PTS Update 30 - Feedback Thread for Companions

Elara_Northwind

I don’t know if this has been mentioned but there is an annoying bug, if you enter a house without dismissing your companion first, you can’t do things in your house like crafting or changing skills, so you then have to travel out, dismiss your companion and then travel back in, it’s really annoying 😅

Batgirl32

I'm getting notifications in Bastion's Equipment that he has items available via checkmark notification (image 1). However, when I open the equipment screen, he has no new items available. Even when I select the specific item, it still does not remove the check mark, even if I try unequipping and reequipping the only item he has available.

KeiRaikon

I don't know how much it actually matters but instead of putting bug reports in the feedback thread there is a thread specifically for companion bugs.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/570492/pts-update-30-bug-reports-for-companions#latest

Batgirl32

Visited Eyevea with Bastion for the Bastion's Favour Achievement "Visit Eyevea with Bastion," but it did not unlock. Also, why is there a wayshrine in Eyevea if I cannot access it from my Locations when I am outside Eyevea?

Batgirl32

KeiRaikon wrote: »

I don't know how much it actually matters but instead of putting bug reports in the feedback thread there is a thread specifically for companion bugs.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/570492/pts-update-30-bug-reports-for-companions#latest

Damn I thought that's where I posting them! Doh!

anadandy

Batgirl32 wrote: »

I'm getting notifications in Bastion's Equipment that he has items available via checkmark notification (image 1). However, when I open the equipment screen, he has no new items available. Even when I select the specific item, it still does not remove the check mark, even if I try unequipping and reequipping the only item he has available.

It's showing all new items you've looted - even if its not companion geat. Same thing happened to me and when I sold said loot, the icons disappeared in Bastian's inventory.

ssewallb14_ESO

The one reason I would actually use these is if there were "stand here," "use this switch" type commands that would let me pass dungeon puzzles solo, but it seems there aren't.

MrWill416

I can't even get them to appear On the PTS, I go to the right places but neither Of them are there to start their quests any idea why?

jwellsub17_ESO2

Okay, so I went out today and quested to get Bastian and put him through most of the same tests I did with Mirri yesterday and I gotta say I am pretty disappointed. As others have stated, Bastian is dying to trash mobs in his default mode and in sword & board mode.

I swapped out his chest, legs and shoulders for heavy armor and switched him to sword & board.

In Alik'r, Where Mirri was capable of soloing Daedroth, Bastian only got one down to about half health before dying and, where Mirri could solo two Clanfear, Bastian would only get one before he died.

In Coldharbour, where Mirri was soloing two or three Zombies, Bastian would only get one if it were two Zombies, or if it were three, he would die without killing any.

I took him to Eyevea, read a book (in Eyevea), and did a Mage's guild daily. It was approximately an hour and a game restart later that I got credit for the book and the daily, but did not get credit for the visit to Eyevea.

I did feed on an innocent and used the Blade Of Woe and got rapport decreases for both

jwellsub17_ESO2

Forgot to mention, but about 3 different times, Bastian "forgot" his weapons and tried to pummel his opponents to death. After one incident, I disarmed and re-armed him but still he continued to fight 'Marquess of Queensberry' rules...

The only way I was able to ensure that he used his weapons was to un-summon and re-summon him.

Finally, like Mirri, I was unable to take him into my homes, but this time I noticed that we are unable to summon them while in out homes.

stefj68

Leogon wrote: »

ZOS: Companions will be able to aid the player everywhere except for pvp and solo arenas.

Reality: They're pretty much useless everywhere except for questing but who needs help questing? I need them for vet dlc dungeons and vet 4-player arenas but they're terrible even on normal.

I just hope you guys will keep working on them until they become viable everywhere except for pvp and solo arenas as advertised.

That being said, I love the roleplaying side of companions with the rapport, etc.

i was doing a dolmen, final boss pop, make an huge aoe on the group, companion watch him... 4 sec later companion was dead... spec as a tank, with all defensive armor! and s&b

never decide to block
never decide to moves out
rip!

virtus753

Someone should please tell Mirri to stop playing the floor is lava and get off the furniture in the Gideon courthouse.

