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Megaserver technology avoids the hassle of shard selection and makes The Elder Scrolls Online one of the most socially enabled games ever created. Whether playing alone, or with hundreds of friends, players can develop their own style of play as they embark upon an epic quest across Tamriel.
The ghostly spectre of the Witches Festival has returned to Tamriel! Want to take part in this spooky celebration, enjoy a bonus to XP gains, and earn terrifying rewards? Read on to find everything you need to know about this ghoulish gala.
As the nights grow longer and the year slides into darkness, the denizens of Tamriel defy their superstitious fears during the annual Witches Festival. Join the fun as ghosts, demons, and evil spirits are mocked and celebrated by occult occurances and the donning of outrageous costumes, which are all the more convincing in a world where hauntings are real and the dead rise to walk again.
Boost Your XP and Transform into the Undead
The Witches Festival begins at 10:00AM EDT on Friday, October 20 and will run until Wednesday, November 1 at 10:00AM EDT. During this time, you can enjoy a 100% XP buff, obtain a polymorph to become one of the walking dead, and earn a host of unique Witches Festival-themed items.
To participate in the festivities, follow the steps below:
- Navigate to the Crown Store's Holiday section to acquire the “Crow Caller" free of charge.
- Complete the quest “The Witchmother's Bargain" by gathering a pumpkin and some guts, defeating any delve boss for its Essence of Death, and delivering them to the Witchmother to receive the “Witchmother's Whistle" memento.
- If you completed the quest during last year's event, you won't need to acquire the Crow Caller or complete the quest again – you can simply use the whistle found in your Collections menu from last year.
- Use the whistle to summon the “Witchmother's Cauldron" and grant you and your party a two-hour 100% XP buff that stacks with all other XP.
- Use the Witchmother's Cauldron to polymorph your character into one of the undead. Don't worry—this isn't permanent!
- Note that you do not have to use the Witchmother's Cauldron in order to gain the XP buff.
Earn Ghoulish Rewards
In addition to the XP buff, throughout the festival you can earn some Witches Festival-themed loot by helping to keep Tamriel's numerous monsters at bay.
During the event, all boss monsters (such as World Bosses or those found defending Delves, Group Dungeons, Public Dungeons, Trials, Arenas, and Dark Anchors) will drop Plunder Skulls. You do not need the XP buff or the undead polymorph active in order for them to drop.
Plunder Skulls are special containers that have a chance to contain the following rare items:
- Hollowjack Motif Pages or Books
- A Runebox containing one of these masks:
- Pumpkin Spectre Mask
- Scarecrow Spectre Mask
- Hollowjack Spectre Mask
- Thicketman Spectre Mask
- Witches Festival-themed recipes
- Furniture and furniture recipes
- Motif style items
- …and an assortment of creepy items such as worms, crawlers, guts, and other goodies!
Find Ghastly New Items in the Crown Store!
A host of supernatural selections will also be added to the in-game Crown Store during the event period, including the Zombie Horse mount, the Nightmare Daemon Mask Pack, and much more. Don't miss your chance to grab some of these unique and terrifying items!
You can see a complete list of all Crown Store items exclusively available during this spooky celebration in our showcase article.
Conjure Spirits in a Unique Home
Need someplace to practice your unholy sorceries away from prying eyes? The Exorcised Coven Cottage will be available for purchase with crowns in the in-game Crown Store for the duration of the event, and if you earn the Witches Festival achievement “An Unsparing Harvest" you'll unlock the ability to acquire this bewitching home for in-game gold!
To unlock An Unsparing Harvest, you must earn the following event achievements:
- Happy Work for Hollowjack
- Plunder Skull Enthusiast
- Pumpkin Pairs Well With Guts
- Reaper's Harvest
If you had earned these achievements in a previous event, you will not need to earn them again this year. To see which achievements you've already unlocked or to track your current progress, check the Holiday section of your Achievements menu.
Be warned: You will not be able to purchase this home for crowns or gold once the event ends, so don't miss your chance to own this “haunt away from home"!
Celebrate the Witches Festival
Are you planning to don your most frightening outfit and revel in the most terrifying of all the Tamrielic holidays? We can't wait to see how the ESO community celebrates this year's Witches Festival, so be sure to keep us up-to-date on all your gruesome, ghastly, and grim goings-on via Twitter @ TESOnline and Facebook.
The Witches Festival begins on Friday, October 20 at 10:00AM EDT and will end on Wednesday, November 1 at 10:00AM EDT. Have fun!
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