Echoes of Barenziah: A Skyrim Thieves Guild Expansion Mod

Guildmaster Mercer Frey likes to know the chain of command (and to be at the top of it). He likes to know who's calling the shots (and to be the one calling them). He likes for people to be afraid to cross him (and he likes to know it). Mercer is in charge, and he wants everyone to remember that. His voice is low and controlled, its tones mostly flat but quick to rise into a snarl. North American pronunciation is preferred, but not necessary.

It is not necessary (or encouraged) to attempt to mimic his vanilla voice.

Sapphire (a moniker of her own choosing, after her affinity for the gem) is a surly Nord woman and a member of the Riften Thieves Guild. Her life before joining the Guild ended abruptly in tragedy and trauma (hence the new name) and she is consequently untrusting. Her words are often sarcastic and impatient, particularly when speaking with people she doesn't know well. Because she prefers to keep others at arm's-length, that's pretty much everyone. 

It is not necessary for the voice actor to attempt to mimic her vanilla voice.

In addition to her significance as a major Thieves Guild character, with lines referencing the quests and other guild members, Sapphire is a FOLLOWER and the central character in her own side quest, with accompanying dialogue. Echoes expands on Sapphire’s character and backstory, so applicants need to be comfortable recording lines that reference dark and triggering subjects. 

Once called Svidi, this beautiful lute-player can perform confidence, but she hides a deep-seated self-doubt. She likes pretty music and lovely flowers, but she's also fascinated by darker things like creepy crypts (and creepy girls). Neither love nor retribution will leave her alone for long, and her choices will lead to significant repercussions for her, for the Thieves' Guild, and for Riften's most infamous family. Lynly has a musical note to her voice and she must be able to sound soft and tender without seeming weak, as her kindness does not negate her strength...or her willingness to get her hands bloody when the situation requires. 

It is not necessary for the voice actor to mimic her vanilla voice.

As Lynly is a bard, we ask that anyone auditioning for her provide a link to a SINGING SAMPLE in addition to the voiced lines below.

Ingun is a curious, odd young woman. Her mother views her as a disappointment, but Ingun knows she isn't; Maven just doesn't understand her. No one does. (Except perhaps for one clever, vanished bard.) Ingun doesn't mind being seen as odd--it seems fair, since everyone else baffles her--but she does mind people meddling in her life. She'll make those who cross her pay, even if that includes her brother...or mother. Her sharp voice is softened by the awe with which she views the secrets of life (and especially death). She speaks with breathless reverence when pontificating on the macabre subjects that captivate her and terse, almost petulant disinterest otherwise. Her voice is gentle, but in the way a smothering pillow is gentle when held over someone's face. There is no weakness in her delicate, breathy tones.

Her accent should mesh with that used by her mother and brothers in vanilla, but she does not need to mimic her vanilla voice.

A Khajiit of ambiguous gender and origins, Ru has their furry ear to the ground in such a way that they tend to hear about the most interesting jobs of the sort to suit quick fingers and furtive footsteps. Their persona varies from frenetic to languid, but one thing they never are is boring, dear! The possibilities for Ru's speech patterns are very open. They speak in the standard Khajiit style, yes, but try to make them sound fascinating and like someone you'd like to hear speak more, because Ru has a lot to say.

Ru falls under occasional moonsugar trances, at which times they might sound very different (and possibly very strange) from their usual self as they divine the location of valuable treasures.

An old friend of Balgruuf and Irileth, Jadier also currently lives in Whiterun but rather than Dragonsreach he inhabits the underground caverns that form the city's illicit basement. He is an amiable-but-shrewd fellow who likes his neighbors (even as he robs the wealthiest of them) but it is Balgruuf and Irileth who hold the chief corners of his heart. His lackadaisical behavior recently drove a wedge between the three, but Jadier still harbors a great deal of affection for them both. He is a Reachman, which makes some people balk, but he's warm-hearted and amiable and has no interest in bloodshed. His charismatic kindness and open attitude leave people regularly surprised when they discover how shrewd he truly is. His voice is generally easy-going, lilting, and cheerful.

