With the Blackwood expansion, the MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online receives a completely new mechanic: the Oblivion portals. MeinMMO editor Alexander Leitsch has tried them out in advance with the developers and was pleasantly surprised. The portals provide a sense of challenge rather than just being an event for a large mass of players.
What are the Oblivion portals? In the new area of Blackwood, you can encounter these portals. They appear in random locations and are not marked on the map, unlike storm events or anchors.
At least one portal is always open in Blackwood, usually several at once, as developer Jason Barnes, the designer of the new area, assured me. Although they are not easy to find, the hunt for them is supposed to rekindle the spirit of adventure, rather than just mindlessly watching timers or symbols on maps.
When you find an Oblivion portal, you must first fight against followers of Mehrunes Dagon who guard the portal. After that, you can step through it and enter the realm of oblivion, the home of the Daedric Prince.
There you will find several islands with various enemies and bosses. At the end, the final boss “Duke of Storms” awaits you in the center, from whom you can obtain cool loot and even a new set.
Oblivion Portals Focus on Quality instead of Quantity
What makes the portals so special? With each expansion, ESO receives new group events in the open world, such as the storm events in Greymoor or the dragons in Elsweyr. However, the Oblivion portals differ massively from the other content:
- While storm events and dragons mainly rely on the mass of players, Oblivion portals focus on several small groups that meet during the quest and then work together.
- Theoretically, it is even possible to complete the quest completely solo, as long as you have enough experience and skill. One of the new companions by your side is also helpful.
- Additionally, I find the beautiful environment that strongly contrasts with the other content in Blackwood. While I mainly saw hills, meadows, and swamps in the other areas, the fire islands in the realm of oblivion provide a very strong contrast.
On the test server, I have now completed 8 Oblivion portals. And while I lost interest after a few rounds in the storm events, I’m already looking forward to playing the portals on the live server.
What do I enjoy about it? What I particularly enjoy about the portals is the difficulty level. It was challenging, but not impossible, to defeat the 6 individual bosses of the island with just one companion by my side. I only had personal issues with the final boss.
This is where the special mechanic kicks in, allowing other players to come to my aid through different portals without prior coordination. In my experience, the final boss can be defeated well with 3 players, although there are also videos of players soloing the Duke of Storms.
While many players also rush in to help at other world events in ESO, I always felt like I achieved something and overcame a challenge with the Oblivion portals, precisely because I completed the initial islands only in small groups or solo. In events like the storm events, which particularly excited my colleague Jürgen Horn in Greymoor, I only felt part of a large mass.
Another cool aspect is the side quests that are available. Jason Barnes revealed to me that there are additional bosses or hidden secrets on some islands that players can discover. At the end, there is also a machine we have to destroy, which will play a role in the ongoing storyline of Blackwood.
This is the loot you can find: If you defeat the Duke of Storms at the end of the event, you will receive some items from the new sets Deadlands Assassin or Marsh Raider, if you are lucky.
Additionally, there is a chance for rings and necklaces from the same sets, as well as new antiques.
How to find the portals: The Blackwood area is divided into three zones: north, south, and west of the area. In each of the zones, up to two portals can be active at the same time. In the best-case scenario, there are 6 active portals, but at least one in the worst case.
After you have passed through a portal, you will land at one of 3 random starting points. The portal stays open for some time, allowing your group members or complete strangers to follow you. However, it may also happen that you have to complete the first islands alone.
While you start at one of the starting points, players from other portals will land at the other starting points. You then fight your way from island to island and later encounter the other groups to collectively fight the final boss.
By the way, when you leave the realm of oblivion, you will land exactly at the point where you previously entered the portal.
Have you already tried the Oblivion portals? What is your opinion on these new events and Blackwood in general? Feel free to write it in the comments.
What I think about Blackwood so far can be read in this impression report: The new expansion Blackwood is much more fun than Greymoor.
