Oblivion Add-ons

[Aarah]

I'd like to know what those of you with these add-ons think of them.
Are they worth buying? Do they add much playable content, or are they more of a novelty?

The Orrery
Wizard's Tower
Mehrune's Razor
Fighter's Stronghold

[Rezalon]

The Orrery is pretty [&@%!]. Just adds a site in the IC University where you can get a new greater power once every 3 days, replacing the previous greater power you got from it.

Wizard's Tower is a must have. Free spell-making and enchanting tables without having to be a member of the Mages Guild.

Mehrunes' Razor is pretty cool. Comes with some powerful uniques.

Fighter's Stronghold isn't really that good. Only use is if you want your own castle.

[Imbalance]

I never got the Orrery.

The Tower, I would agree, is worth the add. Storage, utility, and best views of any house.

I have the Razor download, but sadly never got around to doing the quest.

I like the Castle, but it's not as useful as the Tower. It's out of the way not only geographically but also its layout isn't terribly convenient, being an enormous dwelling. It's cool for a noble/warrior pad if you're role-playing, and is a clever nod to events and characters of Daggerfall.

[Legend117081]

I haven't had the Add-ons for a very long time, because I only recently figured out how to get them on the PC version. But I like them.
I think they're cool. Especially the Wizard's Tower, as it gives you direct access to spellmaking and enchanting, minus the need of
having to play through the Mage's Guild questline.

[ZackyZombify]

I own them all and while the Orrery is just eh, still able to get some leveled magic stuff from some enemies during the quest. Wizards Tower is sweet but I never play a mage so.. I love the castle and the side quests. Mehrune's Razor is probably my favorite of the bunch, adds some nice Morag Tong armor if you decide to kill the agent. The quest is decent.

[Damon]

They all come with GOTY, and all of them are cool in their own ways, for the most part. I'll agree that the Orrery is not as great as far as extra content and substance goes, though I wouldn't say it's complete [&@%!] like was said above.

All of the actual "homes" you can have, the pirate one, the vampire one, the wizard's tower, and the fighter's stronghold, are all pretty cool in their own ways, and unless you just don't plan to use it regularly, there's no reason not to have it.

Shame I prefer to be a warrior so much though, because the Wizard's tower is definitely the coolest looking, albeit a bit out of the way to hike to (not as bad as the Vile Lair, though). In a couple of days if I'm able to get my mouse back from my sister's place and not have to use my crap touchpad on my laptop, I might have to make a mage character and take up residence in that tower.

[MARS]

I mostly agree with the opinions here. I want to add that Spell Tomes is a must-have for me. It's small, but it adds some really nice flavor.

[Damon]

I mostly agree with the opinions here. I want to add that Spell Tomes is a must-have for me. It's small, but it adds some really nice flavor.

Oh, it's been so long since I played that I forgot, but that was a favorite of mine, as well. Definitely the better of the plugins that add stuff, especially the horse armor, which I swear crashes my game... It's the only one that I removed from my save and it was fine again. Must be something about it specifically... And those horses take enough abuse that armor doesn't feel necessary. 9/10 times I hurt my horse it's accidental fall damage, and armor won't help that anyway.

[BetaB17]

Yeah, Orrey is lack luster. Not Horse Armor dlc lacking, just the general sort. My only fault with it os that it seems like something scrapped from the main game :/

But yeah, in terms if player homes.. Wizard Tower is well above par. It's awesome both from an exterior, interior, and functionality perspective. Not only does it come with more than ample storage for sorting, but an alchemical garden and a mage charter teleport

Stronghold however never was in my favor. It can be cool for strictly RP setup, but it lacks the flavor Thieves Den or the much beloved Viles Lair(a must have for vampires).

Likewise on the topic of Add ons. MR is an interesting sort. While some of the unique gear or the actual dagger can be ignorable, it is the quest and actual dungeon that makes it worth it. Seriously, it's one hell of a long dungeon.. and for a massive horder/collector.. that makes it feel like an eternity.

