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Would you utilize a research assistant?

Cooperharley
Cooperharley
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Assuming you still need to research different traits. Think akin to the merchant, banker, deconstructor, etc. I was thinking about this and chatting with a buddy about it - I personally would & honestly don't think it'd affect player populations in towns just because writs are typically the primary reason I'd think people are there (i.e. dailies in general). The deconstruction assistant was fine when implemented, why not this? It'd be a nice QOL addition for sure.
Edited by Cooperharley on 26 December 2025 11:06

Would you utilize a research assistant? 142 votes

Yes
12%
DurnikKitty_QuietlyMyGTXKallykatspartaxoxoElvenOverlordallochthonsNihilrLydawobblesSunegamizenonukLunaFloraDeserrickKnightofGearsLuna13FraytonCooperharleyWup_sa 18 votes
No
87%
vailjohn_ESOtohopka_esoSluggyWhiteCoatSyndromeArrodisiaIzanagi.Xiiib16_ESODanikatfreespiritRexyCatmagnusthorekivaylo.krumoveb17_ESOAlinielDenverRalphyJames-WayneHatchetHaroSheridan16BitForestCatAvalonRangerSilverBrideTandor 124 votes
  • WhiteCoatSyndrome
    WhiteCoatSyndrome
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    No
    You mean a follower to talk to in order to start researching a trait? Assuming I rolled up a new character (the rest are finished with research), no, because even the first few traits for each item still have multiple hours between researches. If I’m using that character a lot I probably need to return to town or will run across a crafting station in the ‘wild’ in that time frame, and if I’m not using them a lot they’re probably parked near of a crafting station already and there’s no need for a follower. And the time between traits gets longer the farther into research a given character goes making it even less often an assistant could conceivably be useful. Bankers, decon assistants etc. are useful because that’s something I will do a lot more than every six or more hours.

    Add to that assistants tend to be expensive and it becomes an even harder ‘no.’
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  • HedgeHugger
    HedgeHugger
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    No
    No, because there is no use once traits are researched.
    Maybe they should allow researching on the ragpickers, for no extra cost!
  • bmnoble
    bmnoble
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    No
    If it were a free quality of life addition maybe, paying 5000 crowns for it like other assistants no.

    Research is a once and done thing per character, the other assistants all have a reason to keep using them they don't become irrelevant.

    Once you have completed all the research on all your characters, a research assistant would be collecting dust in collections until more character slots become available not something worth spending crowns on.
  • zenonuk
    zenonuk
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    Yes
    Answered yes, but with some caveats...

    It's a yes, but only if that assistant would allow me to task them a) for different characters, so I didn't need to re-log each time, and b) queue/stack multiple traits to be researched in sequence - so those annoying < 1 day timers could all be configured to execute without needing to log-in to the game itself (and without needing to research in parallel).

    If neither of those capabilities are exposed by the assistant, and it's just a mechanism to avoid going into town (but you still need to relog, and still need to manage your own timers, etc.) then no.

    The decon, banker, and merchant assistants are good QoL because most of the time you need at least one of those when you're running inside a public/group dungeon or trial, and trying to complete the sticker book. A simple research assistant in the same manner has less value.

    Edited by zenonuk on 26 December 2025 12:21
  • Cooperharley
    Cooperharley
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    Yes
    No, because there is no use once traits are researched.
    Maybe they should allow researching on the ragpickers, for no extra cost!

    Maybe on an individual character if you only play one, sure. That makes sense, so it loses value obviously. True.
  • LunaFlora
    LunaFlora
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    Yes
    Yes, with Characters that still need Research.

    But i play way more with my Main Character.
    so i am unsure if i would purchase it.
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  • AzuraFan
    AzuraFan
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    No
    I understand the deconstruction assistant, because you can be in the middle of a dungeon or trial or something and run out of inventory space. That's why it was a great QoL offering.
  • tomofhyrule
    tomofhyrule
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    No
    Once research is done, it's done.

    It's not like a banker/merchant/decon where you will always use it. There is a finite amount of research and eventually it's over.

    Can you imagine that they sold one and then you'd have so many people going "I'M DONE WITH RESEARCH ON ALL MY CHARACTERS SO I SHOULD BE ABLE TO REFUND THE CROWNS!!!1!11!1"
  • DenverRalphy
    DenverRalphy
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    No
    Any of my characters that are actively researching are completing their writs every day. As a result, every day they are already at the requisite crafting stations to use the research function. So I really don't see a need for a research assistant. I'd certainly never purchase one.
  • Treeshka
    Treeshka
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    No
    All my researches is done for all my current characters.
    In addition to that, if they release a new class i will make a new character. Until the time they release it, i will probably have enough Instant Research Scrolls in my storage that i can finish the character's research on day one.
  • whitecrow
    whitecrow
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    No
    It doesn't make sense. Research is for your knowledge; how can someone else do it for you?
  • RexyCat
    RexyCat
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    No
    Assistant for research would also compete with housing as a system as a lot of getting furniture (craftstations) will also be able to do research among other things and it would also reduce the need to go to any main hub (city or village) where you can find craft stations.

