Would you like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion?

Erickson9610

As of writing, all but two Grimoires can be obtained by purchasing them with Gold from Chronicler Firandil in the Scholarium. One of them you obtain from completing the Scribing tutorial quest, and the other you obtain from completing the last quest in the Scribing questline, or by purchasing it from Chronicler Firandil on alternate characters once that quest has been completed. I'd really love to see future Grimoires acquired from other sources.

Another thing of note is that each Grimoire is written by some character in-world. The latest Grimoire, Banner Bearer, was written by Battlemage V'erissh.

Now that Scribing is revealed to the world, we can expect any character to try their hand at writing a new Grimoire.

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So why should a Companion character be involved with Scribing, and why should a new Grimoire be granted to the player via them?

Primarily, I think that having this overlap between the Companions and Scribing systems would be a good thing for this game. Players would need to try the Companions system in order to acquire a new ability for use in PvE and PvP. I think it would inspire players to try the Companions system for the first time, the way Zerith-var (one of our latest Companions) introduced many people to Tales of Tribute via his favor achievement.

Secondly, there are many interesting ideas that can be explored if a Companion is somehow involved with Scribing. For instance, maybe this Companion uses a version of some existing Scribing abilities in combat; maybe they even use a version of this brand new ability that they give to players. While it may be infeasible to actually adapt the Scribing system for the Companions system, it would at least be possible to make a few Grimoire configurations into standalone spells that this Companion can cast. Plus, maybe this Companion's Keepsake would give players an increased chance to find Luminous Ink? Regardless, this Companion would be credited as the author of a Grimoire, making them a noteworthy character in the canon of Scribing, and it would be cool to adventure with such an important character who has made an impact on the world outside of their questline.

Finally, there ought to be more ways to acquire Grimoires than just buying them from Chronicler Firandil in the Scholarium. Would the Mages Guild sell Grimoires for "Criminal Act" skills, for skill lines like Werewolf, Vampire, Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild, or Legerdemain? I don't think they would, but it makes sense that a Companion who is affiliated with those skill lines might teach that sort of magic to the player. Even Zerith-var's offer to show the player a different approach to necromancy could've been interpreted as a segue into such a feature:

That's not to mention how interesting it would be for Companions of the same Class as the player to teach them new Class Grimoires. There'd be a reason to be a Necromancer traveling with Zerith-var, a Templar traveling with Isobel Veloise, and so on.

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So, in summary, Scribing Grimoires are currently trivial to acquire. I would like to see more interesting ways to acquire them, and I think some level of integration with the Companions system would be an interesting direction to take for both systems. Even if it's just one Companion who is the author of a brand new Grimoire, that Companion would be noteworthy for players who don't usually use Companions at all. What do you think of this approach to introducing a new Grimoire?

Taril

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

In a word. No.

The reason being, that currently, Grimoires are character bound and unique per character. Meaning you have to obtain them on every single character.

If a Companion was the source of a Grimoire, then it would mean every character would have to meet this companion's requirements for obtaining said Grimoire (Likely, build rapport enough to get the companion quest that has it as a reward)

This would be annoying as sin.

It's already bad enough that Banner Bearer requires each character to get Rank 5 Support to purchase it (Even though it only states its requirement being the achievement for having reached Rank 5 in the Alliance War skill lines, which is account wide)

While Grimoires are locked to being Character specific, they NEED to be trivial to obtain because otherwise it would be incredibly annoying to have to keep jumping through hoops just to acquire the Grimoire for each and every character that is interested in using the skill.

SilverBride

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

I don't want any system to be dependent on any other optional system, such as Companions or Tales of Tribute. It's already bad enough that there are leads tied to ToT.

metheglyn

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

While I like the idea of integrating companions more into the world and giving them a real presence in Tamriel, I feel this would be better accomplished by ongoing companion quests that further their stories, or having other npcs in game react to them appropriately.

There are people who want nothing to do with companions, and placing a potentially valuable item or skill or mechanic behind a companion's existence just wouldn't work for them.

For myself, I don't care for scribing; I find it dull and don't really see the point of it. So a companion scribing a grimoire would do nothing for me.

I prefer these optional systems to be kept separate, so people can partake of which ones they enjoy.

Kappachi

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

SilverBride wrote: »

I don't want any system to be dependent on any other optional system, such as Companions or Tales of Tribute. It's already bad enough that there are leads tied to ToT.

