The Underrated Genius of Morrowind's Starter Town

[@Takarias]

How did you choose to complete the Death of a Taxman quest in Morrowind?

[@doodprinny2338]

🦀💀☠🦀🐀

[@fargoretro]

love getting Fornyn Gilnath's shack as a first base.

[@Takarias]

@@fargoretro I forgot to mention this benefit! Though if I remember right, the containers in his shak will mark anything you put in them as stolen. But at least they're not volatile.

[@fargoretro]

I remember pulling out a sword I left in the chest when the DB attacker showed up, and he reported my theft (whilst trying to murder me)

[@Takarias]

@@fargoretro lol yeah, that sounds like a Bethesda game alright

[@radiosilents]

I always read "Great. I'm sure you'll fit right in." as deep sarcasm.

[@WildServal]

It is especially well written on russian version of the game where the guard's greeting actually might be a well-hidden subtle mockery: "Good. I am sure this is an appropriate place for you." You are free to interpret this as sarcasm like "Yeah, cool place for a former prisoner that is sent to distant lands to rot away until the end of the days" or "Haha, good luck surviving here". Or you can indeed interpret this as actually welcoming greeting depending on what mood you want to set for your playthrough. It's only in my late twenties that I've finally started noticing all these small details in Morrowind that make this game a unique experience on terms of its story and immersion. Truly a masterpiece transcending time.

[@raivin7172]

What is genius about it is surprisingly simple: Morrowind knows that it is an open world game and doesn't try to hide it. It doesn't try to pretend to be something else and doesn't drop you into huge action, it lets you knpw that it is a slow game with a lot to do, so it teaches you how to navigate in it and how to approach its design. Banger.

[@Takarias]

And is has the confidence to let the player skip it all and learn those lessons the hard way!

[@gregorybrazell5133]

What's really amazing is how packed Morrowind is with stuff to do, justifying the open world size 100%... but Starfield is the exact opposite.

[@Takarias]

@@gregorybrazell5133 Starfield has very different design goals, and I think it's highly successful at achieving some of them. The issue, for Bethesda, is that people aren't really keen on 'contemplative desolation.' There's also a lot it completely fails at, but that's too much for a KZbin comment.

[@Loreweavver]

People who had this as their introduction to open worlds will always remember looting and selling everything that wasn't nailed down and then immediately venturing too far and dying.

[@sandrinowitschM]

Wait, is there another way to play this game?

[@Loreweavver]

@@sandrinowitschM it says somewhere that those born under a certain sign may find a way

[@Takarias]

@@sandrinowitschM I heard it said there's a main quest in this game, with an ending and stuff!

[@SirSilicon]

​@@Takarias just rumors. I think there is a questline which ends in me beeing to lazy to travel to the ashlander camps.

[@sandrinowitschM]

@@Takarias now you're just making stuff up! Imagine a game with a main story line. Ridiculous!

[@SimoExMachina2]

I always found it funny that Fargoth is trying to sneak while holding a torch. I'm sure it was intentional humor by the devs.

[@Takarias]

I couldn't make this video and not make fun of him during this quest. It's just so absurd.

[@SubieNinja]

it also may have been a bit of early game handholding. perhaps many test players couldnt complete the quest because they had too much trouble seeing him

[@InnuendoXP]

​@@SubieNinjayeah and unless you're playing in a dark room it could've been hard to see on displays at the time, CRTs generally being both lower brightness and higher contrast than modern displays. Often games of that era's 'night' environments looking kinda grey & washed out were genuinely dark on older displays, with the colours presented mainly to translate to visible silhouettes. Eg. Halo CE's flashlight & Oblivion's torches seemed quite a bit more convincing lighting on those displays. TLDR: yes, he was probably very hard to see in sub-optimal viewing conditions & display tech of the day may have been a reason why.

[@vaptourish]

@@InnuendoXP I remember the first time I played I had to draw the curtains and turn off the lights to see Fargoth (even with the torch). It was dark dark

[@SimoExMachina2]

The slaves do disappear from the cave once you free them. If you return to the cave after freeing them, they will be gone. All that remains are the enchanted manacles on the floor.

[@antonisauren8998]

Yup. It is a part of generic slave script. They drop chains and disable themselves on cell change when free.

[@VM-hl8ms]

that's what i wanted to add. clearly they are not completely apathetic to player's actions. 🙂

[@vrykyl6464]

I sell those manacles

[@dartagnan117]

11:59 Magic, Melee, and Marksman!

[@Takarias]

Oh... oh my god, it's right there in the skill name. How did I not think of this!?

[@daydev2599]

Also Missile

[@longpinkytoes]

Mischief

[@jonathansands3304]

@@daydev2599Melee, Magic, and Missile is also what came to my mind right at first.

[@DespereauxHarvey]

Glad I wasnt the only one. Mmranged hurt my soul to hear (I was on my way to the archery range)

[@perceivedvelocity9914]

Fallout 3 was my first Bethesda game. I bought a used copy of Morrowind after that. It took me several tries to get into Morrowind. The game doesn't hold your hand and tell you where to go like Fallout 3 does. I'm glad that I didn't give up on Morrowind. It's one of my favorites games of all time. The Internet wasn't a huge help back then. I actually felt a sense of accomplishment the first time that I completed the main quest line. I never feel that way anymore when I finish a modern game.

