A CLEAR STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO PLAYING ESO IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

Caroloces

I'm a returning player who's been away for a year's time. Prior to that, I had been playing the game since it's inception. I was looking for something that would reinspire me to get back into the lore, narrative, and atmosphere (I had left because ZOS had done away with character achievements.

This guide is amazing! It fits the bill for what I need to start playing and enjoy the game once again! Thank you, thank you, and THANK YOU for a great job in tying everything together.

One question I do have: There is no mention of the Undaunted progression. I'm wondering if this is because it's sort of a repetitive quest thing without any particular story to it??

Again, Thanks so much!

jle30303

Correct, Undaunted has no story.

Some of the Dungeons and Trials have connections to the story of individual zones though... and some don't. Really, Dungeons having a story that connected to the main storyline only seems to have started in the Elsweyr season with "Wrathstone": apart from the White-Gold Tower dungeon in Imperial City, three years earlier, previous dungeons never really had "ongoing story content" in them.

Although there's one weird exception in the base game, not linking with the Zone Story but a mini-story based on in-zone sidequests: three Delves in Dwemer dungeons across the Alik'r Desert, from west to east, lead into the 4-man Dungeon of Volenfell. If you do the three Delves and the Dungeon in the right order, you'll get a few small mini-quests that are basically "go to the next one in sequence for the next page in the NPC's journal": if you do any of them in the wrong order, you'll miss out on those quests (they simply won't start) and a tiny amount of experience, basically the equivalent of killing half a dozen trolls...

Also, some of the base-game dungeons have a "I" and "II" version, in which the same layout (sometimes with a few differences) is inhabited by different monsters with a different storyline, and sometimes a storyline connection between the two. In each case the "II" version is somewhat more difficult than the "I" (these were themselves originally the "normal" and "veteran" versions of each map, before they revamped how Normal and Veteran work, and now BOTH the "I" and "II" versions have a normal and a veteran version of their own.) Example: In Fungal Grotto I, you clear out a cave full of Goblins and Dreugh, on behalf of a bunch of Mephala cultists: the Mephala cult itself becomes the enemy in Fungal Grotto II...

Organic

This is really fantastic. Thanks so much for this! I have several friends who have just started playing the game and they're overwhelmed with so many quest markers and having a dozen different storylines all able to be picked up at the same time.

Bombicz

Thank you so much for this guide. This is a mastrpiece!

Uvi_AUT

+1 And a thank you bump from me too

xSILVER_SHAMANx

This is exactly what I was looking for.

Have recently returned to the game after a very long hiatus (I left just before Shadows of the Hist, popped in for a moment when Greymoor dropped, and now I've returned with Necrom.)
It would be a complete understatement to say that the game has changed a bit in my absence (I didn't really play Greymoor, I bought it with the intent to play but just never got around to it.) I have gone from Thieves Guild era ESO straight to the update 39 Necrom flavor and there is a LOT going on that I am clueless about.

Like another poster has said, I started a new character because I wanted to get back into the lore and immerse myself in the stories (despite what many say about it, I actually enjoy a lot of the storytelling in ESO), building a character from scratch in a different faction that I have not done the zone/alliance quests for, and immediately I was surprised!
[snip] was this new intro tutorial?
Where is Coldharbour?
Hold up now, what is this room of portals?
Hmmm, this seems like it could be a great idea, oh, hold up, what's that? I am never going to return here again? Well, that was a missed opportunity for story ideas.

Anyway...
So I complete the main quest and start on Cadwells Silver, but after that is done, what am I going to do?
I know about the Thieves Guild quests but I have already done them on my old character, so where to go next?
Sure there are NPC's all over the place yelling at me to start their quest lines, but who was here first?
What order should I do things in to maintain some form of chronological integrity?

Hold up.....
What is that I see up ahead?
Is that.....
Surely not.....
Oh sir, yes sir, oh yes sir, it IS sir! It's a highly polished and professional grade forum post detailing absolutely EVERYTHING that I need to know to assuage my appetite for understanding and knowledge on the very topic I seek enlightenment on the most!!!

PRAISE be to you my lord! I am but a mere mortal, a plaything in the hands of a god such as yourself!

You have my utmost respect and praise for this gargantuan task you have completed for us lowly mortals.

[edited for profanity bypass]

Reverb

@xSILVER_SHAMANx you should note that many of the prologue and DLC questgivers were moved in the last major patch, and aren’t where this guide says anymore.

This is still a great resource for the order to do things and should be paired with the U40 patch note updates to find quest starters.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/645725/pc-mac-patch-notes-v9-2-5-update-40

xSILVER_SHAMANx

Thanks @Reverb , much appreciated.

TweFoju

Wow thank you for this, i was a day 1 player since Release, and i kinda stopped playing just before One Tamriel was introduced, then i play a bit again during Covid lockdown, but i didn't get much gameplay back then, and because of the Necrom hype and news, i have decided to start playing again..

It can be a bit overwhelming as i have tons of content and dlc to do, this guide definitely can bring be back on track as the last memory i had was AD faction quest!!

HuciturGuru

Hi there! Do you know if this incredible guide is going to be updated with the latest dlc's ie Necrom? @NeoGriz

Fares_B

Very good guide. Really excellent work. It has not been updated in almost 2 years now.

CoffinCuddles

Thank you so much for the guide! Although outdated now, but I was able to pick up afterwards with another guide similar I found somewhere on google. After the Arcanist came out, I decided to do everything in chronological order (Or at least the Main quests of each + some sides) and I'm fully caught up waiting for the next chapter. Doing ESO in Chrono order was a breath of fresh air

VagarJohn

Hello NeoGriz,

"A CLEAR STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO PLAYING ESO IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER"

I have been using this page for the last 3 months as I build/rebuild my characters until yesterday.

Now under the Aldmeri Banner after (see screen capture image)

"Aldmeri Dominion

Completing the tutorial is the only way to use the Keywright's Gallery. This is a portal room that lets you choose your starter area.

Inside the Keywright's Gallery use the portal that says Khenarthi's Roost

(If you skipped the tutorial, you can continue the guide from here ↴)

Travel to"

the icons have become gigantic and though the resolution has taken on a mind of it's own.

Is the link broken?

Thanks John

VagarJohn

@Neo_Griz @ZOS_Erysna

Hello folks; is it possible for you to find out why this link appears to be broken (see previous post)

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/525351/a-clear-step-by-step-guide-to-playing-eso-in-chronological-order/p1

Thanks John

ZOS_Erysna

@VagarJohn

Thanks for letting us know! We'll look into why this has happened.

ZOS_Kevin

VagarJohn wrote: »

@Neo_Griz @ZOS_Erysna

Hello folks; is it possible for you to find out why this link appears to be broken (see previous post)

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/525351/a-clear-step-by-step-guide-to-playing-eso-in-chronological-order/p1

Thanks John

Thanks again for bringing this to our attention. We have a workaround currently live while our vendor works on a long term fix. So everything should be displaying correctly now.

VagarJohn

@ZOS_Kevin

Oh excellent. I find this link so helpful in playing the game. Thank You.

ChippewaBarr

@NeoGriz or @ anyone else...

Do we know if they are going to continue working on this guide?

I had followed it for a couple years up to Murkmire but took some ESO time off and now I'm back. This guide was amazing!

Has someone else taken up the mantle from High Isle onwards or is it kinda just dead in the water?

Elsonso

I would suggest this: https://eso-hub.com/en/guides/chronological-timeline-guide