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ESO is still not new-player friendly: We need an in-game Build Guide system (PvE & PvP)

WeJustSlept
WeJustSlept
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Hi everyone!
First of all, I apologize for my English as I am not a native speaker and my skills are quite limited.
Dear developers, the game is 12 years old now, and let's be honest: it is still not new-player-friendly. The Zone Guide that helps track zone progress is great, but when it comes to gear sets, things are in a really bad spot. Roughly 70% of the sets in the game are unplayable garbage compared to what experienced players actually use. There are so many sets that it is incredibly easy to get overwhelmed, and as a beginner, you have absolutely no idea which way to go. And that is just for PvE.
When it comes to PvP, things are way worse. You already know that Cyrodiil is dead, and Battlegrounds matches are always one-sided. It’s either you stomp the enemy team, or they stomp you. This happens because most people are just there to do their daily BG for rewards. Many of them—honestly, probably the majority—simply don't want to or, more likely, don't understand how to build for PvP, and that is a massive flaw. They don't know what stats to prioritize, what skills work for their class in PvP, or what sets they need. That is exactly why BGs get such a bad reputation.
The solution to this problem isn't that complicated (though I can't speak for the technical implementation). The game needs some kind of in-game browser or builder guide that suggests basic sets, skills, and stats for a specific class depending on the activity, whether it's PvE or PvP. It could include one-bar Oakensoul Ring builds for more casual play, as well as proper two-bar builds. These don't have to be top-tier meta setups; they should simply serve as an introduction so that a new player can understand how system synergy works. Honestly, even some people who have been playing for 12 years still don't know a lot of these things.
Additionally, please consider expanding the Armory Station slots by adding at least one more free slot. This way, PvE-focused players could dedicate that slot to a PvP build. Even better, you could officially split the Armory into separate PvE and PvP tabs. Sure, nothing would stop players from saving a PvE build in a PvP slot, but I believe that over time, if there is an accessible in-game guide directing players, people will rethink their approach. They will actually start enjoying PvP once they see real results. This is especially relevant now, since we have the upcoming Scribing (Master Script) mechanic update, which adds yet another layer of complexity that won't make life any easier for newcomers.
Let's face it, very few people actually read quest texts in MMOs. Personally, after taking a long break from the game, I only figured out how to unlock the new subclass features thanks to YouTube.
Thank you all for your time, and happy gaming!
*Work, work...*
  • WeJustSlept
    WeJustSlept
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    And honestly, the current in-game skill advisor doesn't really work well. It still feels outdated and weak
    *Work, work...*
  • Angnos
    Angnos
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    The game flow for new players is just broken at the moment. For me, the progression in an MMO should look like this: You enter the game and everything is new > You want to do harder content > You join a guild to learn the ropes in a safe environment with knowledgeable players > You join a progression or trials group and get better at the game > You become an experienced player.

    But right now, you can do 98% of the game with any build without ever getting punished. Then, after hours of playing, you suddenly learn that the way you play isn't good enough for harder content, meaning you have to grind and change your whole build and playstyle. That is exactly why people are complaining about the Night Market. All of a sudden, they are forced to completely change the way they play the game.

    ZOS should ask content creators to make tutorial video builds and link them in-game when you open the tutorial or class screen. That way, players can actually learn what their abilities and stats are doing. They should do the same for trials: give people a basic understanding of mechanics, and how buffs and debuffs actually work.
    Guildmaster of The Daggerfall Royal Legion PC/EU
  • Athory
    Athory
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    Yes, ZoS should change a lot in this game. But what do we get? DPS numbers! And everyone loves it. So… what’s the point?!

    Players prefer burning things fast: big number parses, farming bosses in vet trials in 18 minutes, while skipping all the trash. Mechanics? Skip them.
    Trash? Skip it.
    Boss? Burn it.
    Loot? Selling daggers for 5M.

    And PvP? Almost the same. CP 2500 vs CP 10… let’s goooo!

