Where do you think the next zone is going to be? And what the topic will be about?

TheGent · November 2022

I just want more dark and gritty stuff. Anything that involves the 4 abominations will be great. That's why High Isle didn't interest me at all, had no interest what so ever in petty domestic issues when there's demons, vampires, daedra, dragons, undead etc...

TaSheen · November 2022

No dark and gritty. Ugh. No thank you. I want the rest of Hammerfell -- sunlight, desert, and the swampy green areas no one but me seems to know about.....

phaneub17_ESO · November 2022

Bosmer war on the cats.

DivineKitty · November 2022

yeah, no more vampires, there been like, 4 zones about vampires, and at least 5 dungeons, and if i have to stake another vampire ever again, I'm going someplace sunny and never coming back.

Give us something with Wood elves. Personally, I wouldn't mind finding out where Falinesti went. At the very least, we need another Wood elf style. There are literally 2 Bosmer motifs, total

roqueforty · November 2022

Central Skyrim, East Morrowind and the rest of Alik'r have entered the chat.

TheGent · November 2022

i dont care what it is as long as it isnt just a bunch of humanoids fighting one another again

KingArthasMenethil · November 2022

Some NPCs in Galen and High Isle if I recall talk of the Telvanni Peninsula post main quest if I recall so it could be a hint for going to the Telvanni who will be unique given their whole deal with might makes right

LikiLoki · November 2022

The main thing is that there are no global problems. Saving the world is so boring. A lot of everyday tasks are better. I'm more interested in looking for a missing cat than fighting with your supervillains

Lucjan · November 2022

Getting the rest of Skyrim would be great. Me wants Whiterun

For a while I believed they don't want to touch it with a ten foot pole, because it would be very hard to meet the expectations, but after I've seen Solitude I'm sure the team would do an amazing job.

RaddlemanNumber7 · November 2022

I'd like Necrom, with the necropoli all getting out of control. All kinds of undead climbing out of the ground trying to chew the faces off the living. The sun permanently blotted out by clouds of volcanic ash. An incursion by lots strange beasties from Akavir. A covert turf war between the Dark Brotherhood and the Morag Tong. That style of thing.

robwolf666 · November 2022

Whiterun and the areas to the north and south to nicely fill in that area of the map. Maybe giving us something awesome to do on the Throat of the World via a different access point on the Whiterun side.

Danikat · November 2022

I agree with the people saying that something more personal would be interesting, rather than big, grand but distant threats of total destruction which we know from the start are going to be completely prevented because they can't make significant changes to the existing game world. There's nothing wrong with that type of story in general but it's been done multiple times in this game and there's only so many variations you can get before they all start to run together.

As for where I'd like them to continue filling in bits of the map which are currently missing, but I'm more curious about places we haven't been before (at least since Arena) or don't know much about than areas like Central Skyrim which were covered in detail relatively recently. Although eventually I'd like the whole Tamriel map to be filled.

At some point I'd love to go to Akavir, but only if ZOS can do it justice. It's supposed to be a massive continent, possibly bigger than Tamriel, and I'd rather they do nothing with it than try to cram it all into one chapter + a story DLC. Considering Akavir is also split into several nations with different races in each maybe we could explore one small part of it - like joining an expedition trying to establish trade with one nation and just visit part of their lands.

Another idea I like is a release which instead of 1 big map gives us a few small ones in the gaps between existing maps. That could also work with a more politically focused storyline because we could be going between different factions.

TaSheen wrote: »

No dark and gritty. Ugh. No thank you. I want the rest of Hammerfell -- sunlight, desert, and the swampy green areas no one but me seems to know about.....

Considering there's a huge area of marshland in Iraq and Iran (which used to be even bigger) I think it's entirely possible there could be a similar habitat somewhere in Hammerfell.

KingArthasMenethil · November 2022

Danikat wrote: »

I agree with the people saying that something more personal would be interesting, rather than big, grand but distant threats of total destruction which we know from the start are going to be completely prevented because they can't make significant changes to the existing game world. There's nothing wrong with that type of story in general but it's been done multiple times in this game and there's only so many variations you can get before they all start to run together.

