New player, should I complete the original story before doing Elsweyr when it launches ?

Nicotroll

Hi everyone !
So I started playing the game last week and I’m having a blast but I’m pretty overwhelmed by the amount of story content available. I’m currently doing the initial main coldharbour story line and completing zone quests 100% (done stros mkai, the orc island whose name I forgot, glenumbra, and stormhaven so far.)

My question is should I complete this main quest line first before touching elsweyr when it gets released later this month ?

Also, should I complete Morrowind and Summerset as well before elsweyr ? Or could I do elsweyr first and then go back to the previous expansions stories ?

I’m a bit lost, thanks all for the help

SydneyGrey

It doesn't really matter.
I played the game for a few months before I completed the entire main story-line. It's amazing to complete it, though, so you'll definitely want to do it at some point. The story is great. You even unlock a nice black dye when you complete it.

nihirisutou

Well it's always good to complete the original story of the companions first. This also nets you a lot of skill points in comparison to other chapter's stories.

Do you NEED to complete the other alliances before Elseweyr. No.

Wrothgar / Morrowind / Clockwork City / Summerset are someone related to the Daedric Princes saga from the original main quests, but there's different dialogue options for whether youve completed or met characters elsewhere earlier.

Murkmire is supposed to be its own story, idk if it'll relate to Elseweyr.

This quarter's dungeons' story do relate to the story of Elseweyr so I do suggest if you're capable (need to be lvl 45 as theyre DLC dungeons) to try an experience their story.

Elseweyr is supposed to be fresh from the other chapters, in terms of story. However

Abnur Tharn is part of it (idk how much more he will be other than releasing the dragons, so completing the original main quest will introduce you to him.

myskyrim26

No, there's no need to complete any quest line to do Elsweyr. It is a new story, not dependent on Morrowind or Summeret. There's a prologue quest for Elsweyr, yet it is not necessary also

Matthew_Galvanus

Technically yes you'd have to complete the main story at the very least, because Eslweyr has characters from the main story that are central to the plot of the expansion.

outside of that however, you dont need to do summerset or morrowind.

MikaHR

My advice is yes....follow the flow of the story. You can do everything out of...but thats kinda like reading a book out of order.

Original alliance story (2 staterter areas + 5 main ones) + Main story...probably Mages/Fighters guild quest lines too....Mage guild is quite....awesome

rdefonseka69

I'd jump right into Elseweyr - it's where most of the population will be playing as well so will be a lot of fun

myskyrim26

MikaHR wrote: »

My advice is yes....follow the flow of the story. You can do everything out of...but thats kinda like reading a book out of order.

Original alliance story (2 staterter areas + 5 main ones) + Main story...probably Mages/Fighters guild quest lines too....Mage guild is quite....awsome

The stories are awesome. Yet I can't agree that it is really necessary to follow some order. One exception is Morrowind, CWC and Summerset. As for allaince stories... I never completed them, though being playing for 4 years. Boring.

Browiseth

if you want to i suppose. on the whole all the storylines in this game are self contained with small ties to the larger overarching narrative

mjharper

For the absolutely best experience, you should broadly play the content in order of release. There may, for example, be a character who you meet at one point who becomes a major character in a later dlc. Or another who ‘forgets’ they already know you well. So it can be a bit jarring.

That being said, the game is designed to be pretty open, and later dlc do their best to accommodate you.

I’d definitely recommend playing the game in the correct order at some point, but for now it’s probably best to just follow your heart Now that Main story quests are clearly marked, it’s easier to not get distracted by all the shiny quest markers perhaps pick a main story and follow that, coming back for side quests later?

BalticBlues

Nicotroll wrote: »

I’m currently doing the initial main coldharbour story line and completing zone quests 100% (done stros mkai, the orc island whose name I forgot, glenumbra, and stormhaven so far.)

My question is should I complete this main quest line first before touching elsweyr when it gets released later this month?

Yes, I recommend completing the main Coldharbour quest line.
It will not only give you skill points but also level Soul Magic up to max.
https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Soul_Magic

However, you do not need to do zone quests.
These quests are in just for flavor and will give only little rewards.
I did them once with my 1st char, but I will not do them again with other chars.