    Decon, bank and merchant assistant where player can sell items that are worth a very small amount or get rid of junk items vs in Guild Store to get more space all have their place for a player character that changes location often and do stuff where one doesn't want to teleport to those hubs every time or can not as in during a dungeon or raid run.

    There are also pretty good add ons that will help with keeping track of when one can research item, one which character and so on and even automatically use items for research when interacting with a craft station. So from that point there is no need for a dedicated research assistant.

    Another part is that with housing you are actually building a network to get to those hubs (at least until you unlock skill line for Antiquities where you can dig up leads for craft stations) and you can get craft stations from doing Master Writ which give currency to purchase those items from the same vendor that you deliver your Master Writs.

    All those paths will be less worth it when you can just buy an Research Assistant from Crown Store the very moment you crate new account and log in and when you understand its limitation for how useful it really is when you progress further into game it will also feel like you might have been tricked into paying for something that wasn't necessary like a Bank or Merchant Assistant.

    Decon assistant did also remove all chests which is out in the World of Tamriel and other planes that are left with junk items or items that player didn't want fill their inventory with like armour, jewels or weapon that players with low amount of inventory space would want only to decon as fast as possible or sell through Merchant assistant.

    It is really rare nowadays to find chests that have been unlocked with items that are left as player have no space and don't have assistant to get rid of those items before getting to a hub (city or village) where one would find those NPCs or carft station.
  • freespirit
    freespirit
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    No
    So thinking on this and reading the replies, I think if it was earnable in game then fair enough, spend 5k crowns(usual assistant price) on it then absolutely not!

    Personally I only have the banker and the earnable fence from Thieves Guild, really never needed anything else.

    Now if ZoS wanted a potentially great money earner, then maybe they should take note of the quite frequent requests for a Survey Assistant! 😁
    Edited by freespirit on 26 December 2025 16:11
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  • DoofusMax
    DoofusMax
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    No
    The decon assistant functions the same as if the character were at a crafting table, so if the character's extraction passives are at 0 or maxed, they get the same mats from the assistant as they would from a crafting table. A research assistant would probably function the same but based on a character's research passives and I'm failing to see much of a use case for it.

    At the early stages of research they might save a few hours between the time when the queue pops and the time something new gets started. At the late stages of research, it's still a few hours of time savings per piece, but an assistant that would only be needed a few times per month and then only if the queue popped while the character was nowhere near a crafting table.

    Compound the problem somewhat with the research passives increasing the number of items which can be in queue simultaneously, so maybe break out the Armory Assistant to load a build with the research passives filled, use the research assistant, then use the Armory Assistant again to go back to what you were doing. Not to mention that once all traits are researched, you've bought an assistant that wouldn't be needed again. I can think of much better uses for 5K crowns.
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  • SilverBride
    SilverBride
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    No
    I only did research on one character who is my dedicated crafter. I don't feel the need to have more than one master crafter.
    Edited by SilverBride on 26 December 2025 17:09
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  • Soarora
    Soarora
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    No
    I research on all of my characters because I’m crazy. That said… almost all of them are parked by a crafting station bc I don’t use them all every day. The inconvenience is just having to figure out what character needs what research when. I have craftstore but sometimes it isn’t accurate.
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  • LootAllTheStuff
    LootAllTheStuff
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    No
    Having played long enough to pick up some of the larger house rewards, I now have multiple locations any of my characters can fast travel to where there are a full set of crafting stations. I'm also running through at least one major hub with each of them whenever I play, so I'll always check progress on any that are actively researching. And the only reason for doing that is just because, not because I need to. I'm certainly not going to bother learning nirnhoned on any other than my main crafter!

    Which is a long-winded way of saying that like many others here, I don't really see a need for this and wouldn't purchase one if it existed.
  • Zodiarkslayer
    Zodiarkslayer
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    No
    A whole new assistant only for researching on the fly seems a little too convenient.
    I mean every map has at least one set of all four crafting benches. A short port to the nearest crafting station will take less than a minute.

    I don't see the value, tbh. 🤷
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  • Kitty_Quietly
    Kitty_Quietly
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    Yes
    Throw in horse training, and a funny voice, then maybe. Personally, I would need them to allow more characters to buy first. At least to fully make use of it, I’d want new characters.

    Perhaps, if they sell a scholarly NPC, ithey could read us lore books in a storytelling manner that our character has found. I know I’d find that entertaining. I imagine being able to pick a story from a list and hear them read it to me. Could be a pleasant way to pass some time.