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  • Gabriel_H
    Gabriel_H
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    ZOS expect players to work things out for themselves.
    PC EU
    Never get involved in a land war in Asia - it's one of the classic blunders!
  • Gabriel_H
    Gabriel_H
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    Angnos wrote: »
    But right now, you can do 98% of the game with any build without ever getting punished. Then, after hours of playing, you suddenly learn that the way you play isn't good enough for harder content..

    Optimizing build and changing the way you play are not the same thing. Just as score pushing and completing a trifecta are not the same thing.

    PC EU
    Never get involved in a land war in Asia - it's one of the classic blunders!
  • frogthroat
    frogthroat
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    Some sort of build guide would need to be updated when meta changes and the Oakensoul is divisive. Not everyone has antiquities, and levelling it up takes a long time. Especially PVP would be difficult since you are then playing against other players and there you can't adjust the content to fit you. Your ESO-recommended PVP build would be walked all over. So it couldn't be something that actually competes at later stages.

    Instead, something optional that just shows how putting together a build actually works. But it needs to be clear that this is not meant to be your end game build but just a demonstration how a build is built.

    For example, you get a quest when you hit level 10 that shows you how to do a build. Similar to skill advisor, but just a simple guide to make a build that uses a dungeon set, crafted set and a monster set (later). It would have the four options: Mag DD, Stam DD, healer or tank.

    It would guide you to a dungeon to farm gear. One of the three, depending on your alliance: BC1, FG1 or Spindle1.

    Once you have 5 pieces, it would ask if you want to farm another set or craft. Why ask if craft or farm? Because not everyone has any interest in crafting by themselves.

    With crafting, it would show how to research traits and would recommend a basic set from Alliance zones. Depending on how many traits you have researched, it would show up to that level.

    And when your level is high enough, it would recommend veteran versions of those three dungeons to go get a monster set. You get undaunted invitation when you hit level 45 anyway.

    That way you would end up with players who understand that these are starter sets, but would have at least some idea what a build even is.

    Something like:
    Healer with Sanctuary, Seducer and Shadowrend
    MagDD with Spider Cultist Cowl, Twilight's Embrace and Kra'gh
    StamDD with Viper's Sting, Ashen Grip and Kra'gh
    Tank with Tormentor, Torug's Pact and Swarm Mother

    This would be much better than having players running with just some randomly dropped gear that are not even part of any set.

    The builds this recommends would need to be simple, but better than randomly found gear. It would need to be base game. And something that doesn't change when the meta changes.

    However, while this would show build basics, it would waste time and resources. Because you can start grinding for pretty much any gear at any time, you should check the internet for tips what to concentrate on.
  • WeJustSlept
    WeJustSlept
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    Angnos wrote: »
    The game flow for new players is just broken at the moment. For me, the progression in an MMO should look like this: You enter the game and everything is new > You want to do harder content > You join a guild to learn the ropes in a safe environment with knowledgeable players > You join a progression or trials group and get better at the game > You become an experienced player.

    But right now, you can do 98% of the game with any build without ever getting punished. Then, after hours of playing, you suddenly learn that the way you play isn't good enough for harder content, meaning you have to grind and change your whole build and playstyle. That is exactly why people are complaining about the Night Market. All of a sudden, they are forced to completely change the way they play the game.

    ZOS should ask content creators to make tutorial video builds and link them in-game when you open the tutorial or class screen. That way, players can actually learn what their abilities and stats are doing. They should do the same for trials: give people a basic understanding of mechanics, and how buffs and debuffs actually work.

    I agree with you. The game can indeed be easily played solo for most of the content, without any need to farm top-tier builds. However, not everyone wants to join guilds and use their services. Some people just want to log in and play completely solo, and there is honestly nothing wrong with that.
    The problem is that the game isn't very friendly to these types of players. As someone mentioned above, it would actually be great if they added tutorial videos to the game. For example, when you reach level 50, the subclass system becomes available, and a pop-up window appears with a hint explaining what's what. I just don't know exactly what level the subclass system unlocks at, probably right away ;D
    Also, the reason I brought up the topic of builds is that we have an upcoming update that introduces world difficulty tiers with better rewards. If it actually works well, then again, how are newbies—and even many current players who aren't particularly strong at build-making, including myself 😊—supposed to understand how to get better without relying on or copying builds from YouTube and other websites?
    Sure, one way or another, many people compete and want to show the best results on the dummy. But even for a beginner, using such a build can feel too complicated because you simply won't be able to keep track of your resources. Plus, many of these builds include sets from trials. Overall, there are both pros and cons to this. In my personal opinion, if ZOS wants to attract new players and keep current ones more engaged in game activities, they should seriously think about high-quality tutorials and an in-game knowledge base.
    *Work, work...*
  • WeJustSlept
    WeJustSlept
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    Athory wrote: »
    Yes, ZoS should change a lot in this game. But what do we get? DPS numbers! And everyone loves it. So… what’s the point?!

    Players prefer burning things fast: big number parses, farming bosses in vet trials in 18 minutes, while skipping all the trash. Mechanics? Skip them.
    Trash? Skip it.
    Boss? Burn it.
    Loot? Selling daggers for 5M.

    And PvP? Almost the same. CP 2500 vs CP 10… let’s goooo!

    Based)
    *Work, work...*
  • WeJustSlept
    WeJustSlept
    ✭✭
    frogthroat wrote: »
    Some sort of build guide would need to be updated when meta changes and the Oakensoul is divisive. Not everyone has antiquities, and levelling it up takes a long time. Especially PVP would be difficult since you are then playing against other players and there you can't adjust the content to fit you. Your ESO-recommended PVP build would be walked all over. So it couldn't be something that actually competes at later stages.

    Instead, something optional that just shows how putting together a build actually works. But it needs to be clear that this is not meant to be your end game build but just a demonstration how a build is built.

    For example, you get a quest when you hit level 10 that shows you how to do a build. Similar to skill advisor, but just a simple guide to make a build that uses a dungeon set, crafted set and a monster set (later). It would have the four options: Mag DD, Stam DD, healer or tank.

    It would guide you to a dungeon to farm gear. One of the three, depending on your alliance: BC1, FG1 or Spindle1.

    Once you have 5 pieces, it would ask if you want to farm another set or craft. Why ask if craft or farm? Because not everyone has any interest in crafting by themselves.

    With crafting, it would show how to research traits and would recommend a basic set from Alliance zones. Depending on how many traits you have researched, it would show up to that level.

    And when your level is high enough, it would recommend veteran versions of those three dungeons to go get a monster set. You get undaunted invitation when you hit level 45 anyway.

    That way you would end up with players who understand that these are starter sets, but would have at least some idea what a build even is.

    Something like:
    Healer with Sanctuary, Seducer and Shadowrend
    MagDD with Spider Cultist Cowl, Twilight's Embrace and Kra'gh
    StamDD with Viper's Sting, Ashen Grip and Kra'gh
    Tank with Tormentor, Torug's Pact and Swarm Mother

    This would be much better than having players running with just some randomly dropped gear that are not even part of any set.

    The builds this recommends would need to be simple, but better than randomly found gear. It would need to be base game. And something that doesn't change when the meta changes.

    However, while this would show build basics, it would waste time and resources. Because you can start grinding for pretty much any gear at any time, you should check the internet for tips what to concentrate on.

