My least favorite part of any game is having to make a permanent decision at character creation that can impact my game experience either positively or negatively for weeks, months, or even years to come. For ESO, that means I agonize over each choice of race and class. On top of that, I'm still pretty new to the game, so I don't feel that I really have enough information or experience to make an informed decision on this matter. So I'm hoping I can turn to those with significantly more knowledge and experience than myself to help me resolve this question.
Here is the situation: I'm making a character that will be dedicated for play with two other friends through leveling content. We may at some point try PvP, but for now that isn't the focus of the group (one friend really likes PvP, the other doesn't, I'm indifferent, so for now I'm not building around it specifically). One friend has offered to tank, the other prefers to DPS, so I offered to take on the role of a healer. My goal is to build a character that can provide heals when needed, but can also dish out some supporting damage when not healing. I had decided to try a Templar for this, but I'm having trouble choosing a race.
The big question is how much healing am I likely to be needed for? Will I be spending a majority of my time healing, or will I be mostly in DPS mode while only occasionally tossing out a heal or two? My solo experience so far would suggest the latter to be true, but I haven't gotten very far in the game yet, so for all I know that may change dramatically at higher levels. If I will primarily be healing, I would think I should go more towards a race with passives geared towards magicka (Breton or Altmer), but if healing will be less frequent would I be better off choosing my race for stamina passives (Imperial)? Also, if choosing primarily for damage, I found a few Templar builds that appealed to me conceptually, but they use a bow as the primary weapon. If I went with one of these builds, it seems that the Imperial's "Red Diamond" ability would be wasted without a melee attack, so would I be better off choosing something better suited for the particular weapon (Bosmer or Khajiit)?
These are the questions that swirl around in my head, and to which I feel inadequate to resolve on my own. Any input or insight would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance!