DRAGONKNIGHT TANK BUILD
Writer: @xGAMxHQ
Role: PVE Tank
Patch: Update 43 – Currently Updating..
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Obsidian Dragoknight Tank Build for the Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) is optimized for all players looking for the ultimate build guide on setups for Trials, Dungeons, and Arenas, whether you’re a beginner, a long-time veteran, or just returning to the game.
The Tank role in ESO is responsible for maintaining taunts on the most threatening enemies and keeping them locked down using Crowd-Control (CC) abilities that stun, immobilize, or fear. Once you become more comfortable in the role, you will be able to reliably self-sustain resources, self-heal, buff group members, and debuff enemies using your various armor sets, skills, and Ultimate abilities.
The Dragonknight class is one of the most beginner-friendly classes to learn how to Tank and, to this day, remains a top-tier choice for all levels of Tanking. This is because they offer excellent self-healing, self-sustain, and unmatched crowd-control abilities.
Dragonknights have three skill lines to aid you in combat:
• The Ardent Flame skill line focuses on offensive abilities; however, Unrelenting Grip is arguably the best pull ability, available to only the Dragonknight class.
• The Draconic Power skill line focuses on self-healing, Crowd Control, and defensive abilities.
• The Earthen Heart skill line focuses on group buffs, damage shields, and healing abilities.
The Dragonknight Tank Build covers everything you need to know, including recommended armor setups, skills, champion points, and many alternatives to meet various needs. Please read the entire build and bookmark the page, as it will update with each new patch.
OCTOBER 23 / 2024: – UPDATE 43
• Added a “Scribing Options” section to the build.
RACE
NORD
IMPERIAL
REDGUARD
Nords provide the best racial passives for the Dragonknight Tank Build and are your best choice for the long run. They can build Ultimate faster than any other race, gaining 5 Ultimate once every 10 seconds while you’re taking damage. On top of that, Nords also provide a unique increase to your Physical and Spell Resistance by 2600, allowing you to focus things like your Mundus Stone and gear traits on more essential things like resource recovery. Additionally, Nords increase your Maximum Health by 1000 and Maximum Stamina by 1500.
Imperials are another good choice, though, not for the same reasons. They provide a cost reduction to all of your abilities by 6%, including skills, blocking, roll dodging, and even Ultimates. Additionally, Imperials increase your Maximum Health and Maximum Stamina by 2000.
Redguards don’t offer any group-oriented racial passives, but they do provide strong self-sustain. All weapon abilities have their costs reduced by 8%, and you restore 1005 Stamina every 5 seconds while dealing damage. That comes out to 12060 Stamina every minute. It’s important to note that restoring Stamina is much different than Stamina Recovery, as you can restore Stamina through sprinting and blocking, where your Stamina Recovery is cut to 0 while doing either of those actions.
If you’re a beginner, choosing an Imperial or Redguard may seem appealing, but I strongly urge you to try Nord first. Nords offer the strongest racial passives for any Tank, making you much more valuable to your group. Once you learn when you should and shouldn’t be blocking and the best time to toss a heavy attack into your rotation, you can easily sustain yourself without needing the Imperial and Redguard sustain passives.
ATTRIBUTE POINTS
MAGICKA
20
HEALTH
28
STAMINA
16
Tanks typically aim to have at least 40,000 Maximum Health with the Minor Toughness buff and a Maximum Stamina value that exceeds your Maximum Magicka value. Doing this ensures that you always restore Stamina when you activate the Luminous Shards or Energy Orb synergy provided by your Healers.
The Dragonknight Tank Build reaches:
• 40K+ Maximum Health
• 19.5K+ Maximum Stamina
• 19K+ Maximum Magicka
The above distribution of Attribute Points had the following buffs, passives, etc., active:
• Nord Race
• Orzorga’s Smoked Bear Haunch
• Main Tank Setup (Legendary Quality)
• The Minor Toughness Buff
• All Class Passives
• All Champion Point Passives
You may need to adjust your Attribute Points if you use a different race, food, enchantments, quality, etc. Find a balance that best suits your needs.
TRIAL SETUPS
The Dragonknight Tank Build uses some of the Best Tank Sets in ESO to bolster your defences and increase group Ultimate regeneration, debuff uptimes, damage, and survivability. The Perfected versions of the Trial sets give additional stat boosts for wearing all five pieces, but they do not make or break the build.
The Divines armor trait will significantly improve your Magicka Recovery while using the Atronach Mundus Stone, allowing you to maintain group buffs and healing more effectively. If you’re still new to Tanking or having trouble sustaining your Stamina, the Sturdy armor trait is an excellent choice, as it reduces the cost of blocking.
The Harmony jewelry trait restores up to 880 Health, Magicka, and Stamina per jewelry piece with this trait when you activate a synergy, dramatically increasing sustain while in large groups or coordinated 4-player groups.
The Decisive weapon trait provides a 13.8% chance to gain 1 additional Ultimate every time you gain Ultimate, which helps maximize your Aggressive Horn uptime.
MAIN TANK SETUP
| SET NAME | TRAIT | ENCHANTMENT | WEIGHT/TYPE | ACQUIRED | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
HEAD |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Medium |
Veteran Shipwright’s Regret |
|
|
SHOULDERS |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Light |
Undaunted Enclave |
|
|
CHEST |
Reinforced |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Dreadsail Reef |
|
|
HANDS |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Dreadsail Reef |
|
|
WAIST |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Dreadsail Reef |
|
|
LEGS |
Reinforced |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Dreadsail Reef |
|
|
FEET |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Dreadsail Reef |
|
|
NECKLACE |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
FRONT BAR (MAIN HAND) |
Decisive |
Poison Damage |
One-handed |
(Veteran) Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
FRONT BAR (OFF-HAND) |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Shield |
(Veteran) Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
BACK BAR |
Infused |
Crusher |
Ice Staff |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
Nazaray is the best Monster Set that a Main Tank can use. It’s primarily used during boss encounters to significantly increase the duration of debuffs applied to enemies. To get the most out of Nazaray, cast Aggressive Horn shortly after the Major Vulnerability debuff is applied to the boss. Major Vulnerability is most commonly applied by a Necromancer Healer using Glacial Colossus or from your own Turning Tide if you’re using it.
