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I'm tired of soloing all the time.

  • Faltasë
    Faltasë
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Faltasë wrote: »
    It's kind of the curse of ESO. They attached themselves to a popular single player "RPG" so of course people in this game are going to have a problem with joining groups or being social lol.

    I don't think players have a problem joining groups or being social. It's just not efficient to do things like quest while grouped. It's difficult to complete quests when those in the group are on different quests or different phases of a quest.

    That's kind of what I mean, the game is basically oriented towards single player TES fans because of how its structured. The quests are usually separate instances, because they know their player base has a lot of solo players.

    But it also has a LOT of content for grouping. World Bosses, Zone events such as Harrowstorms, Dungeons, Trials, Arenas, Bastion Nymics, etc.. But just like in real life, not everything needs to be grouped for.

    Yeah but that's not the same as orienting your game to be more enjoyable with solo play. You can have a focus on one while still having both types of events, but it doesn't make the focus untrue. I mean they're even making solo dungeons, because group coordination to do and pay attention to quests in dungeons are so bad.

    XBOX 2015-2019
    PC-NA 2019-2022, 2025-present

    Please keep fixing the combat. It's good to fix the combat.

    Auri-El is the one true God.
  • ADarklore
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    killians66 wrote: »
    A large chunk of the player base prefers solo play so one must be careful not to drive us away. ESO is quite solo friendly - if it was not, I'd be gone.

    I wanted to chime in and agree. I've been soloing in MMOs for decades and I always solo. I have no problem with providing various kinds of content that caters to grouping, raiding, guilds, etc. Just please don't make ESO solo-unfriendly as that would make me abandon this game entirely, and I've been playing on and off since inception.

    Then why aren't you just playing Skyrim on you own single player computer?

    Based on some of your replies, I can see where the problem truly lies, and it's not with the other players of ESO.
    CP: 2130 ** ESO+ ** ~~ ***** Strictly a solo PvE quester *****
    ~~Started Playing: May 2015 | Stopped Playing: July 2025 | Returned: March 2026~~
  • SilverBride
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Yeah but that's not the same as orienting your game to be more enjoyable with solo play. You can have a focus on one while still having both types of events, but it doesn't make the focus untrue. I mean they're even making solo dungeons, because group coordination to do and pay attention to quests in dungeons are so bad.

    Questing through the story is a big part of what this game is was. Questing is best done solo. How else could that be done?

    A friend and I once decided to make characters to level up together in a different game, but it got really old when I was in the mood to play mine but he wasn't on etc.. It just doesn't work as a group.
    Edited by SilverBride on April 12, 2026 4:34PM
    PCNA
  • Faltasë
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Yeah but that's not the same as orienting your game to be more enjoyable with solo play. You can have a focus on one while still having both types of events, but it doesn't make the focus untrue. I mean they're even making solo dungeons, because group coordination to do and pay attention to quests in dungeons are so bad.

    Questing through the story is a big part of what this game is was. Questing is best done solo. How else could that be done?

    A friend and I once decided to make characters to level up together in a different game, but it got really old when I was in the mood to play mine but he wasn't on etc.. It just doesn't work as a group.

    That's not what I'm saying.

    XBOX 2015-2019
    PC-NA 2019-2022, 2025-present

    Please keep fixing the combat. It's good to fix the combat.

    Auri-El is the one true God.
  • valenwood_vegan
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    Ah another one of these "must snarkily reply to every comment that disagrees in any way" threads. I think I see the issue here. Good luck.
    Edited by valenwood_vegan on April 12, 2026 5:03PM
  • LootAllTheStuff
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    killians66 wrote: »
    A large chunk of the player base prefers solo play so one must be careful not to drive us away. ESO is quite solo friendly - if it was not, I'd be gone.

    I wanted to chime in and agree. I've been soloing in MMOs for decades and I always solo. I have no problem with providing various kinds of content that caters to grouping, raiding, guilds, etc. Just please don't make ESO solo-unfriendly as that would make me abandon this game entirely, and I've been playing on and off since inception.

    Then why aren't you just playing Skyrim on you own single player computer?

    I am not the OP, but the reason that I am playing ESO now and not Skyrim is that, after the 50th character you start off as something new that ends up as a stealth archer, it's really nice to have something new to do.

    (This response is partially tongue-in-check, partially accurate)
  • killians66
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Xarc wrote: »
    so true.

    There's the same problem in cyrodiil. Nobody wants to group.
    I think people want to be free and dont want to follow orders of someone

    However, the groups are still beautiful and bring out the interest of the MMO.

