General:ESO 2023 Global Reveal

ESO 2023 Global Reveal
Medium/Format	Online Interview
Date	January 25, 2023
Hosted By	Twitch, eso.com
Previous	ESO 2022 Global Reveal
Next	ESO 2024 Global Reveal

Global reveal for the Necrom chapter and its Shadow Over Morrowind arc.

Cooking Pre-Reveal

Quincy: Hello there, Traveler! Welcome to Quincy's Tavern. My name is Quincy, and I have the privilege and honor of providing tonight's meal while we patiently wait for the 2023 ESO Global Reveal. I hope you're hungry, because tonight we have a special treat for you. I was thinking we would do something slightly rustic, yet filling, but also with a more refined presentation for the veteran adventurer such as yourself. I had ingredients from all across Tamriel brought in for tonight's special occasion. And I'm so excited to spend some of this evening with you tonight. We do have a few moments before the Global Reveal officially starts. So how about a snack? I have just the thing: Cabbage Biscuits with these bits of bacon all throughout. Perfect with some butter and jam. So nice. Sound good? Wonderful. Let me show you how to make them.

[Creates food likely based on the Balmora Cabbage Biscuits from the Official Cookbook.]

Alrighty, here you are, Traveler— fresh from the oven. Careful, they are still very hot. But, I think, with that, we have everything we need for the ESO Global Reveal. I'll go get us some drinks. You don't go nowhere, eat to your heart's content. Thank you for joining us tonight on this epic adventure. Enjoy!

Introduction

Pete Hines: Welcome to The Elder Scrolls Online 2023 Global Reveal. Whether you're coming from our Developer Direct or just joining us now,we've got an incredible show today. Earlier today, ZeniMax Online Studio Director Matt Firor shared some exciting details on The Elder Scrolls Online's next adventure. That includes one of the most requested features from the ESO community, a new playable class called the Arcanist. Matt also revealed that the new Chapter called Necrom will take you back to a familiar location in Tamriel: Morrowind. And while there, you'll run into a familiar face: a well-known Daedric Prince from the Skyrim Dragonborn DLC. That's just a taste of what's to come. We've got a lot of ground to cover, so let's get started. Once again, it's my great pleasure to introduce The Elder Scrolls Online's Creative Director and my friend, Rich Lambert. Hey, Rich.

Pete Hines: Hey, Pete. Good to see you here

Rich Lambert: Yeah, it's so great to be back to talk with you about all the new fun things the team has been working so hard on. I can't wait to share it with you all.

Pete Hines: All right, it's time to talk Necrom. Are you excited?

Rich Lambert: I'm thrilled for this year. We're going to be exploring a new story and theme centered around the Dark Elves and Hermaeus Mora. The best way to describe this story is "Shadow Over Morrowind." But before I go into any more detail, we've got a great way to introduce you to the mood and feel of this arc. It's Elder Scrolls meets cosmic horror, and I can't wait for you all to see it.

Pete Hines: Well, they don't have to wait any longer. This is The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom.

[Shows The Elder Scrolls Online: Shadow Over Morrowind – Cinematic Announcement Trailer]

Pete Hines: That was awesome. Those mushroom towers really take me back. And some powerful moments in there. But let's start with breaking down the story of Necrom.

Rich Lambert: Everything centers around Hermaeus Mora. We've explored small pieces of who this prince is in a few zones in ESO up to this point, but they are a complicated Daedric Prince. Mora is the knower of unknown and hoards knowledge and secrets in the Realm. Some of these secrets are just too dangerous for any being to know. There are hidden powers that threaten Mora's realm of Apocrypha, with the ultimate goal of uncovering one of these secrets – a secret so important and so dangerous that, if discovered, it could unravel all of reality.

Pete Hines: This isn't just Tamriel that's in trouble. This is all of Nirn.

Rich Lamber: Yes, absolutely.

Pete Hines: So where do our players fit into the mix?

Rich Lambert: Players are essentially being tested by Mora to see if they are worthy to help aid them. So over the course of this adventure, players will become sort of a protector of this ultimate secret that these hidden powers are searching for. There's also an opportunity for players to seek out other knowledge if they wish. To dig into some of the origins of our new playable class in the Arcanist.

