The next major chapter (i.e. expansion) for The Elder Scrolls Online sees a return to Cyrodiil and the villain of the Xbox 360/PC classic The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. In Blackwood big bad Daedric Prince Mehrunes Dagon is back as are portals to Oblivion. TESO’s narrative adventure for the year is titled ‘Gates of Oblivion’ and today we’ve got word on what to expect.

The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood is this year’s massive story Chapter, tasking players with uncovering the schemes of the Daedric Prince Mehrunes Dagon 800 years before the events of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Blackwood packs more than 30 hours of new main storyline, tons of side quests, countless quality of life features, and, for the first time ever, introduces Companions who will adventure through Tamriel alongside the player.

The new Chapter will take players from the walls of the Imperial City of Leyawiin, first featured in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, to the murky bogs of Shadowfen, and of course to the mysterious region of Blackwood where players will uncover the Daedric plot at its heart.

As per above Blackwood will see the return of familiar locations from Oblivion (the game) in addition to a pretty cool new feature - Companions. With these scripted tag-alongs something we normally associate with Bethesda’s Fallout titles, their arrival in TESO will offer-up a taste of multiplayer for those that adventure alone, in addition to providing an additional hand when tackling a dungeon. Companions and the meat of the story is expected to arrive with Blackwood in June -- June 1 for PC and June 8 for Consoles.

That said ‘Gates of Oblivion’ kicks off proper in March with the Flames of Ambition Dungeon DLC pack which is set to ‘reveal the threat of Mehrunes Dagon’. Post-Blackwood an additional story chapter is set to drop that will close out the tale, and the year… of Oblivion.

For more on The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood, and Oblivion be sure to check out our in-depth interview with The Elder Scrolls Online’s Creative Director, Rich Lambert.