    Again, we can't possibly know how many players actually go to third-party websites to look up builds. Maybe not all beginners are even interested in that. So I don't think this is a "waste of time" as you put it. It’s a perfectly good option that gives a baseline understanding. At the very least, it would prevent a newbie from jumping into BGs with a PvE build, hoping to get carried.
    And by the way, it's not even that easy to find good builds online if you don't really know what you're looking for. It can take a lot of time, and you might still end up with a build that doesn't suit your playstyle at all.
    That said, your suggestion is actually pretty good. However, I still believe that alongside a tutorial quest, there should be an in-game interface to act as your guide to the world of ESO.
    Honestly, I think it would be awesome to have an in-game UI—or even a dedicated tab within that guide interface—where you could pick your class and see up-to-date builds and guides from other players. This list could reset every season or major update, forcing players to re-upload their current builds with descriptions.
    Why not? There are so many amazing add-ons out there like ItemBrowser and SuperStar, and so many talented creators making incredibly useful quality-of-life tools. Is it really that hard for ZOS to just take these great, years-old ideas and integrate them directly into the base game?
    I'm definitely not saying ZOS is doing a bad job—not at all. On the contrary, we are seeing some major changes right now, and some of them are definitely for the better, for which I'm huge grateful. But I personally hope that alongside new content and class rebalances, they will pay attention to these kinds of quality-of-life adjustments. It would make things so much easier for all of us and help welcome new players into the universe we love, without the game pushing them away.
    Edited by WeJustSlept on May 22, 2026 7:52AM
    *Work, work...*
  • Angnos
    Angnos
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    Gabriel_H wrote: »
    Optimizing build and changing the way you play are not the same thing. Just as score pushing and completing a trifecta are not the same thing.

    Sorry, but what are you talking about? If you optimize, you will change the way you play. If you need to play a two-bar build instead of a one-bar build, that is a change. If you only healed in the past as a healer and now you join group content, all of a sudden you need to keep buffs up—that is a change. As a tank, just taunting and blocking is not good enough anymore; you have to buff the group and debuff the enemies. That is a change. But all of this doesn't matter for 98% of the content in the game.

    That is why I said that the progression path should look like this: You enter the game and everything is new > You want to do harder content > You join a guild to learn the ropes in a safe environment with knowledgeable players > You join a progression or trials group and get better at the game > You become an experienced player.

    You will learn much quicker what people expect from you, instead of playing for over 100 hours and then getting the shock that you have to change the way you play when you join harder content. Btw, all of this doesn't really matter if you just stick to overland and normal stuff. What I am talking about is the 2% of this game.
    Guildmaster of The Daggerfall Royal Legion PC/EU
  • Alphawolf01A
    Alphawolf01A
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    The thing I see often is new players either asking how to level as quickly as possible or people telling new players that they need to power level. So new players often blast through to hit 160+, thinking they are now ready for harder content but often have little to no knowledge about how to actually play.

    All the guides that showcase optimized meta builds tend to mislead (often unintentionally) new players to think that this setup will make them good. Clickbait titles like "unstoppable", "invincible", "god mode", make new players think they are going to be better than they really are.

    They are often left with no knowledge of basic gameplay mechanics.
  • moo_2021
    moo_2021
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    Let's say there is a guide system. The first time anyone asks it to recommend a build, she's going to notice some of the basic requirements:

    - Level 50 and CP 160
    - Craft and scrying skills at max
    - 9 traits unlocked
    - All class skills, weapon skills and guild skills at max
    - For subclassing, all skills from all classes at max
    - ....
    - not including doing a dungeon or a trial 20 times to farm weapons


    I don't think it'd make a good impression. More likely they'd be overwhelmed and scared away.
    Edited by moo_2021 on May 21, 2026 5:21PM
  • DoofusMax
    DoofusMax
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    The in-game skill advisor is actually fairly workable if you keep in mind what it's there for: getting useful skills unlocked and ranked up. I think the default "Initiate" build should not be the default, but its purpose is to unlock all the class skills and passives rather than produce a useful build. The major problems are (1) "Initiate" is the default and (2) the advisor is not real good about actually telling the player what it's aiming for. You pretty much have to go outside the game (I use the UESP wiki) and look at what each build is unlocking to see the bigger picture.