• Alternative: Spaulder of Ruin can be slotted during trash fights if you don’t plan to utilize your Ultimate. It increases the Weapon and Spell Damage of up to 6 group members within 12m of you by 260 at the cost of reducing your Magicka and Stamina Recovery by 70 for each group member standing in your aura. Pairing it with one piece of Magma Incarnate or Baron Thirsk helps offset some negative effects.
Pearlescent Ward provides a passive yet powerful bonus to the entire group that even persists through death and group separation mechanics. It increases the group’s Weapon and Spell Damage by up to 180 or damage reduction from non-player enemies by up to 66%, depending on how many of your group members are alive. This set also passively grants you the Minor Aegis buff at all times, reducing your damage taken from Dungeon, Trial, and Arena Monsters by 5%.
Saxhleel Champion grants the Major Force buff when you cast any Ultimate ability. It’s primarily used to increase the duration of the Major Force buff when using Aggressive Horn, which already grants that buff. Using the Main Tank Setup above means you must cast the Ultimate slotted on your back bar, which is ideal for a more offensive playstyle. If you play more defensively or need to use Replenishing Barrier more often, also equip Saxhleel Champion on the front bar.
• Alternative: Crimson Oath’s Rive is useful during trash fights where you don’t plan to utilize your Ultimate. It allows you to reduce the Physical and Spell Resistance of enemies within 12m of you by up to 3541. This debuff can be stacked with other Physical and Spell Resistance-reducing debuffs, such as Major and Minor Breach.
• Alternative: Turning Tide is good to have around if you don’t have a Necromancer in your group, as it allows you to easily apply the Major Vulnerability debuff to multiple enemies in front of you. Slotting it exclusively on the back bar enables you to better control the uptime of Flowing Water, which is the buff it grants you, giving you the ability to apply the Major Vulnerability debuff.
Puncturing Remedy allows you to heal and increase your Physical and Spell Resistance equal to the amount healed while using Pierce Armor, which is typically your primary taunting ability if you’re using One Hand and Shield.
OFF-TANK SETUP
| SET NAME | TRAIT | ENCHANTMENT | WEIGHT/TYPE | ACQUIRED | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
HEAD |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Medium |
Veteran The Cauldron |
|
|
SHOULDERS |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Light |
Undaunted Enclave |
|
|
CHEST |
Reinforced |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Lucent Citadel |
|
|
HANDS |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Lucent Citadel |
|
|
WAIST |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Lucent Citadel |
|
|
LEGS |
Reinforced |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Lucent Citadel |
|
|
FEET |
Divines |
Prismatic Defense |
Heavy |
(Veteran) Lucent Citadel |
|
|
NECKLACE |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
|
|
FRONT BAR (MAIN HAND) |
Decisive |
Poison Damage |
One-handed |
(Veteran) Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
FRONT BAR (OFF-HAND) |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Shield |
(Veteran) Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
BACK BAR |
Infused |
Crusher |
Ice Staff |
(Veteran) Rockgrove |
Baron Zaudrus is the perfect Monster Set for any Off-Tank looking to build Ultimate as fast as possible. By applying status effects to your enemies, you gain stacks of a buff called Zaudrus’s Ambition for 10 seconds. At 3 stacks, you gain 4 Ultimate, and your stacks are reset with a 1-second cooldown before you can gain stacks again. Pairing this Monster Set with a skill like Elemental Susceptibility allows you to gain stacks of Zaudrus’s Ambition very quickly.
• Alternative: Spaulder of Ruin can be slotted during trash fights to cover the rest of the group if you don’t plan to utilize your Ultimate. It increases the Weapon and Spell Damage of up to 6 group members within 12m of you by 260 at the cost of reducing your Magicka and Stamina Recovery by 70 for each group member standing in your aura. Pairing it with one piece of Magma Incarnate or Baron Thirsk helps offset some negative effects.
Lucent Echoes grants the group a powerful buff when things are going well, and if things start to look grim for you, it helps you stay alive instead, making it one of the best Off-Tank sets available. It increases the group’s Critical Damage and Critical Healing by 11% while you remain above 50% of your Maximum Health, and should you dip below 50% of your Maximum Health, you decrease your damage taken from monsters by 20%. This set also passively grants you the Minor Aegis buff at all times, reducing your damage taken from Dungeon, Trial, and Arena Monsters by 5%.
Saxhleel Champion grants the Major Force buff when you cast any Ultimate ability. It’s primarily used to increase the duration of the Major Force buff when using Aggressive Horn, which already grants that buff. Using the Off-Tank Setup above means you must cast the Ultimate slotted on your back bar, which is ideal for a more offensive playstyle. If you play more defensively or need to use Replenishing Barrier more often, also equip Saxhleel Champion on the front bar.
• Alternative: Powerful Assault is useful during trash fights where you don’t plan to utilize your Ultimate. It’s a non-DLC PVP set you can obtain by opening coffers with Tel Var or purchasing pieces of the set from Guild Stores. The buff from Powerful Assault increases Weapon and Spell Damage for you and up to 5 group members within 12m by 307 when you cast an ability from the Assault skill line. Echoing Vigor is most commonly used because the timers line up well together, and it applies another Heal Over Time (HOT) effect to your group. Because it only affects half of the group, you will need to cast Echoing Vigor twice to ensure everyone gets the bonus from Powerful Assault.
Puncturing Remedy allows you to heal and increase your Physical and Spell Resistance equal to the amount healed while using Pierce Armor, which is typically your primary taunting ability if you’re using One Hand and Shield.
INTERMEDIATE SETUP
The Intermediate Setup for the Dragonknight Tank Build is optimized for Tanks that want to gear up for Trial content or replace Crafted and Overland sets. The armor setup below increases group damage, Ultimate regeneration, debuff uptimes, and your survivability. The Perfected version of the Arena set gives an additional 3% Healing Taken, which is nice to have but will not make or break the build.