At some point I'd love to go to Akavir, but only if ZOS can do it justice. It's supposed to be a massive continent, possibly bigger than Tamriel, and I'd rather they do nothing with it than try to cram it all into one chapter + a story DLC. Considering Akavir is also split into several nations with different races in each maybe we could explore one small part of it - like joining an expedition trying to establish trade with one nation and just visit part of their lands.

Honestly I don't see TES going to Akavir. The writing in general for TES has kept nearly everything about it mysterious to the very point we have no idea what the races look like despite going to Cyrodiil (rip Nibenese culture TES is never going to bother with you), Rimmen and being so close to an Akaviri invasion that we can interact with veterans and we still not know anything about the Kamal and Tsaesci (and the Kamal are still meant to be around as they turn up later to conquer Cyrodiil with help from an independent Rimmen. TES is deliberately keeping Akavir mysterious so we're not going there.

I don't think ZoS can get away from the whole threats of total destruction as it's like they cannot help it.

Triplesixtyson · November 2022

I would like somthing very dark/evil. Lots of fantasical colors mixed in. The light and sunny zones like high isle dont apppeal to me as much. Whatever it is though, it needs to be a big open zone with different vibes throughout (deadlands was great for this). Unfortunately we have a ways to go but its fun reading everyones opinions. Great topic!

Treeshka · November 2022

Black Marsh.

Billium813 · November 2022

When ZOS does complete Southern Hammerfell / Western Cyrodiil, here are some ideas:

Introduce a new Monk class and/or Unhanded skill line. Have them use "Earth" and fire elemental damage, grapples (essentially stuns), kicks, and agility.
Incorporate a Thieving Guild update and bring in the Hew's Bane aesthetic. Make the area pretty lawless, with hiding baskets, wandering lantern guards, and a night-time curfew mechanic. Bring in plenty of hookshot poles and roof running and agility shortcuts.
Make the zone day/night dynamic. Have monsters and bosses completely change mechanics, drops, and/or availability depending on the time of day (like a desert).
Have a wandering Caravan mechanic where players have to protect a trader caravan. Place it in a Sand Storm puzzle where multiple players have to work together to navigate; using their positioning to find their way through the shifting dunes. Sand wurms and wind gusts attack the caravan, blowing characters around and threating the caravan. Use the caravan wagon/camels for cover and distance from the group reduces movement speed (make movement speed important)
Incorporate tomb raiding (some sort of "Dungeoneering" skill). Make delves have multiple difficulty floors and "Dungeoneering" be a skill you need to progress to gain access to different rooms/levels. Revamp "Treasure" items by having them be an alternative zone currency (clean/laundered ones of course) and found while Dungeoneering. Make Mythic Treasures tradable to wandering artists (which appear in random locations around the zone) for zone crafting recipes.

Treselegant · November 2022

While I wouldn't go so far as to say I want 'gritty' I'd definitely be supportive of the game leaving its current 'vibe' behind. Right now, it all feels like Elder Scrolls Disneyland, everything is lovely and everything will always be fine. There's no risk in the story and so no tension. The last two expansions felt like being on being on a park ride - you arrive, you see the sights, see some famous reoccuring characters before you get to watch a completely safe story event and then get off the ride. It also feels like the kind of ride you've been on before even if you've never been on that particular one.

I started Firesong this week and found myself already noticing the kind of thing I've seen before. There's no subtlety there: all goodies are goodies, all baddies are baddies (unless they were pretending to be good but it's pretty obvious who these characters are from the start) and all will turn out well in the end. It's like watching a kid's cartoon at times with the exception being when the writing tries to be 'mature' only to end up sounding like a 12 year old's idea of racy. Firesong even has a notoriously contrived fan fiction trope in one of its side quests and fails to make it funny or sexy. I really felt for the VAs who had to voice that one.

Going forward, it doesn't have to vampires/werewolves or daedra, but they do need to start treating the audience as intellegent grown ups playing a game based in a game world where bad things can happen. I don't even care where they set it at this point - I just want someone to get a grip on the writing

Billium813 · November 2022

My single biggest issue with current zone design is that it's stale. Wayshrines, Delves, WBs, quests, dolmens, even the "new" WWBs are all played out. Every zone blurs together to look and feel almost the same, just with a different skin. Yes, one zone has daedra and another has crab monsters and another has ice monsters and another has lava monsters. It's all skin deep! Even if they did add something new, I'm sure it would be exceedingly minor and safe (like WWBs or Daedra portals). They could never take a risk and build a completely new zone archetype, they would only make one or two very minor additions (like adding a new delve type cause that's just a doorway to a new area and it's reallllllly safe to design)

