Restore the Glory of Umaril with the New Unfeathered Crown Crates
Honor the legendary Ayleid sorcerer-king with the shining items and collectibles found within the upcoming Unfeathered Crown Crates.
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From across the plains of Cyrodiil comes a war trumpet's cry. The soul quakes as gilded armor, gleaming in the sun, cuts across the battlefield for the first time in uncounted centuries. Meridia's champion may have fallen an age ago, but those who venerate the Unfeathered still carry out his cruel will.
The dark will of the ancient Heartland High Elves reborn, blood spilled in the Bright Lady's name. Can a remorseless champion such as Umaril ever truly be slain? Or will the Unfeathered one day make good his curse to cast down the mortal gods?
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The new Unfeathered Crown Crates arrive in the in-game Crown Store this Thursday, June 22 at 10AM EDT. You can claim these shining splendors by picking them up via various bundles from the in-game Crown Store. This new Crown Crate also introduces a special 25-crate bundle, which features a unique polymorph (see more below).
Unfeathered Crown Crates host a powerful collection of items and collectibles, ready to bring Meridia’s light to Tamriel. You can preview just some of these new items below. Coldharbour Corruption Eyes face marking & Legionnaires Recall customized action Umaril’s Radiance Elk mount & Constellation Projection Apparatus furnishing
Should the Bright Lady smile upon you when opening an Unfeathered crate, you might uncover one of these extremely rare Radiant Apex mounts. Legion Zero Sabre Cat & Auroran Polychrome Wolf mounts Ahz-m’Athra mount
Unfeathered Crown Crates will be available in one-, four-, and 15-crate bundles in addition to a unique 25-crate offering that is available as a one-time purchase only. In addition to the crates, this special bundle also includes the shining Armor of the Unfeathered polymorph. Armor of the Unfeathered polymorph
This polymorph will be automatically unlocked and added to your collectibles when the one-off bundle is first purchased. It is not part of the Unfeathered crates themselves.
These are just a hint at some of the legendary items you can seize when you open an Unfeathered Crown Crate. To peruse the full list of this new crate’s contents, check out this thread on our official forums. Note that when the Unfeathered Crown Crates arrive, the current Ragebound Crown Crates will be removed from the Crown Store, so don’t forget to pick them up while you still can!
Unfeathered Crown Crates arrive this Thursday, June 22 at 10AM EDT, and they can be found within the Crown Crate section of the in-game Crown Store. Are you excited to honor Meridia’s shining champion? It’s time to reclaim Cyrodiil in the name of the Ayleid Empire! Let us know what you think about these new items and collectibles via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Charge into Battle atop the Ancient Dragon Hunter Horse Mount with Prime Gaming
Link your ESO and Amazon accounts to claim the Dragon Slayer Mount!
Starting today until August 25, 2023, at 12PM EDT, you can claim the Dragon Slayer Mount from the Prime Gaming website. To learn more about Amazon Prime, its benefits, and how to subscribe, click here! Have a linked ESO and Amazon Prime account? Follow the instructions below to unlock your rewards:
If on twitch.tv, you can also find the game from within the Prime Gaming Loot navigation menu (it has a crown icon).
<*>For the Dragon Slayer Mount, select Claim Now, and follow the instructions to claim your offering
Note that you will need to link your Elder Scrolls Online and Amazon accounts (follow this process if you need help with the Prime Gaming flow)
<*>Your items will be waiting for you next time you log in to the game! Upon completing this process, you can obtain the Dragon Slayer Mount reward, which contains the Ancient Dragon Hunter Horse mount collectible. The Ancient Dragon Hunter Horse mount
Don’t forget, until June 23 at 12PM EDT, you can still redeem the Dragon Slayer Bundle #2 to get your hands on the following exclusive goodies:
Ancient Dragon Hunter Arms Pack
Ancient Dragon Hunter Sword
Ancient Dragon Hunter Greatsword
Ancient Dragon Hunter Shield
Ancient Dragon Hunter Bow
Ancient Dragon Hunter Staff
2× Outfit Change Token
Prime Gaming users will benefit from two Outfit Change Tokens due to a bug resolved with Update 37 that prevented them from receiving the first one offered in the Dragon Slayer Bundle #1
Ancient Dragon Hunter Wolf pet
The Ancient Dragon Hunter Arms Pack and Wolf pet
Once you’ve confirmed that you’ve successfully redeemed your in-game rewards, exit and then reenter ESO. These items will be waiting for you in the Collections menu.
Interested in taking advantage of these limited-time offers? Be sure to link your Amazon and ESO accounts and subscribe to Amazon Prime. Are you ready to charge into battle atop this stalwart steed? Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook!
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom & Update 38 Now Live on PC/Mac
Uncover the Shadow Over Morrowind with The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom and the Update 38 base-game patch, now live on PC/Mac!
This new Chapter in The Elder Scrolls Online saga introduces two new zones to explore, a brand-new class to master, and a sinister plot to uncover that threatens reality itself. If you play on consoles, don’t worry. You can dive into Necrom on Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5 on June 20.
This release also includes the free Update 38 base-game patch, introducing new fixes, additions, balance changes, and improvements.
Necrom Chapter
In The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom, you can delve deeper into the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure, explore the Telvanni Peninsula and Apocrypha zones, and master an all-new class, the Arcanist. Necrom continues the story that began with March’s Scribes of Fate DLC, but you do not need to have completed the previous DLC to experience everything this Chapter has to offer.
Telvanni Peninsula and Apocrypha
Home to the cunning mages of House Telvanni and the city of Necrom, the Telvanni Peninsula’s towering mushroom forests might feel familiar to those who have ventured to other parts of Morrowind. However, in addition to the city itself, this new zone contains a host of unique encounters for you to discover in your explorations, including new side quests, world bosses, delves, public dungeons, and more. Necrom city
Necrom also allows you to explore Hermaeus Mora’s realm of Apocrypha. While this mysterious part of Oblivion contains knowledge untold, be warned—many mortals have lost their souls while navigating its endless libraries.
In this Chapter, you can explore an all-new part of Aprocypha called Chroma Incognito, a region comprised of fates that never came to pass. This new area is unlike anything you have experienced before, including myriad hazards and secrets for you to discover. Learn more about Necrom’s two zones in this preview.
The Arcanist
Helping you tackle these new worlds is the all-new Arcanist class. The first new class added to ESO since the Elsweyr Chapter’s Necromancer in 2019, the Arcanist wields the forbidden powers of Apocrypha to deal damage, absorb incoming blows, and heal yourself or your allies.