Matthew_Galvanus

That being said, in my eyes there is an order to the storylines:

Main Story->Morrowind->Clockwork City->Summerset->Elsweyr

Orsinium, Murkmire, Craglorn, Gold Coast, and Hews Bane all have their own personal story arcs that are separate from what i consider the overarching story.

Though if you want to play all the story arcs in the order in which they were released it would be:

Main Story( and your alliance storyline)->Orsinium->Craglorn->Morrowind->Clockwork City-> Summerset->Murkmire->Elsweyr


but as i said in my first post, only the Main Story is required for you to know the characters who return to be a heavy part of Eslweyr's story.

Ildun

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Abnur Tharn.

Matthew_Galvanus

Ildun wrote: »

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Blankety Blank.

@Ildun
Ixnay on the mention of characters by name please.

theyancey

Absolutely do the game as intended! The main story is a fantastic epic. I will be starting my necro from the beginning just as I have with all of my alts. Varanis Arano did a fantastic job of putting together a guide showing just how to d it. I wholeheartedly suggest that you follow it.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/413807/what-order-should-i-do-esos-story-arcs-a-guide/p1

MikaHR

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

Ildun wrote: »

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Blankety Blank.

@Ildun
Ixnay on the mention of characters by name please.

"Blankety Blank" Style Page?

Matthew_Galvanus

MikaHR wrote: »

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

Ildun wrote: »

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Blankety Blank.

@Ildun
Ixnay on the mention of characters by name please.

"Blankety Blank" Style Page?

im just trying to avoid giving away which characters show up in Elsweyr

Ildun

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

MikaHR wrote: »

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

Ildun wrote: »

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Blankety Blank.

@Ildun
Ixnay on the mention of characters by name please.

"Blankety Blank" Style Page?

im just trying to avoid giving away which characters show up in Elsweyr

But he was in prologue...

Matthew_Galvanus

Ildun wrote: »

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

MikaHR wrote: »

Matthew_Galvanus wrote: »

Ildun wrote: »

You don't have to, but can't guarantee they add special dialogue if you complete certain main quest, especially Blankety Blank.

@Ildun
Ixnay on the mention of characters by name please.

"Blankety Blank" Style Page?

im just trying to avoid giving away which characters show up in Elsweyr

But he was in prologue...

but that's assuming he would have completed the Elsweyr prologue already

Nicotroll

Thank you all for the input, I really appreciate it! I’ll definitely finish the coldharbour main story quest line before anything else, especially knowing that some characters like Abnur tharn play a role in elsweyr’s story. I really love the lore in this game so I’ll most definately do everything in time but it’s great to know what to prioritize.

MikaHR

If you like the lore then alliance and sidequests (not all though) would be right up your alley.

ghastley

If you don't know who Abnur Tharn is, it's just a name. You have to play the base game main quest to find out to whom that name applies.

Mason_King

I think it depends on your character, For Mine I wanted him to be an established Nobleman, I'm level 35 now and I did all the Daggerfall Covenant Quests, Fighter's Guild Quests, currently working on getting the house of my dreams, once I do that, then I'll start the Main Story.

Veinblood1965

I had the same question last year. I started when Summerset came out and the starting area I started in was in Summerset. I played there for a few days and then realized I was missing story lines due to some of the quests referencing them. It was a pain getting my toon to the original starting areas not knowing where to go etc and how to get there being new. It was worth it, a lot of the original content was quite interesting. I worked my way forward completing as many quests as I could find in each zone and clearing all delves and WB's etc before moving on to the next. When I finally go to summerset I realized that Summerset wasn't actually as good as some of the original zones. The originals seemed more in depth. Anyway I'd recommend whatever works for you but that's my experience.

Grianasteri

If you are a new player, I would say yes, complete the main story, or better yet the main stories, with both mages and fighters guild as well.

The main reason being it will get you a ton of xp and skill points, and for the most part the stories are actually pretty good content.

Fleshreaper

The new chapter is going to be packed with people. Two points I would consider. 1. Motifs - farming world bosses will be really easy at first, then it will slow down as the chapter gets older. 2. Will the zone drop gear that you will be looking for at max level? If so, you should wait until you are maxed level to run it, so you aren't farming gear twice.

