Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) features some of the best expansions to come across the MMO platform. From the garden of Summerset to the snowy peaks of Skyrim, it has introduced an incredible number of destinations and stories across Tamriel. With the newest expansion, High Isle, coming this June, players will get the chance to jump back into a bevy of new content once again.
High Isle, like its predecessors, will bring back some fan-favorite activities while introducing new systems that keep the game feeling fresh and ever-growing. From story content to leaderboard competition, to anything in between, there's certainly a lot to look forward to when jumping into the game this summer.
New Breton Storyline
With this year-long expansion in ESO, named Legacy of the Bretons, the story of Breton culture kicks off. The journey will begin for players in High Isle, a small island in the Systres Archipelago never before seen in an Elder Scrolls game.
This new storyline is especially unique, mainly for the promise that it will return to the "classic" Elder Scrolls storytelling that fans love from previous entries in the series. Rather than taking down yet another Daedric prince, this storyline will follow the political intrigue of Breton society. Typically, the series has followed more mystical storylines heavily influenced by the presence of magic and power in Tamriel. With High Isle, the story will follow that of political intrigue, shifts in power, and the ever-present threat of a coup with the potential to throw the land into chaos. It is a welcome change of pace for players, as it stands to keep the year-long storyline more grounded this time around.
Brand New Zones and Locations
High Isle itself is unique as well, featuring a Mediterranean climate, sandy coastlines, and a fresh collection of new areas to explore. The area is known throughout the Elder Scrolls Universe for its beauty and acclaim, hosting nobles who use it as a playground to tout their fortune and influence. It heavily mirrors the feudal societies of medieval Europe, with the same gallant knights, towering castles, and high society. Just off the coast of High Isle is Amenos, a lawless atoll home to all kinds of thievery, crime, and deceit.
However, the land will be full of just as many dangers as there are luxuries. The Ascendant Order threatens peace talks to end the Three Banners War and will lurk High Isle and its accompanying areas as soon as players step onto the island. While the area doesn't seem as wide open as previous expansions, it does promise much more mystery and secrecy to uncover in its dense environment. Often times in MMOs, it can be better to have a more richly-packed area complete with the finer details, and High Isle looks like it will scratch that itch for players.
Tales of Tribute
Featured as a brand new, in-game system for ESO is the card collection game known as Tales of Tribute. Similar to Gwent introduced in The Witcher 3, Tales of Tribute will be an in-game system for players to compete with the cards that they collect from around the world. Not only can players challenge other NPCs, but they will also get the chance to compete with other players as well.
It's been quite a while since a brand new system of this size came to ESO. It's even more exciting to hear that there will be little to no gatekeeping for players of lower skill level or experience since each game begins from a neutral deck shared by both players. That means that no matter if a player has a starter deck or amassed some of the game's most elite cards, the playing field is fair from the start. It will be interesting to see how the online competitive playlist shakes out, as it offers an entirely new way for players to showcase their skills in a brand new context.
New Companions
Introduced with the 2021 expansion Blackwood, the companion system is making a return with some brand new characters in coming to High Isle. Companions are NPC characters that can accompany the players across all sorts of PvE activities, providing anything from more DPS, healing abilities, new skill branches, or simply some much-needed company along the journey.
The new companions introduced are a Khajiit named Ember and a Breton Knight named Isobel. Ember was raised in the streets and slums of Tamriel, meaning she is more prone to mischievous methods and whatever it takes to survive. Isobel, on the other hand, is an aspiring knight of High Isle, so she'll most likely represent the altruistic side of her culture. Whatever companion players may want alongside them, there is no doubt that they'll continue to add the fan-favorite charisma, backstory, and companionship that players have loved since the system first launched.
Volcano Vents
Another continuing trend in ESO is public events, which act as real-time activities that players can participate in the same instance as others. What makes them unique is that they are rarely conquerable by a solo player, so it encourages the formation of random groups to tackle its challenges.
Not much is known about the Volcano Vents event is known, but at this point, players can expect much of the same structure as previous expansions. Like the Dark Anchors in the base game or Abyssal Geysers in Summerset, these challenges will randomly appear and offer unique gear, weapons, antiquities, and other surprises for players to add to their collection.
Dreadsail Reef
Dreadsail Reef will be the next Trial added to ESO during High Isle's launch, which is a 12-player endgame activity with more challenging foes and stories to uncover. Trials represent the pinnacle of mechanical difficulty, team coordination, and build crafting in ESO. Similar to raids in other MMO-RPGs like World of Warcraft, it can take many hours of practice and dedication to conquer.
As always, Dreadsail Reef will be able to be played in Normal or Veteran mode, depending on the difficulty that players want to face and the rewards they hope to receive. It will be intriguing to see how this Trial ties into the story of High Isle. Knowing that this story is more grounded in the political and social turmoil of the region, there may be more unique threats that players face other than the usual Daedric creatures seen before. This far into the game's launch, the endgame content has only grown more difficult for the dedicated few at its level, so hopefully, this continues the trend.
Treasures of High Isle
One of the most appealing parts of ESO is the sheer amount of cool armor, weapons, gear, and more that can be obtained from each region. High Isle offers a brand new style inspired by medieval Europe, full of the stoic knights and lavish nobles players have come to expect. The Breton culture is very unexplored up to this point in the Elder Scrolls Universe, so this gear will be unlike any other.
The new gear looks to mix Feudal armor with pirate-like themes from Caribbean islands throughout history. Beyond the look of the players, there will no doubt be plenty of new ways to expand Breton treasures throughout other areas of the game as well. From player housing, pets, mounts, antiquities, emotes, and more, there will be plenty of awesome rewards ripe for the taking.
