Murkmire Celebration event - more information ("Return to Murkmire")

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

UPDATE: You'll want to start by having a look at the official announcement here: https://elderscrollsonline.com/en-us/news/post/57695 and Official Discussion thread here too, perhaps.

CORE EVENT DETAILS:

Starts Thursday, February 20, until Tuesday, March 3, i.e. a week later than my original guess. (I expect that something else internal to ZoS delayed the schedule.)
You can earn three event tickets per day, by killing and looting any boss or mob in Murkmire, with up to 39 total earnable during the event. Make sure to check your current inventory of event tickets first before you head into the swamps for the day though, and visit the Impressario to spend tickets if you have 10 or more.
You can earn special Murkmire strongboxes from almost any activity or loot in the zone. The first of each day is guaranteed and easy to get; further strongbox drops are possible but rare. The strongboxes may include motif pages as well as the voriplasm & gravestake collectible fragments (and other junk). This is a good reason to do quests in the zone during the event.
There are double drops for almost everything in the Murkmire zone during the event (daily repeatable quests and nodes etc.), EXCEPT scuttleblooms and other random-reward harvestables (e.g. mudcrabs, butterflies, blackflies). BlackRose Prison will give bonus drops from bosses (double weapon drops have been confirmed!), but it's unclear if this includes the honorguard motif pages.
A bunch of PC players will be offline for a while when Update 25 is released on Monday, February 24, due to the required complete reinstall of the game. (Check your download limits with your internet provider, if necessary). This is probably why there is a high total number of event tickets obtainable. The scheduling of this event is not good for PC players, but may be an indirect apology by ZoS to the Console players, who had a lot of problems during the previous event. Note that PC players may also have broken addons for a few days - use Minion to update your addons daily.

Original speculations about the Murkmire Event:

As hinted at in the Crown Store preview article for February, we will have a Murkmire Celebration event this month. The most likely dates for this event from Thursday, February 13, until Monday, February 24 (assuming the usual ZoS event scheduling). This hints at a February 24 release date for the new Harrowstorm DLC. (Update: Feb 24 was confirmed in this announcement, although March 10 for consoles: https://elderscrollsonline.com/en-us/news/post/57675)

Note that the Murkmire event schedule will depend on the planned release date of the new DLC release. Because of the expected long download period (Update 25 is a full reinstall), it would be unfair to have an event running at the time of when a lot of players may be offline for several days. (This is also why there is no last week of daily login rewards for February.)

From the v5.2.3 PTS patch notes back in October 2019:

New this year, you can return to the home of the Argonians.
Earn up to 2 Event Tickets per day from bosses and monsters throughout the zone. (?? Not clear how you earn them, I would assume from any daily quest, or maybe just first mob killed?)

Bosses and quests will have rewards doubled, as will daily quests reward boxes.

You will also have a chance to earn a Murkmire Strongbox once per day from the following sources:
Killing basepop monsters ("trash")

Killing Bosses

Opening Treasure Chests

Opening Safeboxes

Found in interactable objects (i.e. Scuttleblooms, or urns/backpacks?)

Opening Psijic Portals

Opening Thieves Troves

Harvesting resource nodes

Rewards available from drops, Murkmire Strongboxes, and offerings from the Impresario include:
Voriplasm Pet Fragments

Grave Stake Memento Fragments

I had assumed that the Murkmire event would include double resource node drops (possibly including Scuttleblooms), but this was not mentioned in the PTS notes - we will have to wait for the official announcement (probably coming out on Wednesday, February 12). My guess is that there will also be a discount on the purchase of the Murkmire DLC in the crown store. The Lakemire Xanmeer Manor in Murkmire will likely also be available for sale for a limited period in the Crown Store (and yes it's expensive). The impressario will also have a new Spectral Berry for sale of course.

Recommended ways to prepare for the Murkmire event:

