Companions: a Breakdown of the New Feature by Rich Lambert
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Olauron✭✭✭✭✭
✭Will we get a companion creator/creationscreen? Where we can create our own companions. Complete with looks, and their likes/dislikes.
Almost definitely not. How ZOS would sell new companions in crown store (similar to house guests) with such a system active?The Three Storm Sharks, episode 8 released on january the 8th.
One mer to rule them all,
one mer to find them,
One mer to bring them all
and in the darkness bind them.4 -
Sarannah✭✭✭✭✭
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They could sell self-created-companion slots. Similar to how they do character slots. And still sell their own companions on the side, by not letting those cost companion slots.0 -
Hurbster✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭Will I be able to send one to stand at a specific spot, for example a pressure plate?So they raised the floor and lowered the ceiling. Except the ceiling has spikes in it now and the floor is also lava.2 -
MalEducado✭✭✭Fata1moose wrote: »We're still going through how this all works within the world and figuring out exactly where you can use different companions as well. We know we don't want them used in PvP, so we've taken that option out, but outside of that, we want you to be able to use them everywhere else.
Don't worry ZOS I can help, this is how it should work for group content/arenas- In dungeon finder the player/companion limit is set to four. It will always match four players but if someone drops you can summon a companion. If you queue for a replacement the companion will automatically be dismissed when a player enters the instance. This means tanks and healers need not worry about losing their fast queue times.
- If you want to do a dungeon by yourself and a companion simply travel to the dungeon instead of using the group finder
- Trials work in the same way where there's a 12 player/companion cap just without the group finder feature obviously. If someone drops and the leader invites someone else then the companion will be dismissed once that person enters the instance
- Solo Arenas: Companions are allowed in normal instances but in veteran instances only the player is allowed. This will help less experienced players experience the content while the rewards for soloing the arena (perfected) and leaderboard integrity are maintained.
- Group Arenas: Allow them in both normal and veteran with the cap of 4 players/companions. If you have two players with two companions in a vet arena they're likely doing heavy lifting since a companion isn't as effective as an actual player so I see no reason why rewards should be restricted
- Already confirmed but no companions in PvP
thiis is completly false... read the post0 -
MalEducado✭✭✭thomasadinkerke wrote: »It would be amazing that if a tank/healer left a Delve, that i could just get my companion to tank/heal (even at half the capacity) so that we don't have to wait 15 mins. for a new player!thomasadinkerke wrote: »It would be amazing that if a tank/healer left a Delve, that i could just get my companion to tank/heal (even at half the capacity) so that we don't have to wait 15 mins. for a new player!
keep dreamming... an ia cant do the mechs1 -
phantasmalD✭✭✭✭✭They are definitely not gonna be as good as actual players. From what I've seen they only have one bar and no ulti, so that already means they are less than 50% of an actual player. They also probably won't be able to make complex tanking decisions and pulls, so I don't expect them to be amazing even as a support.
They might make solo DLC dungeons runs less painful tho, allowing many more people to experience the stories they would have otherwised missed out on (due to not having questing buddies or having bad experiences with PUG groups rushing the dungeon)3 -
Cireous✭✭✭✭✭
✭From all the interviews I have seen, and I could be totally wrong here, Rich's vibe for companions seems to be towards solo players or duo players who just want to do normal dungeons without a group. And that, yes, companions do fulfill a slot in the group, or in the group finder. Which is weird, I just can't see ZOS mastering this new technological feat of adding a companion option to the group finder considering their eternal problem with getting the group finder to work right in general, even without this new complication.
I do not get the impression, though, that companions are designed for harder content, like harder dungeons or trials, even though we will be allowed to give it a go with companions, if we want.
