Hilarious 😂 Why be rich in a very dangerous place? White run is in middle of the map. It can be easily found. Anyone just needs to follow the roads. They all cross at the white run stables. I stay out of there as much as possible.
Fun fact, Winterhold actually does have a mine, Whistling Mine. It’s outside city proper but does have a guard, workers, and foreman who will buy whatever iron you dig up. However, it’s fairly desolate and almost depleted of iron veins.
Riften is my no. 1. Oddly enough, despite the corruption/thievery, I love the log architecture and the people. But the best place to live for me would be Riverwood. It the place that feels like home, it's where I see my characters finally settling in a small house, farming, chopping wood and trading... just living out a peaceful existence, without having to deal with the civil war, vampires and dragons... just gathering flowers and making some potions and smithing.
@@robertanderson4921and learning daedric magic from the old breton guy, let's not forget that! Who doesn't love sacrificing newborns for thriving farm land?
Yep. Would be a nice place to live in. Always loved the architecture and the city feels most real and alive out of all. The surrounding area the lakes, terrain and plants, reminds me of where I live, in Finland. (Though, not surprised since in general, Skyrim looks a LOT like Norway.) Honeyside has even a view to a lake. Only thing that would make it better would be a beach sauna.
Winterhold is a perfect example of how a couple of devastating natural disaster and some bloody war can reduce a flourishing city into a near abandoned village
Remember Sarthaal (the first Nord city in Skyrim) is in Winterhold.If you add Sarthaal and the 2/3rds of Winterhold before it collapsed into the Sea of Ghosts, I can understand why Winterhold rivaled Solitude as the capital of Skyrim in its glory days
Well if you look at it at the true Nord perspective,Windhelm is the capital of Skyrim,not Solitude.The way I see Solitude is like the Romans conquering a country setting up their capital when there is a capital already been established by the inhabitants of the land in this case:Skyrim,land of the Nords: true local capital: Windhelm 😀
Whiterun is the best for sure. Affordable housing both inside and outside the city (with CC Content), has the best jarl of them all, and vignar is alright too if you run with the stormcloaks. No violence on the street (braith doesnt count), no sign of guard corruption except the captain at the meadery i think, tons of shops right next to eachother, TWO blacksmiths (3 if you include adrienne’s husband), arguably the coolest keep in the game. Id also argue its location would make it a better fit to be capitol of skyrim than solitude would as its dead center and all roads lead to it, the only advantage solitude has is that its coastal. Goldenhills plantation is my favorite player home and rorikstead and riverwood are both iconic in their own way I know the dawnstar hearthfire house isn’t technically in whiterun but it’s located literally on the city’s southern road overlooking the pelagia and battleborn farms
fr idk bout you but that always really frustrated and bummed me out about the Dawnstar Hearthfire Manor, like why was it waaaayyy more closer to Whiterun city than Dawnstar? it would've been so much cooler imho if Hjelarchen Hall was put right by the literal shores of Dawnstar's town
Whiterun would be a bad capital exactly because it is dead center. It can get invaded from its enemies on all sides, meanwhile Solitude is better protected naturally as it is coastal on one side and has a mountain range on the other. It is built on a high location too, so the invaders would have to fight uphill to siege solitude
Definetly disgree regarding Whiterun being a better capital than Solitude. Firstly, there are no navigable rivers nearby that lead into the sea, wich is a major cutoff from trade and geopolitics (usually envoys/leaders will reach a country by sea as it's faster and usually there are people from different realms passing through a port town who can be a source of information), secondly whiterun seems pretty easy to besiege as it's located in an area with no natural defenses, farms are located outside the walls, the walls are pretty deteriorated, it has a pretty clear view of the buildings from outside which can be easily burned down since they're made out of wood, and, like I said, there are no waterways that pass through the city so that the inhabitants can either escape or use to get food from elsewhere. Besides it just doesn't seem as rich of a city ad Solitude. I wouldn't consider Whiterun an appropriate capital
Wouldn't call him crazy he doesn't worship my god of choice but o can't really worship my preferred god because hes dead so heinsker isnt crazy hes half crazy
I saw Markarth and Riften as mirrors. Markarth has a beautiful exterior, and seems peaceful. Dig a little and you'll discover the cannibal cult that includes a lot of the seemingly normal citizens. A shrine to the worst Daedric prince, and the terrorists secretly being aided by the most powerful family. Riften is flipped. Its known for its crime problem, looks a bit rundown, and the only one ignorant of who's truly in charge is the jarl herself. That said, the NPCs are overall friendlier. The only Daedric presence is Nocturnal, who here only concerns herfelf with the Thieves guild. The Thieves guild themselves have standards and generally avoid killing. I remember my original reactions to them. I started out loving Markarth and its unique look, only to be more disgusted by it the more I learned. While Riften really grew on me as I progressed.
Yes I love how it’s flipped over! Markarth is empire hold, Riften stormcloaks, but they have rich families that support the opposing side that unofficially run the city
@@kieranwillis395Politically all the holds have a counterpart on the other side, except Whiterun which is neutral. Solitude/Windhelm: The largest city, the capital of each side. Markarth/Riften: Incompetent, oblivious leader. Truly led by a crime family with the opposite allegiance. Falkreath/Dawnstar: Corrupt leader replaced by a decent one. Morthal/Winterhold: Smallest holds. The Jarls are okay people. Their replacements don't have much character.
locatin, location, location. Whiterun has far the best location, in temperate climate and from there one can reach any place in skyrim quite easily. Besides, i don't understand the deal with nazeem.
People can call me crazy, but I love Markarth, I truly find the city beautiful. Also, I would love if had a mission to rebuild Winterhold, dont need to be to the former glory, but just to make the city better
I really can't begin to understand how one of the most interesting cities (by what's going on in it and under it, not to mention the design) gets N°9 and the most boring, generic and forgettable out of all by far gets N°3. He even says there's nothing to say about it but "I just like it". I've never understood this take. It's a game, I want the corrupt shitholes with stuff going on, in real life of course I'd put something like Riverwood first lol
@@v.c1134 he said best to live in, Markarth is way more interesting and has more going on, but I would hate to live there, its the most dangerous city of them all.
Ik this is for vanilla skyrim. But the mod “great cities of skyrim” really made some great improvements to the low tier towns on this list. Especially Dawnstar and Winterhold.