In addition to three skill lines that allow the class to perform any role, the Arcanist introduces a new combat mechanic: Crux. When activating specific Arcanist abilities, you generate Crux, which you can then spend to empower other abilities. How you utilize this unique resource in combat can have a major impact on your effectiveness as an Arcanist. You can read more about the Arcanist class in this preview—use these new powers wisely!
Group Challenges
If you’re looking for a challenge, Necrom also introduces new group activities. Sanity’s Edge is a 12-player trial which tasks you and your allies with defending the fractured mind of a stricken member of the Mages Guild. Sanity’s Edge trial
In addition, Bastion Nymic is a new kind of world event where groups of up to four can help the Prince of Fate reclaim one of his lost fortresses from mysterious invaders. However, even getting access to this hidden part of Apocrypha requires special items found only on roaming Seekers. Read more about these two PvE activities here.
New Companions & Rewards
As you venture throughout both zones, you can encounter new allies including two unique Companions, Sharp-as-Night and Azandar al-Cybiades. Both Companions can be recruited, leveled up, and equipped in this new Chapter, and each brings their own stories, combat skills, and questlines for you to unlock.
Necrom also features a host of in-game rewards you can earn as you explore and complete the game’s various quests and Achievements. This includes a series of new item sets (via crafting or earned from monster drops) and unique collectibles (such as the Berylglow Nix-Ox Steed mount or the Shroomtender’s Garb style). Necrom zone rewards
You can also dig up new Antiquities throughout both zones (including three mythic items) and unlock a Tales of Tribute deck (Almalexia) that introduces an all-new patron ability and cards.
Purchase Details & Requirements
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is available to buy now in four editions:
The Elder Scrolls Online Deluxe Collection: Necrom
The Elder Scrolls Online Collection: Necrom
The Elder Scrolls Online Deluxe Upgrade: Necrom
The Elder Scrolls Online: Upgrade: Necrom
If you are a brand-new or lapsed player, both Collection editions include the base game, the Necrom Chapter, and ALL previous Chapters. If you already own ESO and its previous Chapters, both Upgrade editions grant you access to the Necrom Chapter. Note that to run Necrom on PC/Mac, your machine needs to meet the game's requirements here: PC, Mac.
In addition to the game, both versions of Necrom are also available in Deluxe editions, which feature a unique mount, pet, memento, outfit style, and emotes. Necrom Deluxe Edition items
Once you have access to the Necrom Chapter, you can travel to the new zone and continue your Shadow Over Morrowind adventure in the following ways:
Via Wayshrine
You can teleport directly to the Telvanni Peninsula by opening your map, selecting the Necrom zone, and then selecting the Necrom Outskirts Wayshrine icon (the only one active in the zone).
Via the Necrom Main Quest
You can acquire the Necrom main quest by navigating to your Collections UI, selecting Stories, and then Chapters. From there, you can select Necrom and pick up the first quest, titled “Fate's Proxy” to begin. The quest points you toward where you need to go to travel to the zone.
Via the Tutorial
You can also travel to the Telvanni Peninsula by creating a new character and completing the tutorial. At the end of the tutorial experience, you can select Telvanni Peninsula as your destination and begin.
Getting to Apocrypha
You can find portals to Apocrypha's two regions, the Endless Library and Chroma Incognito, in Leramil's base of operations in the Necrom Bindery. Travel east from the Necrom interior wayshrine and find the entrance past the guild trader's plaza. Jump straight into the Necrom story
Don’t forget, there are no level requirements for any PvE zone in ESO, allowing you to immediately jump into the new content with any of your existing or new characters—have fun!
Update 38
Launching at the same time as the new Chapter is Update 38, a free base-game patch for all ESO players that adds quality-of-life improvements, fixes, and new features to the game.
Collectible Favorites
With Update 38, you can now designate favorites among your collectibles, moving them to the top of your Collections UI. You can choose up to 100 various collectibles with no limit on mounts, but some categories do not support this functionality at this time.
RandomMounts
Update 38 also allows you to set your active mount to either “Random Favorite Mount” or “Random Mount.” When either one of these options is toggled, activating your mount in the world then summons a mount from either your selected favorites or from your entire collection—mix it up!
Filleting Multiple Stacks of Fish
Tamriel’s many fishers can now fillet multiple fish simultaneously with Update 38. This can be done by visiting any Provisioning Station and selecting the new tab. You can still fillet fish one at a time from your inventory, but if you’ve got a huge catch, you will be casting more lines in no time.
New PvP Keep Messaging
Finally, Update 38 also introduces improved messaging for when a keep and its resources are claimed. If your guild owns a keep, the owner will be notified when its resource guards are killed.
These are just some of the new features and changes coming with the new base-game update. You might notice changes to the reset timers for Cyrodiil and Tales of Tribute campaigns and that the indomitable Stuga is less fanatical when it comes to chasing you down in the streets of Daggerfall, Davon’s Watch, and Vulkhel Guard. To review everything coming with this base-game patch, be sure to check out the patch notes on our official forums.
Become an Agent of Mora
The Prince of Knowledge is under siege and needs your help defending a long-held secret. Become an Arcanist and master the power of Apocrypha, explore two new zones, recruit new allies, uncover unique rewards, and continue your Shadow Over Morrowind saga in The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom. Are you willing to become an agent of Hermaeus Mora? Reality itself stands on the precipice! Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is part of the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure and is now live on PC/Mac and arrives on June 20, 2023, for Xbox and PlayStation consoles.
Necrom Preview—Conjuring the Arcanist
Learn about the all-new Arcanist class, arriving soon as part of The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom, and see how the ESO dev team crafted this new way to play.
The Arcanist is ESO’s first new class since 2019’s Elsweyr Chapter and introduces three skill lines (Curative Runeforms, Herald of the Tome, and Soldier of Apocrypha) in addition to an all-new combat mechanic: the Crux System. Adding a new class to the game is a major undertaking, so we spoke to members of the development team to learn more about the Arcanist’s key features, design, and development.
Conjuring a New Class
When planning ESO’s newest class, including its abilities, background, and aesthetic, the team knew that first and foremost, the Arcanist had to stand apart.
“We set out to create something new and unique that doesn’t look or play like any class we’ve made before,” explains Brian Wheeler, ESO’s Lead Combat Designer. “The Arcanist had to be different and not just a new coat of paint or a collection of ‘best hits’ from the game’s other classes.”
In addition, the team wanted to ensure that the new Arcanist class appealed to both new and existing players alike, regardless of experience level.
