Skyrim player reopens The Elder Scrolls fans' oldest wound – why do female Argonians have breasts?
The Elder Scrolls is a series where you can become a vampire-werewolf, devour a dragon's soul, and sign contracts with daedric princes. But sometimes fans notice things impossible to unsee or forget – like the anatomy of lizard people. The question "why do Argonians have breasts if they hatch from eggs" has haunted the community for two decades, periodically resurfacing in discussions as an unsolvable mystery of Tamriel biology.
Reddit user Legitimate-Refuse601 revived one of the oldest debates in The Elder Scrolls history: if Argonians are reptiles that hatch from eggs, why the hell do females have breasts? The question exploded on r/skyrim, gathering over 6,000 upvotes and hundreds of comments. The discussion quickly turned into a battle between biologists, lore experts, and outright jokers.
This anatomical mystery has plagued the series since Morrowind, when Argonians and Khajiit shared a common body model. In Skyrim, developers made the lizard folk more detailed and scaly, but didn't eliminate the "problem." And considering that Argonian gender can actually change throughout life under the influence of Hist sap, the question becomes even more convoluted.
Fans proposed several explanations, from scientific to outright memetic:
Mimicry of mammals
The Hist – sentient trees that biologically engineered Argonians – work as an evolutionary force, adapting the race to any conditions. According to commenter legomaniac89, the Hist copied the physiology of humans and mer, considering the humanoid form useful for survival among other races of Tamriel. Breasts here are simply a "cosmetic detail" for camouflage. As one fan ironized, the Hist looked at "The Lusty Argonian Maid" and figured breasts would improve their survival chances, since "human males fall for that."Portable Hist sap storage
A more practical version turns female Argonians into mobile reservoirs. Hatchlings need to lick the sacred sap immediately after hatching to form a soul and connection with the trees. For those born far from Black Marsh where Hist don't grow, breasts could have evolved into sap storage containers. Literally a mobile refueling station for newborns.Legacy of "The Lusty Maid"
Of course, references to the famous erotic play within the game, which became the series' main meme, were inevitable. As some fans note – Crassius Curio can't fantasize about his lusty Argonian maids if they don't have visible breasts.Real world parallels
Several players pointed to monotremes like platypuses and echidnas – animals that lay eggs and produce milk simultaneously. Some suggest acknowledging that there are animals that lay eggs and produce milk – and calling it a day.
The real reason, of course, is much simpler. According to lore, the Hist is like the Force from Star Wars, but only for Argonians. If the Hist believes something will improve survival chances, the Hist makes it happen. But the actual answer is that developers simply didn't want to create a separate body model. In Morrowind, female Argonians and Khajiit used the same model entirely, simplifying the studio's work.
Such debates are what keeps The Elder Scrolls series alive decades later. Fans continue dissecting every detail of lore, turning even biological inconsistencies into grounds for creative theories and memes. And considering The Elder Scrolls VI is still in development, discussions about lizard folk anatomy will continue for years to come.