If you have a surplus of Transmute Crystals, you can change your Turning Tide jewelry trait from Healthy to Harmony to restore up to 880 Health, Magicka, and Stamina per jewelry piece with this trait when you activate a synergy, dramatically increasing sustain while in large groups or coordinated 4-player groups.
The Decisive weapon trait provides a 13.8% chance to gain 1 additional Ultimate every time you gain Ultimate, which helps maximize your Aggressive Horn uptime.
| SET NAME | TRAIT | ENCHANTMENT | WEIGHT/TYPE | ACQUIRED | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
HEAD |
Divines |
Maximum Magicka |
Medium |
Veteran Shipwright’s Regret |
|
|
SHOULDERS |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Light |
Undaunted Enclave |
|
|
CHEST |
Reinforced |
Maximum Health |
Heavy |
Black Drake Villa |
|
|
HANDS |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Black Drake Villa |
|
|
WAIST |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Black Drake Villa |
|
|
LEGS |
Reinforced |
Maximum Health |
Heavy |
Black Drake Villa |
|
|
FEET |
Divines |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Black Drake Villa |
|
|
NECKLACE |
Harmony/Healthy |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
Shipwright’s Regret |
|
|
RING |
Harmony/Healthy |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
Shipwright’s Regret |
|
|
RING |
Harmony/Healthy |
Spell Cost Reduction |
Jewelry |
Shipwright’s Regret |
|
|
FRONT BAR (MAIN HAND) |
Decisive |
Poison Damage |
One-handed |
Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
FRONT BAR (OFF-HAND) |
Divines |
Maximum Health |
Shield |
Dragonstar Arena |
|
|
BACK BAR |
Infused |
Crusher |
Ice Staff |
Shipwright’s Regret |
Nazaray is one of the best Monster Sets Tanks can use. It’s primarily used during boss encounters to significantly increase the duration of debuffs applied to enemies. To get the most out of Nazaray with this setup, cast Aggressive Horn shortly after applying the Major Vulnerability debuff to the boss with Turning Tide.
• Alternative: Tremorscale is a great non-DLC Monster Set that reduces the Armor of all enemies in a 4m area depending on how high your Physical or Spell Resistance is. Because this set lasts 15 seconds and has a cooldown of 10 seconds, you can easily achieve 100% uptime.
• Alternative: Engine Guardian is another great non-DLC Monster Set for beginners. Despite it restoring a random resource, it’s hands down the best Monster Set for increasing your self-sustain. This is because it restores resources instead of increasing your recovery stats. Restored resources bypass the Stamina Recovery lock that occurs when you block or sprint, allowing you to gain Stamina while doing either of those actions.
Drake’s Rush grants the Major Heroism buff to you and up to 3 group members when you bash an enemy, allowing everyone in a Dungeon group to build Ultimate incredibly quickly. Because it generates the Ultimate over time rather than all at once, it gives you much more control over your Ultimate usage than Arkasis’s Genius.
Turning Tide grants you a buff called Flowing Water for 10 seconds after blocking an attack. Bashing an enemy with Flowing Water active sends out a wave of water in front of you that applies the Major Vulnerability debuff to up to 6 enemies hit.
• Alternative: Powerful Assault is a non-DLC PVP set you can obtain by opening coffers with Tel Var or purchasing pieces of the set from Guild Stores. The buff from Powerful Assault increases Weapon and Spell Damage for you and up to 5 group members within 12m by 307 when you cast an ability from the Assault skill line. Echoing Vigor is most commonly used because the timers line up well together, and it applies another HOT effect to your group. If you’re using this set in Dungeons, you will only need to cast Echoing Vigor once every cooldown. If you’re in a Trial, you will need to cast Echoing Vigor twice to ensure everyone gets the bonus from Powerful Assault because it only affects up to 5 other group members.
Puncturing Remedy allows you to heal and increase your Physical and Spell Resistance equal to the amount healed while using Pierce Armor, which is typically your primary taunting ability if you’re using One Hand and Shield.
BEGINNER SETUP
Your options for beginner gear are typically limited to crafted sets or something cheap in guild stores. The Beginner Setup for the Dragonknight Tank Build includes only Druid’s Braid to allow for an easy path forward for freshly created characters and CP160 Tanks looking for an excellent build to start farming more challenging content.
The Sturdy armor trait reduces your block cost by up to 4% per piece, making it an excellent choice for beginners likely to hold block more often than more experienced Tanks. This configuration will provide the most optimal progression path for a beginner Tank. After obtaining a crafted gear setup, you can begin collecting other sets.
| SET NAME | TRAIT | ENCHANTMENT | WEIGHT/TYPE | ACQUIRED | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
HEAD |
Sturdy |
Maximum Stamina |
Medium |
Crafted |
|
|
SHOULDERS |
Sturdy |
Maximum Stamina |
Light |
Crafted |
|
|
CHEST |
Reinforced |
Maximum Health |
Heavy |
Crafted |
|
|
HANDS |
Sturdy |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Crafted |
|
|
WAIST |
Sturdy |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Crafted |
|
|
LEGS |
Reinforced |
Maximum Health |
Heavy |
Crafted |
|
|
FEET |
Sturdy |
Maximum Stamina |
Heavy |
Crafted |
|
|
NECKLACE |
Harmony |
Reduce Spell Cost |
Jewelry |
Crafted |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Reduce Spell Cost |
Jewelry |
Crafted |
|
|
RING |
Harmony |
Reduce Spell Cost |
Jewelry |
Crafted |
|
|
FRONT BAR (MAIN HAND) |
Infused |
Absorb Stamina |
One-handed |
Crafted |
|
|
FRONT BAR (OFF-HAND) |
Sturdy |
Maximum Magicka |
Shield |
Crafted |
|
|
BACK BAR |
Infused |
Crusher |
Lightning Staff |
Crafted |
Druid’s Braid is the only set in ESO that grants a bonus for wearing all 12 pieces. Equipping only Druid’s Braid allows you to easily replace it piece by piece as you collect new armor sets.