[@Takarias]

Fallout 3 is amazing in its own right, but it's a very different game from Morrowind. I'm glad you were able to stick with it and have that experience!

[@LettersAndNumbers300]

In 2008?? The internet was fine.

[@perceivedvelocity9914]

@@LettersAndNumbers300 The content on the Internet in 2024 is very different than what you could find 20 years ago. Search engines existed but they weren't much help with video games. Video games were still considered something that only nerds played during that time period. Nerd culture has taken over nowadays and has become mainstream. Also social media and KZbin started to become popular around 2005. They didn't start to dominate the Internet until years later. Before social media and KZbin information was on chat boards and fan websites that you had to log into. The guidebook was a big deal back then. I didn't have a guidebook and had to stumble through the main quest line alone.

[@LettersAndNumbers300]

@@perceivedvelocity9914 never read such bullshit in my life gtfo.

[@perceivedvelocity9914]

@@LettersAndNumbers300 The Internet is very different today. Back then it was mainly chat rooms and forums. Social media was just beginning.

[@HaturnAhheadns]

i have consumed this morrowind retrospective content like a rabid beast. Also shoutout to all the people who are irrationally angry that they got rid of spears. Like what the hell. thas evil

[@Takarias]

#BringBackSpears

[@McHobotheBobo]

There was a spear mod made by a Bethesda staff member for Skyrim that just never got heard about again after the community post iirc

[@CErra310]

I think it's rational anger. Morrowind had mechanical breadth instead of depth and Oblivion and Skyrim removed the breadth and got rid of even more depth instead of making their games mechanically deeper to compensate. Reintroducing more weapon types would alleviate that.

[@Takarias]

@@CErra310 I'd be more inclined to agree if the weapons types that *do* exist in Skyrim had any differentiation, but according to that game, a one handed axe, hammer, sword, and dagger are all effectively identical.

[@CErra310]

​@@Takarias I think we have the same opinion here actually. Because the game doesn't make a lot of difference between swinging weapons and the biggest difference is if they're one- or two-handed, adding one-handed or two-handed thrusting weapons like Rapiers or Spears would add variance to the game just purely due to how they would visually differentiate from the other stuff.

[@grimmseti]

Melee, Magick and Marksmanship. There, fixed it for you.

[@hoviettrung1501]

Dude started talking about Morrowind and immediately won the algorithm's favor. Keep giving us those juicy Elder Scrolls content tho

[@Takarias]

I intend to! Already hard at work on the next one

[@baxter1004]

A Masterpiece Morrowind is..

[@diffuusio4852]

Morrowind was an interesting experience as a kid. You barely understand English enough to follow the directions, and there is no internet where you can ask for help. You will try stuff until it works. Some quest lines will never be completed and that is completely fine.

[@Takarias]

I'm a native speaker and have never played a game in another language, so I can't relate to that part. But that sense of venturing into the unknown is universal with this title.

[@diffuusio4852]

@@Takarias It is. I wish I could experience it like that again.

[@matijaderetic3565]

But it was sooo cool to discus "rumours" about loot, quests, exploits and more with your friends. I hope others had friends that played morrowind. Also, I believe Morrowind is one of the main reasons I always aced my English classes.

[@Takarias]

@@matijaderetic3565 I spoke about the value of those 'playground rumors' of gaming's ancient past in my last video, actually. It's a shame that it's gone now, but I can't lie and say the ubiquity of wikis doesn't make things so much easier. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mWrWoXmOobV9mLc

[@Keebrev]

I’m a native speaker but I know what he meant. As a kid you don’t really “understand” how to follow video game directions. It’s funny going back as an adult to games I was hung up on as a kid and realizing how easy some of the solutions were.

[@basil7292]

the dark elf downstairs in the trade house also has a special rumor about the daedric ruin underwater near gnaar mok

[@Disir-Elizbt]

I think the healing ring and the cursed ring are intended to work together, you have to use the healing ring twice for each curse but it makes travel better for a low Athletics character and even with extra use they recharge at the same speed so as long as you rest after they are empty you can always use the combo

[@Takarias]

This is the kind of genius player creativity that I love about Morrowind's mechanical systems. There's so much freedom to do whatever you want in it.

[@Yominokun1]

@@Takarias Plus it gets people into enchanting easily a bit. Just some items to use, which will level up the skill, showing that using an item will give XP and increase a skill, and a bit how the recharge system for magic items work.

[@DebatingWombat]

Or it’s about showing that not all enchanted items are necessarily beneficial and making players look at their respective effects and consider whether they’ll be useful at all, or might only work for particular builds. Several of the magic items you come across in Morrowind are of dubious or niche use, or can be outright dangerous (as very clearly demonstrated by Tarhiel’s Scrolls of Icarian Flight, sure, not an item per se, but it makes new players realise that certain effects can really backfire). But if the idea was indeed about balancing the effects of the two rings, then it might also be a way to hint at how later items that at first seem pretty useless (such as The Boots of Blinding Speed) can actually be very useful with the right countermeasures.

