“Hey, you, you’re finally awake”
So you finally decided to give The Elder Scrolls Online a chance and don’t know where to begin. Or perhaps you’ve already done and the class you picked doesn't exactly fit your cup of tea? Well, whatever the reason, you have stumbled upon this definitive tier list by the glory of the eight divines (Talos doesn’t exist yet!) that will (hopefully) give you the needed wisdom to pick your weapon and become the savior Tamriel deserves!
But before we start, I’d like to preface this discussion with a disclaimer that all classes can clear all the content in this game. With enough practice, you can even slay the big baddie Molag Bal and higher difficulty content such as raids, vet dungeons, and even solo a vet dungeon or two. But of course, some classes are just plain built differently compared to their competition, and hence we should investigate the nuances each class can provide you.
As a general note, this list is concerned with the regular player, aka the 90% of the player base that does not care about topping DPS parses and is instead concerned with experiencing Tamriel as its champion. We would be focusing on what you would most likely experience in the game, which are the unoptimized pick-up groups and the occasional solo experience.
With that out of the way, here are some criteria. We will be basing the tier list on the effectiveness of the class to clear content on four different aspects: 1) its ability to dish out raw damage, 2) its utility in a group setting and/or in solo situations, aka the buffs and debuffs it can provide, 3) how well it can sustain in a fight, and 4) the class’s survivability, aka its self-healing and/or damage mitigation capabilities. Alright, now on to the tier list proper!
D tier
Just to clarify, the D tier does not mean they cannot complete the games’ content. Imagine it like your normal grading system in school, D tier means it's passing, but there are better options out there in the game.
The five companions ready for battle
12. Magicka Warden
The only D tier on the list, the Magicka Warden is a balanced class that can do a lot of things by itself, making it a viable solo class especially due to its AOE Winter’s Revenge, self heals Arctic blast, and defensive skills such as frost cloak making them a BREEZE to play (pun intended). It does amazing DPS especially through its delayed burst skill Deep Fissure which also debuffs the enemy with Major Breach reducing their physical and spell resistance as well as its reliable ranged spammable, Screaming Cliff Racer adds to your mobility, helping you dodge AOEs. Furthermore, the sustain through the Blue Betty gives you free Magicka regen while also granting you Major Sorcery is something that other classes should be envious of.
The main problem with this class is really in its mediocrity, it can do a lot of the things you will need to do, but not as efficiently as other classes. Sometimes it even clashes with its own identity, there is simply just not that much incentive to go for a frost mage playthrough and with Magicka Dragonknight and Magicka Sorcerer succeeding in their pyro and lightning mage playstyle, I’m finding it difficult to gravitate towards a Magicka Warden.
C tier
I would define the C tier as still relatively weaker in regards to what is available, but not as much as the ones in the D tier. Sadly, they are still a bit lacking which prevents them from going to the C tier.
11. Magicka Dragonknight
The community is a bit divided towards the placement of the Dragonknight class in general. Some say it's a god among men while some say it's not worth your time. The fact remains though that it is incredible in the late game with the raw damage it can output through multiple DOTs and buffs characteristic of the Dragonknight class. For perspective, Engulfing flames and Burning Embers can be paired up with a Wall of Elements skill to make up 3 DOTs that you will have to manage. Not to mention some of your DPS skills can also heal and increase your flame damage, making you a bona fide pyro mage through and through.
Its survivability is nothing to laugh at as well with damage mitigation skills through Volatile Armor and Igneous Shield which rival the damage mitigation found in a Magicka Sorcerer especially when combined with their self-heal, Coagulating Blood. All of these makes the Magicka Dragonknight a strong solo class, the main problem however comes with their sustain as their main method of doing so is through inflicting the burning status effect allowing you to get Magicka back through its Combustion and Battle Roar passives and although great, some argue they are difficult to manage especially for drawn-out fights.
10. Stamina Dragonknight
Sadly, the stamina counterpart also suffers the same problems as their Magicka versions as there is not much difference between the two other than replacing flame damage fantasy with poison damage (yeh, they’re toxic). It is still DoT dependent through skills like Venomous Claw which increases the poison damage over time and Noxious Breath that can apply Major Breach making it a great solo class. The same level of survivability can also be seen through the same Volatile Armor paired with Green Dragon Blood. Like its Magicka counterpart, it has a big sustain problem due to it being largely dependent on the class’ ability to get back resources through their ultimate.
B tier
Being the middle of this tier list, classes in the B tier are average. Unlike the previous classes, this is the tier where you should begin to see a big difference in how efficient these classes are when played.
