7 things you need to know before starting ESO Blackwood

 

The MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online will receive the Blackwood expansion on June 1st, 2021. So some changes and innovations are waiting for you. We gives you an overview of the most important things.

When does Blackwood appear?

The new chapter Blackwood will be released on June 1st, 2021 for PC / Mac & Stadia. The release for Xbox and Playstation will take place on June 8th, 2021.

At what time can you play Blackwood?

The time is not yet known, but you can check the server status here at any time

( via ESO Server Status ).

Do you need ESO + for Blackwood?

No. All you need is the base game and the Blackwood expansion. However, if you want to start from scratch with ESO, you should think about the Blackwood Collector's Edition. It costs 89.99 euros, but contains the basic game and the 4 previous chapters.

What are the biggest changes with Blackwood?

The companion system

What are the companions? So far, players could only use peaceful companions, but they did not intervene in the fight. They just follow the player and have no dialog interface. With Blackwood, new allies come into play with whom many interactions are possible.

The companions are NPCs that you can summon to support you in battle. They also level through experience points. This unlocks slots for skills that can be customized. You can also customize them by giving them armor and weapons. However, you have to find this special companion gear first.

You also have design options visually by dressing them with costumes or outfit styles. You can also assign them a special mount. Each companion has his own personality and judges your actions according to his standards.

Depending on how good the relationship between you and your ally is, you can unlock new dialogue options. So from now on you have to watch out who is watching you during your activities. A bad relationship even has negative effects: the ally withdraws.

The new test Felshain

There is a new challenge for groups of 12 players, the “Felshain” test. The new Argonian-style exam matches the rest of the chapter. Also, beware of angry frogs and hungry plants.

What bosses are you waiting for?

• Oaxiltso - A colossal behemoth
• Flame Herald Bahsei - The 2nd boss of the trial who can summon armies
• Xalvakka - A general in Dagon's army in the Dead Lands

What can you expect in Felshain?

Prepare for challenging fights in the new exam. Because not only the 3 bosses have it all. You will also find strong opponents in the add groups between the bosses. A particularly difficult mode, the hard mode, is also available for each boss.

Can you complete all of the Rockshire Achievements? If so, then a special mount awaits you: the Sul-Xan meat grinder.

What are the main changes that affect all players?

Update 30, which affects all players, will be released together with Blackwood. This is regardless of whether the extension was purchased or not. In addition, there was an important change to the champion points at the beginning of the year, which we have also taken up.

Adjustment of champion points (CP)

With the update 29 Flames of Ambition, the CP system has been fundamentally revised. It is divided into 3 attributes for each of which you can choose 4 active champion points. 

New Mythic Items

What are Mythic Items? These are special pieces of equipment that you can get by spying and digging. Each of these items gives you a special bonus. But you can only equip one of these items.

These items have been very popular since the Greymoor release because they are particularly strong. With Blackwood, new Mythic Items come into play:

• Deathbringer's Party (Ring)
• Shapeshifter's Chain (Necklace)
• Sithi's look (head, heavy)
• Walkilt of a harpooner (legs, medium)

New foreseeable styles

Some outfit styles can be obtained from the excavation. So far you could get the following styles:

• the former orcs
• the former north
• the former high elves
• the former Reikmannen

With the new chapter you can decorate your character with the outfit style of the former Akaviri.

You can explore these areas from TES IV: Oblivion

For fans of The Elder Scrolls IV - Oblivion, Blackwood offers the opportunity to see well-known places again. What has changed? What do you still know from the past?

The new chapter lets old places flourish again, including the city of Leyawiin, the Oblivion Portals, the Realm of Oblivion and the Deep Current Caverns.

Is it worth getting started with ESO with Blackwood?

Definitely! Since the release of the basic game, many functions have been added that make getting started with MMORPG easier. We will briefly introduce you to the most important functions:

• OneTamriel - You can travel to any area and everything is scaled to suit your level.
• Level Up Rewards - You will receive other level up rewards that are useful.
• Group Search - You can queue up for dungeons without having a fixed group.
• Area guide - The area guide can be called up via the map menu (M), which gives you an overview of your quest progress in the respective area.
• Faster leveling - With the change in the champion point system, the amount of experience points required for CP advancement (up to CP 1800) has been significantly reduced.

The Blackwood expansion brings new functions that make the game even more beginner-friendly than before.

A new tutorial: The new tutorial comes with Blackwood and it teaches you the first steps in the game. At the end of your exploration tour, however, you can choose how you want to start into the game world. So you have the choice from the base game, but also the various expansions that were released later.

ompanions as an aid for newcomers : The companions that we introduced to you at the beginning support you in many activities. Inexperienced players have it a little easier to win against hostile NPCs. This gives players who have not yet found a group or guild a little help.

They can also accompany you into dungeons. A dungeon group usually consists of 4 players. But a player's seat can now also be filled with a companion. So you only need 2 players to form a complete dungeon group.

Of course, with Blackwood there are also exciting quests in the MMORPG. Because the Daeda prince Mehrunes Dagon and his cultists are up to mischief in the dark forest.