[@riastarthay]

Of all these great details, Hrisskar is my favorite. The fact that he looks you right in the eyes and rewards you with a fraction of what you just handed over to him. "Sometimes the best quest reward is the one you don't turn in" is a lesson most players won't forget after that.

[@Takarias]

33/66 split? Seems about right for someone running a protection racket

[@BananaGatorProds]

If only there was a way to just remove quests from your quest log. Because even though he cheats you out of the gold my overwhelming desire to keep my quest log clean makes me give him the money anyways.

[@Takarias]

@@BananaGatorProds Mood!

[@seigeengine]

To be fair, this is the most realistic. It really makes little sense to expect characters to offer rewards larger than the value of the thing you're getting if the goal is just something of value. After all, if they were going to pay you more than the market price, they could just buy another one. Only if it's rare or of sentimental value would you offer more.

[@Yominokun1]

@@seigeengine Sometimes it's to get a point across *grin*

[@doc4011]

Fun Fact, if I'm not mistaken.The slaves in Addamasartus actually do move, kinda. Though its definitely forgivable to miss, sinced you'd have to go out of your way to renter a cleared dungeon for no reward what so ever. Much like our Imperial buddy Vondunius, when you return to the cave the slaves are simply gone. Assumedly fleeing once the coast is clear.

[@mungojerrie86]

Very glad to see that you've officially committed to making half an hour videos for every Morrowind settlement!

[@Takarias]

Oh man. If I did, I'm sure Vivec could be entirely its own series!

[@TheMrFailz]

Good topic, good presenting voice, and good presentation. The three pillars of an excellent deep dive / topic exploration video.

[@Takarias]

Thanks! I'm learning a little more with each video, and it's great to hear that what I'm doing seems to be working.

[@ThommyofThenn]

I'm glad you mentioned the named ashes. I came upon them a few weeks ago and had to look it up. It was surprisingly moving to learn why they're there and I could honour the person's, a fellow gamer's memory even decades later.

[@Mr._Anderpson]

I loved they included unarmed citizens in their homes in the tutorial town. Its great to have people willing to train your hand to hand skill with you every day.

[@fargoretro]

I love spending 3~5 hours in Seyda Neen. There is a lot of stuff to do, you can get up a few levels, and get a very hand magic item you could use the entire game. Role-play wise, you can do a bunch of stuff on your first day, and sleep on the bedroll in the CE office. By the end of day 2 you should have a new shack once you've brought its owner to justice. Absolutely love the immersion!

[@Takarias]

I ran through Seyda Neen so many times for this video that I'm able to complete everything shown in less than the video's runtime now lol. It's a great little starter town

[@bierwolf8360]

levelling by doing? Plebian

[@DebatingWombat]

Yeah, the fact that the game encourages you to top Foryn Gilnith and makes it a crime to sleep in most beds, probably makes it pretty likely that players are going to use Foryn Gilnith’s shack as their “home”, as it also has some convenient containers to sort and store your excess loot. A Seyda Neen is also a pretty decent place to call home for a lot of the game, as you can use the silt strider to get to several important places directly: - Balmora, which have a lot of your early gameplay and setup for much of the rest of the game, while also tapping into the Mages Guild transport network. - Gnisis, which, as you’re told when asking about enrolments opportunities, has the only Imperial Legion fort looking for new recruits and kind of a hub for the northwest transport network (while it doesn’t tap into the ship transport network directly, several of its silt strider destinations do). - Vivec as the largest town, hub for a lot of quests and an important transport hub as well (both by silt strider, ship and magic). - Suran as the gateway to southeastern Morrowind beyond Vivec and from there to the entire east coast of Morrowind. And once you master “intervention travel” Divine Intervention can take you to Pelagiad or Ebonhart, while Almsivi Intervention sends you straight to a Vivec. Not to mention that a Mark cast within Foryn Gilnith’s shack can instantly whisk you back to deposit your loot - even if you carrying so much you cannot move.

[@samuelbanya]

Can you store your own loot in those containers and the items wouldn't be considered stolen loot afterwards?

[@DebatingWombat]

@@samuelbanya If you mean the containers in Foryn Gilnith’s shack, then yes, you can freely use them to store and sort (by using different containers for different types of items) your stuff. And Morrowind containers don’t reset, either. That’s why I always use Foryn Gilnith’s shack as my “home”/basecamp until I get my Great House stronghold later on. And I honestly mainly switch because I’m a bit of a hoarder and the shack becomes very cramped with all of my stuff, whereas the stronghold offers more space to lay out my loot.

[@TwoGish]

This is your second video on Morrowind I've watched. Love your contemplative approach to the whole thing. Subscribed! :)

[@Takarias]

Welcome aboard! Look forward to seeing more of this style - this is just how I am, and I have no interest in changing :)

[@marsbearmcw3050]

Morrowind is my favourite Bethesda game. I still go back to playing it every six months or so. It’s hard to be sure but I’d say I’ve done every quest and that’s saying something as there’s a huge amount to do in this game.

