Magicka Nightblade PvE Build ESO – Architect of Demise

Build Written By: NyassaV & Dottz Gaming – PC NA

Role: Damage Dealer

Patch: Markarth

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Setup
   1. Gear
   2. Attributes
   3. Skills
   4. Vampire vs. Werewolf vs. Mortal
   5. Champion Points
   6. Other Important Info (Food, Mundus, Race, Potions, Passives)
3. Resource Management & Rotation
4. Contact Info
5. Update Log

Introduction

Welcome to DottzGaming.com’s Magicka Nightblade Build PvE, Architect of Demise, for the Elder Scrolls Online! This build is intended for trials, veteran dungeons and general PvE, sporting a great uptime on Major Slayer and very good AoE and single target damage! Magicka nightblade’s also have great ultimate generation due to Soul Harvest and the Catalyst passive, which allows you to pop off devastating ultimates very frequently and maintain a great uptime on Major Slayer via one of our sets. With the heals coming in from a variety of our skills and access to Harness Magicka, this build also maintains a good level of survivability!

Setup

Gear

Gear Explanation

Master Architect: This set has become a staple among magicka DPS users for dungeons and trials because of the insane buff it offers you and your team, alongside having the benefit of Minor Slayer. 

Mother’s Sorrow: With all the critical damage modifiers you get in a trials group, combined with the strength of the shadow mundus, Mother’s Sorrow is an amazing front bar DPS set for magicka characters!

Maw of the Infernal: This set was buffed a couple of patches ago and has become one of the best monster sets for magicka DPS! The summoned daedroth just deals a ton of damage, and is currently one of the highest parsing sets available!

vMA Fire Staff: You need the vMA fire staff for this build if you wish to use Elemental blockade to its fullest potential! If you cant get the veteran version of this staff, feel free to get the normal maelstrom arena version!

Attributes

All points into Magicka.

Skills

Main Bar – Fire Staff: Elemental Weapon, Crippling Grasp, Merciless Resolve, Impale, Channeled Acceleration, Incapacitating Strike

Back Bar – Fire Staff: Siphoning Attacks, Twisting Path, Unstable Wall of Elements, Harness Magicka, Mystic Orb, Elemental Rage

Vampire vs. Werewolf vs. Mortal

You are playing as a mortal for this build. Vampire/Werewolf do not give this build any bonuses that it needs.

Champion Points

CHAMPION POINT 810 SETUP
THE MAGE (BLUE)

• Elfborn – 61
• Elemental Expert – 56
• Staff Expert – 25
• Master-at-Arms – 72
• Thaumaturge – 56

THE THIEF (GREEN)

• Warlord – 66
• Arcanist – 75
• Tenacity – 56
• Tumbling – 44
• Shadow Ward – 29

THE WARRIOR (RED)

• Ironclad – 66
• Hardy – 43
• Elemental Defender – 43
• Thick Skinned – 56
• Spell Shield – 39
• Bastion – 23

CHAMPION POINT 300 SETUP
THE MAGE (BLUE)

• Elfborn – 23
• Elemental Expert – 27
• Spell Erosion – 8
• Thaumaturge – 11
• Master-at-Arms – 31

THE THIEF (GREEN)

• Arcanist – 49
• Tenacity – 49
• Warlord – 2

THE WARRIOR (RED)

• Ironclad – 23
• Hardy – 23
• Elemental Defender -23
• Thick Skinned – 23
• Bastion – 8

Other Important Info

Buff Food

• Mistral Banana-Bunny Hash (if a breton or if having sustain issues) – Max Health and Max Magicka
• Witchmother’s Potent Brew (If not breton) – Max Health, Magicka and Magicka Recovery

Mundus

• Shadow – Increased Critical Damage

Race

1. Breton
2. High Elf
3. Dark Elf

Potions

Spell Power Potions (Spell Crit, Spell Damage, Magicka Restoration)
Cornflower, Ladys Smock, Water Hyacinth

Passives

Assassination (all), Shadow (all), Siphoning (all), Light Armor (all), Heavy Armor (all except the ones that require you to wear 5 pieces), Medium Armor (all except the ones that require you to wear 5 pieces), Destruction Staff (all), Fighters Guild (Banish the Wicked), Mages Guild (all except persuasive passive), Undaunted (all), Racial (all), Alchemy (Medicinal Use), Psijic (Spell Orb, Concentrated Barrier, and Clairvoyance)

Resource Management & Rotation

Apply Channeled Acceleration, Merciless Resolve and Siphoning Attacks pre-fight.

Start on your back bar, and use Elemental Rage (if available) > Light Attack > Unstable Wall of Elements > Light Attack > Twisting Path > Light Attack > Mystic Orb > Weapon Swap > Light Attack > Crippling Grasp > Light Attack > Elemental Weapon > (Assassin’s Will when it procs). Keep using Light Attack > Elemental Weapon and Assassin’s Will procs until it’s time to reapply your AoE and DoTs, so swap back to back bar about a second or two before wall of elements ends and repeat the rotation.

• Re-apply the Merciless Resolve after you shoot the the Spectral bow twice.
• Re-apply Siphoning Attacks as soon as the buff runs out – this makes sure you get the burst of magicka – in order to keep yourself sustained.
• Re-apply Channeled Acceleration whenever it expires.
• When the boss is at less than 25% HP, replace Swallow Soul/Elemental Weapon with Impale in the rotation.

Contact

If you have any questions about the build, join our discord server and ask @Nyassa or @Dottz about the build!

Update Log

9/1/2017 – Build created.
10/24/2017 – CP updated to reflect CwC changes and account for jump points.
12/7/2017 – Staves swapped and Imaple/Harness swapped
2/12/2018 – CP Updated
3/14/2018 – Trial gear added to gear chart
5/31/2018 – Build overhauled for summerset isles
6/5/2018 – BSW changed to Mother’s Sorrow
8/13/2018 – CP updated for Wolfhunter
9/4/2018 – Swapped around gear positions on final build and listed Siroria as an alternative option.
10/10/2018 – Swapped out Master Architect for Siroria
10/22/2018 – CP Updated for murkmire
3/14/2019 – Build renamed under a new author and overhauled for Wrathstone
5/30/2019 – Mundus, Buff Food and race changed
8/15/2019 – Skills changed
10/25/2019 – back bar ult changed
2/27/2020 – no changes for harrowstorm
6/2/2020 – changed skills and updated rotation
8/24/2020 – main gear setup overhauled
11/2/2020 – front bar weapon trait, mundus, CP, skills and rotation changed