West Weald Treasure Map Still Bugged

Asdara · September 9

It has now been 224 days since this issue was first reported.
West Weald Treasure Map Leads are Bugged
West Weald Treasure Map Leads Still Bugged After 6 Months of Silence

Two hundred and twenty-four days of players spending gold, maps, time, and effort, only to be rewarded with silence. Two hundred and twenty-four days since the last official word a vague “still investigating” and nothing since. The bug is still here, the progression wall is still here, and the silence is deafening.

At this point, it isn’t just about the bug anymore. It’s about basic decency.
I have reported the bug ingame and opened several tickets.
I have posted here on the forums. Other players have done the same. We have tested on live, we have tested on the PTS, and the results are the same: if you already have the West Weald leads in your codex, the leads stop dropping anything but duplicates of “Ayleid Sculpture, Grand Tree.” This effectively blocks most completionists from finishing a core game system. That is not a minor annoyance, it is a fundamental progression bug.

And yet, despite all of this, the only thing we’ve received in return is silence. No follow-ups, no clarifications, no updates. Nothing. Bugs are part of MMOs, I understand that. But abandoning your players in silence for over seven months is not acceptable under any standard. We are not asking for miracles, we are asking for transparency, for the most basic level of respect a developer owes its community.

Every day that passes without a word sends a louder message than any official statement ever could: that our time, our frustration, and our dedication simply do not matter. That players can shout into the void for months and nothing will come back. ESO is a fantastic game, and many of us care deeply about it that’s why this hurts so much. Because the silence feels like contempt.

If this is a known issue, admit it.

If it is still under investigation, say so.

If, somehow, this is “working as intended,” then explain it.

But do not pretend that 224 days of silence is acceptable. Do not pretend that this is just “bad RNG” when the pattern is clear and repeatable.

The silence is doing more damage than the bug itself. Bugs can be fixed. Trust, once lost, cannot.

ZOS, it’s time to talk to us. @ZOS_Icy @ZOS_Kevin @ZOS_GinaBruno @ZOS_Finn @ZOS_JessicaFolsom

(Some people might object by pointing to individual experiences, saying things like “yeah, I finished the codex after spending 400 maps and 7 million gold.” While that may be true for a handful of cases, taking personal experience as proof does not help resolve the problem. The issue is systemic, reproducible, and affects many players trying to complete the codex. Highlighting rare exceptions ignores the broader failure of the system and does nothing to improve transparency or accountability.)

[Title correction for issue]

ShutUpitsRed · September 9

Hey man they're having a Reddit AUA soon to introduce their new leadership team and all their visions and values; they're doing their best to pump out those vague ideations and feelings... I'm sure they'll get around to doing concrete things the playerbase actually wants eventually! Just a few more self-congratulatory communications about ZOS staff and their imaginations and I'm sure they'll fix *insert years old bug here*.

Orbital78 · September 9

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/668300/marauder-gothmau-is-bugged-with-companions#latest

Companions have been bugged with some mobs for around a year now, they did at least say they were looking into fixing it but nothing thus far. Tidespite WB is another example of where the companions just wander around doing a lot of nothing.

ZOS_Kevin · September 9

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

davidtk · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

xencthlu · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

See, I don't think anyone's literally saying they don't drop. They're saying the drop rate is so bad you need to go through 300 maps to get the second furnishing, then another 300 to get the third, which in practical terms means that it costs 7.5m to get one random furnishing from the antiquities list. We assume that's a bug because no other furnishing in game costs 7.5m, no matter the fact that you can't even be sure which of the furnishings you'd get. And at no point does that cost go away for antiquity furnishings you do not permanently unlock at the achievement vendor. The 4th Sanguine pot still functionally costs 7.5m gold because you cannot unlock it. As does the 5th and 6th and so on. We don't know if the 1/300 chance to get the second and third antiquity furnishing is intended.

Edit: Or, as Asdara mentions, why that would be the intent. I'd be very interested in hearing the rationale behind a random furnishing with a 7.5m gold price tag.

ZOS_Kevin · September 9

davidtk wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

We'll ask the team to check again. Just noting that each time we ran our testing on the live servers, we had testers get it withing a few hours at most. But we'll touch base with the team for additional review.

redspecter23 · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

davidtk wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

We'll ask the team to check again. Just noting that each time we ran our testing on the live servers, we had testers get it withing a few hours at most. But we'll touch base with the team for additional review.

To be fair, listing test time in hours doesn't provide all that much information. The issue here seems to be the number of maps required in order to complete a codex and then to farm more furnishings afterward. Testing and relaying the number of maps per lead would be more informative, though it is understandable if that info is not something you're able to share.

As a point of data, I spent well over 600 maps to complete my Telvanni map lead codex. If this is working as 8ntended, I would highly recommend you reevaluate that ratio as it feels incredibly prohibitve to collectors.

xencthlu · September 9

redspecter23 wrote: »

To be fair, listing test time in hours doesn't provide all that much information. The issue here seems to be the number of maps required in order to complete a codex and then to farm more furnishings afterward. Testing and relaying the number of maps per lead would be more informative, though it is understandable if that info is not something you're able to share.