I mostly agree… but I’d have to swap Solitude with Whiterun… my biggest problem with Solitude is too many Thalmor. Although now that I think about it, this problem is pretty easily dealt with…. ⚔️ ☠️ 😂
Im playing Skyrim right now and i visited the Thalmor headquarters an hour ago, i saw 0 Thalmor in Solitude, i saw some in the embassy but that's not Solitude, the same happened with my 2 other characters, no matter if im Stormcloack or Imperial, i have never seen a Thalmor in Solitude ever that wasnt part of a quest
Well, the Thalmor Embassy is too close for my liking. There is also the Thalmor Headquarters. When you approach the entrance to Castle Dour where General Tullius is, off to the right there are stairs that lead up to the Thalmor Headquarters. Also, when I have children there my daughter told me she was afraid of the Thalmor. But other than that, no, I don't find any. At least they don't openly walk around like they do in Markarth.
The forsworn conspiracy was so bugged for me i had to end up killing all the prisoners after a dozen tries and i never came back to Markarth ever again
I've had that same problem with that quest, the same with Blood on the Ice, too. I end up having to pick pocket the house key and go inside it, just to force the quest to even start.
I'd like to recommend Fudge Muppet's podcast on this as a complimentary to this, their takes are generally well explained and worth a listen. Also, I'd like to see other skyrim related rankings
i didn't expect it, but i adore Riften. when i started playing skyrim, i mostly wondered in Whiterun and Winterhold, but then i started thieves guilt quest... and Riften stole my heart. i like the nature there, i like that Riften is full of life and activities, i like Riften's characters and atmosphere overall. i'd lived in Riften, honestly
Another downside for Solitude is the crazy wizard who constantly summons Golden Saints and Dark Seducers in the sewers and also runs a bandit mafia that covers most of Skyrim, but not even that can stop me from making Solitude the n°1 for me
I ironically love Riften the most. I love the rundown atmosphere and architecture of that place. The corruption and squalor also paints a very lively picture of the people living in Skyrim. Sure that place is a shithole that needs fixing urgently, it still holds a special place in my heart for having such an interesting quest line, in my opinion.
For Winterhold, i can understand the great collapse, the fact that a good chunk of the city fell into the ocean, but make a bit of "proportions" on what we have in game: Solitude, Windhelm and Whiterun have from 30 to 40 buildings and interiors (taking into account both the ones inside the wall and the ones just outside, like the stables, the farm and Meadery just outside Whiterun, and the 2 docks) and 50-60 or even more named non temorary NPCs (plus generic guards). Those are the numbers we should expect from a former or actual capital or main center of trade and production. Riften and Markarth are just under those numbers (about 25-30 interiors, 30 to 40 NPCs). Since Winterhold was once the capital and also a city famous even outside Skyrim (and that few decades before the great collapse there was a growth of the population after a period of stagnation, thanks to immigration, history scholars and researcher and mages), we should expect more or less the same numbers of Solitude, Windhelm or Whiterun, so in game about 30 buildings and 50 NPCs. Even if 2/3 of the city fell into the ocean (so more than half, more or less what the Jarls and the other people in game said about the lost part), we should see at least 10 buildings and about 20 NPCs. And even if the starting numbers where more similar to Riften and Markarth, there should be 7-8 buildings and 12-15 NPCs, instead we have 4 buildings and 9-10 NPCs. Plus, since the great collapse was set many decades, more or less a century, before the time of the events in-game, there should be some sort of rebuilding (maybe not to the ancient glory, but at least one should expect that the city matches the numbers of the other 3 minor hold capitals). And finally, since in-game is always said that Hjaalmarch and Morthal are the poorest hold/capital, this is another sing that Winterhold should have been made a bit less desolated
Falkreath is my No. 1. Manor and Clavicus Vile quest define this for me. Let's get it clear - manors are better. Rare house can rival manor. And you build them for yourself, when you "max" them out, it gives sense of completing something big. Not to mention that building the manor and making interior boost your smithing for an amount. And Falkreath can give you one. Yeah, bandits and fauna can be a nuisance, but it also can be a somewhat stable source of loot, be it alchemic stuff, weapons and armour or furs for crafting. Especially if you become thane, and all those problems can be solved by housecarl. And Clavicus Vile... While yes, you need to get level 10 to proc it, it's just level 10 for... Well, I see it as not so lengthy quest to retrieve a mask, which can boost your economy, which can be useful at this stage. Maybe that's not an absolute win, but a close one, and I can't see any other city as more, than Falkreath. Plus the vibes are cool.
Windhelm* has a functioning market, dock, farms and nearby mine, lumberyard, stable, multiple inns and shops, a large (if somewhat inept) guard, and despite some poor treatment, is the by far the most multiethnic city in Skyrim.
I know it's a basic biich answer here but......... I love whiterun. The architecture is my favorite. Breezehome is cozy and just perfect, and its got a lot of great people in the walls and out.
Riften be a nice place to live in. Always loved the architecture and the city feels most real and alive out of all. The surrounding area the lakes, terrain and plants, reminds me of where I live, in Finland. (Though, not surprised since in general, Skyrim looks a LOT like Norway.) Honeyside has even a view to a lake. Only thing that would make it better would be a beach sauna. And considering livability, Riften seems to be the best, having plenty of opportunity to be a thief there
I list my favorite cities in skyrim with how messed up they are as a positive association, lol. Markarth is always first. Hands down, the city with the most issues as well as being gorgeous and having a local economy that seem arguably functional.
I absolutely adore the Dwarven architecture of Markarth and Vlindrel Hall, and the beautiful scenery of the Reach. So imagine my disappointment that I can't admire any of it for even two minutes without something trying to kill me.
The house you can buy in Solitude has some amenities that you don't have in Whiterun, I also think that if it was a property I'd rent for a vacation, the one in Solitude would be my favourite, enjoy your meals with a nice view on the sea from that high up location, it's marvelous.
@@richardandersson7620 I can imagine sitting outside enjoying the sea breeze and then some student at the bard academy starts torturing a fiddle... not exactly perfect either.
10. Markarth 9. Morthal 8. Winterhold 7. Raven Rock 6. Dawnstar 5. Windhelm 4. Solitude 3. Riften 2. Falkreath 1. Whiterun I genuinely think Riften deserves more love, I know it isn't perfect but it's certainly better than Morthal and Dawnstar. Riften at the very least has walls, you won't be turned into a vampire and won't have nightmares whenever you try to sleep. Also the Thieves Guild is good for the economy of Riften (at least once we restore the Guild's glory by getting rid of Mercer Frey). There's plenty of work for citizens and the town isn't infested with Daedra, Forsworn, Vampires and the other troubles that plague the other lesser towns.
