Further Companion Quests - QOL - Romance

Ruhlf

Hello there!

Been enjoying Necrom for the last few weeks now. Good stuff and thank you.

As I understand it, this is the story patch for the year, and the next big patch will be QOL - is that correct?

If so, I’d like to request that we get a few updates to our companion quests in the QOL patch. They could be tied to romance options, or just be a new chapter in their adventure.

My main companion is Bastion, and I’d love to see more of his story. What happened to his family’s estate (unlockable housing?). Or what about his mentor that taught him magic (a small delve?). Or why not both - a small delve that becomes unlockable housing?

Similar systems of quests/rewards could be rolled out for all the companions, in whatever order makes sense. I’m sure folks have other ideas for what they’d like to see implemented to expand their companions’ storylines.

All in all - it would be cool to see the companions get a bit more story - and I hope there’s a way to sneak that in (:

P.S.
If we do get to romance Bastion, I hope we get to learn a little more about his tattoos. Here’s to hoping he’s got a secret spicy side - we did find him tied up when we first met him (;

Treselegant

Ruhlf wrote: »

Here’s to hoping he’s got a secret spicy side - we did find him tied up when we first met him (;

That gave me a giggle, thank you!

As for the rest, yeah, lots of people have have been asking for more content for Bastian for a while now. Trying to get the devs to even acknowledge our existence is like pulling teeth. If they're not going to add anything until a decision is made on whether they're going to add romance to companions then I'd wish they'd just come out and say that. Otherwise, I don't get what the problem is.

Syldras

Considering how ZOS wrote "romance" so far, I'm not sure if it'd really be entertaining. Probably more like endless cringe.

Jaimeh

It'd be great if they did 'follow-up' quests for each companion, it would flesh them out a bit more, and give players reasons to revisit older companions. If they do include romance, I hope it's optional, though it would be cool--companions need more features (and customization, but that's a different topic).

Ruhlf

Options would be nice in general.

I’d even like a toggle to set my companion’s mood as a sort of reward for once you meet max rep. It could even have a random option, so you don’t know what kind of mood they’ll be in when you summon them.

Treselegant

Syldras wrote: »

Considering how ZOS wrote "romance" so far, I'm not sure if it'd really be entertaining. Probably more like endless cringe.

It's my theory that Bastian and Mirri were originally intended to have further dialogue that gave them romance arcs but it's been left unfinished. Mirri's companion menu and "lets talk about us/our relationship" at max rapport:

Compared to Bastian's at max rapport and "let's talk about our partnership/friendship":

You can see the difference - from the menu to her reaction. Interestingly, the rapport dialogue from Bastian at the 'allied' stage is more friendly and thoughtful than the ones you get at max making me wonder what was going on there. Perhaps there was a plan to have final rapport dialogue that either reaffirmed you as best friends or lead down a more romantic path.

At 'allied':

Mirri was obviously further along in development as the framework for Bastian seems a lot more chaotic. Mirri is definitely more...affectionate. The writing that's there is quite sweet and I don't hate it but just so weirdly distrubuted. Having a male romanceable companion also seems like it was something of an after-thought during development considering how unfinished he is general. It would really would be something if the team could put the work in to finish what they obviously started.

_Zathras_

A couple of years ago, Rich was doing interviews and explaining the new companion system. He said:

"With these companions, they have their own likes and dislikes," Lambert says. "You can go up one side and down the other side with your relationship to them. There is going to be something special that unlocks when you max out that relationship spectrum as well, though initially, romance won't be a part of it."

He adds, "Down the line, though, romance is definitely somewhere we want to get to. We just want to make sure when we add it that we do it right."

So, when? Who knows, but I wouldn't mind the option. As the OP suggested, make it more robust than a few added dialogue lines. Maybe build a love nest somewhere.

Syldras

I think chances are good, actually. At least they do add new lines to older companions - I'm very sure I've heard a few new ones from Isobel since Necrom's release.

richo262

I'm hoping there isn't romance, it seems like a very needless thing that would probably be mandatory if you want whatever additional perk it might afford.

I'm not all to into RP, but I do see the companions as a band of soldiers I can call on, my own guild of sorts, and they are probably back home sharpening their swords awaiting my call. If I have to romance them all to get an additional perk, that 'home' I envision as a barracks pretty much just becomes an *** house.