    The gear drops from PvE (overland and story questing) aren't generally useful beyond getting leveled up to CP160, filling out parts of the stickerbook, and probably getting most traits researched. But they all provide set bonuses that work reasonably well in the original 15 alliance zones and at the current enemy difficulty. Those sets are not-so-much in expansion or group content, though, and I think they will definitely be problematic when Challenge Difficulty gets here in a couple of weeks.
    I'm fresh out of outrage, but I could muster up some amused annoyance if required.
  • AlterBlika
    AlterBlika
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    Tbh they should gather statistics on what players are using to beat content. Fetch the most popular sets from each category based on their accessibility (Trial gear, PVP gear, etc). And then show us this data in-game so newer players know what's good and how they should build. Also always tell us where we can get these sets.

    This way you always know which sets are at least salvageable in the current meta
  • OsUfi
    OsUfi
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    AlterBlika wrote: »
    Tbh they should gather statistics on what players are using to beat content. Fetch the most popular sets from each category based on their accessibility (Trial gear, PVP gear, etc). And then show us this data in-game so newer players know what's good and how they should build. Also always tell us where we can get these sets.

    This way you always know which sets are at least salvageable in the current meta

    Couple of problems with this.

    ZoS have a "play it your way" approach to ESO, and with the exception of score pushing, trifectas, and PvP, you really can use any two sets no matter how useless to finish the game. By rail-roading everyone onto the same 10 sets, you end up in an even worse situation than we're in now for players attitudes towards each others gear.

    We also have an ever-shifting meta. For example, I absolutely certain the new mythic will be nerfed or made PvE only soon. The meta-chasers already cry enough about this. Imagine ZoS telling people what sets perform the best, then nerfing them each patch.

    Lastly, you would take away a lot of folks experimentation with gear. That's such a fun element to this game. Going way off-meta provides a lot of us with some of our fondest setups.
    Edited by OsUfi on May 21, 2026 6:24PM
  • Gabriel_H
    Gabriel_H
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    Angnos wrote: »
    Gabriel_H wrote: »
    Optimizing build and changing the way you play are not the same thing. Just as score pushing and completing a trifecta are not the same thing.

    Sorry, but what are you talking about? If you optimize, you will change the way you play. If you need to play a two-bar build instead of a one-bar build, that is a change. If you only healed in the past as a healer and now you join group content, all of a sudden you need to keep buffs up—that is a change. As a tank, just taunting and blocking is not good enough anymore; you have to buff the group and debuff the enemies. That is a change. But all of this doesn't matter for 98% of the content in the game.

    That is why I said that the progression path should look like this: You enter the game and everything is new > You want to do harder content > You join a guild to learn the ropes in a safe environment with knowledgeable players > You join a progression or trials group and get better at the game > You become an experienced player.

    You will learn much quicker what people expect from you, instead of playing for over 100 hours and then getting the shock that you have to change the way you play when you join harder content. Btw, all of this doesn't really matter if you just stick to overland and normal stuff. What I am talking about is the 2% of this game.

    Optimization doesn't require changing the way you play. Optimizing a build means ensuring it does the role required as best it can. Something like changing from a one-bar build to a two-bar build isn't optimization, it's build change but the impact on playstyle is minimal - if you were a DD you still DD.

    I'm going to vehemently disagree a Tank's job is to buff the group (but I'll table that for another time). A tank's job anywhere in the game is to debuff the enemy, control mobs, position mobs, and survive. That never changes.

    What you are describing isn't a lack of a system it's the feature of an MMO. Level solo, move to group-play at end game.
    PC EU
    Never get involved in a land war in Asia - it's one of the classic blunders!
  • ZOS_Kevin
    ZOS_Kevin
    Community Manager
    Just wanted to follow up here on the general topic. We are working on ways to better onboard new players and players who have been gone for a while. There are a few things in the works, while smaller in scale, will elevate some of that pressure. However, we do acknowledge this is a problem space we are looking to solve over time.

