Beginner looking for help

Glyph

Hi! My name is Lucas and I'm new to The Elder Scrolls: Online

I'm looking for the best solo builds for beginners. The problem is, that I can't really decide whether I should pick an "easy-to-learn" build like Magicka Sorcerer/Magicka Templar or a build which playstyle I enjoy the most (which is stealth assassin/archer thief, so probably Stamina Nightblade DW+Bow Thief). I read that NB is not beginner-friendly and I need to understand game and class mechanics first before doing one. Also, if I remember correctly, Magicka Templars are probably the best to clear almost all content of the game while playing solo.

I have TESO Gold Edition (Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild and Orsinium DLCs). I'm not ESO+ Member... yet (?)

Let me ask some questions to be more clear:

1. Is Nightblade DW/Bow Thief build good for beginners?
1a. (if yes): Can I clear almost all of the content of the game by playing this build?
1b. (if no): Which build should I play as beginner to understand game mechanics?
2. Can I utilize thief skills while playing other classes than Nightblade?
3. What kind of builds are most "valuable" for other players while doing dungeons?
4. Should I focus on my build since beginning or not? I heard that people are playing "like they want" until they hit level 50, then they respec and get cp points for end-game (?)

That's pretty all I want to ask. Hopefully you can understand me well (let's be honest, my English is pretty bad). My ESO is waiting like 2 days now for me to start it, I can't wait!

BlackSparrow

As someone whose first character was a stealthy stamina nightblade... yeah. What you've read is accurate. NightBlade is NOT beginner-friendly, especially not one with a stamina build (which a DW/bow blade would be).

That said, if you can master stamblade, every other class in the game is a cakewalk.

1. Nope. It's squishy and has difficulty keeping on its own feet. Once you master it, you can clear content fine, but getting to that point has a difficulty curve.
1b. Just about any other build will get you there. Anything that uses Heavy Armor, especially, will be fine.
2. Mostly. The Legerdemain skill tree can be used by everyone. HOWEVER, NBs do have an invisibility ability that makes all stealth activity super easy and fun. You can replicate this with potions on other builds, but that gets super expensive. NightBlades have a distinctive edge int hat department.
3. Healers and tanks.
4. Don't focus if you don't want to (and do focus if you do!). Respecing is SUPER cheap compared to most MMOs, so it's really not a huge deal to mess around with your build a bit. Play around. Have fun. Make some mistakes, and learn from them. You can worry about optimizing your build at endgame.

All that said... if you really want to play an NB thief... go ahead and just do it! It's tricky to get the hang of, and you will die (A LOT). But I wouldn't trade my stamblade main for anything, because that's the playstyle I genuinely enjoy the most. Play to have fun... and if you can't quite get the hang of stamblade at first, roll up a second character and play that for a while, then come back to stamblade later. Stamblades are fun and can be successful if you play them right... they're just harder for beginners to get the hang of. Once you do, it's VERY worth it.

r3turn2s3nd3r

Glyph wrote: »

Hi! My name is Lucas and I'm new to The Elder Scrolls: Online

I'm looking for the best solo builds for beginners. The problem is, that I can't really decide whether I should pick an "easy-to-learn" build like Magicka Sorcerer/Magicka Templar or a build which playstyle I enjoy the most (which is stealth assassin/archer thief, so probably Stamina Nightblade DW+Bow Thief). I read that NB is not beginner-friendly and I need to understand game and class mechanics first before doing one. Also, if I remember correctly, Magicka Templars are probably the best to clear almost all content of the game while playing solo.

I have TESO Gold Edition (Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild and Orsinium DLCs). I'm not ESO+ Member... yet (?)

Let me ask some questions to be more clear:

1. Is Nightblade DW/Bow Thief build good for beginners?
1a. (if yes): Can I clear almost all of the content of the game by playing this build?
1b. (if no): Which build should I play as beginner to understand game mechanics?
2. Can I utilize thief skills while playing other classes than Nightblade?
3. What kind of builds are most "valuable" for other players while doing dungeons?
4. Should I focus on my build since beginning or not? I heard that people are playing "like they want" until they hit level 50, then they respec and get cp points for end-game (?)

That's pretty all I want to ask. Hopefully you can understand me well (let's be honest, my English is pretty bad). My ESO is waiting like 2 days now for me to start it, I can't wait!

Welcome to the game!

You'll probably get varying opinions, but here's what i can tell you...
1. This depends entirely on the beginner. Stam NB skill rotation is complex and survivability can be tricky at first. However if you are the type of person that adapts / learns quickly and have good coordination, you will probably be fine.
1a. Yes.
1b. Play what you LIKE to play. Let me say this again. PLAY what YOU like to play. Period.
2. Yes
3. A Stam NB is going to fill the DPS role very effectively, so your only real priority is to build so that you can do as much DPS as possible while not dying.
4. Don't worry too much about gear and build until CP 160. Farming anything from dungeons is just going to be out leveled pretty quickly and at lower levels you will get pretty generous scaling to compensate.

