★★★★★ 5
Gorgeous set; fans of Elder Scrolls lore will love it
Format: Hardcover
Let's cut to the chase: if you love the lore of the Elder Scrolls games (Skyrim, Oblivion, Morrowind, Daggerfall, etc.), you're going to want to add this to your bookshelf.
This gorgeous slipcase boxed set brings together the previously released hardcovers of "The Elder Scrolls Online: Tales of Tamriel, Book I: The Land" and "The Elder Scrolls Online: Tales of Tamriel: Book II: The Lore," with a slight re-branding so it seems less specific to Elder Scrolls Online. The covers now only say "Tales of Tamriel."
That's a good change, too. Though branded as being tied to The Elder Scrolls Online, an MMO many offline players have been hesitant to check out -- for what it's worth, it's a great game that earns the Elder Scrolls name -- the content and stories here are pretty universal and will be of interest to any Elder Scrolls lore geek, from novices to the long devoted.
The production quality on this set is OUTSTANDING. The books are sturdy hardcovers with faux leather textured covers, lavish illustrations inside, and thick glossy paper. They are genuinely GORGEOUS. I initially balked at the price, but once I had it in my hands I understood.
The box is nice, too, with textured print and designs, and a sturdy build that should last. These are not cheaply made!
It's what's inside that counts, though, right?
Each book runs a little over 200 pages and contains dozens of in-game books and (I'm pretty sure) some addition material not found in the games.
"Book 1: The Land" is broken into five sections. These sections are organized based on the factions of Elder Scrolls Online, but veterans of the offline games will have no problem navigating what's what. The book opens with a brief section on Tamriel history. The next section is focused on the people and places of the Aldmeri Dominion, which means it's a series of tales and pieces on the high elves, wood elves, and khajiit. Section two covers the Daggerfall Covenant, made up of the orcs, Bretons, and Redguards. The fourth section is on the Ebonheart Pact, aka the dark elves, argonians, and nords (of Skyrim fame). And finally, a section on creatures wraps things up. The material here gives you a great sense for the people and places of the game world, including many places we never visited in the offline games.
Book II: The Lore is (obviously) focused on history and lore.This one is broken into six sections: Racial Motifs (descriptions of the races), Lore (history, the gods, etc.), Magicka (about the schools of magic), Warfare and Factions (about guilds and combat), Oblivion (about the planes of Oblivion), and Daedra (self explanatory). This one gets a little deeper into the headier stuff that makes up Elder Scrolls lore.
If you've read some in-game books, you know what to expect. There arearound 400 or so in-game books represented in these two volumes, far more than most people have read while playing the games.
If you've skipped the in-game books, here's what to expect: a load of well-written tales, essays and pieces about Tamriel, presented as if written by people who live in the game world. They can vary from serious and deep to whimsical and fantastic. Just as the tone of the games switch a lot, so do these stories.
If one of the pieces isn't catching your interest, no worries. Just skip it. Each story is very brief, usually only a single page, making this a GREAT book to just pick up and read for a few moments. Things are arranged in a logical order so if you want to read the books straight through you can, but it's not necessary. You can skip around to the things that interest you. If it wasn't so nicely made, it would make good bathroom reading. Hey Bethesda, get affordable softcovers made of these released so we don't have to feel guilty about beating them up!
All in all, this set is terrific. The price is about the same as buying the two volumes individually, plus it comes in a gorgeous slipcase. Can't beat that. Looking forward to getting the Skyrim version next week!
EDIT: My copy of
has arrived, and it's equally as gorgeous!
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Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2017
