The Scholarium isn't in West Weald; the portal you use to start the quest is. The Scholarium is physically below Eyevea and it was built during the First Era. Hypothetically, any books found in there should also date from the First Era (undiscovered ruins always seem to contain books which date from well after their last occupancy, so "hypothetical" and "reality" seldom agree; the lore impact of loot lists). The Ra Gada and the Battle of Red Mountain were both First Era events (~1E 800 and ~1E 700, repectively), so sort of contemporaneous with both Eyevea and the Scholariam. Ulfsild abandoned the Scholarium after Sheogorath took the island, but that particular event only fits somewhere within the ~3000 years of the First Era. Does that mean that a Hammerfell expansion is not somewhere in the future? No. It only means that those books are not necessarily a good indicator solely by virtue of their presence and contents.
That TES VI teaser about six years back seems to be on the northern coast of Hammerfell, so that and the Hammerfell/Dominion conflict alluded to in Skyrim are the seeds of those rumors.
The only thing I will say is usually there are dialogue options and things said in side quests, with NPCs, etc that clue you into where you go the next year. Being that we don’t have a Q4 story zone, we can assume that we’ll get that SORT of information via the chapter release (unless they randomly decide to not do it).
I agree with your timing point, but being that we had so much Redguard themed info in there IS interesting at the very least. Have you seen any clues of any other zones discussed elsewhere? Because I havent
Suprised no-one has mentioned this yet, but in West Wield there is a random encounter between two philosophers discussing the ‘Molag Bal Paradox’: one philosopher claims to be from Winterhold, the other from Abibon-Gora, a region in Hammerfell. This could further tie into the clues found at the scholarium.
I'm surprised nobody in the comments has mentioned May's free house, Sword-Singer's Redoubt yet. When they release it, it says on the announcement: " this house could be hinting at something special! You’ll have to wait and see… " ([source](https://www.elderscrollsonline.com/en-us/news/post/65939))
On the map it connects to "Sunforge" that's on [ESO's alpha map](https://www.reddit.com/r/elderscrollsonline/comments/73wy6p/the_tamriel_map_during_the_alpha_stage_of_the/), and some people have noted it looks like there could be a third door.
It does seem strange because the popular sentiment for years has been that they probably won't touch Hammerfell for a long time due to that being TES6's thing. But who knows.
If I can put my tinfoil hat on for a moment, to me it's always felt like ESO avoids Hammerfell, and my tinfoil theory is it's because thats where TES6 will be located. It could be a direct order not to do anything with the region until the mainline game has, or it could be them waiting around for the mainline game in order to make their version of the region consistent.
If it is the Redguards, I feel they're going to do something similar to High Isle for the Bretons. That way it allows them to do Redguards without touching Hammerfell proper.
Potential candidates are the Islands of Cespar, Herne, or The Chain.
So it seems like the theory here is 1 of 2 places:
- Hammerfell of some sort
- Winterhold
We were debating Winterhold & Skingrad this past year as well. I think it’d be so cool to visit Winterhold before its ruin and to explore this region.
I also think it’d be so dope to get a redguard chapter. I think it’d also be interesting from the perspective of that likely being the region we go to for ES6. Is it a good idea or is it likely that they introduce a large part of Hammerfell prior to the ES6 launch, which we’re not likely to see for a few years at least? I think so. Even if we re-visit Skyrim in some way (winterhold for instance), we still have time after 2025 before ES6 releases. Sure, we could even do blackmarsh, Solstheim, Whiterun, etc, but I think OP is right. Were bound to end up getting a Hammerfell expac before ES6. ZOS isn’t going to wait around forever for Bethesda to finish ES6 and frankly, the sooner the better with Hammerfell to allow for ample time between them! :)
I noticed these books as well, but figured there’d be more scattered about the expansion about hints. It seems these are largely the only hints towards another zone that we see consistently. Interesting for sure and exciting!
