The Elder Scrolls: 7 Weirdest Skyrim Enemies (And What They Represent)
3. Falmer
If you head on down from the lush wilderness of the northern lands, you'll soon stumble across a couple of pokey caves that are home to the Falmer - the disgraced relatives of Snow Elves pushed underground and enslaved by the Dwemer.
It's fair to say that the inspiration for subterranean creatures that have survived and adapted to cave life is pretty standard across the board in modern media, with the Falmer seeming to draw their looks from films like The Descent and The Time Machine. The latter in particular is interesting as the antagonistic Morlocks are an evolved form of the lower class, suffering from eerily similar physical traits and defining heightened senses as their gaming counterpart.
As for real-life inspiration, a mysterious underground city that supposedly housed the Chud people was found in Saransk, Russia, where scientists have discovered a multi-tiered establishment where 'deaf voices' could be heard from the depths, as reported by a Paranormal News outlet.
It's to be taken with a pinch of salt considering both the source and that C.H.U.D. is a beloved horror B-movie featuring Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers, but the inspiration it offers up is a nice touch to the Falmer design and legend.