Heavy Attack Subclass Solo Build - ESO Guide
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.
Subclassing
Base Class
This build can used by any class. The strongest combination can be used by characters who have either Sorcerer, Necromancer or Nightblade as their base class, but as a Necromancer you can utilize the Necromancer
Class Mastery
script on
Banner Bearer which grants increased Maximum Resources, making it the best base class, though by a very small margin. In fact, DPS wise the Necromancer
Class Mastery
is equal to
Cavalier's Charge
, which is what other base classes are going to use, it's only better because it provides Maximum Resources which improve your survivability.
Strongest Combination
This combination can be used when you have either Sorcerer, Necromancer or Nightblade as your base class.
Templar base class variant
Use this combination when your base class is Templar
Warden base class variant
Use this combination when your base class is Warden
Dragonknight base class variant
Use this combination when your base class is Dragonknight
Arcanist base class variant
Use this combination when your base class is Arcanist
Skill Setups
Base Setup
A base setup that will work for most situations and which should be your starting point when making situational setups
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Soul Burst |
| Slot 3: Critical Surge | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Detonating Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Soul Harvest | Ultimate: Shooting Star |
Ulfsild's Contingency - your
source of crucial Empower buff, which increases damage done by Heavy Attack by 70%. Since
Ulfsild's Contingency is a
Mages Guild skill, it will trigger the
Might of the Guild passive,
which grants you Empower for 10 seconds. It also deals decent damage in an AoE and grants
you Minor Force buff, increasing your Critical Damage by 10%.
Ulfsild's Contingency is
delayed until the next skill cast but whenever it's needed you can activate it early by
bashing your enemy. If you cast this ability as you're finishing your Heavy Attack, the
Empower you gain from it will start working just in time to boost the final tick of that
Heavy Attack you just finished. Use
Gladiator's Tenacity
instead of
Lingering Torment
when you need more damage mitigation
Hurricane - an ability which
provides a crucial Major Resolve buff which provides 5948 armor and it deals very good
damage. It also grants you a 15% movement speed buff during its duration
Critical Surge - your source of
Major Brutality and Sorcery that will also heal you for 3300 whenever you deal critical
damage, up to once every second. The heal itself can also be a critical heal
Detonating Siphon - your source
of Major Savagery and Major Prophecy which also deals decent damage and increases your
damage done by 3% while slotted. You need it slotted on your frontbar to trigger passives of
the Grave Lord skill line. You need a corpse to activate it but you'll get it from
Grave Lord's Sacrifice
Banner Bearer (
Magic
,
Class Mastery
,
Berserk
) - increases your
Magical damage done by 6%, provides either Weapon and Spell Damage or maximum resources
depending on your 2nd script and provides Minor Berserk, increasing your damage done by 5%.
It also severely decreases your sustain but it's not an issue on a Heavy Attack build. Use
Mitigation
instead of
Magic
when you need more damage mitigation. Use
Cavalier's Charge
instead of
Class Mastery
if your base class isn't Necromancer. Use
Warmage's Defense
instead of
Class Mastery
if your base class isn't Necromancer and it's a more difficult fight
Soul Harvest - a cheap ultimate
that increases target's damage taken from you by 20%. This is the ultimate you should use in
Single Target fights. You need it on your frontbar to trigger passives of the Assassination
skill line. Having it slotted will also cause you to regain 10 Ultimate whenever you deal a
final blow against an enemy
Grave Lord's Sacrifice - this
ability will provide a 15% bonus to the channeled part of your Heavy Attack. It will also
generate the corpse you'll need for
Detonating Siphon
Soul Burst (
Shock
,
Lingering Torment
,
Courage
) - an AoE DoT which grants you Minor Courage, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 215
Elemental Susceptibility - an
extremely loaded ability that does a multitude of things. It's completely free to cast so
it'll help you sustain. It applies Major Breach, which reduces enemies' armor by 5948 which
is a massive damage increase. It also applies Burning, Chilled and Concussed status effects
at the beginning and then every 7.5 seconds. All of these Status Effects deal decent damage,
but Concussed will also apply Minor Vulnerability for 4 seconds, increasing enemies' damage
taken by 5%. Chilled will also apply Minor Maim for 4 seconds, reducing enemies' damage done
by 5%. The Concussed proc will also synergise with our
Elemental Blockade
Elemental Blockade - this
ability will constantly apply your
Weapon Damage enchantment. It
will also constantly apply Off Balance to enemies who are Concussed, and they'll be
Concussed thanks to
Elemental Susceptibility.