Pete Hines: Cool new playable class? I am so in, and I know a lot of our players are as well. Now, we're heading back to Morrowind this year, but it's not the more Morrowind that everyone knows from the Elder Scrolls III or even from the 2017 Chapter of ESO. So it's going to be familiar? Different? A little bit of both?

Rich Lambert: Yes, sir. We're going to be exploring the eastern portion of Morrowind, specifically the Telvanni Peninsula. It is still home to the Dunmer or the Dark Elves. So you're going to see that familiar alien landscape with the giant mushrooms and all the like. But it's got a very different feel than any of the locations that we've previously explored.

Pete Hines: And I'm guessing the city we saw, that was Necrom, yes?

Rich Lambert: Yep.

Pete Hines: And we haven't seen that since The Elder Scrolls Arena, and it looks very different now.

Rich Lambert: Yeah, a lot has changed since then. But yeah, Necrom is the main city in the Chapter and there's so much amazing lore around this. It's a City of the Dead, where Dunmer families from all over Morrowind bury their deceased in these elaborate ceremonies. But there's also some really just wild rumors as to the origins of Necrom. It's a crazy-old city, but I'll leave that up to CJ to kind of dig into in just a little bit.

Pete Hines: Now, finally, Necrom isn't the only cool location that players are going to get to explore, so tell us about the zone that I'm pretty familiar with and some of our players will be too. And that's Apocrypha.

Rich Lambert: Yes, the Oblivion realm, home to forbidden knowledge.

Pete Hines: Also home to the know-it-all Daedric prince that we just saw, Hermaeus Mora. It's always great to revisit other areas of Tamriel that we haven't seen in an Elder Scrolls game, but I know the folks at ZOS like to build everything from scratch. So when it comes to the prince's realm, it's not just like a carbon copy of what we've seen before, right?

Rich Lambert: The Apocrypha that you know and love from Skyrim is...it's definitely there. The dark, inky waters, the towering stacks of books, you know, those unique yellow-green skies. But, like always, we love being able to explore new areas, love putting our own spin on things, and we want to make this our own and give the players new fun things to explore and learn.

Pete Hines: It's so exciting, it sounds like a great blend of the old and the new when it comes to the biomes and the places the players are going to be exploring in Necrom. And in fact, let's explore more of Necrom right now with more details from the team.

Overview

Telvanni Peninsula

CJ Grebb: For the regions in Morrowind and Apocrypha that have been explored in previous Elder Scrolls games, we approach them carefully; making sure on one side it felt like a trip down memory lane, but also providing new experiences for everyone. Our destination this time was the Telvanni Peninsula, an area we visited in the very first Elder Scrolls game, Arena. We also caught a glimpse of its coastline in TES III, Morrowind. This is the first time any game has returned to these lands in almost 30 years and we were really excited to bring them back. The giant mushrooms and distinctive fungus-covered Telvanni towers are back, of course. The East Asian influences at work and some of the architecture and general aesthetics also return, as does the alien landscape so crucial to representing the lands around Vvardenfell. For many players, Morrowind was their first introduction to an open-world RPG, and this concept was reflected in the expansive environments of TES III. ESO has always honored this basic idea, the idea of a world ripe for wandering, and our depiction of the Telvanni Coast will reflect this. The sense of odd scale you may feel walking through it are paramount.

Necrom

CJ Grebb: In terms of differences, we've crafted a modern view of the city of Necrom not seen since 1994. Getting to work on something Elvish, which predates the Tribunal, is particularly interesting. Necrom is the Dunmer City of the Dead, where all prominent Dark Elves gather to pay respects and lay to rest their honored departed. Lord Vivec, known as the Warrior-Poet, spun some wild stories about the city's foundations, which may or may not be true. But what's definitely true is that the Dark Elves have a particular reverence for the city and its solemn purpose in their culture. It's naturally a cool thing to be able to contribute in any significant way to a long-standing piece of Elder Scrolls lore. For the Telvanni Coast, we had a lot of fun playing with the legend of Necrom's foundation. Specifically the lore of Vivec himself, having defeated the great beast Gulga Mor Jil, whose bones supposedly lay the foundations for the city. Entering Necrom for the first time, you're bound to notice the towering rib-like rock formations which envelop the city. The Dunmer have even added some Runic symbols on the faces of the rocks themselves in recognition of their supposed origins. Is the legend true or simply apocryphal? Come tour the lands and make your own decision on that one. Necrom is intended to be monumental, reverent, and yet fit in with the shapes and forms we're used to seeing in Dark Elf architecture. The distinct arched doorways and decorative elements are there, as well as the detailed mosaics on the opulent interior spaces. We specifically took a lot of inspiration from the classic Telvanni buildings in Morrowind.