A poet, an aesthete, and a thief, Mothborz gro-Urgara was a protegee of Gallus who moved on to Solitude after Gallus' death. He is definitely not interested in working with Mercer Frey, but if you want to broaden the Thieves' Guild's horizons, he might just have a suggestion for you. His voice is elegantly uninflected. It has a hint of the orc growl underlying a very “cultured” (by Solitude class standards) accent -- British or very precise North American. Mothborz tends to speak in theoreticals rather than giving straight answers, but he always says it like he’s totally answering the thing you asked. 

Rigel and Tonilia grew up together in Markarth, but went different paths because Rigel wanted to look after her aging father (monetarily) and the Thieves Guild was losing power. She became a bandit, but found nothing but frustration in large part because of the incompetence of her underlings. If she could be convinced that the Guild's fortunes are changing, she seems like someone who would be in the mood for a chance of scenery...and some more adept company. Her voice is as tough and forceful as she is.

A cold child from a cold land, Svart was shunned by other Nords for his keen interest in the arcane arts. He grasps intricate concepts easily and used his talent to dabble in the darkest aspects of magic -- paying a hefty price for it. Although Svart became a mage of great talent, he prefers to seek little renown, wandering Skyrim in search of forgotten knowledge rather than using his magic to serve others. Inevitably, his search for interesting revelations in the mystic arts led him to the college of Winterhold. An old book there spoke of an ancestral sanctum nearby, in which some of Skyrim’s ancient clevermen (mages) rest. The dangers inside make him leery, however, so perhaps it's time to turn to Enthir and his dubious contacts for assistance. 

Svart speaks slowly, like a man who chooses his words with care, but when he is angered he gets carried-away by the emotion and speaks much faster. Even when not angry, he tends to be perceived by most folk as rude whether or not he means to be.

Da’farahn is a curious young Alfiq, one whose journeys across Tamriel eventually brought him into contact with Karliah. While Da’farahn is not driven by the sort of greed (or need) that makes a person a true thief, he is mischievous. An open window was an invitation; a closed one, a challenge. He got caught, of course, many times. But an innocent expression and the offer of a flower meant he rarely got in trouble for it. Who would punish a sweet boy who only wanted to leave a gift behind to brighten someone’s house and day? The gods, perhaps, because right now Da’farahn finds himself in the worst pickle of his young life...and no Karliah around to help. Usually he can talk his way out of trouble--he is very good at sounding innocent, even when he isn't--but not this time. His voice should generally resemble that of the average khajiit, with perhaps a bit of a softer purr.

A skilled fence who has been long known to the Riften Thieves' Guild, but has dragged her feet about actually working with them, Tonilia is blunt and a little haughty -- but when you're walking, talking proof that the merchant's trade is more than buying and selling, you don't have to hide your opinions. Lately, Delvin has been trying to persuade Tonilia to join the Thieves' Guild, and Vekel has put in a word for her marrying him and moving down into the Flagon permanently to help him run it instead of just fencing their stolen goods. She's flattered by both of their offers, but she still has wanderlust in her feet. So she continues to drift between the world of the respectable and the world of the disreputable, in no hurry to be convinced of anything. Contrary to her drifting nature, her speech is brisk verging on the impatient and almost always forceful. 

Her accent should eventually match that of her aunts, Margyndi and Zariina, but does not need to mimic her vanilla voice.

An Honorhall orphan who chose to return to Riften after a stint in Cyrodiil, Vekel the Man runs the Ragged Flagon, because he has reason to know the look of someone who needs a drink. He first turned to alcohol to dull the pain of life with Grelod the Kind, and eventually followed his tutelage in that subject to pickpocketing and similar (and not so similar) arts. He shared the Compassion he brewed with his fellow orphans, and if Grelod was harsh whenever she caught him at it, she was harsh regardless. He escaped her reach at thirteen and traveled to Cyrodiil to continue his studies. Picking Thalmor pockets eventually earned him a few months in Bruma's prison, and freedom saw him returning to Riften. Compassion was a mixable libation, yes, but good information and strong ale paid the bills and he needed a place to serve it all. The Ragged Flagon became that place, and the home of Vekel the Man deep below the place where Vekel the Boy had once sobbed and suffered. His speech is standard for a Nord, but gentle, thoughtful, and inclined to wry humor.