[@ham8426]

Morrowind,land of grey skins and greyer morals

[@gwynnbleidd129]

Not a quest, but there are at least also the following other two things the game teaches inquisitive players early on: - Loot can be hidden in tree stumps (not just Fargoth's). i.e. the hidden stashes next to the light house - Check underwater for hidden stuff. (i.e. the pearl diver grotto netting you hundreds of septims worth of perls) While the checking underwater is also introduced in the bandit hideout, the grotto is way more rewarding :D Seyda Neen is definitely the most memorable town of any ESO game I've ever played

[@Takarias]

Couldn't be me, loading up Morrowind to check the tree stumps by the lighthouse for the first time ever lol I knew there were a few, though I didn't know about these! Always something new to learn with Morrowind.

[@gwynnbleidd129]

@@Takarias there's always another secret to be found in Morrowind for sure :) it's what makes coming back every couple of years so much fun!

[@SubieNinja]

@@gwynnbleidd129 i did a new playthrough for the first time in like 10 years probably about 6 months ago. i enjoyed it just as much as i always have. it was nice.

[@Zyklon_B_still_and_know_God]

Great starter axe if your a 2h character!

[@78endriago]

1:07 i thought that the guard was supposed to be sarcastic :D

[@scorpiosystem8082]

If I'm not mistaken, Arille sells a silver weapon or two-- new players may not see them as any better than steel, but it's a great resource once you realize how enchanting and ghosts work

[@Takarias]

Gotta have the right weapon skill, though - Arrille has nothing good enough for spear users.

[@DebatingWombat]

Well, conveniently, it’s hard to arrive at the ancestral tomb and thus the nearest ghosts to your starting point without having first encountered Tarhiel and thus you’re extremely likely to have his enchanted sword to deal with the ghost. I think it makes sense to have it be a longsword, because a lot of builds are going to have some skill in using it, either racial, class based, or both. I can’t say for sure, but I’d venture that most new players are probably going to have some Long Blade proficiency in their builds, even if they’re not explicitly designed as sword fighters. After all, 4 of the 10 playable races have a bonus to Long Blade as do half of the 20 predefined classes. And if a new player was to design their own build from scratch, I think there’s a decent chance that they might at least choose Long Blade as a minor skill, and/or having simply chosen one of the races with a bonus to that skill. Not to mention the notion that the longsword (or some variation on it) is sort of the “default weapon” of your “standard fantasy adventurer”.

[@scorpiosystem8082]

@@DebatingWombat this is a good point! tarhiel could easily have not had the flameblade on him, but it's a great early magic item for new players willing to explore

[@DebatingWombat]

@@scorpiosystem8082 It’s actually a sparkblade, which is arguably a better choice for an “intro enchanted weapon”, because a lot of your potential enemies are the fire resistant Dunmer (such as, say, Foryn Gilnith…), whereas none of the races have lightening resistance (and only very few monsters do, either).

[@DebatingWombat]

By contrast, there are probably a lot of new players who’ll choose Destruction as a major skill and thus getting the fire bite spell right off the bat and then find out it’s not terribly effective against Dunmer opponents and then they’ll likely buy an ice spell from Arrille and be quite happy with it, until they run into Nord opponents. Another choice in Morrowind spell mechanics that I first found annoying and counter intuitive, but have come to enjoy more the more I think about it is the distinction between invisibility and chameleon and splitting them into different spell schools. This means that invisibility is a lot less powerful overall than in other games, while still being useful in certain situations (getting past people unnoticed) and available to fairly low level characters. But invisibility doesn’t become an early level game breaker because it doesn’t allow you to interact with things without breaking the spell, though it’s still useful for stealth attacks. By contrast, because chameleon runs on percentages, it becomes very hard to create a “perma stealth” character until later in the game, as high level chameleon spells and items are hard to come by and very expensive to purchase. Not to mention how difficult it is to cast high level chameleon spells that both yield high percentages of chameleon and extended duration, whereas invisibility is comparatively cheaper, because its only parameter is duration.

[@wheresmymuffins]

19:03 thank you for teaching me the word "Demonym," a word I never knew I needed so badly

[@turtlecheese8]

Having recently starting Morrowind, I'm always in aw about how clever it despite "not holding your hand" and it's steep learning curve. But honestly, it's so subtle and so refreshing how much it teaches you and you're not even aware of it.

[@Takarias]

Everything it teaches the player feels like just a consequence of living in its world. It's impressively seamless.

[@MrFrigid247]

I really love your style of narration, I've watched both of your Morrowind videos now and I'm really enjoying this soothing delivery of information.

[@Takarias]

Thanks so much! I put most of my effort into making sure the writing is solid before I do anything else, and it feels good to hear that my efforts aren't in vain :)

[@hoshmil]

Great video!! I’m 34 and just started playing Morrowind for the first time. This video was great!

[@Takarias]

You're in for an incredible experience. Don't be afraid to use the UESP if you get stuck on something, and take your time with it.

[@hoshmil]

@@TakariasI appreciate the encouragement. I also bought the official Morrowind user guide off eBay just for nostalgia.

[@kathrynradonich3982]

Second the don't be afraid to use guides and websites. I had the official guide when i got the game and it saved me so much headache. Being told incorrect directions was annoying

[@Able_Are]

I liked everything about this video. The pace, the narration, the editing, the er, humour. And the analysis. Glad someone noticed all this. I have an oceanic reservoir of nostalgaic good-will toward Morrowind, and hope you do more of these. Nice work, outlander.

