Thanks to its hard-working mod community, I've been playing "Skyrim" for a whopping 12 years. But long before that, I spent my days playing custom scenarios in Age of Empires 2 and tinkering with the map editor. And thanks to Age of Empires 2 modder Grouchy_Bluejay4511, the two great games have been integrated.

On Reddit, Grouchy shared screenshots of his current project, a remake of Skyrim with the venerable RTS: the first is unmistakably Whiterun, with Jarl's mansion, Dragonsreach, towering above the city. The small settlement has also been recreated in great detail, and in the second screenshot, we can see Helgen (which is, naturally, burning), Riverwood, and Iverstead surrounding High Frothgar, which sits at the "Throat of the World".

Even just using AoE2 assets, these locations are quite recognizable; in the third screenshot, Grouchy uses Aztec buildings to show the unique appearance of the settlement.

In another post, Grouchy shows more screenshots, including the creepy Volkihar Castle, where vamps hang out in the Dawnguard expansion, Winterhold, home to the College of Magic, and several other locations.

In terms of play, it appears to be an RPG/RTS hybrid in which you are put in charge of one of Skyrim's forts and vie for supremacy in the area, with over 50 quests and 100 unique characters.

Grouchy is still polishing the mod after posting screenshots and catching "some final bugs," so unfortunately he hasn't shared the link yet. Nevertheless, if you're eager to conquer Skyrim, you won't have to wait long; Grouchy will be available on Steam Workshop by Saturday.

Perfect timing for me to be playing Skyrim again on the Steam deck. This mod seems to have scratched an itch.