JKorr

It would help if you said which platform and server you're playing on.

You might want to look around for a good guild, too. There are a lot of them out there that are very helpful for new players with advice, extra bodies that will show up if you need a hand, and crafters who'll make stuff for you.

Glyph

Thank you guys for such a great answers!

I'm definitely going to play Nightblade build, just to check how it will be going. Like @BlackSparrow said, I will just switch characters if I won't get the hang of stamblade, and come back to it later.

The Elder Scrolls games are my favourite (ex aequo with GTA games) and I just love TES Lore. This is my first contact with ESO game, so I'm going to play slowly (learn the lore, learn the mechanics, etc). I didn't want to"destroy" my excitement due to building a character which will be just a waste of time later on, that's why I was looking for help

@JKorr PC platform, EU server. I can play NA server aswell (I made Redguard Nightblade on EU, just started so I can switch to other server if it's better).

Elsonso

Welcome to the game!

I usually recommend pet builds for solo players that are new to the game. The main reason for this is just because the pet provides some assistance while game mechanics are being learned. They can help tank for you and heal you, and that provides suvivability in the early learning stage.

That means Sorcerer or Warden. As you did not mention Morrowind... Sorcerer.

The main complaint I hear about Nightblade is that people pick it to be the sneaky thief. They think they are going to take the hide in shadows subtle approach and defeat the game with cunning. That works great when you are alone, but all too often, you are sneaking around getting ready to strike and someone runs past you and kills everything in your path. It is an MMO, so you are not alone often, even when playing solo.

Nestor

One thing to understand, is you have two phases to the game, Leveling then you have Everything Else. Leveling, on the first character means CP160, on Alts, it means L50. You will play the game differently during leveling than End Game. In fact, I level my Tanks and Healers as DPS until I reach L50. Also, your needs during leveling are to:

1. Get all your class skills to the Morph Stage and the Class Skill lines to L50 to unlock all passives. Worry about Morphs once your leveled. Exceptions are ones like Inner Light, you want that morph if your a caster and you want it fully developed.
2. Get your main Weapon(s) skills to L50, again to unlock all passives and the Weapon Ultimate
3. Try to get all your Armors to L50, or close to it. This can be done simply by wearing a mix of armor weights until L50. Don't worry about the 5 piece bonuses in the passives, you don't need them while leveling

Here is the long version of above:

First leveling character? Forget about Builds right now. No need, your handicapped anyway by the game so you are way more powerful than you need to be. Instead take advantage of this buff to properly level your character so you can be deadly when it matters later on when you are not buffed by the level scaling. In other words, you can create a rotation that makes you think your all that and a biscuit because of the scaling buffs, then get a rude awakening come Champ Ranks when you are on your own.

So, right now if your wearing any gear, the mobs will die.

1. Have one class skill on your bar at all times, swapping them out once the skill reaches Morph stage. Worry about your Morphs later.
2. Have at least one weapon skill on your bar at all times, again until Morph stage
3. Wear a mix of all 3 armor types so they all level about equally
4. From L1 to L20, invest in attack skills and actives
5. From L20 to L35 start investing in Passives and Support Skills
6. From L35 to L50 start investing in Morphs (but only if all your class skills are at the Morph Stage), Passives and Crafting Skills
7 From CP10 to CP160 try out dropped sets to see which ones fit your playstyle, don't worry about traits right now, fill in passives and actives you may have missed
8. Grind on Dolmens to level your Fighters Guild, or find the Lore Books to level Mages Guild
9. Do some stealing to level Legerdemain, best source for money in the game
10. Decon every piece of gear you get that you are not going to use immediately to level equipment crafting, no need to invest skills points until Champ Ranks.

Glyph

Hello @lordrichter and thanks!

Yes, I just read some posts about confused people who thought that thief playstyle will be a bit different in ESO. I also checked some youtube videos and it seems that I should leave it for another time (maybe roleplay matter). Anyway, which Sorcerer "build" you recommend? I mean maybe just race, because if I'm not wrong, I should level all skills I can while leveling my character. I don't like Altmers tho, but maybe Dark Elf will do the job aswell?

Hello @Nestor and thank you for that post! I was looking for that info earlier as someone told me to not worry about builds while leveling, I just didn't know why. I got one question about that guide, tho. How Legerdemain can be best source for money in the game? I mean, how I should utilize it? By pickpocketing people and picking locks?


You are extremely helpful guys. I'm shocked how quickly I got so many answers in my topic. Thank you!

Elsonso

Basically, just start with Sorcerer Mage's Fury and Unstable Familiar, and destruction staff Force Shock and work your way up from there.

Alcast's "Summoner" is probably a good place to start looking at builds and skills
https://alcasthq.com/eso-magicka-sorcerer-pet-build-pve/

Starting out, you won't have all the gear and Champion Points, but you can see what sort of gear to look into and what skills to build. Focus on starting the skills and learning the rotations.