    It's kind of the curse of ESO. They attached themselves to a popular single player "RPG" so of course people in this game are going to have a problem with joining groups or being social lol.

    Yes, I totally agree with this. All the shadow lurkers who play single player home games, and playing Skryim, thought they would come out of hiding and play an MMO without even knowing what an MMO is. And Zenimax just created an online skyrim single player game it's a joke. Look how fast players flock to new games when they come out, because true MMOer's are dying for a replacement to ESO. And leave this large scale solo game behind.
  • BXR_Lonestar
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    If you want to do group content and make friends, the best thing for you to do is join a guild, or LFG in zone. You may also be able to meet some decent people in the group activities finders, but one way or the other, if you want to meet people to play with, you are going to have to branch out and try to meet other players some way. When you meet players who are social and who get along with you, add them to your friends list so you can do content again with you later.

    If its gold mats you want though, make a crafter, make a speed setup (adept rider + jailer set + ring of the wild hunt) and go farm mats like crazy and refine. THis is a great way to make gold too if you have a trader.
  • SeaGtGruff
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    I choose to play solo most of the time, and enjoy it. There is a lot of content that's closed off from me because of my choice, but I'm okay with that.

    I also enjoy randomly helping other players who shout for help in zone chat-- if I can, which isn't always the case. I don't do it for an offered daily quest share; I usually just show up unannounced and help with the fight.

    My primary reason for playing solo most of the time (aside from wanting the freedom to run around at will) is feeling that I'm not good enough by other players' standards-- that I'm not wearing BIS gear, or using the most efficient 2-bar LA skill rotation, or playing on a META build.

    Even so, I can solo many WBs, including some challenging DLC WBs; I can solo many of the group dungeons on Normal; and I can even solo a few group dungeons on Veteran. Yes, it usually takes me a long time, and sometimes I die a few times before succeeding. So I feel like I'm good enough for myself. But I don't feel like I'm good enough for others.

    I don't know that special rewards would incentivize me to group more. I'm not really sure what would incentivize me to do so, although less proselytizing from the playerbase about BIS gear and META builds, and less vocalized disdain for 1-bar setups or 1-skill fighting or using HAs instead of LAs would probably help.

    I understand why organized trial groups who are trying to get achievements might care about what builds and skill rotations and gear set combinations their individual members are using, and why competitive PvP groups might also care about those things. But in casual grouping for the vast majority of the game's content, those things shouldn't matter as much.

    Another part of why I generally don't enjoy grouping is because the other members of a group usually expect everyone to be familiar with any mechanics and how to deal with them. If I've never run a particular group dungeon before, I'm probably not going to do very well against boss mechanics I haven't gone up against before, and that's going to make for a frustrating and unpleasant experience for everyone in the group.

    Attitudes can be different when a group dungeon is still new, because there are players who enjoy going in blind and learning to master the mechanics through repeated attempts and many wipes. But unless a group dungeon is still pretty new, it seems like everyone expects everyone else to study video guides before venturing into a group dungeon for their first time.
    I've fought mudcrabs more fearsome than me!
  • Arunei
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    killians66 wrote: »
    A large chunk of the player base prefers solo play so one must be careful not to drive us away. ESO is quite solo friendly - if it was not, I'd be gone.

    I wanted to chime in and agree. I've been soloing in MMOs for decades and I always solo. I have no problem with providing various kinds of content that caters to grouping, raiding, guilds, etc. Just please don't make ESO solo-unfriendly as that would make me abandon this game entirely, and I've been playing on and off since inception.

    Then why aren't you just playing Skyrim on you own single player computer?
    This is a really poor argument that doesn't make any points. ESO is not Skyrim. There are different quests, there are different rewards, there's a whole different combat system, they are two entirely different games but are set in the same universe, which obviously that person enjoys. Just because someone prefers to play on their own doesn't mean they aren't entitled to play an MMO. I never understood people who try to use that as a gotcha.

    You want people to group with to do content. The ONLY way you're going to RELIABLY get what you want is to either join Guilds until you find one you click with, make your own and spend time recruiting, or make use of Zone chat to ask people to group for whatever content you're wanting to do.

    Incentives will only go so far because unless they make them absolutely ridiculous, most incentives won't be enough to make the people who aren't already grouping WANT to group. Increasing rewards tied to certain things (say Transmutes from Random Dungeons) will only really continue to draw people who are ALREADY doing that content. Maybe for things like daily WB quests they could add an extra reward Box if you're grouped, but like I mentioned, unless the contents are REALLY STUPIDLY VALUABLE in some way...it just won't really convince a lot of people to group up for stuff.

