By Shannon Doyle (Leliah), OnRPG’s Elder Scribe
May has been flying by! And brought us another month closer to the launch of Elder Scrolls Online. Of course it is by anyone’s standards still a long ways off. But that doesn’t mean Zenimax is being tight lipped about anything. It has been another exciting month of reveals covering everything from picking locks to a glimpse of Coldharbour. Keep reading for the highlights from Elder Scrolls online for May.
AMA Variety Vol. 4
Another tossing together of questions submitted by fans asking all sorts of questions. Here are just a few of the best.
In previous Elder Scrolls games armor was divided into categories, with each category having multiple styles of armor. The styles were tiered so that there was a progression in the type of armor the player would wear from early game to late game. Does The Elder Scrolls Online use an armor progression similar to the one used in Skyrim? – By Philip Hahs
The Elder Scrolls Online features a very familiar armor system. Armor is divided into 3 categories: light, medium, and heavy. Light armor is generally good for magicka users. Medium armor is good for stamina users, and heavy armor is good for keeping yourself alive as long as possible. Within each category, there are many different types available; some are specific to a particular racial style (though you can wear any armor regardless of your race), and some are the iconic sets you might recognize from past Elder Scrollsgames such as Daedric, Dwemer, and more.
What is the social and legal opinion of slavery in Tamriel during this time period? – By Bill Mottola
It varies by jurisdiction. The Clans of the Reach, for example, certainly keep captured enemies as slaves – but they’re barbarians. In most civilized realms, slavery is illegal, with the obvious exception being Morrowind. Under the terms of the Ebonheart Pact the Dark Elves have had to liberate their Argonian slaves, but they still have slaves of other races, the most common of which are Khajiit.
Are we going to encounter Dragonborns in ESO or learn shouts ourselves? – By Hawk Bullmer
The line of Reman Cyrodiil of the Second Empire was certainly Dragonborn, but they died out at the end of the First Era, and between then and the date of ESO, no “legitimate” Dragonborn has been confirmed by being able to light the Dragonfires in the ImperialCity.
As for shouts (i.e., thu’ums), at the time of ESO, they are considered a legend out of the distant past.
Will there be some puzzles that require us to move around blocks to open up something? Will there be puzzles at all? – By Libor Held
Absolutely!
Books have always held an important place in the lore of The Elder Scrolls, and those that increase skills are my favorite. Will we be able to find these two types of books in ESO? Will there be a sequel to “The Lusty Argonian Maid”? – By Emmanuelle Mareuil
The current plan is to have both those kinds of books in ESO – and plenty of them. We have new lore books (by the scad) and old favorites from previous TES games – including both volumes of “The Lusty Argonian Maid.”
Gathering and Exploration
One thing I really loved while trying out Elder Scrolls Online at PAX East was how immersive the whole world was. They’ve only added to it with the way gathering happens. Who wouldn’t grab a sneaky handful of beans from a bag just left laying around? Or bread off a table that has been abandoned by the owner? Check out this short video that introduces everything from fishing to finding books. And below that are just a few
Which crafting professions will be in ESO and what do they allow me to create? – By Jara Schlemm
In The Elder Scrolls Online, you can choose from five crafting professions which allow you to make a variety of useful items, enhancements, and equipment. Each of the crafting professions are reminiscent of ones you’ve seen in previous Elder Scrolls games. They are:
Weaponsmith – Weapons of all types
Armorsmith – Armors of all types
Enchantments – Staffs, Jewelry and Glyphs (enchantments)
Alchemist – Potions
Provisioner – Food and Drink
Could you shed some light on the crafting and collecting systems for ESO? Will you need to go to a trainer to pick up new schematics/crafting plans? – By Conrad Furey
Much like in previous Elder Scrolls games, there are no recipes or schematics you must collect or learn from trainers in ESO; there are multiple ways to create every craftable item in the game. Discovering the optimal mix of ingredients and additives to make that perfect item is all part of the challenge of being a crafter.
Are you going to stay with the old system of making your own gear or only allow one crafting skill so everyone becomes an expert in 1 or 2 fields eg. tailor/sword smith/weapon smith/alchemist/rune crafting ect. – By Marc Neveling
You can master up to two crafting fields. Our intention is for the specialists to trade with one another (I make you a sword, and you make me a breastplate). That makes for a healthy economy, and gives every crafter the opportunity to find their specialized niche within the market.
To open a chest will I need lockpicks and do they still break (a lot)? How can I become better in lockpicking? – By James Lannger
Some chests do not require lockpicks, but most will; the difficultly of the locks will vary, depending on the quality of the lock itself. Lockpicks have a small chance to break each time you fail to put a pin in place, and this chance increases when you attempt to pick higher quality locks. Your lockpicking will automatically improve as you level, gradually making chests that were once very difficult to open a much easier prospect. Though your lockpicking skill will increase as you level, the chests you encounter in higher level areas will also be more difficult.
Coldharbour
In a new video the development team takes a dive into the story of Elder Scrolls Online. Specifically looking at the God of Schemes himself Molag Bal and his attempts to bring his Oblivion plane, Coldharbour to Tamriel. It is up to us the players to stop this from happening.
Alliances at War: PvP
Another AMA was done, this time on all things PvP, though a few nonPvP related questions made it in too. Have a look at what I think are the biggest questions asked.
It has been mentioned multiple times that players can invade areas surrounding enemy keeps in order to starve them of resources. What kinds of resources are these, and how will they affect gameplay? – By Eric Duey
The three resources around a keep (lumber mills, farms, and mines) fuel its upgrade process. Lumber mills help make keep doors stronger and allow them to repair themselves automatically. Farms make keep guards tougher and stronger, and mines help reinforce the walls, making them harder to destroy and allowing them to repair themselves over time as well. Taking control of resources around keeps also shuts off various patrols in the vicinity, so it’s always advantageous to take resources before laying siege to the keep itself.
Will there be a PvP ranking system? If so, will it grant titles, gear, skills, or additional stats? – By Kevin Kent
Yes, there will be a ranking system. You can earn Alliance Ranks, which grant titles and let you purchase weapons and armor. There’s also a PvP skill line that you can get new abilities from—we’ll have more details about that later.
Will I be able to level from 10 to 50 in Cyrodiil at a comparable pace to someone who levels doing PvE? – By Micah Hood
Leveling speed in PvP is not as consistent as leveling through PvE due to the nature of enemy player population. However, there are lots of activities in Cyrodiil that can supplement PvP combat, like questing and exploring. You can encounter players from the enemy Alliances throughout Cyrodiil, so there’s always potential for conflicts.
How will stealth/sneak be implemented into PvP and how will players detect a sneaking opponent? – By Cameron Neilson
There are a few different ways you can detect sneaking opponents. For example, a player who’s sneaking is revealed upon taking damage. There are spells that can detect opponents who are trying to sneak around. It’s also important to remember that sneaking uses stamina, and you really don’t want to be out of stamina going into a battle.
This has been a huge month and goes a long ways towards helping people plan out their first character. I’ll certainly be thinking about what kind of character I want to make, and what crafting skills she will have. I can’t wait to see what the next few months brings us. We’re coming up on convention season and I’m sure that will mean a ton more announcements. So keep your eyes open as we venture ever closer to the day when we can all venture to Tamriel.
