ESO: Choosing a House
This post is not intended as a player housing guide. There are plenty of those available already. Instead, it is my personal musings on the various factors that have determined my choice of player house in The Elder Scrolls Online. In fact, at the time of writing, I have not yet purchased the house in question. It is dependent not only on a large sum of in-game gold but also a substantial achievement. The house in question is Gardner House in Wayrest. As it is a large player house it costs 1,015,000 gold. Alternatively, it can be bought for 5,700 Crowns, unfurnished. If you want it furnished it will cost 7,100 Crowns. I shall not be buying this property with Crowns as it works out at about £36 or so. I think that price is a little exorbitant especially in light of what I want the house for.
According to The Unofficial Elder Scrolls Pages “Gardner House is a large player house in Wayrest. The home has three entrances on the east, south, and west. The eastern entrance brings you into a small courtyard on the north side of the house which possesses a stable at the western end. The house has three spacious floors, a fireplace on the middle floor where all three entrances are and a large open basement. The house is conveniently located near the Wayrest Treasury to the south and the city's writ drop-off location, which includes Rolis Hlaalu, for dropping off Master Writs”. This is all fine and dandy but I’m not after a house in ESO for furniture collections, achievements or role play. I primarily want a house for optimal access to a major in-game hub and for quick and convenient storage. Sadly, the free houses you can claim do not provide this.
Despite having two alts, my main character in ESO is a Dragonknight affiliated to the Daggerfall Covenant. As I now have companions to level, the capital city of Waywrest affords quick and convenient access to the Fighters and Mages guilds as well as the Undaunted enclave. This makes undertaking these three groups' daily quests a lot more efficient. There are also seven guild traders in the city. Therefore it seems practical to have a permanent residence in Waywrest. Housing also offers a convenient location to port to without incurring any cost. Because I am not au fait with the lore in ESO I still often have to pause and check a location when travelling, as I don’t readily know which region towns and villages are. Having a means to leave a dungeon and return to a safe location with storage available is very desirable. I recently bought Fezez the Merchant so I can sell loot on the fly.
So all things considered, the Gardner House is the most appropriate residence for me. The in-game gold requirement is not a problem. I have about 500,000 on each of my three alts. As I’m not buying with Crowns, I do have to complete the Stormhaven Adventurer achievement which requires completing 60 quests in the region. At present I am about halfway through this. Thankfully, I have an addon that marks all available quests on the map so I can see where I need to go to complete the remainder. Furthermore, acquiring this house has provided me with a useful goal to focus upon. I’m one of those MMO players that likes to play through content in a structured manner and work towards a reward or specific target. I chose my house in The Lord of the Rings Online in a similar fashion, based upon its location.
