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The Elder Scrolls Online Necrom Chapter has brought a new class to the game, the Arcanist. It's a long-range class that harnesses the power of magical runes and ancient tombs from Hermaeus Mora's Daedric Realm for devastating attacks.
In short, it's a fun and flashy magic-based class that offers plenty of new ways to navigate the fantastical world of ESO. If you have been looking forward to trying your hands on the Arcanist, you may want to check our best ESO Arcanist DPS build guide that highlights the best active and passive skills to upgrade, Races to play as, Champion Points to invest in, and top Mundane Stones to activate for maximum damage.
Table of Contents
Best Active Abilities for Arcanist DPS Build
Frontbar skills
| Skill Name | Skill Description |
| Escalating Runeblades | Craft a series of Apocryphal runes before launching them at a foe, dealing 695 Magic Damage three times and generating Crux. This ability deals 3% increased damage for each active Crux when cast. |
| Tentacular Dread | Infuse your arm with abyssal magic to form tentacles that lash out at your foes, dealing 2002 Frost Damage. Enemies are immobilized for 3 seconds and marked with Abyssal Ink for 20 seconds. You deal 5% increased damage to enemies drenched in Abyssal Ink. Consume all Crux and increase Tentacular Dread damage by 20% and damage to foes drenched in Abyssal Ink by 2% per Crux spent. |
| Exhausting Fatecarver | Harness pure knowledge into a beam of energy that scars the world in front of you. Channel the beam for up to 4 seconds, dealing 878 Magic Damage every 0.3 seconds and snaring enemies hit by 15%. Casting Exhausting Fatecarver consumes all Crux and increases damage done by 33%, duration by 0.3 seconds, and snare by 15% per Crux spent. |
| Cruxweaver Armor | Forge defiant runic armor around you, granting Major Resolve for 30 seconds, increasing your Armor by 5948. While the armor persists, taking damage applies Minor Breach, reducing the Armor of your attacker by 2974 for 6 seconds. Blows against your armor also generate Crux, up to once every 5 seconds. |
| Camouflaged Hunter | Invoke your expertise in anatomy and enemy behavior to detect stealthed and invisible enemies around you for 5 seconds. Exposed enemies cannot return to stealth or invisibility for 4 seconds. While slotted you gain Major Savagery and Prophecy, increasing your Weapon and Spell Critical rating by 2629. You also gain Minor Berserk for 5 seconds after dealing Critical Damage from an enemy's flank. |
| Flawless Dawnbreaker | Arm yourself with Meridia's sacred sword and dispense her retribution, dealing 2904 Physical Damage to enemies in front of you and an additional 3483 Physical Damage over 6 seconds. After activating, your Weapon and Spell Damage is increased by 300 for 20 seconds. |
The skills listed above are for a solo high DPS build. Your primary weapon would be a one-handed sword, and all the front-bar abilities contribute towards increasing the base damage and critical damage of that weapon and the Arcanist skills.
Firstly, you want the Camouflaged Hunter skill from the Fighters Guild skill line primarily for that Minor Berserk buff. With this as well as the increased weapon and critical spell damage (that benefits your Arcanist skills), you can deal bonus damage that will come in handy when running Dungeons or other end-game activities.
The Flawless Dawnbreaker is the Ultimate Ability, but you will need it mostly for the physical and spell damage buff. The latter is essential for maximizing the damage output of the Fatecarver skill (more on this later.)
The Tentacular Dread deal decent Frost damage, but you need it mainly for immobilizing target and covering them with the Abyssal Ink.
You want the Escalating Runeblades primarily for generating Crux. It doesn't deal a ton of damage, but the additional Cruxs will come in handy when using the Fatecarver skill (again, more on that later.)
With enemies immobilized and Crux saved up, it's time to unleash the most powerful Arcanist skill - Exhausting Fatecarver. This will use up all the Crux and deal a whopping 33% more damage. Fatecarver lets out this green laser beam that you can control. If you immobilize enemies with the Tentacular Dread, you may have a better chance of targeting everything at the same time and dealing a ton of damage. So the right order to use the Arcanist skills for maximum damage would be The Tentacular Dread, Escalating Runeblades, and Exhausting Fatecarver.