9. Stamina Necromancer
Okay, first things first, it's Pestilent Colossus ultimate provides Major Vulnerability, increasing damage uptake of your enemies by 10%, making the necro class, in general, highly sought out for by groups as it can increase overall damage by a COLOSSAL margin (pun intended). Other than that, it has a heal-spammable option through Ruinous Scythe if ever you need extra survivability in solo situations. Like the Warden class, it also has a delayed burst ability through Blighted Blastbones which also reduces enemies' health recovery. Although a bit hard to master, once you do, get ready to dish out massive amounts of DPS when done well as its passives allow the Stamina necro to increase their stats by just merely adding necro skills. What prevents this from rising in the A tier is due to the general problem of mobility and range which most stamina setups suffer from. Furthermore, the rotation is complex, so get ready to dedicate a lot of time to learn it if you’re keen to main this class.
8. Stamina Sorcerer
One of the best late-game classes in my opinion with its high survivability with its mitigation and self-healing through Hurricane and Critical Surge as well as its pets that can act as a decoy while you pulverize your enemies. The same Hurricane can damage other enemies as well while giving you increased mobility which may help you dodge those AOEs. It borrows a lot from preexisting playstyles already in the game such as its spammable, Crystal Weapon, harkening back to Elemental Weapon playstyle of augmenting light attacks with added physical damage, armor reduction, and cost reduction with your next non-ultimate skill as well as the Nightblade’s Grim Focus skills through their very own Bound Armaments which incentivizes you to be better at light attack weaving as each time you do, a bound weapon will spawn which can strike the target after four stacks.
Although I love this class (I am a sorcerer main myself) what prevents this from going to higher tiers is due to its Magicka counterpart overshadowing it in a lot of ways. It also suffers from added cons that the stam nightblade also suffers through its Bound Armaments which makes it harder when you have sudden ping spikes.
A tier
A tier is above average in clearing content in the game. You can rarely go wrong with these classes but it suffers from 1 or 2 issues that prevent them from ascending to the S tier.
7. Stamina Templar
Templar in general has a great spammable that also acts as an AOE through their Puncturing Strikes skill, the stamina morph of this, Biting Jabs also retains the benefit while also gaining Major savagery, a built-in increase to weapon critical. A lot of people praise the Stamina Templar to be a simple but reliable job with that skill alone while also generating high DPS output. The sustain is especially great thanks to this 2 button setup with its survivability to be comparable to its Magicka counterpart. There isn't much to say with this class other than it is highly reliable in almost all content. The only con of the class remains to be the general problem of stamina classes of lack of range and the recent nerfs leaving it a bit underpowered compared to its earlier versions, regardless, this class remains to be a powerhouse and fulfills the classic cleric archetype.
6. Stamina Nightblade
The class with the coolest sounding name (at least in my opinion) from the classes and the first class I played in ESO is the Stamina Nightblade. It is a heavy hitter full of burst skills such as its spammable, Surprise Attack, a powerful single-target ability that applies the sundered status effect. Pair this with the Master Assassin passive which grants you bonus penetration when targeting from the flank and it successfully fulfills the sneaky assassin archetype. Same with its Magicka Nightblade counterpart, Relentless focus, Leeching Strikes, and its ultimate, Incapacitating Strike incentivizes the player to learn light attack weaving well to get the most benefit of the class. The reason why this class is in the A tier compared to its Magicka counterpart would be the comparably lower self-heal and range when being compared to its Magicka setup. This makes ping issues and poor light-weaving heavily affect the class more apparent compared to its Magicka version.
5. Stamina Warden
The Stamina Warden, like its Magicka counterpart, has reliable self-healing skills with amazing survivability through the stamina versions of the skills mentioned previously. There aren’t any noteworthy ultimates like the Magicka counterpart but what allows this setup to be leagues better than the Magicka Warden is the options that physical DPS has in their kit that covers up their weaknesses. AOE damage such as caltrops, volley, whirlwind, and reverse slash all makes the stamina Warden hit like a truck. Paired that up with the natural sustainability and survivability of the Warden class and you’re left with a class that can survive almost all content while being able to dish out one of the highest DPS in the game thanks to their simplistic rotation. However, I’d say the reliance on weapon skills is a bit of a con as it never really fleshes out the class fantasy it tries to express in the Morrowind trailer. Regardless, it remains to be a fun and reliable class anybody can pick up as they journey through Tamriel.
4. Magicka Nightblade
Once again, it's Glacial Colossus ultimate is a COLOSSAL boon in both solo and group content (pun intended… again). Mystic Siphon and Death Gleaning passive can help greatly with sustain and not to mention their survivability is great thanks to Spirit Guardian. It can inflict the Major Breach debuff via its Unnerving Boneyard skill allowing it to reliably solo almost any content. Just like its Stamina counterpart, it has passives that can increase Critical strike chance (Death Knell), Penetration (Dismember), and Health Receive (Health Advice). The only cons you can have playing this class is that it is one of the most complex classes to learn thanks to its corpse mechanic as well as being stuck behind a paywall. Leave those out, and you have a very reliable DPS class that will not let you down if mastered well.