He does not need to match his vanilla voice.

Anyone auditioning for this role should be comfortable potentially recording lines that might reference dark and sensitive subject matter.

Yazamba came to Skyrim chasing both death and curiosity, and her interests have yet to be sated. She once worked for the Thieves Guild, first in Riften and then in the Whiterun Night Market, but as the Guild's influence dwindled she eventually found herself outside their reach. Her solitude in the Morthal swamps became even more solitary, and her cantankerous attitude even more surly. As a necromancer living in a time and place where such magicks are outlawed, Yazamba has to guard her privacy in order to protect her life--and as much as she is fascinated with death in all its aspects, she isn't ready to study them firsthand...yet. Yazamba is a dreamer who usually has her head in the clouds (or more accurately, in the muck of the nearest swamp or grave) but she also has little patience for needless interruptions. Her speech is terse and sharp, but a little softer and more contemplative than the average orc.

Eledhel has learned to play to expectations. If people are going to look at her and see a dangerous cannibal witch, then that's what she's going to give them. She knows it isn't doing her people any favors to lean-in to stereotype like that, but how else is she supposed to entertain herself while she's locked in Whiterun's jail? That never should have happened--the Night Market wasn't a legitimate trading hub, perhaps, but it wasn't hurting anyone either--but "should have" carries no water...or blood, or more interesting mixtures. And Eledhel always knew how to tell a damn good story. She's good at adopting a suitable persona for her tales, too, be that cackling madwoman or mysterious alchemist or, yes, sly cannibal Bosmer.

Belethor’s loyal, somewhat dim assistant...or so he seems on the surface. In reality, the wide-eyed, hard-working Sigurd is a middleman for the Thieves Guild, purchasing their stolen goods as stock (alongside goods from legitimate merchants) for his employer’s shelves. He receives a regular cut of the proceeds from the guild, and in return they have an easy way to turn their stolen property into ready money. Of course, (perhaps contrary to the expectations of most of Whiterun) Sigurd doesn’t intend to work for Belethor forever. Someday he’ll have enough saved to move away and set up shop of his own...and maybe, if he plays his cards right, he’ll even leave Belethor holding the bag. He can take the rap for all the illegal goods they’ve sold and Sigurd can move on to bigger and better things without an obnoxious Breton chortling in his ear. Sigurd has an earnest, sincere voice that edges towards naivety. He's forthright and rustic--the sort of plain-spoken, good-hearted young man whom you wouldn’t hesitate to take home to mama. You really should hesitate, of course, but people never seem to look beneath Sigurd's brisk, cheerful exterior...

It is not necessary for the voice actor to mimic his vanilla voice. 

Mistress Magpie is the steward for the Thieves Guild. She assigns beds, ensures that supplies stay sufficient for the ever-changing number of people in the Cistern, manages the support staff, handles requests from the other refuges, and may have a penchant for labeling things. She can direct you to the right person for what you need, whether it’s some archery training, a spare bit of paper, or a hot meal. As the ever-present steward whose use of a wheelchair means she is sometimes literally overlooked, she also knows that Mercer’s sister is a Legate in the Legion, that Govan cries sometimes in his sleep, that Vekel has a ring hidden in a bottle in his room, and that Niruin attempts to slip his “poetry” under a certain someone’s door at least once a week.  However, she won’t tell you this. Gossip is for Ogaldar, she might say; she instead is a cheerfully no-nonsense Altmer woman with more than a bit of teeth in her stern smiles. If those teeth are especially pointy and prone to drawing blood, well...that's no reflection on her organizational skills, so does it matter? (The "Mom Friend" of the Guild.)

Most thieves don’t think about their clothes until there’s a problem. Most people don’t. But this is a distinctive failing, especially for a thief. Meech-Ra could tell you stories. And she will. So strip down, hand over your clothes for repair, and listen. In addition to basic mending, Meech-Ra makes the Thieves Guild armor and maintains the Guild’s wardrobe of disguises. She’s a little surly, but you can win her favor through gifts of high quality fabric and interesting buttons. However, keep your filthy, thieving paws off of her scissors or there will be slow, painful death. She has no-question-asked arrangements with friends at the fishery and a special pair of pinking shears set aside for that eventuality. She is a cool-headed Argonian and her emotional range is reserved for fabric, buttons, and clothes.

