As all project managers know, a fixed scope and a fixed release date are often incompatible. You end up either cutting or half-implementing features to meet a deadline, or you end up delivering the full product late.
This, as it turns out, is also the case for TR1803, our planned and announced as-such March release.
It is obvious right now that the deadline we set ourselves is not possible to keep. As such, we are releasing it when our content criteria are met, which, at the time of this update, should still be in Spring 2018.
The reasons for this are simple: content scope and quests.
Content Scope
Around half a year ago, we were undertaking the Aanthirin visual overhaul and planning ahead on Old Ebonheart. This, we felt, would be the next milestone release - the first one in scope to "Sacred East" and TR1609 "Tamriel Data". As such, we decided on a set line of features, including questlines for the guilds and factions present in Old Ebonheart and its surroundings.
Displayed are the borders of our internal Section Files, with planned progression.
From left to right the sections are: Roryn's Bluff, Hlaalu-Thirr, Old Ebonheart, Indoril-Thir, the southern section is Lake Andaram.
As it turned out, this became a problem for several reasons.
As mentioned in our last status update, we develop Tamriel Rebuilt in several individual "section file" esps. The section files which we considered for this release contained the eastern bank of the Aanthirin, including the settlement of Roa Dyr, which is currently under reconstruction as an Indoril Chapel-Stronghold, and Almas-Thirr, which, while already containing NPCs and dialogues, would need its own questlines as well.
In the end, it was decided that these two settlements will be added to TR_Mainland in a future release.
For the Spring release we are including Old Ebonheart itself and the settlements of Felms Ithul, Vhul, and Dondril. All of these will contain new dialogue, quests, NPCs, and features. In addition to a finished Aanthirin visual overhaul, this should give everyone plenty to do and plenty to see.
Our previously planned release area, alongside the cut area. The empty marked cell in the upper right is where in the future Id Vano, the Indoril player stronghold, will be located.
