Returning player, trying to get my bearings

MaximumFrittata · December 2022

I last played ESO in 2018 around the mMurkmire release and I'm trying to figure out what the general state of the game is.

- Trials, which are the most active/highest priority? I assume trial sets are still the best PvE sets generally, with arena weapons?
- PvP, we had battlegrounds, cyrodil and imperial city. It seems like there have been some additions? What's the most active?
- I'm seeing medium armor Magicka builds? Wtf is up with that?
- The armorer's table is an amazing addition. Are there any similar things I need to look at?
- What are endeavours?

vsrs_au · December 2022

Endeavours are given to the character (not sure if they're account-wide or not) based on daily/weekly quests, e.g. kill 10 atronachs, harvest 100 resources, that kind of thing. Endeavours can be used instead of gems to buy Crown Store items. Apparently, the reason they were introduced is that ZOS needed to comply to some gambling-related law by giving players an alternative to Crown Crates (which are basically in-game gambling). At least, that's my understanding of it, so anyone feel free to correct me on this.

Can't comment on the other questions, sorry, not my areas of expertise.

Danikat · December 2022

PvP has no new modes and from what I've seen (on PC EU) the activity hasn't changed much. People say Cyrodiil is unplayable but at least some campaigns get big groups at peak times and objectives will regularly change hands at other times too. IC is mostly deserted but every so often you'll see a group going through there. Battlegrounds seem reasonably popular when I do them, but I've heard at higher ratings it's hard to get groups and even harder to get good groups. (I'm terrible at PvP so I'll never have that problem).

Endeavours are a new kind of daily/weekly activity. You can complete 1 of 3 weekly endeavours and 3 of 5 daily ones (they're always the same for all players and account wide, you can't repeat them on multiple characters) in return for Seals of Endeavour.

The seals can be used to buy crown crate items (not crown store items, the selection available is always exactly the same as what's in the current crates, plus any gem exclusives) without having to buy crates and hope you get the things you want. It was put in place shortly after Microsoft bought Zenimax and brings the game in line with their loot box policy which says anything in loot boxes will also be obtainable by playing the game.

Getting enough seals to buy anything is quite slow, it will be a few weeks for even the cheapest collectibles and literally months to get the most expensive ones.

Having said that they're automatically active, you don't have to accept a quest or anything to start them and depending on what you're doing and how much time you have you may find you complete some without even trying. It often includes things like 'complete 1 quest' 'kill 15 enemies with class skills' 'gather 10 alchemy ingredients' etc. which many players will do as part of their normal activities. So if you're not in a hurry to spend the seals you can ignore the system and just let them build up in the background.

fred4 · December 2022

MaximumFrittata wrote: »

- Trials, which are the most active/highest priority?

Judging by what I see PUGs running the most:

HRC, which drops Advancing Yokeda and Vicious Ophidian. The Craglorn trial loot tables are bugged, thus Vicious Ophidian drops from all Craglorn trials, not just Sanctum Ophidia.
Cloudrest, which I assume people run to get Relequen.
Sunspire, which people run for Yolnakhriin (tank set) and False God (VO equivalent magicka solo and all round set).
Rockgrove. A lot of good sets there, Bahsei (micro-management magicka DPS set), Sul-Xan (DPS crit set), Saxhleel (support set).
Dreadsail Reef. Pearlescent (tank / healer set) and Whorl Of Depths (high DPS but somewhat situational set).

I assume trial sets are still the best PvE sets generally

I don't think you can really say that. Seek out Skinny Cheeks YouTube channel for roundups of the best sets. For example Order's Wrath is crafted and one of the best all round DPS sets that gives everything a run for its money, including the old Mother's Sorrow, Medusa, Tzogvin's and other crit sets. Not the outright best, but probably the best, if you want a fit and forget set. The game is pretty balanced. If you don't care about "having fun with procs", then by and large crit still rules. You could probably slap Order's Wrath and either VO or False God onto any class and have a pretty competitive - and very comfortable / sustainy - fit and forget build. Outside of the ultimate comfort of running a pet sorc / Oakensoul heavy attack build with specialised sets. As a more "advanced" player you may also consider dungeon sets like Kinra's, though I think Pillar of Nirn is probably one of the most effective and easy to use.

with arena weapons?

Again, not really. Some arena weapons are still good, but overall I think they've lost their lustre a bit, at least for PvE DPS (PvP is a different story, a lot of arena weapons are useful there). There are too many competing things, e.g. monster sets and mythics. Master and Vateshran 1H+S rule for tanks. vMA destro has been changed / nerfed, but is still commonly used as a back bar set, as far as I know. Lots of things have some viability, but so do monster sets such as Nerieneth, which I happen to use for melee templar, and many others. I would again refer you to Skinny Cheeks.

Then there's the mythics. If you want a one bar build, use Oakensoul. If you want to solo stuff, use Oakensoul or Pale Order. If you are a DD, consider Harpooner's Wading Kilt, although that's been nerfed. You may consider Sea Serpent's Coil. You may strongly consider Spaulder of Ruin as a tank or healer. There are probably other content creators, but I'd again refer you to Skinny Cheeks as a starting point, because his videos are sober and will give you an overview of competitive options.

PvP, we had battlegrounds, cyrodil and imperial city. It seems like there have been some additions?

Not really. There are probably some new BG maps and there's Volendrung in Cyrodiil, depending on how long you've been away. IC has bosses, if you didn't know, and they drop monster sets, of which Zoal is probably the most useful to have in your inventory.

What's the most active?

Depending on how far back your memory goes, IC is more active than people say. I enjoy and have always enjoyed the place for what it is, e.g. the mix of PvP and PvE, the opportunity to "make a living" via Tel Var as a PvPer. Ever since ZOS made it it's own campaign, the place has been decently populated (upstairs) in my opinion, but this is coming from a player who enjoys the fact that it is NOT typically zergy and you get small scale, but open world action. By the standards of Cyrodiil battles (when you find them) the population is low. In exchange you get lag-free play.

Gray Host (Cyrodiil) is certainly active during prime time, but also laggy and often unplayable. This will depend on your favored playstyle. If you lean towards movement-focused but squishier characters, like me, you'll find the lag an issue that will send you packing and head elsewhere. The problem is: There is no elsewhere. Talking about PC EU here. Blackreach is practically deserted at all times. Ravenwatch is inbetween, but is no CP and limited to a specific list of no-proc gear. That list of the armor sets you may use that work is very restrictive, with an interpretation of what "no proc" means that may surprise you. You'll have to google the details to make sure your armor sets work.

I only rarely do BGs, so can't really comment. Certainly when your go into a low MMR BG, like me, you can wear a 1vX setup and dominate as an experienced player.

I'm seeing medium armor Magicka builds? Wtf is up with that?

The game has been almost completely hybridised. Skills scale with your highest stats. Your highest weapon or spell damage. Your higest magicka or stamina. Your highest crit rating. Penetration is homogenised. There is only one thing that still steers you towards light armor as a magicka build and medium armor as a stamina build, and that is sustain. In terms of pure damage, I believe medium armor has the edge. In terms of sustaining damage, you'll still run light as a magicka character.

The requirement to wear 5 pieces of an armor type now only apply to the armor skills, e.g. the light armor shield, medium armor Shuffle, and so on. You can mix and match any type of armor for partial benefits otherwise.

The armorer's table is an amazing addition. Are there any similar things I need to look at?

The armory station? Well, the stickerbook, curated item drops and reconstructing gear with transmute crystals, I suppose. Google it.