Apocrypha

CJ Grebb: And finally we have Apocrypha. Whenever we venture back into territories from previous Elder Scrolls games, we always try to make sure that our players feel like they're genuinely returning to lands they've traveled before. We took our initial visual cues from the Skyrim Dragonborn DLC. Then we expanded on the ideas presented in the original. We'll be sharing more details on the unexplored areas of Apocrypha later this year. For the meantime, let's talk about the parts the players are a little more familiar with. Some lands in Tamriel appear quite normal to our mortal eyes and some, like the Telvanni Coast, feel foreign. And then there are the Oblivion Plains, whose lands bend our mortal perceptions into the most alien landscape possible. In crafting the plane of Apocrypha, it was important to remember that Hermaeus Mora doesn't really adhere to traditional ideas of good or evil as many other Daedric Princes do. Likewise, Hermaeus Mora's realm isn't a representation of good or evil either. Our take here was to explore the idea of ancient records and how they might be represented physically in a plane such as this. We created fossilized impressions into the rock walls and emerging from the ground, representing the cataloging of all life, experience, and knowledge. Realms of Oblivion are extensions of their master. And so Apocrypha is a clearinghouse for knowledge. It's a repository. It is intended to feel like a place where ancient things and ancient ideas can be preserved, perhaps even hidden, but never lost. There's a ton of story emitting from these locations, from the environment to the architecture. Of course, the characters and creatures breathe even more life into our world.

Story

Helena Wachhaus: When we chose the setting for Necrom, we knew we had to deliver a story that lives up to this location, and the team had a lot of fun bringing this story to life. If you're not super familiar with any of the fantasy names that we've been talking about, imagine a holy necropolis in the middle of an ancient hierarchical society presided over by extremely powerful mages. Yeah, there's a lot of fun tensions there for us to play with. Necrom remains neutral territory in regards to the Great Houses of Morrowind. Keeping the City of the Dead neutral means all Dark Elves appease their ancestors and ensure their bodies are taken care of, even as the Three Banners War rages on. This is incredibly important, since the tradition of bringing the dead to Necrom predates the Tribunal and the creation of Dark Elves as we know them. It's an integral part of the Dark Elves' cultural identity. In other words, this is an ancient City of the Dead, which isn't controlled by any one Dark Elf House, even though it's surrounded by the Telvanni Magisters, some of the most egotistical and powerful mages in the entirety of Tamriel. But the Peninsula isn't the only place you'll get to explore. As a writer and certified library nerd, I'm so excited that this year we get to take you to Apocrypha for the first time since the Dragonborn DLC. You'll be accompanied by Leramil the Wise, a powerful mage who works with Hermaeus Mora, the Prince of Forbidden Knowledge. Notice I said "with" and not "for." Leramil doesn't worship Hermaeus Mora. They have a working relationship that's built on mutual respect; as much respect as Hermaeus Mora can have for a mortal.

Creatures

Helena Wachhaus: See, mortals don't really survive in Apocrypha for a long time. Knowledge is enticing, but you'd be a fool to assume that it's harmless, and the sheer amount of information there tends to melt mortal minds, mangle their bones, contort their flesh, and turn them into terrifying creatures called The Hushed. Some books are lifeless collections of paper, totally safe to pick up. But others house Tomeshells, small Daedra who live between the pages of Apocrypha's first editions. They may not necessarily attack you, but if you've ever picked up a shell on the beach only to discover that there was a hermit crab already living in it, then you know just how surprising a Tomeshell can be. Tomeshells and Hushed aren't the only denizens in Apocrypha. No, Apocrypha's guardians lurk around every corner. Seekers attend to the vast library, while Lurkers wait beneath the inky waters to dissuade any stubborn researchers from discovering Apocrypha's more dangerous secrets. It's best to be sure that you're really alone before you pick up some light reading.