SKILLS
FRONT BAR
Pierce Armor (Morph of Puncture | Skill Line: One Hand and Shield)
• This is your primary taunt ability. It applies the Minor Breach and Major Breach debuffs, reducing the enemy’s Physical and Spell Resistance by 8922.
Coagulating Blood (Morph of Dragon Blood | Skill Line: Draconic Power)
• A powerful burst heal that strengthens based on how much of your Health is missing. Unlocking the Burning Heart passive from the Draconic Power skill line increases your healing received by 12% while Coagulating Blood is active.
Inner Rage (Morph of Inner Fire | Skill Line: Undaunted)
• This is your secondary taunt. It allows you to taunt enemies from 28m away and provides a synergy that up to 3 allies can activate to deal Flame Damage in an AOE.
Igneous Shield (Morph of Obsidian Shield | Skill Line: Earthen Heart)
• Grants a damage shield to you and nearby allies and the Major Mending buff to you, increasing your healing done by 16%. Unlocking the Mountain’s Blessing passive from the Earthen Heart skill line grants the Minor Brutality buff group-wide, increasing Weapon Damage by 10%.
Warding Contingency (Base Scribing Skill: Ulfsild’s Contingency | Skill Line: Mages Guild)
• After casting this ability, you must cast another with any cost to proc its effects. Warding Contingency grants you and your allies a damage shield, reduces your damage taken by 8%, and grants you Minor Protection, reducing your damage taken by another 5%.
• Focus Script: Damage Shield
• Signature Script: Gladiator’s Tenacity
• Affix Script: Protection
Ultimate: Replenishing Barrier (Morph of Barrier | Skill Line: Support)
• This is your secondary Ultimate ability, primarily slotted to benefit from the Magicka Aid passive from the Support skill line. It grants damage shields to nearby allies that restore your Ultimate and Magicka each time one dissolves to help rebuild Ultimate quickly.
BACK BAR
Leashing Soul (Base Scribing Skill: Wield Soul | Skill Line: Soul Magic)
• Pulls enemies to you, taunts them, and applies the Major Breach debuff, reducing their Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948. It also restores 600 Magicka and Stamina.
• Focus Script: Pull
• Signature Script: Druid’s Resurgence
• Affix Script: Breach
Elemental Blockade (Morph of Wall of Elements | Skill Line: Destruction Staff)
• Triggers the enchantment on your Destructive Staff, even while on the front bar. While using an Ice Staff, you also provide damage shields to your group.
Igneous Weapons (Morph of Molten Weapons | Skill Line: Earthen Heart)
• Grants the Major Brutality and Major Sorcery buffs group-wide, increasing Weapon and Spell Damage by 20%. While these buffs may not initially seem necessary for a Tank, it is important to remember that they significantly increase the strength of your healing abilities.
Balance (Morph of Equilibrium | Skill Line: Mages Guild)
• Grants you the Major Resolve buff, increasing your Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948. It also restores 3,000 Magicka and reduces the effectiveness of your healing done and damage shields by 50% for 4 seconds.
Choking Talons (Morph of Dark Talons | Skill Line: Draconic Power)
• This is one of the best AOE CC abilities. It immobilizes enemies around you and applies the Minor Maim debuff, reducing their damage done by 5%. In addition, a group member can activate a synergy to deal a lot of damage to all enemies caught by the talons.
Ultimate: Aggressive Horn (Morph of War Horn | Skill Line: Assault)
• This is your primary Ultimate ability. It increases the group’s Maximum Magicka and Maximum Stamina by 10% and grants the Major Force buff group-wide, increasing Critical Damage by 20%. The buffs this Ultimate provides do not stack. Discussing rotation with other support roles before beginning combat is essential to avoid overlapping use. While using the Main Tank gear setup, you will almost always have priority to maximize the Major Force buff uptime.
ALTERNATIVE SKILLS
Should you have another Dragonknight in your group, Igneous Weapons can be replaced by any of the following skills, as the buffs provided don’t stack. With that said, a support role, like a Tank, is usually expected to give these buffs to the group.
SPELL WALL
Skill Line: One Hand and Shield
Base Skill: Shield Wall
Spell Well can replace Replenishing Barrier if you can’t yet access that skill. Spell Wall allows you to regain Stamina quickly by heavy attacking while it blocks incoming damage for you.
MAGMA SHELL
Skill Line: Earthen Heart
Base Skill: Magma Armor
Magma Shell can replace Replenishing Barrier or Aggressive Horn if you can’t yet access those skills. Magma Shell limits your incoming damage to 3% of your Maximum Health and grants a powerful damage shield to you and your allies.
STONE GIANT
Skill Line: Earthen Heart
Base Skill: Stonefist
Stone Giant can replace Inner Rage or Warding Contingency to apply the Stagger debuff, increasing the enemy’s damage taken. Using this skill will cause you to have a more difficult time sustaining your Stamina.
DESTRUCTIVE CLENCH
Skill Line: Destruction Staff
Base Skill: Destructive Touch
Destructive Clench can replace Pierce Armor if you’re using an Ice Staff on your front bar. It taunts enemies and applies the Minor Brittle and Major Maim debuffs to them, increasing their Critical Damage taken and reducing their damage done by 10%.
OVERFLOWING ALTAR
Skill Line: Undaunted
Base Skill: Blood Altar
Overflowing Altar can replace Inner Rage, Leashing Soul, or Choking Talons to apply the Minor Lifesteal debuff to enemies, healing you and your allies for 600 Health every 1 second when damaging them. It also provides a synergy to your allies, giving them a powerful burst heal when activated.
HEROIC SLASH
Skill Line: One Hand and Shield
Base Skill: Low Slash
Heroic Slash can replace Warding Contingency if you don’t have access to Scribing. When cast, you gain the Minor Heroism buff, granting you 1 Ultimate every 1.5 seconds for 15 seconds. It also applies the Minor Maim debuff, reducing their damage done by 5%.
RESOLVING VIGOR
Skill Line: Assault
Base Skill: Vigor
Resolving Vigor can replace Choking Talons for an extra HOT effect. It also grants you the Minor Resolve buff, increasing your Physical and Spell Resistance by 2974.