PrinceShroob

I'd like companion romance but there are a few caveats:

• I'd prefer if it wasn't initiated through a dialogue that was always available. I feel like it would be annoying to worry about accidentally initiating the romance while trying to access the Companion Menu.
• I don't want any "harems" where you can romance every companion at once. I think the best approach would be to limit you to one romance per character.
• I'm not opposed to some kind of tangible benefit for romancing a companion, but I think it'd probably be best if it's for the roleplay first and foremost. The most tangible thing I could see is setting your companion to a unique rapport threshold (say, "Lover") that prevents any decreases to their rapport (not that you never get upset with anyone once you're in a relationship with them, but more to prevent edge cases like romancing Bastian, then tanking his rapport with a crime spree).

Based on the existing framework, I'd say the most likely scenario is that a new fifth companion quest would be added at Companion-level rapport, treated as a normal companion quest (that is, this isn't just passing the companion a "do you like me y/n?" note and hearing their response). At the end of it, you'd have a red text option to confess your feelings/reciprocate the companion's feelings (it would be nice if there's some variety, with some companions asking the player out, some hoping the player reciprocates their feelings, and others being blindsided). If you officially romance a companion, you can't romance another (the dialogue option with any other companion would just reaffirm your friendship instead). The romanced companion is moved to a new rapport threshold and they have some new dialogue when asked about your relationship and when spoken to as a houseguest (and for continuity, redo or block off any combat dialogue or responses that use "friend").

Mirri and Bastian would receive an additional quest after "Family Secrets" and "Dead Weight," unlocked at Allied-level rapport, that would reward a personal letter furnishing from them.

Since there have been some complaints about having to accept a companion's quest to talk to them if a quest is available, I could see there being an additional option to defer deciding right away (so, "Yes," "No," and "Decide later," essentially) that would add a new option under "Let's talk about our partnership" labelled something like "About what you said before" (or whatever is appropriate for the situation considering how the subject was broached during the companion's quest) where you would again have "Yes," "No," and "Decide later." I'd probably make "Decide later" the top option in the list so that you don't accidentally lock yourself into or out of a romance if you mash through the dialogue.

Treselegant

richo262 wrote: »

I'm hoping there isn't romance, it seems like a very needless thing that would probably be mandatory if you want whatever additional perk it might afford.

I'm not all to into RP, but I do see the companions as a band of soldiers I can call on, my own guild of sorts, and they are probably back home sharpening their swords awaiting my call. If I have to romance them all to get an additional perk, that 'home' I envision as a barracks pretty much just becomes an *** house.

I severely doubt you'd be forced to romance a companion just to get their perk. In every other game that has this sort of system, the decision to pursue romance with a character is entirely in the hands of the player - you have to click on the dialogue that leads that way. If you just want your companions to remain your friends/comrades then that'll likely still be their default state. I personally, have never played a game that required you to romance a companion character to get whatever perk is associated with having them at max rapport.

As for needless? Well, a lot of players have been asking whether it was going to be added since Blackwood and it's continues to be a much requested RP feature. Romance with companion characters is popular in rpgs and adding it to ESO will make a lot of people happy even if it's not to everyone's taste. Not everything added to the game will appeal to everyone.

Ruhlf

Indeed - I’d hope we get a romance option, and that it remains an option for everyone.

Personally I want to romance Bastion, but keep the others as friends. (Unless we also get a scruffy werewolf man sometime soon).

There may be other people who want to romance everyone for quest/story/bonuses - and that’s fine too (:

Should be easy enough to activate the quest in the companion menu - just like we can launch a new story/chapter from the main menu.

Xandreia_

personally the thought of romance with a companion kind of creeps me out a little bit. I just don't get the appeal of romancing pixels, each to their own though.

Syldras

Xandreia_ wrote: »

I just don't get the appeal of romancing pixels, each to their own though.

What's different to the appeal of killing pixels, saving pixels or stealing pixels?

Treselegant

Xandreia_ wrote: »

personally the thought of romance with a companion kind of creeps me out a little bit. I just don't get the appeal of romancing pixels, each to their own though.

May I ask - what do you think romancing a companion character actually entails? It's pretty much just a first person romance story, usually a pretty chaste one, based in a video game. The player experiences a romantic plot in the game from the perspective of the main character - the same way they experience the rest of their character's actions. It's no more about 'romancing pixels' than reading a novel containing romance is about 'romancing paper'. It's not 'real', sure, but I think most people when they consume entertainment media, which includes games, understand this.

When the average person reads 'Pride and Prejudice' they don't think they genuinely marry Mr Darcy at the end of the book - it's the same for players who enjoy romance in games. So I never understand what's so objectionable about that.