Yes, did they just test until they got the Ayleid Sculpture, Grand Tree? Because that one doesn't count, everyone's gotten dozens of them and (checks codex) a single Fresco, Colovian Lady.

Morvan · September 9

I wish I'd seen this post earlier, just spent a bunch of Archival Fortunes on them, no leads at all.

Orbital78 · September 9

With the way the current codex system is, I cannot be bothered. Kind of like the Eidetic Memory bugs/completion thing, it seems like that would just make me enjoy the game less.

Rishikesa108 · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

davidtk wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

We'll ask the team to check again. Just noting that each time we ran our testing on the live servers, we had testers get it withing a few hours at most. But we'll touch base with the team for additional review.

Please, when you will check again, remember that the first lead is dropping easy. Starting from the second onward, they are impossible to drop... just one after 100 treasure maps.
Codexes are mainly made up of 3 leads, but only the first is pretty easy. The gap between the first and the second is huge.

redspecter23 · September 9

Rishikesa108 wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

davidtk wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

We'll ask the team to check again. Just noting that each time we ran our testing on the live servers, we had testers get it withing a few hours at most. But we'll touch base with the team for additional review.

Please, when you will check again, remember that the first lead is dropping easy. Starting from the second onward, they are impossible to drop... just one after 100 treasure maps.
Codexes are mainly made up of 3 leads, but only the first is pretty easy. The gap between the first and the second is huge.

This right here is the main pain point. First copies drop at a certain rate. 2nd and 3rd copies for many leads, including these map exclusive leads, drop at a drastically reduced chance. This is the issue that needs to be checked and confirmed to be working as intended or not.

agelonestar · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

I think the leads drop once. Getting additional Codex entries is definitely broken.

Asdara · September 9

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

Thank you for following up, but this is exactly where the disconnect lies. Nobody is denying that the leads can drop under some conditions. The problem is that once you’ve already obtained all the West Weald leads once/twice, the drop behavior changes drastically. That’s the key detail that keeps being overlooked in testing.

If testers are using accounts missing certain leads, then of course drops will appear within a few hours. That doesn’t replicate the situation many of us are in. Completionists who already have every lead logged once or twice are getting nothing but endless “Ayleid Sculpture, Grand Tree” duplicates, no matter how many maps we burn.

We need testing that mirrors real player conditions, accounts with every West Weald lead already collected, trying again for codex completion. Until that is done, the problem won’t show up on your end, but it will keep blocking players on ours.

Thank you for saying you’ll take this back to the team. But please, make sure the testing conditions actually match the scenario that has been consistently reported here. Otherwise, we’ll just keep going in circles.

Eclipse318 · September 9

Tiny data point from me, the only lead I've ever gotten was for the Ayleid Tree, I don't remember which type (probably Grand? It's insanely large). I didn't even know there were other possible furnishing leads from WW treasure maps until I saw this thread.

BretonMage · September 10

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

davidtk wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

And what is the drop rate from it?
How many West Weald maps you must have for lead drops?
My wife is angry about it and I don't remember when I got lead from that damned West Weald.
So, leads are bugged at all or they are bugged for some accounts.

We'll ask the team to check again. Just noting that each time we ran our testing on the live servers, we had testers get it withing a few hours at most. But we'll touch base with the team for additional review.

As others have said, the main issue is getting the second and third drops to complete the 3 part codex.

Also, even after completing the codex, the blue and green antiquities can't be purchased from the achievement vendor, which makes them effectively impossibly rare.

thejadefalcon · September 10

Asdara wrote: »

[[Title correction for issue]
Edited by ZOS_GregoryV on September 9, 2025 8:49PM]

Thank you for being self-referential in "ZOS communication needing improvement", because that was the original thread title and it continues to be the subject. The bugged leads are, while obviously an issue, not the problem this thread was directed towards.

Emeratis · September 10

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Following up on this, we have followed up on the West Weald Treasure Map Leads. Last time we looked into this on our end, they were actively dropping. We have seen this happen and have tested on the live server and the leads are dropping. However, we will take this back to the team to look at again.

I think the main problem is those of us who want to complete our lore codex for leads have little consistent form of progression. Because after the first lead the droprate plummets, it means hours of grinding with no guarantee of progression. I know I have poked at it on and off over the years and often take breaks due to frustration. My last attempt at getting the third lore lead of a zone that was not west weald took about 30 hours over the span of two weeks trying on and off. I've had many west weald leads not drop once for me despite trying.

I think many of us would be less frustrated with leads if there was a sense of progression or drop pity similar to how stickerbook fixed the pain points of running hundreds of the same dungeon or trial or place to try to get one item you needed. I would really like to see the team consider ways to give leads/antiquities a sense of progression so people feel they can complete their codex in a reasonable manner. I also would like the bugged antiquities items you were supposed to be able to buy after you had all three codex entries to actually be in their zone's furnishing vendor because very many are missing. The third thing that would be cool to have is if other unique visual mythics unlock the style after you have all three entries like was done with the spaulder of ruin because thrassian stranglers, harpooner's wading kilt, mora's whispers, etc all have unique looks and cannot be used in style things unless the mythic is worn currently.

I think these things are the main frustration for leads and why the community often thinks they are bugged because the droprate is so consistently and frustratingly low especially when you want to go for the full codex.