New to nightblade, what is magblade/stamblade

Sabenfox

So I've just now made my second character. I have a templar at Cp159 or 160 and I wanted to try something different. I googled nightmare and I see all sorts of stuff on magblade and stamblade. What do those mean ?

Is a magblade only use magic and stamblade only use stamina ? Do magblade and stamblade both dual wield?

For my templar I didn't follow any guide, I just read skills, put points and played, and honestly I've been doing pretty good like that (I heal). I run vet dungeons no problem, but with a nightblade I feel like survivability is harder.

Can you guys provide some basic info and insight into the nightmare class? Do u wear light armor or medium armor, ect... Thanks!

JamuThatsWho

Check out www.alcasthq.com for starters, but yes; Magblade uses Magicka and Staffs, Stamblade uses Stamina and commonly Dual Wields.

Magicka builds use Light Armour and Stamina uses Medium.

Sabenfox

Ok thanks for the info, my templar is like 100 percent spells and I kind of wanted to get away from staffs, does that mean I should go stamblade?

JamuThatsWho

Sabenfox wrote: »

Ok thanks for the info, my templar is like 100 percent spells and I kind of wanted to get away from staffs, does that mean I should go stamblade?

I would say so, yes.

klowdy1

Mag and stam refer to your stat you dump most to all of your points. You can you magicka abilities on a stam character, and vice versa, but your pool will be limited. Your damage is based on your resource pool as well, so it's best to use damage abilities relevant to you stats.

On my stamplar (stamina templar), I use a charge ability that uses magicka. My pool is small, but that is the only ability using up that resource. The damage on it is less than what a magplar would do with the same ability, but I'm only using it for utility, and not a damage ability, so it's not a big deal at all.

TheShadowScout

Sabenfox wrote: »

Is a magblade only use magic and stamblade only use stamina ?

Yes, in a nutshell.

Stamblades are stamina nightblades, usually rogue/assassin/archer type of builds. They might just be the hardest class option to master, but can be pretty rewarding once you learned how to drive them well (remember to sneakalot!). Often go with dual wield and bow as weapons, though 2H is also a popular option (and makes them way easier to be successful with). They are naturals to play through the TG and DB storylines...

Magblades are magica nightblades, usually illusionist/blood-mage type of builds. They go for staves and tend to use the siphoning skills a lot - lifedrain your way to victory! Or go invisble and just walk past everything. And they mesh incredibly well with vampire characters, just sayin...
One specialized option is the saptank... basically a magblade in heavy armor, keeping themselves alive through lifedraining. But that is a little "meh" to play...

Sabenfox wrote: »

...I kind of wanted to get away from staffs, does that mean I should go stamblade?

I would think so.
You can have a lot of fun with stamblades - my main is one, classic "assassin" medium armor, DW and Bow setup. I have another "war archer" stamblade, mix of heavy and medium armor, and bow as main, 2H as backup. There are other options of course... could go for an "executioner" in medium with 2H axe, or for a "dark knight" type in heavy armor, though stamblades are not too good at playing tanky, since they lack a decent "oh, crud" selfheal skill (until you PvP for vigor)...
But if you like swinging weapons and the occasional red magic effects, stamblades are fun!

JamuThatsWho

Have a look at this to get a good idea of what you should be aiming for:

https://alcasthq.com/eso-stamina-nightblade-build-for-pve/

Cernow

Sabenfox wrote: »

Ok thanks for the info, my templar is like 100 percent spells and I kind of wanted to get away from staffs, does that mean I should go stamblade?

If you want a different playstyle to Magicka Templar then yes a Stamina Nightblade would be a good alternative. Best setup will be dual wield on front bar (2h is also viable if you prefer) and bow on the back bar. You'll use a mix of class abilities from the assassination and shadow trees, plus weapon abilities and the odd fighters guild ability perhaps. Medium armour.

Best races for stamblade are those with good stamina and/or stealth boosts. So Redguard, Orc, Wood Elf, Khajiit, Imperial. Personally I like Wood Elf for the stamina regen sustain.

A stamblade guide is here: https://alcasthq.com/eso-stamina-nightblade-build-for-pve/

Sabenfox

Thanks so much for the help guys this kind of info was exactly what I was looking for!

SydneyGrey

Took me forever to figure out all the short abbreviations for everything when I was new to the game.

stamplar - stamina templar
magplar - magicka templar
stamsorc - stamina sorceror
magsorc - magicka sorceror
stamden - stamina warden
magden - magicka warden
(some people tried stamward and magward, but they never really caught on)
stamDK - stamina dragonknight
magDK - magicka dragonknight

Also:
DPS - damage per second
DD - damage dealer (I think)

Loc2262

Yeah the naming scheme that people mostly settled on is "first part of the resource used, last part of the class". Thus you have "magblade" and "stamblade" too. Exception is DK where the abbreviation is used. Oh, and exception is Sorcerer where it's "sorc" and nor "erer" or so. So yeah, it's like 66% rule and 33% exception.