A courtier by trade, Ogaldar is a Nord who uses his broad network to clear up bounties for the Thieves' Guild. He's clearly had an exciting life of intrigue and political maneuvering, but he doesn't sound excited about it, just tired. When he questions your manners, breeding, judgment, and sexual history as he clears your bounties, he sounds tired. And when he drops pieces of gossip about every other Thieves' Guild member that would blister your ears if he were willing to continue the story, he sounds tired. Even when Ogaldar is spilling boiling hot tea about other characters' most embarrassing secrets, he sounds bored. (Think: if Steward Adril Arano from Raven Rock and Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh had a love child.)  

 His name is pronounced "oggle-dar." 

He’s a cheerful sort, who took up the job of cleaning the Ragged Flagon and Cistern because Vekel needed the help and he needed some coin. It’s not a glamorous job, but Morgund doesn’t need glamor. He needs a collection of people he can call his own. HIs size has always been a point of comment. He’s tall (especially for a Breton), but he’s also broad shouldered and thick limbed. When there's trouble in the Flagon, Morgund can step in, his thick handled broom settled threatening over his shoulders, and quiet things down. If you ask, he’s also happy to put his large hands to work massaging battle-tightened shoulders or sneaking-sore thighs.

An old (former) associate of the Thieves Guild who didn’t so much walk out on them as fade away, she avoided catching any drama on her way out the door through the simple expedient of not telling anybody she was leaving. When the guild’s luck started to turn sour, she decided that enough was enough and left. She didn't go very far, just to the little house outside Riften that she shared with her surviving sister, Zariina, and eventually with their late sister Tandy's child, Tonilia. The two sisters raised the girl together, but it was Margyndi who introduced Tonilia to the joys and profits of larceny--over Zariina's objections, but then Zariina was always a prude. She disapproved of Margyndi having fun with all those young men who come to peruse her library, too. At least Tonilia is less uptight than her other aunt, even if she isn't making much headway on her relationship with that darling Vekel… Her voice can go sugary-sweet at times but more often veers strongly into the sardonic and even snappish. She’s a feisty old woman who's still got plenty of bite (and flirt) in her, and isn’t shy about reminding the whippersnappers who’s boss. Her accent should match that of Tonilia and Zariina.

Zariina is the younger of Tonilia's two aunts, and also the more responsible of the pair. She's a hard-working, honest woman and she does not approve of the thievery her relatives get up to. Zariina is a furrier, and a skilled one at that, with a good eye for quality and a particular love of feathers. Of course, she never failed to exploit the ill-gotten-gains her sisters sent her way--but being moral isn't the same as being stupid. She might have (had) hoped that Tonilia would have followed in her footsteps rather than in those of Margyndi and Tandy, the child's late mother, but that was apparently not to be. Zariina had vowed to keep Tonilia safe from Margyndi's nonsense the way she had failed to protect poor Tandy, but she failed. It's more than she can bear. Zariina is an easily shocked, often appalled woman, who is good at sniffing disapprovingly. She does not approve of most things, in fact, and her tone often indicates such. Her accent should match that of Tonilia and Margyndi.

A streetwise cat and urchin, Patches and Patches scrounge a living on the dirty streets of Riften through their wits and their quick fingers/paws. They crossed paths with the Thieves Guild when they tried to pick Brynjolf's pocket and almost got away with it. Patches now often works as a messenger for the Guild and sometimes even as a carrier of stolen goods. Just don’t ask anyone in the Guild why there are two Patches with one name. All you'll get in return is blank stares...at best. Patches (the Bosmer one, anyway; the other just meows) has a voice that is street-wise and snarky, a little coarse, verging into the “bratty” range but in an endearing way (vibe example: Mission from KOTOR). 

Multiple urchins will use the same voicetype, so actors auditioning for any urchins are encouraged to audition for more than one of them in order to better showcase their range!