She breaks it, she’s buying.

stefj68

setup bastion as a tank, heavy defensive armor, s&b...
start a dolmen in greenshade
when final boss popped, stood there, in the aoe, never blocked, never got out, one shoot dead...

switch to another character i like to play
pop out bastion, set him up as a healer...
took about 6h for him to get points into the resto staff lines...
i was hoping we would be casting heal over time like crazy or somethings
but all are set when hp threshold get below 75% which we can't control..

switch back to my 1st setup...
pop bastion
*** *** i forget to put back his tanking gear
switch back to 2nd toon... swap gear

that gear swapping/switching is a freaking pains.... honestly... do SOMETHING!!!! they should have their own inventory for companions ONLY GEAR

or can we have profiles we could set them up... ie: role tank (with tank skills selected/gear equipped when we activate that role) ie: heal (with heal skills selected/gear when we pick that role) and dps...

micro managing the companions IS PAINFULL... having to remember where we store that chestpieces purple with the traits x for a healer, is PAINFULLL

i would like, either, a profile selection for companion, a surprise 3RD companion at lauch, so we could pick one as tank, one as healer and one as dps...

or having them to carry their gear and remember their skills selected for their roles...

or having a minimalist approach on gear... not making like 1332 pieces of gear, but like 37 pieces 4 augments and lets us augment those pieces so we could makes any combination we like, and we only have to store/bank augments (4x9=36) not 1332 items...

i played near 12 hours, already have 55 companions pieces blue/purples... and bank is already full, i forget some on chars when i switched, etc....


please make companion gears to a specific companion inventory... and not fills our bags, banks, and storage chest with something we might need in 3 upgrades cause you finally make it WORTH!

Sju

Not having a separate inventory for the companions will ultimately make me not use companions at all. I have ESO+, but inventory management can still be a major pain.

Merllow

How useful are companions? I just don't like it when someone is running next to me and I plan not to use them at all.

aipex8_ESO

stefj68 wrote: »

i would like, either, a profile selection for companion, a surprise 3RD companion at lauch, so we could pick one as tank, one as healer and one as dps...

I really like the profile idea, kind of like a bar swap that we control out of combat that includes armor too? I'd even go for just a straight bar swap (without the armor swap) as my main gripe is I want to switch Mirri between melee and bow depending on what she is helping me with. Need her ranged when it's a boss with a lot of AOE, because she won't move.

CleymenZero

ZOS_GinaBruno wrote: »

This is the official feedback thread for Companions. Specific feedback that the team is looking for includes the following:

• General
  • Which areas or zones were you in with your companion?
  • NORMAL ROCKGROVE, BLACKWOOD
  • What types of gameplay were you doing with your companion?
• NORMAL TRIAL
• Interaction
  • Was it clear how to access the Companions interface?
  • YES BUT I WOULD HIGHLY PREFER A KEYBING. IF I WANT TO CHANGE SOMETHING ON THE FLY, I'D RATHER HAVE VERY QUICK ACCESS.
  • Was the Companion ability system clear and intuitive to use?
  • IT WAS CLEAR ENOUGH FOR SOMEINE WHO ENJOYS THEORY CRAFTING.
  • Did your companion use the slotted abilities as you expected them to?
  • YES.
  • Did you feel the companion talked too much or too little in various circumstances?
• YES, THEY TALKED TOO MUCH FPR THE MINIMAL PLAYTIME I HAD.
• Combat
  • What did you think of the Companion combat abilities in general? Were there any that felt too powerful or not powerful enough?
  • NOT TO BE CRUDE BUT THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY USELESS. THEY CAN BARELY COMPETE WITH MY BANKER IN TERMS OF COMBAT SKILLS AND MY BANKER GIVES ME ACCESS TO MY BANK ONCE OUT OF COMBAT.
  • Were you able to configure your companion to perform the role you wished?
  • VERY EASILY, BUT IT CANNOT PERFORM ANY ROLE. HEALER IS PROBABLY THE MOST USEFUL THEY'VE BEEN BUT EVEN THEN....
  • Were you able to effectively utilize keyboard/gamepad shortcuts to direct companion target behavior? (Hold Y and left click to attack vs Hold Y and right click to hold off)
• ULTI WAS BUGGED?
• Customization/Progression
  • How did the companion progression feel in terms of time to level up, advance skills, unlock abilities, improve rapport, or acquire equipment? Was the progress clear in terms of how to access everything?
  • Was the companion cosmetic customization experience clear and function as expected?
• GREAT.
• Rapport
  • Did you understand how to influence your companion through the rapport system?
  • YES.
  • Was it clear when rapport was being adjusted and why?
• YES.
• Do you have any other general feedback?