“One of the tenets we had when making the Arcanist was to create abilities that explored new ground and concepts, while still having some that long-time players could see and draw comparisons to,” explains Stephen Cerretani, one of the Arcanist’s Combat Designers. “A great example are the first two abilities in the Herald of the Tome skill line. Runeblades has the makings of a long-range spammable, akin to Flame Skull or Force Shock. On the other hand, we have Fatecarver, a channeled beam that you can freely aim, wreaking havoc to anything before you.”
Finally, it was also important that the Arcanist support multiple roles (damage, tanking, healing) while presenting a single consistent identity.
“The ability to perform any role using its own skills helps provide for a cohesive class experience,” explains Wheeler. “Whether you’re taking damage or dishing it out, the FX, audio, and animations all feel like they’re part of the same suite. This keeps the fantasy of playing an Arcanist intact without breaking up the visuals and overall vibe by over-relying on other abilities from other skill lines.”
Apocrypha-Inspired Power
To help create this special identity, the team made the decision* to connect the Arcanist to the realm of Apocrypha. This unique thematic background became the foundation for not only the class’s combat abilities, but its entire aesthetic, including its FX and sounds.
“The Arcanist, stylistically, is worlds apart from our other classes,” explains Dylan Hairston, the Arcanist’s Senior Sound Designer. “Where the Dragonknight might wield fire and poison, the Arcanist wields knowledge, runes, tentacles, etc. This allowed me to develop sounds that don’t have a strong real-world precedent, and I had a blast figuring out how some of the more obscure things would sound.” The Arcanist utilizes eldritch runes of power
“We really wanted to make players feel like Arcanists are drawing from ancient knowledge, so focusing more on text, ink, and larger drawn runes helps that idea come across,” says Brian Hahn, the Arcanist’s Senior FX Artist. “Incorporating one of the black books into a lot of the casting animation also plays on this idea. We had a lot of fun coming up with ways to use it as a casting focus.”
Of course, when looking for inspiration, the team immersed themselves in the sinister, mysterious lore of Hermaeus Mora and Apocrypha.**
“Hermaeus Mora has a strong Lovecraftian draw, and I leaned into that heavily to try to make sounds that invoke this sense of being in your head,” says Hairston. “We included elements of whispers or unintelligible murmurs as though the sounds themselves contain infinite knowledge and power.” Bring Apocrypha to Nirn with unique abilities
“We also played around a bit with the idea of forbidden knowledge,” explains Hahn. “Abilities like Abyssal Impact and Runes of Eldritch Horror are supposed to feel like they came from the darker depths of Apocrypha. As opposed to abilities like Remedy Cascade and Runeblades, which feel like you’re drawing from powers that would be more widely available in this part of Oblivion.”
Getting to the Crux of It
In addition to three unique Skill Lines (complete with active, passive, and ultimate abilities) that each support the three playstyles, the Arcanist also introduces the Crux System. When playing an Arcanist, certain abilities will generate Crux, a new resource that you can use by activating Crux-spending abilities. Those abilities then enjoy additional benefits like cheaper resource costs, additional damage, and more.
“Similar to the Necromancer’s corpse mechanic, with an Arcanist, you can enhance your abilities via the Crux system,” explains Wheeler. “However, with the new class, you’re able to stay mobile and build and spend Crux as you wish. This gives the Arcanist the chance to choose their own destiny on the fly, and it adds a layer of mastery outside of simply putting together your gear sets and ability bar.” Empower your abilities with Crux
“The Crux system gives more of a direct ebb and flow to the class,” says Cerretani. “You can cast your abilities whenever you feel the opportunity requires it, but when you have all three Crux available to you and your ability buttons are shining, it’s a great feeling to know you’ll be firing at maximum effect.”
Because of the Crux System, the Arcanist features has customization that helps it stand apart from previous classes.
“You can go as simple or complex as you want with the Arcanist’s Crux System, and we designed the full suite of abilities that way,” says Wheeler. “Not all your abilities build or spend, and some abilities provide benefits for simply building Crux and not spending it. Some players can even play with just no builders or spenders at all if they want, while others can load up all kinds of combinations to juggle building, spending, and sitting on three Crux for the right opportunity.”
How you build and play your Arcanist is up to you, and the team worked hard to ensure that no matter your experience level, you can both have fun and be effective when playing the new class.
“With the Arcanist we wanted to make sure that you could still have fun and fire off cool-looking abilities without having to worry about if you met some additional prerequisite,” explains Cerretani. “All the while leaving room for our veterans and number crunchers to have the opportunity to really get into the weeds with how the abilities interacted with one another.”
Master the Power of Apocrypha
With the new Arcanist class, you can manipulate the eldritch energies of Hermaeus Mora’s realm to sunder your foes, stand steadfast against any attack, and restore your allies. How you chose to use this new class is up to you, and a near-limitless number of builds and playstyles await those willing to delve into the secrets of Apocrypha. How will you utilize these spectacular new powers? Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is part of the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure and arrives for PC/Mac on June 5, 2023, and for Xbox and PlayStation consoles on June 20, 2023.
Pre-purchase Necrom now to receive unique bonus rewards at launch and immediate access to the Sadrith Mora Spore Steed mount.
*Perhaps influenced by the Prince of Knowledge himself?
**No developers were transformed into Hushed during the making of the Arcanist.
ESO Daily Login Rewards—June 2023
Check out some of the in-game rewards you can earn simply by logging into The Elder Scrolls Online this June 2023!
Whether you’re exploring bizarre new worlds, leveling up your Arcanist, or diving deep into the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure, there are 30(!) days of amazing login rewards you can claim in June 2023.
What are Daily Rewards? Check out this help article to learn everything you need to know! Here are some highlights of this coming month’s offerings.
Crown Lesson: Riding Capacity×4—Day 7 The Riding Capacity Crown Lesson
You can find a host of new items within the Telvanni Peninsula and Apocrypha, so leveling up your ride’s carry capacity ensures nothing is left behind in your adventures.
Trumpet Solo Emote—Day 14 Trumpet Solo emote
Blow your horn like a certain jazz-loving Khajiit with the Trumpet Solo emote and instantly become the center of attention, whether your audience wants you to or not.
100,000 Gold—Day 21 Gold, gold, gold!
Whether you’re looking to acquire crafted item sets, consumables, materials, or new styles, almost everything is available for the right price from your local Guild Traders, so an extra 100,000 gold should be a welcome addition to every adventurer’s coin purse—just don’t spend it all at once!
With the upcoming launch of the Necrom Chapter, you have plenty of amazing reasons to venture into Tamriel this coming month. The above items are, of course, just a sample of some of the in-game goodies you can claim when logging into the game in June. To see the complete schedule, simply log in on the morning of June 1, 2023, navigate to the Daily Rewards section of the in-game Crown Store, and take a look!
