If you don't know what to do with yourself this week (no more Endeavors) – it's a great time to prep Solstice Dailies!
Stock up on Solstice daily quests, then open on March 9th when the new Stone-Nest and Worm Cult structural plans drop.
Regardless of whether you care about Housing or these particular styles, these items will sell HIGH while new. Lots of gold to be made!
Patch Notes: "34 new structural furnishing plans, which can be acquired via the Solstice Reward Coffer, obtainable by completing the Solstic
P.S.
Yes, as long as you don't open the coffers before March 9th, their contents will not be generated until then, and will have a chance to drop the new plans.
(I don't yet have screenshots of this, but will update if all goes according to plan next week. Luckily Solstice dailies are a huge improvement on West Weald's, so it's not a huge loss even if it didn't work. If you're worried, you can simply save your quests to turn in that day.)
Just be aware that there might be a limit: 2-purples-per-toon-per-day.
Yes, I'm a weirdo and keep important things in the Junk tab xD
Done so practically since Beta! (I have a custom addon remove the possibility of accidental destroy-all and sell-all)
Related:
WAIT!!!!! There might be a cooldown on purple plans from daily quest coffers!
No Cooldown on Leads! & Other facts about ESO drops
Info about Treasure Map-exclusive Antiquity-furnishing Leads
Pertaining mostly to newer-DLC zone Maps like Apocrypha, West Weald, and Solstice.
Maps have some of the worst RNG in the entire game because it's nested:
RNG on whether you get a map, further RNG on whether it's for the right zone, again on whether you get a lead drop at all, and again on which lead it is.
Worst in newer zones like Apocrypha, West Weald and Solstice.
(The latter now has 13 map-exclusive furnishings, and ~3 items that drop from any source in the zone also polluting the loot pool.)
Maps are not reliably farmable.
Except ~1 potential week / ~year when they might be in Infinite Archive. Solstice maps for example drop so rarely that a player might get fewer than 5 maps in 6+ months (even with Azandar's passive.)
1/3 Codex has good drop rates and is curated.
~1 lead every ~2-5 maps. You're basically guaranteed to get your first drop of every item (1/3 codex) quickly.
This will trick unsuspecting players into thinking it's fine. Then 2/3 - 3/3 codex drop rates get exponentially worse. We're talking streaks of 75+ maps and possible weeks - months of IRL time with zero leads. See below.
FAQ:
"What is #/3 Codex?" –
Screenshot showing Codex # in the Antiquities UI, on the right. 1/3 means you've dug up 1 lead, out of 3 to complete.
"Why do you need 3/3 Codex?" –
3/3 completion is necessary to buy Antiquity furnishings, to be able to use multiple throughout Housing projects (Example). However, only Purple and Gold quality are buyable – see below.
Player data:
My data from testing W. Solstice in summer of 2025 + more info: https://moonpile.tumblr.com/post/796136099180396544/solstice-treasure-map-leads-data-sept-30
One player used 748 maps, incomplete, and streaks of up to 172 maps with NO lead: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/comment/8429794/#Comment_8429794
Update: finished, 818 maps 💀 - https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/comment/8431135/#Comment_8431135
Another player completed the entire collection 3/3 in 735 maps, spent millions of gold + 424,000 Archival Fortunes: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/comment/8430343/#Comment_8430343
The OP I responded to here has used over 500 maps, without being able to complete the 1 item they need to buy for a housing project: https://www.reddit.com/r/elderscrollsonline/comments/1r403mr/over_500_treasure_maps_and_daedric_gate/
Update: Player reported having to use over 600 maps to complete the one item they needed.
In 09.2025, before Eastern Solstice added 7 new map-exclusive furnishings, a player reported that a single item took 260 maps to complete: https://www.reddit.com/r/elderscrollsonline/comments/1n9gyl5/does_anyone_have_33_codex_on_large_solstice/
Blue and Green quality furnishings are not buyable even after 3/3 unlock:
Affects ALL Blue and Green quality Leads in ALL new zones (since Necrom, 2023: Apocrypha, Telvanni Peninsula).
Exception: Certain Purple and Gold Leads drop a lower quality furnishing, which is buyable. Example: Watchful Light, Blue-quality furnishing which has a Purple lead. If the Lead is Purple quality or higher, you can expect to be able to buy the item.