use the upcoming week before the event starts to catch up on or finish other zone questlines, or collect the materials from any surveys that you saved away
You need ESO+ or ownership of the Murkmire DLC to get event tickets and bonus loot. The Murkmire DLC will be "on sale" (I assume at a discounted price) in the crown store during the event (crowns required), or check if you can "buy" a gift of the DLC from another player by trading gold with them.
Equip your questing character with some fast-sneak gear (if they are not a stage 4 vampire), like Night's Silence or The Shadow Dancer. (Reduced sneak detection radius sets such as Darloc Brae or Night Terror can also be useful.) Scuttleblooms can only be plucked when your character is sneaking, have a tiny <1%(?) chance of dropping a scuttlebloom animated flower furnishing, and give a movement bonus for the next three minutes.
New: if starting the main questline for this zone, carry Lockpicks and be prepared to open some locks quickly during the initial Xanmeer Temple raid - the last part of the first quest is a timed escape with bonus loot if you have time. It helps to have Legerdemain maxed and the Locksmith passive maxed to just force locks open. (It's a gorgeous adventure though!)
There are two delves and two World Bosses in this zone, and most are not conveniently located near a wayshrine. The shareable daily repeatable quests for these (6 each) are available as soon as you enter the zone - look for the "Death Hunt Awaits" notice on an arch post just south of the guild traders in Lilmoth, and turn that quest in. It's probably a good idea to explore the zone a bit in advance to unlock the wayshrines before the event starts, especially if you are not in any large guilds. A fast riding speed is also useful - keep visiting that stablemaster daily if you are on a new character!
One of the three daily repeatable quests only unlocks after you have completed the zone main questline. You can get started on the questline early if you want to increase your rewards from those daily repeatables during the event (more chances of motif pages), or wait until the event starts if you prefer double rewards from the questing.
on PC, addons such as Map Pins (to show zone collectible locations on the map), BeamMeUp Teleporter (to port to guildmates in the zone), or Harvest Map can be useful. Master Merchant and Tamriel Trade Center addons are also useful to give you an idea of how valuable items might be, if you have a guild trader to sell rare items. Note that GREEN Murkmire furnishing plans are quite rare and valuable on PC/NA, so make sure to loot every container in the zone. (Blue and purple plans are even more rare, but urns with a random Murkmire plan can be bought with writ vouchers from Faustina, Rolis Hlaalu's assistant).
New: with Update 25 coming out on February 24, PC players can expect a lot of addons to break. Use Minion to update your addons early and often. In addition, Google can help you find a lot of useful acheivement locations even if the usual addon is not working at the time.
The Murkmire zone set item drops include the Bright Throat set, which can be quite valuable. Sell Bright Throat items now before the event if you have them; buy them on the cheap during the event to save and resell later? (Update: gold Brightthroat necklaces and rings were available fairly recently on the Golden, so these are not as valuable at the moment as they can be later on...)
Likewise, the Hackwing Plumage style material (mostly from daily repeatable quests and deconstructing gear found in the zone) can be valuable for crafting furniture items - try to get as much of this as possible during the event.
If you have Summerset and have not unlocked the Psijic skill line yet, you have a week or so to get started and at least complete the first Psijic quest, so that you can "see the unseen" while in murkmire. (No need to complete the Psijiic questline to prepare for Murkmire though, just the first quest.)
If you are really into role playing, create an Argonian character for the event, or create a murkmire-themed Jungle Expedition outfit for your character! If not, at least pack a whip and fedora.
Optionally, pickup the Murkmire prologue quest for the Cyrodiilic Collections company from the quest giver at the first wayshrine in Auridon, Stonefalls, or Glenumbra. There are two initial quests (including a cool quest to find a cursed gold skull!) and then some daily repeatables (the daily questgiver is near the Stormhold wayshrine in Shadowfen). These quests will all help prepare (a bit) for company expeditions into the swamps, but won't actually count for any event-related rewards. You will meet those NPCs again during the Murkmire questline. Note that the prologue gives you a Gravestake memento, and the daily repeatable quests can drop fragments of a floating jelly pet, which is very cute!
If you have not played Murkmire before, enable the game music while playing this zone - it's awesome!
The murkmire swamp is full of pestilent insects, predatory plants, and camouflaged creatures. Pay attention to the signs, and tread carefully - unless you are willing to fight a lot of trash mobs. Shadowfen is but a shadow of how hostile the deep swamp can be, but it's worth a short visit if you are unfamiliar with swamplands.

Eric_Prince · February 2020

Thanks for this little guide!
Just curious: do I have to own Murkmire? Or it will become available for everyone during this event?

Tommy_The_Gun · February 2020

One thing that bothers me is that Murkmire event may over-lap with the "game re-download" thing

NotaDaedraWorshipper · February 2020

Eric_Prince wrote: »

Thanks for this little guide!
Just curious: do I have to own Murkmire? Or it will become available for everyone during this event?

You need to own it or have ESO+.

myskyrim26 · February 2020

An awesomw guide! Thank you!

I'm in two minds about taking part... On the one hand: Scuttleblooms! Voriplasm Pet! Yay! On the other hand, I'm on Vvardenfell, Lord Vivec is in trouble, the island is in a mess and every NPC cries: do something now, Outlander, do quickly!!!
RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

Thokri · February 2020

myskyrim26 wrote: »

RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

Mercenary work. Go where pay is highest.