[@andreafranzen7088]

I also like Seyda Neen from an urban planning perspective. It's the most basic form of a city: houses centered around a square (Riverwood of Skyrim represent the other basic form: houses along a street). The two houses along the road are placed so to invite you in to cross the bridge over to the square.

[@seigeengine]

Certainly with regards to urban planning, but there's also amorphous development, where there is no particular reason to orient anything. It's also interesting that while path-based settlements can be both organic and planned, those with squares are basically all planned. And the path doesn't need to be a road. Waterways are essentially the same thing.

[@kylegonewild]

Funny enough, we wouldn't have gotten such a well-crafted, concise tutorial town if not for Todd. He was who pushed for it and designed it. Sad that he became the face of Bethesda and strayed further and further from putting his personal touch on things.

[@Takarias]

There's definite value in increasing how approachable your game is, but there's a point where you start to lose too much of what makes it an interesting and engaging experience.

[@John-kc4cg]

Todd seemed to be much better at implementing ideas and focusing on actually building the game than being the lead with how unimaginative and easily led he is.

[@damienvalentine5043]

@@Takarias I've made a few Morrowind mods. Since I want my mods to be user-friendly for a wide variety of players, I've also watched streams from roughly two dozen Morrowind first-timers, to see how they interact with the game. And I hate to admit it...but Todd was right. Morrowind is too complicated for the vast majority of consumers. For instance, not a single player I watched paid any attention to the fatigue bar. I think there were...maybe two?...who ever realized the "little secret" dialogue topic offers hints on how to play. Only a third of the players I watched ever discovered that it's possible to charge/wind up attacks, and it was a roughly equal number who figured out what "chop/slash/thrust" means. I should point out that they all enjoyed the game regardless! But if most of your players ignore half your game mechanics, it's a waste of time and budget to include those mechanics in your future games. Morrowind is a great game...but something like Skyrim is a better *product*.

[@Takarias]

@@damienvalentine5043 Skyrim has very slowly grown on me over the years as I've come to terms with what it is and what it isn't.

[@AlexanderRM1000]

​@@damienvalentine5043I played 100 hours of Morrowind, among other things I memorized the entire fast travel network and made custom spells, but don't think I ever really understood winding up attacks or cut/thrust/stab and don't blame myself for it. To be good, that sort of thing needs both more logical controls and a tutorial + better feedback on which one you're actually doing.

[@mightyn8]

This was a wonderful video, and I can't believe I wasn't suggested your videos before! Liked and subscribed :D

[@Takarias]

This is only my second 'serious' video of this style, so I'm not too surprised myself :P Welcome aboard!

[@Poignant_Ritual]

I really enjoyed your review, your casual style is a nice change of pace from more typical reviewers with what sounds like a fleshed out script they prepared beforehand. Overall your insights are grounded and explicitly from your own perspective and you limiting yourself from presenting your experience as objective or universal ones is nice too. I subbed. I personally enjoy negative/critical reviews that are conducted calmly in this manner. Looking forward to more stuff from you.

[@Takarias]

Thank you for the feedback! I'm glad to hear it's resonating for people. I have a few ideas for upcoming videos, and not all of them are going to be as positive/gushing as this one, so you should have your wish granted in due time :)

[@miajoy9937]

When i started playing skyrim after morrowind, i was so confused. I kept trying to ask locals for help finding people or to help me understand what's going on. But none of them wanted to talk to me. It was so different from morrowind and I still love morrowind more.

[@Takarias]

This is the downside of voiced NPCs.

[@miajoy9937]

@@Takarias Exactly!

[@KNURKonesur]

I watched a video about Morrowind recently, so obviously KZbin is now shoveling Morrowind content my way and I click here and there, mostly to find the same-old-same-old content just experienced by a new person, but this video actually has some great analysis about the world that I myself having played Morrowind dozens of times, have not pondered. Great job, makes me want to do a lore-friendly (?) run of Morrowind and focus on aspects like that.

[@papalaz4444244]

Those bandits picked the worst cave in Tamriel to hide in.

[@Takarias]

All these random Nerevarines always coming through and ransacking the place smh

[@papalaz4444244]

@@Takarias They get murdered every game and then their drugs get sold to Ra'Virr LOL

[@Cheesurius]

@@papalaz4444244 omg yes!

[@DatCrazyNerf]

What I love about the tomb with the Ashes of Lord Brinne/ring early on is that you can explore around the Seyda Neen lighthouse and get an enchanted axe from a tree trunk for free. This makes killing the Ghost very easy. In my head the devs intentions with the ax were for that tomb/early enchanted 2H. I also didn't know there were other things in tree trunks as a kid. There's a goblet right near the Axe too! Easy money. :)

[@RallasterAsuremen]

Dont forget the Iron Sparksword that Tarhiel has on also fills that purpose, especially since if your picked Dunmer you start out first character (because of the box art) your Skill wont be...too terrible.

[@WompWompThwomp]

Further down the coast, past the tomb is a shipwreck. A chest floating in the water contains a silver longsword, barrels nearby contain some basic potion ingredients, and inside the boat itself are 3 diamonds in a small jewelry chest as well. A nice little piece of early game starting gear and some extra cash + ingredients is always nice to detour for.