Enemies who are Off Balance take 70% increased damage from Heavy Attacks
Shooting Star - a powerful
ultimate that deals damage in an AoE and grants you Ultimate for each enemy hit with the
initial blast. Use it in AoE fights or when you start fights with high amount of Ultimate
stored up
When you want to slot something situational you have to remove
Detonating Siphon, move
Grave Lord's Sacrifice to frontbar
and then change the
Berserk
script on your
Banner Bearer to
Savagery and Prophecy
Resolving Vigor - use it for
more difficult fights where the pressure is constant and thus you need the Minor Resolve. It
can also be used as your main source of healing before you obtain the
Ring of the Pale Order Mythic
or in fights with invulnerability phases where you can't heal with
Ring of the Pale Order
Silver Leash - a chain ability
that you can slot in trash packs to stack enemies and get through them faster
Mystic Siphon - other morph of
Detonating Siphon which
increases your recoveries, use it in fights where you need more sustain. Due to Shock damage
bonuses from
Magic
Banner Bearer and
Energized passive it's only
slightly behind
Detonating Siphon in damage
Revealing Flare - slot it for
more difficult fights where you need more damage mitigation. It's a skill that passively
grants Major Protection, reducing your damage taken by 10%. It will also trigger the
Magicka Aid passive, which
increases Magicka Recovery by 10%
Wield Soul (
Damage Shield
,
Druid's Resurgence
,
Vitality
) - a strong damage
shield that restores your Stamina and grants you Major Vitality, increasing your healing
received and strength of damage shields by 12%
Precognition - an ultimate that
breaks you out of some otherwise unavoidable stuns, you'll need it to get around some
mechanics which are otherwise impossible or very difficult to solo, like for example
Inferno's Hold in Zaan the Scalecaller fight
Ball of Lightning - an ability
that teleports you forward. Use it in fights where you need more mobility or in fights where
this teleport allows you to invalidate some mechanic
Priority List
This is just a list of priorities. Simply recast abilities when they run out and follow this list of priorities when there are multiple things to refresh
- 1. Use
Ulfsild's Contingency if your
Empower is out or if it's going to run out by the end of the Heavy Attack you're channeling
- 2. Use
Critical Surge (you can recast
this early)
- 3. Use
Elemental Susceptibility - 4. Use
Elemental Blockade - 5. Use
Soul Burst - 6. If it's an AoE fight or you're starting at or close to 200 Ultimate, use
Shooting Star - 7. If it's a Single Target fight, use
Soul Harvest - 8. Use
Grave Lord's Sacrifice - 9. Use
Detonating Siphon, keep in mind
that the corpse from
Grave Lord's Sacrifice will
only stay on the ground for 5 seconds
- 10. Use
Hurricane
Pre-buff
These abilities can be pre-cast before entering combat
Final Setups
A few examples of final setups you could end up with after applying the situational skills to the base setup
A setup with lots of damage mitigation for bosses that hit very hard
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Critical Surge |
| Slot 2: Revealing Flare | Slot 2: Soul Burst |
| Slot 3: Wield Soul | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Grave Lord's Sacrifice | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Soul Harvest | Ultimate: Shooting Star |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Revealing Flare replaces
Detonating Siphon. You need a Grave Lord
ability on your frontbar to trigger the passives of that skill line so
Grave Lord's Sacrifice switches places with
Critical Surge
Wield Soul replaces
Hurricane
Banner Bearer changes the
Magic
script to
Mitigation
and
Berserk
to
Savagery and Prophecy
, because
Detonating Siphon is gone. If you're not a Necromancer you should also change
Cavalier's Charge
to
Warmage's Defense
- This setup requires you to wear
Mighty Chudan,
as it doesn't get Major Resolve from a skill anymore
A setup you should use as a Templar
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Critical Surge |
| Slot 3: Blazing Spear | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Detonating Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Energy Overload | Ultimate: Shooting Star |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Blazing Spear replaces
Soul Burst and then swaps places with
Critical Surge so you can benefit from
Piercing Spear passive
Energy Overload replaces
Soul Harvest. It will passively grant you Weapon Damage from
Expert Mage passive and it can be used to restore resources in emergencies
A setup you should use as a Warden
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Critical Surge |
| Slot 3: Bird of Prey | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Detonating Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Wild Guardian | Ultimate: Wild Guardian |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Bird of Prey replaces
Soul Burst and then swaps places with
Critical Surge
Wild Guardian replaces both
Soul Harvest and
Shooting Star
Banner Bearer changes the
Berserk
script to
Courage
, because
Bird of Prey already provides it
A setup you should use as a Dragonknight
