The Elder Scrolls Online Nightblade Builds Guide

Stealth is an integral part of any game. Most games have some form of built-in stealth system, and ESO also embraces this form of gameplay. The Nightblade is part of the game's base classes, specializing in stealth, speed, and mobility. Want to build the optimal Nightblade class but don't know how to do it optimally? This guide has everything you need to know.

Introduction 

You often fear what you can't see. The fear of the unknown scares us all, and the Nightblades excel in using this fear as their power.

Nightblades are great DPS units that have befriended the shadows. As a solo player, they help you play very offensively, which is rewarding as you can drain the enemy's life for yours. Easy to learn and hard to master, the insane mobility is there to provide for an exciting experience.

However, as far as supports go, this class doesn't have great tanking or healing capabilities. Sure, they are viable if built correctly, but it's much better to go for a Warden or Dragonknight. However, if you wish to experiment, you can, as the game is ultimately yours, and you should play it as you wish.

Skill Tree

The Nightblade has three skill lines, each specializing in different characteristics. They are as follows:

Assassination: Skills that directly influence close-range melee attacks and increase your speed and mobility come under this line

Shadow: The skills that help you manipulate the shadows, help in crowd control, resource management, etc. some under this skill line

Siphoning: This skill line helps you in some support aspects, mainly to help you master sustainability and drains. This skill especially helps in survivability by increasing your ultimate regeneration.

Nightblades are excellent when it comes to stamina Nightblade or even magicka Nightblades. This guide will focus on some specialized builds.

Build #1 - Stamina Nightblade

One of the best contenders for the highest DPS class and the most fun one, Stamina Nightblades work like true shadow assassins, dealing great AoE and single target damage. They can be used to clear most, if not all, content in the game.

This build can be used solo; however, we recommend being at a party. This build is also meant for a PvE environment.

As far as the build goes, a 5-piece Perfected Arms of Relequen helps you deal more damage as the damage scales off your weapon. Another 5-piece Kinra's Wrath, with one as your weapon (dagger), helps you and your party hit harder based on how many light/heavy attacks you deal to your enemy. To finish it off, any monster helm set can be equipped, but the main focus should be higher damage/stamina stats.

Note that some of the sets require you to purchase the DLC. Buying the DLC is a great decision, as it helps you get the most enjoyment out of this game.

For the skills, your best ones are – Surprise Attack (to spam), dark shades (buffs you and debuffs team), Resolving Vigor (For heals), and siphoning strikes (to help with sustainability). For your ultimate, incapacitating strike is your best option as you can now increase your damage output by 20%, which is huge.

Since this is a stamina Nightblade build, a race that gives you stamina perks is ideal. The orc race/dark elf are the best classes for this build.

For your passives, Leeching Strikes and Incapacitating Strike help in resource management and sustainability, as they give back resources when you perform light attacks.

Stamina Nightblades aren't your forte? The next build might interest you then.

Build #2 - Magicka Nightblade

Magicka Nightblades have great damage potential; however, since they lack in the support realm, we recommend not playing this as a solo build.

This build works in a PvE environment and can clear most, if not all, content the game provides. A 5-piece Mother's Sorrow gives heap loads of crit chance along with Magicka. For your monster helm set, Iceheart is recommended, which gives you some shielding potential while dealing frost damage. Another great monster set is Maw of the Infernal, which deals fire damage by summoning a Daedroth. For your weapons (staff) and jewels, Medusa provides another boost to your crit damage and chance, making you an absolute crit powerhouse.

What's great about this build is that it's DLC free, meaning purchasing the base game can help you get this build. 

As far as your skills go, Swallow soul for heals and damage, Dark Shade for mimic damage, Merciless Resolve for damage boost, and Death Stroke are all great options and practically must-haves for your build.

Races with passives that favor more Magicka-based perks are preferred for such a build. This means choosing a High Elf is your best bet.

As far as passives go, the stamina Nightblade and this build will share some similarities, being Leeching Strikes and Incapacitating Strike. They are crucial and indispensable as far as resource management goes and are your best bet in battle.

Build #3 - Stamina Nightblade (PvP)

Normally, I would have placed a support variation of the build. However, Nightblades aren't well equipped for support. They can be used; however, using another class is much better. So instead, I have focused on a PvP build.

A 5-piece Eternal Hunt helps with mobility and deals decent damage while at it too. The Balorgh monster set gives you a damage boost based on your ultimate. As for your weapons and jewels, Spriggan's Thorns helps you deal more damage and gives you more stamina. A caustic arrow is a good choice for your second weapon as it gives a boost based on poison damage.

Wood Elf is a good class if you use a bow, as you get improved archery stats. Orcs are a good option, too, as they give good base stamina.

For your passives, Temporal Guard helps you in sticky situations, restoring your stats in an emergency. Rally is another great skill that heals and increases damage. Last but not least, Surprise Attack is great for PvP as it stuns the enemy while dealing huge damage.

So many set requirements that it is really hard to craft them all. You need an abundant amount of ESO Gold, and getting that much in-game currency can be a pain. You must craft, steal, quest, and save for a long time. Luckily, you can get ESO Gold for real-life money, making your in-game experience a lot better and easier.

 If you need them, you can click on our website MMOPixel to buy ESO Gold. We provide the best service.

What if your playstyle doesn't match one of these builds? For your best damage, you can always experiment with fresh sets. Playing is extremely exciting when you identify your interests in sets and successfully use them as tools in your arsenal.

The most effective builds for our Nightblade class are now complete. Most of the community enjoys the Stamina Nightblade since it helps you sneak around and be a true assassin, but your preferences can differ. 

Hopefully, this guide gave you an in-depth guide to the Nightblade class. Happy playing!