+i think you should have put more time talking about the unique buildings and temples in the bigger cities, also i think you didnt mention the queen potema problem for solitude, but overall a great video i agree 100%
Markarth underrated. It is very confusing and overwhelming at first but has a specific charm that only Whiterun and Riften can match imo. For a video game city it is definitely top 3 for me, but if we talking about what is a realistic roleplay city to call home... yeah its probably dead last lmao. Way too much corruption and threats in that city.
you also have to take into account what happened in winterhold. majority of the city dropped of into the ocean. that’s why the jarls palace is so generic is because it isn’t the original residence. It’s also why the bridge to the college is torn up.
My ranking, based on how much I enjoy the city design 9. Winterhold 8. Morthal 7. Solitude 6. Dawnstar 5. Falkreath 4. Windhelm 3. Markarth 2. Whiterun 1. Riften
Markarth Hold is my favorite, but the city is pretty underwhelming. It has some of the funnest quests and greatest loot you can get relatively early in the game. Plus the forsworn are one of the coolest bandit factions in the game. Id totally be a briarheart if it was a quest in the game
One thing I noticed against falkreath when siding with the dawnguard for some reason in my playthroughs falkreath experienced much more random vampire attacks than any other city I’d visit.
"the companions could easily protect the citizenry from any attack" ah yes, except from the fact that they don't mind potentially hurting citizens by werewolf attacks. like, they made the main character a freaking werewolf for no reason and don't seem to mind that the newborn wolf is immediately starts running around Whiterun.
Worst part is the cave has a back exit where a werewolf could be let out to hunt mammoths or something, but they left the door into the city open for some reason.
Windhelm has always been my favorite, I love the ancient looking architecture and and the cold atmosphere which contrasts well with most of the homes in the city which all look cozy and pretty (not including the grey quarter). The Palace of the Kings is also my second favorite palace in game behind only Dragonsreach.
Looove the Riften area, and the town too. I settle there often. On the other hand, I always end up chased by the guards in freaking Markarth, plus the whole dwarf-machinery thing gives me the creep 😂
I honestly like Morthal, and in turn, all of Hjaalmarch, better than the other holds because of three reasons. 1. Hjaalmarch is close to Haafingar, which has plenty of nirnroot on the north-eastern shores. 2. Hjaalmarch has plentiful swamp fungal pods, as well as lots of butterflies near Stonehills. 3. Hjaalmarch's snowy atmosphere and plentiful wildlife makes it so immersive to wear fur armor, which is my favorite looking armor set.
Markarth has by far the most creative city. Its literlaly a city built into the mountians and made to be a fortress. The dwarven architecture makes it pretty awesome too with the pipes and steam going everywhere. Its honestly my #1 spot. Whiterun in close 2nd and then Solitude in 3rd
My head canon for the serial killer quest wasn’t that the guards were incompetent and unable to solve an obvious clue so that they just didn’t care and we’re more concerned with other things such as the war
Ah yes, the number 2 slot is taken by a place that is next in line for a siege/center of a civil war and number 1 is taken by a place that’s about to have their version of Hitler pop up from the grave at the head of a bunch of necromancers and has dudes turning off the lighthouse to rob ships as they please
Windhelm is my all time favorite city next to whiterun and morthal, i finally added a house deep in morthal swamps which made it a perfect place to live for me. Which i own a house in these three cities because of it.
Since release in 2011 I would spew my hate for Markarth to friends. Now at the limber age of 33 I am ashamed to admit I kinda like Markarth but ONLY a little bit 😂 Also Molag is more relatable in old age
Winterhold was one of the biggest city in skyrim. But was drown to the sea when the cliff falled. Bad tongues are saying that the wizards of college drowned them.
I imagine someone from windhelm would go to literally any other city out of windhelm and be like “by the gods they have colors besides grey outside windhelm!”
I also think ravenrock should be between 2 and 3 just because you get a house for free and a really good house too. And even its kinda deserted and ashes everywhere for a dark elf or argonian it feels like a nostalgia trip and for nord its a great place for adventures. Lot of cool items and quests and to meet Neloth of all ppl. He is just the coolest npc ever. And the guard armor is quite cool.
Fairly sure Winterhold wasn't intentional, but a they ran out of time issue. Its also unacceptable that Hearthfire didn't include a Winterhold homestead with all that wasted space of empty ruins the hold should be eager for somebody to buy and build over. Further your treason against Morrowind for disparaging the glorious House Redoran who have led Morrowind during its time of crisis after the imperial sympathizing Hlaalu wrecked everything including the Dunmer Gods has been noted. Also lol, Solitude is not better than Whiterun, for the simple fact that Solitude is out of the way in the corner of the map while Whiterun is centrally located.
@@hundragant Maybe it's just cause I'm from Finland and have lived in areas which look like Falkreath most of my life but I just don't get why people are so enamored with it. Just a generic forest area in my eyes. Not hating on your opinion tho, each to their own.
@@nilonen Most people are from big cities and towns. They only see forested areas if they leave the city on hiking/camping trips. I myself have lived in both a big city and the rural country. I def prefer the rural country with all the trees and silence; hence my love for Falkreath. It's the most forested pretty town
I am really miffed that there was never a DLC or Creation Club addition that allowed people to build up Winterhold. Not to make it into a major city necessarily, but to add things like a blacksmith, an alchemist, a player home, and maybe one or two other buildings that would be unique to Winterhold itself (maybe even an orphanage or a "welcome center" of sorts for the College of Winterhold).
If I had the skills, I have an idea for a mod story about rebuilding Winterhold and actually getting people involved in rebuilding it, like some Nord miners to collect stones and ore, a Khajiit caravan to collect wood and supplies with one becomes the alchemist and a small band of Orcs who lost their clan and one becomes the new blacksmith and another becomes a housecarl for the Jarl, all with the help of an Imperial architect.
The saddest thing on side w the stormcloaks (cus fuck the empire) is stab balgruf on the back... he is a really great guy, who helps us and really care for his people.