[legoless]

Surprised by all the Fighters Stronghold hate here. It's a must-have for me, with plenty of flavour and lore.

They all come with GOTY

Correction: only the GotY Deluxe Edition on Steam. The original GotY only has Shivering and Knights.

[Lord Timster]

imo:

Mehrune's Razor
Really good dungeon. This is a must-buy.

The Orrery
Useful if you want the 'Drain Attribute' Spell effect. Otherwise don't bother.

Wizard's Tower
Fighter's Stronghold
Found both of these underwhelming. Wizard's Tower was a bit of a non-event. Deleted it after a couple of weeks. Fighter's Stronghold has a little more to explore, see and do than WT but it didn't really grab me so I never actually finished it...
I guess both could be good for RP if they fit your character well.

You just can't beat the Waterfront Shack really though, right?

[Damon]

I think that for roleplaying and to have a set of homes a little more unique than the other ones are why the Wizard's Tower, Fighter's Stronghold, pirate cave, and Vile Lair exist.

Personally, I love them. I only generally have one installed at a time (why does a wizard need a vampire lair and castle, or why does a warrior need a pirate cave or the wizard tower, for instance), but having that note of a mage relative leaving a home to repair or a castle you can liberate and restore, and so on are a nice distraction from questing.

For instance, with my mage character, Mathyn Arys, I ran the alternate start mod, came in by boat to Leyawiin, and I brought the deed to the tower and when I needed a break from wizardly roleplay questing, I'd travel back to the tower for R&R, buy an upgrade or two, do wizardly stuff, then go explore again, having a remote home suitable to an exiled Telvanni wizard who wants to pursue his own research in the mountains of Cyrodiil out of the public eye.

I kinda wish the upgrades for each of the houses were for a little bit more though. It's very easy to scrounge together the couple thousand needed to do all the upgrades.

[Fiar]

I'd like to know what those of you with these add-ons think of them.
Are they worth buying? Do they add much playable content, or are they more of a novelty?

The Orrery
Wizard's Tower
Mehrune's Razor
Fighter's Stronghold

All of the class houses, as I tend to call them, are a great addition. As others have pointed out, they are great for roleplaying. They just set up a great atmosphere if you are running through with a specific playstyle in mind. Nothing wrong with dipping into the Wizard's Tower regardless, for the gardens and the tomes alone.

Also, I can have a castle. I might not be a king, but that is just bloody cool. And it's complete with a secret entrance to a lower area.

Mehrune's Razor is a good min-adventure for something that can kill instantly, I enjoy it for what it offers. And is great for assassin characters.


Content wise, Orrey is very weak. Aesthetic wise, Orrey is great, it's fun to look at, but doesn't do enough.


As for the last two, spell tomes and horse armor, they are a nice little spice on the cheap, but they don't have to exist IMO.

[Lord Timster]

^ Bit of a 'Spoiler' for the Fighter's Stronghold there, dude.

[Fiar]

^ Bit of a 'Spoiler' for the Fighter's Stronghold there, dude.

The game has been out for 10 years. I'm not sure how shocking a spoiler this would be anymore. And the fact all I said was, "Secret area under the castle".

Pretty vague.

[Lord Timster]

The game has been out for 10 years. I'm not sure how shocking a spoiler this would be anymore.

I'm not sure that's entirely relevant. I mean if you saw someone reading / watching a 10 yr old book / film would you think it okay to spoil some of the plot? Things are always new for the person seeing them for the first time.

Pretty vague.

That's true. I just think that FS is really not a strong offering on the DLC front, so having something hidden - something that might make someone think 'oh yeah that's cool' - would be worth trying to leave as a total surprise to make it a more worthwhile purchase.

[legoless]

leave as a total surprise to make it a more worthwhile purchase

Seems a little counterproductive in a thread about deciding whether to purchase or not in the first place. It's also not a spoiler at all considering Bethesda literally advertise the castle's "dark secrets".

