Around Halloween, Elder Scrolls Online throws an in-game festival for players each year. This event, called the Witches Festival, provides players with lots of containers, event tickets, collectibles, and more. The Witches Festival starts on Thursday, October 20 at 10 AM ET and will run until Wednesday, November 2 at 10 AM ET. Here’s how to participate in this year’s Witches Festival and what to expect.
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How to participate in the Witches Festival
If you’re keen to participate in the Witches Festival, you’ll need to log in during the event. Once you’re in the game:
- Open the Crown Store
- Go to the “Holiday” section of the store
- Click the “Witches Festival” quest to acquire it for free
- Complete “The Witchmother’s Bargain” quest
Once you’ve completed the quest, you’ll be rewarded the Witchmother’s Whistle memento. If you already have this from previous year’s events, you’ll be able to find the memento in your “Collections.” Use the whistle to summon “the Witchmother’s Cauldron.” By using the whistle, players will be automatically granted a 100% XP buff for two hours. Players can “use” or drink from the cauldron to transform into an undead character.
The Witches Festival rewards
Bethesda is known for granting a ton of rewards during their in-game events. The Witches Festival is no different.
Plunder Skulls
One of the cool things about this festival is the drop rate is guaranteed. Every time players defeat a boss monster, they’ll be rewarded with a “Plunder Skull.” These exclusive event boxes could contain some of the following items:
- Fragments of the new “Witch-Tamed Bear Dog” pet. Combine 10 fragments to gain the pet
- Witches festival provisions and furnishing recipes
- Alchemy reagents
- Various crafting materials
- A festival-themed treasure
- Dremora-style items
- Hallowjack-style items
- Various creepy creatures and objects like worms, crawlers, and insect parts
- Special Dremora Plunder Skulls (explained more below)
Dremora Plunder Skull
Every time players slay a different type of boss for the first time, they’ll receive a “Dremora Plunder Skull.” Different kinds of bosses drop different sub-classes of items. These boxes contain the same items above and can include additional rewards:
- Dremora Motif chapter pages
- World Bosses: Axes and Shoulders
- Invasion Bosses: Daggers and Gloves
- Delve Bosses: Belts and Staves
- Public Dungeon Bosses: Boots and Shields
- Group Dungeon Bosses: Maces and Helmets
- Arena Bosses: Bows and Legs
- Trial Bosses: Chests and Swords
- Witches Festival Writs; they sometimes reward pages from the Hollowjack Style motif
- Glenmoril Treasure Maps
- Glenmoril Armor Outfit Style pages
- Grave Dancer Weapon Style pages
- Ghastly Visitation memento runebox (NEW)
- Tradeable style page for the Witchmother’s Servant armor style (NEW)
The Witches Festival Achievements
Each year during the Witches Festival, there are several achievements players can obtain. If you have completed all achievements from a previous year, you’ll no longer be able to earn that achievement. If you are missing achievements from earlier years, this is the perfect time to complete them.
If you complete the Witches Festival Writs, obtained from the Dremora Plunder Skulls, players can earn the “Witch” title and the Witches hat collectible item.
The 2022 achievements list includes:
- Plunder Skull Enthusiast: Earn your first Plunder Skull
- Plunder Skull Aficionado: Earn 50 Plunder Skulls
- Plunder Skull Fanatic: Earn 100 Plunder Skulls
- The Plundered Masses: Acquire one of each type of Plunder Skull
- Happy Work For Hollowjack: Learn every chapter of the Hollowjack-style book
- Dremora Style Master: Learn every chapter of the Dremora style book
- Pumpkin Pairs Well With Guts: Drink the Witchmother’s Brew during the Witches Festival
- Reaper’s Harvest: Complete the Witchmother’s Bargain quest
- Cauldron Conjurer: Use the Witchmother’s Cauldron summoned from the Witchmother’s Whistle 10 times
- Sacking Skeletons: Kill 100 Skeletons while under the effects of the Witchmother’s Brew
- Bones Puppet: Consume 10 Skeletal Marionette Parts, found in all varieties of Plunder Skulls
- Wicked Writ Initiate: Complete your first Witches Festival Writ
- Wicked Writ Apprentice: Complete 13 Witches Festival Writs
- Wicked Writ Witch: Complete 28 Witches Festival Writs
- Gruesome Snack: Eat each of these Witches Festival foods
- An Unsparing Harvest: Complete the listed achievements for the Witches Festival
Event tickets and event items
Like most ESO events, the Witches Festival grants players event tickets. Players can earn up to two event tickets per day for a total of 26 tickets. Event tickets are earned from the first boss monster defeated each day. Players can spend event tickets at the Impresario for items:
- Bonedust Fragments – 10 of them will create a Witch-Tamed Bear-Dog pet
- Witchmother’s Servant’s style pages
- All fragments of the Soulfire Dragon Illusion pet
- The first fragment of the Sacred Hourglass of Alkosh furnishing item
- Hollowjack Lantern, Ouroboros furnishing
- Ruby Candlefly Gathering furnishing
- Specimen Jar, Spare Brain furnishing
- Vampiric Container, Yellow Liquid furnishing
- Vampiric Lamp, Azure Tall furnishing
- Vampiric Lightpost, Azure Single furnishing
- Webs, Cone furnishing
- Ghastly Visitation Memento Runebox
- Impresario’s Group Repair Kit
- Companion Guild Commendations
- Witches Grab Bag, which contains random, otherwise unobtainable Witches Festival rewards from previous years