The Housing team is aware of the issue and informed me of the history of Antiquity-buyability: As I understood it (in Sept. 2025), they intended for ALL Antiquities to be buyable. However, I do not know of any timeline to fix this, nor even whether that's still a goal for the specific team in charge of this feature. We can only keep asking, as in the post below:
More info: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/677582/antiquities-are-missing-from-their-vendors-for-2-3-years/p1
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Anyone who'd like to help us improve this feature:
Come comment in this thread, recently acknowledged by ZOS: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/683736/removing-map-based-leads/p1
If you can't log in to the forums, you can send in-game Feedback and share that link. Well-thought-out and polite feedback is best.
Housing players who've tried farming Map Leads:
Please take this survey hosted by The Real Endgame (a major Housing community on Discord): https://forms.gle/Yx4D6gqzKf4Lzvc47 UPDATE 05.2026: The survey is closed; we will post results at a later date.
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Related:
Lots of good suggestions for solutions in the Forum threads below:
Testing concluded; I'm no longer buying Solstice maps unless something changes, even though I haven't unlocked the Bismuth Tower. (Update Ja
Devs, could you take a SERIOUS look at Map based Antiquity Leads?
Removing the 3/3-to-unlock requirement for furnishings (which Mythics do not require for similar perpetual use) and instead making all qualities buyable after 1 find would go a long way:
To Gabriel's point about the silence I know they made a big push about communication and transparency.
Another idea: Make Map-exclusive and furnishing Leads buyable for Tome Points (especially those with the poorest drop rates; typically Gold-quality multi-source Leads like Moons-Blessed Pool, Vitrified Soul Crystal, etc.):
Some of us give up for a very long time if we've farmed and farmed and farmed, but RNG is just never on our side.
A good outline of the main issues and other potential solutions:
There are four major pain points associated with Antiquity Furnishings where the leads come from zone Treasure Chest Maps:* Leads are locked
Relevant XKCD – to any discussion about ESO Antiquities & Treasure Maps
😂
Constantly updating that post as I learn of things that aren't obvious to the average player – like what 3/3 Codex even is or why it's necessary.
And that's not their fault! ESO has so many weird "secrets" and mechanics players are never told of. You basically bumble around making a lot of mistakes until you find out on your own (sometimes losing millions in gold and even IRL $$ in the process*).
Or learn from others – and half of that is just made-up tinfoil shit we hope works. Nobody's really sure until someone proves it.
It's why I try to compile info like this:
No Cooldown on Leads!
& Other facts about ESO drops, with screenshots
& Other facts about ESO drops, with screenshots:
Case 01:
NO cooldown on purple leads that drop from non-Treasure-Map sources (this one com
*On that note, DON'T buy this scammy pack in March. Crafting stations are so cheap on traders, you can literally buy 150+ of them for how much gold 3600 Crowns would get you in a gifting trade (PC NA).
Just old shots around Moonlit Cove in Southern Elsweyr.
One of my favorite locations, but one I scarcely visit anymore because the hunt for the Moons Blessed Pool (2/3 - 3/3 codex) was so damn bad. IYKYK.
And I don't understand why it has to be like that:
When there is a good chance of getting another lead, I am more likely to to go try to get another for "free". (In fact I've been doing just that in Solstice – thanks again to the devs for making the Stone-Nest Gazebo a delve boss lead, not Map!!!!)
Instead of wearing us out so badly, making Antiquities less of a pain would encourage players to revisit old zones more often and actually play the game – keep content evergreen!
Khajiit and her alt-parade are carrying A LOT of Solstice coffers, ready to open tomorrow – for science!
Maybe we'll learn something about drop rates and cooldowns? If you've been collecting too, don't forget to get screenshots, and please send them in if anything interesting happens!
If you somehow see this before the servers come down (at 4 am EDT / 8 UTC, March 9, 2026) then there's still time! → prep Solstice Dailies! But no big deal if not – just do the Sunport daily quests starting tomorrow ^_^
More info:
WAIT!!!!! There might be a cooldown on purple plans from daily quest coffers!
ESO U47 Solstice Drop Rates vs nerf on West Weald U44 - U45
No Cooldown on Leads! & Other facts about ESO drops, with screenshots
NO cooldown on purple leads that drop from non-Treasure-Map sources (this one comes only from a delve boss).
These shots were taken days apart; "Recipient" shows my two accounts, but only one character is being used on each. By the times, you can see these dropped consecutively, and nowhere near the daily reset time.
↑ And you can see my alt account – old character but new to Solstice – getting a lot of lead drops. Many players have noticed this mechanic over the years: newbies seem to get a boost to lead drops.
UPDATE: here's a new shot of the past 24 hrs – both accounts have gotten 3+ Gazebos. No cooldown.