  • emilyhyoyeon
    emilyhyoyeon
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    No
    The only way I'd use something like this is as a houseguest furnishing
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  • Erickson9610
    Erickson9610
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    No
    If we were to get a Research Assistant, I think they should also have the option of teaching you Riding Lessons as well. Both of those are finite-use functions for each character, and I would only justify the 5000 Crown purchase if this kind of Assistant handled both Riding Lessons as well as Research — after that, they'd only be useful as Houseguests.
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  • majulook
    majulook
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    No
    No... With all the research scrolls available that greatly speed up the research times. This assistant would be a waste of the developers time. Same for the Riding Lessons, the scrolls make it much quicker.
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  • spartaxoxo
    spartaxoxo
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    Yes
    I answered yes but I would have selected other if it had been an option. I think that lacking the option for idk may skew you more towards no. I would have selected other because I'm already finished with my master crafter so I have no need or use for one. I answered yes in the poll though because if I ever wanted a second one, then I'd use it if it worked like the decon assistant. I like the decon assistant because it combines all of the tables into one. I use it even when I'm next to the tables for that reason. I'd use a research assistant if it worked similarly in theory. But, as I said, my research is already done.

    ETA
    Also a research assistant could maybe store information about which traits a character needs even if they aren't logged in as a way to add some add-on functionality into the base game.
    Edited by spartaxoxo on 27 December 2025 03:20
  • DenverRalphy
    DenverRalphy
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    No
    spartaxoxo wrote: »
    ETA
    Also a research assistant could maybe store information about which traits a character needs even if they aren't logged in as a way to add some add-on functionality into the base game.

    There are addons for that. I use Traitcraft myself on PS. I currently keep 4 toons researching concurrently. When one fully complets all researches (more accurately, when one queues up the final item for research) I remove them from the addon settings and add the next crafter in line. You assign your main crafter, and whenever it's at a crafting station you can opt to auto craft un researched items for each toon individually, or all at once. It will then auto craft as many research slots as the researcher has the passives to support.

    So when I login on my main crafter first thing each day, the addon will notify me with a list of all completed research from all of my researchers. I can then opt to autocraft for those specific toons, drop the items in the bank, and they're ready and waiting to add to the research queue when I get to those toons during my daily writ routine.

    Currently, crafter number 4 has 1each left from cloth and blacksmith to initiate research, then I'll drop that one and add crafter number 8 to the process. I keep 4 toons at various stages of completion at any given time with minimal effort.
    Edited by DenverRalphy on 27 December 2025 03:54
  • Renato90085
    Renato90085
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    No
    i have 7 craft master toon,so....nope
  • Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO
    Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO
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    No
    I'd much rather a 'survey' assistant that I can just feed my writs and surveys too in exchange for the materials / vouchers
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  • wolfie1.0.
    wolfie1.0.
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    No
    I'd much rather a 'survey' assistant that I can just feed my writs and surveys too in exchange for the materials / vouchers

    While I don't like the concept of one of these, I would pay for it over a research assistant.
  • DenverRalphy
    DenverRalphy
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    No
    I'd much rather a 'survey' assistant that I can just feed my writs and surveys too in exchange for the materials / vouchers

    The idea of a Survey Assistant is already controversial enough. Now it's asked to do both surveys and writs? C'mon...
  • Katahdin
    Katahdin
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    No
    Dont really see the point of it or the advantage it would give since research is done once per character. Maybe save a few seconds from having to go to a crafting station but I park all my researching characters near them anyway so I can check that when logging onto them.

    We know they wont allow a assistant to make it any faster and we already have the research scrolls that we get fairly often to help with that anyway
    Edited by Katahdin on 27 December 2025 18:10
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  • lillybit
    lillybit
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    No
    Sorry but I don't think this idea works as a stand alone idea on any level.

    Doesn't work as a crown store purchase, because once research is done there's no use for it and it's just permenently sitting there cluttering up your collection with no function.

    Doesn't work as a quest reward because it's the same reward for everyone, so again for everyone who's already done their research it's just clutter. Worse, it's clutter that penalises existing players and we all hate that.

    Doesn't work as an antiquity (I guess it could be a dwarven construct of some kind to wedge it in there, because a person wouldn't really work!) because there's enough people who want to collect all the codex for everything. It's load of work for zero benefit.

    It doesn't even work that well as a concept. Clicking on the station and starting off research is the easy bit, getting the right item is the part that can take time. It would be like having a survey assistant where you still need to travel to the area and gather the survey but once you're done it'll refine it for you.

    That said, if it was a function of another assistant (probably the decon one) it would make a nice addition. I just don't think there's any way they could introduce an assistant that will be obsolete once it's been used
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