I go to riften only because of temple, fishery and i like old couple selling ingredients. Pub is sort of ok. Thing i think will change the vibe of the city is water down there. Lake has nice clean water when you look at it but in city somehow steaming and it doesn’t looks nice. I do not like thiefs guild hence remind me more of bandits which should be completely different faction able to join. So what riften have incorrectly is that it should be home of bandits not thiefs guild. Thief guild should be under the Windhelm. Gloomy city is exactly where you hide and beggar outside in streets even teach pickpockets. Some smuggling via argonians and dark elfs there fits perfectly. Stir some shit with murder there and everyone is suspect and doggy as f hence most of them has dirt in pockets and do not want to cast shadow. Then finely maybe some speechcraft helps to find a suspect through intimidation… or such. Riften like that will stay hostile city but more like with violent character. Meandery will be pour booze and fight will be on streets but under city will have sort of like illegal cage fights where you could level up weapons and go through ranks or something like that and there you will encounter even that guy with strong punching gloves and get to various other interesting equipment. Just ideas…
I like Falkreath hold lakeview manor specifically but the small town aint so bad. I used to live in the woods of a place that was like falkreath in summer and dawnstar in winter. Skyrim always reminds me of those years.
I had to put on subtitles for Winterhold after rewinding it a few times because I kept thinking you said ‘homeless occupants’ rather than ‘hopeless optimist’ for the inhabitants of the only actual house.
Yeah, it's a toss up between Whiterun and Solitude for sure, but I feel Whiterun has the better Jarl, the better faction (Companions vs Bards), and the largest number of shops. Solitude has a much nicer house, the unique and helpful Radiant Raiments shop, and all shrines (except Talos).
I agree with you for most of it. But if I were finally awake, having been arrested attempting to cross the border along with some rebels and a horse thief. I would make my home in whiterun, no doubt.
I love whiterun and I also absolutely love morthal. I have no clue why I like morthal so much it just has its charm. I think it may have been the first city I became thane of besides whiterun
When i first got to Whiterun i didn't expect evey other city i visited to get progressivly worse. 😢
Even though Whiterun is the most boring basic city in the entire game
@@eric5401 Morthal exists
@@eric5401 Whiterun is literally Edoras from LOTR
I wouldn’t say that. But some of them could use an overhaul
Morthal? Solitude??
Whiterun will forever be in my heart, its like a second home to me
Hilarious 😂
Why be rich in a very dangerous place? White run is in middle of the map. It can be easily found. Anyone just needs to follow the roads. They all cross at the white run stables. I stay out of there as much as possible.
@@Sksk27547all big cities can be easily found
@@Sksk27547all the cities can be found along the roads stupid fuck.
@@Sksk27547 and the enemies around whiterun are low level
@@bigbananadealer846 you truly are a black guy, hilarious 😂
Fun fact, Winterhold actually does have a mine, Whistling Mine. It’s outside city proper but does have a guard, workers, and foreman who will buy whatever iron you dig up. However, it’s fairly desolate and almost depleted of iron veins.
@@XenophonQWhat?
@@emperorconstantinexipalaio4121 🤥what?
Riften is my no. 1. Oddly enough, despite the corruption/thievery, I love the log architecture and the people. But the best place to live for me would be Riverwood. It the place that feels like home, it's where I see my characters finally settling in a small house, farming, chopping wood and trading... just living out a peaceful existence, without having to deal with the civil war, vampires and dragons... just gathering flowers and making some potions and smithing.
Riverwood would be nice. Rorikstead would also probably be pleasant to live in. Nice farming, open lands, near enough to Whiterun.
@@robertanderson4921and learning daedric magic from the old breton guy, let's not forget that! Who doesn't love sacrificing newborns for thriving farm land?
Yep. Would be a nice place to live in. Always loved the architecture and the city feels most real and alive out of all. The surrounding area the lakes, terrain and plants, reminds me of where I live, in Finland. (Though, not surprised since in general, Skyrim looks a LOT like Norway.)
Honeyside has even a view to a lake. Only thing that would make it better would be a beach sauna.
Riften and Riverwood are my favourite places in the game too.
Dawg I always loved Riften!
I totally agree with ur assessment of Falkreth. i always forget about it but when i stumble across it I never wanna leave
The only really great thing about Falkreath is that it's the best place to build your house.
For real though having precious little for the dragonborn to do in your hold is something residents should be proud of.
It's a good low level area. I like to start out here, not visit Whiterun and ignore the main quest.
@@somebloke3869 There's a main quest?
@@ispeaknonsense yeah, something about warning the Yarl of Whiterun about dragons.
City of Winterhold. Oh boy a new city. I get there ..... dafuq is this!??! This place makes Riverwood look like the capital city of skyrim!!!
lol yeah
Winterhold is a perfect example of how a couple of devastating natural disaster and some bloody war can reduce a flourishing city into a near abandoned village
Remember Sarthaal (the first Nord city in Skyrim) is in Winterhold.If you add Sarthaal and the 2/3rds of Winterhold before it collapsed into the Sea of Ghosts, I can understand why Winterhold rivaled Solitude as the capital of Skyrim in its glory days
Windhelm was also Capital at one point wasnt it? They've got those plaques dedicated to a few of the old high kings outside the keep.
Well if you look at it at the true Nord perspective,Windhelm is the capital of Skyrim,not Solitude.The way I see Solitude is like the Romans conquering a country setting up their capital when there is a capital already been established by the inhabitants of the land in this case:Skyrim,land of the Nords: true local capital: Windhelm 😀
@@SoH2024snow elfs 💀
@@SoH2024So... Windhelm is Rome and Solitude is Byzantium/Constantinople
@@elchango7031except Constantinople was better than Rome tbh. Better location and more iconic
You should also make a ranking of the smaller villages, like Riverwood, Ivarstead, Dragon Bridge, etc.
To me the distinction between a "city" and "town" is murky. For example Riverwood is more vibrant and busy than Winterhold.