Finally, since this is a solo build, you would want the Cruxweaver Armor skill that gives you Major Resolve and Increased Armor. It's incredibly handy when you're getting swarmed by enemies from all directions and need a little defensive aid to survive.
Backbar Skills
| Skill Name | Skill Description |
| Unstable Wall of Elements | Create an unstable elemental barrier in front of you, dealing 281 Magic Damage to enemies in the target area every 1 second before exploding for an additional 1199 Magic Damage. Unstable Wall of Fire deals additional damage to Burning enemies. Unstable Wall of Frost costs more, but snares and reduces armor against Chilled enemies and grants damage shields. Unstable Wall of Storms sets Concussed enemies Off Balance. |
| Reconstructive Domain | Draw forth your tome and invoke the leviathanum of the Abyssal Sea to conjure a vortex of eldritch power. Standing in this vortex grants you and your allies Minor Courage, Minor Fortitude, Minor Intellect, and Minor Endurance, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 215 and your Health, Magicka, and Stamina Recovery by 15%. The vortex also heals you and your allies for 4631 Health over 20 seconds. |
| Fulminating Rune | Summon an explosive rune under an enemy that etches foes nearby with scrawled glyphs, dealing 4642 Magic Damage over 20 seconds. The rune lingers on the initial target for 6 seconds before detonating, dealing 1438 Frost Damage to enemies within 7 meters. Rune detonation cannot be primed with Fulminating Rune again for 6 seconds. Up to 3 allies near the initial target can activate the Runebreak synergy, dealing 2698 Frost Damage to enemies within 7 meters. |
| Etch a series of runes onto your weapon that pulse with power once every 3 seconds. Each pulse enhances your class abilities, and striking an enemy with one deals an additional 935 Magic Damage and generates Crux if you have none. While slotted on either ability bar, gain Major Brutality and Major Sorcery, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 20%. | |
| Elemental Susceptibility | Send the elements to sap an enemy's defenses and afflict them with Major Breach for 30 seconds, reducing their Physical and Spell Resistance by 5948. Every 7.5 seconds the enemy is afflicted with the Burning, Chilled, and Concussion status effect. |
| The Tide King's Gaze | Tear open the fabric of the Aurbis to summon a scion of Hermaeus Mora. This being casts forth a beam that rends asunder reality for 8 seconds that deals 1151 Magic Damage to enemies within 5 meters every 0.5 seconds. The scion's beam automatically follows the initial target, and hunts for a new one within 8 meters if it is slain. |
Your backup weapon would be a Fire Staff. The Elemental Susceptibility skill will reduce the enemy's physical and spell defenses, allowing you to deal more damage.
You would need the Reconstructive Domain mainly for healing and the spell damage buff, but it will get you (and your allies) other minor buffs like increased Endurance and Fortitude.
Inspired Scholarship will generate Crux, but it will also get you 20% increased weapon and spell damage. You can use Fulminating Rune to deal damage over time, and if you happen to bring some allies, they can deal bonus frost damage to enemies.
The Unstable Wall of Element will be your high DPS skill in the Backbar. The only reason we recommend using a Fire Staff over a Lightning Staff is because this skill deal bonus damage to burning enemies, something that you can greatly benefit from in challenging activities.
Lastly, you have the Tide King's Gaze Ultimate Ability. There's no synergy here per se, and it's just an incredibly powerful high-damage dealing ability that will come in handy in every scenario.