Are you excited to get your hands on these daily login rewards? Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Register Now for the 2023 ESO Tavern European Community Event!
The ESO Tavern European community event returns with an exciting mix of activities and fun. Sign up for the July 2023 event at Castle Satzvey near Cologne, Germany now!
Meet up with other players, your fellow guild members, and developers to discuss The Elder Scrolls Online at the ESO Tavern, Tamriel’s largest in-person community event. First hosted in 2013, the ESO Tavern over the years has become a major event where players and developers alike can share their passion for the game and the ever-growing #ESOFam.
This year, the ESO Tavern will take place at Castle Satzvey in Germany from Saturday, July 15 at 3PM CEST, until Sunday, July 16 at 2PM CEST. This special location is the perfect place for the ESO community to mingle and celebrate ESO together, take part in various activities, and enjoy exciting music performances. ESO Creative Director Rich Lambert, Art Director CJ Grebb, Lead Encounter Designer Mike Finnigan, Lead Combat Designer Brian Wheeler, and Community Manager Kai Schober will also be present during the festivities and engaging with the fans.
Admissions will be managed via Eventbrite. Please follow this link to register for ESO Tavern 2023.
Note that the entrance fee for this year’s event will be 25 euros per attendee. This includes access to all activities, special swag, free drink tokens, breakfast on Sunday, and the option to camp on the storied castle grounds.
After registering for a ticket, you will be placed onto a waiting list. If you'd like to sign up as a group or generally increase your chances, email us directly at community_de@bethsofteurope.com with "Tavern 2023" in the subject line. Tell us the email address(es) you used to register through Eventbrite and why you’d love to be invited. If you are approved, you will have seven days to confirm the purchase and pay. This ticket will also be refundable up to 7 days before the event.
Please note that camping spots are limited. If you wish to claim one, please mention this in the application email for scheduling.
Keep an eye on our social media channels for more information about planned programming in the coming weeks. Were you able to attend the recent Las Vegas Community Event and are excited to also sign up for the ESO Tavern? Or is this going to be your first major fan meetup of the year? Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Begin Your Journey into the Arcanist Class with This New Developer Video
Discover the Arcanist’s powerful collection of abilities and unique combat mechanics in this new video.
When the Necrom Chapter launches this June, you can finally wield the eldritch power of the all-new Arcanist class. Get a breakdown of the abilities and unique mechanics of this powerful new class from ESO’s Lead Combat Designer Brian Wheeler and prepare your mind and soul to master the frightening and unpredictable energies of Apocrypha.
Are you excited to check out ESO’s first new class since the Elsweyr Chapter? Power beyond understanding lies within your reach should you have the courage to gaze into the mysteries of Apocrypha. Let us know if you’ll be creating a brand-new Arcanist character when Necrom launches this June via Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom arrives for PC/Mac on June 5, 2023, and for Xbox and PlayStation consoles on June 20, 2023. Pre-purchase Necrom now to receive unique bonus rewards at launch and immediate access to the Sadrith Mora Spore Steed mount. Don't miss out!
Loremaster’s Archive–The Arcanists
Azandar Al-Cybiades shares his knowledge concerning the Arcanists and their connection to the mysterious realm of Apocrypha in a new Loremaster’s Archive.
Salutations, sagacious sojourner. And welcome to a distillation of all things arcanist. I have the distinct pleasure of being your scholar-in-residence for this discussion. I have been eagerly anticipating my opportunity to clarify a few things about this most esoteric of mystical pursuits.
But I forget myself: I am Azandar al-Cybiades. Theoretician of fated potential, enigmatum accumulator, and arcanist of the highest order. It was with great pleasure I responded in the affirmative to the University of Gwilym’s invitation. A chance to answer submitted questions for a wider academic audience, how delightful!
Despite, or indeed perhaps because of, their previous refusal to publish my papers, I’m very much looking forward to the chance to speak on the arcanist branch of philosophical and magical scholarship. Let’s sally forth then, readers. There’s much ground to cover and I don’t wish to overstay my welcome. Onward and upward!
Greetings Azandar al-Cybiades,
How does one become an arcanist?
—Lunetta Gleamblossom
There are as many answers to that question as there are arcanists in the world, friend Gleamblossom. A tome travels (somehow) from Apocrypha to Nirn and eventually finds a mortal soul that fits perfectly with its unique infralux resonance. The contents of the tome, circumstances of discovery, and mesh between the mortal and the book are wholly specific to that experience.
The output of that interaction (the arcanist) is also a specific exemplar of the phenomenon. Some arcanists, like myself, view the contents of our tomes with academic detachment. Others see it as a new framework within which to live their lives. Yet others become as thirsty for knowledge as Hermaeus Mora himself, or they shut themselves away in isolated scholarship for the rest of their (usually chaotic) existences.
I hesitate to recount the “discovery tales” of other arcanists I’ve spoken with, but I’m happy enough to relate my own. I was in a very dour place in my life, emotionally and economically. I was in a second-hand bookstore in Sentinel, seeking out an old edition of a cookbook I’d grown fond of. I recall it quite clearly, I was running my hand along a row of spines when my book quite literally bit me. Nipped the end of my finger and drew a spot of blood. My annoyance turned to extraordinary surprise when I beheld the contents within. And the long and storied career of Azandar al-Cybiades, realm traveler and arcanist, began.
What caused so many arcanists to show themselves right now?
—Fonarik the Wood Orc
As always with magic, good Fonarik, perception is reality. The truth of the matter is that arcanists are not a new phenomenon. In truth, I have been studying my tome and the stacks of Apocrypha for several decades now. I believe the prominence we’ve garnered of late—the very reason I was asked to engage in this discussion—stems from a sort of statistical tipping point. Despite the inherent secrecy with which we do our work, there are far more arcanists plying their trade now than ever before. The sheer weight of numbers has drawn attention to our magickal framework, you see.
I also want to note I would be a poor scholar indeed if I didn’t frame the term “arcanist” as a badge we have self-pinned to our proverbial chests. In a previous University discussion panel, I found the response from the Guild Mage Dhulef along these lines quite insightful, when discussing the “wardens.” Magic is magic at the end of the day. The lines we draw around it are mortal constructs, nothing more or less.
Now, as to why there are more arcanists now than ever before? If I had to guess, perhaps some kind of shift in the aetheric fabric of the Aurbis? The Planemeld has been a time for us all, and it will leave each and every one of us with stories to last a lifetime—provided we survive. Perhaps something about this event, or something like it, has changed the relationship between Nirn and the Daedric Realms. And this change, in turn, has prompted more tomes to find their way to mortal hands.