    And even when people DO group for things, how long on average do they STAY grouped? Probably not very long. People knock out whatever stuff, as soon as it's done they drop group and go on their way. I also VERY rarely see people just kind of idly chat in group, as everyone is too busy focused on getting done what needs doing.

    So if you want to have access to a group of people who will want to group, stay grouped, be social in group, and have access to that on a regular basis...you need a Guild. If you don't want to put the effort into finding or making one, then you rely on the LFG tool or Zone chat and get what you get. No one in the game is entitled to other peoples' time regardless of it being an MMO or not. No one who prefers playing on their own should be expected to play with others if they're happy being a solo player (and aren't complaining about not being able to do group stuff as a solo player in an MMO of course).
    PC-NA | Been around since closed beta

    Avid RPer. Hit me up in-game @Ras_Lei if you're interested in getting together for some arr-pee shenanigans!

    RP Characters:
    Sarah Lacroix: Breton Vampire who really really REALLY likes likes learning Magick and also her Altmer husbando
    Kaalhil Swiftstrike: Tiny shapeshifting monster hunter Bosmeri lady with enough sass to kill a dragon or ten
    Gwendolyn Jenelle: Friendly healer with a coffee addiction and her own medical practice
    Krisiel: Literally crazy Werewolf, no like legit insane. She nuts
    Kiju Veran: Ex-Fighters Guild Suthay who likes to punch things and is also a spy and ALSO a Werewolf
    Niralae Elsinal: Young Altmeri woman with way too much Magicka and Vampire husbando
    Slondor: TESified Slenderman, except lazier and has more of a thing for deals than Clavicus Vile does
    Marius Vastino: Sarah's Imperial apathetic sire who likes to monologue
    Lirawyn Calatare: Traveling performer and bard who's 101% vanilla bean
    Soliril Larethian: Blind alchemist who uses animals to see and brews plagues in his spare time
  • FlameDark
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    killians66 wrote: »
    Then why aren't you just playing Skyrim on you own single player computer?

    What even argument is this? Is the beginning and end of your socializing in ESO just queuing in a dungeon and typing "tyfg" at the end? Just because someone prefers to do content by themselves does not mean that they don't enjoy the other social aspects of an MMO. Like TALKING to people. I like just having random conversations with guildies and friends in chats. I like doing random stuff with strangers. Like the one time there was this huge dance party in Kvatch and it was hilarious. Tell me how something like can happen in my single player Skyrim? Having fun with trade guild raffles, doing costume parties with RPers, dancing on bridges with random strangers, I mean there is a WHOLE world of socializing you can do in ESO that people enjoy. But content they might not like to do with strangers or friends and like doing things at their own pace and challenge. I really hate that argument of "just play a single player game" whenever anyone says they prefer to do content by themselves. ESO does not begin and end with 4 men dungeons and meta chasing. Shockingly.

    PC/NA CP 1000 - PvE
    Arondael - Level 50 Magicka Necromancer Valyndrae (MAIN) - Level 50 Magicka Sorcerer Mithaedrun - Level 50 Stamina Arcanist
  • SilverBride
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    There are enough grouping tools in the game that if someone really wants to group they can easily do so.
    PCNA
  • rockDokRock
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    That will kill trading, which is one of the last things left in this game that I enjoy.

    I create my own and do all the resource maps daily. Sorry, I have very little sympathy for traders. Obsessed with trying to diddle absolutely every last coin out of us. I look for a motif... 150k, 175k, etc. I wait, I'm patient and I get it for 45k. Screw the guys with the fantasy prices. lol. Not gonna happen. I hate traders.

    Seems a bit harsh. People set their prices too high? Don't buy their items. Fortunately, we can all farm up everything we need ourselves. No one is obligated to farm stuff up for others and then give it away or sell it cheap. That said, personally, I do list items very cheap because my primary goal is to clear inventory bloat, not to "diddle every last coin" out of other players. Everyone has different goals and values their time differently.

    Not harsh at all. I don't like having to shop around but you absolutely have to or you'll get ripped off blind. Just a time suck and I just avoid traders where I can.