S tier
The cream of the crop, the S tier classes are the ones that have reached above and beyond the four criteria we laid out. They are the ones that have a well-thought-out kit with it being really difficult to mess up especially in the hands of an experienced player. You can rarely go wrong with these classes, some of them even being consistent throughout the years!
Zappity zap zap
3. Magicka Templar
To start off the S tier, we have the ever-reliable Magicka Templar, a class that has amazing survivability and can get you to clear almost all of the content. The bread and butter of the Magicka Templar come from its spammable, Puncturing Sweeps which is a channeled ability that heals you while doing AOE damage making it a good all-rounder skill in the Magicka Templar’s arsenal. The only con with this ability really is the fact that it is channeled and hence making it possible for you to get damage, not that it matters because you’ll be healing it away anyway. Its ability to output tons of damage isn’t anything to laugh at as well just because it's supposed to be the “healer” class with skills such as Solar Barrage increasing your light and heavy attacks, Blazing Spear which is akin to the Black Panther’s suit as it returns the damage done to you. All while having excellent survivability thanks to Channeled Focus which increases your resistance while giving you Magicka regen and topped with purifying light and living dark, both of which heals you once they proc makes you feel like a tank…. as a DPS! Really if you’re looking for a class that can do anything and everything, you might want to try this out.
2. Magicka Nightblade
Don’t be fooled by its DPS name, this class has so many healing utilities making its survivability through the roof. Its spammable for example, Swallow soul, heals you for 35% of the damage you do as well as its AOE, Sap Essence. Furthermore, the Transfer passive increases ult regen for every time you use siphoning skills such as the two skills previously mentioned. This trend also goes into their bread and butter ability, Merciless Resolve, a skill that incentivizes light attack weaving to fire a spectral arrow that dishes out massive damage while healing you for 50% of the damage done. Lastly, I can argue that their sustain is unrivaled due to their Siphoning Attacks and the Executioner passive which restores both Magicka and Stamina upon the death of an enemy.
Overall, the Magicka Nightblade’s kit really complements one another to fulfill the power fantasy of a lifesteal-based mage. The biggest con I can say for this class would be reliant on light attack weaving, if it isn’t obvious, a lot of the power of the Magicka Nightblade comes from effective light attack weaving (a skill that you should try to practice early in the game), and although all class benefits from light attack weaving, I’d say the Magicka Nightblade suffers when not done correctly (or with players in areas with high ping such as I) with skills like Merciless resolve and Siphoning Attacks not working properly when done poorly.
1. Magicka Sorcerer
Okay, I have to admit, I always loved the sorcerer class in ESO ever since the One Tamriel update of 2018. They just feel so on point in regards to their class identity, skills and overall SHOCKING factor ;). You get 2 pets (3 if you count your storm atro ultimate) and depending on your preference, you can either morph them into damage-centric beasts, or play a bit more safe by choosing their healing morphs. Damage mitigation is also great with their Boundless storm skill which transforms you into this vicious persona of lightning zapping everyone while gaining Major Resolve and Major Expedition; as well as Hardened Ward, one of the best damage shields in the game. And if ever those damage mitigations fail, you always have a reliable self-healing skill through Critical Surge making the sorc have a built-in Ring of the Pale Order from the get-go!
Compared to other classes’ spammable, I particularly like the Magicka Sorcerer’s Crystal Frags ever since it received a cast time reduction which can also proc for a bonus 66% damage increase all while activating the Exploitation passive granting you Minor Prophecy. Furthermore, I can’t help but notice that you can be entirely reliant on sorc skills alone and you’re incentivized to do so because of the additional stats that you will be getting by simply slotting more sorc skills through the Expert Mage passive. Unlike other classes, the Magicka Sorcerer can really be fine-tuned according to your playstyle, you can be like me and fill your bars (and armor sets) with pets, or you can opt-out the whole pet thing in favor of a more elemental-focused fantasy.
If I were to list a con, it would be the relatively steep learning curve of resource management, although the learning curve isn’t as steep as the Magicka dragonknight or the Magicka Necro, it is still there and new players of the class might feel a bit frustrated when not patient.
Conclusion
And there you have it, all of the ESO classes ranked from D to S tier. Do keep in mind that regardless of the tier, all classes can do most of the content of the game. Really, it boils down to what fantasy you want your character to achieve in the game. Also note that with the new armorer system, switching between a Magicka and Stamina-based loadout has never before been easier, so feel free to experiment! Who knows? Maybe an entirely new niche will come out especially with the arrival of the new expansion teased to us just recently. Perhaps even a hybrid class will finally be viable in the game, only time will tell.