Only way I can justify my altmer to help lizards/other faction is because he needs gold.

Or needs fresh patch of ..ingredients for necromancer experiments and locals have started to get suspicious.

Danikat · February 2020

There should be an official announcement at some point giving more details of the event, like exactly how we get event tickets. But for some reason ZOS like to give minimal notice of events, so it will probably only be announced a day or two before it starts.

myskyrim26 wrote: »

An awesomw guide! Thank you!

I'm in two minds about taking part... On the one hand: Scuttleblooms! Voriplasm Pet! Yay! On the other hand, I'm on Vvardenfell, Lord Vivec is in trouble, the island is in a mess and every NPC cries: do something now, Outlander, do quickly!!!
RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

This is one reason I have multiple characters, including two who aren't doing the main storylines. That way when an event starts or I need to go to an area 'out of order' for some reason chances are I can find a character who is at a convenient point to stop what they're doing and head somewhere else, and where it makes sense for them to do that.

That and ESO generally requires a degree of 'selective attention', especially since they insist on adding quest givers for DLC content to the starter cities, if I went around doing all the quests as I come across them like I normally do I'd end up with a horribly jumbled mess of clashing storylines with no discernible continuity. (Like going straight from being told by the Prophet we'll have to find the traitor Abnur Tharn but no one's seen him for years to being told actually he wants to have a chat about his plan to save the world.) And when you get into the habit of ignoring some of what's going on for the sake of continuity or giving up on the pretence that the separate storylines fit together it becomes easier to ignore other things which make a mess of the game.

logarifmik · February 2020

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Optionally, pickup the Murkmire prologue quest for the Cyrodiilic Collections company from the quest giver at the first wayshrine in Auridon, Stonefalls, or Glenumbra. There are two quests and some daily repeatables (daily questgiver is near the Stormhold wayshrine in Shadowfen). These quests will all help prepare (a bit) for company expeditions into the swamps. Of course, you are mostly helping the game NPCs, not your own character... That said, you will meet those NPCs again during the Murkmire questline.

Those quests and NPCs are annoying as Oblivion itself. The one who wrote those and Lady Laurent quest for Murkmire have a sick sense of humor. Disgusting. Awful.

Just a friendly warning.

Michae · February 2020

Danikat wrote: »

There should be an official announcement at some point giving more details of the event, like exactly how we get event tickets. But for some reason ZOS like to give minimal notice of events, so it will probably only be announced a day or two before it starts.

myskyrim26 wrote: »

An awesomw guide! Thank you!

I'm in two minds about taking part... On the one hand: Scuttleblooms! Voriplasm Pet! Yay! On the other hand, I'm on Vvardenfell, Lord Vivec is in trouble, the island is in a mess and every NPC cries: do something now, Outlander, do quickly!!!
RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

This is one reason I have multiple characters, including two who aren't doing the main storylines. That way when an event starts or I need to go to an area 'out of order' for some reason chances are I can find a character who is at a convenient point to stop what they're doing and head somewhere else, and where it makes sense for them to do that.

That and ESO generally requires a degree of 'selective attention', especially since they insist on adding quest givers for DLC content to the starter cities, if I went around doing all the quests as I come across them like I normally do I'd end up with a horribly jumbled mess of clashing storylines with no discernible continuity. (Like going straight from being told by the Prophet we'll have to find the traitor Abnur Tharn but no one's seen him for years to being told actually he wants to have a chat about his plan to save the world.) And when you get into the habit of ignoring some of what's going on for the sake of continuity or giving up on the pretence that the separate storylines fit together it becomes easier to ignore other things which make a mess of the game.

I just compartmentalize. There are things I do "in character" like quests and such, and then there are things I do "out of character", like events. You really can't make sense in running the same daily quest for a week or two rp wise. So I just return to quests when I have time, change costume to fit what I'm doing and don't get bothered by breaking the rp.

doomette · February 2020

logarifmik wrote: »

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Optionally, pickup the Murkmire prologue quest for the Cyrodiilic Collections company from the quest giver at the first wayshrine in Auridon, Stonefalls, or Glenumbra. There are two quests and some daily repeatables (daily questgiver is near the Stormhold wayshrine in Shadowfen). These quests will all help prepare (a bit) for company expeditions into the swamps. Of course, you are mostly helping the game NPCs, not your own character... That said, you will meet those NPCs again during the Murkmire questline.

