Character Creation Guide

Deltia

Hello ESO Community,

I just did a complete overhaul on my character creation guide and wanted to share it here.
Written guide here: http://deltiasgaming.com/2014/05/25/eso-part-i-character-creation/

Video guide here: http://youtu.be/r5iO7CoOP7g

Before we get started, one must understand what we can and can’t change currently in the game. After all, we may play our characters hundreds of hours, so we better make sure our original choices help not hinder our experience. Right now, one can change skill points, armor, weapons and archetype, though we cannot currently change racial choice, class, name, and appearance. Make sure you have that Nord beard just the right tint before you hit create, there’s no turning back.
Also of note is your Alliance or faction.

Unless you per-ordered the game, the faction or Alliance you choose determines which race you can play. Meaning, it’s important to thoughtfully plan out your end-goal and choose a faction that suits it. If you want to be a fire breathing Dunmer DK, pick Ebonheart Pact (EP). I personally play Aldmeri Dominion as my guilds choose that faction. The great thing about ESO, you can play all the stories so you won’t miss out on content.

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Questions to Ask Yourself

Before you set out to create your Indomitable Juggernaut Tank “Deltia,” it’s a good idea to ask yourself these questions.
• What’s my preferred play style?
Up close and personal? Damage sponge? Stealthy?
• What types of content do I enjoy?
Player vs. Environment? Player vs. Player? Solo or grouped?
• What type of attributes will I focus on?
o Maybe play a weapon damage focus Nightblade, or a ranged Sorcerer casting spells from a distance.
• How will I spend my skill points?
Is this my main character that I want to do top notch content? Do I intend to do crafting?


You may also want to test out each character to say level 10 our so. Get a feel for the style, animations, and skills before deciding it’s the best fit. I know being knew to the game, you don’t have all the information in hand or maybe this is your first Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG), it’s okay these thing take time. Let me explain the holy trinity in most games, damage based class or DPS, defensive based based class or tank, and a support type class or healer.
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Character Archetype
Damage [Damage Per Second (DPS)] – Basic damage deal focused solely on destroying enemies. This is the most common played class which surprisingly can vary wildly in proficiently and skill. There’s many ways to play DPS, ranged, melee, stealth, etc. I personally like to focus on one area and become great at it, say a 2 Handed Nord focused on AoE or area damage.


Another simple concept to talk about, yet master, is the art of doing damage. One, “DPS job is to do the most damage possible without taking damage.” Sounds simple, but it’s not. Doing damage as a melee has new challenges due to your range. Even damage at range can be a struggle because you’ll need to close the gap. Two, “You can’t heal a boss to death.” At some point in battle, EVERYONE is going to need to provide damage. So while this might be your primary role, everyone will be joining in at some point. If you want a preview of a full on DPS build, check out Blade Runner.


Healer – The first of the uncommon archetype is a healer. Your main goal is to keep people alive, generally through healing. Great healers not only do this but rely on utility to keep people alive. Say a Dragon Knight who uses roots and snares to slow targets while keeps everyone’s health up with heals over time or HoTs.


ESO allows for anyone to be a healer which I love. And this game emphasizes that all players need to fulfill different roles at some point in time. Just because you’re a healer, doesn’t mean your solely responsible for health. Tanks need to move out of dangerous areas, DPS need to keep their distance, and everyone does their jobs. Moreover, great healers prevent damage not just react to it. Use buff, potions, speed as weapons in your quest to keep everyone alive. I have a role guide created for those looking at improving their healing. Read more


Tank – What I consider the hardest and least played class, tanks or character that want to be hit. The tank’s job is to take damage, mitigate it as much as possible, and control the battlefield. This is my preferred role and is one of the hardest to master (still working on it). You’ll be using taunts to get enemies attention. This makes targets attack you thus taking pressure off your team.


One interesting mechanic in ESO is the lack of a area or AoE taunt. I personally enjoy this because it makes the role much harder. You’ll need to pick out the priority target, like the one that will do the most damage instead of every target. Moreover, you’ll need to watch for teammates who are in trouble using speed, roots, stuns, and snares to protect them. And a great tank can always heal them selves for awhile in case their healer goes down. Here’s a great tank build if you’re ready to get started.