    What would be useful is some sort of global search or web page with actual plugged into the system real time data so you can see what is out there. I'd probably use it more if they made it easier. I mean even selling things I need to hit 5-10 vendors to get a feel for the price so I can largely undercut to just shift the stuff I have.
    Edited by rockDokRock on April 15, 2026 11:33PM
  • spartaxoxo
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    @SeaGtGruff

    Nobody cares about builds in normal dungeons and group trials for the most part. People don't even notice. Trials groups will explain mechs too usually and if they don't want to they'll advertise it in group finder as such. A lot of people complaining on the forums about low DPS are talking about vet content, and usually the later dlc stuff not even the base game.

    If you're on PSNA, I'd be happy to help you out in dungeons sometimes and promise not to bite lol

  • SerafinaWaterstar
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    Maybe I have been lucky over the last 10 years but I have been in many fabulous guilds, that are way more than just a means of travelling.

    You just need to experiment & find the right fit. It may take a few tries, but there are such a diversity out there, you have a great chance of finding one that suits you.

    (On PS5 EU, one of my guilds got to 500 and so has to create a sister guild to manage!)
  • FlameDark
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    What would be useful is some sort of global search or web page with actual plugged into the system real time data so you can see what is out there. I'd probably use it more if they made it easier. I mean even selling things I need to hit 5-10 vendors to get a feel for the price so I can largely undercut to just shift the stuff I have.

    You mean a website that you can look up live prices for every item, where exactly they're selling them, and can organize it based on time it has been out, or by the cheapest price? You mean something like this: https://us.tamrieltradecentre.com/pc/Trade That's set to PC/NA by the way, but you can set it to any platform, and I prefer to use the advanced setting.
    PC/NA CP 1000 - PvE
    Arondael - Level 50 Magicka Necromancer Valyndrae (MAIN) - Level 50 Magicka Sorcerer Mithaedrun - Level 50 Stamina Arcanist
  • Orbital78
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    FlameDark wrote: »
    What would be useful is some sort of global search or web page with actual plugged into the system real time data so you can see what is out there. I'd probably use it more if they made it easier. I mean even selling things I need to hit 5-10 vendors to get a feel for the price so I can largely undercut to just shift the stuff I have.

    You mean a website that you can look up live prices for every item, where exactly they're selling them, and can organize it based on time it has been out, or by the cheapest price? You mean something like this: https://us.tamrieltradecentre.com/pc/Trade That's set to PC/NA by the way, but you can set it to any platform, and I prefer to use the advanced setting.

    Don't forget eso-hub. Both it and ttc have addons. Between those and mm I have a good average to gauge prices.
  • Getsugatenso
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    Guilds are really toxic when it comes to group content; it would be interesting to have an incentive for random groups without any requirements.
  • Orbital78
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    Guilds are really toxic when it comes to group content; it would be interesting to have an incentive for random groups without any requirements.

    Most guilds cannot clear the content if you mean vet dlc, especially newest content balanced around people doing 120k DPS. On pc-na there are good guilds for beginners. Shop around, you have FIVE guilds. Leave the one you feel the least connected to. If you made friends, add them to your friend list. Keep shopping guilds until you find your home. Good guilds take a lot of work, some leaders are lazy or barely play.
  • Brakkish
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    killians66 wrote: »
    I have been soloing for about 20yrs every since I first started playing mmo's when Ultima Online came out.

    1. Are you saying you’ve preferred solo play for 20 years and that's changing now?
    2. Or have you been searching for something "more" than solo play this whole time?

    If it’s the second one, that "missing piece" can be really hard to find. Sometimes when we aren't sure exactly what we're looking for, no game can really hit the mark.


    CP3003+ 10,500 hrs spent in BGs. US PS5 - 12 PVP Tanks - toons named variations of "Combat Medic" I like long walks on the beach. What's PVE? https://www.youtube.com/brakkish
  • killians66
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Xarc wrote: »
    so true.

    There's the same problem in cyrodiil. Nobody wants to group.
    I think people want to be free and dont want to follow orders of someone

    However, the groups are still beautiful and bring out the interest of the MMO.

    It's kind of the curse of ESO. They attached themselves to a popular single player "RPG" so of course people in this game are going to have a problem with joining groups or being social lol.

    Absolutely agree! Skyrim players think that ESO was to be an extension to that. All these negative comments are from players who don't even know what MMO means. Also, don't need to freak out about ruining the trade market or ruining solo play. Of course have balance, but right now the incentive to group is lower than dirt.
  • killians66
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    Faltasë wrote: »
    Faltasë wrote: »
    It's kind of the curse of ESO. They attached themselves to a popular single player "RPG" so of course people in this game are going to have a problem with joining groups or being social lol.