RAZOR CALTROPS
Skill Line: Assault
Base Skill: Caltrops
Razor Caltrops can replace Inner Rage during add fights to apply the Major Breach debuff to all enemies in an 8m area, reducing Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948.
ECHOING VIGOR
Skill Line: Assault
Base Skill: Vigor
Echoing Vigor can replace Choking Talons to give your group a powerful Healing Over Time (HOT) effect. It’s primarily used to proc the Powerful Assault set.
POWER SLAM
Skill Line: One Hand and Shield
Base Skill: Power Bash
Power Slam can replace Inner Rage or Warding Contingency during trash fights if you use the Void Bash set to pull in most enemies around you.
CINDER STORM
Skill Line: Earthen Heart
Base Skill: Ash Cloud
Cinder Storm can replace Inner Rage, Leashing Soul, or Choking Talons for an additional strong AOE HOT effect that reduces enemy Movement Speed by 70%.
BURNING EMBERS
Skill Line: Ardent Flame
Base Skill: Seering Strike
Burning Embers can replace Inner Rage or Leashing Soul for an additional HOT effect or to help maintain your uptime of the Encratis’s Behemoth set.
HARDENED ARMOR
Skill Line: Draconic Power
Base Skill: Spiked Armor
Hardened Armor can replace Balance if you can’t yet access that skill. It grants you a damage shield and the Major Resolve buff, increasing your Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948.
UNRELENTING GRIP
Skill Line: Ardent Flame
Base Skill: Fiery Grip
Unrelenting Grip can replace Leashing Soul if you don’t have access to Scribing. It pulls enemies to you and taunts them. It also grants you the Major Expedition buff, increasing your Movement Speed by 30% for 4 seconds. If you attempt to pull an enemy immune to crowd-control abilities, the cost is fully refunded.
NOXIOUS BREATH
Skill Line: Ardent Flame
Base Skill: Fiery Breath
Noxious Breath can replace Warding Contingency during trash fights to apply the Major Breach debuff to enemies in front of you, reducing their Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948.
EFFICIENT PURGE
Skill Line: Support
Base Skill: Purge
Efficient Purge can replace Inner Rage, Leashing Soul, or Choking Talons to remove DOTs and other negative effects from you and your allies.
REVEALING FLARE
Skill Line: Support
Base Skill: N/A
Revealing Flare can replace Inner Rage to gain 100% uptime for the Major Protection buff while on the front bar, reducing your damage taken by 10%. Unlocking the Magicka Aid passive from the Support skill line increases your Magicka Recovery by up to 10%.
CRUSHING SHOCK
Skill Line: Destruction Staff
Base Skill: Force Shock
Crushing Shock can replace Leashing Soul or Choking Talons when you require a ranged interrupt.
SCRIBING OPTIONS
Soul Burst (Leashing Burst | Skill Line: Soul Magic)
• Enemies within 8m of you are pulled to your location while reducing their Movement Speed by 30% for 6 seconds and applying Minor Breach to them for 20 seconds. Leashing Burst is the perfect skill to use during add fights. To scribe this skill, combine the following scripts:
• Focus Script: Pull
• Signature Script: Hunter’s Snare
• Affix Script: Breach
Torchbearer (Heroic Torch | Skill Line: Fighters Guild)
• Each sweep of the torch generates 1 Ultimate to you and allies in front of you, reduces your damage taken by 17% for 2.2 seconds, and grants Minor Heroism for 20 seconds. Heroic Torch is an excellent option for building Ultimate using an Ice Staff setup. To scribe this skill, combine the following scripts:
• Focus Script: Generate Ultimate
• Signature Script: Gladiator’s Tenacity
• Affix Script: Heroism
Ulfsild’s Contingency (Warding Contingency | Skill Line: Mages Guild)
• Grants you and your allies a large damage shield for 6 seconds while reducing your damage taken by 4% for 6 seconds and granting you Minor Protection for 20 seconds. Warding Contingency is a must-have skill for all Tanks. To scribe this skill, combine the following scripts:
• Focus Script: Damage Shield
• Signature Script: Gladiator’s Tenacity
• Affix Script: Protection
Wield Soul (Leashing Soul | Skill Line: Soul Magic)
• Pulls the targetted enemy to you, taunts them for 15 seconds, and applies Major Breach to them for 10 seconds. Each cast also restores 600 Magicka and Stamina. To scribe this skill, combine the following scripts:
• Focus Script: Pull
• Signature Script: Druid’s Resurgence
• Affix Script: Breach
PASSIVES
Most passives in the skill lines you utilize are worth investing in; however, some are more critical to the build than others. One important thing to note is the absence of the Tri Focus passive. The Tri Focus passive is not recommended on a Tank, as it significantly harms your Magicka sustain by causing your block ability to cost Magicka while wielding an Ice Staff.
Below is a complete list of only the most essential passives to the Dragonknight Tank build, which should be unlocked first if possible.
ARDENT FLAME
- Combustion
- Warmth
- Searing Heat
DRACONIC POWER
- Iron Skin
- Burning Heart
- Scaled Armor
EARTHEN HEART
- All Passives
ONE HAND AND SHIELD
- All Passives
DESTRUCTION STAFF
- Elemental Force
- Ancient Knowledge
LIGHT ARMOR
- Grace
- Evocation
- Spell Warding
- Prodigy
MEDIUM ARMOR
- Dexterity
- Wind Walker
- Agility
- Athletics
HEAVY ARMOR
- All Passives
ASSAULT
- Continuous Attack
SUPPORT
- Magicka Aid
UNDAUNTED
- Undaunted Command
- Undaunted Mettle
ALCHEMY
- Medicinal Use
MUNDUS STONE
THE ATRONACH
SHADOWFEN
RIVENSPIRE
GREENSHADE
The Dragonknight Tank Build uses The Atronach Mundus Stone to increase your Magicka Recovery by 310. Having a high Magicka Recovery stat is incredibly important on a Tank, as it is the primary resource you will use to maintain your buffs and heal yourself.
