What Is The Best Beginner Class In ESO?

Most classes in The Elder Scrolls Online can do every kind of content the game has to offer, however, the three classes presented in this guide are the best option for new players due to their ease of play. These classes have strong offensive and defensive skills, and their abilities frequently give you more than one bonus for casting them, helping you to do more with fewer abilities.

These are the best classes in order of strength and simplicity for new players getting started in The Elder Scrolls Online.

1. Sorcerer
2. Templar
3. Dragonknight

These options are all extremely powerful at any level and can be used to play solo or in a group in multiple different playstyles including stamina-based builds and magicka-based builds, in PVE or PVP. So if you’re looking for a strong class that’s also flexible and easy to play then keep reading. Build options for each will be presented throughout the article as well.

3) The Dragonknight Class

The Dragonknight class is ESO’s version of a Berserker or Warrior archetype and while they have seen some recent nerfs, particularly in sustain, they are still extremely powerful, and very versatile, being able to step into most roles easily in both PVE and PVP content and beyond that they are just a lot of fun to play. So if you want a brawler, in your face playstyle that mimics the powerful attacks, buffs and debuffs of dragons in The Elder Scrolls Online then this is the perfect class for you.

Dragonknight Class Overview

First, let’s dive into a few Dragonknight skills and show you exactly why this class is so great for beginners. Now healing is one of the best aspects of the Dragonknight class in my opinion and a great compliment to any style of build you want to play in both PVE and PVP content. For this, you’ll want to unlock the Ardent Flame skill called Burning Embers as soon as possible. This skill provides a fantastic heal overtime effect while also doing damage over time. In fact, the more damage this skill does the more healing you get back which means it grows with you. Later on you can also invest in the Inferno skill from this same skill line and morph it to Cauterize which is another powerful self and group heal. Early on you’ll also want to unlock the Coagulating Blood morph from the Draconic Power skill line as this can also provide a clutch burst heal which is important to have especially if you are playing solo without a healer in either PVP or PVE. This skill actually heals you for more based on your missing health which makes it even better as an emergency heal.

Moving on from healing, another thing that’s amazing on the Dragonknight is their damage. Specifically, DKs have some of the most powerful damage over time (DOT) skills in the game. We already mentioned Burning Embers previously which is a massive single target DOT combined with that passive healing but you’ll also want to pick up a morph of the Fiery Breath skill next for an AOE damage over time. My preference here is usually to pick up the Noxious Breath morph. This option provides the Major Breach debuff which makes enemies take more damage from your attacks and since I usually play solo this is going to be important to increase my overall DPS.

Dragonknights also have powerful and unique ultimates, and you’re going to want to start unlocking all 3 of these as soon as possible. For PVE players definitely go with Standard Of Might first as this is gives a big boost to your overall damage and damage reduction. For PVP players I recommend going with the either morph of the Dragon Leap ultimate for a brutal gap closer combined with big damage and a stun which is great for setting up kill combos on your enemies. Finally, Corrosive Armor is a favorite choice for getting more defensive while also doing increased damage in more mobile situations compared to standard of might.

All in all this class is extremely flexible and powerful no matter how play and makes a great choice for a beginner starting out brand new in the elder scrolls online.

Recommended Dragonknight Skills

Recommended Dragonknight Builds

2) The Templar Class

The Templar is ESO’s version of a Cleric or Paladin class with an emphasis on the power of the sun, healing and defensive abilities. Like the Dragonknight, the Templar’s strong ability to self heal or heal a party as well as strong defensive buffs mean you can do pretty much anything you want in The Elder Scrolls Online – whether you want to play Solo or run group Content – PVE or PVP – the Templar class can literally do it all. What makes the Templar a better choice for beginners on our list is again that high concentration of defensive and healing abilities combined with strong passives.

Templar Class Overview

Since I mentioned passives let’s actually start there. Templar’s main spammable skill, either Biting Jabs or Puncturing Sweep is not only a strong damage skill, but it also grants multiple passive bonuses for using it – including the spear wall passive for free major protection and the burning light passive for free bonus damage.

Using that Puncturing Sweep skill, Templars can easily play as a one-bar or even one-button build fairly effectively but I do recommend mixing in some additional damage skills and DOTS to improve your build. Some of my favorite skills for this include Solar Barrage for AOE damage, Vampire’s Bane for single target damage, and of course the Radiant Glory execute skill. Purifying Light or Power Of The Light are also staple skills if you are more interested in PVP as these can provide massive burst damage potential in combination with your other damaging skills. All of these skills come from the Dawn’s Wrath skill line so make sure you don’t neglect this one. Level up each skill and then pick what’s best for your build.

Finally, let’s talk about the healing and defensive capabilities of the Templar which make it such a strong choice for beginner builds. These come primarily from the Breath Of Life and Honor the Dead skill, which is the arguably the best Magicka-based burst heal in the game. You also have Repentance which is an amazing heal and sustain tool for Stamina Templar builds. Finally you have Channeled Focus and Restoring Focus which grant you armor, healing and bonus sustain in a single ability.

So as you can see, we have just tons and tons of amazing build options with the Templar class. Some of my favorites are of course the Stamina Templar which is a great PVE DPS option but also an incredibly fun and powerful PVP class. If you want a Magicka build, of course Templars make fantastic healers all the way from level one when you unlock rushed ceremony. So throw on some Magicka gear, grab your heals and you also have a great group build.

Recommended Templar Skills

Recommended Templar Builds

1) The Sorcerer Class

Finally, our number one class for Beginners in ESO is here and that’s the Sorcerer Class! Sorcerers have some of the most powerful skills and passives in the game but what really separates them from other classes in ESO is the how most of these skills give you either automatic damage or automatic healing. Let me explain.

Sorcerer Class Overview

First, let’s talk about the Daedric Summoning skill line which is all about summoning Daedric pets to do damage for you. These pets are unique in that you have to keep the skill slotted on both your main skill bar and your backup skill bar, but the tradeoff for this is that your pet is always there for you and never needs to be re-summoned as long as they stay alive. This means as soon as you enter combat your pets are already doing damage for you without you having to press a button. Of course, your pets also have additional special effects that you can use such as the stun from Volatile Familiar and a massive group heal from Twilight Matriarch which makes them even more powerful.

Another strength of the Sorcerer class is their speed and mobility that comes from the Storm Calling skill line. For Stamina Sorcerer builds, the Hurricane skill applies Minor Expedition and for Magicka Sorcerers, Boundless Storm gives them a short burst of Major Expedition for even greater speed, and both skills apply Major Resolve which provides about 6000 armor. And don’t forget Streak! This skill can be used by both Magicka and Stamina Sorcerers to get out of trouble or quickly stun enemies and is a great skill for PVP.

Speaking of PVP, if you are interested in that playstyle then a Magicka or Stamina Sorcerer is going to be a great choice because of the previously mentioned mobility and strong self healing from Critical Surge. This skill heals you every second as long as you are doing critical damage to a target.

In terms of builds, as I’ve said both Magicka and Stamina Sorcerer offer great build options for getting started in PVP, but if you want the ultimate easy, beginner build for PVE content then definitely check out a Magicka Sorcerer pet focused build for a really easy time completing most content in the game.

Recommended Sorcerer Class Skills

Recommended Sorcerer Builds

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