MAKE THEM CARRY THEIR OWN GEAR AT THE VERY LEAST AND MAKE THEM REMOTELY USEFUL OR VERY USEFUL. I'D LIKE MY LEVEL 20 COMPANION TO BE ABLE TO TANK A VET DUNGEON.

emeraldshado

Q: Which areas or zones were you in with your companion?

at this time, Southern Elsweyr, west of south guard ruins.

and black wood.

Silent hills public dungeon, xi-tsei delve, over land regions.

thus far.


Q: What types of gameplay were you doing with your companion?

Killing mob in the overworld, traveling around, World Boss, Dark Anchor and setup builds for the companion.



Interaction

Q Was it clear how to access the Companions interface?

originally i forgot, but then i talked to them and found it.
would have been nice for a diologue of "hey, tlak to me to discuss gear and tactical setups."

Was the Companion ability system clear and intuitive to use?

Yes

Did your companion use the slotted abilities as you expected them to?

Bastian was fine.

I am running them both as tanks, so I removed Mirri's ultimate ability as the cast time gets her killed as she has low self sustain for healing




Combat

What did you think of the Companion combat abilities in general? Were there any that felt too powerful or not powerful enough?


Were you able to configure your companion to perform the role you wished?

Yes, though due to the nature of ths skills, Bastian is the clear winner for a tank, and i feel as i cannot bother to use Mirri as a tank, which is a pitty.





Were you able to effectively utilize keyboard/gamepad shortcuts to direct companion target behavior? (Hold Y and left click to attack vs Hold Y and right click to hold off)

I didn't bother with [Y] , didn't need it.

Customization/Progression

How did the companion progression feel in terms of time to level up, advance skills, unlock abilities, improve rapport, or acquire equipment? Was the progress clear in terms of how to access everything?


seemed fine. I think killing elites for


however, he is level 1. took about 5 kills to get him to level 2.
71 xp per kill per mob, 500 xp required for level 2 , 1,500 xp required for level 3
still gets xp when dead, like players. seems fine.

Rapport

Did you understand how to influence your companion through the rapport system?

no. idling reading books while i looked somehting up on my phone got me rapport.
so yay?

Was it clear when rapport was being adjusted and why?

well, Mirri lost rapport when taking a dragon, so i guess she doesn't like dying..


Do you have any other general feedback?

Mirri

33.9k hp 16% damage reduction
5 heavy 1 vigorous, 4 bolstered
2 medium, 1 virogous, 1 bolstered.
jewlery 2 bolstered 1 virgorous
1 hand bolstered
shield vigorous

skills

savage instinct - undaunted
skelital aegis - undaunted
ritual of salvation - fighters guild
bulwark - heavy armour
life absorbtion
ultimate - removed. cast time being interupted by elites contributing to death

