Personally I am pro-empire as I think a strong empire is the best chance of defeating the Thalmor, but that is not to say the Empire is without its problems, especially in its post-Septim era
For me, I'd say the choice is close between Daggerfall and Morrowind. Morrowind has a beautiful and foreign world, but Daggerfall has a fantastic and extremely deep RPG system!
What do people think about the Crux system for the Arcanist? I like it. Reminds me of some of the City of Heroes power sets. Anyone developed a mid-level (or end-game) rotation that works well?