I'm still struggling with writing "stamden" or "magden" cause it sounds a bit weird. I mostly write "stamwarden", but I suppose it's just a matter of getting used to the new term.

@SydneyGrey. Yes, DD stands for Damage Dealer. Some people use "DPS" interchangeably, i.e. both for the role and for what the role players do.

davey1107

Since you’ve played a Templar, a stamblade makes a good next character. It’s very different, so be prepared to learn things all over again.

You will have a good blend of stamina-based class skills and weapon skills. Since younised staffs, the weapon skills will all Be new to you. Play around with dual wield, bow and 2h. Wear and level mostly medium armor, with some heavy.

Coming off a Templar, you’re going to feel handicapped without a heal. A stamblade’s best heal is vigor, which requires some PvP. It’s not bad...85k AP. Go into a campaign, even at a low level, and follow your team taking a few keeps. A dozen and you’ve got a burst heal...it’ll help.

Try and be flexible with learning a new play style. A Templar run in and stabs things. A nightblade might have to use more strategy...”okay, I’m going to sneak into this position, mark that add, then kill it and move on to that add before I start on the boss.”

Also be aware that Nightblades should pay attention to what skills they’re slotting and using. Their passives affect them a lot more than other classes. For example, slotting a shadow ability gives you more health, and using one supercharges your resistance. Understanding this can be important.

And stamblades come into their own at a higher level than most classes. You get some of your best abilities when you’re in you’re 40’s...don’t be surprised if you feel a little lackluster before that. When you unlock your premier skills, you’ll hit like a truck.

I’m a fan of playing how you like. But if it helps, here’s a good starter bar for a stamblade. This will level all of your class lines and help you out as you get started.

Attack bar: swallow soul, surprise attack, ambush, killers blade, blood craze or blood thirst (the heals on dw skills will help A LOT). Ultimate: your choice. Incapacitating strikes is very powerful.

Back bar (bow or 2h): cloak (success depends on mastering cloak), mirage or mark target, weapon skills of choice.

Good luck!

Loc2262

davey1107 wrote: »

Coming off a Templar, you’re going to feel handicapped without a heal. A stamblade’s best heal is vigor, which requires some PvP.

Indeed, I remember when I finally got Vigor on my stamblade (first char, the one I initially leveled to CP with, having no clue about MMOs, was quite challenging). Was very helpful.

Additionally, there's some Nightblade/weapon based heals/shields you can use: Bloodthirst and Blood Craze from Dual Wield, both heal when you deal damage, one is an instant heal, the other a HoT. Killer's Blade from Nightblade Assassination heals when the target dies within 2 seconds. Brawler from Two-Handed gives you a shield for each enemy hit, and Momentum from Two-Hander gives a small HoT.

SmellyUnlimited

Enough with the Alcast’s links, he doesn’t know NB’s half as well as the players that specialize in them (Gilliam, Nightblade Mechanics). Search their YouTube’s and get good info (and not just “It’s INSANE!)

Septimus_Magna

Because you're only CP160 atm I would not recommend going for a stamina NB.
Its arguably one of the hardest classes the play.

Magicka NB has strong heals over time (HOTs) and access to the Annulment (light armor) dmg shield so its pretty easy to stay alive.

Sparr0w

Being a pure NB filling every role I'd say go for it. Sure they may be one of if not the hardest class to master but it's very rewarding. Plus if you jig your skills correctly you can be very efficient at any role you choose.

StamBlades tend to be DW/Bow for max damage, or use 2H if you want more survivability (the Rally refresh is so under rated!). Pay close attention to effects and passives, just using the 'main' spammable will lower a targets resistance 5k & buff yours for the same, while still dealing 6k+ damage!

If your playing solo I'd run 5 medium, 2 heavy for the resistances. If group without the undaunted passive go 6/1 or 7 medium. Always have the chest heavy as this gives maximum resistances!

Final note you will want all points into stam & all enchants stam and/or weapon damage. I have 1 health enchant & 1 stam regen since I run solo a lot.

Might be a bit of a learning curve but once you get there it's worth it Enjoy the ride.

NyassaV

Alcast hardly puts much effort into his content anymore. You are better off looking at What Gilliam and Dottz do. Fear has some stuff on his website too I believe

Violynne

Septimus_Magna wrote: »

Its arguably one of the hardest classes the play.

Last year, I'd agree with the statement.

Today, this is last year's thinking.

While I do agree the rotation does take a little practice, once learned, the possibilities allow us flexibility unlike we've seen before the Morrowind release.

I'm still figuring out some of the changes the game added (I was away for 9 months), but so far, I'm finding playing a stamBlade much, much easier than I had when the game was released.

So, OP: create an alt. Drop every point into stamina, then learn to stay alive. I just watched a stamBlade take on a world boss solo and lived to tell the tale (aka: didn't die once).

Watching them play gave me even more hope this class is now sustainable.

Let's just hope Summerset doesn't screw it up.