arcanist dps guide eso

Remember to treat this as a base to work from…
Always adjust as needed for YOUR specific situation!

I highly recommend watching the video for full explanations!

the build basics

Make sure to read the notes along with the graphics as they are often JUST AS IMPORTANT!

 

top races

 

This is purely a ranking by top dps passives
Other passives can be beneficial too!

Examples:

Breton: Magicka Sustain + Resistances

  • Only 3-4% DPS behind Dark Elf for Magicka

Imperial: 2k Health + 6% Cost Reduction

  • Only 3-4% DPS behind Dark Elf for Stamina

ANY race can be FINE for DPS on all modes

 

mundus stone

  • The Thief is usually the strongest for PvE

 

food & drinks

Single Primary Stat options are the highest DPS if you don’t need the additional Max Health or sustain

However, I usually recommend Bi-Stat food instead as you only lose ~1% dps but gain 5395 Max Health

Tri-Stat Health + Stamina + Magicka work great for both Stamina and Magicka stacking setups

I use these when I need a little more of my Off-Resource pool to work with but don’t want to give up the Max Health

Primary Stat + Recovery options are great for damage and sustain if you don’t mind the missing Max Health

Primary Stat + Off-Resource Recovery options are also great if your Off-Resource is harder to sustain than your Main Resource (also missing Max Health)

Health + Primary Stat + Recovery options are good compromises if you need more well-rounded stats

 

potions

UESP has a great Alchemy Calculator if you want to see all possible combinations

  • If you already have the Major Crit Chance and the Major Weapon/Spell Damage Buffs, you can craft the Tri-Stat Restoration Potions (also from Daily Login Rewards) to help with sustaining both your Stamina and Magicka

  • Heroism Potions are usually even better in this scenario as well to squeeze out more Ultimates, but the ingredients are very expensive

The Essence of Spell Power potions are recommended only if you ARE NOT getting your Sorcery/Prophecy buffs from skills and you need the additional Magicka return

The Essence of Weapon Power potions are recommended only if you ARE NOT getting your Brutality/Savagery buffs from skills and you need the additional Stamina return

 

champion points

IMPORTANT NODES

Backstabber/Fighting Finesse
Priorities over 3 & 4 if under the Crit Dmg cap

Force of Nature
Priority if more Penetration is needed

Need help with the Penetration and Crit Damage caps? Check out these charts

 

TOP GEAR setups

For more details on when to use what, make sure to check out my top DPS sets video

SETUP #1: ALL-AROUND

FOR GREAT RESULTS IN JUST ABOUT ANY SITUATION

  • Use Magicka Glyphs instead of Stamina if stacking into Magicka

  • Multi-Effect = Weapon/Spell Damage Glyphs

  • Precise on the Off-Hand instead of Charged is great for more AoE

  • The 1pc monster set can also be run in the “shoulder” slot instead of the “head” slot - both options are equal

  • Same rules as listed above except with Whorl of the Depths

  • Flexible to swap more Light pieces in if you need

  • Sometimes cooldown for Whorl comes up when you are beaming and you lose a little uptime

 

setup #2: sweaty/trial dummy

REQUIRES MORE EFFORT TO MANAGE LOW STAMINA W/ CORAL RIPTIDE

The 1pc monster set can also be run in the “shoulder” slot instead of the “head” slot - both options are equal
Multi-Effect = Weapon/Spell Damage Glyphs

Very similar results as the option listed above, except more AoE damage from Deadly Strike

 

SETUP #3: 1-BAR OAKENSOUL BUILD

SIMPLE LOADOUT THAT CAN STILL GET GREAT RESULTS

  • Use Magicka Glyphs instead of Stamina if stacking into Magicka

  • Multi-Effect = Weapon/Spell Damage Glyphs

  • Precise on the Off-Hand instead of Charged is great for more AoE

  • Order’s Wrath / Venomous Smite are both great replacements if you don’t have these

  • The 1pc monster set can also be run in the “shoulder” slot instead of the “head” slot - both options are equal

 

SETUP #4: 1.5 bar setup

ends up somewhere between 1 and 2 skill bars (skills section will explain)

  • Previous gear combos are great (Deadly/Ansuul) (Deadly/Whorl) above is just an example of a combo

  • Use Magicka Glyphs instead of Stamina if stacking into Magicka

  • Multi-Effect = Weapon/Spell Damage Glyphs

  • The 1pc monster set can also be run in the “shoulder” slot instead of the “head” slot - both options are equal

additional NOTES

  • Configure the # of Medium/Light Armor pieces to your needs but always keep at least 1 Medium and 1 Light Armor piece

  • Body and jewelry pieces are always interchangeable as long as you are keeping the weights that you want

  • And finally, the options listed are just my favorites - the tier list at the beginning can be used to put together your favorite combo!

 

skill bar LOADOUTS

SETUPS 1 & 2 (all-around or trial dummy)

Destruction Staff Backbar (See Video for Details)

Destruction Staff Backbar (See Video for Details)

Two-Handed Backbar (See Video for Details)

Two-Handed Backbar (See Video for Details)

Bow Backbar (See Video for Details)

Bow Backbar (See Video for Details)

Dual Wield Backbar (See Video for Details)

Dual Wield Backbar (See Video for Details)

seTUP 3 (OAKENSOUL 1-BAR SETUP)

  • Typically Inspired Scholarship for the Tome-bearer morph

  • Blade Cloak and Barbed Trap are your flex spots if you need something else

  • Both Fatecarver morphs are excellent depending on your situation

  • Both Ultimate morphs are excellent depending on your situation

seTUP 4 (the 1.5-BAR loadout)

  • Quick Cloak and Tome-Bearer’s Inspiration are each 30s long!

  • Typically Inspired Scholarship for the Tome-bearer morph

  • Both Fatecarver morphs are excellent depending on your situation

  • Both Ultimate morphs are excellent depending on your situation

CRUX BUILDERS AND SPENDERS

VIDEO GUIDES

Make sure to check out the video guide for full details and explanations

Also make sure to check out Ry’s channel (His 128k parse was featured in my video!)

Thanks for stopping by

Thanks to UESP.net as well for the great tools for some of the screenshots

If these guides have been helpful to you, please consider checking out my Patreon!
A lot of work goes into these and the support really helps a ton!