Are Generals more likely to spawn at an anchor if you leave all four pinions open until the end?

Mordack

I was at a Dolmen and people got angry at me for destroying the pinions when they popped up. They told me that they needed to be up until the end so the General had a greater chance to appear, which is something I've never heard of. It doesn't even really make sense for it to be that way, but I figured I'd ask for a definitive answer so I know whether to ignore the pinions or keep destroying them like I've always done.

Valymer

Sounds a lot like that urban legend that if you positioned the mouse pointer on a certain spot on the old AOL dial-up screen your log in would succeed every time.

Drazhar14

I've got all the General to spawn (eventually) and I closed the pinions as they opened. I don't see how waiting until the end would increase the chance or why ZOS would program it that way.

Rosveen

As far as I know, it has never been proved or disproved. I treat it as a myth. I had enough generals spawn without following this rule to not care about it.

clocksstoppe

Dolmens are a public place so they have no right or base to flame you for doing it the way you want. Personally I have had threats thrown at me because of this stupid myth and while I know there is literally no reason for a programmer to do the pinion thing, whenever I can I will make them angry again.

Nestor

I have had Generals Spawn without waiting to close the pinions

I have not had Generals spawn when waiting to close the Pinions

I don't think I have ever had any spawn when I wait to close the pinions, but I rarely remember to wait and just close them when I think about it.

Jaxsun

Mordack wrote: »

I was at a Dolmen and people got angry at me for destroying the pinions when they popped up. They told me that they needed to be up until the end so the General had a greater chance to appear, which is something I've never heard of. It doesn't even really make sense for it to be that way, but I figured I'd ask for a definitive answer so I know whether to ignore the pinions or keep destroying them like I've always done.

It sounds like a load of *** to me.

Dominoid

People be crazy.

UrQuan

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

starkerealm

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Jice

It's people being superstitious pigeons.

If you have a pigeon in a cage and have a machine to feed it randomly. And it happens that the Machine went off twice when the pigeon scratches it's head or something, the pigeon will start scratching it's head thinking that's what caused it to be fed. Then it will teach that to new pigeon's you introduce to the cage.

Those people are no better than pigeons. It's random. There's no pattern.

Fruitmass

starkerealm wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Yeah gonna have to second this.

I've done way too many dolmens, both in groups and solo, to believe that spawn chance is effected by pinions or players. Though as a general rule I don't usually open the pinions till the end of the fight for the sake of avoiding argument.

The only place I would say has a better chance of spawning a boss is Cyrodiil (though not by much) but they're random spawn there so no guarantee you'll get the one you want.

starkerealm

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Yeah gonna have to second this.

I've done way too many dolmens, both in groups and solo, to believe that spawn chance is effected by pinions or players. Though as a general rule I don't usually open the pinions till the end of the fight for the sake of avoiding argument.

The only place I would say has a better chance of spawning a boss is Cyrodiil (though not by much) but they're random spawn there so no guarantee you'll get the one you want.

As far as I know, the Cyrodiil Dolmens use the same spawn tables as the normal vet dolmens... but I could be wrong.

s7732425ub17_ESO

As a programmer, I know this would be false.

The bosses only spawn AFTER all the pinions have been closed. So how could you tell that people waited to close them? It would be difficult and not worth a developer's time. Believe me, this is not code that someone would want to write- it's also really stupid.

It's a myth. For those who believe it, you can laugh in their faces as you close the pinions whenever you want.

starkerealm

s7732425ub17_ESO wrote: »

As a programmer, I know this would be false.

The bosses only spawn AFTER all the pinions have been closed. So how could you tell that people waited to close them? It would be difficult and not worth a developer's time. Believe me, this is not code that someone would want to write- it's also really stupid.

It's a myth. For those who believe it, you can laugh in their faces as you close the pinions whenever you want.

If you coded it to check if the person closing a pinion had the buff that you get from closing a pinion still active, and then moved the dolmen's boss roll up the table a bit for that? But, yeah, that would be a stupid way to rig things.

Ourorboros

It's totally bogus. This rumor only started floating on the forum in the past few months. If this was true, it would have been picked up as early as beta. Many players got the Generals achievement before this rumor started floating, including me. And no one was paying any particular attention to when pinions were closed. BTW, any who try to perpetuate this myth in posts are violating the forum guidelines.

starkerealm

Ourorboros wrote: »

It's totally bogus. This rumor only started floating on the forum in the past few months. If this was true, it would have been picked up as early as beta. Many players got the Generals achievement before this rumor started floating, including me. And no one was paying any particular attention to when pinions were closed. BTW, any who try to perpetuate this myth in posts are violating the forum guidelines.

I'd hug you, but that'd get weird...

Mordack

Thanks for the replies. If people want to keep the pinions up, I'll do that just to avoid confrontations, but I do feel better knowing that I didn't mess anything up.