Southern Elsywer - west of South Guard Ruins =


x1 terror bird SEWoSGR- survived fine
x2 terror bird SEWoSGR- survived fine
x3 terror bird SEWoSGR- survived fine

x2 hackwing SEWoSGR SEWoSGR- survived fine
x2 salamanders SEWoSGR SEWoSGR- survived fine

x1 mountain brissleback SEWoSGR -survivted fine
x1 black gull brute SEWoSGR -survivted fine
x1 Haj Mota 108.7k hp SEWoSGR- Failure, death by a thousand shell protrusions. . she was at 20% hp, dug undergound and killed her, monster was at 14%

starting the fight with a light attack, i take the first hit.
Mirri is not healing herself with the mages guild ability reverse entropy.
at 33k hp, she is throwing it to me, who is full hp at 19k or just down to 17k hp with my magika shield, hardened ward on me, with no food buff (template character)

she leaves ritual of salvation after range taunt to go hit the enemy, also leaving the blood alter.. which is .. expected.

does not dodge roll turtle charges once. ever.

mirri constistantly dies around Haj Mota 35% , when it digs under ground and kills , taking her from 20% hp to 0. doing 7260 dmg (33.1k max hp pool)

the main issue is that her self heal is either not targeted at herself, or is not enough to keep her alive.
though i under stand she wasn't designed to be a dragon knight, so therefore not a tank.

Maybe she could grab a couple of those potions off her belt, and throw them to the ground to stand in a healing cloud similar to something from monster hunter. but she's lacking a good self heal. a vanishig skill that drops agro while standing within an aoe is not a substitute.

she does fine in xi-tsei delve black wood.



bastian

36.5k hp.

heavy 4 2 bolstered 2 vigiourus
medium 3 vigorous
jewlery 2 vigorous 1 bolstered
1 hand bolstered
shiled bolstered

skills

savage instinct - undaunted
ritual of salvation - fighters guild
basalt barrier - bastion dragon knight
drakes blood - bastion dragon knight
kindle - bastion dragon knight

x1 Haj Mota 108.7k hp SEWoSGR - survives amazingly. you can tell he was designed to be a tnak the way he actually heals himself.
x1 dragon SEWoSGR - Amazing voice over. I Lol'd quite well. thank you. expectations met.

blackwood bwd

x1 mireguant attempt 1 - bastian died at 18% with me only attacking the totems.
x1 mireguant attempt 2 - bastian
x1 Argonian behemoth - success
He would not dodge roll or move out of the fire or poison aoes.

he completed miregaunt on the second go, but it was close.


it would be nice if they could dodge roll if the diameter of an aoe were $x in length, small enough to roll out of it. that way they wouldn't bother to dodge roll in big aoe circles, and just take their death giving me the 3 seconds additional time


and would be nice to maybe have 1 dodge roll condition, such as the one listed above, maybe every 30 seconds? it would add to their suriveability, but from what i noticed, is that they only seem to dodge roll if they have more medium armour, or maybe if they aren't holding a sword and shield.


neither of the companions in the setups listed above can survive against vor'chul the beast breaker in the silent hills public dungeon. I didn't even try with Mirri, its a foregone conclusion due to the spiked turtle elite fight in the southern elswyer zone listed above.

public dungeon i wasn't just standing back and testing the companion design, i was actively playing along side them. Bastian died on the fight listed above while the boss was at 81% hp. he was only focusing on the boss, and i took out the add.


these companions seem less useful than the Star Wars the Old Republic companions, but are meant to be utilized to almost the same

though in SWTOR the companion can replace a character in a dungeon when needed. at this point in time, these companions cannot tank a dungeon boss, which I believe was the intended design, but then they are practically only designed for the single player in an MMO , which I guess is fine. from the RP perspective its good and friendly to hear them.

I would like to see more than 1 trial added a year,



I do like the over land zone. weeping willows are my favourite tree, but i still can't hear them weep, like that Nord from shadow fen. but that was a hist.


at $60 - $80 CAD, I don't think I can justify this purchase while also paying the monthly sub. so this will be a discounted purchase for me.

I'm also told my writing comes across as the rear end of a donkey, but that is not the intended tone, if written words have such a thing.

i'd also like to tack on, i'd like something to revivify the greymoor caverns. like a town that gets built up over time. i find the darkness is easy on the eyes and the colours down there are awesome.

Either way, the black wood zone is really nicely done!

aipex8_ESO

Would be nice if the companions didn't run to your EXACT location at the end of each battle. I feel like we're about to get it on with Ryan Gosling in Blade Runner.