Opposite boat here, I enjoy all the content of ESO, keep coming back and regularly playing through all of it, ToT, companion quests and all. I want ALL systems more fleshed out, not just something like grimoires through tot/companions but also leads and other such things.

wolfie1.0.

I would much rather have ones that are supposedly written by my character. Like a quest that takes our character through the process of creating one.

reazea

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Hell no. I don't even want any more companions let alone specialty items locked behind what is certain to be a future crown store purchase. You have proposed a pay to win situation.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Yeah. But I think it would need to be something unlocked in say the Mage's Guild once you have an achievement. This way you can easily pass the grimoire to alts without having to do the companion stuff over and over again.

SilverBride

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Kappachi wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

I don't want any system to be dependent on any other optional system, such as Companions or Tales of Tribute. It's already bad enough that there are leads tied to ToT.

Opposite boat here, I enjoy all the content of ESO, keep coming back and regularly playing through all of it, ToT, companion quests and all. I want ALL systems more fleshed out, not just something like grimoires through tot/companions but also leads and other such things.

I enjoy most of the content too, but ToT's terrible ranking system drove me away from that long ago. And I'm tired of Companions and having to unlock them one by one on all my characters to use them. That's one reason I never claimed the most recent ones.

These systems can all be fleshed out on their own rather than linking them to other systems players may not be interested in. Then everyone can enjoy what they like without being forced to participate in things they don't.

bmnoble

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

I would rather have them all in one place on the merchant in the Scholarium, hate jumping through extra hoops over and over for stuff.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

reazea wrote: »

Hell no. I don't even want any more companions let alone specialty items locked behind what is certain to be a future crown store purchase. You have proposed a pay to win situation.

Companions could be introduced in future Seasons or DLC, rather than being introduced in the Crown Store for purchase directly. Even if said Companion and associated Grimoire were introduced in the Crown Store directly, the player would still have to actively play the game — per character — to unlock the Companion and the Grimoire through gameplay.

As such, I'd hardly consider this to be an instance of "pay to win". It wouldn't be any more pay to win than Chapters, DLC, and paid Classes have been, because gameplay is required to unlock the advantageous content within.

SilverIce58

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

I think it'd be cool to see more systems intermixed. Maybe find one as a lead while excavating, maybe one drops from a WWB, or yes even gotten from a companion. Absolutely it would be awesome to see companions having their own spells they can teach us. Imagine having a new necromancy spell any class can learn, or any other class. Something unique to them tho that the player classes don't have. I don't mind having to do other content in order to get access to the content I want. As long as its fun/makes sense to get (like maybe an extra quest you get after doing all of their story quests) and my other characters can purchase it from the side vendor after my main gets it, then there should be no problem imo.

karthrag_inak

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Sounds delightful! Only requirement for khajiit would be that the new companion would be a Khajiit as well.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

SilverIce58 wrote: »

I think it'd be cool to see more systems intermixed. Maybe find one as a lead while excavating, maybe one drops from a WWB, or yes even gotten from a companion. Absolutely it would be awesome to see companions having their own spells they can teach us. Imagine having a new necromancy spell any class can learn, or any other class. Something unique to them tho that the player classes don't have. I don't mind having to do other content in order to get access to the content I want. As long as its fun/makes sense to get (like maybe an extra quest you get after doing all of their story quests) and my other characters can purchase it from the side vendor after my main gets it, then there should be no problem imo.

I couldn't have said this better myself. I feel the same.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Yeah. But I think it would need to be something unlocked in say the Mage's Guild once you have an achievement. This way you can easily pass the grimoire to alts without having to do the companion stuff over and over again.

You know how the achievement furnisher grants you access to a new item when you complete a Companion's Keepsake achievement? Potentially, that same achievement could be the condition for buying the Companion's Grimoire from the Scholarium, the way you have to initially earn Soul Burst from the Scribing questline before it's made available for purchase.

That would mean you'd need access to the Companion's Keepsake in order to buy multiple copies of their Grimoire on alternate characters.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Erickson9610 wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Yeah. But I think it would need to be something unlocked in say the Mage's Guild once you have an achievement. This way you can easily pass the grimoire to alts without having to do the companion stuff over and over again.

You know how the achievement furnisher grants you access to a new item when you complete a Companion's Keepsake achievement? Potentially, that same achievement could be the condition for buying the Companion's Grimoire from the Scholarium, the way you have to initially earn Soul Burst from the Scribing questline before it's made available for purchase.