Fruitmass

starkerealm wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Yeah gonna have to second this.

I've done way too many dolmens, both in groups and solo, to believe that spawn chance is effected by pinions or players. Though as a general rule I don't usually open the pinions till the end of the fight for the sake of avoiding argument.

The only place I would say has a better chance of spawning a boss is Cyrodiil (though not by much) but they're random spawn there so no guarantee you'll get the one you want.

As far as I know, the Cyrodiil Dolmens use the same spawn tables as the normal vet dolmens... but I could be wrong.

Honestly I don't know for sure.

Spent several weeks puttering around out there and was getting bosses pretty regularly. Almost every three to four anchors and one would spawn. Way better spawn rate than I had in any other zone reg or vet mode.

Though in all fairness I could have just gotten amazingly lucky, lol.

starkerealm

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Yeah gonna have to second this.

I've done way too many dolmens, both in groups and solo, to believe that spawn chance is effected by pinions or players. Though as a general rule I don't usually open the pinions till the end of the fight for the sake of avoiding argument.

The only place I would say has a better chance of spawning a boss is Cyrodiil (though not by much) but they're random spawn there so no guarantee you'll get the one you want.

As far as I know, the Cyrodiil Dolmens use the same spawn tables as the normal vet dolmens... but I could be wrong.

Honestly I don't know for sure.

Spent several weeks puttering around out there and was getting bosses pretty regularly. Almost every three to four anchors and one would spawn. Way better spawn rate than I had in any other zone reg or vet mode.

Though in all fairness I could have just gotten amazingly lucky, lol.

My vet dolmen experience has been a boss about every 4 - 6 dolmens, so... yeah, that doesn't sound that out there.

Fruitmass

starkerealm wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

starkerealm wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

I've heard it too, but it sounds like a myth to me. Having said that, since I heard it I make a point not to close any pinions until all 4 have spawned (unless I'm on the verge of dying and am still on potion cooldown with no magicka to heal myself - that only ever happens if I'm soloing the dolmen though). Just in case.

Yeah, this.

I've been told the number of players at a dolmen affects the odds of a general spawning there. But, I'm not sure I believe that either. I've arrived late at way too many dolmens (particularly in vet zones) that spawned a general that the player or two there couldn't handle alone.

Similarly, I've seen way too many generals spawn in non-vet zones when I'm either soloing the Dolmen on a vet or when there's only a couple players there.

So, I don't think either of these actually affect spawn rates.

Yeah gonna have to second this.

I've done way too many dolmens, both in groups and solo, to believe that spawn chance is effected by pinions or players. Though as a general rule I don't usually open the pinions till the end of the fight for the sake of avoiding argument.

The only place I would say has a better chance of spawning a boss is Cyrodiil (though not by much) but they're random spawn there so no guarantee you'll get the one you want.

As far as I know, the Cyrodiil Dolmens use the same spawn tables as the normal vet dolmens... but I could be wrong.

Honestly I don't know for sure.

Spent several weeks puttering around out there and was getting bosses pretty regularly. Almost every three to four anchors and one would spawn. Way better spawn rate than I had in any other zone reg or vet mode.

Though in all fairness I could have just gotten amazingly lucky, lol.

My vet dolmen experience has been a boss about every 4 - 6 dolmens, so... yeah, that doesn't sound that out there.

Oy vey, I usually have to clear about a dozen or more before I get a spawn.

dharbert

I didn't know this was a thing, but now that I do I'm going to go to every dolmen and immediately close every pinion, for the tears.

starkerealm

Okay, here's how the generals actually work.

There are 16 of them. They behave slightly differently in normal content from veteran, so, assume I'm talking about 1-45 zones first. I'll talk about vet zones and Cyrodiil after that.

Your first zone, that's Stonefalls, Glenumbra, and Auridon, cannot spawn a general. It's like wandering around Cold Harbour looking for werewolf kills. It's not going to happen.

Each zone after that can spawn four Generals, and only those four. They're ordered in your achievements tab to correspond to their zone. So Deshaan can spawn The Torturers, The Ogrim Brothers, The Dremora Pirate, and the Traveling Dremora. It cannot spawn The Lich of Mournhold. For that you'd need to go to The Rift (or Bangkorai, or Reaper's March).

Similarly, if you need The Torturers, you're never going to see them spawn in The Rift, you need to pack up, and head back to Deshaan.

Once you get to vet zones, you can toss all of this out the window. All vet dolmens can produce any General from the list. Or if there is a restriction, I don't know what it is. I've seen The Storm Lord in Silver Bangkorai, The Son of Molag Bal in Gold Malabal Tor, and The Frost Lord in either Silver Glenumbra or Silver Stormhaven. But, if you're farming for a specific boss, you're better off heading to the non-vet zones, and grinding there.

