The Adventurer's Guide to Tamriel (Unlimited)
Alright guys, I figured I would start out our new series of ESO guides with some tips, tricks and advice on getting used to the game, leveling and smoothing over the beginning stages. These are all things I personally have found or have been told by other, more experienced players. In either case, I hope these tips help you as much as they have helped my friends and I.
This is NOT Skyrim
I want to start by saying that this is not Skyrim, this is not Oblivion and this is not Morrowind. With that out there, I also want to say that this is not World of Warcraft or Everquest. This is The Elder Scrolls Online. I am telling you now, the moment that you stop comparing it to other games and understand that it is still an Elder Scrolls game you are just playing with other people you will enjoy it a hell of a lot more.
“Maximum Security” Wailing Prisons
After playing through the tutorial in the Wailing Prisons once, you have the option to skip it on all your proceding playthroughs. To be honest though, unless you are really in a hurry you should playthrough it. For one, you can find a few rare items in all of the urns laying around such racial stones and even a racial motif if you are lucky. Second of all, you can stockpile some decent weapons and armor to start with, either to use or to sell since gold is difficult to come by in the early goings. When you skip the tutorial you’re stuck with your little present from the Prophet and a two-handed sword, these are not really favorable conditions unless of course you already determined you were going to use those things. Lastly, when you skip the Wailing Prison you start at level 3 with three skill points and one skyshard, along with the equipment I already mentioned. Well I have found that through effective leveling, not grinding but natural leveling, you can leave the tutorial at around level 5 with five skill points, and some extra gold, armor, and weapons. Trust me it is a big difference.
Starting Off on the Right Foot
The original version of the game would plop you on a starter island as soon as you left the prisons, now it thrusts you right into the starting cities which are not too friendly to beginning players. Like the tutorial, I suggest also going to your starter island as soon as you can, well after you join your guilds but more on that later. These islands are Khenarthi’s Roost, Stros M’Kai and Bleakrock Isle for the Aldmeri Dominion, Daggerfall Covenant and Ebonheart Pact respectively. The reason being, similar to playing the tutorial, it is a gold mine for new characters. If you did playthrough the tutorial there is a chance you may be a level or two higher than most enemies on these islands, but that is not a bad thing it just means that from here on out you will be ahead of the game, literally. In either case, it is a good place to help you get acclimated to the questing system and get a feel for your character’s combat style. Not to mention each island will be carrying Skyshards and is meant to overload you with easily accessed crafting materials and other equipment.
Leveling Up
Fair warning, this section is a little bit longer than the others so I am going to break it up into smaller pieces to hopefully make it easier to digest.
Explore. Explore. Explore.
The Elder Scrolls Online offers a gigantic world for you to explore and you should, well, explore it! Going off the beaten path is one the best things you can do in this game because it rewards you for it. These rewards can be anything from lorebooks, to Skyshards, to crafting materials, to unmarked quests and locations, to simply just getting a little experience boost for finding a new location. Search every urn, backpack and chest to find different things like racial stones, recipes, lockpicks and even some equipment. Search crates and barrels for provisioning ingredients and maybe even alchemy ingredient once in awhile. Another thing that falls under exploring is bookshelves. Search every single bookshelf that you can, many of them have a skill book in them which will raise one skill by one point and will make your leveling go even smoother.
Giddy Up!
At first I was not entirely sold on the whole mount thing considering how much they cost in game and on the Crown Store, but believe me when I tell you it is worth it. With all the land to cover, a mount will be your best friend. After you get your first couple pack upgrades, start spending money on upgrading your mount. The faster you get from place to place and the less you have to travel back to town the faster you can level. And the less you have to use Wayshrines, the more things you can find and you may even save a little bit of gold in the long run.
Tag Team Action
Questing with a friend can be both fun and rewarding. I for one was always a pretty die hard single-player guy, but there have been a couple exceptions I've made so I can play with my friends. This game is one of those exceptions, being able to take on an Elder Scrolls game with my best friend Hainesy has been great. It really lightens the mood and it makes time fly when you a friend to play with. As far as the game itself goes, you will actually get an experience bonus for rolling in a group with your pals and some places like Group Dungeons are nearly impossible to do early game without a friend or two. On another note, running with a friend means you will be killing things faster and turning in quests quicker which is basically synonymous with leveling faster. Something to keep in mind, is that unless you have a really organized group, I wouldn’t quest in parties of more than two, max three, because it will actually start to slow you down trying to keep things together. If you don’t want to play with a random group, be sure to head over to our Guild Registry or upcoming Buddy List and join some of your fellow Tamriel Vault-mates.
