So you’re new to The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited and you’re ready to go on a wild adventure. But, before you can go partake in quests mere mortals only dream of, you will first have to create your character. There are nine races to choose from, ten if you have the Imperial edition, and they each present their own benefits to gameplay. For instance, Khajiits (pictured above) are granted bonuses to stealth, health regeneration, and weapon damage, while Dark Elves have bonuses to dual-wielding, fire spells, and fire resistance. If you have an idea of your preferred play style (or have played The Elder Scrolls before) you probably already know what race you’re going to choose.
If you are new to The Elder Scrolls Online, or MMos in general, then you may be left wondering. Just look at all of the bonuses and pick the one you think fits you best. If you don’t like the feel when you start the game you can always go back and create a new character, simple as that. One thing you may want to keep in mind is the Faction you will be entering, specifically if you don’t have the Imperial Edition of the game, but we’ll get into that shortly.
After all is said and done, make sure to spend some time customizing your character. You’re going to be either staring at their back or hands for a long time, so might as well make them all pretty and stuff.
Once you have your race, you’re ready to choose your class.
While your race decides your appearance and stat bonuses, your class decides your combat style. You can choose any class for any race, but it is best to coordinate the two so that you can fully take advantage of whatever bonuses you may have. For example, pictured above is a Khajiit for which the Nightblade class was chosen. Nightblades are similar to rogues in most RPGs in that they are fast and know how to enter and exit confrontations with ease while dealing serious damage. One of the primary components of this class is stealth, which happens to be one of the Khajiit races bonuses making the combination a natural fit.
The four classes you can choose from are:
Dragonknight – These skillful masters-at-arms use the ancient Akaviri martial arts tradition of battle-spirit, and wield fearsome magic that pounds, shatters, and physically alters the world around them.
Sorcerer – Sorcerers can use conjuration and destruction spells to hurl lightning bolts and create shock fields, wield dark magic to snare and stun, and summon Daedric combat followers from Oblivion to assist them.
Nightblade – Nightblades are adventurers and opportunists with a gift for getting in and out of trouble. Relying variously on stealth, blades, and speed, Nightblades thrive on conflict and misfortune, trusting to their luck and cunning to survive.
Templar – These traveling knights call upon the powers of light and the burning sun to deal massive damage to their enemies while restoring health, magicka, and stamina to their allies.
Each one presents its own benefits and they all revolve around specific combat styles, as well as weapon types. Coordinating your play style, race, and class is of the utmost importance if you’re looking to have a good time either solo or as part of a group.
In The Elder Scrolls Online, upon creating your character, you will have to choose between one of three factions to support: Aldmeri Dominion, Ebonheart Pact, and Daggerfall Covenant. The decision has several important effects on your experience with The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited.
For starters, if you do not have the Imperial Edition, you can only create one of three races depending on which alliance you choose to be a part of.
Aldmeri Dominion – High Elf, Wood Elf, Khajiit
Ebonheart Pact – Nord, Dark Elf, Argonian
Daggerfall Covenant – Breton, Redguard, Orc
Not only are you restricted to specific races, but your alliance also governs your starting point in the world (after fleeing the prison in the beginning like all The Elder Scrolls games) your quest lines, and the characters you meet. If you’re worried about being locked out of certain areas of the world because of your alliance, don’t be. You will eventually see the entirety of the rather large world.
One other thing to keep in mind when choosing alliances, particularly when creating multiple characters, is guilds. When you enter a guild all of the characters that you create in that same alliance receive the benefits of that guild. Other than that, feel free to choose what you wish. Let your experiences in past Elder Scrolls titles guide you, or just choose the one with the prettiest logo.
Early on in The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited it is relatively easy to get overwhelmed in combat, especially if you’re playing alone. Sometimes you’ll aggro somebody and other times the area’s enemies will respawn at the most inopportune moments (like when you’re checking your inventory). While not all scenarios can be 100% avoided, you can make an effort to control combat most of the time no matter what class you’re using.
Singling enemies out is the safest way to clear out caves, buildings, or any other fortified areas. Enemies tend to cover an area, so if you can sit at the edge and attract them one by one you’ll find yourself racking up kills with ease. Also, no matter what class you happen to choose in The Elder Scrolls Online you will be able to learn a ranged skill that will help with this strategy. Whether it’s a chain that pulls an enemy in for an intimate embrace, or a throwing dagger, you’ll be able to control who you fight and when you fight them.
Oh, and be sure to make use of stealth whenever possible. If you land an attack while hidden, you will get a sizable damage bonus that can help you defeat even the toughest of opponents. Admittedly, it isn’t always possible since you have hundreds of other people running around doing their own thing, but be sure to put it to good use when you can.
Skyshards are these crystals that you will come across from time to time while playing The Elder Scrolls Online. You will know when one is around because there will be a bright beacon of light shooting straight up to the stars from its location. Whenever possible, make sure to make an effort to absorb their power. For every three that you absorb you get one skill point to use on your character.
Considering how long it takes to level up in this game, any opportunity you have to collect more skill points should never be passed up. Your skills each level up independently and are not influenced by your actual level. So, you can potentially power up your skills quite a bit, even if your overall level is making slow progress.
Speaking of skills…
There are tons of skills available to players in The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited. Race-based skills, Class-based Skills, Guild-based skills, Weapon-based skills, you name it and it’s in there. The sheer variety can sometimes make it very difficult to choose what to invest in and what to work towards.
The first criteria to consider when making this decision is to ask yourself, “Do I like the effects of this ability?” You can only equip so many skills at one time so you should make it a priority to not include anything that you won’t use. As I mentioned before, skills level up independently, so keeping a skill equipped but unused robs you of the opportunity to build up something more useful and powerful. Check your skills tab often to see if you’ve unlocked anything and read its description. You may find the secret ingredient you’ve been waiting for to up your arsenal.
On that same token, don’t use weapon types you don’t care about. If you want to build your archery stick to a bow, even if its damage is a bit lower than that two-handed sword you just picked up. Nothing improves unless you use it, so be prepared to put in work.
Like in all RPGs you will end up picking up a lot of items in The Elder Scrolls Online and often find yourself at your carrying capacity. While this can be upgraded, it is quite pricey to do so, especially early on in the game. What you will want to do is check your inventory often (after each quest is a good idea, or set up time intervals to do so). Look at the weapons and armor you’ve amassed, equip the best items that suit your play style, then head to a merchant to dump all of your unwanted wares.
There is absolutely no use in hoarding items you will not use, and you don’t want to find yourself wanting something you stumble across only to have to stop and figure out what to dump (for no money at that). Get rid of all the trash and keep your pockets open for some serious goodies later on.
As you travel, you will come across a ridiculous number of side quests being doled out by NPCs. Take them. You don’t have to do them immediately if you don’t want them, but there is no harm in having a collection of things to do on the side for those moments when you either don’t want to play the main quest line, or don’t know what to do. Quests grant experience as well as a reward when all is said and done. These awards can be anything from gold to skill points, so don’t let any opportunity pass you by.
You are an adventurer, so go on all of the adventures that you possibly can. Get a feel for the world, save a life or two, make some difficult decisions. You’ll be all the better for it.
This collection of tips will help you get started quite nicely in The Elder Scrolls Online. The task may be daunting at first, but you’ll find yourself ridding the world of evil in no time.