Best Passive Abilities for Arcanist DPS Build
| Skill Name | Skill Description |
| Fated Fortune | Warp fate when you generate or consume Crux, increasing your Critical Damage and Critical Healing by 12% for 7 seconds. |
| Harnessed Quintessence | You master the warp and weft of your very soul. When you restore Magicka or Stamina, increase your Weapon and Spell Damage by 5% for 10 seconds. |
| Hideous Clarity | You've stared too long into the abyss. When you generate Crux, you restore 225 Magicka or Stamina, whichever maximum is higher. |
| Implacable Outcome | The will of an Arcanist is absolute. When you consume Crux, gain 4 Ultimate. This effect can occur once every 8 seconds. |
With the passives, the goal is to get increased Weapon damage, Spell damage, and Critical damage.
The Fated Fortune passive will allow you to deal bonus Critical Damage and Critical Healing every time you consume a Crux. This means you will deal even more damage with the Exhausting Fatecarver.
Hideous Clarity will allow you to restore Magicka or Stamina every time you consume a Crux. This can synergize with another passive, Harnessed Quintessence, that will give boost your Weapon and Spell damage by 5% for 10 seconds every time you restore Magicka or Stamina. Pretty sweet, right?
Lastly, with Implacable Outcome, you will gain 4 Ultimate every time you consume a Crux. It will allow you to use Flawless Dawnbreaker or Tide King's Gaze more frequently.
Best Champion Points for Arcanist DPS Build
| Constellation Type | Skill | Description |
| Warfare | Wrathful Strikes | Grants 41 Weapon and Spell Damage to your damaging abilities per stage. |
| Warfare | Thaumaturge | Increases your damage done with damage over time effects by 3% per stage. |
| Warfare | Biting Aura | Increase your damage done with area of effect attacks by 3% per stage. |
| Warfare | Fighting Finesse | Increases your Critical Damage and Critical Healing done by 4% per stage. |
| Fitness | Boundless Vitality | Grants 28 Max Health per stage. |
| Fitness | Fortified | Grants 34.6 Armor per stage |
| Fitness | Rejuvenation | Grants 1.8 Health, Magica, and Stamina Recovery per stage. |
| Fitness | Siphoning Spells | Restore 300 Magica per stage, whenever you kill an enemy. |
If you didn't know, you start unlocking Champion Points after reaching level 50. You can spend these points to unlock three different types of skills and have four of each equipped at a time. These skill types (known as Constellations) are Craft, Fitness, and Warfare.
For the best Arcanist DPS build, we focus only on the Fitness and Warfare Constellations. Like the Passives, the goal with Champion Skills is to maximize Weapon, Spell, and Critical Damage. You will get all of these with the Warfare Skills listed above. On the other hand, Fitness Skills will increase your Magica and Stamina recovery.
Best Races for Arcanist DPS Build
| Race | Bonuses |
| Dark Elf | Increased Max Magica, Stamina, Weapon and Spell Damage. |
| High Elf | Increased Max Magica, Weapon and Spell Damage. |
| Khajit | Increased Max Magica and additional Critical Damage. |
| Orc | Increased Weapon and Spell Damage. |
Dark Elf and High Elf will get you the same effect, except for Max Stamina. However, you still have some Stamina returned every 6 seconds, so it's not a bad option. Khajit gets increased Max Magica, and Critical Damage, both of which are also essential for maximizing Arcanist's damage. Finally, we have Orc that simply gets increased Weapon and Spell damage.
In short, Dark Elf or High Elf are your best option unless you want that bonus Critical Damage from Khajit.
Best Mundus Stones for Arcanist DPS Build
| Mundus Stone Name | Mundus Stone Effect |
| The Thief | Increased Weapon and Spell Critical ratings. |
| The Lady / The Lover | Increased Physical and Spell Penetration. |
| The Mage | Increased Max Magica. |
Mundus Stones can get you permanent passive bonuses, so it's best not to sleep on these. As with any passives in this build, the goal is to boost Weapon, Spell, and Critical Damage, and you can get these with The Thief and the Lady / The Lover Stones. The Mage will increase your max Magica, but the other two are better options for the Arcanist DPS build.
That pretty much sums up our best Arcanist DPS build. This guide wouldn't have been possible without references from Skinny Cheeks and ESO Hub, so don't forget to check them out.
