The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom – Saving The Threads of Reality?
Necrom is the seventh chapter expansion for The Elder Scrolls Online. It brings players to the Telvani Peninsula for an unusual request. To save Nirn by also saving Apocrypha, the realm of Hermaeus Mora. A bargain with any daedric prince comes with pitfalls. A bargain with the daedric prince of knowledge comes with a contract. As long as Fate’s Proxy, the player, upholds their end of the bargain they won’t be harmed.
Fulfilling this bargain won’t be easy. It requires going head to head with enemies capable of hiding themselves from an entity who knows all. The search begins with three choices: investigate Tel Rendys, Alavelis and Necrom Necropolis. It is up to the proxy to decide the order. It is revealed that the enemy seeks a pathway into Apocrypha. Players’ investigation will also gain them two new allies in Curate Gadayn and the ghost of Meln the Mouthless.
As players rush to stop the invaders from entering the memories of Hermaeus Mora, we learn there are four main players to contend with. Two other daedric princes, a unique dremora, and a daedric worshiper. If things aren’t already stacked against players, we learn that what they seek is so dangerous, simply knowing about it is enough to destroy reality. How do we stop something when we can’t even know what it is? That is the tall order Hermaeus Mora wishes us to complete.
Returning players will notice one immediate change: portals are abundant in this chapter. Helping players move back to Necrom and Cypher Midden with ease. This saves a lot of time for everyone, but especially those players who may not have their mount speed and stamina trained up.
There is another change that doesn’t appear right away. Players who don’t use companions may never realize this. Previous companions had a simple questline to unlock them. Both Azander, an arcanist, and Sharp-as-Night, a warden, require players to run through a public dungeon as part of their quests. Players who already have a companion(s) can pass over these two no problem if they aren’t overly excited about that content. New players who are solo might find Necrom more difficult to navigate.
The new arcanist class adds a breath of fresh air. The DPS caster makes melee fun and packs an immediate punch. The fantasy of this class comes from using forbidden knowledge to weave spells into runes that can harm or heal. There will be plenty of vampire mercenaries, (corrupted) seekers, watchlings, and daedric worsphipers to cleave through. Once they actually arrive that is. Players who are completely new with no way to get gold, will find themselves bouncing around quite a bit before reaching the city of Necrom. This is an unfortunate sign of things to come in later quests.
As bosses become tankier, that feeling of being overpowered does fade. The most frustrating fight by far is against Vaermina, the daedric prince of nightmares. There aren’t as many additional enemies (ADDs) as the Blightcrown fight though. This is the only blessing. Nowhere near as tanky as her champion that players will encounter earlier, Vaermina makes up for this by splitting into clones equipped with a beam that eats away health. She also uses this beam to follow players around the platform. It is always right behind you and kiting, moving while attacking, becomes a necessity.
This fight will also use Meln’s ghost sight frequently if the fight draws out. This is the only way to harm certain enemies once they’re gone transparent and have a purplish glow. None of the boss fights felt impossible, but it wouldn’t hurt to have soul gems on hand just in case.
Necrom is a treat for anyone eager to jump back into Tamriel. Its story has a good amount of dread helped by feeding just enough answers. It stumbles in some areas, but not enough to stop players from completing the main story. The side quests lead to interesting characters. Those that use the full map will make players feel like they’re truly studying Apocrypha. Necrom is an expansion worth trying, despite the headaches along the way.
