Originally published February 19, 2019. The original article can be found here.
Continue your quest to obtain both halves of the powerful Wrathstone tablet and take your first steps into the epic Season of the Dragon year-long adventure with this four-player challenge, coming February 25 for PC/Mac and March 12 for Xbox One and PlayStation®4.
A Lost Vault Hidden in the IceEdit
Locked away deep within the glaciers of Eastmarch, the frozen entrance to the Dwarven Vault of Mhuvnak has thawed, finally allowing explorers, adventurers, and treasure hunters to enter. Already on the scene, Redguard scholar and archeologist Tharayya needs your help to breach the Frostvault.
"Tharayya is a Dwemer artifact hunter at heart, so when she found evidence of another hidden treasure among her ex-husband's records, she couldn't resist," explains Mike Finnigan, ESO's Dungeon Lead. "However, when she arrived, she found the caves infested with Goblins, so you are the hired muscle for the expedition."
Before you can enter the vault, you must traverse the icy pathways that the local Coldsnap Goblin tribe now calls home. Then, to make your way into the heart of the Frostvault and claim its prize, you also need to make use of what remains. This includes a remarkable Dwarven machine at the center of it all.
"The Dwarven Delver is an awesome new construct that has a cannon on one arm and a drill on the other. It's something ESO players have never seen before, and Frostvault gave us the opportunity to use it as a centerpiece for the whole dungeon," explained Finnigan.
Such a machine could be very useful in this frozen complex and, fortunately for you, Tharayya knows a thing or two about Dwarven technology.
Face Frozen GuardiansEdit
A vault buried deep within the glacial rifts of Eastmarch has its own inherent dangers, but Frostvault's defenses also stand ready to test you and your group. Relentless Dwarven automatons, deadly traps, and the Coldsnap Goblin tribe bring more than a few surprises for unsuspecting adventurers. The Goblins in particular attack in ways that you've never seen from other tribes, including using ice comet and barrage abilities, so don't underestimate them!
Additionally, to clear Frostvault, you must defeat five challenging bosses that force you to pay attention to and make use of your environment. For example, the Vault Protector boss uses a shield to defend itself from a series of lasers fired from mobile sentries on the outer walls.
To survive this encounter, you must find a way to keep yourself and your party out of harm's way. Quick wits along with a high level of coordination and mobility are necessary to avoid certain doom.
Most challenging, however, is the gigantic Stonekeeper, Frostvault's final boss. Be careful, as this monstrous machine can quickly dispatch your team with powerful beams, a flame cannon, and spinning blades. All of these weapons threaten unsuspecting adventurers, but none more so than the Extermination Protocol attack that can target your entire group. Luckily, Tharayya knows a few tricks herself, and she helps you manage this foe in a unique way.
"Tharayya doesn't limit herself to only hunting Dwemer artifacts, and over the years she has collected some skeevatons during her travels," explains Finnigan. "As the Stonekeeper powers up, players will need to use them to traverse its inner workings and disable the Extermination Protocol before it wipes out the group."
This is no easy task, as the Stonekeeper's inner workings are a maze, and the machine features internal defenses. You and your team must navigate its twisting pathways and shut it down before it's too late!
Plunder the VaultEdit
Should you survive Frostvault's icy pathways, fearsome defenders, and deadly traps, you'll be rewarded with items unique to this dungeon, including three new armor and weapon sets (dropped by the dungeon's bosses) and a new Monster Mask set (dropped by the final boss on Veteran difficulty).
These new rewards reflect the difficulty of this new dungeon. For example, the Tzogvin's Warband medium set gives you a stacking boost to your Weapon Critical and a potential to boost to your Critical Damage, giving your Stamina characters the opportunity to sustain high damage over longer engagements.
In addition to this, when you pair the Stonekeeper Monster Mask with its Shoulders (acquired from an Undaunted Chest) you gain an energy Charge stack when you block. When you have six charges, you'll restore a significant amount of Stamina, Magicka, and Health.
Finally, should you complete Frostvault on the Veteran difficulty, you'll also earn the Icebound Dwemer Spider pet!
The Wrathstone AwaitsEdit
The Dwarves hid their half of the Wrathstone tablet for a reason, but don't let the Frostvault's frozen defenders stop you from claiming your prize. Are you willing to venture deep into the ice, fight past Mhuvnak's defenders, and plunder the vault? Let us know on Twitter @TESOnline, Instagram, or Facebook.
Part of the Season of the Dragon year-long adventure, the Wrathstone DLC game pack arrives February 25 for PC/Mac and March 12 for Xbox One and PlayStation®4 and will be available for ESO Plus members and in the in-game Crown Store. This new DLC game pack arrives with Update 21, a free base-game update for all ESO players.