ESO allows you to build something truly unique, yet functional. Either way, have a plan for what you want to do.
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Classes
Dragonknight (DK) – A class focused on fire, crowd control, and utility. My personal main, Deltia, is a DK and I love it. Primarily used for tank/dps though can heal.
+ Massive AoE fire damage
+ Hard to kill
+ Great stamina regeneration
- Lacks range with class abilities
- No gap closer within class abilities


Nightblade (NB) – The only true stealth class with massive burst. Either melee or ranged, NBs excel at DPS.
+ The best DPS in the game period
+ Sneaky
+ Great passive healing
- Squishy in comparison
- No burst self-heal


Sorcerer (Sorc) – A high DPS class with great burst and range. It also can summon creatures making it a typical casting type DPS.
+ Massive self-heals
+ Great range
+ Good at any role
- Reliant on magicka
- No stamina regeneration


Templar – A great all around class and the only one with a healing skill line. Probably the best healer in the game at the moment.
+ Hard to kill
+ Healing pro
+ Group support
- Lacks DPS at end-game
- Limited offensive range
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Racial Bonuses
Largely overlooked are the racial bonuses of each species in ESO. Depending on what’s most important, look or functionality, make your choice well as you cannot change this. Below I’ve listed each choice and also a set of Archetypes I suggest.
Aldemri Dominion (AD) Faction Races

Altmer (High Elf)
• Destruction Talent (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the Destruction Staff skill line by 15%.
• Spellcharge (3 ranks) – Increases magicka recovery while in combat by (3/6/9)%.
• Gift of Magnus (3 ranks) – Increases maximum magicka by (4/7/10)%.
• Elemental Talent (3 ranks) – Increases damage with Cold, Fire, or Shock effects by (2/4/6)%.

Bosmer (Wood Elf)
• Archery Expertise (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the bow skill line by 15%.
• Vigor (3 ranks) – Increases stamina recovery while in combat by (3/6/9)%.
• Resist Affliction (3 ranks) – Increases Poison and Disease resistance by (7/14/21). Increases maximum Stamina by (1/2/3)%.
• Stealthy (3 ranks) – Improve stealth radius by (1/2/3) meters and damage done while stealthed by (3/6/9)%.

Khajiit
• Medium Armor Expertise (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the medium armor skill line by 15%.
• Robust (3 ranks) – Increases health regeneration while in combat by (5/10/15)%.
• Stealthy (3 ranks) – Improve Stealth radius by (1/2/3) meters and damage done while stealthed by (3/6/9)%.
• Carnage (3 ranks) – Increases critical rating for melee attacks by (2/4/6)%


Daggerfall Covenant (DC) Faction Races
Breton
Light Armor Affinity (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the Light Armor skill line by 15%.
• Gift of Magnus (3 ranks) – Increases maximum magicka by (4/7/10)%.
• Spell Resistance (3 ranks) – Increases Spell Resistance by (32/64/96).
• Magicka Mastery (3 ranks) – Reduces the magicka cost of spells by (1/2/3)%.

Orsimer (Orc)
• Heavy Armor Expertise (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the heavy armor skill line by 15%.
• Brawny (3 ranks) – Increases maximum health and maximum stamina by (2/4/6)%.
• Robust (3 ranks) – Increases Health regeneration while in combat by (5/10/15)%.
• Swift (3 ranks) – Reduces sprint cost by (4/8/12)% and increases sprint speed by (3/6/9)%.

Redguard
• Shield Affinity (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the One-Handed and Shield skill line by 15%.
• Vigor (3 ranks) – Increases stamina recovery while in combat by (3/6/9)%.
• Conditioning (3 ranks) – Increases maximum stamina by (4/7/10)%.
• Adrenaline Rush (3 ranks) – Restores (1/2/3) Stamina to the player when damaging an enemy with a melee attack. This can occur no more than once every 3 seconds.