TheShadowScout

Nicotroll wrote: »

My question is should I complete this main quest line first before touching elsweyr when it gets released later this month ?

Do you like stories?
Do you like stories making sense?
Do you like to know the background of the current stories?

If so, then you should consider doing it in the original sequence, at least with your first character.

Sooo... whatever tutorial you start with, pop over to the coldharbour thing first, then do the starter isles, then the alliance regional stories while advancing mainstory, FG and MG, then coldharbour and the mainstory conclusion, then cadwells and the other alliance stories (if only to unlock the wayshrines), then Craglorn, then Orsinium, then Morrowind, then Clockwork City, then Summerset, then Murkmire and only then go for Elsweyr.
Imperial City is sort of a afterword to the mainstory, but... a terrible gankfest at times, so non-PvP-maniacs may want to skip it until they can tag along with a big group; and TG & DB are sort of standalone, but fit after the mainstory lorewise, also benefit from cadwells due to wayshrine access for many quests, same for the psijic thing during Summerset.

With alts you can mix it up if you like, since you already know all the stories. I myself still like to do things in sequence with only minor mixups (like for example doing DB before Orsinium on my "Executioner" alt so I can wander around with an "Executioner" title... hey, it amuses me!)

See, while every expansion is playable by itself, they often reference things from other stories. So if you play them out of sequence, you might find things do not mesh as well... you might discover a plot and only later play the part that foreshadows the plot, you might meet an enemy and only later play the part that made her an enemy, that sort of thing.
(Summerset is especially bad to start with, just sayin - I recommend to -always- do Morrowind-CWC-Summerset in that sequence, or some things in summerset just won't make as much sense)

starkerealm

If you want.

If you don't care, you can hit content in any order.

The overall story progression is:

Base Game: (with each Alliance taking place simultaneously):

Daggerfall Covenant: Stros M'Kai, Betnihk, Glenumbra, Stormhaven, Rivenspire, Alik'r, Bangkorai.
Ebonheart Pact: Bleakrock, Bal Foyen, Stonefalls, Deshaan, Shadowfen, Eastmarch, The Rift
Aldmeri Dominion: Khenarthi's Roost, Auridon, Grahtwood, Greenshade, Malabal Tor, Reaper's March

You are encouraged to play through the zones that correspond to your alliance, though the choice is up to you.

These all lead into Coldharbour.

Following that:

Craglorn (Optional)
Imperial City (Optional)
Wrothgar (Foreshadowing the Daedric War, but otherwise optional)
Hew's Bane (Optional)
Gold Coast (Foreshadows Vvardenfell, but requires extensive completion)

Then we get the Daedric War storyline: Vvardenfell, Clockwork City, Summerset.

Finally, we have another standalone with Mirkmire.

With Year of the Dragon we have: Wrathstone (this is the ONLY story critical Dungeon DLC), and Elsweyr.

Also note that several zones have prologue quests. (Vvardenfell, CWC, Summerset, and Elsweyr), assume that the prologue comes between the release of the previous story, and before that story. There are also a number of story arcs that can provoke changes in later releases. Examples include a side quest on Vvardenfell that alters one of the main quest NPCs in Summerset.

That said, if you want to do something out of order, feel free. The game is designed to support that for the most part.

MinuitPro

I recommend doing the main story if you care about story progression. I don't foresee a sophisticated effort by the story tellers to tailor the quest dialog based on your knowledge of events - which would lead to some confusing conversation along the way.

I'm curious if anyone ran Elsweyr on PTS with an alt that didn't do the main story that could confirm that theory?

gabijoe21

As a person who has been playing since 2016 and have barely completed all the Glenumbra quests, it honestly does not matter. If YOU want to then you should, but if you want to complete Elsweyr first then go for it. I only take on and complete quests if I really want to, and usually I don't and spent most of my time PVPing. So it just depends on how you feel.

TheImperfect

I was wondering too, having not been able to play for quite an extended period I have missed Murkmire and Summerset amongst other things. I'm going to have my khajit play through Elswyer straight away and my alts do the other things or her later on. I really want a bosmer character because it's the only race I don't have so I'll probably make a bosmer necromancer and perhaps do another zone with them.