Harkon's actually kind of a weak villain and the Soul Cairn makes it worse

[ScrollsOfTamriel]

I've been thinking about this since my last playthrough. Harkon shows up, gives you this whole speech about blotting out the sun, and then... he just kind of exists in his castle until you decide to fight him. There's no real momentum to his threat. The Dawnguard side at least has Isran pushing you forward with actual objectives, but the vampire path? You're basically just doing errands for a guy who feels like he's already lost before the questline even starts.

And the Soul Cairn stuff makes it weirder. Like, we learn about his whole plan to block out the sun using Auriel's Bow, which is this ancient artifact that's been missing for ages. Cool setup. But then the Soul Cairn sequence happens and it's just... a dungeon crawl that doesn't really connect to why Harkon matters as a threat. It's a sidequest that eats up half the questline's pacing.

Compare that to something like Alduin or even Miraak - they've got presence, they've got agency, they're doing things that affect the world. Harkon just waits around for you to show up and fight him. Even as a vampire lord, there's no real tension to it.

Does anyone else feel like the vampire questline needed another act or something? Like maybe Harkon actually starts doing something after you complete the Soul Cairn instead of just standing there?

 

[DragonbornVet]

You're not wrong that Harkon's got weak pacing, but I think the Soul Cairn thing is actually the point - it's just poorly executed. The idea is supposed to be that you're gathering power and knowledge to even stand a chance against him, right? Auriel's Bow, the Daedric artifacts, learning about the Elder Scrolls. It's meant to feel like you're preparing for a real threat. Problem is the game doesn't sell that tension at all. Harkon just sits there like you said, and the Soul Cairn plays out like a fetch quest instead of a desperate race against time.

The Dawnguard side nails it because Isran's constantly pushing you - "We need to stop this NOW" - and you've got actual vampire attacks happening while you're working. The vampire questline should've had something similar. Like, maybe Harkon starts corrupting holds or his vampires actually begin executing his plan while you're gone. Instead nothing changes until you walk into Castle Volkihar for the final fight.

That said, compared to Miraak he's still doing more than people give him credit for - Miraak's also mostly waiting around in Apocrypha. Alduin's different because the main quest forces constant interaction with him. But yeah, Harkon needed either actual world-threatening events happening in real time or at least some cutscenes showing his impatience or desperation. Even a radiant quest system where he's actively sending you to sabotage Dawnguard operations would've helped. As it stands the vampire path feels like the B-route content it probably was.