Whatever they do, the next zone needs a major shakeup, like partial PvP (now that sounds lawless) or integrated co-op. I know that PvP is one of those things that people claim to want, but the larger community doesn't. It's a risk cause it will end up alienating the silent 80% that play the game for a solo experience. But if you integrate agility, hookshots, basket hiding, it could be a fun, stealthy, dynamic zone mechanic that non-PvP players can navigate with wit and agility; and PvP players can navigate with brute force and builds. I think there is a happy medium if they just planned it out.

If they release the next zone and it's just another reskin of everything else, but this time it's sand monsters and Wandering Wurm bosses, they're gonna lose more players. Zone design and the story quest is getting to be a big yawn at this point.

worrallj · November 2022

I would like a new pvp zone.

Treselegant wrote: »

While I wouldn't go so far as to say I want 'gritty' I'd definitely be supportive of the game leaving its current 'vibe' behind. Right now, it all feels like Elder Scrolls Disneyland, everything is lovely and everything will always be fine. There's no risk in the story and so no tension. The last two expansions felt like being on being on a park ride - you arrive, you see the sights, see some famous reoccuring characters before you get to watch a completely safe story event and then get off the ride. It also feels like the kind of ride you've been on before even if you've never been on that particular one.

I started Firesong this week and found myself already noticing the kind of thing I've seen before. There's no subtlety there: all goodies are goodies, all baddies are baddies (unless they were pretending to be good but it's pretty obvious who these characters are from the start) and all will turn out well in the end. It's like watching a kid's cartoon at times with the exception being when the writing tries to be 'mature' only to end up sounding like a 12 year old's idea of racy. Firesong even has a notoriously contrived fan fiction trope in one of its side quests and fails to make it funny or sexy. I really felt for the VAs who had to voice that one.

Going forward, it doesn't have to vampires/werewolves or daedra, but they do need to start treating the audience as intellegent grown ups playing a game based in a game world where bad things can happen. I don't even care where they set it at this point - I just want someone to get a grip on the writing

I agree, even when the topic is "gritty" (greymoor etc) it doesn't pull you in or make it feel like there's any stakes. I find the dialogue rambling and unfocused, and I feel like I'm just the NPCs sidekick while they are the ones progressing the story and I just watch.

LukosCreyden · November 2022

Billium813 wrote: »

When ZOS does complete Southern Hammerfell / Western Cyrodiil, here are some ideas:
Introduce a new Monk class and/or Unhanded skill line. Have them use "Earth" and fire elemental damage...

Dragonknight. You just asked for Dragonknight.
I agree with a new class or skill line idea, but its aesthetics need to be different from what we already have.

Billium813 · November 2022

LukosCreyden wrote: »

Billium813 wrote: »

When ZOS does complete Southern Hammerfell / Western Cyrodiil, here are some ideas:
Introduce a new Monk class and/or Unhanded skill line. Have them use "Earth" and fire elemental damage...

Dragonknight. You just asked for Dragonknight.
I agree with a new class or skill line idea, but its aesthetics need to be different from what we already have.

Lol, ok fair enough, maybe different elemental types. I don't mind pulling several ideas from other classes, but I don't mean to just make it a reskin of DK.

When I think of a Monk class, I think of Pyroturge Encratis from Black Drake Villa with his fire storms and AOEs, plus I wanted to splash in some earthbending because punches and kicks feel earth based more than other elements and Southern Hammerfell is more of a desert/scrub biome. I didn't want Frost or Dark magic because of Warden and Necro, and Sorcerer seems to have Lightning covered. Maybe Monk could just be more fire based with AOEs and summoned flame weapons/armor? I hadn't actually hammered out the 3 skill lines for the class. It's tough cause I kind of want Monk to have Sorcerer's Lightning Form, DK's Flame Whip, and Templar's ground AOEs.

For an Unhanded skill line though, I don't see why Earth magic based would be bad. It would be distinct from the Staves at least.

Beilin_Balreis_Colcan · November 2022

Lucjan wrote: »

Getting the rest of Skyrim would be great. Me wants Whiterun
For a while I believed they don't want to touch it with a ten foot pole, because it would be very hard to meet the expectations, but after I've seen Solitude I'm sure the team would do an amazing job.