Each piece of Legendary Quality Divines armor increases this value by 9.1%. While wearing 6 pieces of Legendary Quality Divines armor, the Atronach Mundus Stone increases your Magicka Recovery by 479. If you’re not using a Shield on your front bat, your Magicka Recovery will be increased by 451 instead.
CONSUMABLES
FOOD
ORZORGA'S SMOKED BEAR HAUNCH
The Orzorga’s Smoked Bear Haunch food is the best option for improving your Magicka and Stamina Recovery; however, it’s costly to craft due to the Perfect Roe ingredient. If Gold is an issue, you can use Jewels of Misrule instead for a minimal decrease in stats.
Bonuses:
• Increase Maximum Health by 4312.
• Increase Health Recovery by 406.
• Increase Stamina Recovery by 369.
• Increase Magicka Recovery by 369.
• Lasts 2 hours.
Ingredients:
• Frost Mirriam (1)
• Perfect Roe (1)
• Red Meat (1)
• Tomato (1)
• White Cap (1)
JEWELS OF MISRULE
The Jewels of Misrule food is similar to Orzorga’s Smoked Bear Haunch. It doesn’t increase your Health or Recovery stats but is much cheaper to craft and scales with your level. It can also be purchased from guild stores for a low price if you haven’t learned the recipe.
Bonuses:
• Increase Maximum Health by 3927.
• Increase Stamina Recovery by 357.
• Increase Magicka Recovery by 357.
• Lasts 2 hours.
• Scales with your level.
Ingredients:
• Bervez Juice (1)
• Lotus (1)
• Mint (1)
• Rose (1)
• Columbine (1)
POTIONS
HEROISM POTIONS
Heroism Potions are your best option for maximizing your Ultimate regeneration. Unfortunately, each ingredient in this potion is relatively expensive.
Bonuses:
• Restore ~7582 Magicka.
• Restore ~7582 Stamina.
• Gain Major Intellect.
• Gain Major Endurance.
• Gain Minor Heroism.
• ~47.6-second duration.
Ingredients:
• Columbine (1)
• Dragon’s Blood (1)
• Dragon Rheum (1)
TRI-STAT POTIONS
Tri-Stat Potions are a cheaper alternative to increasing your Stamina and Magicka Recovery; however they don’t grant you the Minor Heroism buff. These potions are the same as the Crown Tri-Restoration Potions given for free from the Daily Login Rewards Calendar.
Bonuses:
• Restore ~10377 Health.
• Restore ~7582 Stamina.
• Restore ~7582 Magicka.
• Gain Major Fortitude.
• Gain Major Endurance.
• Gain Major Intellect.
Ingredients:
• Bugloss (1)
• Columbine (1)
• Dragonthorn (1)
ESSENCE OF STAMINA
The Essence of Stamina potion should only be used to sustain your Stamina if you cannot afford to craft your Tri-Stat potions.
Bonuses:
• Restore ~7582 Stamina.
• Gain Major Endurance.
• ~47.6-second duration.
These potions are generic world-dropped potions and are not worth crafting.
CHAMPION POINTS
The Champion Point (CP) system in ESO provides many powerful benefits that allow you to customize and strengthen your build. It is unlocked at Level 50 and maxes out at 3600 points. The CP system has three unique constellations: Craft, Warfare, and Fitness. The Warfare and Fitness constellations each have three subtrees.
• The Craft constellation focuses on crafting, gold gain, movement speed, stealth, and increasing material yields.
• The Warfare constellation focuses on increasing damage, healing, and damage mitigation.
• The Fitness constellation focuses on your core stats, such as Maximum Health and various methods of recovery, and provides many defensive benefits.
The Champion Point allocation below is optimized for the Dragonknight Tank build, focusing on increasing self-sustain, damage mitigation, and Movement Speed, while decreasing the cost of your damage shield abilities.
Follow the recommended path below while levelling up and spending your Champion Points to see strong progression.
- Steed’s Blessing (+50) (Slot 1)
- Gilded Fingers (+10)
- Fortune’s Favor (+10)
- Wanderer (+15)
- Steadfast Enchantment (+10)
- Rationer (+10) (Slot 2)
- Liquid Efficiency (+75) (Slot 3)
- Rationer (+20)
- Treasure Hunter (+50) (Slot 4)
- Master Gatherer (+15)
- Gifted Rider (+100) (Replace Slot 4)
- Gilded Fingers (+40)
- Breakfall (+50)
- Steadfast Enchantment (+40)
- Soul Reservoir (+33)
- Beyond this point, you can continue to unlock passives or more slottable perks based on your preference.
- Eldritch Insight (+10)
- Quick Recovery (+10)
- Preparation (+20)
- Ironclad (+50) (Slot 1)
- Duelist’s Rebuff (+50) (Slot 2)
- Blessed (+10)
- Focused Mending (+50) (Slot 3)
- Unassailable (+25) (Slot 4)
- Bulwark (+50) (Replace Slot 4)
- Elemental Aegis (+20)
- Hardy (+20)
- Piercing (+10)
- Flawless Ritual (+40)
- Battle Mastery (+40)
- Tireless Discipline (+20)
- Eldritch Insight (+10)
- Blessed (+10)
- Quick Recovery (+10)
- Beyond this point, you can continue to unlock passives or more slottable perks based on your preference:
- Unassailable (+25) can replace Bulwark or Focused Mending to reduce your damage taken from enemy AOEs.
- Enduring Resolve (50) can replace Bulwark or Focused Mending to reduce your damage taken from enemy DOTs.
- Rejuvenation (+50) (Slot 1)
- Tumbling (+15)
- Mystic Tenacity (+10)
- Hero’s Vigor (+10)
- Shield Master (+50) (slot 2)
- Bastion (+50) (slot 3)
- Hasty (+8)
- Celerity (+50) (Slot 4)
- Hero’s Vigor (+10)
- Tireless Guardian (+10)
- Nimble Protector (+6)
- Fortification (+30)
- Defiance (+20)
- Tumbling (+15)
- Hasty (+8)
- Beyond this point, you can continue to unlock passives or more slottable perks based on your preference.
