Daedra are some of the most mysterious and fully unexplained entities in all of Elder Scrolls lore. This is especially true for the deity like Daedric Princes, who offer players numerous quests, artifacts, and followers to interact with. In addition to this world building, the Daedric Princes provide some of the games most debatable and noteworthy mysteries.
Nocturnal is one of these complex beings, her connection to prevalent factions, moral ambiguity, and hidden ambitions make her one of the more difficult Princes to grasp and fully understand. The amount of unanswered questions left by Nocturnal is numerous, to say the least.
10 Is It Even Possible To Understand Her
As the Daedric Prince of the night, darkness, and luck, secrecy is key to Nocturnal. Scholars in Tamriel who have extensively researched Nocturnal have gone so far to posit that this Daedric Prince fundamentally can not be understood by humans. Stating that to understand Nocturnal would be to negate her. Are Nocturnal's goals, existence, and doings truly incomprehensible to humans, or have they just failed to reach a breakthrough? Other Daedric Princes who have been studied have been understood, why can't Nocturnal?
9 Connection To The Thieves Guild
Nocturnal's main mortal worshipers are the Nightingales, operating as the inner circle of the Thieves Guild. The Nightingales use their role to serve Nocturnal, in exchange they are granted gifts which allow them to operate in the shadows more efficiently. What the Thieves Guild receives from Nocturnal is very clear, though what does Nocturnal receive in return? While Nocturnal may seem more benevolent then her peers she is still a Daedric Prince, and as such providing her services free of charge would be extremely out of character.
8 Relation To Azura
Azura as the Daedric deity of dusk and dawn is stated to be the "sister" of Nocturnal. Considering that both Azura and Nocturnal do share a rare yet ambiguous benevolent relationship with mortals this relation certainly make sense.
However the literalness of the statement "sister" is never truly expounded on, and players are left wondering if this connection is metaphorical or quite literal.
7 Connection To The Void
The world of the Elder Scrolls contains much more than just the mortal plane of Nirn. Indeed players are given the opportunity to explore other realms such as Sovngarde and the Soul Cairn. Another realm of intrigue is the Void, which is believed to be the source of all Daedra. Nocturnal has a special relationship with this realm, occasionally being referred to as Ur-dra, or one of the original Void. What this actually means however, is never truly explained, was Nocturnal a creator of the Daedra, or just one of the first? What implications does this have to her standing amongst other Daedric Princes?
6 Kindness And Concern For Mortals
Nocturnal seems to take an almost motherly approach to her treatment of and interactions with mortals. The general trend with Daedric Princes is to at worst completely despise and seek to punish, enslave, murder, or conquer humans, and at best, completely disregard their sentience and treat them as a resource. Why does Nocturnal go against the grain? Could her motivations actually be more secretly sinister?
5 Her Large Following
Nocturnal is one of the most widely worshiped Daedric Princes in Elder Scrolls lore. This is despite the fact that she seems to pay no real heed to her worshipers, going so far as to ignore her self proclaimed priests. While Nocturnal does maintain a special relationship with her Thieves Guild Nightingales, she does not use this to spread her following. Meanwhile, other Princes who have made strong efforts to spread their following pale in worshiper comparisons to Nocturnal. This seems to be another aspect of the world of Skyrim that lacks a logical explanation.
4 The Price Paid By The Nightingales
The servants of Nocturnal agree to exchange their life in servitude for control of the darkness. The Nightingales make a pact with Nocturnal to serve her not just in life, but also in death. Once a nightingale leaves the mortal world they are expected to fulfill their contract to Nocturnal within her realm of Evergloam.
This contract will be fulfilled whenever Nocturnal has subjectively decided that the Nightingale in question has fulfilled their obligations. How the Nightingale fulfills their contract is never truly explained, and is based on the whims of Nocturnal herself, raising the question of whether she ever does releases her servants from her realm.
3 Does The Gray Cowl Actually Work?
The Gray Cowl of Nocturnal is one of two of Nocturnal's Daedric artifacts. It is said to hide the identity of those who possess it from collective human memory and history. Despite this there are two very well documented wearers of the cowl, Emer Dareloth, and Hrormir. The world of Elder Scrolls has its fair share of recognizable figures, however if the Gray Cowl actually worked these two should have been completely forgotten, as if they had never existed.
2 True Potential Of The Skeleton Key
Nocturnal's other Daedric artifact is the Skeleton Key. In previous Elder Scrolls installments this key was quite simply a lockpick that could not break, and as such would eventually be able to open any door. In Skyrim the key seems to have received a major upgrade. Being able to overcome all barriers, physical, or even dimensional. How powerful is the Skeleton key? Does it have the ability to reshape reality?
1 Constant Victim Of Theft
Despite being the patron Daedric Prince of thievery, Nocturnal seems to be the frequent victim of theft. This is very strange and nonsensical, as she is portrayed as being all powerful and in control of all shadows and mystery. It would be assumed her level of security would be much higher. Does she allow these items to get stolen, or is it truly that easy to dupe a god?