I'd like to see Winterhold, pre-Great Collapse.

boi_anachronism_ · November 2022

Treselegant wrote: »

While I wouldn't go so far as to say I want 'gritty' I'd definitely be supportive of the game leaving its current 'vibe' behind. Right now, it all feels like Elder Scrolls Disneyland, everything is lovely and everything will always be fine. There's no risk in the story and so no tension. The last two expansions felt like being on being on a park ride - you arrive, you see the sights, see some famous reoccuring characters before you get to watch a completely safe story event and then get off the ride. It also feels like the kind of ride you've been on before even if you've never been on that particular one.

I started Firesong this week and found myself already noticing the kind of thing I've seen before. There's no subtlety there: all goodies are goodies, all baddies are baddies (unless they were pretending to be good but it's pretty obvious who these characters are from the start) and all will turn out well in the end. It's like watching a kid's cartoon at times with the exception being when the writing tries to be 'mature' only to end up sounding like a 12 year old's idea of racy. Firesong even has a notoriously contrived fan fiction trope in one of its side quests and fails to make it funny or sexy. I really felt for the VAs who had to voice that one.

Going forward, it doesn't have to vampires/werewolves or daedra, but they do need to start treating the audience as intellegent grown ups playing a game based in a game world where bad things can happen. I don't even care where they set it at this point - I just want someone to get a grip on the writing

Ok so this brings up an interesting point. One of my favorite quests was in the crypt public dungeon in deshaan. Why? Well there is a single innocuous choice that you can make that will end with a character potentially getting killed, one I liked too. It felt more real. It made me think and I had a moment in the pit of my stomach where I was just like... Oh God, no.. It's what a lot of people like about elden ring. You can absolutely ruin an npcs life by just trying to do the right thing. Like the best of intentions. And thats the real. I'd like to see more of that. A bit more. Grit I guess.

jtm1018 · November 2022

Ok, what I want to see in new content or whatever.
1. Bare-handed skill line. (Its so annoying fighting bare handed, we really could use some skill while not carrying any weapons.)
2. Fighter/monk skill line. (Just to add to bare handed fighting idea, specialized technique while fighting without weapon.
3. High elf companion will be very much appreciated, wood elf are also welcome of course.
4. A new awesome mythic?

Billium813 · November 2022

jtm1018 wrote: »

4. A new awesome mythic?

Meh, we get those every DLC. A new Antiquities mount like the Ebon Wolf would be nice though, but I also like the crafting station and music boxes they have been releasing too.

TaSheen · November 2022

TheGent wrote: »

i dont care what it is as long as it isnt just a bunch of humanoids fighting one another again

?? The entirety of TES is various "humanoids" contending for territory. What do you think is going to happen otherwise? Sheesh.

Beilin_Balreis_Colcan · November 2022

Perhaps the next update could shake things up a bit with some odd characters, e.g. vegetarian bosmer, pacifist orc.

looshora · November 2022

I'd honestly just like a break from the year-long story xD
But I feel Telvanni Peninsula, or.... at least hope it's that. As for story? Couldn't guess, magic gone awry, Dunmeri politics, perhaps something with Boethiah?
Doesn't matter I'm in it for the Zone itself.

TaSheen · November 2022

SO not interested in anything Dunmer. Give me anything but, please.

roqueforty · November 2022

Idc what it would be, as long as it's interesting AND playable, unlike certain releases.

But getting the rest of Alik'r or Skyrim would be great.

DP99 · November 2022

I just don't want any more storylines where in the process of the year long story, you do a bunch of stuff setting up the plot in the first half of the DLC and it ends on a cliffhanger, and then you get the second half and it's a bunch of seemingly unrelated stuff that is somehow revealed at the very end to actually be completely related!

Legacy of the Bretons is exactly like this and last year's story with Blackwood and Dagon was exactly the same as well.

I enjoyed the Blackwood story more than the High Isle/Firesong one this year, but it's been two years in a row with a storyline that misdirects you too much with extra stuff from out of left field before telling you that it's all really connected somehow by an NPC that has been absent for a long time to just show up out of the blue with "new revelations!"

I much rather enjoyed previous storylines that were consistent all throughout one zone with one continuous story.