2025 Dungeons

SaintJohnHM · November 26

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

Gabriel_H · November 26

I found BV a tougher HM than SWRs. There are different mechs in all of them; some people will find one set of mechs easier than the others. Not everyone has the same strengths and weaknesses.

SaintJohnHM · November 26

Gabriel_H wrote: »

I found BV a tougher HM than SWRs. There are different mechs in all of them; some people will find one set of mechs easier than the others. Not everyone has the same strengths and weaknesses.

I don't doubt your personal experience, but after having run through both with dozens of people who were new to them, I can confidently say the HM in SWR has stumped more people than BV on their first try.

VouxeTheMinotaur · November 26

I'm also a dungeon fan, and I agree that the upcoming dungeons would be more fun with a better challenge, overall and HM. It's a letdown to have all these newer dungeons come out and look so intimidating but be just such a breeze to complete since there's so many players, whether they be from a random pug or assembled group from a guild, having such powerful builds, even with newer HM's. In less than a month and some change, people are bored with them and only continue to run for the sticker book or a build idea.

I understand that lower CP players may not share the same sentiment, that they're not bored with them and struggle to complete them because of the difficulty scale ZOS has gradually and clearly shown, but I would like to see dungeon content that's truly for the tough veteran players. Something that has lower CP's say "damn, even my friend is having a tough time with it, and he's CP 1-2-3000!"

I also want to add in the topic of: Optional bosses (secret bosses). Those guys are sometimes more fun than the required bosses. My favorite is the Storm Cursed Sailor from SWR mostly because of his dialogue and the SFX around it. now THAT should be a Halloween boss, a "scary," met-an-unfortunate-end, cryptic dialogue of a sailor who died during a storm of ages instead of the spooky crow and jackolatern polymorph dude. I liked it, but the storm cursed sailor was just a chef's kiss on my first encounter with him.

I digress, the secret bosses should also be a challenge as well. I feel like some of them were supposed to be the required boss until ZOS scrapped them for something else and placed them as optional but diluted of what they were supposed to be. I may be wildly wrong, but I say this because I personally like to find secret bosses IF the fight (along with the dialogue of the boss like storm cursed sailor and many others) is FUN. "Extending the dungeon" sort of speak because of how fun it is.

Though increasing the challenge of secret bosses might be frowned upon since their whole purpose is to give buffs to aid in the final boss, so making a secret boss just as difficult as the regular ones / similar to final, without having any or missing buffs, would be frustrating. But I guess that's still a type of fun to me due to the many games I've played, ESO included when first playing, where I'd try, fail, try, fail, try, fail, etc. until finally beating it and getting into such a hype and euphoric cheer with friends or on my own for single player games.

I also want to add in a discussion my guild and I had once, of a different type of "dungeon" content. For a while, my guildmaster and us admins floated the idea of a "mini- trial" group instance. Maybe it would stay the same as 4 player role requirement, or maybe it could be a 6-man open role requirement for the group to talk amongst themselves as to what roles would be best suited for the fight. The "mini trial" being as its name suggests, longer than a dungeon (maybe just as long as Lair of Maarselok despite how many people abhor it) but not as long or AS mech complex as most trials due to how small the group would be. More mechs, more enemies, more players, bigger instance, etc. with HM option included in all boss fights, not just the final. what the name of this instance would be, i don't know. but it sounded like a good idea for ZOS to at least put in the "file cabinet of ideas." if not already.

i have much more to say but i"ll keep it as is for now.

AzuraFan · November 26

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone...

As someone who's been running normal dungeons with pugs every day for a while now, I have no problem with HM being made more difficult, or vet.

But please keep the normal mode at the difficulty level it's at now. I agree with the OP that dungeons should be accessible to all. My experience is that some dungeons runs go smoothly, but others (when pugging) don't. Players go down. I've been in a few pugs where we've wiped at some bosses. It's taken us 2-3 tries to succeed. So while I know there are players who breeze through normal dungeons, that's not the experience for everyone. Especially when pugging. For some players, that's the only way they can do dungeons because they don't belong to a guild or they belong to a guild that doesn't organize any type of grouping.

So sure, make HM really hard. Increase the vet difficulty if that's what vet players want. But keep normal dungeons where they are, or they *will* become inaccessible to some players who enjoy running dungeons.

Soarora · November 27

I AGREE! Making new dungeons have easier HMs not only doesn’t help the dungeon community, it also makes it harder to tell new players what order to do dungeons in. I was incredibly disappointed with BV and OP, and vocal about this on their feedback threads. Everyone I did both dungeons with found at least one, if not both, surprisingly easy.

moderatelyfatman · November 27

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

Just play on any other class than an arcanist if you want hard mode.

autocookies · November 27

moderatelyfatman wrote: »

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

Just play on any other class than an arcanist if you want hard mode.

LOL Could run 3 werewolves and a healer! Would be very awesome and fun and also the ultimate hardmode in my opinion!