    I don't think players have a problem joining groups or being social. It's just not efficient to do things like quest while grouped. It's difficult to complete quests when those in the group are on different quests or different phases of a quest.

    That's kind of what I mean, the game is basically oriented towards single player TES fans because of how its structured. The quests are usually separate instances, because they know their player base has a lot of solo players.

    But it also has a LOT of content for grouping. World Bosses, Zone events such as Harrowstorms, Dungeons, Trials, Arenas, Bastion Nymics, etc.. But just like in real life, not everything needs to be grouped for.

    So did you read the OP? No one said there wasn't alot of Grouping Content. You obviously know the names of these places but don't do them. The OP is getting people to actually group. There is no incentive to group and there needs to be better incentives.
  • frogthroat
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    killians66 wrote: »
    Don't even say join a guild, because eso guilds really need help. They are just a place to use members for traveling.
    Yeah, no.

    Some guilds might be like that, others have strong in-group and new to the guild might feel like outsiders. Sure, those things happen.

    But at the same time, there are separate guilds for new players, casual players, hard core scorepushers, trial guilds, learning guilds, RP enthusiasts, housing enjoyers, casual PVP guilds, optimised ball group guilds, even guilds revolving around ToT. And oddly enough... solo player guilds, one of which I am a member of but have no idea why the guild even exists.

    Making a sweeping generalisation like that means you have not really looked for a good guild. One of my guilds, which has been my main guild since early times is a jack-of-all-trades guild, does a bit of everything. From casual overland events to even prog trial groups. Wonderful people, wonderful guild, we interact with each other all day, every day - both in Discord and in game. I was extremely lucky to find that early on.

    Another one I am very active in took quite a long time to find but this one, too, has wonderful people who interact with each other beyond the guild's purpose. As in, officially it's a trial guild but people still organise dungeon groups, pledges, and other events.

    But between those two, there were many guilds I joined, looked around for a while, left and kept searching. That's how this game and, indeed, life works. You don't necessarily find the group you like by snapping your fingers. You might actually have to work on it yourself. Just like in real life because... guilds consists of real people! Actual, real human beings.
  • SerafinaWaterstar
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    Guilds are really toxic when it comes to group content; it would be interesting to have an incentive for random groups without any requirements.

    Again, stop generalising. Guilds I’ve belonged to have been anything but toxic when it comes to group content. Helpful, supportive, doing gear runs, having prog runs etc plus fun social stuff.

    You need to find better guilds!
  • SilverBride
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    killians66 wrote: »
    But it also has a LOT of content for grouping. World Bosses, Zone events such as Harrowstorms, Dungeons, Trials, Arenas, Bastion Nymics, etc.. But just like in real life, not everything needs to be grouped for.

    So did you read the OP? No one said there wasn't alot of Grouping Content. You obviously know the names of these places but don't do them. The OP is getting people to actually group. There is no incentive to group and there needs to be better incentives.

    I do group content. It's not my main way to play but I do when I have a desire or reason to.

    Group content has better rewards so that is an incentive to group for them. And achievements and titles which a lot of players enjoy earning. And Golden Pursuits and Endeavors in the recent past, and now Tomes are a big incentive.

    But group play will never be preferable for many over solo play just because it restricts the player to playing how someone else wants to. When I am questing I like to do things a way that is enjoyable for me so I do it solo.

    So there is group content and there are incentives to participate in it. But if a player is unwilling to find ways to group, such as joining a guild where there are others to form groups with, well that is not the game's fault. The resources are there. It's up to the player to utilize them.
    Edited by SilverBride on April 21, 2026 4:00PM
    PCNA
  • frogthroat
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    Guilds are really toxic when it comes to group content; it would be interesting to have an incentive for random groups without any requirements.

    Again, stop generalising. Guilds I’ve belonged to have been anything but toxic when it comes to group content. Helpful, supportive, doing gear runs, having prog runs etc plus fun social stuff.

    You need to find better guilds!

    Exactly. The guild I mentioned where I have been a member for a very long time is not only not toxic, it is actually anti-toxic. In my country the government has anti-toxicity in video games certificate that is aimed for video game teams, guilds, groups, tournaments, leagues, etc. If your team, guild, league, tournament or association wants the certificate, there are certain anti-bully rules the group or guild must adhere to. Our guild has that certificate. So that guild is as far from a toxic guild as you can possibly get.
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