cesmode wrote: »

Hi,
I havent played ESO to any length in years( probably since year 1 or 2). Each expansion that comes out looks really fun but im either not into committing to an MMO or currently invested in something else.

With all of the content in the last several years, is it possible as a returning player (or someone new) to catch up to the rest of the player base in terms of gear, knowledge, etc... Without playing 10hours a day for months? I usually can put in 3-4 hours per day.

I would like to get back into ESO but I fear that its playerbase has already found its niche and Id be just leveling in the open world in lowbie zones for weeks or months on end.

There aren't actual 'lowbie' zones - haven't been since One Tamriel. No matter where you go, all enemies are the same (except for Craglorn and, of course, the difference between normal and vet in dungeons and trials), and as long as you are under level 50, you will be upscaled to match the CP players in terms of stats. Sure, you won't be wearing great sets while leveling and so will not have access to the set bonuses, but that's really not a big deal.

So, there's absolutely no reason for you not to come back and just have fun

ESO has a really well-designed catchup mechanism for gaining xp and champion points after you hit L50, which is fairly quick and easy in its own right. So you can get to the gear level cap (cp160) within a month or less, and then start farming better or BiS gear sets.

It lakes longer to get a fast mount unless you are willing to spend $$ in the crown store, although these days you can also trade gold with other players, who can "Gift" you crown store items like riding speed tokens, if you are good at farming gold. In any case, it may be better to focus on PvE for the first few months, until your riding speed is maxed, and only then do Cyrodiil PvP. Battlegrounds PvP can be done at any level (after L10) and Champion Points are NOT enabled, so you can participate fairly early on.

The most important thing about Best in Slot gear is that the meta changes a bit at each update, and the top elite gear (other than from vet trials) is only a TINY bit better than many other "pretty good" sets that are much easier to obtain. At the really top gear level, player skill makes a lot more difference than gear does, so you can be competitive fairly quickly with some crafted sets and a few dungeon runs (for monster helms and undaunted keys), and then work on getting gear sets that will buff you by another 10-20%. (This assumes you can level up appropriate skills already before cp160 and also earn enough skill points to unlock a lot of passives.)

Nvm, thought you said you had not played in a year.

Overland content is easy enough that you can farm the gear you need.

cesmode wrote: »

Hi,
I havent played ESO to any length in years( probably since year 1 or 2). Each expansion that comes out looks really fun but im either not into committing to an MMO or currently invested in something else.

With all of the content in the last several years, is it possible as a returning player (or someone new) to catch up to the rest of the player base in terms of gear, knowledge, etc... Without playing 10hours a day for months? I usually can put in 3-4 hours per day.

I would like to get back into ESO but I fear that its playerbase has already found its niche and Id be just leveling in the open world in lowbie zones for weeks or months on end.

Its changed soooooo much since you played.

First, the are NO lowbie zones. ESO balances every enemy (except World Bosses ) to your level. You Can't walk into much that would put you in 'over your head', so to speak. You can solo All Delves.

You no longer are forced to start in the Wailing Prison. You Choose to start that Main questline when You want to, be it level 5 or 15 or 30 or 50.

Short version, you are not going to 'feel' like you are the small fish in the pond who cannot participate in things. You can participate and contribute to lots of things, and you can level up by doing quests and exploring the things you Want to. You are literally not locked into any path.

Have fun

I read this thread because I assumed OP meant catching up completely. I was wondering not about gear or dungeons but, how long did it take you guys to do every quest, every zone and zone achievements in Tamriel. As a newish player, I am feeling completely overwhelmed with the amount of content. Training riding, research, crafting, questing, collecting skyshards, completing Mage guild and Psijic quests, I don't feel like I will ever catch up!

Langdon64 wrote: »

I read this thread because I assumed OP meant catching up completely. I was wondering not about gear or dungeons but, how long did it take you guys to do every quest, every zone and zone achievements in Tamriel. As a newish player, I am feeling completely overwhelmed with the amount of content. Training riding, research, crafting, questing, collecting skyshards, completing Mage guild and Psijic quests, I don't feel like I will ever catch up!

Get skyshard/lorebook addons if you haven't already and then just explore the world. Grab sky shards and lorebooks as it becomes convenient rather than hunting for them specifically. Otherwise it will absolutely feel like the worlds worst dredge. Eventually you'll be at the end of you content and you can go back and grab whatever you missed without feeling like there's a massive line of them.
And above all switch areas if you are bored with one, I know I hated Shadowfens story and left it several times while doing the zone.