Quick Links
Character Creation
Classes
Combat
Group Content: Dungeons, PvP, Raids, And Trials
Stats And Gear
The new World of Warcraft expansion, Dragonflight, has many players either returning to play after a long hiatus or venturing over from other MMORPG games. One such game with a seemingly high exodus to World of Warcraft is The Elder Scrolls Online.
RELATED: World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight - Complete Guide To Marksmanship Hunter
With various similarities and differences, it may be difficult for new players to understand how to transition, play to the best of their ability, know how to get the best gear, and make their way to the top. The differences are vast in some areas and less so in others, so let's introduce Elder Scrolls Online players to World of Warcraft.
Character Creation
When creating a character in Elder Scrolls Online, you will choose a covenant to determine where you start your adventure. In World of Warcraft, races are bound to either the Alliance or Horde factions. You will have two options for starting zones depending on which faction and race you choose. You can begin in your race's home zone or on the Exile's Reach. Both are equally fun, and it is just a matter of whether you want a race-specific starting zone that can add to the race's lore.
After completing your starting zone, you will have the option to choose which expansion to quest in. You can change questing expansion zones at any time but unlike ESO, this does not allow for a seamless change of questing location at any time. That being said, in WoW a change of scenery for questing is merely one conversation with an NPC away. If you wish to follow the main story quest, simply follow the exclamation marks with brown shields behind them to stay on track with the story of the expansion you are playing.
The racial abilities on offer vary as well. While in ESO these are passive, they are amix of both active and passive abilities in WoW. This may influence your choice of which race to pick, so make sure to read them carefully and ensure they are in the direction you wish to head. Though they may be helpful, overall your race choice should solely come down to which you like the most. In the end, it is all about fun and your love for your character, so don't let racial abilities be your only choice for character creation.
Classes
Classes in WoW are a bit less creative than in ESO, but there are many more options. The biggest difference to note here is that in WoW, classes are broken down into threesubclasses. Much like ESO, there are tank, damage, and healing roles. Some classes will only comprise DPS subclasses, while others will have options for either two or all three types of roles.
ESO players may notice that in WoW, each class has botha base class and subclass talent tree. This will resemble the Champion Point system in ESO, though you won't have to wait until max level to unlock it. As you level, you will unlock talent points to fill out your talent trees, and upon reaching max level will have all the points you can gain to fill it up to your liking. This system in WoW is a mixture of the CP and Morph systems in ESO.
Combat
This may be a big hurdle for ESO players to adapt to. In WoW, combat is based on an action bar and tab target system. Players can activate various abilities and spells by clicking on the corresponding icons on their action bar or pressing the appropriate key. You will choose one target either with the mouse or tab button, and the direction you are facing isn't a huge deal.
In ESO, combat is based on a real-time system, with players able to attack and use abilities by mixing dodge mechanics, light and heavy attacks with their mouse, and using five abilities on their action bar depending on what weapon is being used. Unlike WoW, ESO requires you to aim with your mouse to be the most effective. Both systems have unique strengths and appeal, but WoW has a much simpler combat system. However, the sheer number of abilities that can be used may be overwhelming at first.
RELATED: World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight - Assassination Rogue Complete Guide
Group Content: Dungeons, PvP, Raids, And Trials
WoW and ESO certainly share some content types, though the name may vary. In WoW, dungeons are five-man groups rather than the four-man groups in ESO. WoW also requires three DPS, one tank, and one healer to search for a group, while ESO could have all DPS if you are confident in your abilities.
While ESO has Veteran Dungeons, the equivalent in WoW is Mythic+ dungeons. These are available at max level and are timed dungeons with extra difficulty and mechanics. In both games, dungeons are a great way to level up and do some fun group content.
PvP is quite different in both games. Yes, there are 'battlegrounds' type matches, minor group size PvP matches, and large-scale PVP battles in each game. In WoW, each PvP game type is Horde versus Alliance, your team against the other. In ESO, there are always two other teams for each kind of PVP content. The base objectives of each type of PVP content will differ from playlist to playlist, and are a bit different from ESO to WoW — but do remain reasonably similar with slight alterations.
The closest thing to Cyrodiil and Imperial City in ESO is WoW's Epic Battlegrounds. These are large-scale PvP matches with the use of Siege Weapons, which may sound familiar to ESO players. These Epic Battlegrounds aren't nearly as grand in scale as the enormously large battles in Cyrodiil, but they are the closest WoW gets. Where WoW does shine in PvP, however, is in its 2v2 and 3v3 arenas. These are incredibly competitive and fun and will have you coming back for more.
Raids are the WoW counterpart to ESO's Trials. While a maximum of 12 people can take part in a Trial, WoW's raids range from five people up to 40 on some older raids. This will require even more group member synchronicity and teamwork.
Stats And Gear
Stats in WoW are much simpler than in ESO. While ESO's stat list allows for great creativity and performance, your class will have one primary stat and four secondary stats in WoW. Your subclass choice will determine which secondary stats you want to prioritize, and your base class will determine the primary stat.
So, for instance, while a Rogue's primary stat will be Agility, a Subtlety Rogue and Outlaw Rogue's secondary stat priority will differ. This will remain true for all classes. The system is a bit simpler in WoW, and will become an afterthought after some time.
While ESO allows for fantastic creativity in its choice and mixture of gear to bring out great power, WoW is a bit less in-depth but just as powerful. Upon reaching max level in WoW, you will want to find your Best-In-Slot (BIS) gear for the content you are doing.
For example, a Destruction Warlock will have different gear that is best for raids, Mythic+, and PvP, and they will all differ to a small or vast degree. This may require grinding for your BiS in various types of content. To get your BiS PvP gear, you will need to take part in PvP extensively, and the same goes for raids and Mythic+ content.
Though each type of content gear can be used in other types of content, PvP gear will always be better in PvP, and raid or Mythic+ gear will always be better in that content.
NEXT: World Of Warcraft: Dragonflight - Outlaw Rogue Complete Guide