Necropotence drops from bosses in Rivenspire, so a set of 5 of these can be obtained in the game without too much trouble, and refreshed as you level up. At the start you will need others around to help with the bosses, but this can either be friends/guild mates or just randoms that happen to be there.

Dark elf is good for this build.

Nestor

Glyph wrote: »

. How Legerdemain can be best source for money in the game? I mean, how I should utilize it? By pickpocketing people and picking locks?

Picking Pockets is fun, but until you level the Legerdemain Skill line, your going to be caught until you unlock the passives that improve your chances. I personally wont' risk picking a pocket until I have all 4 of the passive levels unlocked. Others are more daring.

However there are areas in the game, most large cities have these, where there are lots of owned containers, and little to no NPCs around. Loot the containers and fence the valuable stuff. Launder the ingredients and crafting mats as that also levels Legerdemain. If you want to learn the recipes or motifs you find, learn them, otherwise Launder those and sell them in the guild stores. Unlock the first Trafficking Passive and you can Fence 110 Items, and Launder 110 items per day. The other 3 passives give a small increase the limit. If you have access to Wrothgar, that is a target rich city, but again, there are many places to steal from that are low risk. I will let you find them.

While leveling, I grab anything that is stolen, but later on, people will tend to only grab Green and better items to Fence. Me, I look at it from a Gold Per Hour perspective and fill up my bag slots quickly then Fence, then get on with other activities.

Anyway, with full trafficking Passive and focusing on Green or Better, you can pull in 12K to 15K per day, if you just grab anything with a value over 10 and fence, your looking at 5K to 9K per day. First way can take a couple hours, latter way can take 15 minutes in the right places to reach your limits.

Nestor

Also, while I said don't worry about builds while leveling, you should still try out different rotations to see how skills work together, as some skills buff the next skill you fire, when to use Damage over Time skills (early) things like that. Some combos will work well, some won't, sometimes just changing the sequences helps.

Also, while leveling your going to get dropped sets, so use those as you go along and figure out what sets help you the most the way you play. You might want more sustain or regen, or you might want a bigger resource pool or you might want more spell or weapon damage. Trying different things while leveling will help you more later in the game than copying some Streamer Build that is out there and not understanding the mechanics and why it works. Besides, what works for others may not work for you.

So, try out those "weird" skills that you think might not help you. For example, a skill that snares a mob may not sound like much, but if you snare the mob, then apply damage to them while they are in slow mo, that is a good thing.

Glyph

@lordrichter @Nestor

Thank you guys for your time and valuable info, I really appreciate it! I think I'll start the easier way, as Altmer/Dark Elf Magicka Sorcerer (I'm still planning to do a Nightblade build in the future), and I'll play like I want to understand mechanics, especially that respec is fairly cheap. Also, I will implement some thievery to my character's "build" as it seems to be a really helpful skill line.

You're all great, guys! Thank you again.

Glyph

Guys, one quick question. Why people are telling me that I should change my class to magicka templar? I mean.. Someone said that it's easier for newbies to play as magplar and also this class is needed more in dungeons than magsorcs.

I'm doing pretty well with my magicka sorcerer, maybe it's not the playstyle I love but soloing is okay.

DoctorESO

Glyph wrote: »

Guys, one quick question. Why people are telling me that I should change my class to magicka templar? I mean.. Someone said that it's easier for newbies to play as magplar and also this class is needed more in dungeons than magsorcs.

I'm doing pretty well with my magicka sorcerer, maybe it's not the playstyle I love but soloing is okay.

Magicka templar is an easy class to play. You can actually do pretty well just by spamming one or two skills (including aedric spear), and one of those skills heals you. That skill also hits multiple enemies at once. You also get a skill that instantly heals you for a lot of health (Breath of Life). Definitely easy.

Glyph

Thank you for your answer. I didn't have much time this weekend to play eso so it wouldn't be a problem for me to change my character. Is it worth it? I'm planning to do dungeons with other players as well. I want to be useful for others.

DoctorESO

Glyph wrote: »

Thank you for your answer. I didn't have much time this weekend to play eso so it wouldn't be a problem for me to change my character. Is it worth it? I'm planning to do dungeons with other players as well. I want to be useful for others.

My personal opinion is that you should play the class you want to play. Whatever you will have the most fun with. Everything else will come (with your chosen class) as you learn the game.

SydneyGrey

If you decide you want to try a different class before you try nightblade, know you can make both characters at the same time. That way, you can be slowly training your horse every day on both of them, so by the time you decide to play a nightblade, his horse will already have some speed and stamina.
Also, if you play the nightblade first and decide it's too hard/dies too easily, you'll already have a horse partially trained on your 2nd choice of class. Just sayin'.

Glyph

Okay, I'll keep it in mind.

Why I'm asking is because you are experienced players and you know what is the best option for newbies like me. Also, I see lots of magplars in the game and only a few magsorcs. Not sure why.

Any advice?