@@bengallup9321feel like its more of a design flaw since riverwood is important in the main story and winterhold is visited only once
To me from least to best :
- winterhold
- morthal
- falkreath
- windhelm
- markarth
- dawnstar
- solitude
- riften
- whiterun
Whiterun is the best for sure. Affordable housing both inside and outside the city (with CC Content), has the best jarl of them all, and vignar is alright too if you run with the stormcloaks. No violence on the street (braith doesnt count), no sign of guard corruption except the captain at the meadery i think, tons of shops right next to eachother, TWO blacksmiths (3 if you include adrienne’s husband), arguably the coolest keep in the game. Id also argue its location would make it a better fit to be capitol of skyrim than solitude would as its dead center and all roads lead to it, the only advantage solitude has is that its coastal. Goldenhills plantation is my favorite player home and rorikstead and riverwood are both iconic in their own way
I know the dawnstar hearthfire house isn’t technically in whiterun but it’s located literally on the city’s southern road overlooking the pelagia and battleborn farms
fr idk bout you but that always really frustrated and bummed me out about the Dawnstar Hearthfire Manor, like why was it waaaayyy more closer to Whiterun city than Dawnstar? it would've been so much cooler imho if Hjelarchen Hall was put right by the literal shores of Dawnstar's town
Whiterun would be a bad capital exactly because it is dead center. It can get invaded from its enemies on all sides, meanwhile Solitude is better protected naturally as it is coastal on one side and has a mountain range on the other. It is built on a high location too, so the invaders would have to fight uphill to siege solitude
Definetly disgree regarding Whiterun being a better capital than Solitude. Firstly, there are no navigable rivers nearby that lead into the sea, wich is a major cutoff from trade and geopolitics (usually envoys/leaders will reach a country by sea as it's faster and usually there are people from different realms passing through a port town who can be a source of information), secondly whiterun seems pretty easy to besiege as it's located in an area with no natural defenses, farms are located outside the walls, the walls are pretty deteriorated, it has a pretty clear view of the buildings from outside which can be easily burned down since they're made out of wood, and, like I said, there are no waterways that pass through the city so that the inhabitants can either escape or use to get food from elsewhere. Besides it just doesn't seem as rich of a city ad Solitude. I wouldn't consider Whiterun an appropriate capital
I love Whiterun, I like listening to the crazy priest near the three
I’ve assisted him in not breathing a couple times for a little quiter environment.
It reminds me of Edoras from Lord of the Rings
Wouldn't call him crazy he doesn't worship my god of choice but o can't really worship my preferred god because hes dead so heinsker isnt crazy hes half crazy
I killed him he's worse than nazeem
I saw Markarth and Riften as mirrors.
Markarth has a beautiful exterior, and seems peaceful. Dig a little and you'll discover the cannibal cult that includes a lot of the seemingly normal citizens. A shrine to the worst Daedric prince, and the terrorists secretly being aided by the most powerful family.
Riften is flipped. Its known for its crime problem, looks a bit rundown, and the only one ignorant of who's truly in charge is the jarl herself. That said, the NPCs are overall friendlier. The only Daedric presence is Nocturnal, who here only concerns herfelf with the Thieves guild. The Thieves guild themselves have standards and generally avoid killing.
I remember my original reactions to them. I started out loving Markarth and its unique look, only to be more disgusted by it the more I learned. While Riften really grew on me as I progressed.
Yes I love how it’s flipped over! Markarth is empire hold, Riften stormcloaks, but they have rich families that support the opposing side that unofficially run the city
@@kieranwillis395Politically all the holds have a counterpart on the other side, except Whiterun which is neutral.
Solitude/Windhelm: The largest city, the capital of each side.
Markarth/Riften: Incompetent, oblivious leader. Truly led by a crime family with the opposite allegiance.
Falkreath/Dawnstar: Corrupt leader replaced by a decent one.
Morthal/Winterhold: Smallest holds. The Jarls are okay people. Their replacements don't have much character.
locatin, location, location. Whiterun has far the best location, in temperate climate and from there one can reach any place in skyrim quite easily. Besides, i don't understand the deal with nazeem.
Say what you want, but Riften vibes are the best in the game
I dont know why, but Rifton is my favorite city.
Agreed Riften is my 2nd favourite city, it's like autumn is everlasting there and I love it.
I like Falkreth aesthetics the most. it makes me reminiscent of that old game Fable
@@jerryamescua yesss✨ there’s something so special to me about Falkreth.
Agreed. I like the seclusiveness of living in the ratways
People can call me crazy, but I love Markarth, I truly find the city beautiful. Also, I would love if had a mission to rebuild Winterhold, dont need to be to the former glory, but just to make the city better
I really can't begin to understand how one of the most interesting cities (by what's going on in it and under it, not to mention the design) gets N°9 and the most boring, generic and forgettable out of all by far gets N°3. He even says there's nothing to say about it but "I just like it". I've never understood this take. It's a game, I want the corrupt shitholes with stuff going on, in real life of course I'd put something like Riverwood first lol
@@Alienwatcher very good catch, you can smell it just like riften, which I also like a lot, interesting places
Going purely off of architecture and design Markarth is my #1 by a mile
@@v.c1134 he said best to live in, Markarth is way more interesting and has more going on, but I would hate to live there, its the most dangerous city of them all.
It's beautiful sure... what goes on there automatically makes it hell. Thus it's beauty is irrelevant lol.
>the companions will protect citizens
>unleashes ferocious werewolf on killing spree
Ik this is for vanilla skyrim. But the mod “great cities of skyrim” really made some great improvements to the low tier towns on this list. Especially Dawnstar and Winterhold.
I mostly agree… but I’d have to swap Solitude with Whiterun… my biggest problem with Solitude is too many Thalmor. Although now that I think about it, this problem is pretty easily dealt with…. ⚔️ ☠️ 😂
Yes, every playthrough, I make sure to kill all the Thalmor.
Im playing Skyrim right now and i visited the Thalmor headquarters an hour ago, i saw 0 Thalmor in Solitude, i saw some in the embassy but that's not Solitude, the same happened with my 2 other characters, no matter if im Stormcloack or Imperial, i have never seen a Thalmor in Solitude ever that wasnt part of a quest
Well, the Thalmor Embassy is too close for my liking. There is also the Thalmor Headquarters. When you approach the entrance to Castle Dour where General Tullius is, off to the right there are stairs that lead up to the Thalmor Headquarters. Also, when I have children there my daughter told me she was afraid of the Thalmor. But other than that, no, I don't find any. At least they don't openly walk around like they do in Markarth.
Id be paranoid of that arch collapsing too
10/10 list just for putting Markarth so low, based take. 😂😂
Markarth would be much higher on the list if Madanach was still king, but then it's not in Skyrim
The forsworn conspiracy was so bugged for me i had to end up killing all the prisoners after a dozen tries and i never came back to Markarth ever again
I've had that same problem with that quest, the same with Blood on the Ice, too. I end up having to pick pocket the house key and go inside it, just to force the quest to even start.
Markarth #1 !!!!!!!!!!!
I like the city’s design. Shame about most of the people living there.
I'd like to recommend Fudge Muppet's podcast on this as a complimentary to this, their takes are generally well explained and worth a listen. Also, I'd like to see other skyrim related rankings
I agree
i didn't expect it, but i adore Riften. when i started playing skyrim, i mostly wondered in Whiterun and Winterhold, but then i started thieves guilt quest... and Riften stole my heart. i like the nature there, i like that Riften is full of life and activities, i like Riften's characters and atmosphere overall. i'd lived in Riften, honestly
Another downside for Solitude is the crazy wizard who constantly summons Golden Saints and Dark Seducers in the sewers and also runs a bandit mafia that covers most of Skyrim, but not even that can stop me from making Solitude the n°1 for me
I got stomped on by that guys chain lightning.
@@MrIrishpunk same
That's a Creation Club add-on so I don't know if it should be counted. I don't think Bethesda has confirmed that CC is canon.
Hate chain lightning😮
I ironically love Riften the most. I love the rundown atmosphere and architecture of that place. The corruption and squalor also paints a very lively picture of the people living in Skyrim. Sure that place is a shithole that needs fixing urgently, it still holds a special place in my heart for having such an interesting quest line, in my opinion.
For Winterhold, i can understand the great collapse, the fact that a good chunk of the city fell into the ocean, but make a bit of "proportions" on what we have in game:
Solitude, Windhelm and Whiterun have from 30 to 40 buildings and interiors (taking into account both the ones inside the wall and the ones just outside, like the stables, the farm and Meadery just outside Whiterun, and the 2 docks) and 50-60 or even more named non temorary NPCs (plus generic guards). Those are the numbers we should expect from a former or actual capital or main center of trade and production.
Riften and Markarth are just under those numbers (about 25-30 interiors, 30 to 40 NPCs).
Since Winterhold was once the capital and also a city famous even outside Skyrim (and that few decades before the great collapse there was a growth of the population after a period of stagnation, thanks to immigration, history scholars and researcher and mages), we should expect more or less the same numbers of Solitude, Windhelm or Whiterun, so in game about 30 buildings and 50 NPCs.
Even if 2/3 of the city fell into the ocean (so more than half, more or less what the Jarls and the other people in game said about the lost part), we should see at least 10 buildings and about 20 NPCs. And even if the starting numbers where more similar to Riften and Markarth, there should be 7-8 buildings and 12-15 NPCs, instead we have 4 buildings and 9-10 NPCs.
Plus, since the great collapse was set many decades, more or less a century, before the time of the events in-game, there should be some sort of rebuilding (maybe not to the ancient glory, but at least one should expect that the city matches the numbers of the other 3 minor hold capitals).
And finally, since in-game is always said that Hjaalmarch and Morthal are the poorest hold/capital, this is another sing that Winterhold should have been made a bit less desolated
Falkreath is my No. 1.
Manor and Clavicus Vile quest define this for me.
Let's get it clear - manors are better. Rare house can rival manor. And you build them for yourself, when you "max" them out, it gives sense of completing something big. Not to mention that building the manor and making interior boost your smithing for an amount.
And Falkreath can give you one. Yeah, bandits and fauna can be a nuisance, but it also can be a somewhat stable source of loot, be it alchemic stuff, weapons and armour or furs for crafting. Especially if you become thane, and all those problems can be solved by housecarl.
And Clavicus Vile... While yes, you need to get level 10 to proc it, it's just level 10 for... Well, I see it as not so lengthy quest to retrieve a mask, which can boost your economy, which can be useful at this stage.
Maybe that's not an absolute win, but a close one, and I can't see any other city as more, than Falkreath.
Plus the vibes are cool.
"You have to be an idiot to not spot the blood trail"
Oh... So thats how you complete the quest...
It be like that 😂😂
Ain’t no way this dude put the VILLAGES of Dawnstar, Morthal, and Falkreath above Markarth
To be fair he went easy on Markarth not bringing out its terrible street layout where you have to constantly climb up steep hill streets.
Windhelm* has a functioning market, dock, farms and nearby mine, lumberyard, stable, multiple inns and shops, a large (if somewhat inept) guard, and despite some poor treatment, is the by far the most multiethnic city in Skyrim.
I know it's a basic biich answer here but......... I love whiterun. The architecture is my favorite. Breezehome is cozy and just perfect, and its got a lot of great people in the walls and out.
My Ranking of the Cities by Vibes
1. Whiterun
2. Riften
3. Windhelm
4. Solitude
5. Raven Rock
6. Markarth
7. Falkreath
8. Dawnstar
9. Winterhold
10. Morthal
Lore Wise Ranking
1. Solitude
2. Whiterun
3. Falkreath
4. Dawnstar
5. Raven Rock
6. Windhelm
7. Riften
8. Winterhold
9. Morthal
10. Markarth
That chicken is a true treasure. Sustains the whole city with her eggs. And has enough eggs to export and aid the stormcloaks in their war.
Riften be a nice place to live in. Always loved the architecture and the city feels most real and alive out of all. The surrounding area the lakes, terrain and plants, reminds me of where I live, in Finland. (Though, not surprised since in general, Skyrim looks a LOT like Norway.)
Honeyside has even a view to a lake. Only thing that would make it better would be a beach sauna.
And considering livability, Riften seems to be the best, having plenty of opportunity to be a thief there
As a Norwegian it's really hard to NOT play this game as a Nord and side with the Stormcloaks. The area that Riften is in also reminds me of Finland.
Markarth makes me feel like i am back on Rio de Janeiro with all the things you described
I list my favorite cities in skyrim with how messed up they are as a positive association, lol. Markarth is always first. Hands down, the city with the most issues as well as being gorgeous and having a local economy that seem arguably functional.
"...or think that I will get fucking stabbed as soon as I walk through a gate, the city will not be ranked that high."
Me: "Well, there goes Riften."
I absolutely adore the Dwarven architecture of Markarth and Vlindrel Hall, and the beautiful scenery of the Reach.
So imagine my disappointment that I can't admire any of it for even two minutes without something trying to kill me.
The house you can buy in Solitude has some amenities that you don't have in Whiterun, I also think that if it was a property I'd rent for a vacation, the one in Solitude would be my favourite, enjoy your meals with a nice view on the sea from that high up location, it's marvelous.
It better be better for costing 5x as much
@@richardandersson7620 I can imagine sitting outside enjoying the sea breeze and then some student at the bard academy starts torturing a fiddle... not exactly perfect either.
