouth	Spellwright	Wizard	Master	Magister	Archmagister
Imperial Cult	Layman	Novice	Initiate	Acolyte	Adept	Disciple	Oracle	Invoker	Theurgist	Primate
Imperial Knights	Aspirant	Squire	Gallant	Chevalier	Keeper	Knight Brother	Commander	Marshal	Seneschal	Paladin
Imperial Legion	Recruit	Spearman	Trooper	Agent	Champion	Knight Errant	Knight Bachelor	Knight Protector	Knight of the Garland	Knight of the Imperial Dragon
Mages Guild	Associate	Apprentice	Journeyman	Evoker	Conjurer	Magician	Warlock	Wizard	Master Wizard	Arch-Mage
Morag Tong	Associate	Blind Thrall	Thrall	White Thrall	Thinker	Brother	Knower	Master	Exalted Master	Grandmaster
Thieves Guild	Toad	Wet Ear	Footpad	Blackcap	Operative	Bandit	Captain	Ringleader	Mastermind	Master Thief
Tribunal Temple	Layman	Novice	Initiate	Acolyte	Adept	Curate	Disciple	Diviner	Master	Patriarch

Notes

• The Blades' maximum attainable rank for the player character is 5 (Operative).
• The Dark Brotherhood has no ranks (and does not exist as a real faction) in the "vanilla" game. Those added in the Tribunal expansion, which makes it a real faction, are covered at the article Tribunal:Dark Brotherhood.
• The Nerevarine Cult just has a single "Nerevarine" pseudo-rank, as Rank 1 and 2, with no labels after that. This conflicts with lore, since there is only one Nerevarine, plus some False Incarnates, who are not actually in this faction. The Nerevarine Cult is coded as a faction simply to provide a way to provoke a negative faction reaction from Tribunal Temple and House Redoran toward members of this cult, as it has no effect otherwise, even from or toward other members of this same faction.
• The Sixth House does not seem to have a rank structure, other than that certain key (and no longer human) members of it are given the title "Dagoth". However, even these appear to be of at least two relative levels of authority, with the major Dagoths each bearing a 6th House Amulet, and playing more important roles. Some of this group have dialogue and are even technically blacksmith and merchant NPCs (though without goods or money), despite being Ash Ghouls. The lesser Dagoths are simply creatures, usually Ascended Sleepers who oddly have a higher soul-trapping value than the greater Dagoths (a factor of what type of creature they are).
• The Talos Cult has no named ranks.
• The Twin Lamps just has a single "Twin Lamps" pseudo-rank, as Rank 1, with no labels after that. Twin Lamps is coded as a faction simply to provide a way to give a negative faction reaction when faced with a member of the staunchly pro-slavery House Telvanni.