[@monikaf9755]

Very well done review of Seyda Neen. Morrowind was the first RPG I played and I loved it (still do). I was amazed and awed by the way I could play it, though I died many times until I managed to figure out how to fight and what to do. I really love the little side quests and hidden stories you can find all over Morrowind.

[@willowparker-ct3pq]

11:56 - “marksman” was right there!

[@Takarias]

It was! D:

[@SmooreMC85]

This game is one of the reasons I'm still here when things got unbearably hard right around the time this was released. Thanks for the content, more please.

[@konahrik7958]

Great vid man! What one the best i have seen talking about morrowind mechanics, keep going!

[@Takarias]

Already hard at work on the next one!

[@DudeGuy999]

Thank you for another Morrowind video Reviewbrah

[@CaidenTMG]

I love this channel! So far I've seen only good, and I look forward to seeing how you do in the future. Best of luck.

[@Takarias]

Thanks! I'm keen on sticking with it, so keep an eye on this space!

[@ncrtrooper7153]

Glad I found your channel. Great content.

[@boriscat1999]

Well written and well spoken. I enjoyed your video a lot!

[@Svenburchard]

Congrats with this video. Great job

[@laurencelikeit459]

I am enjoying this video and the presentation style. Thank-you for creating and uploading! 😎

[@Takarias]

I'm glad to hear it's resonating with people :)

[@SubieNinja]

man this is properly nerdy content..... nerdy af..... soooooo nerdy....................aaaaaaaand subbed

[@Takarias]

I cannot deny the truth of what I am!

[@IYPITWL]

Irenas' work quest in Ald'Ruhn is a pretty great introduction, as well. Vendors of the town have an issue with Irenas due to nonpayment of goods. If you snoop around his place one can see he's got plenty of religious reading, and going that route in dialogue will convince him to return the goods and join the temple. Ez but of cash while learning the layout of the town. His house can be used a player house, too. It's kind of a guide for how to ease into new settlements which is find the guilds, vendors and temple.

[@BradPrichard]

What an awesome video. Thanks, my guy. Subbed up.

[@Takarias]

Thank you, and welcome!

[@ShursGarden]

This is a channel I can see getting *big* in the gaming sphere if the quality stays at this level or improves. How do you only have 2000 subscribers?

[@Takarias]

Such is the fate of only posting good stuff for the last couple months! I've seen pretty strong growth since the first Morrowind video on this channel, and I'm not stopping anytime soon!

[@katiecat9353]

I remember finding the character creation so immersive when I first went through it

[@WillStopka]

If i remember correctly, there is an enchanted axe inside a tree stump you can jump on from the entrance of the lighthouse that my guy found on accident back in the day

[@Slurreydude]

That scream from tarhiel will never get old

[@shadesofslay]

Yep, didn’t have much of a choice but to click this one! Brilliant work!

[@ThommyofThenn]

I'm level 17 on what I intend to be my first proper playthru. I've been playing a basically good character and haven't been stealing from every house or slaying anyone for personal gain, only enemies attacking me. I like how you played the whole "protection" racket so i'm tempted to do an evil character next or at least a much more amoral one!

[@Takarias]

I always feel like a bit of an ass going back on Fargoth like that, but the little fetcher deserves it! No, I kid. It's just a handy item to have for those early-game levels where 5 HP is actually kind of a lot.

[@ThommyofThenn]

@@Takarias Once i had my Balm amulet and quite powerful Velothi helm, I felt bad keeping the ring. I tried giving it back to him several in game weeks later but he had high disp and thanked me. I honestly have no clue what I did but i gave the ring to Avrille who also loves me. I'm choosing to beleive Fargoth came to chill with his friend and that very angry woman who stands in the shop all day. Then Avrill was like "o yea that strange Dunmer lady gave me your ring, here ya go" then Fargoth was like "Oh that's curious! Thanks my friend!"

[@rumpelstilzz]

The point of being a thief in Morrowind is pure greed. You don't need to. From all legal sources (robbing robbers, exploration, ancient items....) you get more stuff than the vendors can afford to take from you. After a replay or 2 you'll figure, crime just isn't necessary for the player. Being a criminal in Morrowind is a roleplay decision solely.

[@yledbetter10rob42]

AHH YES, We’ve been expecting you

[@lucienlalachance]

Love, it. Love this game, and i love to see people that understand and wanna celebrate the things it did so well. Subbed and loading up for a new playthrough now while I wait for stalker 2. Cheers!

[@thrdai]

@7:21 this bit also teaches the player that standing in deep enough water will extinguish your torch!

[@Takarias]

I honestly don't think I've ever used a torch. Never found they really did much to help in caves and the like. I remember decorating with lanterns and the like for hours, though!

[@ThommyofThenn]

8:00 for some reason I really liked this dude and helped him out as much as i could. He made me a "gift" of a dubious ring that is still in my inventory to this very day. The real prize is the sweet house he leaves behind! Sometimes a bro has just got to ghost everyone and move on so i get it

[@Takarias]

He's just genuine. Perhaps more than anyone else in Vvardenfell.