Those quests and NPCs are annoying as Oblivion itself. The one who wrote those and Lady Laurent quest for Murkmire have a sick sense of humor. Disgusting. Awful.

Just a friendly warning.

I guess I do too because I chuckled. Was not expecting that to happen (just something generally awful for poor Stibbons).

doomette · February 2020

I learned the hard way to not trust the glowing plants. Sure the b-slap cabbage didn’t do a lot of damage, but having not read anything about the place before I went there, I was quite surprised when the enticingly glowing plant thwapped me. Heck, I was even distrustful of scuttleooms for a while after that, those shifty boogers. Then I learned about the furnishing and well...those poor scuttlebloom.

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

myskyrim26 wrote: »

An awesomw guide! Thank you!

I'm in two minds about taking part... On the one hand: Scuttleblooms! Voriplasm Pet! Yay! On the other hand, I'm on Vvardenfell, Lord Vivec is in trouble, the island is in a mess and every NPC cries: do something now, Outlander, do quickly!!!
RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

@myskyrim26 , you have at least a week to help out Lord Vivec before the Murkmire event starts. It's easy enough to finish the main questline during that time. Warning: the optional side quests in Balmora and Sadrith Mora grant a skill point when you complete them, but are both very long questlines - the Sun in Shadow questline is worse though, if you decide to do one. You meet an important NPC in the Balmora questline, who shows up again in the Summerset questline, and it may be interesting to do that before you do Summerset.

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

Eric_Prince wrote: »

Thanks for this little guide!
Just curious: do I have to own Murkmire? Or it will become available for everyone during this event?

You need to own it or have ESO+.

Good point - I have added this into the list of preparation steps. As a long-time player, I just keep assuming that everyone has all the DLC already... oops!

Iccotak · February 2020

Imagine if they could pull this off in a Black Marsh zone

Kong 2017 Bamboo Spider

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goE_3620-34

King Kong 2005 Deleted Swamp scene

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfZyyRHoUXU

King Kong 2005 Bug Pit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9L7WcdvHvA

Infixo · February 2020

How much time does it take to finish the main quest-line from Murkmire?

HappyTheCamper · February 2020

Iccotak wrote: »

Imagine if they could pull this off in a Black Marsh zone

Kong 2017 Bamboo Spider
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goE_3620-34

King Kong 2005 Deleted Swamp scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfZyyRHoUXU

King Kong 2005 Bug Pit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9L7WcdvHvA

That middle one is just like the old loading screen for Murkmire

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

Infixo wrote: »

How much time does it take to finish the main quest-line from Murkmire?

@Infixo IIRC, there are 8 quests in the main questline, and each takes about 30+ minutes to complete, or a bit longer if you explore the scenery along the way or enjoy the dialogues. It's easy to get sucked in to side quests along the way; if you want to do all the side quests, then pick them up as you see them but focus on the main questline. The main questline will usually take you to the vicinity of other quest locations too at some point.

Aptonoth · February 2020

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Infixo wrote: »

How much time does it take to finish the main quest-line from Murkmire?

@Infixo IIRC, there are 8 quests in the questline, and each takes about 20-30 minutes to complete, or a bit longer if you explore the scenery along the way or enjoy the dialogues.

Too short for an amazing glimpse of black marsh.

chuck-18_ESO · February 2020

myskyrim26 wrote: »

RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

Different reasons for different characters!

My main character is a contract-scholar; he goes where the contracts send him, and researches whatever he's been hired to research. It's a remarkably convenient way to justify his many travels.

The other character I do a lot of questing on is a vampire, so I like to imagine he just enjoys a change of diet now and again.

Kahnak · February 2020

I think these event posts go underappreciated.

Thank you for your time and effort in providing a secondary source for this information.

Pauls · February 2020

I think we can expect double arena drops too?

ThePlayer · February 2020

But not was the Morrowind event before? they skip it?...

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

Pauls wrote: »

I think we can expect double arena drops too?

@Pauls
Good question - we won't know until the official announcement, but don't hold your breath. I'm assuming you mean the Blackrose Prison?
Typically in previous other DLC zone celebration events, you only get double drops of the STYLE material associated with the trial in the zone, e.g. whiskers for the Maw of Lorkhaj trial (Thieves Guild DLC); or Asylum Sanctorum (Clockwork City). Even worse, the new HonorGuard motif pages will only start dropping from February 24 onwards, i.e. after the event is over.
There is a chance that there might be double drops of the HonorGuard motif pages during the event, or at least an increased chance of the pages dropping. As pointed out below by @Acrolas, the motif pages have been available for a while now.

doomette · February 2020

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Pauls wrote: »

I think we can expect double arena drops too?