The Return of Iron Daggers
Crafting in ESO is different and yet similar to previous games TES games. This is because even though all the skill lines are new and fresh, the styles are still familiar (and sadly making iron daggers is still the most effective way to level Blacksmithing). There are six crafting skills: Alchemy, Provisioning, Enchanting, Blacksmithing, Woodworking and Tailoring. Each craft is pretty essential to making the most of your character, but you do not have to truly invest in all of them. I would advise you not to specialize in more than two or three just because they are so point intensive (unless of course you have an alternate account for crafting then by all means go right ahead). Only invest in the crafts you truly need for your character and if anything try to spread them across your different characters, but for the ones you do not invest in there is good chance you will be able to find what you need in one of the local guild stores if you have the gold for it. There is also the possibility of asking one of your friends or someone here to craft what you need. With the ones you do invest in, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, if you aren't making iron daggers, one of the best ways to level your main craft skills is through deconstruction. Especially deconstructing items that offer increased inspiration, as this is basically the medium of crafting experience, and colored items in order to get improvement materials. Secondly, research your items as soon as you can. The research times get to pretty lofty after you learn a couple traits on each item so you want to get through it as quickly as possible because making custom crafted sets in the end game is pretty much a necessity at the time of this writing. Unless of course you can get lucky and find these sets in guild stores. Finally, get certified in your preferred crafting professions. You will make a little extra gold, a little extra experience and you might get a nice gift like a crafting survey. For now, I won’t delve too far into crafting in this post because I hope we will have a few crafting guides made in the near future.
Your Leveling Build is Not the Same as Your End-Game Build
I really want to stress this, the build you have at level 10 is going to be different from your build at level 50. Don’t get upset if it isn’t working exactly how you would like at level 5 or even 15 or if you put a point in something you don’t like, the skills you use to level will typically be different than what you use in the end because that’s just how the game works. Some skills work better early on, some work better for leveling, some work better for PvP, etc. It is possible to follow the theme of your end-game build while you are leveling, but remember that it is bound to be different in terms of actual abilities used and that can influence your overall effectiveness especially if you rely on the last ability in a skill line. That also goes to say if you screw up your skills or if you find you want to relocate some magicka points or stamina points to do more magic or weapon damage, respectively, respecing in this game is cheap enough to do it multiple times. That is why I suggested using at least one ability from each skill line to level because in the end, if you don’t use it you can easily fix it, but you will get the experience boost from it regardless.
Just Have Fun!
Above all else, just have fun. If you get stuck in a random group with a bunch of try-hard elitist, and you are not into that, then just leave. Go in solo if your confident enough or as I said earlier, our guilds are always welcoming new people and you will always have someone there to help you, don’t let anyone else spoil this wonderful game for you. Don’t worry about if you’re using the right skills or if your build is min/maxed to perfection, just do what you find fun. Choose whatever race, class, and weapon you want because this game gives you the freedom to do that and nearly all combinations are viable. And here at the Tamriel Vault I like to think we foster imagination and innovation, so if you’re doing what you truly enjoy and not just doing what everyone else is doing you are bound to stumble upon new things and have fun doing it. Then hopefully you will share your fun times and interesting ideas with the rest of us. It all comes down to you doing something you enjoy. So seriously, just go out there and have fun.
This guide will be ever evolving as we learn more about the game, so check back periodically. If you have any suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments and I shall try to work them into the original post if I can.
For anyone looking for a few more tips that I could not fit into the original post, look at Teccam's comment, it contains a ton of excellent information that could warrant a post all its own.
Remember everyone, this is just the tip of the iceberg. In no time we will be rolling out crafting guides, roleplaying guides, character builds and much more so stay tuned!
The Adventurer's Guide to Tamriel (Unlimited)
Alright guys, I figured I would start out our new series of ESO guides with some tips, tricks and advice on getting used to the game, leveling and smoothing over the beginning stages. These are all things I personally have found or have been told by other, more experienced players. In either case, I hope these tips help you as much as they have helped my friends and I.
This is NOT Skyrim
I want to start by saying that this is not Skyrim, this is not Oblivion and this is not Morrowind. With that out there, I also want to say that this is not World of Warcraft or Everquest. This is The Elder Scrolls Online. I am telling you now, the moment that you stop comparing it to other games and understand that it is still an Elder Scrolls game you are just playing with other people you will enjoy it a hell of a lot more.
“Maximum Security” Wailing Prisons
After playing through the tutorial in the Wailing Prisons once, you have the option to skip it on all your proceding playthroughs. To be honest though, unless you are really in a hurry you should playthrough it. For one, you can find a few rare items in all of the urns laying around such racial stones and even a racial motif if you are lucky. Second of all, you can stockpile some decent weapons and armor to start with, either to use or to sell since gold is difficult to come by in the early goings. When you skip the tutorial you’re stuck with your little present from the Prophet and a two-handed sword, these are not really favorable conditions unless of course you already determined you were going to use those things. Lastly, when you skip the Wailing Prison you start at level 3 with three skill points and one skyshard, along with the equipment I already mentioned. Well I have found that through effective leveling, not grinding but natural leveling, you can leave the tutorial at around level 5 with five skill points, and some extra gold, armor, and weapons. Trust me it is a big difference.