[@ThommyofThenn]

@@Takarias The other npcs feel like they're part of a game. But he just seems tired and done with Vvardenfels crap

[@matthewflandermeyer500]

#BringBackSpears

[@matics2808]

Playing this game as a kid blew my mind back in 2001, there was nothing open world and 3D like this back then, best thing I had before this was roaming around Hyrule in Ocarina of Time, running around at night in Kakareko village, pretending to sneak around town, hook-shotting from roof to roof, dreaming of a massive open world game where I can make my character. I will always love Bethesda for giving me Morrowind and then Oblivion. Skyrim as well, but I connect more with 3 and 4.

[@Crawldragon]

Seyda Neen is such an interesting anomaly in gaming history, because it's a pretty innocuous area of the map that doesn't have much significance in the greater story of Morrowind or the series as a whole, and yet it was fondly remembered enough that the developers were basically required to include it in the Morrowind expansion for ESO. It's more iconic to the series than Vivec or Cyrodiil. I think a lot of the reason for that is that Seyda Neen is so important to the player character's story, even though it's not that important to the story of Morrowind itself; and, simultaneously, it's important to the player's story, because for a lot of them it was their first experience playing an entirely new type of game, for a lot of the reasons you stated in the video. It's an effect that few other games in the Elder Scrolls series have successfully mimicked.

[@brandonadkins9435]

I think it’s important to note that Tarhiel is a great introduction to the cracked magic system. In other games this would have been a cutscene or one-off effect the player has no access to. But in Morrowind you can do all kinds of crazy magic.

[@padma_masha]

Such deep philosophical references by hitting Seyda Neen... I'm impressed))

[@SimoExMachina2]

I would say drug trafficking is a finer mechanic taught later by your fellows at the Blades.

[@theRealPermagreen]

17:50 Wait wait wait, hold on.... THAT"S A GATE!?

[@Takarias]

Always something new to find in the land of Vvardefell

[@natofcorntownusa8803]

I like hearing you talk about Morrowind. You should talk more about Morrowind. Also your editing style is very nice already and you have a nice cadence to your voice. Eager to see what else you have in store :0)

[@Takarias]

Thanks for the encouragement! I've enjoyed the crap out of making these videos, and they're by far the most intensive editing I've ever done. I'm learning heaps with each one I make.

[@nct948]

You don't seem very keen on collecting what nature has to offer, which for me was the great attraction of the game. Gathering mushrooms and flowers, making potions and experimenting with ingredients offers hours of patient and slow discoveries of sort. Unfortunately the storage system sucks and you couldn't organise your potions according to their effects, which made them difficult to use when needed!

[@Takarias]

@@nct948 I'm usually hugely into collecting all the mushrooms and dabbling in alchemy, and Graphic Herbalism makes it so much nicer to do so. Not picking them was a conscious choice while recording for this video because the mushrooms are cute and I wanted to leave them in place. :)

[@felipeazevedo840]

While working 9:30 hours in a boring factory office, i keep consuming Morrowind content, so i return home and spent the remaining 6:30 hours playing it lol

[@crunchyTOP24]

ive played morrowind tons of times i didnt know about that cursed ring from vodunius.. you still learn something new

[@tsunamisurfer6595]

11:55 melee, magic and marksman, here you go

[@ekki6820]

There's a reason the only modded-in home I use, is based in Seyda Neen. I freaking love this rinky-dink little sea-side swamptown. It's just so chill. Barring, of course, the one murder..

[@Takarias]

The crime rate is pretty high, but the Nerevarine can handle themselves.

[@sanjnamous]

I feel like you missed the part where there is a hidden stash of loot under a tree stump? That’s my most memorable moment from this town. I thought it was tied to a quest.

[@ThommyofThenn]

9:00 interesting experience. I believe it was around day 7 on this character, i got a light armour(main skill also) helmet that restored like 9-12HP for 5 second. Then a few weeks later (irl gameplay) i got Balm amulet. I've kept these two items the entire game. I like to make potions for alchemy so I usually restore health using them. But when I'm in trouble, many times those two items have saved my life especially earlier on. I love how so many approaches to the game are totally viable and i intend to make more characters to test them!

[@Takarias]

Challenge runs in Morrowind are great content because of the incredible range of options available to the player. Nearly any obstacle can be overcome if you just figure out which trick works in a given situation

[@trychydts]

Ghosts can be hurt by your bare hands as well. I loved what it implies from a lore perspective.

[@labshire]

the thief ring in Addamasartus is by far the best loot IMO. Still remember finding it for the first time in my youth

[@Takarias]

I just wish it was constant effect. I find it so easy to forget to use it! You're right though - it's definitely good and honestly slipped my mind while writing... Just like it does during combat lol

[@labshire]

@@Takarias the furtive cast on use magic item. So easily forgotten

[@digitaldud3664]

12:02 Mele, Magic, Marksman. There you can use that, and I hope I tingled your brain.

[@needparalegal]

Everything about Morrowind was genius. Made me into a Skooma addict of video games. Lack of fast travel made Morrowind more immersive than Skyrim.