Ebonheart Pact (EP) Faction Races
Argonian
• Restoration Expertise (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the Restoration Staff skill line by 15%.
• Amphibious (3 ranks) – Increases swimming speed by 50% and the effectiveness of potions by (5/10/15)%.
• Argonian Resistance (3 ranks) – Increases maximum health by (1/2/3)% and Poison and Disease resistance by (7/14/21).
• Quick to Mend (3 ranks) – Increases healing received by (2/4/6)%.

Dunmer (Dark Elf)
• Ambidexterity (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the Dual Wield skill line by 15%.
• Dynamic (3 ranks) – Increases maximum magicka and stamina by (2/4/6)%.
• Resist Flame (3 ranks) – Increases Fire resistance by (10/20/30). Increases maximum Magicka by (1/2/3)%.
• Flame Talent (3 ranks) – Increases Spell Power with fire effects by (1/2/3).

Nord
• Two-Handed Weapon Expertise (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the Two-Handed Weapon skill line by 15%.
• Robust (3 ranks) – Increases health regeneration while in combat by (5/10/15)%.
• Resist Frost (3 ranks) – Increases Cold resistance by (10/20/30). Increases maximum Health by (1/2/3)%.
• Rugged (3 ranks) – Reduce incoming damage 2/4/6%.

Pre-Order Only
Imperial
• Shield Affinity (1 rank) – Increases experience gain with the One-Handed and Shield skill line by 15%.
• Tough (3 ranks) – Increases maximum health by (4/8/12)%.
• Conditioning (3 ranks) – Increases maximum stamina by (4/7/10)%.
• Red Diamond (3 ranks) – Melee attacks have a (2/4/6)% chance to restore X health.

Sample Builds
DPS
1. Class Dragonknight | Race – Dark Elf
A super star AoE fire breathing monster. If you want to do massive destruction, you can’t go wrong with this setup.


2. Class – Sorcerer | Race – High Elf
Another classic range nuke’m build focused on magic and staffs.


3. Class – Nightblade | Race – Redguard
A true melee monster, using the NB with Redguard passives in a dual wield build can allow you to spam stamina talents while draining health from target.

Healer
1. Class Templar | Race – Altmer
The standard cheesy healing build using the Templar and passive magicka regeneration. Though it might not be original, it’s effective.

2. Class Sorcerer | Race Argonian
The only race with a passive bonus to healing, Argonian Sorcs make great healers.

3. Class Nightblade | Race Brenton
With passive health leeching for healing yourself, while using staffs abilities on allies, this can be a great combination

Tank
1. Class – Templar | Race – Orc
Any class can tank, but this one can tank and heal while using a sword and shield. Add in passive health regeneration increase to your maximum to stamina and health and this combo makes a monster tank.

2. Class – Nightblade | Race – Imperial
A non-traditional tank build focused on health stealthing. Nightblade has great speed and health regeneration and add the Imperial natural passive for lots of health draining.

3. Class – Dragonknight | Race – Nord
My personal build, gives me some armor and max health so I can use more light armor allowing for a greater magicka regeneration.

SAMPLE
Here’s my build for Deltia and what I thought about prior to rolling the character:
• Q: Play-style?
• A: Up in your face, tank, self-healing monster.

• Q: Content?
• A: PvE with endgame PvP in mind.

• Q: Attributes?
• A:Primarily focused on magicka for self-healing and max health for soaking up damage.

• Q: Skill Points?
• A: I will have blacksmithing so skill points will be at a premium.

Character Name: Deltia the Indomitable
Race: Altmer (High Elf)
Class: Templar
Gender: Male
Alliance: Aldmeri Dominion
Weapon 1: Sword and Shield – Mainly used for blocking
Weapon 2: Destruction Staff – My standard AoE DPS

I hope you enjoyed this quick guide, stay tuned for more ESO content!

TehMagnus

Wouldn't agree that NBs are the best DPS in the game nowadays (PVE wise). DK's are up there atm since they can deal almost if not as much damage as sorcs using daedric mines vs enemies vulnerable to evil hunter and can sustain equal amount of DPS as a NB on other bosses.