Factions

Helena Wachhaus: You'll even meet a clanless Dremora called Torvesard, who refuses to let the secrets of Apocrypha remain undisturbed. Torvesard's motives are as mysterious and complex as his allegiances. It's really hard to tell if he's friend or foe. This Chapter isn't all about exploring crypts and making friends with Eldritch Horrors. There's a dark threat coming for both Apocrypha and Nirn. Vampire mercenaries known as the Dusksabers prowl the Telvanni Peninsula. Working for Magister Shelreni Baro. Shelreni seeks to climb the ranks of her house by any means necessary, even working with anyone who will give her the power to achieve her goals. Not everything will be hidden and mysterious, though. If you've played ESO before, there are a bunch of familiar faces for you to find throughout this Chapter. I won't spoil all of the surprises, but we are bringing back my favorite Morag Tong Assassin: Ashur. Okay, yes, Naryu will make an appearance, too. With all this focus on secrecy and forbidden knowledge, it'll be up to you to discover the truth and stop enemies across Eastern Morrowind and Apocrypha. Good luck.

Chapter Goodies

Jessica Folsom: Hey, everyone, we're excited to let you all know that The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is available for pre-purchase right now, while the Chapter will launch on PC, Mac, and consoles this June, we've got plenty of reasons for you to pre-purchase and jump into ESO today.

Gina Bruno: If you're a new player, someone who hasn't played ESO in a while, or you still need to pick up some of our previous Chapters, you'll want to go with the Necrom Collection. Either version, the Standard or the Deluxe Collection grants you instant access to six of our previous Chapters and the base game. And you'll, of course, be able to access the Necrom Chapter once it launches in June.

Jessica Folsom: That's hundreds of hours of content, all in one package. We like to refer to it as eight games in one, since each is like its own standalone Elder Scrolls adventure. And keep in mind you can play these in any order, too.

Gina Bruno: For current players, we're offering both Standard and Deluxe upgrades, which will provide you with the latest Necrom Chapter.

Jessica Folsom: No matter what version you pre-purchase, you'll receive these items. While some will be unlocked at launch, everyone will receive this unique mount immediately.

Gina Bruno: For a limited time, if you pre-purchase Necrom, you'll also receive this matching pet to go along with the mount that Jess just mentioned.

Jessica Folsom: Coming with the Deluxe Edition is this new Apocrypha-themed, one-of-a-kind mount. That's in addition to other pre-purchased items that come with the Deluxe upgrade and Collection.

Gina Bruno: Separate from our pre-purchase offering, but just as cool is the Hermaeus Mora collector's statue that's available for preorder at the Bethesda Gear Store. Be sure and secure yours, along with some awesome ESO merch, because right now, for a limited time, we have a flash sale running.

Jessica Folsom: Any edition of Necrom also unlocks the new Arcanist class at launch, and we know you've been eagerly awaiting more information on that, so let's check it out now.

Arcanist Class Details

Pete Hines: All right, we've waited long enough... Rich, it's Arcanist time. Spill some details.

Rich Lambert: Where do you want to start? You know, this has easily been the number one most requested feature from players since the Necromancer back in 2019 with Elsweyr.

Pete Hines: Well, I mean, why don't we give the players a little bit of the backstory and inspiration behind the Arcanist?

Rich Lambert: The Arcanist is a new way to play and experience ESO. It's the seventh playable class, and channels the power of Apocrypha to create ancient runes of power. This weird knowledge lets them do some truly fantastic things: destroying their enemies with Runic magic, summoning tentacles from the Abyss, healing their allies, and some even protecting themselves from the worst the Daedric planes have to offer.

Pete Hines: Of course, what everyone really wants to know is: how do you play the Arcanist? And we've got just the person to tell us.