The boy named Govan is not actually Vekel's nephew, not in a bloodline sense of the word, but spiritually every survivor of Grelod has a bond that no one can take away. When Vekel learned a boy had escaped from Honorhall and was living on the Riften streets, he offered him a place to stay and a chance to earn a few coins cleaning the Ragged Flagon right away. A skittish, shy, distrustful child, Govan was less quick to take him up on the offer--but by now he trusts Vekel as much as he can trust any living person (which perhaps isn't much) and he's even starting to slowly open-up to the rest of the Guild, although he is still hesitant when speaking to strangers.. 

Multiple urchins will use the same voicetype, so actors auditioning for any urchins are encouraged to audition for more than one of them in order to better showcase their range!

Olfin lives in the College of Winterhold with his father, Urag gro-Shub, but he's too young to be a mage student. He doesn't fit-in with the kids in the nearby village, either, who view him with suspicion and dislike both because of his orcish ancestry and because of his position as a member of the dreaded Mage's College. His father is not unkind, but Urag never intended to raise children and he's far more interested in his books than in the boy. Olfin is interested in books, too--but he also longs for adventure of his own. When Enthir asks for somebody to run a "little errand," Olfin was keen to volunteer--and when those errands bring him in contact with the Thieves Guild and its newest member, it will seem like all his daydreams have finally come true. Now instead of reading about adventures, he gets to participate in one. His speech should reflect this eagerness and enthusiasm...and yes, naivete as well. Olfin's sheltered life under his father's protective tutelage means that he has no concept of the dangerous waters in which he's treading, nor would he understand the potential consequences enough to balk if he did.

Multiple urchins will use the same voicetype, so actors auditioning for any urchins are encouraged to audition for more than one of them in order to better showcase their range!

A sickly-sweet little Nord orphan, Illnorvirah is much like the sugary treats to which she is so partial: seemingly harmless, but bound to make you pay for it someday. She's prone to giggling and simpering and she'll rob you blind at the first opportunity and sell all your secrets to the highest bidder at the second. She's irrepressibly cheerful and upbeat and optimistic, and she's also absolutely ruthless. She should sound very much the quintessential "sweet little girl" most of the time, but every now and then an icy undercurrent of danger may break-through.

Multiple urchins will use the same voicetype, so actors auditioning for any urchins are encouraged to audition for more than one of them in order to better showcase their range!

Lilivah (and her twin sister, Lilinah) came from Morrowind with a group of refugees. Unfortunately, their parents did not survive to see their daughters safely settled in Skyrim and the girls were left largely to their own devices in frigid Windhelm. It is not a kind place, especially to Dunmer, but the girls have their wits and their freedom and most importantly, each other. They are shrewd and quick and they know how to tread the line between causing trouble and keeping out of danger. They are generally cheerful despite their circumstances, although they do verge sometimes into sounding cynical or shrewd.

Multiple urchins will use the same voicetype, so actors auditioning for any urchins are encouraged to audition for more than one of them in order to better showcase their range!

Parveeya is the first mate of the Dainty Sload and this desert-born woman understands the realities of life on the sea: how to bend with the winds, how to sway with the tides. She is shrewd and sharp-eyed and while her temper is sharp, it moves slow. She never acts without thinking things through first, no matter how hot her blood is boiling. She's a practical woman and she does what she has to, no matter what. Her speech is confident and brisk without being brusque. Parveeya is a no-nonsense woman but she is also, at heart, a negotiator and she knows how to convince other people to see her point of view...usually without having to bash their heads in.

Analande is not the typical Altmer woman. She is easily excited, quickly roused to anger, and just as quick to cleave to friends and allies. She made a deliberate choice long ago to embrace her chaotic heart and reject all the stilted trappings of her family's culture. She is both the smallest and the fiercest of the Dainty Sload's crew. Sources differ about whether or not she actually burned her parents' house down when she left the Dominion ("sources" in this case being "whichever version of the story Analande is telling tonight, and whose coin bought her ale") but anyone who has spent more than ten minutes in her company will surely agree that arson seems to suit her temperament. Her voice is bold and boisterous. Analande has swagger to spare and isn't afraid to share it with all and sundry.