- Bracing Anchor (50) can replace Celerity during boss fights to significantly increase your block mitigation in exchange for Movement Speed.
- Fortified (50) can replace Bastion or Celerity to increase your Physical and Spell Resistance.
TIPS & TRICKS
The Dragonknight Tank build does not follow a traditional rotation. Instead, you must be able to adapt to meet the needs of whatever situation you find yourself in.
Below, you will find tips & tricks on effectively fulfilling the Tank role during enemy and boss encounters. Every Dungeon, Trial, and Arena has different mechanics, and it is essential that you understand your build and why you use the recommended armor sets and skills you do. Be sure to read this build guide entirely.
BUFFING AND DEBUFFING
Pre-buffing is an essential habit to pick up as early as possible to increase your efficiency as a Tank, allowing you to use your time once in combat more effectively. Always activate Coagulating Blood, Igneous Weapons, Igneous Shield and Balance before starting combat to ensure your group has time to apply their pre-buffs.
Using as many buffs before combat as possible will allow you to focus primarily on taunting and grouping enemies. As the Tank, you should always initiate combat to have as much control as possible.
Elemental Blockade allows you to easily maintain a Crusher enchantment on your Destruction Staff back bar, even while on your front bar.
Heroic Slash should be kept active on threatening enemies to reduce incoming damage and increase your Ultimate regeneration.
If you follow along with the armor setups above, much of your build already focuses on buffing your group members. Fulfilling the Tank role in ESO means much more than having high Health and blocking.
Sets like Encratis’s Behemoth and Turning Tide significantly increase group damage, while other sets such as Nazaray, Saxhleel Champion, Pearlescent Ward, and Pillager’s Profit are excellent utility sets that improve group damage, defences, Ultimate regeneration, and complement your other equipped sets.
It’s best to avoid Fortified Brass, Plague Doctor, and Battalion Defender as you progress, as they offer nothing substantial to your group.
CONTROL
Learning which enemies should be taunted first and where to properly group enemies for your Healers and DPS is essential to becoming a great Tank. Grouping enemies in one area allows your group to place AOE abilities on you, then switch their focus to the more threatening enemies. The most threatening enemies are typically the largest or fewest in an add fight.
As a Dragonknight Tank, you have many abilities in your toolkit that taunt, pull, or both:
Pierce Armor is your primary taunt ability. Utilizing this skill will reduce enemy Physical and Spell Resistance the most.
Inner Rage is your secondary taunt that provides a synergy to 3 group members that deals Flame Damage to surrounding enemies when activated.
Destructive Clench is another ranged taunt that is an excellent alternative to Inner Rage. It applies Major Maim and Minor Brittle and immobilizes them.
Unrelenting Grip pulls enemies to you and taunts them if another player hasn’t already taunted them.
Void Bash doesn’t taunt enemies, but it is an excellent way to pull most enemies in an area to you and apply the Major Maim debuff to them.
While you are not required to taunt every enemy, keeping them locked down to an area with snares and crowd-control abilities, such as Razor Caltrops, allows your group to take them down much faster.
POSITIONING
Positioning is possibly the most important skill to master when improving yourself as a Tank. Getting in the habit of placing yourself on the opposite side of your group is vital as it prevents them from taking potentially fatal cleave damage.
Before initiating combat, choose a location where you can easily group enemies. The best place is often the most enemy-dense area because it prevents you from needing to pull in more enemies than necessary.
Once you determine the best position to group enemies, cast Razor Caltrops to immediately reduce their Movement Speed, get in position, and follow up with Power Slam if you’re using the Void Bash set and then Choking Talons to immobilize them. If you’re not using the Void Bash set, you can follow up with Choking Talons right away. Enemies locked to an area are much easier to control and debuff.
Some enemies may be more spread out in some add fights, so you may need to pull them in with a more direct, longer-ranged ability, such as Unrelenting Grip.
SUSTAIN
Tanks frequently use all resources. While few skills cost Health, it is still an essential resource to maintain for obvious reasons. Magicka is typically used for self-healing, buffing allies, and debuffing enemies; Stamina is used for blocking, roll dodging, breaking free, and debuffing enemies. In this section, you will learn of the various ways a Dragonknight Tank can stay on top of sustainability:
Your class skills and passives significantly improve your sustain:
• The Battle Roar passive from the Earthen Heart skill line restores 50 Health, Magicka, and Stamina for each point of the Ultimate ability spent.
• The Combustion passive from the Ardent Flame skill line allows you to restore 1,000 Magicka when you apply the Burning status effect or 1,000 Stamina when you apply the Poison status effect every 3 seconds.
• The Helping Hands passive restores 1,120 Stamina every time you cast an Earthen Heart skill, such as Igneous Shield, allowing you to easily maintain your Stamina pool, even while blocking.
There are also universal buffs often provided by your Healers that improve your sustain. The Minor Fortitude, Minor Intellect, and Minor Endurance buffs increase Health Recovery, Magicka Recovery, and Stamina Recovery by 15%.
Your potions grant the Major Fortitude, Major Intellect, and Major Endurance buffs, increasing your Health Recovery, Magicka Recovery, and Stamina Recovery by 30% on top of restoring a burst of Health, Magicka, and/or Stamina, depending on the potion you use. The Tri-Stat potion is your best option as a Tank, and even though they’re expensive, don’t worry; the Daily Login Calendar Rewards frequently has the Crown Store version of these potions available for free.
Heavy Armor increases your Armor stat but also improves your sustain through passives. The Constitution and Revitalize passives restore 108 Magicka and Stamina when you take damage and increase the amount of Magicka and Stamina your heavy attacks restore by 4% for each piece of Heavy Armor slotted. The Dragonknight Tank Build uses five pieces of Heavy Armor, meaning you restore 540 Magicka and Stamina upon taking damage and an additional 20% Magicka and Stamina from heavy attacks.