Stephen Gerretani: With the Arcanist, we wanted to keep the basic form of the class familiar to everyone so there's something for all play styles, while letting us be more creative with the abilities themselves. We started off with three skill lines: Herald of the Tome, Apocryphal Soldier, and Curative Runeforms. Each line focuses on a different aspect of the game: offense, defense, and support. The challenge we embraced was making these abilities feel unique compared to previous classes, but not so systematically different that veteran players would feel out of place. I know several of the abilities will leave you awestruck. Two of my favorite new abilities are Apocryphal Gate and Abyssal Impact. Apocryphal Gate lets you open a pair of temporary portals that you can jump between for extra in-fight mobility, or use these portals for creative exploration. Abyssal Impact is a bit more direct. It has you infuse your arm with unstable magic, transforming it into a tentacular weapon as you thrust forward, damaging and debilitating your foes. I'm also super excited to share that we're doing something very different for the Arcanist: implementing a combo point system. In this system, certain abilities will build points, while others will spend them, giving them an extra bit of oomph by enhancing or augmenting the ability. We're aiming for this to be something that all players can easily get a handle on. So no one should worry that this class will be too technical to play. Can't let too much out of the bag yet though, so the rest will have to be a secret for now.

When we were initially coming up with the Arcanist, we had a ton of ideas and inspiration coming from all sorts of places: movies, comics, classic literature, and both retro and modern games. There's even a handful of anime references. And, while we had a lot of great ideas, there was one that led us to a major breakthrough and helped bind everything together: The Black Books of Hermaeus Mora. Now, while this gave us a solid feel for how the abilities should look and sound, you won't necessarily be wielding one of the black books. Instead, you'll summon your own tome, in which you've inscribed numerous bits of ancient knowledge that you've gleaned from the Prince of Fate. Think of it like your own cookbook you glance at every so often to spice up your spells. This won't be the only taste of the Arcanist you'll get, though. You also come across foes, and maybe a friend, who will wield the same deep magics that you'll learn. There may even be some unforeseen enemies that have tomes worth of forbidden arcane power to throw at you.

This is just the first page of the story of this new class. We've had a ton of fun making it, and we've got plenty more to show you as time goes on. I can't wait for you all to experience adventuring Tamriel and the realms beyond, alongside, or as, an Arcanist.

New Companions

Pete Hines: Okay Rich, now let's talk about some new features and systems. Start with: any chance there's going to be some new Companions?

Rich Lambert: Yes. In fact, we've got two new Companions coming to ESO with this Necrom Chapter. And for those that don't know who or what Companions are, they're your permanent adventuring buddies. Someone that's at your beck and call whenever you want, to help you explore Tamriel, and the feedback from players since the inception back in 2021, has been overwhelmingly positive and we've been looking to expand and evolve it in new ways.

Pete Hines: So tell us about the two new Companions we're going to see.

Rich Lambert: The first companion is called Sharp-as-Night, and he is an Argonian Warden who is a bit of a mercenary and an enigma. He originated from Black Marsh, but his past is lost to him, and he spent a lot of time trying to figure out who he is, to no avail. He is a lot more reserved than our other Companions, as he's lived a tough life and he really isn't overly chatty, and you're going to have to prove yourself to him. And then there is Azandar. Azandar is a Redguard male, and a little bit of a crazy fatherly figure professor. Think Willy Wonka meets Dumbledore. And he's got this really singular focus on the pursuit of knowledge.

Pete Hines: And so what's so special about Azandar, Rich?

Rich Lambert: As some of you might have guessed, with Azandar being so focusedon this pursuit of knowledge, he's an Arcanist himself, so you'll be able to dig into a bit on that side of his story as well.

Other Chapter Contents

Pete Hines: Some amazing stuff. And that's not all we've got cooking. Like every Chapter, we offer loads of side quests, a new trial, there's world events, public dungeons, delves, and more. Roughly how much content do you think we're talking here, Rich?

Rich Lambert: Players can expect around 30 hours of content just from the main storyline, in addition to all the side content and everything you just mentioned.

Pete Hines: Always so much to do in an Elder Scrolls Chapter. The team has really pulled out all the stops with Necrom.

Rich Lambert: We really have, and players won't have to wait too long to begin their Shadow Over Morrowind adventure. Players will be able to begin their adventures this March with our first DLC.

