The Oblivion Facts List
by ixidorsbane, last updated 10/29/05

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Contents :: Yes List :: No List :: Maybe List :: Footnotes :: Misc. Notes :: Works Cited

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Yes List
(Things that WILL be in the game)

• 1st and 3rd Person Views
• 1500+ NPC's
• 121 Plant Types
• 150+ Quests
• 16 Square Miles (Not including dungeons or the realms of Oblivion)
• 200+ Dungeons
• 200+ Hours of Gameplay (Main Quest is 20-25 hours long)
• 21 Skills
• 40+ Creature Types (Many broken down into sub-types)
• 400+ Books
• 5 Counts Fighting for Power
• 5 Different Breeds of Ride-able Horses for Purchase (Will be kept in stable while in towns or not using)
• 6 Factions/Guilds (The Arena, Blades, Dark Brotherhood, Fighters' Guild, Mages' Guild, Thieves' Guild)
• 7 'Big' Battles (Entailing more than the average 6-8 NPC's fighting on screen at once)
• 9 Major Cities
• 9000+ Objects (All of which are movable, and react accordingly with the environment)
• Ability to Purchase Homes (One in every major city)
• Birthsigns (Same 13 from Morrowind but apparently with more detailed and specific effects)
• Borders
• Cast-on-Strike Enchantments
• Compass (Will only show places relevant to current selected quest, can also mark a place on the map and have it point to that as well)
• Daedric Quests (Shrines scattered across the world where you can pick up quests)
• Decoration (For your homes but unknown what kinds)
• Dynamic Soft Shadows (For all objects and NPC's/creatures)
• Dynamic Weather and Time
• Elven Power Crystals (Wield great power that you can use, but unknown what powers they are)
• Essential NPC Indicator (Subtle icon appears when looking at an essential NPC)
• Expanded Character Creation Process
• Events/Festivals (Official mod downloadable for PC and X-Box 360)
• Evidence chest (When you're arrested all of your belongings end up here)
• Fast Travel Map
• Full Character Voice Acting (50+ Hours, Announced: Sean Bean, Linda Carter, Terence Stamp, Patrick Stewart)
• Greater Powers for Each Race (Imperials: Star of the West, Voice of the Emperor)
• Hoods/Hooded Robes
• Horse Armor (Official mod downloadable for PC and X-Box 360)
• Improved Combat
• Increased Graphics Options (More optimization for lower end systems)
• Infamy Rating (Crime level that goes up but not down, helps calculate NPC disposition)
• Interactive Jail (Serve your time or find a means to escape)
• Light, Shadow and Sound Based Sneaking
• Lockpicking Mini-game
• Magical Staves (Fire spells from staff (oversized wand?))
• Magicka Regeneration (Based on Willpower)
• Necromancy (Ability to reanimate defeated enemies or NPC's and have them as followers but unknown for how long)
• New and Improved Dialogue System (Listen in on conversations for new topics)
• New Persuasion Interface
• Oblivion Realms Locked after Main Quest
• Physics-based Sound (A sword sounds different when hitting stone then it does when hitting wood)
• Potion Application to Weapons
• Quiver (Container for arrows you wear on your back and arrows visibly disappear)
• Races from MW (Altmer (High Elf), Argonian, Bosmer (Wood Elf), Breton, Dunmer (Dark Elf), Imperial, Khajiit, Nord, Orc, and Redguard)
• Radiant AI
• Realistic Physics (Havok Engine 3.01 implemented, meaning objects have mass, weight, and react to one another accordingly)
• Red Hand (A hand will turn red if an item you're looking at belongs to someone)
• Respawning of some NPC's (Guards and Bandits)
• Sitting/Lying Down
• SpeedTreeRT Technology (Realistic trees and vegetation that will animate in real time to the weather)
• Stats Menu (Tracks kills, stolen items, necks bitten as a vampire, etc.)
• TES Construction Set (PC Only)
• Traps (Physics based booby-traps)
• Traveling NPC's
• Vampires
• Visibly Sheathed Weapons (Swords at belt, bows and long-swords on back)
• Yielding

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No List
(Things that will NOT be in the game)

• Aging (In-game aging of the player character or NPC's)
• Banks
• Beheading/Dismemberment (Hacking apart limbs of NPC's)
• Capes/Cloaks
• Cast-On-Use Enchantments (Except for staves)
• Children
• Cliff Racers (Quite pleasing)
• Climbing
• Combat Staves
• Crafting (Forging Weapons/Armor)
• Crossbows
• Dual Wielding
• Experience Point Leveling System (This is a good thing)
• Forced Reloads
• Imperial Legion or Nine Divines (Ability to join)
• Jobs (Non-quest employment through an NPC)
• Locational Damage
• Locking of Doors (With a key)
• Making Traps (Without the CS)
• Modeled Breads/Facial Hair
• Mounted Combat
• Multiplayer
• New Playable Races (Just the same 10 from Morrowind)
• Nudity
• Sleeping Anywhere (Sleeping will be restricted to taverns, inns and camp sights)
• Spears
• Thieving of Your Possessions (NPC's stealing from you)
• Throwing Weapons (shurikens, darts, throwing knives)
• Terrain Destruction or Deformation
• Were-creatures (Bears, wolves, etc.)