10. Markarth
9. Morthal
8. Winterhold
7. Raven Rock
6. Dawnstar
5. Windhelm
4. Solitude
3. Riften
2. Falkreath
1. Whiterun
I genuinely think Riften deserves more love, I know it isn't perfect but it's certainly better than Morthal and Dawnstar. Riften at the very least has walls, you won't be turned into a vampire and won't have nightmares whenever you try to sleep. Also the Thieves Guild is good for the economy of Riften (at least once we restore the Guild's glory by getting rid of Mercer Frey). There's plenty of work for citizens and the town isn't infested with Daedra, Forsworn, Vampires and the other troubles that plague the other lesser towns.
"So, why is it so low? Well..."
*Immediately shows a Vampire*
“You damn Greyskin! Go back to Morrowind!”
+i think you should have put more time talking about the unique buildings and temples in the bigger cities, also i think you didnt mention the queen potema problem for solitude, but overall a great video i agree 100%
Yes the queen potema problem. I also thought it was a big problem the game didn't let me side with her
I’ll commit arson if solitude isn’t in your top 5. Edit: looks like I’m not lighting any government buildings on fire today.
Never let me stop you from committing arson!
Do it
Markarth underrated. It is very confusing and overwhelming at first but has a specific charm that only Whiterun and Riften can match imo. For a video game city it is definitely top 3 for me, but if we talking about what is a realistic roleplay city to call home... yeah its probably dead last lmao. Way too much corruption and threats in that city.
As a kid adored Markarth now knowing anything
As of today Falkreath is my no. 1 for sure
you also have to take into account what happened in winterhold. majority of the city dropped of into the ocean. that’s why the jarls palace is so generic is because it isn’t the original residence. It’s also why the bridge to the college is torn up.
My ranking, based on how much I enjoy the city design
9. Winterhold
8. Morthal
7. Solitude
6. Dawnstar
5. Falkreath
4. Windhelm
3. Markarth
2. Whiterun
1. Riften
Why you hate solitude bruh
My list:
1. Markarth
2. Windhelm
3. Solitude
4. Morthal
5. Riften
6. Whiterun
7. Dawnstar
8. Raven Rock
9. Falkreath
10. Winterhold
Markarth Hold is my favorite, but the city is pretty underwhelming. It has some of the funnest quests and greatest loot you can get relatively early in the game. Plus the forsworn are one of the coolest bandit factions in the game. Id totally be a briarheart if it was a quest in the game
One thing I noticed against falkreath when siding with the dawnguard for some reason in my playthroughs falkreath experienced much more random vampire attacks than any other city I’d visit.
"the companions could easily protect the citizenry from any attack"
ah yes, except from the fact that they don't mind potentially hurting citizens by werewolf attacks. like, they made the main character a freaking werewolf for no reason and don't seem to mind that the newborn wolf is immediately starts running around Whiterun.
Worst part is the cave has a back exit where a werewolf could be let out to hunt mammoths or something, but they left the door into the city open for some reason.
You and me see things eye to eye man. I like morthal and falkreath. This list is prefect.
Public executions used to be the same as going to watch the local footy match. Ah, those were the days.
Windhelm has always been my favorite, I love the ancient looking architecture and and the cold atmosphere which contrasts well with most of the homes in the city which all look cozy and pretty (not including the grey quarter). The Palace of the Kings is also my second favorite palace in game behind only Dragonsreach.
Did you know the nords used snow elf slave labour to make the city? Once the city was done, the nords killed all the elves.
Imagine how many people would agree if the arena was actually added
As a more-or-less literal Nord and a bit of a racist, Windhelm sounds like my kinda town.
Scandi...Skyrim belongs to the Nords!
@@mikitz if only real life norse had made badass stone architecture
I’ve always loved Dawnstar purely because it’s in the snow and actually looks nice unlike Windhelm
Mine least to best:
Morthal
Falkreath
Dawnstar
Winterhold
Markarth
Riften
Whiterun
Solitude
Correct
Riften is honestly my favorite and with mods it's one of the most beautiful cities.
Looove the Riften area, and the town too. I settle there often. On the other hand, I always end up chased by the guards in freaking Markarth, plus the whole dwarf-machinery thing gives me the creep 😂
Riften is great because of Mjoll. Such a great companion there. But Solitude and Whiterun just have great vibes to them, hard to beat.
I honestly like Morthal, and in turn, all of Hjaalmarch, better than the other holds because of three reasons.
1. Hjaalmarch is close to Haafingar, which has plenty of nirnroot on the north-eastern shores.
2. Hjaalmarch has plentiful swamp fungal pods, as well as lots of butterflies near Stonehills.
3. Hjaalmarch's snowy atmosphere and plentiful wildlife makes it so immersive to wear fur armor, which is my favorite looking armor set.
If i feel like i will die of hunger or *get fudding stabbed* the moment i walk through the city gates
Falkreath/Dawnstar: 🗿
Markarth has by far the most creative city. Its literlaly a city built into the mountians and made to be a fortress. The dwarven architecture makes it pretty awesome too with the pipes and steam going everywhere. Its honestly my #1 spot. Whiterun in close 2nd and then Solitude in 3rd
Comparing the major cities of Skyrim is like comparing an Argonian slave to a Khajiit farm tool. They both serve the same purpose, my friend.
I whole agree in the way you are ranking these cities, but markarth is definitely my favorite city just in terms of looks.
I just moved to Markarth. I love the house you can buy and by far its the most stunning city in my opinion. I cant believe it so low on the list
My head canon for the serial killer quest wasn’t that the guards were incompetent and unable to solve an obvious clue so that they just didn’t care and we’re more concerned with other things such as the war
Your thoughts on Maekarth got me rollin that was the purest genius comedy gold 😅
Ah yes, the number 2 slot is taken by a place that is next in line for a siege/center of a civil war and number 1 is taken by a place that’s about to have their version of Hitler pop up from the grave at the head of a bunch of necromancers and has dudes turning off the lighthouse to rob ships as they please
Windhelm is my all time favorite city next to whiterun and morthal, i finally added a house deep in morthal swamps which made it a perfect place to live for me. Which i own a house in these three cities because of it.
Since release in 2011 I would spew my hate for Markarth to friends. Now at the limber age of 33 I am ashamed to admit I kinda like Markarth but ONLY a little bit 😂 Also Molag is more relatable in old age
I think we need a ranking of Skyrim of towns/villages in Skyrim too.