Case 02:
NO cooldown on purple plans from zone dailies*
Update – March 5, 2026:
There might be a limit on purples – see this post for info.
Update – March 9, 2026:
Indeed, no CD / purple-per-character limit on Solstice daily coffers! Info and screenshots here: ESO Update 49: Unboxing Solstice Coffers
Case 03:
RNG "clumping": two separate accounts getting the same plan on the same day.
I only have a few shots of this, but it's happened multiple times. (And when not exactly the same plan, it's often the same zone-style.) Just interesting.
Case 04:
No cooldown on the War Torte recipe in Cyrodiil. A player recently shared this video:
There used to be rumors that this item only spawned once per instance, so I'm glad OP showed us video proof.
Case 05:
No cooldown on purple plans from pickpocketing!
Thanks to \@CeeCee for the report and screenshot! 1st Skooma Bubbler plan dropped from one NPC. 2nd dropped from another NPC upstairs. (The body disappeared before they got the screenshot, but it was definitely pickpocketed – not stolen from the nearby wardrobe. As far as we know, "Design: Skooma Bubbler" only comes from pickpocketing NPCs.)
Case 06:
No cooldown on purples from containers in Infinite Archive (and possibly all of Necrom & Apocrypha)!
Thanks to @xencthlu for this shot, taken in Infinite Archive! They pulled an Apocrypha Lamp followed by Redguard Censer plan.
I'd heard of folks getting consecutive purples in IA as well as from Necrom urns, but don't have screenshots of the latter (yet). Because of those reports, I'm not sure if no-CD applies to all overland, or if IA (and maybe the whole Necrom chaper incl. Apocrypha) are coded differently.
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And here's everything we know about Treasure Map leads (the math looks BAD):
Pertaining mostly to newer-DLC zone Maps like Apocrypha, West Weald, and Solstice.
Maps have some of the worst RNG in the entire game becaus
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But is there a cooldown on purple furnishing plans from looting elsewhere?
I don't know. At this time I still think yes maybe in other zones, because:
I've never pulled two purple plans on: the same character, in the same ESO day (before daily reset), from the same type of source (e.g. lootable containers vs. stealing vs. daily coffers vs. Azandar folios – these are 4 different sources), and NOT counting Home-Maker CP.
And haven't yet heard reports from any farmers I know and trust to share accurate info.
It's not because we stop and switch toons after drawing a purple: I don't have any record of this happening even without doing that or before I knew it was a thing.
Most importantly: AFAIK, it's so rare that for efficiency I would rather just switch – which works – than try to keep farming for hours on one character.
If it did happen for someone, my current opinion is that they might've unknowingly gotten them from 2 different sources (e.g. an Azandar folio + container: very possible considering lots of folks run addons that auto-unbox), or they got it around the daily reset time and didn't notice that the 2nd popped after the reset.
HOWEVER, that doesn't mean it's impossible. If anyone has proof, with all of those considerations accounted for, please share!
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Also, for newer players who might find this via google or wherever and don't yet know:
Yes, per ToS you can play multiple accounts. Crucially, you cannot control them at the same time nor automate anything – that's considered multiboxing and is against ToS. + Screenshot of ZOS response, clarifying.
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Related:
If you're missing any Sunport or Tide-Born structural plans (which come only from dailies), get them while they're cheap!
Heart's Week is c
Pertaining mostly to newer-DLC zone Maps like Apocrypha, West Weald, and Solstice.
Maps have some of the worst RNG in the entire game becaus
Stone-Nest Gazebo lead source: Xul-Katama delve boss, "Whisper of the Sacred Stones"
Neither are these other new Stone-Nest Antiquities lead
Re: this list –
https://moonpile.tumblr.com/post/792519470423949312/reposting-since-these-u47-furnishings-just-came
I'm glad the plans from
Use No, Thank You! addon to disable empty container interaction
This came up in one of my guild chats the other day, apparently even some seasoned looters didn't know!
If you're not already using No, thank you! – you should be! It disables a lot of UI nuisances, messages, etc. Don't live your ESO life a distracted mess ^_~ (Or do if you want, it's your game, Idc)
Just turn ON "Disable interaction when the crate is empty"
Here's how it looks by default (without the addon / turned off) if a container is empty:
NTY removes this:
Save time! Tell your friends! Withhold from your enemies! 😂
Have fun & good luck ~
The Elder Scrolls Online, AddOns and Mods Community.
P.S. Related great one:
The Elder Scrolls Online, AddOns and Mods Community.
↑ wish I could use it for my new neighbors who are yelling with all their windows open like they've never heard of "indoor voices" >_>