Hello!
I heard Arcanists make use of "Runes" in their spellcasting. Do these Runes have any relation to other runes we know about, such as the Runic language of Runestones?
—Benessa Gibby, Enchanter of The Company
Ah. I suspected an astute observer might ask something about this. Let’s compare and contrast. In the enchantment discipline, an ancient and honored trade going back to the First Era, runes are pathways to power. While new runic developments happen fairly regularly, there is a linguistical common tongue amongst enchanters that allow them to imbue items with mystical properties. Runes have specific, measurable meanings and allow for a repetition of output as well as intent. It is a discipline I myself have some skill at, and one which requires precision and artistry in equal measure.
Somewhat embarrassingly, the “runes” arcanists fling about are nothing more than logographic symbols for subconscious metamagical constructs. Arcanist runes mean nothing beyond their internal significance to the arcanist in question.
While study has shown that the language of arcanist runes is universal, they do not represent the same concepts across individual arcanists. I could draw you a symbol that in my spellwork means “power,” for example. And you, as another arcanist, might tell me that same symbol means “fire.” These sigils are unique to arcanist magecraft, as far as I know, but like the one-to-one relationship between mortal and tome, so too are the uses of these sigils specific to the arcanist.
As a scholar I desperately wish this were not so. It feels as if Mora himself is laughing at me each and every time I consider it.
I have noticed that Arcanist spells appear to be very physically complex, producing intricate sigils and glyphs. I am unclear on the mental processes involved with spellcasting; why do some spells require incantations and sigils and intense ritual, and others simply a wave of the hand—and where upon this spectrum do Arcanist techniques lie, with their tomes and luminous, hovering sigils?
—Blessings of Morwha Upon You, Artun at-Itamen, Alik'r Nomad
An excellent question from Artun, descendant of Itamen! Casting a spell is the act of channeling magicka from within your personal reserves, through your mind and will, into the world. I quite like the appellation “willworker,” actually. It’s a direct way to describe my profession. My brother is a person who farms, therefore he introduces himself as a farmer. I am a person who works via my will. Therefore, a willworker.
The act of changing reality itself with the strength of your personality is exhausting. Every novice mage quickly discovers this upon attempting even the most basic of incantations. The personal reserve of magicka novice mages possess is quite small, and it takes some time for this reserve to recover. As a weathered old hand at this hand-waving nonsense, my reserve is exceptional. But not infinite!
And so, just like even the most junior of mages, I make use of techniques to ground my mind and thinking. To connect with the magic quickly and efficiently. In particular I find that “magic words” are an excellent way to get the magicka flowing. I greatly enjoy coming up with new ones, and find that simple and repeated magics benefit greatly from this technique.
As for why arcanists in particular are prone to hand-waving and logograms, I suspect that has to do with the origin of our power. Apocrypha, if you’ve never been, is a place where undercurrents of power flow quite freely. Arcanist magic is no more or less “powerful” from a subjective point of view, but as magicka flows through my mind, it does so with a vim and vigor I’m not sure other spellcasters regularly experience.
The result is that all extra potentiality needs to be directly *somewhere.* And thus do the logograms, shadowy visions of the Endless Library, and superfluous tentacles enter the world when all we wished to do was heat some water for a nice cup of tea.
Tidings Azandar,
I am curious.… What would happen if one were to come across an Arcanist’s tome? Could its power be invoked by a stray collector?
—Magister Gwenaelle Mathis of the Mages Guild.
Thankfully, no. As I just discussed, the symbology in every tome is unique to the mind (and soul?) of the individual arcanist. If you were to pick up my tome, it would be an incomprehensible book of gibberish. No more dangerous or mystically enlightening than a Wayrest romance novel. Similarly, I can learn nothing from the tome of another arcanist. I and some other studious arcanists have tried, but there is no way to impart knowledge of another tome’s symbology and retain it for any length of time. A disaster for academic rigor, I know.
We’ve seen that Daedric Artefacts can corrupt people into being puppets or turn them into Daedric creatures. What about the magic Arcanists use?
—Gaius Sulla of the Thirteenth Legion
An excellent question, Gaius. My answer is: it depends. (A pattern in arcanist discussions, as you’ve no doubt begun to see.) I believe the unique comingling of mortal and tome to be a specific expression across a number of axes, both literal and metamagical.
I myself, and a number of others I’ve met, see arcanist magic as a means to an end. A tool we use to achieve other goals or defend ourselves in the pursuit of specific outcomes. In general, I believe this detached framework allows for a distancing between my mind and the siren song of Apocrypha itself. After all, that is the one immutable truth I can tell you about being an arcanist: the font of my power bubbles within Hermaeus Mora’s realm.
Others, with a different outlook on the tome and the power it offers, walk markedly different paths. Some number feel the need to pledge themselves body and soul to the Inevitable Knower, in payment for the power they’ve been given. I felt no such need to do so, I should note, and if the One-Who-Knows comes calling for compensation, he’s going to have a fight on his hands. Err, tentacles.
Yet others find themselves drawn to defending Apocrypha itself, feel the need to retreat far from civilization, or even fling themselves headlong into the far depths of the Aurbis in search of esoterica undiscovered by mortal minds.
My viewpoint is that the power of an arcanist is what you make of it. And Daedric corruption, regrettably, is a potential end state for the pursuit of many types of power. I know of at least one very noble warrior who branded herself a “templar” who now serves as a cult leader for Molag Bal, of all creatures. Power corrupts, as they say, and I suggest vigilance, diligence, and competence to combat that corruption.
Myself and my fellow kwama herders here in Deshaan have been debating for a few weeks on a most dire subject. How does one pronounce "Arcanist"? We have nearly come to blows debating this, so I pray that you can help.
—Golar Arano
While normally I’d be loathe to be drawn into pronunciation pugilism, I feel as though this is really a very simple question to answer. I say the word like “arr-can-ist” for no other reason than because saying the word like “arr-cane-ist” feels unwieldy when speaking out loud.
All the Arcanists I have met thus far have, in some form or another, been affiliated with Hermaeus Mora or the realm of Apocrypha. Are there Arcanists out there who draw power from another realm or Daedric Prince, or is "Arcanist" exclusively referring to those who deal with Hermaeus Mora?
—Mistress Milore Telvanni
Ah, finally a question I can answer somewhat concisely. And an excellent one at that, Mistress.