[@RikkaCherri]

Melee, Magic, Missile, there ya go :D

[@Takarias]

Oh, that's good too. Another commenter mentioned "Marksman," which is the literal name of the skill. A brain fart like I've never had before. Keep in mind that I had to come to that point in the script, come up with nothing, and then read aloud while recording voice over multiple times without realizing my folly.

[@RikkaCherri]

@@Takarias Haha, dont you just love when the brain farts hit ^_^

[@andrewprofitt6898]

Seyda Neen and then Balmora. Sheesh. So good. Thieves Guild and House Hlaalu regular first time playthrus. Cauis too... It's like... mandatory

[@radwolf76]

That lock on the gate that gave you trouble has a bit of backstory. When the official plugin Siege at Firemoth was released, if you had unlocked that gate prior to installing the plugin, it broke the script that let the boat sail you away to take you to the plugin content.

[@Takarias]

Hah! Sounds like Bethesda, alright. Out of curiosity, did casting a lock spell on the gate reset its state and fix the script?

[@radwolf76]

@@Takarias it's been ages, but I don't think that it did. It was something that needed another plugin to fix.

[@ErosXCaos]

Morrowind was the first of a small list of games over which I was so obsessed I had to break them like a bad habit.

[@The_Bear_Adventures]

The sword you get from the falling wizard is enchanted, meaning it can be used against the ghost. Just fyi, they even considered that.

[@Takarias]

It's true! Arrille also has silver weapons, there's an enchanted axe near the lighthouse, and spells are always an option. Depending on your character skills, every player will have different options available.

[@wyvvernstone]

When you exit the lighthouse on ground level, there is an enchanted axe in a tree stump to the right...

[@arcum42]

It's also worth noting that by the time you get to the cave with the ghosts, you *have* an enchanted weapon, because it was on the body of the wizard.

[@ronwilson9815]

Not much good if your longblade, axe or shortblade are miscellaneous skills with a level of 5. Same is true of firebite, you can often one-shot an ancestral ghost, if you have the skill to cast it before you're terminated.

[@Takarias]

Arrille has some silver weapons, too. But as always in Morrowind, spear gets the shaft. Did you know there are only two spear trainers in all of Vvardenfell?

[@ronwilson9815]

@@Takarias Sort of, as I only ever used the lass in the Balmora Fighter's Guild and the Master trainer in the Tower of Dusk in Ghostgate. As every character I've ever had (and that's a lot) has invariably been primarily a spear user (because of Endurance) they are the trainers I know best. Spears rule, thanks in part to the AI being incapable of parrying and blocking with shields in Morrowind being hopeless!

[@Mostaism]

This os where i used my first RPG exploit. Jack-of-all-trades spell, youre the real MVP

[@simonstrane]

Wow, Takarias, you are a wonderful, empathetic genius. Can you please make a Morrowind starter's guide? ⚔️🗝️⚔️

[@Takarias]

What would this entail? I'm certainly no pro player, and I'm much more inclined to merely give new players the resources to discover games themselves - infodumping "how to play" on someone is, in my experience, the best way to ruin a game for someone.

[@TheMichaellathrop]

melee magic and missile weapons

[@sethleoric2598]

Other places in Elder Scrolls: No fargoth Seyda neen: Fargoth Ah.. that's why

[@rumpelstilzz]

11:10 The slaves in Addamasartus DO move if you free them. Just visit the cave again later, and they will be gone, their shackles lying on the floor. 16:37 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!' 'Ho!'

[@MrROTD]

I played on xbox, never played anything like it at the time, I spent hours in Seyda Neen at first , teaches you all the mechanics and gets you ready to venture further.

[@elYisusdelaNazza]

As a former Skyrim and then Oblivion player I certify that Foryn f*cked me hard due to the lack of knowledge about the unarmed combat. What a harsh way to learn 😂😂

[@Takarias]

I got rocked by him the first time too! Teaches you to save often, as well.

[@eleanorburns8686]

In my first playthrough, I made the mistake of heading to straight to Balmora, and was well out of my depth for ages. Seyda Neen makes for a much more player-friendly introduction with no obvious hand-holding.

[@thomasrial4444]

If elder scrolls 6 is going to succeed it needs three things -magic kept simplified for the masses but give us the system of spell creation again -a starting town like Seyda Neen or Goodsprings from Fallout New Vegas -Spears

[@Takarias]

I should do a deep dive like this for Riverwood. It feels so empty in comparison... There's gotta be more going on that I've never seen, right? Right??

[@thomasrial4444]

@@Takarias Definitely! Oblivion is also a bit different because there really isn’t any kind of starting town it’s more just a dungeon.

[@jojodelacroix]

I like to think the guard at the start isn't lying to you about fitting in. He's just incredibly sweet and doesn't really see the issue no matter the gender/species you are. So he's like wow. You sure do seem swell! lol

[@MethosTR]

Man I really should revisit Morrowind sometime. The last time I've personally played it was 2005 I think-19 years ago. And that was on the Xbox. I got it for free from Twitch Prime a couple years ago, but I'm concerned about playing it on a modern system.

[@Takarias]

Just use OpenMW - it's super simple to set up and runs beautifully. The development version is no less stable in my experience and has a couple more QOL enhancements over the standard release version.

[@RankMasterAI-fu3tt]

Melee , magic and MISSILE to tingle your brain