As far as I know Cyrodiil follows roughly the same pattern. The bosses pop up completely randomly.

The biggest difference with the Vet bosses is they actually have different drop tables. There's a Drauger Heritage set that's only available off these guys. Additionally some bosses are supercharged in vet zones, and will actually have a full screen health bar, like what you'd normally see with Dungeon bosses. The Storm Lord and Son of Molag Bal in particular can be real handfuls at high vet ranks for small teams.

Ourorboros

starkerealm wrote: »

Okay, here's how the generals actually work.

There are 16 of them. They behave slightly differently in normal content from veteran, so, assume I'm talking about 1-45 zones first. I'll talk about vet zones and Cyrodiil after that.

Your first zone, that's Stonefalls, Glenumbra, and Auridon, cannot spawn a general. It's like wandering around Cold Harbour looking for werewolf kills. It's not going to happen.

Each zone after that can spawn four Generals, and only those four. They're ordered in your achievements tab to correspond to their zone. So Deshaan can spawn The Torturers, The Ogrim Brothers, The Dremora Pirate, and the Traveling Dremora. It cannot spawn The Lich of Mournhold. For that you'd need to go to The Rift (or Bangkorai, or Reaper's March).

Similarly, if you need The Torturers, you're never going to see them spawn in The Rift, you need to pack up, and head back to Deshaan.

Once you get to vet zones, you can toss all of this out the window. All vet dolmens can produce any General from the list. Or if there is a restriction, I don't know what it is. I've seen The Storm Lord in Silver Bangkorai, The Son of Molag Bal in Gold Malabal Tor, and The Frost Lord in either Silver Glenumbra or Silver Stormhaven. But, if you're farming for a specific boss, you're better off heading to the non-vet zones, and grinding there.

As far as I know Cyrodiil follows roughly the same pattern. The bosses pop up completely randomly.

The biggest difference with the Vet bosses is they actually have different drop tables. There's a Drauger Heritage set that's only available off these guys. Additionally some bosses are supercharged in vet zones, and will actually have a full screen health bar, like what you'd normally see with Dungeon bosses. The Storm Lord and Son of Molag Bal in particular can be real handfuls at high vet ranks for small teams.

There is another, significant, difference about where to get generals. Since the non-vet zones are limited to 4 generals per zone, the odds of getting a specific general are much better. In vet zones, and Cyrodil, any general can spawn. So if you are looking for a specific general, the odds are much higher. That's why many vets farm the lower zones for the Generals achievement. There is an excellent thread that explains the odds, and shows which generals spawn in what zones across all alliances, if you care to search for it.

UrQuan

Ourorboros wrote: »

BTW, any who try to perpetuate this myth in posts are violating the forum guidelines.

?? How so?

starkerealm wrote: »

Okay, here's how the generals actually work.
*snip*

Awesome info @starkerealm. I haven't tried to go for the generals achievement yet, but this post will help me greatly when I do.

firstdecan

This only works at dolmens near water, but if you put yourself into the first person perspective, look at your reflection and type 'Bloody Mary' into zone chat three times you'll spawn the secret general for the secret achievement.

Ourorboros

UrQuan wrote: »

Ourorboros wrote: »

BTW, any who try to perpetuate this myth in posts are violating the forum guidelines.

?? How so?

I was thinking about this:

Conspiracy Theories and Misinformation: We do not tolerate the deliberate and malicious spreading of false info or conspiracy theories about ZeniMax Online Studios, its game(s), or its employees. This does not include honest mistakes; rather, this rule pertains to those who go out of their way to spread harmful or malicious rumors about ZeniMax Online Studios and its employees, or The Elder Scrolls Online.

But after reading it again, I admit my comment could be inaccurate. Thanks for keeping me honest.

WillhelmBlack

Is this an achievement or something? Why would you need them to spawn, levelling Fighters Guild? If that's the case ignore them and crack on, it's far easier to level than Mages Guild unless you have the addon.

dharbert

WillhelmBlack wrote: »

Is this an achievement or something? Why would you need them to spawn, levelling Fighters Guild? If that's the case ignore them and crack on, it's far easier to level than Mages Guild unless you have the addon.

Daedric Slayer title

WillhelmBlack

dharbert wrote: »

WillhelmBlack wrote: »

Is this an achievement or something? Why would you need them to spawn, levelling Fighters Guild? If that's the case ignore them and crack on, it's far easier to level than Mages Guild unless you have the addon.

Daedric Slayer title

Ah cool, learn something new and all that.

starkerealm

WillhelmBlack wrote: »

dharbert wrote: »

WillhelmBlack wrote: »

Is this an achievement or something? Why would you need them to spawn, levelling Fighters Guild? If that's the case ignore them and crack on, it's far easier to level than Mages Guild unless you have the addon.

Daedric Slayer title

Ah cool, learn something new and all that.

Each General also has their own achievement.