[Fiar]

The game has been out for 10 years. I'm not sure how shocking a spoiler this would be anymore.

I'm not sure that's entirely relevant. I mean if you saw someone reading / watching a 10 yr old book / film would you think it okay to spoil some of the plot? Things are always new for the person seeing them for the first time.

Pretty vague.

That's true. I just think that FS is really not a strong offering on the DLC front, so having something hidden - something that might make someone think 'oh yeah that's cool' - would be worth trying to leave as a total surprise to make it a more worthwhile purchase.

Yes, but we're not playing DLC, we're discussing it. And in discussions for older movies, games, TV, what have you, details like these are normal to be brought up. Though it's tame here, since Aarah hasn't played them.

I could fully disclose what is down there, but mystery adds intrigue. And could further incentivize someone to take a whirl on something they may not have gotten.

Anyway, I'm done here.

[Lord Timster]

Seems a little counterproductive in a thread about deciding whether to purchase or not in the first place.

Not necessarily. You could just say that FS had more things to see, do and explore than WT. I think that might cover it without giving too much away?

Cheers

[LugkAgumbuk]

Great! I can't wait to get theses....wait, where do I get them? The oblivion UESP wiki page?

[Aarah]

Thanks for all the opinions, folks.

From all the input, I reckon the Wizard's Tower and Mehrunes Razor would be the ones I would go for, more so MR, as this sounds like it has the most content in terms of gameplay. Definitely not the Orrery - that's been a pretty unanimous no.

The Fighter's Stronghold would be a maybe, but probably a no.
How much is there to do on this? There was mention of restoring or ransacking the castle - is there much to either of these choices?

Also, Damon mentioned upgrades for the WT. Other then paying for the upgrades, are there any other activities with this add-on, like a mini-quest or something?

@Lugk I've seen them all on Steam. Not sure about where else you can get them. They are all about a pound or two in price.

Edit: Actually, I can't find them on Steam now. They were there a month ago though.

[LugkAgumbuk]

@Aarah i'll google about it tomorrow, but thanks.

goodnight all enjoy your dlc

[Fiar]

If you want to get it on Steam, you have to get the GOTY deluxe edition.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/900883/

It's 40% off right now, so it's definitely worth the purchase!

Sadly, any other means of purchasing the DLC for Oblivion isn't possible legally.

On the Xbox and PS, I think you can buy them individually. I think.


Edit: As for the Fighter's Stronghold. I think you can only rescue it, but I'm not sure. After you upgrade it, that is it. It's rather generic compared to the rest. As I said though, I love it since it's a castle, and the aesthetic is nice to own.

[Aarah]

^That's cool - you get all the stuff!

I've already got GotY, so wouldn't want to spend £8.99 when I'm only interested in a couple of the add ons, but it's great if you want them all, or don't have SI and KotN!

I found the add-ons for sale individually on the Xbox Marketplace.
Silly me only just realised that I wouldn't want the Steam versions anyway, because I'm not playing on the pc, so the marketplace is ideal.

I might have a sneaky peak at a youtube vid to see what the Stronghold looks like. You've made it sound pretty cool!

[legoless]

The Fighter's Stronghold would be a maybe, but probably a no.
How much is there to do on this? There was mention of restoring or ransacking the castle - is there much to either of these choices?

There's not much to the initial acquisition of the castle, it's just a quick bandit fight. The upgrades really are awesome though; see the wiki page for details.

There's more to do than just restoring the place though. I'll enclose it in spoiler tags per Lord Timster, but if you're really on the fence then maybe it might sway you:

Spoiler:

Hidden chamber with an undead Daggerfall NPC and phat loot. Very rewarding little adventure if you actually find it by yourself too.

On the Xbox and PS, I think you can buy them individually. I think.

The PS3 port was made by a third party and never got any DLC other than the GotY stuff.