BlueRaven

Just did a fighters and mages daily with the new patch 7.0.1, Bastion was present for both. Skill lines STILL not unlocked.

CaffeinatedMayhem

Which areas or zones were you in with your companion?

RUnning around the zone. Oblivion portals and public dungeons

Interaction
Was it clear how to access the Companions interface?

No not really. Found it but talking to the companion was not my first thought for "equip gear"

Was the Companion ability system clear and intuitive to use?

Yes, but would help if abilities worked more intuitively, more below.

Did your companion use the slotted abilities as you expected them to?

NO. Tried to turn Bastian into a healer... only heals during combat, if combat ends and I was below 50% health, no heals go out.

Did you feel the companion talked too much or too little in various circumstances?

I found Bastian's personality weird. He wants to be an adventurer but doesn't like me killing stuff. Ummmm, what does he think adventurers DO?

Combat
What did you think of the Companion combat abilities in general? Were there any that felt too powerful or not powerful enough?

Wow, I wish my tank had as much NPC aggro as Bastian does. But since I wanted a healer and not an enemy magnet... kinda bad.

Were you able to configure your companion to perform the role you wished?

Not yet.

Were you able to effectively utilize keyboard/gamepad shortcuts to direct companion target behavior? (Hold Y and left click to attack vs Hold Y and right click to hold off)

Nope. Controller targeting is hand twisting.

Customization/Progression
How did the companion progression feel in terms of time to level up, advance skills, unlock abilities, improve rapport, or acquire equipment? Was the progress clear in terms of how to access everything?

I am having to stop using a companion after about 10 minutes because every piece of earned XP sets off an "avbility slot unlocked" message, but no ability slot is unlocked. Reloaded UI, re-summoned companion.

Was the companion cosmetic customization experience clear and function as expected?

Assignment is easy enough, have not yet tried dyeing.

Did you understand how to influence your companion through the rapport system?

Yes, but not sure what to do with a companion that chides me for accidentally killing a DEADLANDS SCORPION. Or the summoned frog adds on Deathwart? Like sure, be upset I kill bunnies. Why are you upset when I kill dangerous things? And he thinks I'm showing off by USING MY ULTIMATE ON A BOSS????

Shantu

This thread is hilarious! I especially like the comment about how they are "as powerful as an overcooked angel hair noodle". Priceless!

Companions would be a hit if they just had a sword, did decent damage/healing/tanking, and didn't die. As it stands, they require far too much time and effort for what they return. Quite the bust.

crazepdx

Specific feedback that the team is looking for includes the following:
General
Which areas or zones were you in with your companion?
All over Blackwood, Alikr, Vvardenfall, Rivenspire,

What types of gameplay were you doing with your companion? Combo of delves, overland bosses and exploring

Interaction
Was it clear how to access the Companions interface? Yes
Was the Companion ability system clear and intuitive to use? Yes
Did your companion use the slotted abilities as you expected them to? Ish. If they are using them the damage from them is very underwhelming.

Did you feel the companion talked too much or too little in various circumstances? I wouldn't mind more dialog is it was repeating like on a loop.
Combat
What did you think of the Companion combat abilities in general? Were there any that felt too powerful or not powerful enough? Not powerful enough is an understatement. I gangrene been able to unlock or level any of the guild abilities because they don't unlock. The standard ones are very underwhelming.
Were you able to configure your companion to perform the role you wished? No
Were you able to effectively utilize keyboard/gamepad shortcuts to direct companion target behavior? (Hold Y and left click to attack vs Hold Y and right click to hold off) yes
Customization/Progression
How did the companion progression feel in terms of time to level up, advance skills, unlock abilities, improve rapport, or acquire equipment? Was the progress clear in terms of how to access everything? Guild progression isn't available no matter how many you do. Rapport progression is slow and tedious.
Was the companion cosmetic customization experience clear and function as expected?
Rapport
Did you understand how to influence your companion through the rapport system? Yes
Was it clear when rapport was being adjusted and why? It was clear if it went up or down but not really more then that. Also the rapport meter feels like it doesn't move and honestly not worth the effort or time from what I can see atm.
Do you have any other general feedback?

