The Arcanist class, introduced with the Necrom chapter, brings a unique blend of eldritch power and versatility to The Elder Scrolls Online. For damage dealers, the Arcanist excels at both sustained pressure and explosive burst, making it a top contender in PvE and PvP alike. This guide distills everything you need to maximise your Arcanist DPS, from skill selections and gear sets to champion points and rotations. Whether you are a fresh-faced adventurer or a veteran pushing veteran trials, you will find clear, actionable recommendations to elevate your green-flame devastation.
Understanding the Arcanist DPS Role
Arcanists channel the power of Apocrypha through three skill lines: Herald of the Tome (damage), Soldier of Apocrypha (tanking), and Curative Runeforms (healing). For DPS, Herald of the Tome is your primary offensive toolkit, supplemented by key passives and morphs from other lines. The class thrives on building Crux, a unique resource that empowers specific abilities. Managing Crux generation and spending defines the Arcanist rotation, rewarding precise timing with massive damage amplification. Unlike some classes that rely on complex weaving, the Arcanist offers a slightly more forgiving tempo while still demanding attention to buff uptimes and resource management.
Best Skills and Morphs for Arcanist DPS
Your skill bar setup should focus on applying damage-over-time effects, generating Crux, and then spending it on your hardest-hitting spammable or ultimate. Here is a breakdown of the essential abilities and their recommended morphs.
Primary Spammable: Fatecarver
Fatecarver (morph of Runeblades) is the cornerstone of Arcanist DPS. This channeled beam deals massive damage over 4.5 seconds and scales with your highest offensive stats. It consumes all Crux stacks to increase its damage by 33% per Crux consumed, making it imperative to cast it only when at three Crux. The beam can be interrupted by blocking or dodging, so positioning is key. Always prioritise keeping this on cooldown when at full Crux.
Crux Generators
- Escalating Runeblades (morph of Runeblades): Your go-to single-target Crux builder. It deals respectable damage and generates one Crux per cast. Use it as your filler between Fatecarver channels.
- Abyssal Impact (morph of Abyssal Blast): An AoE skill that hits multiple enemies and generates Crux when it damages at least one target. Essential for trash packs.
- Cephaliarch’s Flail (morph of Seeker’s Flail): A melee-range spammable that also generates Crux. Viable for stamina-focused builds, though Escalating Runeblades is generally preferred for magicka builds due to range.
Damage-over-Time and Utility
- Inspired Scholarship (morph of Scholarship): Grants Major Sorcery and Major Prophecy, increasing spell damage and critical chance. It also restores magicka or stamina, making it a crucial buff to maintain. The stamina version (Reaping Scholarship) provides Major Brutality and Major Savagery.
- Deadly Cloak (morph of Unblinking Runes): After casting a Herald of the Tome ability, it deals additional damage to nearby enemies. This is passive damage that adds up significantly in longer fights.
- Recuperative Treatise (morph of Tome-Bearer’s Inspiration): A strong heal-over-time that also restores resources. Often slotted on the back bar for sustain in solo or difficult content.
- Channeled Acceleration (Psijic Order skill line) or Barbed Trap (Fighters Guild skill line): Source of Minor Force, increasing critical damage done. Essential for max DPS. Barbed Trap also deals damage and applies Hemorrhaging.
Ultimates
- The Unblinking Eye (morph of Gibbering Eye): Summons a stationary eye that deals massive AoE damage over time. Incredible for boss fights and stacked adds. Prioritise this ultimate in most PvE scenarios.
- Sanctum of the Abyss (morph of Apocryphal Gate): Creates a portal that pulls enemies together, dealing damage over time. Excellent crowd control and AoE damage in mobile fights.
Gear and Item Sets
Your damage output depends heavily on the armor sets, weapons, and jewelry you equip. Below are optimised setups for different progression stages.
Beginner/Budget Setup
This setup uses crafted and overland sets that require no trial farming.
- Mother’s Sorrow: Overland set from Deshaan. Increases critical chance substantially. Five pieces: 2 jewelry, 2 body pieces, and a lightning or inferno staff.