Pete Hines: Awesome. I will definitely be checking that out. Before we wrap things up, let's talk about some changes that you're planning to the ESO calendar.

Rich Lambert: Absolutely. So ESO is a living, breathing world that is constantly evolving. As a team, we're always evaluating where we are, what the game needs, and the community's sentiment around how well we're doing. Over the years, we have made many changes based on these evaluations. But one of the fundamental pillars that hasn't changed has always been to create as much story content as we possibly can to try to keep up with our players and their insatiable desire for new stories and adventures. And this constant drive is one of the reasons why ESO has become one of the best games on the market today. There's so much to do, so many stories and locations to experience, tons of systems and various activities to participate in, solo or with friends.

Pete Hines: So what's changing?

Rich Lambert: We want to continue on creating these new adventures while also addressing quality-of-life feedback and bugs that have emerged over time. In other words, we want to focus on polish and iterate more on cool ideas, be it stories or systems. With the overall goal of making each release as solid as it can be. The first half of the year isn't really going to change much. We've been hard at work on a lot of this stuff for a very long time. We're still doing a Dungeon DLC with two new dungeons and a prolog quest to kick off this new arc. The Chapter is releasing in June with all the goodies you love and expect. Where things are changing this year are fall and winter.

Pete Hines: That's great news for players. Don't stop. Keep going.

Rich Lambert: Late summer, our focus is going to be on bugs and quality-of-life additions. Things like premade group finder or an all-in-one attunable set-crafting station as examples. There won't be any dungeons in this update, because for Update 40, which comes towards the end of the year, the team is working on something really epic, something pretty special that they just need more time on.

Pete Hines: I mean, come on, Rich. We got to give them more than that.

Rich Lambert: Okay, fine. How does an endless dungeon with a buddy sound?

Pete Hines: Sounds good.

Rich Lambert: We'll have a lot more info on this later in this year, but I'm insanely excited about this.

Wrapping Up

Pete Hines: Sounds very cool. Rich, I want to thank you for all the details surrounding Necrom and the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure today. I know I'm excited to play and I sure hope everyone watching is as well.

Rich Lambert: We are just as excited. But before I go, I wanted to personally thank the entire team for all of their incredible work. It's truly an honor to be able to represent them here today. Also, on behalf of the entire ZOS team around the globe, I'd like to thank you all for your continued support. You've helped make ESO and its amazing community what it is today.

Pete Hines: All right. Let's throw it back to Jess and Gina to fill everyone in on in-game events, talk guilds, and more.

Gina Bruno: So it's obviously no secret that there's always something to do in ESO. In addition to all this content, we offer a wide variety of in-game events catering to all different playstyles from PvP to Overland, seasonal festivities, and more. In addition to our quarterly content updates, this year we'll be having 11 in-game events plus the themed monthly PvP Battleground Weekends. In fact, our first in-game event for the year, the Season of the Dragon Celebration, starts in just a couple of days.

Jessica Folsom: And who better to enjoy all these events with than friends? ESO is great solo, but even better with friends—or a whole guild of friends. Whether you're into PvP, 12-player trials, crafting, questing, or even fishing and house decorating, there is a guild—or five—for everyone and every playstyle. You can find your first—or next—guild via the in-game Guild Finder. If you're a current player and have a guild who is looking to welcome new adventures, let us know about it on Twitter. Tag us @TESOnline.

Gina Bruno: And speaking of coming together, we're extremely excited to let everyone know that we'll be hosting an in-person event this spring to celebrate all things ESO and the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure. We'll share details on our website and social channels very soon. In the meantime, if you want to learn more about the first DLC in the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure, we'll be previewing the DLC and Update 37 live on Twitch this Friday, so be sure to tune in.

Pete Hines: That was a packed show. Lots of change. Lots of new. A quick reminder that ESO: Necrom is available for pre-purchase right now. Visit elderscrollsonline.com or your favorite online retailer and claim your mount and pet today. ESO: Necrom launches this June. And believe it or not, we're just getting started. Stay tuned in the months leading up to launch for even more info. Thanks for spending your time with us. We'll see you in Tamriel.