    We've also tried in the past with overhauling the new player experience, but that had its own issues with onboarding. The Player Experience Improvements team is looking at other ways to improve onboard, along with other general QoL features.

    If you have ideas or examples of good onboarding, please let us know in the thread. That way, we can pass those on to the Player Experience Improvements team. Thanks!
    Community Manager for ZeniMax Online Studio and Elder Scrolls OnlineDev Tracker | Service Alerts | ESO Twitter
    Staff Post
  • Finedaible
    Finedaible
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    Since the Night Market, I think what ESO really needs accomplish is to teach roles, and what is expected with each one. This is the primary and most essential problem I encounter when trying to use the group finder.
  • noblecron
    noblecron
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    A build guide and a guide on roles would be awesome. maybe guides made by players. I wonder if that was the intent for the recommended skills but it didn't work as intended? Cause some suggested skills aren't good at all nor used by folk.
  • noblecron
    noblecron
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    Or maybe build sharing like you can do in gw2
  • WeJustSlept
    WeJustSlept
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    OsUfi wrote: »
    AlterBlika wrote: »
    Tbh they should gather statistics on what players are using to beat content. Fetch the most popular sets from each category based on their accessibility (Trial gear, PVP gear, etc). And then show us this data in-game so newer players know what's good and how they should build. Also always tell us where we can get these sets.

    This way you always know which sets are at least salvageable in the current meta

    Couple of problems with this.

    ZoS have a "play it your way" approach to ESO, and with the exception of score pushing, trifectas, and PvP, you really can use any two sets no matter how useless to finish the game. By rail-roading everyone onto the same 10 sets, you end up in an even worse situation than we're in now for players attitudes towards each others gear.

    We also have an ever-shifting meta. For example, I absolutely certain the new mythic will be nerfed or made PvE only soon. The meta-chasers already cry enough about this. Imagine ZoS telling people what sets perform the best, then nerfing them each patch.

    Lastly, you would take away a lot of folks experimentation with gear. That's such a fun element to this game. Going way off-meta provides a lot of us with some of our fondest setups.

    What’s happening with PvP right now is exactly the problem. It would be much better if all players knew which 10 sets work best for it and which skills are most commonly used, rather than having a newbie jump in and just get instantly melted. When that happens, you have no choice but to look up YouTube guides, which might not even help you—in fact, they can do more harm than good and push you away from PvP entirely.
    I still think the best solution is to allow player-made guides and builds to be featured right inside the game, so everyone can see what’s currently meta. This wouldn't hurt build diversity at all. Let's say everyone copies one popular setup and becomes vulnerable to a specific counter; experienced players will just adapt and make builds to counter that specific meta. That is way better than not knowing what to gear up in, entering PvP, and having people wipe the floor with you.


    Edited by WeJustSlept on May 21, 2026 7:23PM
    *Work, work...*
  • LunaFlora
    LunaFlora
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    i think it would be helpful to have tutorial and training area that we can visit anytime.

    it could have:
    - each type of weapon and armour.
    - target dummies
    - various different types of monsters
    - unlimited Ultimate and a higher amount of the other resources.
    - characters that teach you about Tanking, Healing, and common mechanics.


    Maybe a practice dungeon with NPC's as your group members?
    it could be scripted and allow you to try each role in a calm environment, ideally you have the option to regenerate resources very fast.
    miaow this is my forum signature! my name is Luna ( she/her ).

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  • Adhara
    Adhara
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    "ZOS should ask content creators to make tutorial video builds and link them in-game when you open the tutorial or class screen"

    No. Put it in-game. I'm not watching some rando's video. Use the built-in skills advisor, updated to actually explain how skills synergise together and what helps for which role. I'm not a new player by any stretch of the imagination, but I HATE being expected to go outside of the game and break my immersion to look up advice. Everything we need to know should be accessible and integrated within the game itself.

    The "builds" that the advisor suggests aren't particularly good, which is why I suggest overhauling them. Also put in brief explanations for roles. "As a tank, your job is to keep the enemies' attention on you and keep them debuffed, which is why skills like <X> <Y> <Z> will help" or "healers not only keep the group on their feet and fighting, it's also important to provide beneficial buffs such as <A> <B> <C>". Like a tank build can use the 1H+S taunt, which also does major breach (a helpful debuff) or the built-in taunt that most classes have, but the class taunts often do different debuffs and you'd want major breach from some other ability.
    Mains: Hlevrea Indaryon (PC-NA) and Sylvia Acerquercus (PC-EU). Certified altoholic with 20 alts on NA and 19 on EU. Creator of The Flower-Storm Tales fanmanga, posted at amethystsadachbia.deviantart.com and amethystsadachbia.tumblr.com
  • Eclipse318
    Eclipse318
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    Thanks for this, Kevin.

    I remember when I first started with my first character. I had no idea what was going on. I had no CP or experience and it was hard to find anyone to help me. I didn't know about guilds for months, simply because the amount of stuff going on was utterly overwhelming and I never found the guide person who acts as a brief tutorial. And the 25 slots in my quest log instantly filled up so I started ignoring anything that wasn't a zone quest, which is what I thought I was supposed to be doing.

    I did not start with the Coldharbour prison tutorial, I simply showed up in the middle of Summerset, bewildered. Imps and reef vipers would one-shot me. Until a friend of mine grouped with me one night and I gained a few levels and they told me how armor sets worked, I was scared of everything that moved and it was not a fun game. And of course I couldn't sneak past things because I hadn't earned those points yet.

    Basically, new players are dumped into the deep end of the pool with almost no information or help. And now with the addition of all these complicated new systems like scribing, multiple currencies, and multiclassing, I can't even imagine how a new player would navigate any of this.

    I'm now a guild master, and some of my guildies are returning after a long absence. I have them in voice chat on Discord when they first log back in and I can hear their stunned frustration. "I have absolutely no idea what's going on," is a common phrase... and this is from players with previous experience.

    I know nobody at ZOS wants to hear this, but the game has become far, far too complicated. We don't need confusing new multiple currencies. We didn't need scribing -- all we needed was a bigger better skill tree to choose from. I actually had no idea for over a year that some of the new things showing up in skills are simply color overlays. I thought they had to do with scribing, which I haven't bothered with because I want to run around and kill monsters and open chests, not do the equivalent of my federal income taxes in order to customize a character.
  • decairn
    decairn
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    ZOS_Kevin wrote: »
    ...f you have ideas or examples of good onboarding, please let us know in the thread. That way, we can pass those on to the Player Experience Improvements team. Thanks!


    I want the ability to preview what each set looks like when fully equipped, plus what its procs look like, and what sounds they have too. Do this for all sets, all motifs, all abilities. When you view the curation of a set in collection add a preview button there for example.

  • imaslowlearner
    imaslowlearner
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    imo they should not dedicate time or resources to try to guide players to meta sets/skills, play how you want and all that. There are plenty of resources from eso creators as is, you can even pay people like xynode to coach you 1 on 1 for an hour each month for only $50/month.

    Instead I would rather see them define existing buffs/debuffs/skills within eso logs, stuff that are unique to specific bosses that we have not see before would be easier to learn to counter if we could figure out what the actually do and what % debuff is actually applied.

    Also they should give armory slots the outfit slot treatment and make the purchased ones account wide instead of character based.
  • Frooke
    Frooke
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    The game should have a more complete advisor system, not one focused only on leveling. Adding a proper role advisor for DPS, Tank, and Healer would greatly improve the experience for both new and returning players.

    For example, the Collections set menu could include filters for Tank, Healer, and DPS gear, and the advisor should also provide the location of each crafting station for the specific role. Simply organizing equipment this way would already make gearing much more intuitive.