Who knows though, we'll find out soon enough
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Sarannah✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭With companions releasing, will veteran DLC dungeons get better rewards? .. as the odds of getting veteran DLC dungeons as randomdungeon will massively increase, due to players doing the easier dungeons with their companions.0 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭With companions releasing, will veteran DLC dungeons get better rewards? .. as the odds of getting veteran DLC dungeons as randomdungeon will massively increase, due to players doing the easier dungeons with their companions.
Probably no changes will happen to rewards in DLC dungeons.
Also define better rewards? Like more gold, set gear, cosmetic, what exactly do you mean by “better”?0 -
starlizard70ub17_ESO✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭seecodenotgames wrote: »"You can set their skills that they use and the order they use them in." I assume this means you can give them a rotation?
I expect this to be probabilities rather than an order like a rotation.
Still would be a better rotation then anything Lyris would come up with."We have found a cave, but I don't think there are warm fires and friendly faces inside."1 -
virtus753✭✭✭✭✭
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Over six weeks on PTS? Well, it’s happened before recently, perhaps because they’ve been working from home.
Before it was usually only five. At one point during a stream Gina even said “the PTS cycle is five weeks, so you can figure out the release date from there” (regarding a live release date for something they were not allowed to disclose just yet).0 -
GrumpyDuckling✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭It's a massive disappointment that we can't give companions our acquired gear sets to wear. I don't want generic, watered-down companion-specific gear. That's not fun.4 -
Seraphayel✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭✭It was just completely wrong to think you could equip usual gear sets to Companions, especially proc sets.PS5EUAldmeri Dominion- Khajiit Arcanist -0 -
GrumpyDuckling✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭Seraphayel wrote: »It was just completely wrong to think you could equip usual gear sets to Companions, especially proc sets.
Why?1 -
GrumpyDuckling✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭I would also very much prefer the option of allowing my companion to wear helmet. I'm not a fan of the default setting that forces companions to appear without a helmet.4 -
tawaen✭✭✭Confirmed from the live stream - Companion will take a player space in dungeons and trials. You will NOT have 12 companions with your 12 players for 24 total toons in a trial, thank god! If you have 11 players, one of them could summon a companion to be the 12th player in a trial. (Or with 3 player characters, one person can summon a companion to be the 4th for a dungeon, etc.) So, they will be a good "fill" but with an estimated 5k-10k DPS, definitely not going to be top pick for vet content hahaha.Guild leader of Barely Lethal. Mudcrabs all the way down.
(PC NA)1 -
Lugaldu✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭GrumpyDuckling wrote: »I would also very much prefer the option of allowing my companion to wear helmet. I'm not a fan of the default setting that forces companions to appear without a helmet.
That would also help in a way that we dont see the same 2 faces everywhere...2 -
Fischblut✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭I would also very much prefer the option of allowing my companion to wear helmet. I'm not a fan of the default setting that forces companions to appear without a helmet.
I've bought a mask pack so that someday my companion could be like Darth Maul and one of my characters would be his Master
It's shocking to now find out that we can't use hats/helmets on companions... Hopefully someday in future, companions will be able to wear hats/helmets, and polymorphs - so that they have something fun to offer for people with different tastes 
Honestly, such cosmetic features were my main interest in companions.
Knowing that they don't understand mechanics (can't even force them to stand on pressure plates etc) together with such limiting customization options = mostly disappointment
The most interesting remaining option for them, in my case, is to display my second favourite mount while adventuring.2 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭ESO Companions
What I gathered from the stream as well as extra info others found.
Why Companions?It adds variety to the gameplay experience and in exploration.
Design VisionHaving an adventuring buddy that provides perspective on the world and on your actions, also well integrated into the existing content
Sharing the spacePlayers can see your companion and will have a name that says “Companion of ______”
They will see all your customization choices.
Companions can go anywhere except PvP & Solo Arenas.
Companions fill a player slot for a group in group content. The idea being that they are a way to encourage people to try out group content without having to find 3 other people. Now they can play with one friend and two companions.
Companions are not ever really going to understand the complex mechanics, you probably are not going to do bring a companion in Vet Hard Mode content.