@Pauls
Good question - we won't know until the official announcement, but don't hold your breath. I'm assuming you mean the Blackrose Prison?
Typically in previous other DLC zone celebration events, you only get double drops of the STYLE material associated with the trial in the zone, e.g. whiskers for the Maw of Lorkhaj trial (Thieves Guild DLC); or Asylum Sanctorum (Clockwork City). Even worse, the new HonorGuard motif pages will only start dropping from February 24 onwards, i.e. after the event is over. So, by all means take a run or two at BRP to get into the mechanics and learn how to complete it, but the serious farming will only start when Update 25 is released.

Hmm, but it’s an arena and we got double drops in MA during the Wrothgar event

Acrolas · February 2020

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Even worse, the new HonorGuard motif pages will only start dropping from February 24 onwards, i.e. after the event is over. So, by all means take a run or two at BRP to get into the mechanics and learn how to complete it, but the serious farming will only start when Update 25 is released.

Honor Guard pages have been available to obtain in BRP since May 15, 2019, rarely on Normal and guaranteed on Veteran.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/474154/when-will-the-honor-guard-motif-start-dropping-from-blackrose-prison

Pyr0xyrecuprotite · February 2020

Acrolas wrote: »

Pyr0xyrecuprotite wrote: »

Even worse, the new HonorGuard motif pages will only start dropping from February 24 onwards, i.e. after the event is over. So, by all means take a run or two at BRP to get into the mechanics and learn how to complete it, but the serious farming will only start when Update 25 is released.

Honor Guard pages have been available to obtain in BRP since May 15, 2019, rarely on Normal and guaranteed on Veteran.

https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/474154/when-will-the-honor-guard-motif-start-dropping-from-blackrose-prison

My bad, you are totally correct, I just mis-remembered that part of the February Crown store preview. What's happening is that the Honor Guard motif will be available in the Crown store later this month - which is kinda mostly irrelevant for the purposes of this event.

1mirg · February 2020

this event honestly just sounds like the developers are trying to get more people questing through Murkmire.

Starlock · February 2020

1mirg wrote: »

this event honestly just sounds like the developers are trying to get more people questing through Murkmire.

Maybe, maybe not. Frankly, the worst time to do questing in a zone is when there’s an event. Overcrowded, lots of immersion breaking, and more annoying zone chat than usual.

No, they’ve been doing these events for a long time. They used to be mainly just for fun, but they’ve been monetized now, unfortunately. Cash shop sales are now the driving reason for doing them, most likely. Especially of those strongboxes are one a day, players won’t be able to complete the collectibles without paying to win them. It is probably 10 fragments to assemble and it’s doubtful the event will run 20 days.

emilyhyoyeon · February 2020

chuck-18_ESO wrote: »

myskyrim26 wrote: »

RP players, how do you "justify" leaving your current missions and zones?

Different reasons for different characters!

My main character is a contract-scholar; he goes where the contracts send him, and researches whatever he's been hired to research. It's a remarkably convenient way to justify his many travels.

The other character I do a lot of questing on is a vampire, so I like to imagine he just enjoys a change of diet now and again.

I do essentially the same thing with my assassin who is my character with whom I do most of the questing. She's a contract-assassin which works out really well in the way that you can imagine weighty contracts on the heads of most of the quest antagonists. Since she's an assassin she's also a master at stealth which is also good for rping something like a scouting/spy assignment in the cases where she doesn't kill anyone.

Although for events, I usually do what someone else has mentioned where I just don't REALLY rp when doing events.

Aptonoth · February 2020

Man I am hyped for any reason to go back to Murkmire and also get a slime pet without spending cash. Also Xanmeer crates and Lake Xanmeer manor its a sign from the hist.

Nerouyn · February 2020

Danikat wrote: »

But for some reason ZOS like to give minimal notice of events, so it will probably only be announced a day or two before it starts.

[snip]

Danikat wrote: »

This is one reason I have multiple characters, including two who aren't doing the main storylines. That way when an event starts or I need to go to an area 'out of order' for some reason chances are I can find a character who is at a convenient point to stop what they're doing and head somewhere else, and where it makes sense for them to do that.

This is what I eventually resorted to. I have one sacrificial lamb character to throw at events like this. He's quite out of order.

I have another character I could possibly rush through the remainder of clockwork city and summerset before this, but rushing the story is a great way to not enjoy it.

Edit for bashing.