That would mean you'd need access to the Companion's Keepsake in order to buy multiple copies of their Grimoire on alternate characters.

Yeah something like that could work. Although personally, I'd want it for an easier achievement than the Keepsake just because not every companion clicks with a player and some you'd rather not have to level to 20 as a result.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

I think the concept of a character who is actively developing their Grimoire throughout their adventure with the player would be an interesting dynamic to take for their story, with the finished work being the Companion's gift to the player.

Clearly the player should have finished the Scribing tutorial quest before being allowed to start the Scribing Companion's questline, but this Companion's story could be seen as an extension of the Scribing storyline in a way. If ZOS plans to revisit old guilds with new storylines, why not also add to the Scribing storyline through new characters?

DreamyLu

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Enough with companions please...

Very personal and egoistic opinion, fully assumed!

LunaFlora

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

sure i think that could be fun!

would be cool if a Companion sourced grimoire had a bonus for when you use it with a companion present.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Erickson9610 wrote: »

I think the concept of a character who is actively developing their Grimoire throughout their adventure with the player would be an interesting dynamic to take for their story, with the finished work being the Companion's gift to the player.

Clearly the player should have finished the Scribing tutorial quest before being allowed to start the Scribing Companion's questline, but this Companion's story could be seen as an extension of the Scribing storyline in a way. If ZOS plans to revisit old guilds with new storylines, why not also add to the Scribing storyline through new characters?

I think that would be a wonderful way to add it because it would feel more natural and it would take a little bit of time but not an huge grind.

Desiato

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I have no interest in companions. The day having one becomes required is the day I never play this game again.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Desiato wrote: »

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I have no interest in companions. The day having one becomes required is the day I never play this game again.

How are scribing skills required?

Desiato

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Desiato wrote: »

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I have no interest in companions. The day having one becomes required is the day I never play this game again.

How are scribing skills required?

Every "end game" player who plays the game like an MMO will want all Grimoires.

I don't complain about any of the companion content even though it is completely useless to me. I let players have their fun with it. But leave it as a completely optional aspect of the game.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Desiato wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Desiato wrote: »

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I have no interest in companions. The day having one becomes required is the day I never play this game again.

How are scribing skills required?

Every "end game" player who plays the game like an MMO will want all Grimoires.

I don't complain about any of the companion content even though it is completely useless to me. I let players have their fun with it. But leave it as a completely optional aspect of the game.

Wanting a grimoire that isn't even that strong out of completionism isn't really being forced. The grimoires should be of varying strength and come from a variety of different content imo. I don't think any community should really get to call dibs over an entire feature.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Desiato wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Desiato wrote: »

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I have no interest in companions. The day having one becomes required is the day I never play this game again.

How are scribing skills required?

Every "end game" player who plays the game like an MMO will want all Grimoires.

I don't complain about any of the companion content even though it is completely useless to me. I let players have their fun with it. But leave it as a completely optional aspect of the game.

Companions are just another thing to collect in this MMO. In particular, the account-wide unlockable Keepsakes they give you when you finish all of their achievements.

I know people complain about the fact that there are Antiquity leads in Tales of Tribute, but I really do think it's better that every system ties into one another in some capacity.

Desiato

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

I don't play this game to collect things. I play it to kill things. Preferably challenging things alongside other players.

I absolutely hate the concept of Companions in ESO. I will never, ever use one under any circumstances.

Taril

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Erickson9610 wrote: »

I really do think it's better that every system ties into one another in some capacity.

Nah. This never ends well.

Crossing systems only works for the specific subset of people who enjoy interacting with ALL systems a game has to offer.

While most people will often have at least 1 system they're not a fan of. At which point they will resent whenever something for one system is tied to another system. Even more so when it's abitrary (Like, some of the best PvE skills come from PvP. Namely things like War Horn, Barrier and Banner Bearer are all top tier meta PvE skills which require PvP.).

Even then if someone actually likes the systems that are being crossed, it's not always particularly interesting or good that they're implemented that way.