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Maybe List
(Things that are unknown)

• An Appearance of MW NPC's (Such as Caius Cosades, Fargoth or Jiub)
• Breaking Down Doors (Using your sword to open a door)
• Chains, Flails and Whips
• Clocks (In-game item clocks that indicate what time it is in the game world)
• Dragons (LOL, I don't 'think' so, but it has been hinted at)
• Levitation
• Mark and Recall (Unsure whether it's been replaced by the Fast Travel system)
• Mercenaries (NPC's you can hire for assistance in combat)
• Naming of Pets
• Realistic clothing movement
• Sinking in Water (Of objects and/or yourself when overweight)

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Footnotes
(Some side information about the various items listed)

• 1500+ NPC's: There has been some debate over whether this includes the respawning guards/bandits/etc. Until I find something more specific, while the number is confirmed NPC's, the number that are unique is not and will just have to be something that is up in the air.

• 200+ Dungeons: The dungeons are all hand crafted and will be darker this time around, with more diverse and ambient lighting.

• 21 Skills: You will be able to choose 7 major skills (these will start at 15 and are the only ones that effect your leveling) and then the rest will be minor skills (will start at 5 and not effect your leveling). Also, the two attributes chosen to be your main ones will be raised 15 levels each. Each skill will have ranks (novice, apprentice, journeyman, expert, and master) depending on how high your level in it is, and for each new rank in that skill you will receive perks that are used automatically when needed. Here is the list of the skills over the 7 attributes (Luck plays a little into all skills) and the known skill perks. At the moment, we do not know how they are split up by specialization:

Additional Note: It has been said that each weapon will have its own sneak attack, and that when used will ignore an opponent's armor rating to inflict more damage.

• 9 Major Cities: Ok, here is a list of the 9 major cities in the Providence of Cyrodiil (please note that Kvatch is not counted as one of the 9 major ones). Special thanks to Astarsis for the list (check here for a much more detailed list with pictures of the towns):

Additional Note: You must use the city gates to enter and exit cities now. You will be unable to levitate/jump over the walls (But you will be able to see landscape if it's high enough to be seen over the walls). I'm guessing that there will be invisible borders at the walls, preventing you from going over.

• The Arena (Guild): You'll be able to bet on fights as well as work your way through the ranks.

• The Blades (Guild): You'll most likely do quests for them during the Main Quest (and perhaps various side quests), but will be unable to join.

• Borders: Borders are invisible walls that prevent you from going beyond the edges of Cyrodiil. These borders will be comprised of natural boundaries (i.e. rivers, mountains, etc.) and other times will just be unnoticeable invisible barriers blocking your path with a message telling you to 'go back'. Additional Note: You'll still be able to see 'beyond' the borders so you don't feel awkward about them.

• The Counts (5 Houses): You'll be able to do quests for the five Counts that are fighting for power in Cyrodiil, but will be unable to join any one of them.

• Dark Brotherhood (guild): To gain admittance, you will need to kill someone innocent. Only then will someone confront you about joining the guild.

• Expanded Character Creation Process: The new character selection has gotten a complete overhaul from the one in Morrowind. You will now use sliders to pick custom age, face, brow, cheeks, chin, eyes, forehead, jaw, mouth, nose, skin tone, beard, eyes, eyebrows, lips, and nose. There will be no ability to change body type (as this could result in clipping issues). Additional Note: There will be no modeled beards/facial hair. There will only be beard/facial hair shaders, so you will look like you have a heavy 5 o'clock shadow. Also, there is a RGB slider for hair color, so hair color can be as wild as you want.

• Forced Reloads (No List): Ok, they changed it again, and to our liking, I'm sure. They have taken out the forced reload and inserted in its place a new condition. If you happen to attack and kill an essential NPC, they don't die, but instead go unconscious for a time. Eventually they will get back up, and go about their daily business (most probably with a lowered disposition towards you for killing them). Additional Note: Fortunately, it has been said that when an essential NPC has served their purpose, the flag on them will be turned off and you can kill to your hearts content. Also see the Yielding footnote.