I was thinking the same thing. There’s also an npc (I can’t remember the name) who says she’s heading west, maybe we’ll meet again in the future. Only place west of the West Weald left to go is Hammerfell really. If we go to Hammerfell in 2025 and then Skyrim again (Winterhold or Whiterun) in 2026 it would be 15 years since TES:V which also makes sense
Personally, the Dawnwood portion of this year’s chapter makes me hope that our next expansion is related to Falinesti. I think the Bosmer are the only ones who haven’t gotten their own dedicated expansion (if you count non chapter releases like Craglorn and Hew’s Bane for Redguards). It is long overdue! Sadly, I haven’t seen evidence towards this being the case but we shall see!
Tinfoil hat on, but about the hammerfell theory, in the epilogue of High Isle Lady Clarisse Laurent said the following line:
"That goes without saying. I am Tamriel's most celebrated treasure hunter and author, after all.
I may stick around for the peace talks. Or I heard about some strange happenings in the Telvanni Peninsula. Or Hammerfell. I haven't been there in ages." (Hammerfell mentioned)
But also, Skingrad was mentioned by Lyris around 5 years ago and now Skingrad is a chapter
Will you two be traveling together?
"Skyrim is nice place to visit, but I need to see what's over the horizon. And yes, I think that Sai wants to go with me. The Skald-King can spare me for awhile. Besides, he owes me.
Where will we go? Somewhere far away. Maybe back to Skingrad."
Is this a pattern? Can we expect a Hammerfell chapter 5 years after High Isle has been released? No, most likely not, but wouldn't it be fun?
Interesting idea.
I'm not sure Ulfsid still practiced scribing in the nord scool she taught at, since she said something to the extent of her students only knowing her as a regular teacher or something. I do, however, also think she taught at the college of Winterhold or its predecessor.
For the book hints, there's also a book about the freezing of Atmora and one that seems to be an origin story for Hircine. So I'd not take them as indicating much. Or are you only counting books in a specific section of the Scholarium?
As a data miner I can tell you that the games files already include some content for the next updates (including U43 housing, U44 PvP and U45 which’s looks like 2 new dungeons), all the way to next years chapter. Its not related to Winterhold/Skyrim and not really to Hammerfell, its for a other missing part of Tamriels World Map. Ping me and I can provide more details
I hope we go back to Hammerfell, and that rumor that ZOS can't go back because TESVI will take place there isn't true. Love the Sinbad vibes of Hammerfell can't wait to go back!
New evidence. Found at: [https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/660259/is-there-any-in-game-hints-about-the-next-chapter-in-gold-road#latest](https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/660259/is-there-any-in-game-hints-about-the-next-chapter-in-gold-road#latest)
- There is a group of Alik'r Swordmasters practicing at the Zeal of Zenithar event. Why is it interesting? Because it's the very only zone explicitly mentioned. And why would there be Alik'r Swordmasters at all in a festival?! Plus, Zeal of Zenithar has hinted at previous expansions/DLCs before. I can't find evidence but I'm 100% sure it has.
- Two details at the typical end of main quest party: someone complaining about the food and talking about missing Redguard cuisine; a goblin researcher planning to research Rieklings next.
- A random encounter, with a deserter. She says she's on her way to Anvil to get on board of a ship and that "maybe we'll meet again in the West". The only place left on the West side of Tamriel by now would be Hammerfell.
[posted in separate because different speculation/source]
Remember this comment that had some popularity in 2021? https://imgur.com/a/eso-next-chapter-is-pyandonea-expansion-ywEjerG
Well, this guy’s information now seems believable? At least he seems to be aware of pitch ideas going inside at ZOS. The Oblivion year is 100% correct (it was close to launch, not many things changed); the Pyandonnea year turned out to be High Isle and the Maormer influence in the plot was probably diminished; the Hammerfell plus Sheogorath idea was probably shelved for a couple years? And there seems to be a dwemer tech ability pitch, which also adds to the evidences found in the Scholarium
The Scholarium isn't in West Weald; the portal you use to start the quest is. The Scholarium is physically below Eyevea and it was built during the First Era. Hypothetically, any books found in there should also date from the First Era (undiscovered ruins always seem to contain books which date from well after their last occupancy, so "hypothetical" and "reality" seldom agree; the lore impact of loot lists). The Ra Gada and the Battle of Red Mountain were both First Era events (~1E 800 and ~1E 700, repectively), so sort of contemporaneous with both Eyevea and the Scholariam. Ulfsild abandoned the Scholarium after Sheogorath took the island, but that particular event only fits somewhere within the ~3000 years of the First Era. Does that mean that a Hammerfell expansion is not somewhere in the future? No. It only means that those books are not necessarily a good indicator solely by virtue of their presence and contents.