No. As I said above, I have but one fixed point I can use to determine who is and is not an arcanist: we all draw our power from Apocrypha through a bonded tome. So by definition (as far as one such as this is valuable), a mortal who drew their power from another plane would not be an arcanist. Stylistically (and magic is nothing if not style as well as substance), I believe the apocryphal tome we utilize in our craft heavily flavors this magic. Even before I found the tome, I had many “magical” experiences reading a book and feeling the spark of inspiration. To almost preposterously oversimplify my lived experience, arcanist magic is like that. Only moreso.
Greetings, Azandar al-Cybiades,
While my specialty lies in unearthing the secrets of the past, as a member of the Mages Guild, knowledge of all kinds intrigues me. For arcanists such as yourself, where would you say your talents lie amongst the schools of magic created by the mages of Shad Astula and perpetuated by our esteemed Gabrielle Benele?
Thank you for your time,
—Floritte Vinielle, Archaeologist and Curator of the Wayrest Archaeological Museum
The lady herself, who of course organizes these discussion seminars, is a keen mind and a brilliant flame within the dour mediocrity of the Mages Guild. As you no doubt are as well, Floritte! [Editor’s Note: Flattery in a public forum will get you nowhere, old man.]
Gabrielle’s treatise on magical categorization, “Proposal: Schools of Magic,” is a text well worth reading. Her supporting documentation is fascinating, and my own (admittedly brief) time at Shad Astula reinforces her claim that this classification system does lend itself to novice mages understanding the “types of magic” at a faster rate than in the traditional Mages Guild curriculum.
To your question: I would say the majority of spellworks I’ve observed as an arcanist, and by other arcanists, fall primarily into the schools of Mysticism and Conjuration. If you’ve studied with an arcanist for any length of time, you’ve no doubt seen how adept we are at crafting shields, tentacles, weapons, and other aetheric constructs. A sympathetic alignment exists between our heavily prevalent logographic expressions and the ability to shape magicka into a physical form, I believe.
I myself am largely self-taught in the basics of magic, having spent quite a great deal of my childhood with my nose in a book. This many years after the discovery of my tome, the hard and fast delineations the Shad Astula disciplines imply seem somewhat arbitrary to this old scholar. But not every mage has the aptitude to extemporize mystical formulae off the top of their head, eh?
Azandar al-Cybiades,
In a time when our world has been torn asunder by one Daedric Prince after another, permit me to ask this pertinent question of you, kind sir. Why should the people of Nirn tolerate your kind and not simply destroy you? While many sorcerers traffic with Daedra, few are so overt about their dealings that they show off in such a way, wearing robes of many eyes and covering battlegrounds with their putrid ink.
—Rosaria Draconis
Ah delightful! I find your forthrightness quite bracing! First and foremost, good Rosaria, I would challenge you to try. Quite honestly I’ve been almost-murdered enough times that I wonder if anyone will ever get around to doing it properly.
Disregarding your tone and striking at the meat of your question: you have nothing to fear from an arcanist. Arcanist magic, as I said above, is a tool. It can be used for good or ill in equal measure. Its source is potentially challenging, I understand that. And with all the tentacles? Quite frankly sometimes even I think it’s all a bit much. Performative, you know. But as someone who grew up desperately fearing that the distant horizon around Kozanset was to be the length and breadth of my reality, I strongly believe we should make the best of each and every tool available to us. No matter how it sometimes writhes or sprouts additional eyeballs.
This is all based on the supposition that magic itself is not the source of your ire. If that is the case, I would invite you, again, to readily attempt my destruction. I do not think you will find the experience as entertaining as you might like. I may be an old man, but I’m still feisty.
As a knight myself, I am intrigued by whispers about these so-called "rune knights." What can you tell me about them? Are they Arcanists that happen to be knights, do they follow any codes or belong to any specific knightly order, how does one become one, and how do they compare to knightly traditions present on Tamriel?
—Sir Greensly of the Knights of Saint Eleidon
I have looked at length into the history of arcanist spellcasting, and I fear even I can offer you only a scant few pointers for your own research. You have the right of it, Sir Greensly. The “Rune Knights of the Purgatory Disquisition” appear to have been a very small and very secretive knightly order sometime very early in the Second Era. Founded by an esoteric and enigmatic patron, this order rode forth from Apocrypha to battle across Nirn—or so my research indicates. Perhaps this patron was a Daedra? Or a powerful and less martial arcanist who took on a noble lord's mantle?
Their time from founding to disbanding was not overly long, as far as I can tell, but no doubt you’ve heard of them for the same reason I have. They perfected several warding techniques using arcanist magics that survive, in some cases completely unchanged, to the modern day. Tales of these impressive warriors riding into battle untouched by hundreds of arrows are almost certainly spurious. But then again, perhaps not.
And with that, I think I shall close out this dialogue. I have research to do, planes to explore, and experiments to conduct. It has been a singular honor to speak to arcanist magic in this august framework. And I encourage each and every one of you to reach out via messenger if you have further questions. I am, as I hope is self-evident by now, always happy to talk.
Go carefully, go thoughtfully, and always consider your ultimate goal. Until next time, friends. Onward and upward!
Many thanks to the ESO Community for their questions surrounding Tamriel’s enigmatic Arcanists. Do you have additional questions regarding the Necrom Chapter’s all new class? Why not ask the community in our official forums?
Great power awaits those willing to delve into the mysteries of Apocrypha, but great danger also lurks behind every revelation. Are you planning to master the eldritch powers of the Arcanist class when Necrom arrives in June? Share your secrets with us via Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom arrives for PC/Mac on June 5, 2023, and for Xbox and PlayStation consoles on June 20, 2023. Pre-purchase Necrom now to receive unique bonus rewards at launch and immediate access to the Sadrith Mora Spore Steed mount. Don't miss out!
Meet the Character—Azandar al-Cybiades
Pursue forbidden knowledge alongside the brash-yet-brilliant Arcanist Azandar al-Cybiades, one of the two new companions you can recruit in the upcoming Necrom Chapter.
From the desk of Elydrina Nathriin, Shad Astula Academy
Cousin, I offered you support during your ill-fated bid to become a Bouyant Armiger. I held my tongue during that fiasco with the Telvanni Mage. You recall, the one with the "chin that could crack a shalk's shell?" But I must draw the line at supporting, endorsing, or in any way condoning a collaboration with the arcanist extraordinaire, Azandar al-Cybiades.
Is Azandar a brilliant theoretician? Without a doubt. His transliminal theories are without peer. During his time studying at the Academy, he regularly impressed me with an understanding of Daedric realms that rivaled our most august scholars. One of my colleagues compared his arcanum to that of Morian Zenas, late of the Arcane University in Cyrodiil.