• Improved Combat: With the new combat system implemented you'll be able to manually block, attack quickly using different combos, or use one of the five 'special' or 'super' attacks (per skill) all of which have their own benefits when fighting. Holding up you shield will slow you down (unable to run), and you also have to be facing your opponent to block an attack. The block skill will govern all effectiveness of blocking, whether it is done with a weapon, shield or your hands. Blocking with a weapon or shield absorbs damage from the attack (preventing some of it from getting to you), but they will also take damage. Blocking with you hands will not absorb weapon damage, only hand to hand damage. Additional Note: Also this time a hit is a 'hit'. There is no 'to-hit roll' for hitting or missing, it only does 'rolls' on your stats and skills to determine what damage is done to the enemy. Also see the Yielding footnote.

• Interactive Jail (Escaping): Picking the lock, stealing the key from the guard when he walks by, starting a fight with the other prisoner so the guard investigates, bribe the guard (possibly), wait until another prisoner is to be released and then run out of the cell, etc.

• Lockpicking Mini-game: You are taken to a different screen when attempting to pick a lock. You will now have to use a lockpick to tap tumblers into the "unlock" position. The harder the lock, the more tumblers there are and they are difficult it is to lock the tumblers in place. Additional Note: You can tell the game to solve the lock itself without having you do it manually, and the game does a dice roll against the lock using your security skill. The higher your skill, the better chance it opening without breaking your pick.

• New Persuasion Interface: The new interface is almost a mini-game in itself, but not really on if you think about it (just a new way of looking at it). The new interface has an option for Boast, Admire, Joke, and Bully and you will have to watch the subtle cues on the NPC's face to see which one will work the best (ok, maybe a little like a mini-game). There is also a button for Demand as well as one for Bribe.

• Potion Application to Weapons: You when you make a potion, you can use it on a weapon of your choice to add that effect to the weapon, and will be transferred to the next person you hit with the effected weapon. A small green droplet icon appears on the screen indicating a potion has been applied to the weapon.

• Radiant AI: NPC's will have 24/7 schedules, such as closing their shop at night, or locking their door when they go to bed. They also have full facial expressions and will react accordingly to what race they are talking to (High Elves would have a lower disposition to a Wood Elf, than say another High Elf). Additional Note: It has been said that NPC's will have many more parameters that go into decisions that they choose. Just a couple of them are confidence and responsibility.

• Realistic clothing movement (Maybe List): Clothing is still unsure, but there will be no "bouncy breasts" or movable hair on characters. There will be tails though, and they will be "havok'd". Go here (unfortunately, this thread has been closed, and a new one has not been opened yet, I think the issue is about dead) for the thread that is discussing this issue.

• TES Construction Set: The CS has been improved to be simpler for the developers and modders. Dialogue, landscaping, quests, scripting and more have all been made easier to use. Modders will still need a separate program to create objects, and another for skinning (just like for Morrowind). Here is a quick rundown of some improvements to the scripting:

Unfortunately arrays, lists, pointer and string variables are unlikely to be added.

• Thieves' Guild: To gain admittance, you will need to be thrown in jail for a non-violent crime, or go through the conventional means of talking to NPC's.

• Vampires: If you should become a vampire you'll still be able to continue the main quest, possibly everything, except that you'll be required to stay out of the sun and get your daily helping of blood.

• Yielding: To balance the improved combat and help solve the essential NPC issue, the yield system has been implemented. So if in a fight with any NPC, there is a chance they might yield (based on their disposition, will to fight, etc.). You also have the chance to yield yourself (just by clicking on the NPC during combat) and they can either accept it or continue to fight (based on the same stats above). Additional Note: Creatures will never accept if you try to yield to them. Also see the Forced Reloads and Improved Combat footnotes.

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Misc. Notes
(Various items that don't fit into the lists above)

• Known Armors Types: Thanks again to Astarsis, go here for a more detailed list

▪ Quick notes

• Known Creatures: Thanks to Human_84 and Orix

• X-Box 360 Controls: Based on the TeamXbox preview, commentary from players at X05, and other various other sources (thanks to Daemon782):

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Works Cited
(A list of sites that contain developer quotes, interviews, etc. that confirm many of these items listed)

• Developer Quotes, Fan Interviews, Team Diaries

• Interviews, Reviews (By site)

• Videos, Demos (Special thanks to SirOnTheEdge)

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Published on Cyrodiil Chronicles with permission of the author. Original threads containing this list as well as related discussions can be found on The Elder Scrolls official forums. First list posted by Sothis, updated list and most up to date list posted by ixidorsbane.

Updates for this list will be reported here, in the most recent List thread on TES official forums and in the special thread of Cyrodiil Chronicles forums.

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