So there's what, three factions in TES Online, with three races per faction. This could be interesting, but it could also be really restrictive if they go the Warcraft route (and I assume other MMOs, with which I'm less familiar).

By "Warcraft route", I mean the Alliance and the Horde. The Alliance and the Horde are mortal enemies, and you can't communicate with or interact with the opposite side any other way other than killing them.

This would svck in a game with only three races per faction (and it only works in WoW because there's so many races per faction), so I'd like to see factions work in TES Online by making it possible to (at the very least) talk to each other, if not form parties together (if only after a certain level or some other requirement).

Obviously I don't know many other MMOs with racial factions, so I don't know for sure how it works in other games. If anybody has experience in other MMOs or just a good imagination, and would like to suggest how to implement these three factions in a way that doesn't restrict the player, please post with your suggestions.

I think the best solution should be, that you can go to the other side′s cities and talk with other faction′s people. But if you enter a "PVP" area or if it′s "WAR PERIOD" you cant, and you may or may not be attacked on sight by the enemy side if you cross them.
That could be a good solution

i think they ought to be able to talk freely. in wow people just make characters of other factions to talk anyways.

idk about parties though.

It may be possible, why not? I dont think each faction is dead-sworn to each other. But you may join only with your side if you go to a specify battle or PVP area.

The problem with parties though, is would it really be all that interesting to have a dungeon raid consisting of:
Dunmer mage, Dunmer fighter, Dunmer mage, Argonian rogue, Argonian rogue, Argonian fighter, Nord fighter, Nord rogue.

Yawn.

I will never team up with a nord nor an argonian... If I can avoid them.
But if I must... I will not treat them well..
But well, it will be an MMO... I dont think most people who plays it will care about the Lore, and will not understand why as a Dunmer I will hate them for being argonian or nord.
They will only care "is for the xp bro, come on" crap

If I buy the game, I'm joining a roleplay server.

Tam! RUGH!

Me too... I HOPE they will make a RP server. If they dont, I will not play for sure.

true. well it depends on if they have pvp outside of the zones. lore wise we're probably mercs anyways.

That would be even worse. TES is all about freedom and interaction. I can like who I want, kill who I want, whenever I want. It's just down to me to deal with the consequences. Designated PVP areas and enforced safe zones are restrictions.

There was a time before WoW when factions were created by players. They were like guilds, but guilds could ally to form super guilds, if you will, and fight together for a common goal and purpose. The thing about player goals and politics is they're always shifting and changing. So alliances and power struggles are always shifting and changing.

The advantages of player created factions: natural leaders are elected (and so almost always respected); the political scene is always shifting, as various factions temporarily ally to bring down more influential and powerful ones; players work together based on shared beliefs and political agenda, or through fostered friendships, regardless of race. Not because they chose to play as a Nord and no matter what they think they HAVE to kill any Breton or Redguards they come across just because the game tells them to.

The disadvantages of player created factions: joining a powerful faction usually requires proving your dedication to PVP, in a similar way that joining a top raiding guild requires proof of skill and dedication to PVE; Smaller factions formed amongst friends for casual purposes would likely never get the opportunity to siege the Imperial City (unless a powerful faction was looking for support from smaller factions to boost numbers for cannon fodder - all's fair in love and war).

So there are certainly reasons to consider pre-defined factions in order to control the balance between three powers and allow more involvement for casual players. But that's at the expense of a dynamic, player-driven political environment. I would also argue that casual players probably wouldn't expect to be able to invade the Imperial City, and could quite easily have a lot of fun capturing strategic towers and farms around Cyrodiil with their friends.

I dont mean you are Restricted to that. I mean that the Worst case would be a perpetual "enemy stance" with the other factions.
By war period I mean, a battle or something like that. But well, we must see how it comes.
As of factions... I would like to see House Redoran for example. The classic factions.

Oh, no doubt they'll be there. I just hope that if they're joinable it won't simply be for a reputation grind like in WoW.

"Well done! You are now honoured with House Redoran! The faction vendor now has some more things to sell, including a Betty Netch plushie!"

Hell I hope they dont do that!!!!
It may be great if you reach a High rank, to have other players working for you. So in one way you can give "quests" to them, and also recive harder quest from your superiors in rank.

There better be Altmer in Morrowind and Nords in Valenwood is all I'm saying. Just because someone is a certain race doesn't mean they are not part of another Nation. However the Aldmeri Dominion's Summerset Isles is supposed to be almost exclusively Altmer correct?

I think yes, but I dont know how it was in the second era down there

That's the thing, at this point in time no one really does. I believe Summerset was conquered by the Cyrodiils aka Reman though. So that might have opened them up a bit. Idk if the first dominion made any purges though like the second did in the 4th era.

Since they're a player faction, I'm gonna assume losing power thanks to Tiber made them bitter and crazy over the years, and they were (slightly) more reasonable in the 2nd Era.

They need to have Imga lackeys though.

Same here,this game will be a RP dream,just like LOTRO.

One can only hope. I'm not much of an Altmer fan myself other than the lore but dammit if I'm not sick of them being the go to badguy and under constant vilification. There are multiple accounts of reasonable Altmer but still they are constantly vilified. It would be refreshing to see them in a less extremist and hostile light IMO.
As for evidence of vilification.
Ancano
Mankar Camoran
Mannimarco(3 times now!)
Umbacano
Thalmor
The list goes on.

If Im not mistaken, Mankar Camoran was a Bosmer. I guess they made him into an Altmer in Oblivion because nobody would have taken him seriously if they kept him as a Bosmer.

Irrelevant because while that is debatable, most people saw him as an Altmer so see the Altmer as the ones effing everything up. So while he may have technically been a Bosmer, he looked like an Altmer.

Indeed. But then again, that would just make me more furious that I can't be one of those people. I would love to play as a Khajiit who thinks "screw this war, I'm buying into a trade caravan and wandering Tamriel in search of riches. I'll be neutral, selling to anyone with coin."

Tbh, I think it is BS that the races are categorized into 3 rigid Factions like they are now as far as we know. This is not a, forgive the unbelievably overused comparison, WoW game with a Horde VS Alliance political situation. These are a very dynamic and varied collection of free thinking individuals withing differeing nations with differing abilities.There should be options of playing as one race that is on the side of another faction like, as unlikely as it would be, a Nord fighting for the Aldmeri Dominion. Of course that would dilute the factions a bit, so there should be some kind of system in place that makes that something you need to strive for. Maybe beating the game once or reaching the level cap lets you make a racial character that can join factions not normally associated with their own.

Or at the very least have NPCs, who are from different races, visiting and traveling relatively freely between the factions. Khajiit caravan merchants practicing their trade in High Rock or Hammerfell for example with Dunmer selling Telvanni Bug Musk to Altmer in the Summerset Isles. A Dunmer from the Ebonheart faction should be able to walk around Summerset Isle relatively unmolested by NPCs for example unless a Player attacks him of course. Maybe you need to obtain a pass to visit other countries so you can travel freely between them? Like an ambassador or something. So long as you attack no one, you cannot be attacked as another example. THAT would be interesting.

yah RP in TES MMO will be interesting actually