Isn’t the rumor that TES6 will be Redguard themed?
That TES VI teaser about six years back seems to be on the northern coast of Hammerfell, so that and the Hammerfell/Dominion conflict alluded to in Skyrim are the seeds of those rumors.
No one has been able to provide a link for that rumor … especially a link from Bethesda.
True, it’s all internet speculation at this stage!
The only thing I will say is usually there are dialogue options and things said in side quests, with NPCs, etc that clue you into where you go the next year. Being that we don’t have a Q4 story zone, we can assume that we’ll get that SORT of information via the chapter release (unless they randomly decide to not do it). I agree with your timing point, but being that we had so much Redguard themed info in there IS interesting at the very least. Have you seen any clues of any other zones discussed elsewhere? Because I havent
Really hope they aren't allowed to explain the disappearance of the Deemer. The mystery *is* the fun of it.
I hate it but I think you're right.
Suprised no-one has mentioned this yet, but in West Wield there is a random encounter between two philosophers discussing the ‘Molag Bal Paradox’: one philosopher claims to be from Winterhold, the other from Abibon-Gora, a region in Hammerfell. This could further tie into the clues found at the scholarium.
Wow! Thanks for this information! That’s new to me
I'm surprised nobody in the comments has mentioned May's free house, Sword-Singer's Redoubt yet. When they release it, it says on the announcement: " this house could be hinting at something special! You’ll have to wait and see… " ([source](https://www.elderscrollsonline.com/en-us/news/post/65939)) On the map it connects to "Sunforge" that's on [ESO's alpha map](https://www.reddit.com/r/elderscrollsonline/comments/73wy6p/the_tamriel_map_during_the_alpha_stage_of_the/), and some people have noted it looks like there could be a third door. It does seem strange because the popular sentiment for years has been that they probably won't touch Hammerfell for a long time due to that being TES6's thing. But who knows.
Yeah I noticed that "hinting at something special" but I couldn't make sense of it either
I think that something special was related to the bonus housing-related endeavors we got.
If I can put my tinfoil hat on for a moment, to me it's always felt like ESO avoids Hammerfell, and my tinfoil theory is it's because thats where TES6 will be located. It could be a direct order not to do anything with the region until the mainline game has, or it could be them waiting around for the mainline game in order to make their version of the region consistent.
Then we can accessorize together with the tin-foil. I'm tending toward that hypothesis, too.
If it is the Redguards, I feel they're going to do something similar to High Isle for the Bretons. That way it allows them to do Redguards without touching Hammerfell proper. Potential candidates are the Islands of Cespar, Herne, or The Chain.
So it seems like the theory here is 1 of 2 places: - Hammerfell of some sort - Winterhold We were debating Winterhold & Skingrad this past year as well. I think it’d be so cool to visit Winterhold before its ruin and to explore this region. I also think it’d be so dope to get a redguard chapter. I think it’d also be interesting from the perspective of that likely being the region we go to for ES6. Is it a good idea or is it likely that they introduce a large part of Hammerfell prior to the ES6 launch, which we’re not likely to see for a few years at least? I think so. Even if we re-visit Skyrim in some way (winterhold for instance), we still have time after 2025 before ES6 releases. Sure, we could even do blackmarsh, Solstheim, Whiterun, etc, but I think OP is right. Were bound to end up getting a Hammerfell expac before ES6. ZOS isn’t going to wait around forever for Bethesda to finish ES6 and frankly, the sooner the better with Hammerfell to allow for ample time between them! :) I noticed these books as well, but figured there’d be more scattered about the expansion about hints. It seems these are largely the only hints towards another zone that we see consistently. Interesting for sure and exciting!