For example, I enjoy playing ToT. I also enjoy questing/clearing zones. I'm also rather annoyed that most ToT decks require you to complete zones to access them rather than to actually play ToT (You get all of 1 deck, Red Eagle, from actually playing ToT the other 7 require you to do other things instead - With Orgnum being locked behind Ansei/Rahjin as prerequisites)

Crossed systems only works well when the scope of the systems are limited to the specific things being crossed. Like if there was a PvP Grimoire that provided a PvP only skill, or if there was a Companion Grimoire that enabled you to build a skill for your Companion. These sorts of things enable systems to intermingle, but in a way that only impacts people who are actively engaging in the secondary system.

Though, at the end of the day, you do have to consider why even bother crossing systems in the first place. Does it add anything to either system to cross it?

If we consider Grimoires themselves... There's millions of ways to evolve the system in of itself. Through more Scholarium quests, to even more alternate sources of Grimoires (Specialist questlines like a "How to write your own Grimoire", to things like the upcoming expansions to Mages/Fighter's guild questlines)

As for companions, there's millions of ways to improve the companions themselves as an indepentent system.

Does adding a Grimoire to a Companion do anything for either system? No. It doesn't enhance scribing in any way as it's simply just another Grimoire like any other. Nor does it affect companions either as it's just another arbitrary reward like the letters you get from them (It's not comparable to the Keepsakes since the Keepsakes are specifically providing you with the companion's unique effect without having them actively summoned)

Like the only real basis for combining these systems is an off-hand remark from Zerith about teaching you a different style of necromancy.

Meanwhile, there is a strong basis for keeping systems self contained. Especially in the scope of an MMO where the goal is to keep many people (With all sorts of different preferences) happy. Whereby keeping systems self contained, reduces the unhappiness caused by someone being "Forced" to interact with systems they don't like in order to utilize the system(s) they do like. While not impacting those who like all systems as they can continue interacting with all the systems.

spartaxoxo

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Desiato wrote: »

I don't play this game to collect things. I play it to kill things. Preferably challenging things alongside other players.

I absolutely hate the concept of Companions in ESO. I will never, ever use one under any circumstances.

I think it's reasonable that the only way to get all the things is to play all the things. If someone excludes themselves from content they don't like, that's perfectly valid. I myself don't do much PvP for that reason. But, I don't then expect PvP to never get nice stuff that I might want. All playstyles should have nice things.

IMO, the only thing that's forced is when something is sufficiently powerful that not getting it would put someone at a significant disadvantage against others who have it.

So, I would think that a companion grimoire might be a skill you can slot that focuses on making companions better, for example. That's not something anyone would need at endgame.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Taril wrote: »

If we consider Grimoires themselves... There's millions of ways to evolve the system in of itself. Through more Scholarium quests, to even more alternate sources of Grimoires

That's what I'm suggesting here:

Erickson9610 wrote: »

I think the concept of a character who is actively developing their Grimoire throughout their adventure with the player would be an interesting dynamic to take for their story, with the finished work being the Companion's gift to the player.

Clearly the player should have finished the Scribing tutorial quest before being allowed to start the Scribing Companion's questline, but this Companion's story could be seen as an extension of the Scribing storyline in a way. If ZOS plans to revisit old guilds with new storylines, why not also add to the Scribing storyline through new characters?

The Companions system can be used as a way to extend any other system. For example, if we want to tell a new story about the Fighters Guild, why not team up with a new Companion who is a member of the Fighters Guild and learn more about the guild through them? Companions are just quest characters who are by our side, rather than left behind whenever their quest is over.

So, to reiterate: More Scholarium quests are ideal. They could be Scholarium Companion quests, to go further in-depth about the storyline of the Scholarium through the eyes of a new character who follows the player around. This could serve as an alternate source of Grimoires.

Desiato

No, I would NOT like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

What doesn't end well is forcing players to do content that wasn't designed for them and they would hate.

There's always been two sides to ESO. The MMO side and the single player game story side. Companions fall squarely in the latter.

Haven't you ever noticed a lot of players don't use companions? Why do you think that is?

I do not consider them a core part of the game.

Anyway, I've said what I have to say. Forcing companions on me would 100000% be a dealbreaker. I dislike everything about them and what they represent.

Erickson9610

Yes, I would like to see a new Grimoire be sourced from a new Companion

Desiato wrote: »

Haven't you ever noticed a lot of players don't use companions? Why do you think that is?

That's a very different experience than what I've had. I see players using Companions everywhere! Of course, there's usually no room for them in Dungeons/Trials/Arenas and they can't be brought into Cyrodiil/Imperial City/Battlegrounds anyway. They're also forced to be hidden while in towns.