Winterhold was one of the biggest city in skyrim. But was drown to the sea when the cliff falled. Bad tongues are saying that the wizards of college drowned them.
Couldnt agree more with your placement/reasoning on Falkreath 😂😂
Apart from the house you get which is so small and sucks I love Riften
Modded windhelm and winterhold are my favorite tbh, they look so cool
I imagine someone from windhelm would go to literally any other city out of windhelm and be like “by the gods they have colors besides grey outside windhelm!”
I love how you use Riftin as a gold standard of terrible places to live yet you put 2 cities below it. It's funny as hell.
Yeah, cause Riften is terrible, but not HORRIFIC
Namira is the Pronce with the canibal cult. Vaermina is the prince that plaugues Dawnstar with nightmares.
I also think ravenrock should be between 2 and 3 just because you get a house for free and a really good house too. And even its kinda deserted and ashes everywhere for a dark elf or argonian it feels like a nostalgia trip and for nord its a great place for adventures. Lot of cool items and quests and to meet Neloth of all ppl. He is just the coolest npc ever. And the guard armor is quite cool.
Solitude, Whiterun, Markarth, and Dawnstar will always be my favorite. Dawnstar because of the Daedra quest mostly.
Fairly sure Winterhold wasn't intentional, but a they ran out of time issue. Its also unacceptable that Hearthfire didn't include a Winterhold homestead with all that wasted space of empty ruins the hold should be eager for somebody to buy and build over.
Further your treason against Morrowind for disparaging the glorious House Redoran who have led Morrowind during its time of crisis after the imperial sympathizing Hlaalu wrecked everything including the Dunmer Gods has been noted.
Also lol, Solitude is not better than Whiterun, for the simple fact that Solitude is out of the way in the corner of the map while Whiterun is centrally located.
My favourites are
3. Markarth
2. Whiterun
1. Falkreath
Damn man, Markarth and Riften are the only cities I like...
Markarth and Falkreath are my favs.
I didn't used to care for Riften much but I've been spending a ton of time there lately and I'm warming up to it.
@@hundragant Maybe it's just cause I'm from Finland and have lived in areas which look like Falkreath most of my life but I just don't get why people are so enamored with it. Just a generic forest area in my eyes. Not hating on your opinion tho, each to their own.
@@nilonen Most people are from big cities and towns. They only see forested areas if they leave the city on hiking/camping trips.
I myself have lived in both a big city and the rural country. I def prefer the rural country with all the trees and silence; hence my love for Falkreath. It's the most forested pretty town
I am really miffed that there was never a DLC or Creation Club addition that allowed people to build up Winterhold. Not to make it into a major city necessarily, but to add things like a blacksmith, an alchemist, a player home, and maybe one or two other buildings that would be unique to Winterhold itself (maybe even an orphanage or a "welcome center" of sorts for the College of Winterhold).
If I had the skills, I have an idea for a mod story about rebuilding Winterhold and actually getting people involved in rebuilding it, like some Nord miners to collect stones and ore, a Khajiit caravan to collect wood and supplies with one becomes the alchemist and a small band of Orcs who lost their clan and one becomes the new blacksmith and another becomes a housecarl for the Jarl, all with the help of an Imperial architect.
Kinda hard to build up winterhold when what remains is set between a sheer cliff into the sea and mountainous terrain which cant really be settled
The saddest thing on side w the stormcloaks (cus fuck the empire) is stab balgruf on the back... he is a really great guy, who helps us and really care for his people.
HOW IS DAWNSTAR ABOVE RIFTEN
Because Riften smells bad
And shit has some variation on color. Like, just any colors that aren’t beige.
I go to riften only because of temple, fishery and i like old couple selling ingredients. Pub is sort of ok. Thing i think will change the vibe of the city is water down there. Lake has nice clean water when you look at it but in city somehow steaming and it doesn’t looks nice. I do not like thiefs guild hence remind me more of bandits which should be completely different faction able to join. So what riften have incorrectly is that it should be home of bandits not thiefs guild. Thief guild should be under the Windhelm. Gloomy city is exactly where you hide and beggar outside in streets even teach pickpockets. Some smuggling via argonians and dark elfs there fits perfectly. Stir some shit with murder there and everyone is suspect and doggy as f hence most of them has dirt in pockets and do not want to cast shadow. Then finely maybe some speechcraft helps to find a suspect through intimidation… or such. Riften like that will stay hostile city but more like with violent character. Meandery will be pour booze and fight will be on streets but under city will have sort of like illegal cage fights where you could level up weapons and go through ranks or something like that and there you will encounter even that guy with strong punching gloves and get to various other interesting equipment. Just ideas…
I like Falkreath hold lakeview manor specifically but the small town aint so bad. I used to live in the woods of a place that was like falkreath in summer and dawnstar in winter. Skyrim always reminds me of those years.
Got put in my recommendation and I’m definitely subscribing !!!!
I’d actually put morthal below winterhold. It at least has the college. Morthal. Who goes back when ur done with the 3 missions there?
Shor's bones, a good review of Falkreath!
When I first played skyrim I got a "warm markath reception", my travel there traumatized me.
I recommend the Great Cities mod to make the smaller cities feel larger and more unique.
Tbh a Whiterun Wizarding World style amusement park would go hard.
Idk man, Whiterun is my home. Once I got my Tundra Homestead and farm I was set. Great vid though!
I had to put on subtitles for Winterhold after rewinding it a few times because I kept thinking you said ‘homeless occupants’ rather than ‘hopeless optimist’ for the inhabitants of the only actual house.
I’d flip Dawnstar and Windhelm…and then I’d flip solitude and white run but other than that I agree with your list. Just small differences
Yeah, it's a toss up between Whiterun and Solitude for sure, but I feel Whiterun has the better Jarl, the better faction (Companions vs Bards), and the largest number of shops. Solitude has a much nicer house, the unique and helpful Radiant Raiments shop, and all shrines (except Talos).
Regarding Dawnstar, lets not forget the "Museum Owner" who basically wants to resurect the cult of The Mythic Dawn.
I agree with you for most of it. But if I were finally awake, having been arrested attempting to cross the border along with some rebels and a horse thief. I would make my home in whiterun, no doubt.
I love whiterun and I also absolutely love morthal. I have no clue why I like morthal so much it just has its charm. I think it may have been the first city I became thane of besides whiterun
Riften, Windhelm, and Solitude acutally feel like cities, which I like.