HEAVY ATTACK ARCANIST SOLO GUIDE
Last updated: Update 44 - 1st February 2025
This build is capable of soloing every Veteran dungeon that doesn’t have a specific mechanic that requires multiple people. It’s also capable of soloing most Hard Mode dungeons, and with some adjustments even the more difficult ones.
In this guide I’ll be regularly using the terms Regular and Difficult. Regular refers to content that is intended to be solo-ed (such as Maelstrom Arena or Vateshran Arena) and to any overland content such as World Bosses, Dolmens, Dragons, Volcanic Vents, Harrowstorms, Mirrormoor Incursions, etc. Majority of dungeon fights will also fall under that category. Difficult refers to extremely difficult dungeon fights.
SKILL SETUPS
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Cruxweaver Armor |
| Slot 2: Inspired Scholarship | Slot 2: Simmering Frenzy |
| Slot 3: Tentacular Dread | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Barbed Trap | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: The Languid Eye | Ultimate: The Languid Eye |
SCRIBING:
- Use the
Flame,
Gladiator's Tenacity and
Savagery and Prophecy
combination on your
Ulfsild's Contingency - Use the
Magic,
Class Mastery and
Berserk combination on your
Banner Bearer - Use
Scalding Rune instead of
Ulfsild's Contingency if you don't have
access to Scribing
- Use
Rune of the Colorless Pool (frontbar) and
Zenas’ Empowering Disc (backbar) instead of
Banner Bearer if you don't have access to
Scribing
INFO:
- Use
Rune of the Colorless Pool,
Zenas’ Empowering Disc or
Runic Sunder instead of
Simmering Frenzy if you're not a
Vampire
VAMPIRISM
Becoming a Vampire is extremely beneficial on this build because it allows us to
use
Simmering Frenzy in easier
fights
and since it's a Heavy Attack build we can mostly ignore the increased ability cost that you
get
from being a
Vampire.
By staying on 3rd Stage of
Vampirism you'll also benefit
from
the
Undeath passive, but you should
lower or completely cleanse
Vampirism when trying to solo
an
extremely difficult dungeon with lots of flame damage.
GEAR
This is the crafted gear setup you can start with.
| Gear Slot | Set | Weight/Type | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() Head |
Medium | |||
![]() Shoulders |
Medium | |||
![]() Chest |
Heavy | |||
![]() Hands |
Light | |||
![]() Belt |
Light | |||
![]() Legs |
Medium | |||
![]() Boots |
Light | |||
![]() Necklace |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Frontbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff | |||
![]() Backbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff |
ADDITIONAL INFO:
- Use
Training
traits if you're still leveling. If you're already max level and have enough Champion Points you can instead
use
Divines and
Reinforced on the
chest piece
This is my suggested setup for regular content, such as Solo Arenas, World Bosses, Dolmens, Dragons, Volcanic Vents, Harrowstorms, Mirrormoor Incursions and majority of the dungeons.
| Gear Slot | Set | Weight/Type | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() Head |
Medium | |||
![]() Shoulders |
Medium | |||
![]() Chest |
Heavy | |||
![]() Hands |
Light | |||
![]() Belt |
Light | |||
![]() Legs |
Medium | |||
![]() Boots |
Light | |||
![]() Necklace |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Frontbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff | |||
![]() Backbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff |
This is my suggested setup for soloing extremely difficult fights in dungeons.
| Gear Slot | Set | Weight/Type | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() Head |
Medium | |||
![]() Shoulders |
Medium | |||
![]() Chest |
Heavy | |||
![]() Hands |
Light | |||
![]() Belt |
Light | |||
![]() Legs |
Medium | |||
![]() Boots |
Light | |||
![]() Necklace |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Frontbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff | |||
![]() Backbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff |
ADDITIONAL INFO:
CHAMPION POINTS
Warfare
Weapons Expert (20%
Light
and Heavy Attack Damage)
Deadly Aim (6% Single
Target Damage)
Fighting Finesse (8%
Critical Damage and Healing)
Exploiter (10% Damage
against Off Balance enemies)
Fitness
Boundless Vitality
(1400
Max Health)
Fortified (1731 armor)
Sustained by Suffering
(150
Health, Stamina and Magicka Recovery when debuffed)
Rejuvenation (90
Health,
Stamina and Magicka Recovery)
ADDITIONAL INFO:
- Replace
Sustained by Suffering with
Bastion
when using
Impervious Runeward - When soloing extremely difficult dungeons you should replace
Exploiter and
Fighting Finesse with 2 of the
4
mitigation CPs (
Ironclad,
Duelist’s Rebuff,
Enduring Resolve,
Unassailable)
RACE
When it comes to solo PvE, you need both damage and survivability so pretty much all races have useful racials.
The best race for dealing damage is Khajiit. While the Critical Damage from
Feline Ambush can sometimes be
wasted due to Critical Damage being capped at 125%, it will never happen in solo content,
because there will be no tanks or healers providing you with the Major Force buff.
The best race for survivability is Nord. The
Rugged racial will provide
around
6% damage mitigation.
MUNDUS
ATTRIBUTES
HEALTH
0
STAMINA
0
MAGICKA
64
For most content you should put all 64 points into Magicka. For difficult content you should devote as many attribute points as necessary to Health - for some content you’ll be able to get away with 32 Health 32 Magicka, for the extremely difficult stuff you’ll need 64 Health.
FOOD
You should use the
Artaeum Pickled Fish Bowl. If
you
need a cheaper alternative,
Solitude Salmon-Millet Soup
provides only slightly lower stats.
Other decent foods:
Orzorga's Tripe Trifle Pocket
provides Stamina Recovery at the cost of Maximum Magicka. It will lower your damage, but
it’s very useful for fights where you have to dodge roll a lot.
Orzorga's Smoked Bear Haunch
provides Magicka and Stamina Recovery at the cost of Maximum Magicka. It will lower your
damage, but it’s very useful for fights where you have to both dodge roll a lot and spam
your
Hardened Ward.
POTIONS
Since your sustain is being taken care of by the
fact
that Heavy Attacks restore resources, you can instead use the Armor potions, which will
increase your armor by 5280. You can craft them by combining
Bugloss,
Mountain's Flower
and
Mudcrab Chitin.
In fights where you need to dodge roll a lot you can use Tri-Stat potions instead. You
can
craft them by combining
Columbine,
Bugloss
and
Mountain's Flower.
Heroism potions are an expensive alternative to Tri-Stat potions. They provide Minor
Heroism
on top of the sustain. They're crafted by combining
Dragon Rheum,
Dragon's Blood
and
Columbine.
GAMEPLAY
Here you can see this build tackling Veteran dungeons
THANKS FOR READING
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