He’s also notable within Academy circles for rising from humble origins. Azandar’s family was of meager means, no history of magical talent to speak of. I’ve seen his invitation for tutorial scholarship, signed and sealed by Archmage Valeyn himself. Not a singular invitation, but one only offered to those of unique and unimpeachable talent.
That’s why the man is so infuriating. If he was some charlatan hedge mage with an overblown ego, he would be so much easier to dismiss. Not so. He’s a world-class talent.
A world-class talent armored in a cocksure attitude, anchored by a devotion to needlessly complex wordplay, and blinded by a complete lack of understanding that his actions have consequences. You know my own academic history with the man, and you still want to pursue a collaboration?
An anecdote, which I can substantiate through a number of letters. You recall Telenger the Artificer? Favored son of the Mages Guild, local celebrity in Auridon, world-traveling researcher. I can picture you furrowing your brow in confusion, so instead recall that debutante ball in Mournhold last year. He was that High Elf? You wanted to be smothered beneath his 'beautiful beard'? I imagine that jogs the memory!
Telenger had for years been excavating a ruin at the center of Skywatch, an Aldmeri construct that was heavy with planar magics and mystic potential. Understandably concerned about unleashing something that might impact the city, he took a careful and measured approach. Requiring a consultant familiar with some of the deep-theory aetheric constructs within the ruin, Telenger invited Azandar to join his team investigating the site.
Two weeks later, Telenger returned to the dig site to find the gates to other planes sealed, most of the magicka wells capped, and Azandar moving some of his belongings onto the premises. I’m unsure of what specifically passed between them, but a friend of mine overheard Azandar proclaiming that the portals had been “pedestrian pablum only interesting to children” and that he was doing the archmage a favor by closing the enigmatum that had existed there (presumably) since the days of the Aldmeri.
The long and short of this is: Azandar al-Cybiades cannot be trusted. He is too self-assured of his own brilliance and too charismatic by half. And while his cooking is divine, he cannot take criticism in either magical or culinary circumstances. Please, cousin, stay well removed. And do remember to write your mother. She worries about you.
Best wishes,
Your cousin Elydrina
While Azandar is clearly adept at the arcane arts, his ego appears to be equally exceptional. Perhaps he just needs to meet the right adventurer? One that can best utilize his talents while managing his larger-than-life personality. Do you think you may have what it takes to travel alongside Azandar al-Cybiades? Let us know via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom is part of the Shadow Over Morrowind adventure and arrives for PC/Mac on June 5, 2023, and for Xbox and PlayStation consoles on June 20, 2023. Pre-purchase Necrom now to receive unique bonus rewards at launch and immediate access to the Sadrith Mora Spore Steed mount.
ESO Developer Deep Dive–Giving Tamriel’s Characters Their Voice
Learn about how all of Tamriel’s characters get their voices with this deep dive chat with ZeniMax Online Studio’s own VO Lead, Becky Ichnoski!
We are excited to chat with The Elder Scrolls Online’s own Voice-Over (VO) Lead, Becky Ichnoski, who takes us through the months-long process for preparing, recording, and adding voice to ESO’s many characters. There are approximately 300,000 lines of VO in English alone, and all of that is planned, recorded, and implemented by Becky and her team!
Hey Becky! Could you introduce yourself to us and tell us about your role at ZOS?
Sure, my name is Becky Ichnoski. I'm The Elder Scrolls Online’s Voice-Over Lead, and I have been working on the game since 2012. Basically, I lead the VO team, which includes our two VO supervisors, Jessica Crowe and DB Cooper, plus me.
Let’s jump right into it! Broadly, what is the process for adding VO to our game?
I always have to narrow down the VO process into three separate chunks.
There's pre-recording, which is basically casting, actor assignment, creating scripts, and preparing recording sessions. Then there's recording, which is done either in the studio or, more often these days, remotely. That’s when we record the actual voice-over. Finally, there’s a third stage, post-recording. That’s when we get all the VO that we recorded back, integrate it into the game, and polish everything.
What do you do during the pre-recording phase?
So, to begin, we jump into the game and play through the content. Things are a work in progress, but we want to get a feel for the quests and meet the characters ourselves.
We also work with writers to get an idea of who the major characters are and who we want special casting consideration for. For those characters, we’ll create sides (audition information with art, descriptions, and some lines) and send them out to agencies. We work with a lot of different agencies. And within a few days, we’ll get a whole bunch of auditions back.
In some cases, a writer has written a character with a specific actor in mind, so we’ll also request a read from that actor.
Do you have a recent example of a time when a writer wanted a specific actor?
Yeah! Dhulef from the High Isle Chapter, whom we got Phil LaMarr to play. The writer had LaMarr in mind, and it all worked out really well. Dhulef of the Mages Guild, voiced by Phil LaMarr
What happens after auditions come in?
We listen to them all! We often take turns, pulling out our top three favorites and then passing them to each other to compare favorites. We’ll also reach out to writers and other developers to weigh in before picking an actor.
We’ll do that for the major characters first. We kind of put the characters into tiers. At the top there’s major characters that might have 300 lines per release, and then there's side quest main characters who might have 100 lines, so they're important too.
We don't audition everybody, but I'd say for a Chapter, for example, we might audition for 10 characters and then fill in the blanks with the rest of the cast.
We've been working with voice actors for so long, we just kind of have a feel for who would be right for a role, who is good at what accent, and who likes to do what. And sometimes there might be an audition that we really like, but we don't pick, so we put it to the side in case they may be good for a different role in the future.
Oh? Can you tell us about a VO actor you brought back for a later role?
So, the Lark of Rosgard in Necrom was played by Bumper Robinson, who auditioned for us before. When it came time to meeting the Lark in game, I thought “Oh, he would be great for this.” I think he sounds perfect, so can't wait for everybody to hear him. Juli Comstock, one of our writer-designers, did a nice job with his writing.
Do you start recording right after you’ve completed your auditions?
Not yet! So, as you may know, there are thousands of NPCs in the game. We have a lot of little roles in the game like merchants or mob enemies. So, we’ll get a pool of what we call atmospheric actors. These actors are super versatile and can do up to 20 different voices per session.
For a Chapter package, we probably end up with almost 50 voice actors in total. Once we have our 50ish actors selected, we do actor assignment. That’s where every NPC in this package is assigned to one of the 50 voice actors we're bringing in.