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Flames of Oblivion |
| Slot 3: Critical Surge | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Detonating Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Energy Overload | Ultimate: Standard of Might |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Flames of Oblivion replaces
Soul Burst
Energy Overload replaces
Soul Harvest. It will passively grant you Weapon Damage from
Expert Mage passive and it can be used to restore resources in emergencies
Standard of Might replaces
Shooting Star
A setup you should use as an Arcanist
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Critical Surge |
| Slot 3: Tentacular Dread | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Detonating Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Energy Overload | Ultimate: The Languid Eye |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Tentacular Dread replaces
Soul Burst and then swaps places with
Critical Surge
Energy Overload replaces
Soul Harvest. It will passively grant you Weapon Damage from
Expert Mage passive and it can be used to restore resources in emergencies
The Languid Eye replaces
Shooting Star
Ulfsild's Contingency changes the
Lingering Torment
script to
Class Mastery
A setup I've used when fighting Arkasis the Mad Scientist in the Stone Garden dungeon
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Grave Lord's Sacrifice |
| Slot 2: Hurricane | Slot 2: Soul Burst |
| Slot 3: Critical Surge | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Mystic Siphon | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Banner Bearer | Slot 5: Banner Bearer |
| Ultimate: Soul Harvest | Ultimate: Shooting Star |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
Detonating Siphon changes to
Mystic Siphon to help with sustaining dodge
rolling
A setup I've used when fighting Talen-Lah and Bar-Sakka in the Naj-Caldeesh dungeon
| Front Bar | Back Bar |
|---|---|
| Slot 1: Ulfsild's Contingency | Slot 1: Critical Surge |
| Slot 2: Revealing Flare | Slot 2: Resolving Vigor |
| Slot 3: Wield Soul | Slot 3: Elemental Susceptibility |
| Slot 4: Grave Lord's Sacrifice | Slot 4: Elemental Blockade |
| Slot 5: Camouflaged Hunter | Slot 5: Bull Netch |
| Ultimate: Wild Guardian | Ultimate: Shooting Star |
What Changes
Changes compared to the Base Setup
- This fight requires a purge and a lot of Stamina sustain, so Animal Companions skill line is straight up superior to Assassination
Banner Bearer gets replaced by
Camouflaged Hunter and
Bull Netch to help with Stamina sustain and to purge Bar-Sakka's DoT
Resolving Vigor replaces
Soul Burst because Minor Resolve is no longer provided by
Banner Bearer- Despite this setup having access to
Wild Guardian, this setup still uses
Shooting Star becuse this fight has lots of adds, allowing you to recover a lot of Ultimate with each use of
Shooting Star.
Wild Guardian is still front-barred for the 5% Critical Damage bonus from
Advanced Species
Passives
Class
Weapon
Armor
Guild
Alliance War
Racial
Craft
Class - Storm Calling
Capacitor - Medium Priority
Energized - High Priority
Amplitude - High Priority
Expert Mage - High Priority
Class - Assassination
Master Assassin - High Priority
Executioner - High Priority
Pressure Points - High Priority
Hemorrhage - High Priority
Class - Grave Lord
Reusable Parts - Low Priority
Death Knell - High Priority
Dismember - High Priority
Rapid Rot - High Priority
Weapon - Destruction Staff
Tri Focus - High Priority
Penetrating Magic - High Priority
Elemental Force - Medium Priority
Ancient Knowledge - High Priority
Destruction Expert - Low Priority
Armor - Light Armor
Grace - Low Priority
Evocation - Low Priority
Spell Warding - Low Priority
Prodigy - High Priority
Concentration - High Priority
Armor - Medium Armor
Dexterity - High Priority
Wind Walker - Low Priority
Improved Sneak - Not needed
Agility - High Priority
Athletics - Low Priority
Armor - Heavy Armor
Resolve - Medium Priority
Constitution - Low Priority
Juggernaut - Medium Priority
Revitalize - Low Priority
Rapid Mending - Low Priority
Guild - Fighters Guild
Intimidating Presence - Medium Priority
Slayer - High Priority
Banish the Wicked - Medium Priority
Skilled Tracker - Medium Priority
Bounty Hunter - Not needed
Guild - Mages Guild
Persuasive Will - Not needed
Mage Adept - Low Priority
Everlasting Magic - Medium Priority
Magicka Controller - High Priority
Might of the Guild - High Priority
Guild - Psijic Order
Clairvoyance - Low Priority
Spell Orb - Not needed
Concentrated Barrier - Low Priority
Deliberation - Not needed
Alliance War - Support
Magicka Aid - Medium Priority
Combat Medic - Not needed
Battle Resurrection - Not needed
Race - Your race
Get all of your racials, no matter which race you are
Craft - Alchemy
Solvent Proficiency - Not needed
Keen Eye: Reagents - Not needed
Medicinal Use - High Priority
Chemistry - Not needed
Laboratory Use - Not needed
Snakeblood - Not needed
Gear
Regular Setup
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 |
- Replace
Anthelmir's Construct with
Mighty Chudan when you need an additional skill slot
Final Setups
Example of a beginner setup made with just crafted gear.
| 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 |
The setup in the table uses only crafted gear, but if you already own parts of the Regular setup like
Ring of the Pale Order you can start using them immediately
You don't need to start with crafted gear, simply pick 2 sets from the Alternative section that are easiest for you to obtain
Gear that might be easier to obtain and can be used while you work towards the best gear
Dungeon gear isn't always an upgrade to Crafted/Overland gear. It's listed in case you already own some of it
Crafted:
All of these are tradable and can be bought from other players
Overland:
All of these are tradable and can be bought from other players
Mother's Sorrow (Light) - Deshaan
Back-Alley Gourmand (Light) - Galen and Y'ffelon
Dragonguard Elite (Medium) - Southern Elsweyr
PvP:
All of these are tradable and can be bought from other players
Deadly Strike (Medium) - Bruma Elite Gear Vendor
Dungeons:
Sergeant's Mail (Heavy) - Wayrest Sewers 1 & 2
Noble Duelist's Silks (Light) - Blessed Crucible
Storm Master (Medium) - Tempest Island
Undaunted Infiltrator (Medium) - Arx Corinium
Undaunted Unweaver (Light) - Blackheart Haven
Tzogvin's Warband (Medium) - Frostvault
- 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
Setup for maximizing damage in fights that don't hit very hard
| Gear Slot | Set | Weight/Type | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() Head |
Light | |||
![]() Shoulders |
Medium | |||
![]() Chest |
Medium | |||
![]() Hands |
Medium | |||
![]() Belt |
Medium | |||
![]() Legs |
Medium | |||
![]() Boots |
Medium | |||
![]() Necklace |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Ring |
Jewelry | |||
![]() Frontbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff | |||
![]() Backbar Main Hand |
Lightning Staff |
In order to sustain
Rakkhat's Voidmantle you'll have to change your food to
Orzorga's Red Frothgar and change your potions to either Tri-Stats or Heroism instead of Armor
- For overland content (where you won't benefit from
Ansuul 's Minor Slayer and penetration lines)
Deadly Strike is better than
Ansuul's Torment
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 |
- You can change some (or all) of the
Magicka enchants to
Health ones for extremely hard hitting bosses - Replace
Anthelmir's Construct with
Mighty Chudan when you need an additional skill slot
Champion Points
Race
For solo you need both damage and survivability, so every race brings something to the table, but these two stand out as the best options for damage and survivability respectively
Mundus
-
DefaultThe Thief
5.53% Critical Chance(9.04% with 7
Divines)
Use most of the time. It increases your Critical Chance -
Difficult ContentThe Lady
2744 Armor(4489 with 7
Divines)
Consider switching for extremely difficult dungeons. It increases your Armor
Attributes
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
-
DefaultArtaeum Pickled Fish Bowl
Max Health +5,414 Max Magicka +4,938The default option.Cheaper alternative
Solitude Salmon-Millet Soup
Difference Max Health +5,395 −19 Max Magicka +4,936 −2 -
Rakkhat's VoidmantleOrzorga's Red Frothgar
Max Health +5,395 Magicka Recovery +493Provides Magicka Recovery at the cost of Maximum Magicka. You'll need it to sustain
Rakkhat's Voidmantle
. -
SustainOrzorga's Tripe Trifle Pocket
Max Health +5,395 Stamina Recovery +493Provides 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. -
Wield SoulOrzorga's Smoked Bear Haunch
Max Health +4,312 Health Recovery +406 Stamina Recovery +369 Magicka Recovery +369Provides 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
Wield Soul
damage shield.
Potions
-
DefaultArmor Potion
Restore Health
Spell Resistance
Physical Resistance
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. -
SituationalTri-Stat Potion
Restore Health Restore Stamina Restore MagickaIn fights where you need to dodge roll a lot or when you're using
Rakkhat's Voidmantle
you should use Tri-Stat potions instead. -
ExpensiveHeroism Potion
Restore Magicka Restore Stamina
Minor Heroism
Heroism potions are an expensive alternative to Tri-Stat potions. They provide Minor Heroism on top of the sustain.
Parses
All parses are recorded on the 6 million Target Dummy








Gameplay
FAQ
No, you don't need a different setup. Use the base skills and the Regular gear setup from this guide for both Maelstrom Arena and Vateshran Hollows.