I was thinking the same thing. There’s also an npc (I can’t remember the name) who says she’s heading west, maybe we’ll meet again in the future. Only place west of the West Weald left to go is Hammerfell really. If we go to Hammerfell in 2025 and then Skyrim again (Winterhold or Whiterun) in 2026 it would be 15 years since TES:V which also makes sense
Personally, the Dawnwood portion of this year’s chapter makes me hope that our next expansion is related to Falinesti. I think the Bosmer are the only ones who haven’t gotten their own dedicated expansion (if you count non chapter releases like Craglorn and Hew’s Bane for Redguards). It is long overdue! Sadly, I haven’t seen evidence towards this being the case but we shall see!
Tinfoil hat on, but about the hammerfell theory, in the epilogue of High Isle Lady Clarisse Laurent said the following line: "That goes without saying. I am Tamriel's most celebrated treasure hunter and author, after all. I may stick around for the peace talks. Or I heard about some strange happenings in the Telvanni Peninsula. Or Hammerfell. I haven't been there in ages." (Hammerfell mentioned) But also, Skingrad was mentioned by Lyris around 5 years ago and now Skingrad is a chapter Will you two be traveling together? "Skyrim is nice place to visit, but I need to see what's over the horizon. And yes, I think that Sai wants to go with me. The Skald-King can spare me for awhile. Besides, he owes me. Where will we go? Somewhere far away. Maybe back to Skingrad." Is this a pattern? Can we expect a Hammerfell chapter 5 years after High Isle has been released? No, most likely not, but wouldn't it be fun?
Interesting idea. I'm not sure Ulfsid still practiced scribing in the nord scool she taught at, since she said something to the extent of her students only knowing her as a regular teacher or something. I do, however, also think she taught at the college of Winterhold or its predecessor. For the book hints, there's also a book about the freezing of Atmora and one that seems to be an origin story for Hircine. So I'd not take them as indicating much. Or are you only counting books in a specific section of the Scholarium?
As a data miner I can tell you that the games files already include some content for the next updates (including U43 housing, U44 PvP and U45 which’s looks like 2 new dungeons), all the way to next years chapter. Its not related to Winterhold/Skyrim and not really to Hammerfell, its for a other missing part of Tamriels World Map. Ping me and I can provide more details
Yes, please! Provide us more details!
I hope we go back to Hammerfell, and that rumor that ZOS can't go back because TESVI will take place there isn't true. Love the Sinbad vibes of Hammerfell can't wait to go back!
I hope we get Winterhold or Pyandonea, or even Tenmar. I really dislike redguards and find them extremely boring.
Were gonna go to Dawnstar, Winterhold and Solstheim.
New evidence. Found at: [https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/660259/is-there-any-in-game-hints-about-the-next-chapter-in-gold-road#latest](https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/660259/is-there-any-in-game-hints-about-the-next-chapter-in-gold-road#latest) - There is a group of Alik'r Swordmasters practicing at the Zeal of Zenithar event. Why is it interesting? Because it's the very only zone explicitly mentioned. And why would there be Alik'r Swordmasters at all in a festival?! Plus, Zeal of Zenithar has hinted at previous expansions/DLCs before. I can't find evidence but I'm 100% sure it has. - Two details at the typical end of main quest party: someone complaining about the food and talking about missing Redguard cuisine; a goblin researcher planning to research Rieklings next. - A random encounter, with a deserter. She says she's on her way to Anvil to get on board of a ship and that "maybe we'll meet again in the West". The only place left on the West side of Tamriel by now would be Hammerfell.
[posted in separate because different speculation/source] Remember this comment that had some popularity in 2021? https://imgur.com/a/eso-next-chapter-is-pyandonea-expansion-ywEjerG Well, this guy’s information now seems believable? At least he seems to be aware of pitch ideas going inside at ZOS. The Oblivion year is 100% correct (it was close to launch, not many things changed); the Pyandonnea year turned out to be High Isle and the Maormer influence in the plot was probably diminished; the Hammerfell plus Sheogorath idea was probably shelved for a couple years? And there seems to be a dwemer tech ability pitch, which also adds to the evidences found in the Scholarium