My source: I did vVH and vMA with a werewolf build but I had to lose wolf form at times to complete the runs (I can run back to back no deaths in both on any class without werewolf... but with werewolf I died more times then I can count... more times then I wish to admit...)

I haven't done many of the hardmodes yet. But I also agree with the OP that it would be nice to have more dungeons with new unseen mechs with greater difficulty. Would greatly prefer the titles we earn to truly mean something.

SaintJohnHM · November 27

moderatelyfatman wrote: »

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

Just play on any other class than an arcanist if you want hard mode.

Nope, that's not the way the fun works. Making things take longer to kill doesn't add any fun mechanics, it's just a longer fight.

Soarora · November 27

moderatelyfatman wrote: »

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

Just play on any other class than an arcanist if you want hard mode.

It’s not arcanist, its the dungeons. I’ve run with people on various classes, and I’ve tanked both tris.

OP:

First boss: This is not a hardmode. It’s the same as nonhm except everyone gets the mechs at the same time instead of 2 or 3 people. One mechanic is stolen from DSR, who stole it from DC. The other mechanic is “run away”. That’s it. That’s the two whole mechanics for this fight.

Second boss: Actually interesting, I loved figuring out kiting the axes as healer. Good fight, but the entire first part of the fight also gets ignored because the HM isn’t scaled for endgame damage, so endgame dungeoneers don’t even need to attack the woman at all to break the shield.

Third boss: I enjoy the Minecraft Spleef, it’s a new and interesting mechanic. On PTS several people including me really thought the bosses leaving their rooms was a bug. It does make the HM because you have to strategize, but it doesn’t feel like it’s supposed to be that way. The iron atro is interesting but there’s no time to make him.

Trash: Way too much trash. Or should I say, way too much room. Why is there a giant cave that houses a whole 3 flame atronachs? The dungeon space should’ve been cut a bit shorter.

Sides: They’re alright. Interesting mechanic how you have to overpower the boss. Only really have to think about it for the 2nd two though, don’t actually know how you summon friend blobs on first guy. Ult buff is fun, totally thought it would get nerfed but I guess not.

BV:

First boss: BORING!!! Can’t move because if you’re too far from the boss when it heavy attacks, it enrages. So I stand in the center the whole time. Chaining. There’s nothing to do but occasionally roll, chain, and beg for mercy when you need healed because you can’t heal yourself. For DPS, it’s rolling occasionally and trying to hit things that half the time are invincible.

Second boss: Yeah, yeah Maelstrom Arena again. But also again, not scaled for endgame damage. Lower damaging groups have to do the mechanics correctly… kind of. I have never been in a group where we had to “subdue” the spider lady, and people usually don’t need to cleanse. The argonian doesn’t do the scream mechanic, I only know it happens because of the figuring-out-what-the-fight-is stage of learning the dungeon. First guy teleports 0-1 times. The average endgame dungeon group will burn through half the fight, and we stun the argonian behemoth using the lights and burn through that, so the only mechanic we get is the spiderlings, which the tank can IGNORE. Don’t tell me “just do less damage to do more mechanics” because the HMs for new dungeons should be scaled around endgame dungeon players like trial HMs are scaled around endgame trial players. The people who need easier HMs are either not doing HM or can work through the easier HMs.

Third boss: Stand there sometimes because there’s nothing to fight. Maybe synergize. Maybe run around if you wanna. Mostly just a healcheck and wait times. As a DPS, I move around the maze sometimes. As a tank, I stand there and don’t move. In execute, we had no one move and the healer just healed through the waves.

Trash: Trash is okay. Does damage, applies healchecks, cones, etc. Supports needed, which is good.

Sides: Interesting that they’re all at the end, I don’t mind it as something unique to BV like how SH has unique sides.

peacenote · November 28

I also wish we could get four dungeons a year, again. Very much.

valenwood_vegan · November 28

Personally, I want the challenging versions of dungeons to be challenging. I want the normal version to be widely accessible. And most of all, I want 4 of them again, because this new minimum-content second half of the year in eso is terribly boring.

Blackyack · December 13

SaintJohnHM wrote: »

I'm in a dungeon guild, and we would prefer tougher Hard Modes than the dungeons from this year, OP and BV. We want more challenging mechs like the HMs in CA, SWR, SH, GD.

Keep the normal and veteran modes as easy as you like, the game should be accessible to everyone, but please make the HMs more challenging to figure out and master. We want a challenge, it gives us a lot more replayability. We don't want just more damage and bigger health bars on the enemies, we want real mechs we have to learn and practice or else we fail.

Also, two dungeons isn't enough, please go back to four dungeons per year like we have come to expect.

ZOS makes super fun content when it's focused, I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with in 2025.

I have to agree with all the sentiments OP expresses here. Let's keep the dungeon component of this (dwindling player base) game vibrant.

Destai · December 13

Even though I think dungeons are some of their most creative and rewarding content, I don’t personally have appetite for more than 2 a year. I wish the dungeons also had a solo mode, so I can get the stickerbook a little quicker.