Starting Off on the Right Foot
The original version of the game would plop you on a starter island as soon as you left the prisons, now it thrusts you right into the starting cities which are not too friendly to beginning players. Like the tutorial, I suggest also going to your starter island as soon as you can, well after you join your guilds but more on that later. These islands are Khenarthi’s Roost, Stros M’Kai and Bleakrock Isle for the Aldmeri Dominion, Daggerfall Covenant and Ebonheart Pact respectively. The reason being, similar to playing the tutorial, it is a gold mine for new characters. If you did playthrough the tutorial there is a chance you may be a level or two higher than most enemies on these islands, but that is not a bad thing it just means that from here on out you will be ahead of the game, literally. In either case, it is a good place to help you get acclimated to the questing system and get a feel for your character’s combat style. Not to mention each island will be carrying Skyshards and is meant to overload you with easily accessed crafting materials and other equipment.
Leveling Up
Fair warning, this section is a little bit longer than the others so I am going to break it up into smaller pieces to hopefully make it easier to digest.
Explore. Explore. Explore.
The Elder Scrolls Online offers a gigantic world for you to explore and you should, well, explore it! Going off the beaten path is one the best things you can do in this game because it rewards you for it. These rewards can be anything from lorebooks, to Skyshards, to crafting materials, to unmarked quests and locations, to simply just getting a little experience boost for finding a new location. Search every urn, backpack and chest to find different things like racial stones, recipes, lockpicks and even some equipment. Search crates and barrels for provisioning ingredients and maybe even alchemy ingredient once in awhile. Another thing that falls under exploring is bookshelves. Search every single bookshelf that you can, many of them have a skill book in them which will raise one skill by one point and will make your leveling go even smoother.
Giddy Up!
At first I was not entirely sold on the whole mount thing considering how much they cost in game and on the Crown Store, but believe me when I tell you it is worth it. With all the land to cover, a mount will be your best friend. After you get your first couple pack upgrades, start spending money on upgrading your mount. The faster you get from place to place and the less you have to travel back to town the faster you can level. And the less you have to use Wayshrines, the more things you can find and you may even save a little bit of gold in the long run.
Tag Team Action
Questing with a friend can be both fun and rewarding. I for one was always a pretty die hard single-player guy, but there have been a couple exceptions I've made so I can play with my friends. This game is one of those exceptions, being able to take on an Elder Scrolls game with my best friend Hainesy has been great. It really lightens the mood and it makes time fly when you a friend to play with. As far as the game itself goes, you will actually get an experience bonus for rolling in a group with your pals and some places like Group Dungeons are nearly impossible to do early game without a friend or two. On another note, running with a friend means you will be killing things faster and turning in quests quicker which is basically synonymous with leveling faster. Something to keep in mind, is that unless you have a really organized group, I wouldn’t quest in parties of more than two, max three, because it will actually start to slow you down trying to keep things together. If you don’t want to play with a random group, be sure to head over to our Guild Registry or upcoming Buddy List and join some of your fellow Tamriel Vault-mates.
The Return of Iron Daggers
Crafting in ESO is different and yet similar to previous games TES games. This is because even though all the skill lines are new and fresh, the styles are still familiar (and sadly making iron daggers is still the most effective way to level Blacksmithing). There are six crafting skills: Alchemy, Provisioning, Enchanting, Blacksmithing, Woodworking and Tailoring. Each craft is pretty essential to making the most of your character, but you do not have to truly invest in all of them. I would advise you not to specialize in more than two or three just because they are so point intensive (unless of course you have an alternate account for crafting then by all means go right ahead). Only invest in the crafts you truly need for your character and if anything try to spread them across your different characters, but for the ones you do not invest in there is good chance you will be able to find what you need in one of the local guild stores if you have the gold for it. There is also the possibility of asking one of your friends or someone here to craft what you need. With the ones you do invest in, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, if you aren't making iron daggers, one of the best ways to level your main craft skills is through deconstruction. Especially deconstructing items that offer increased inspiration, as this is basically the medium of crafting experience, and colored items in order to get improvement materials. Secondly, research your items as soon as you can. The research times get to pretty lofty after you learn a couple traits on each item so you want to get through it as quickly as possible because making custom crafted sets in the end game is pretty much a necessity at the time of this writing. Unless of course you can get lucky and find these sets in guild stores. Finally, get certified in your preferred crafting professions. You will make a little extra gold, a little extra experience and you might get a nice gift like a crafting survey. For now, I won’t delve too far into crafting in this post because I hope we will have a few crafting guides made in the near future.
