Odd Dolmen experience? What happened?

ThePrinceOfBargains

This is a question for the veteran players. I've done over 250 dolmens and have never seen anything like this.

I just did Frostwater Tundra Dolmen (aiming for the dark anchor title), but when I first arrived I saw that there were about 10 or more Daedra (Xivali, Dremora, and Xivkyn) surrounding the Dolmen performing the ritual instead of the usual 6 worms. I've been able to solo every Dolmen up to this point, but not this one. I managed to kill one before dying and it immediately respawned. I was forced to ask for help, and we were successful. The guy that came to help said he'd never seen anything like it either and it was the hardest Dolmen he'd done. When the Dolmen spawned again, it was back to normal.

I'm just asking if anyone knows why this happened or if something specific triggered it.

ProfessorKittyhawk

If someone starts an anchor event and dies, the mobs that spawn will do the ritual. But unusual for there to be so many. Maybe bots were standing still spamming heavy attacks and got killed by the antibot mechanics, and with however many bots were there spawned more than the usual mobs?

But I've been at a dolmen before where the boss never spawned. All the pins were popped but the boss never appeared. I was leveling my tank then and it took longer than usual for me and the other player to kill the mobs. Could have had something to do with it. But the anchor just sat there with no boss mob spawning or anything. People showed up to help destroy it but we're confused when there were no mobs to kill. After me and the other player explained what happened I assume between all of us reporting it as a big, eventually i got to saw what I assume was a GM covertly forcing the anchor to enter its destruction sequence so it could respawn. Quite and interesting experience.

Autumnhart

If you run up on a dolmen and find Xivilai etc. evenly spaced out and doing ritual motions, someone started the dolmen and then abandoned it partway through. The mobs will hang around for a while before the anchor spontaneously breaks.

But killing one and it immediately respawns? That's just weird.

Remag_Div

Interesting, I'd never seen that happen.

It would be cool if it was intentional, like a very rare occurrence where a dolmen is way harder than normal.

Betsararie

It would be nice if there were many more dolmens that are more difficult like this.

As it is now they are WAAYY too easy.

WoodenHeart

I've seen this twice before... it seems like sometimes they bug out and have double mobs for no apparent reason.

I've also seen the mages at the beginning get killed and then the normal anchor mobs never happen. Weird.

Cage_Lizardman

They were performing the ritual, like waving their hands? don't remember seeing that.

I've seen dolmens with a ton of daedra, but then all around the dolmen just standing there, as many as would spawn if you had several players doing them. I would guess this is the result of a few low-level players trying to take one down and failing.

ThePrinceOfBargains

Yeah they were waving their hands. I asked about it and people thought it was just enemies left over from low levels attempting to beat it. But when I killed one of the Xivali, another one immediately respawned and resumed the handwaving that the cultists normally do. They were all doing it, completely surrounding the Dolmen. I had to check just to make sure I wasn't doing an unmarked Dolmen that's a part of some quest.

SirAndy

I'm pretty sure those are generals that spawned from someone that came before you, wiped and left the dolmen.

They will stay for a while and eventually de-spawn if nobody shows up ...

ThePrinceOfBargains

It didn't seem like it, but I guess it's possible? I've been doing dolmens all night and I've come across unfinished ones with the generals acting normally. If they were another of such a case, they certainly weren't behaving like anything I've ever seen. Now I really wish I'd recorded it.

zaria

TheMaster wrote: »

Yeah they were waving their hands. I asked about it and people thought it was just enemies left over from low levels attempting to beat it. But when I killed one of the Xivali, another one immediately respawned and resumed the handwaving that the cultists normally do. They were all doing it, completely surrounding the Dolmen. I had to check just to make sure I wasn't doing an unmarked Dolmen that's a part of some quest.

Ran into it once after an maintenance, after this they was just standing there, mostly daederots and some standard daedra, all mini bosses.
Don't remember any waving and I don't think they re-spawned at once, but as it was mostly daederots I might not have seen it, I was also killed, pretty fun I was running up to it expected an easy fight and died in seconds.

D0PAMINE

I've run into something like that on my NB months ago. Managed to solo it ok, luckily it was at a quiet time when not too many people were on. It was already spawned when I stumbled on it, and im pretty sure it was Eastmarch.

method__01

saw the same at Green's Marrow dolmen 2 days ago

luckily, i was with my stamsorc so no prob

phaneub17_ESO

The most idle mobs I've seen around a Dolmen numbered around 18 total, a hard one to take down if you don't have some way to sustain recovery with a lot of AOE. It's one of those few events where being a Nightblade with Refreshing Path while spamming the crap out of Malefic Wreath does fast and insane damage. Any of my other characters would take a much longer time to cut through their numbers without an Ultimate to start.

sentientomega

When I see the results of someone bungling a dolmen causing the entirety of Oblivion to take a holiday there, I just put out a call in zone chat, and hope somebody answers.

GreenhaloX

TheMaster wrote: »

This is a question for the veteran players. I've done over 250 dolmens and have never seen anything like this.

I just did Frostwater Tundra Dolmen (aiming for the dark anchor title), but when I first arrived I saw that there were about 10 or more Daedra (Xivali, Dremora, and Xivkyn) surrounding the Dolmen performing the ritual instead of the usual 6 worms. I've been able to solo every Dolmen up to this point, but not this one. I managed to kill one before dying and it immediately respawned. I was forced to ask for help, and we were successful. The guy that came to help said he'd never seen anything like it either and it was the hardest Dolmen he'd done. When the Dolmen spawned again, it was back to normal.

I'm just asking if anyone knows why this happened or if something specific triggered it.

Yes.. this is quite common since Morrowind Patch. Some lower level toon tried to solo it and wiped during, but then left causing all the adds to spawn. I come upon this often in Eastmarch and The Rift. No.. every dolmen anywhere still starts with the 6 adds in the beginning conjuring up the chain. So yeah, pretty much it. Somebody wiped during and left leaving all the adds out. If you want to test it. Solo it and just let yourself get killed while a lot of those adds are out. Revive there, but when you're still clear/white, move away a bit, and you will see the adds resetting around the dolmen. They will then begin their arms waving ritual until you or someone goes back in and proc them.

Yes, utterly annoying when I come upon a dolmen with all the adds out and no one is around, thus, forcing you to clear them all by yourself. Sure, I still solo and clear dolmen all the time, but easily where them adds spawn on cue after you kill them, and not arriving at a dolem just seeing all them adds out. Bit more challenging with those adds all out at once. It is not enough that our Hardy and Elemental have been nerfed/shredded down to crap (as well as our dps), thus, our capacity to mitigate incoming damages are much lowered which causes the adds/mobs/boss to pack more heat. Oh, thank you Zen/ZOS developers, may I have another!! Especially, those flame and shock blasts and aoe from the adds are packing more heat. Yeah, taking on 6 or more of them adds at the dolmen aren't no joke anymore. Even certain of the damn boss at the end feels like you fighting a vet dungeon boss.

maboleth

Blanco wrote: »

It would be nice if there were many more dolmens that are more difficult like this.

As it is now they are WAAYY too easy.

It's easy because people always camp there, making everything look trivial and not RP-friendly. When doing it solo or with one to two persons, it's a quite of fun.

LMar

I had it with a bunch of fat ogrims dancing around the dolmen. Very creepy and funny. Occurs when people wipe and they don't finish it