Speaking of heavy attacks, it’s a great way to improve your Stamina sustain significantly. As a Tank, you rely on Magicka Recovery to sustain your Magicka resource; however, a heavy attack will restore a decent bit of Stamina if you have your one-handed weapon and shield in your hands. Heavy attacking can leave you vulnerable, as you can’t block incoming damage during the windup. It’s best to heavy attack immediately after your enemy’s heavy attacks because they usually give you a few seconds to retaliate.
Each Sturdy trait on your armor reduces the cost of your block ability by up to 4% at maximum quality. Because this build uses seven pieces of Sturdy armor plus a Sturdy shield, you can reach up to 32% block cost reduction while on the front bar just from this trait alone.
Your jewelry enchantments increase your Magicka Recovery by up to 169 each at maximum quality for a total of 507 Magicka Recovery. Changing to the Infused trait on your jewelry instead of Triune would increase this bonus to 810 Magicka Recovery. Doing so would reduce your Maximum Health, Magicka, and Stamina.
The Atronach Mundus Stone increases your Magicka Recovery by 310. Changing to the Divines trait on your armor instead of Sturdy would increase this bonus to a maximum of 507 Magicka Recovery. Doing so would significantly increase the Stamina cost of blocking enemy attacks.
It is important to note the difference between “recovery” and “restore,” especially when it comes to being a Tank. Resource recovery occurs over time, whereas resource restore typically happens all at once, though it can happen over time if the skill states as such. Additionally, Stamina Recovery is locked to 0 when you’re blocking or sprinting, meaning it will continue to deplete until you have nothing left. On the other hand, drinking a potion will restore your Stamina regardless of if you are blocking or sprinting.
ULTIMATES
The buffs granted by most Ultimate abilities do not stack, so it’s a good idea to coordinate with your group on when you should use yours. The most commonly used Ultimate abilities by support roles are Aggressive Horn and Replenishing Barrier:
Aggressive Horn is your primary offensive Ultimate ability. It increases the group’s Maximum Magicka and Maximum Stamina by 10% for 30 seconds and grants them the Major Force buff for 10 seconds, increasing Critical Damage by 10%. Many groups will have their support roles rotate through their Aggressive Horns as the Magicka and Stamina buffs near the end of their duration to maximize uptimes; however, depending on the group composition of class, skills, sets, etc., and if Ultimate can be built up fast enough, some groups may rotate as the Major Force buff runs out to push DPS.
Replenishing Barrier is a powerful defensive Ultimate ability that grants massive damage shields to all nearby allies. It’s good to have in fights with phases of high-damage enemy attacks and mechanics, as it significantly increases the group’s survivability. Additionally, it restores your Magicka, generates Ultimate as the wards dissolve, and if you invest in the Magicka Aid passive from the Support skill line, increases your Magicka Recovery by up to 10% while slotted. If you’d prefer more group healing, Reviving Barrier heals your allies while they have the damage shield active on them.
As a Dragonknight Tank, you have a few other alternative options while you work on unlocking the above Ultimates:
Magma Shell limits your incoming damage to 3% of your Maximum Health and grants nearby group members a damage shield for 100% of their Maximum Health.
Spell Wall blocks enemy attacks for you, allowing you to quickly regain Stamina through heavy attacks.
SEPTEMBER 29 / 2024: – UPDATE 43
• Trial Setups:
• Main Tank Setup:
• Changed Drake’s Rush to Pearlescent Ward to make room on the Off-Tank setup for Lucent Echoes.
• Off-Tank Setup:
• Changed Pearlescent Ward to Lucent Echoes.
• Changed Encratis’s Behemoth to Nazaray.
• Updated Fitness Champion Points.
JUNE 23 / 2024: – UPDATE 42 – GOLD ROAD
• No Changes.
MAY 14 / 2024: – UPDATE 41 – SCIONS OF ITHELIA
• Adjusted Attribute Points.
• All Armor Setups:
• Changed the trait of the Chest, Legs, and Shield pieces from Sturdy to Reinforced to increase Armor Rating.
• Adjusted Skills:
• Replaced Destructive Clench with Inner Rage.
• Moved Destructive Clench to the Alternative Skills section.
• Adjusted Champion Points:
• Better optimized progression path to unlock the most vital perks and passives first.
• Warfare:
• Replaced Enduring Resolve with Focused Mending.
• Fitness:
• Replaced Boundless Vitality with Shield Master.
• Added Bastion to alternative perks.
NOVEMBER 15 / 2023: – UPDATE 40 – INFINITE ARCHIVE
Champion Points:
• Swapped Unassailable with Bulwark to increase Physical and Spell Resistance.
Pruned all previous changes and moved them to a separate Archived Changes list at the bottom of the page.
AUGUST 16 / 2023: – UPDATE 39
• Replaced Coagulating Blood with Green Dragon Blood.
JUNE 04 / 2023: – UPDATE 38 – NECROM
• Updated Trial Setups:
• Replaced Claw of Yolnahkriin on the Main Tank Setup due to Minor Courage being easily granted by an Arcanist.
• Claw of Yolnahkriin is still a great option in groups without an Arcanist.
• Replaced Engine Guardian with Encratis’s Behemoth.
• Engine Guardian is still a great alternative for self-sustaining.
• Updated Dungeon Setup:
• Changed the name of the Dungeon Setup to Intermediate Setup to more accurately convey what the setup achieves.
• Expect a dedicated end-game Dungeon Build for all classes in the future.
• Replaced Swarm Mother with Tremorscale for better group damage.
• Changed from the Reverberating Bash morph to the Power Slam morph of Power Bash.
• Added a Sustain section to the Rotation section.
MARCH 16 / 2023: – UPDATE 37 – SCRIBES OF FATE
• Replaced Turning Tide with Akaviri Dragonguard on the Dungeon Setup.
• Added alternative options to the Warfare CP path.
• Added alternative options to the Fitness CP path.
FEBRUARY 15 / 2023:
• Added Passives to the build.
JANUARY 04 / 2023:
• Replaced Inner Rage on the back bar with Destructive Clench.
• Moved Inner Rage to the Alternative Skills section.