Account WideCompanion skill progress will be shared across the account but an alt character will have to do the quest to unlock using the companion. Each character will have their own relationship with the companion.
Rapport systemYour actions and dialogue will affect your ally’s perception of you.
You can fall out of favor and they will leave you but you will have opportunities to get favor back if needed.
Your relationship with the companion will be expanded upon over the years.
InventoryCompanions will not have inventory space
MountsCompanions will ride a mount alongside you.
They come with their own mount but you can give them one from your collection.
Visual Customization
.Players can customize their companions but they ultimately will retain their identities. Think of Companions from games like Mass Effect & Fallout 4, or Serana from Skyrim, these are characters with unique identities and backstories.
Any costume you have unlocked can be applied to your companion and you can even wear them at the same time.
Companions can have an outfit made for them at the outfit station
CombatYou can give some direction like engage or disengage from a fight but it’s not a complex directory system.
What they do in a fight is dependent more so on the skills you’ve assigned.
They won’t use a synergy but they will provide one depending on the skill assigned.
Leveling & SkillsCompanions can be adjusted to take any role to suit the needs of the player.
Skills can be slotted and the order they are slotted is the order the companion will use them. Companion Skills are cool down based rather than resource based.
Companion Class Skills are a distilled version of existing skills players are familiar with.
Companions level Weapons & Armor skills for what they have equipped.
Guild Skills are unlocked and leveled by taking companions on Daily Guild quests
GearCompanions will have their own set of gear, separate from players.
Companion gear cannot be crafted or researched and thus it can't be transmuted or reconstructed either. It can only be obtained through loot drops and it only drops for you if you have your companion out.
Companions do seem to have an inventory for companion gear that we saw on stream, but that may have been the player's inventory instead and it was just filled exclusively with companion gear for the purpose of showcasing it. That would be a nightmare and a reason for me to never touch companions.
Companion gear has their own traits.
There will be merchants that sell basic white quality gear in the different traits.
There are 9 Companion traits:
* Aggressive Increases Companion Damage Done per piece equipped.
* Augmented Increases duration of all Companion Buffs and Debuffs per piece equipped.
* Bolstered Reduces Companion Damage Taken per piece equipped.
* Focused Increases Companion Critical Strike Rating per piece equipped.
* Prolific Increases Companion Ultimate Generation per piece equipped.
* Quickened Reduces Companion Ability Cooldowns per piece equipped.
* Shattering Increases Companion Penetration per piece equipped.
* Soothing Increases Companion Healing Done per piece equipped.
* Vigorous Increases Companion Maximum Health per piece equipped.
Edited by Iccotak on April 18, 2021 8:17PM4 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭Companions will be up on the PTS soon for players to test out and give feedback on.
In that event this thread will have served it's purpose as I am sure that ZOS will have a Thread just for Companion feedback.0 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭Hack the Minotaur has a new video on information about ESO Companions. Enjoy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfTwzjZerBk 0 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭New post on official website
https://www.elderscrollsonline.com/en-us/news/post/60015
Couple of bits
Finding & Unlocking CompanionsSo long as you have access to the Blackwood Chapter, you can unlock two Companions through completing associated quests in the Blackwood zone.
Bastian Hallix can be found south of Deepscorn Hollow along the southwest coast of Blackwood
Mirri Elendis can be found north of Doomvault Vulpinaz in northern Blackwood
Once their quests are completed, you will receive their respective Companion collectibles.
Companion Gear TraitsCompanion equipment above white quality can come with unique traits:
Quickened (Cooldown Reduction)
Prolific (Ultimate Generation)
Focused (Critical Strike Chance)
Shattering (Penetration)
Aggressive (Damage Done)
Soothing (Healing Done)
Augmented (Ability Buff and Debuff Duration)
Bolstered (Reduce Damage Taken)
Vigorous (Max Health)1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aW0DC97x-M