Your Leveling Build is Not the Same as Your End-Game Build
I really want to stress this, the build you have at level 10 is going to be different from your build at level 50. Don’t get upset if it isn’t working exactly how you would like at level 5 or even 15 or if you put a point in something you don’t like, the skills you use to level will typically be different than what you use in the end because that’s just how the game works. Some skills work better early on, some work better for leveling, some work better for PvP, etc. It is possible to follow the theme of your end-game build while you are leveling, but remember that it is bound to be different in terms of actual abilities used and that can influence your overall effectiveness especially if you rely on the last ability in a skill line. That also goes to say if you screw up your skills or if you find you want to relocate some magicka points or stamina points to do more magic or weapon damage, respectively, respecing in this game is cheap enough to do it multiple times. That is why I suggested using at least one ability from each skill line to level because in the end, if you don’t use it you can easily fix it, but you will get the experience boost from it regardless.
Just Have Fun!
Above all else, just have fun. If you get stuck in a random group with a bunch of try-hard elitist, and you are not into that, then just leave. Go in solo if your confident enough or as I said earlier, our guilds are always welcoming new people and you will always have someone there to help you, don’t let anyone else spoil this wonderful game for you. Don’t worry about if you’re using the right skills or if your build is min/maxed to perfection, just do what you find fun. Choose whatever race, class, and weapon you want because this game gives you the freedom to do that and nearly all combinations are viable. And here at the Tamriel Vault I like to think we foster imagination and innovation, so if you’re doing what you truly enjoy and not just doing what everyone else is doing you are bound to stumble upon new things and have fun doing it. Then hopefully you will share your fun times and interesting ideas with the rest of us. It all comes down to you doing something you enjoy. So seriously, just go out there and have fun.
This guide will be ever evolving as we learn more about the game, so check back periodically. If you have any suggestions feel free to leave them in the comments and I shall try to work them into the original post if I can.
For anyone looking for a few more tips that I could not fit into the original post, look at Teccam's comment, it contains a ton of excellent information that could warrant a post all its own.
Remember everyone, this is just the tip of the iceberg. In no time we will be rolling out crafting guides, roleplaying guides, character builds and much more so stay tuned!
Something useful to add:
The perks are way more in depth than one might realize. How many of you assumed that there were no skills or perks out side of the 4 base classes (nightblade, templar, dragonknight, sorcerer)? Well you're wrong.
Each weapon also has its own set of skills much like the skill trees you're familiar with in Skyrim. The same goes for armor sets and crafting skills. Adding to that are the multitude of skill trees you can unlock by joining various factions and/or fulfilling certain requirements. That's right! Each faction and guild awards you with their specialized skill tree! For those of your whove been struggling to wrap a build concept around Skyrim's sometimes limited options, ESO may very well be your chance. Give it a try!
Something useful to add:
The perks are way more in depth than one might realize. How many of you assumed that there were no skills or perks out side of the 4 base classes (nightblade, templar, dragonknight, sorcerer)? Well you're wrong.
Each weapon also has its own set of skills much like the skill trees you're familiar with in Skyrim. The same goes for armor sets and crafting skills. Adding to that are the multitude of skill trees you can unlock by joining various factions and/or fulfilling certain requirements. That's right! Each faction and guild awards you with their specialized skill tree! For those of your whove been struggling to wrap a build concept around Skyrim's sometimes limited options, ESO may very well be your chance. Give it a try!
That is a great point Curse! I already talked about the different guild skill lines, I will try to work in what you said about weapon skills as well.
That is a great point Curse! I already talked about the different guild skill lines, I will try to work in what you said about weapon skills as well.
Oh and something Tae taught me: Stamina and magicka totals affect your physical and magical damage respectively. For example a rogue or warrior with high stamina will find themselves inflicting greater amounts of damage with their weapons.
Oh and something Tae taught me: Stamina and magicka totals affect your physical and magical damage respectively. For example a rogue or warrior with high stamina will find themselves inflicting greater amounts of damage with their weapons.
This is true, but I didn't want to go too much into mechanics with post. I was planning on adding that and some other things of the same family in with a later post that is more detail oriented. This was just meant to be general tips and advice.
This is true, but I didn't want to go too much into mechanics with post. I was planning on adding that and some other things of the same family in with a later post that is more detail oriented. This was just meant to be general tips and advice.
That is a very good point Ponty. I added that in there to the best of my ability without making it overwhelming.
@Curse I made of the weapon skill lines because I do believe that is important.
That is a very good point Ponty. I added that in there to the best of my ability without making it overwhelming.
@Curse I made of the weapon skill lines because I do believe that is important.