Once all the actors are set, and once the writers have put pencils down, that’s when we start generating actor scripts, which is a part-automatic, part-manual process. We make sure an actor’s lines are in chronological order, make sure scripts include read-ins if their characters are talking to other characters, and prepare art and character bios. Nico Garofolo (Voice Director), Jessica Crowe (VO Supervisor), Becky Ichnoski (VO Lead)
We must provide a lot of background information on their characters and the world, right?
Yeah. All three of us really take our time to know the content, detail all of our scenes, and make sure that the actors have as much context as possible. We probably go overboard!
Do you ever get a voice actor who is already familiar with The Elder Scrolls or ESO?
Yeah, we definitely have some players. Kellen Goff, Jonah Scott, and Todd Haberkorn. Gosh, there are so many I can't name off the top of my head.
Julianne Beuscher has been a big Elder Scrolls fan since the beginning. She was so stoked to voice the Black Dragon in our Dark Brotherhood release, as that was her favorite in Skyrim!
How does recording work?
Once we have our cast list, we reach out to the agencies for negotiations and scheduling, and we build a gigantic session schedule. For example, our Chapter packages will run almost a month straight starting in mid-February and going until almost mid-March.
We record at Salami Studios in Burbank, CA. Since COVID there’s been a lot of remote sessions. For those, actors connect to Salami Studios from their home booths through Source Connect while everyone else connects through Teams. Finally, we start recording. Jon Abelardo (Salami Studios Engineer), Christopher Smith (Razum-dar), Jessica Crow (VO Supervisor), Rene Veilleux (Voice Director), Becky Ichnoski (VO Lead)
What kind of direction do you typically provide during a recording session?
We start out by telling them about their character. Often a writer will join us for this. And then we establish their voice. Sometimes they’ll nail it the first time, and sometimes we’ll ask for adjustments.
Then we start with line one. We’ll go over any pronunciations for lore words. We may ask for an A and B take and if they’re not quite there or if the director thinks they can get a better performance, we’ll get a C and so forth.
Eventually we get into a flow and it’s like back-and-forth acting between the actor and the director who is reading in the player responses and other NPC lines.
When recording, how tricky is it to get things like pronunciations right?
It's challenging! After 10 years of recording, we have over 9,000 words in our Pronunciation Guide. Each new update, the writers will enter any new lore words into our guide, and our Loremaster will record how to say them. Then we chop them up into little .wav files so that when we are in session, we can quickly search for them and play them.
We also have our tools highlight those words in our scripts so that when we’re recording, we know they're coming up so we can queue them up and keep the flow going.
Is there any one group or race that's especially fun or frustrating for a voice actor to work with?
It varies for different actors, but the Nords and Argonians might be the trickiest. Some actors love doing Argonians and nail the voice effortlessly while others have a more difficult time. I don’t know if it’s the rasp or the sort of emotionless monotone vibe.
Want to know something funny about Argonian sessions with actors who really nail that smooth-but-sandpaper voice? After hours of recording, you get really sleepy. It’s kind of hypnotic because the voice is so soothing, like white noise. I don’t know how to describe it but everyone who is in those sessions gets so sleepy and relaxed.*
Who else joins in the recording sessions?
We normally have a writer join the sessions, too, just in case we're all confused and don't know what's going on! Sometimes there’s a typo or the actor is simply having trouble getting a sentence out and the writer will rewrite the line on the spot.
Typically, in a session, there’s an engineer, the actor, the director, one of us VO ladies for support and pronunciation, and a writer. Brad Derrick (Audio Director), Mark Mercado (Salami Studios Engineer), Becky Ichnoski (VO Lead)
Once recording is over, do you immediately go into the integration and polish stage?
As we are recording a four-week Chapter package, we’ll already be receiving VO back from the recording studio. So, once we’re done, we’ll have a whole pile waiting for us already nicely cut up with filenames so that we can integrate it right into the game.
We do a bit of cleanup first because changes will have happened, run it through a batch tool, and begin the integration process.
Is it possible to make late changes to the scripts and VO?
It happens! Bugs will come in as we're recording, and sometimes a writer or designer might contact us and ask if it’s possible to get a change in. If we have not already recorded with that actor, then sure, we make some changes on the fly.
We try to avoid extremely late changes if we can, but if it's something that we cannot launch with, then we schedule a pickup session.
Once the files have been formatted, is it your team that adds them into the game?
Yeah. We integrate them. Jessica Crowe has taken on that task. She’s great at organizing everything quickly and maintaining our clean VO database.
We usually have a lot of alts (alternative line reads) to go through first. Sometimes we’ll get several reads of a line back from the studio, so we have to pick which ones we actually launch with.
Then we have a lot of polish to do! We play through all of the in-game content for a number of reasons. A lot of VO files will need voice-over post-production—we call it VOPP—so we’ll work with the sound designers for this. For example, Factotums or Daedric Princes will get special effects. Or we may have lines that trigger from super far away that we’ll need to work on to make them audible. Or somebody might be saying something from behind a door, so we’ll need to make it sound muffled. That kind of thing.
There’s also VO and text mismatches to fix–where the actor says something slightly different than the text. We make sure VO is timed properly so there isn’t an overlap or seven-second pause between two characters talking to each other. There’s a lot of tiny cleanups.
That’s pretty much it from start to finish!
Is there any one character whose voice actor you thought was just perfect?
I definitely have a few. For example, I love Sotha Sil who is voiced by Matthew Jayson Cwern. He just really enjoys playing the character, and he's so good at it, so I really enjoy those sessions. I think Leamon’s writing for him is brilliant.
I also love Mark Whitten’s Arox the Mutilator. I loved his audition and really pushed for him. Mark made him so fierce and funny and made us all laugh constantly in those sessions. The mighty Arox the Mutilator, voiced by Mark Whitten
Are there any voice actors you’d love to work with again in the future?
I liked Captain Siravaen a lot. I thought she was a wonderful character, and I always love working with Anna Graves. She's just so talented and fun to work with.
I love Velsa from the Thieves Guild. Any chance to bring back Debra Wilson!
There was a Dremora necrologist in Fargrave, Miksotet, who barely spoke English. Imari Williams played him. He was a minor character but I thought he was the cutest. I’d love to bring him back.
When the content launches, do you try to keep an eye out for player feedback?
Just speaking personally, I enjoy keeping an eye out for that stuff. I'm always on the forums seeing what people are saying.
A lot of players probably know this, but any time someone on the forum asks who voiced a character, I jump in and respond. I enjoy that.
A big thank you to Becky for taking the time to share her work with us and lifting the veil on the voice-over process for ESO. Do you have a favorite character whose voice you absolutely love**? There’s a good chance Becky was one of the developers responsible for making that happen! Let us know which characters are your favorites via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook!