The official launch of the original Elder Scrolls Online wasn’t without failures. The game had some downs due to a great number of irritating bugs but luckily it has made one hell of a comeback thanks to the free-to-play model. After this major update, people started to enjoy it more thanks to the unbelievable support Bethesda has offered. With some tweaks here and there, the game became a lot more stable and even a lot more fun to play. This week, the game launched with their first big expansion “Morrowind” where The Elder Scrolls veteran players will find their way back home and feel at ease…
An expansion in an MMO normally offers some standard things: a new explorable zone full of PVE content, some PVP changes here and there, probably a new class or talent tree,… and this time it’s no different for The Elder Scrolls Online universe. Morrowind offers a new explorable area that the “Dunmer” call their home and this time the player will journey off to Vvardenfell where Mount Doom, or at least something that looks like it, can be explored. If you’re new to the game, the game will offer you a tutorial mode that’s blended within the main story of Morrowind. You create your character, eventually you’ll awake on a boat that’s taking you to the new island, you’ll get captured by slave dealers and the moment you escape the hands of these thugs, you’ll reach the end of your destination and the beginning of your new adventure, this little village called Seyda Neen. If you already have a character, you’ll have to travel to Seyda Neen Wayshrine. There will be only one available on the island, just make sure to look around for locals to get yourself started. For background information, you can visit an inn and accept the prologue quest “The Missing Prophecy”. This will leave you with some background information and a Twilight Shard memento. Just some tips to get you started.
If you’re new to the game, don’t worry about the level cap. Thanks to the major Tamriel One update, each zone ( and the loot within) will be scaled to your level. Not only will this apply to the new region in ESO but this update applies on all the former areas. So don’t be scared to bunk up with some lower level buddies. Make friends! It’s an MMO for god sake! These friends are helpful when you’re trying to take on the 12- hero raid that this expansion has to offer.
“Grow into the hero that this island needs!”
The moment you reach Vvardenfell, it quickly becomes clear that this island is no ordinary island. It’s a place where the Living Gods took up arms and built a civilization to support the former residents if you believe the locals. Vvardenfell is a place where the “Dunmer”, Dark Elves share a belief about the Living Gods on this island: Sotha Sil, Almalexia and Vivec. Of course, just like the real world, not everyone shares the same beliefs… All these beliefs are conflicted with each other and this aggravated the whole situation on Vvardenfell. If these problems weren’t enough, political schemes will be forced upon you soon enough, once you set foot on this wretched island. The island offers a lot of PVE quests to keep yourself amused for quite some time but for a beginner, this large scale of “things to do” can feel quite overwhelming. Good thing, you’re guided by a very important character of Morrowind’s history, namely Naryu Virian, an assassin of the Morag Tong. With her support, you’ll find your way through all of these political and religious matters and grow into the hero that this island needs.
Next in line, is the newly introduced class “The Warden” that joins the stage next to all those other classes. The expansion doesn’t bring anything new to the table when it comes to the older classes, the only thing that has been updated are the visual effects and some balancing updates. The Warden is a class pumped up with nature’s magic with different outcomes: DPS, Healing or Tank. If you choose to be more DPS based, you’ll probably go for the wild side of this class. The wild side offers you a connection to a gigantic bear and other battle-willed creatures. The Healer side will focus itself more on magical mushrooms to keep your comrades and yourself healthy when things get rough. The Tank – side is all about protecting itself with an icy armored skin and obliterate foes with cold cutting winds. It’s up to you again, to choose the way you want to play. Different sides of this class mean a lot of optimization that can help you with creating the perfect Warden for you.
As you can see, a lot of PVE activities can be found within this expansion but if you’re more of a PVP kind of player, the expansion has something new to offer those forgotten heroes. From the moment, you reach level 10, a place called “Battlegrounds” will be opened to you. Battleground is an arena based PVP environment where 3 teams of 4 go head to head against each other. There are different modes to choose from Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and Domination. Hopefully, this amount of modes will be expanded on in future (free) updates. C’mon Zenimax!
Conclusion:
Vvardenfell has a lot of PVE content to go through. This expansion is definitely a buy when you’re ready to sink in some hours within this universe. The Warden class feels versatile and will definitely amp up the metagame. The option to choose what kind of weapon you want to fight with, is still there and talent trees can be expanded when you’re becoming a member of one of the guilds within this game. The island looks good and the best thing is, the developers stayed true to the original Morrowind. Old veterans will feel like a familiar place has evolved into the same place worthy of this online world. There’s a lot to check out: a new PVP mode, a new raid, the Warden class and of course the loot. If you’re ready to start playing the ESO, now’s the time to start! Experienced players will probably already have bought the expansion and if you’re an experienced MMO player and you want to try ESO out again, go ahead and play the game, it’s the best time to (re-)visit the game but don’t expect something new when it comes to the gaming mechanics. It still is an Elder Scrolls game and it will stay true to its origin.