A former Legionnaire, Maralie often felt as though she was living her life in chains. It wasn't until boarding the Dainty Sload (and meeting the love of her life, Analande) that the gleam of the horizon brought a smile to her face instead of a grimace of envy. She isn't going to give up the beautiful freedom of the seas--or her fiery-tempered beloved--for anything, not even the captain whose ship first lifted the illusory shackles from her limbs. Her voice is gruff and stern but not cruel. She's used to barking orders to her fellow sailors (and to shouting for Analande to stay out of trouble, although the latter goes unheeded more often than not). 

She is also prone to singing idly--sea shanties, for the most part--and has a low, pleasant voice. We thus ask that anyone auditioning for her provide a link to a SINGING SAMPLE in addition to the voiced lines below.

Sails-On-Starlight left Black Marsh out of curiosity and a hunger to see the world and all its people. His travels eventually led him to Skyrim, which he quickly decided he loathed, but then he met the crew of the Dainty Sload and he found himself with a sort of makeshift tribe. They weren't really family--no one separate from the Hist truly could be--but they were as close as any non-Argonians could come. Surrounded by his friends on a boat whose only limit was the reach of the water, Sails-On-Starlight had found a place where he could be at home and roam at the same time. He is curious above all, and loves learning other people's stories. The possibility of hearing tales from a life with which he is as-yet unfamiliar excites him more than any other treasure. His voice is placid, gravelly, and contemplative. He speaks slowly, letting his thoughts pool and form before he shares them.

An earnest, forthright young Nord, Harnskar didn't grow-up captivated by the sea; in fact, he hardly thought about it at all. He only ended up on the Dainty Sload because when he was a lad, some of his friends dared him to brave one of the ancient crypts that dot Skyrim's landscape. He did--and came face-to-face with a draugr. Harnskar has been running from the dead ever since. He ran all the way out to sea, and refuses to go back to the land that's full of all those dangerous graves. Harnskar is forthright, superstitious, and wears his heart on his sleeve. He is far too trusting to be a good pirate, but fortunately the people he's chosen to trust aren't interested in taking advantage of him so he has yet to learn the most painful realities of the world. His voice is rough and rustic. Harnskar is the quintessential good-hearted farm-boy who ran away from home and sought the sea.

Ralkash-dar doesn't work the ropes or tiller and is in fact rarely even trusted to keep lookout. He is such pleasant company that no one on board can bear to think about putting him ashore, however (and not just because he has a generous hand with the pouring when he's the one doling out the day's liquid rations). They're in unanimous agreement that once the captain is out of the way, this flirtatious Khajiit will be effectively banned from the top deck and sent to work his magic down below in the galley instead! Ralkash-dar is an extremely charismatic, outgoing, personable fellow. People like him (ladies find him especially charming) and he likes them back, especially when they have juicy stories to tell. Ralkash is a laid-back, gossipy fellow. He has never met a secret he didn't want to share and his vibrant manner of speech reflects that.

Volf was always a straight-laced fellow, but recently he's moved over the line into (slightly paranoid) self-righteousness. Ever since his brother left to fight with the Stormcloaks, fear has been gnawing at his heels. He's taking it out on his crew, riding them harder than ever. He's doing it for their own good, of course: if the Dainty Sload is barred from entry at the ports, they'll be hard-pressed to pay the ship's expenses let alone the crew; if they run afoul of the wrong people, they could end up facing a lot worse than closed docks. The future of the Dainty Sload and every soul on it is balanced on the edge of a knife--so no wonder Volf is snappish towards his people. He's just trying to keep them all alive...even if it kills them. He has the standard sort of gruff Nordic voice, a bit stiff. He should sound like he believes he knows better than everybody else in all things. 

Talbjorn is the Nord leader of the group of bandits who murdered Sapphire's family and assaulted her. He hates orcs, hates people who don't hate orcs, and is overall a terrible person. This is a role with only a few lines, but anyone auditioning for Talbjorn needs to be comfortable with potentially recording lines that reference dark and triggering subjects, and playing the role of the villain/aggressor in them.