    It would also be great to provide examples of functional skill bars for each role. You could even create two versions: a beginner-friendly “light” setup and a more optimized “meta” setup based on the most commonly used builds and skills from ESO Logs

    (I think PvP should be left out of this system, since builds there vary much more, and it’s harder to measure and standardize things the same way PvE can be analyzed through ESO Logs)
  • Adhara
    Adhara
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    imo they should not dedicate time or resources to try to guide players to meta sets/skills, play how you want and all that. There are plenty of resources from eso creators as is, you can even pay people like xynode to coach you 1 on 1 for an hour each month for only $50/month.

    Instead I would rather see them define existing buffs/debuffs/skills within eso logs, stuff that are unique to specific bosses that we have not see before would be easier to learn to counter if we could figure out what the actually do and what % debuff is actually applied.

    Also they should give armory slots the outfit slot treatment and make the purchased ones account wide instead of character based.

    pay a vibe-coder $50/month (more than ESO Plus) to give me advice they probably got from ChatGPT? no effing ty
    Edited by Adhara on May 21, 2026 11:15PM
    Mains: Hlevrea Indaryon (PC-NA) and Sylvia Acerquercus (PC-EU). Certified altoholic with 20 alts on NA and 19 on EU. Creator of The Flower-Storm Tales fanmanga, posted at amethystsadachbia.deviantart.com and amethystsadachbia.tumblr.com
  • Erickson9610
    Erickson9610
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    ZOS_Kevin wrote: »
    Just wanted to follow up here on the general topic. We are working on ways to better onboard new players and players who have been gone for a while. There are a few things in the works, while smaller in scale, will elevate some of that pressure. However, we do acknowledge this is a problem space we are looking to solve over time.

    We've also tried in the past with overhauling the new player experience, but that had its own issues with onboarding. The Player Experience Improvements team is looking at other ways to improve onboard, along with other general QoL features.

    If you have ideas or examples of good onboarding, please let us know in the thread. That way, we can pass those on to the Player Experience Improvements team. Thanks!

    Would the team consider expanding the Skills Advisor feature to allow for players to share custom builds, sort of like how the Home Tours feature allows us to share our houses that players can find in a big list?

    The Skills Advisor is great for helping us locate the right morphs for skills we would want for the build we select, but the builds available were made years ago and are painfully outdated. I think letting players share their own builds (with custom build names for searching, descriptive tags for filtering, and some sort of popularity/ranking system for sorting) would help players locate and put together builds that work, all in-game.
    PC/NA — Lone Werewolf

    Werewolf Should be Allowed to Sneak Prowling added in Update 50!
    Please give us Werewolf Skill Styles (for customizing our fur color) Added in Update 50!, Grimoires/Scribing skills (to fill in the holes in our builds), and Companions (to transform with).
  • Soarora
    Soarora
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    The knowledge gap is a big issue. I've said it a few times, I don't care to write out my idea yet again at the moment in detail but the short of my idea is that gear should be given some sort of marker if it's currently considered decent and for what role, gear should have their radius on it, and there should be a basic and advanced repeatable combat tutorial/training room for all 3 roles in PvE and one for PvP. These tutorials should teach basic information like standing on yellow aoes, line of sight/outranging, standing in front of the healer, healers and tanks need to bring buffs and debuffs, etc. The basic tutorial right now just teaches you "heavy attack to knock down an enemy!" (when is this ever useful?), blocking heavy attacks, and to interrupt. That's two useful things when there's many, many useful things left out of any tutorial. Most people don't even know Y+left click/Y+right click and weaving because those are only shown in loading screens.
    [PC/NA] Dungeoneer (Tank/DPS), Semi-retired Trialist, and amateur Battlegrounder (DPS) with a passion for The Elder Scrolls lore.
    Current GM of Hard Dungeoneers
    Tanks: Sorcerer - Necromancer - Templar
    DPS: Frost Warden - Stamarc - StamDK - Hybrid NB Healer
    Ex-Healer: Warden - Arcanist
    Dungeons: 32/32 HMs - 26/26 Tris
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