Companions are not something new, either in games in general or for that matter MMO's. Case in point EQ had them in their game in 2008. Your own studio had them in a game in 2011. It's sad ZOS developers can't seem to make something at least not as bad as 10 year old games. As they stand now they should not have been hyped as the big thing from this expansion, because honestly had I already not pre-ordered, I would not buy this expansion based on the implementation of them.

CaffeinatedMayhem

Shantu wrote: »

This thread is hilarious! I especially like the comment about how they are "as powerful as an overcooked angel hair noodle". Priceless!

I've decided Bastian can stay for one reason only... he points out when I miss heavy sacks in dungeons.

It would be better if companion AI could recognize ground AoE and move out of stupid. Not much help if I'm using them to heal me soloing DLC WBs, and they just stand in 5 overlapping circles of fire until dead.

stefj68

CaffeinatedMayhem wrote: »

I've decided Bastian can stay for one reason only... he points out when I miss heavy sacks in dungeons.

It would be better if companion AI could recognize ground AoE and move out of stupid. Not much help if I'm using them to heal me soloing DLC WBs, and they just stand in 5 overlapping circles of fire until dead.

well Bastian don't moves out off AoE and don't Block or brace for attacks! but pointing out heavy sacks is awesome!!!!

PrinceShroob

The patch notes state:

Companion guild progress from dailies now works as expected and progress is displayed immediately.
Companions will no longer behave as if they were just summoned upon zoning.

However, Bastian still acts like he was summoned when moving between zones, and completing a Mages Guild daily with Bastian present triggered a dialogue line and progress towards the achievement, but he gained no progress in his Mages Guild skill line.

Additionally, I cannot figure out how to progress the achievement for Bastian's favor. It counted completing a Mages Guild daily (erroneously written as "Mage's Guild") and reading a book from a bookshelf. However, taking him to Eyevea neither progressed the achievement nor caused him to gain any rapport.

cyberjanet

MrWill416 wrote: »

I can't even get them to appear On the PTS, I go to the right places but neither Of them are there to start their quests any idea why?

If you create a new max level character, they are already unlocked.

That aside I found Bastian tied up in his location, so he was a little hard to see.

Grandchamp1989

Hack getting some awesome results Tanking on Bastian:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWyodKbcsrk&ab_channel=HackTheMinotaur

aipex8_ESO

I've been doing solo stuff, delves, world bosses, public dungeons, and some easier 4 person dungeons. We were mostly in Western Skyrim and The Reach as I'm saving the new story and zone for release.

Interface and skills worked as expected and the companion talked just about the right amount by default.

Combat abilities were not bad, about what I expected. There really needs to be some AOE damage mitigation though like pets as they stand right in the red and get killed very fast at bosses.

Again, I just want to test the system out, not the progression, so I maxed the companion out and didn't do any of their quests or anything. I'll learn the rapport system on release.

General feedback is that I think I'm really going to like this feature as I play almost exclusively solo, and don't do super hard vet content. I like questing and immersion. I already feel lonely and miss my sidekick when I go back to the live server!

Ryath_Waylander

Moloch1514 wrote: »

Leogon wrote: »

ZOS: Companions will be able to aid the player everywhere except for pvp and solo arenas.

Reality: They're pretty much useless everywhere except for questing but who needs help questing? I need them for vet dlc dungeons and vet 4-player arenas but they're terrible even on normal.

I just hope you guys will keep working on them until they become viable everywhere except for pvp and solo arenas as advertised.

That being said, I love the roleplaying side of companions with the rapport, etc.

This 100%. Not what was advertised for sure. Glad I learned my lesson from Greymoor and will wait to buy in July when it is on sale lol. Why do I get high hopes for this game still after so many letdowns?

Reading this, I'm glad I made the same decision. First release ever that I'm not pre-ordering...