- Law of Julianos: Crafted set (6 traits required). Increases spell damage and critical chance. Five pieces: 3 body pieces and 2 weapons (dual wield daggers or a staff on the back bar).
- Monster Set: Slimecraw (Wayrest Sewers I) for extra critical chance, or Iceheart (Direfrost Keep) for a damage shield and AoE if you need survivability.
Intermediate Setup
Ideal for players stepping into normal trials and veteran dungeons.
- Pillar of Nirn: Medium armor set from Falkreath Hold. Deals strong bleed damage whenever you deal direct damage. Wear on body pieces with Divines trait.
- Whorl of the Depths: Light armor set from Dreadsail Reef trial (normal difficulty acceptable). Applies a stacking frost damage debuff. Use on weapons and jewelry.
- Monster Set: Zaan’s (Scalecaller Peak) for single-target, or Maw of the Infernal (Banished Cells II) for general use with added pet damage.
Advanced/Trial Setup
For veteran hardmode content chasing the highest DPS.
- Relequen: Medium trial set from Cloudrest. Builds wind stacks on light/heavy attacks that deal immense single-target damage. Wear on body.
- Pillar of Nirn: Still competitive. Pair with Relequen on front bar and jewelry, or front bar a Maelstrom/Master’s weapon.
- Arenas Weapons: The Maelstrom Inferno Staff on back bar with Wall of Elements boosts light attack damage. The Blackrose Prison dual wield daggers increase damage with each bleed tick, synergizing with Deadly Cloak.
- Mythic Item: Harpooner’s Wading Kilt for maximum critical chance and damage, provided you can avoid direct damage to maintain stacks. Alternatively, Death Dealer’s Fete increases all stats with stacks.
- Monster Set: Kjalnar’s Nightmare (Unhallowed Grave) if you can stay in melee range, otherwise Zaan’s.
Champion Points
Champion Points (CP) should be allocated to amplify your critical damage, direct damage, and sustain. A balanced blue tree setup for combat focus is:
- Precision: 20 (increases critical chance)
- Piercing: 20 (penetration up to ~6k before overpenetration)
- Master-at-Arms: 50 (boosts direct damage, including Fatecarver ticks)
- Deadly Aim: 50 (increases single-target damage)
- Wrathful Strikes: 10 (adds weapon/spell damage on light attacks)
Red tree (survival) and green tree (sustain) points should be tailored to your personal needs. Prioritise Tireless Discipline for resource returns and Rejuvenation for passive recovery.
Rotation and Gameplay Tips
The Arcanist DPS rotation is relatively straightforward but relies on buff uptimes and Crux management. A typical static rotation:
- Pre-buff with Inspired Scholarship and Channeled Acceleration (or Barbed Trap).
- Lay down Wall of Elements (back bar) and any other DoTs like Barbed Trap or Scalding Rune.
- Switch to front bar, cast Escalating Runeblades three times to reach 3 Crux.
- Immediately cast Fatecarver. Let the full channel run.
- While Fatecarver is on cooldown, refresh DoTs and rebuild Crux with Runeblades.
- Repeat, using your ultimate whenever ready.
In a dynamic fight, prioritise keeping Inspired Scholarship and your DoTs active. Always spend max Crux on Fatecarver; never cast it at less than 3 stacks unless the fight is about to end. Weave light attacks between every skill activation to build ultimate and proc enchantments.
Race and Mundus Stone
Race choice provides meaningful passive bonuses. Top picks for DPS:
- Khajiit: Critical damage and critical healing bonuses, plus good sustain. Excellent all-rounder.
- High Elf (Altmer): Increased magicka, spell damage, and resource recovery. Ideal for magicka builds.
- Dark Elf (Dunmer): Boosts max magicka and stamina, plus weapon and spell damage. Very flexible.
For the Mundus Stone, The Thief provides critical chance which synergises beautifully with the Arcanist’s need for high crit to trigger Deadly Cloak and other procs. If your crit chance is already overcapped (above 60%, diminishing returns), switch to The Shadow for increased critical damage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Arcanist DPS perform well with a stamina build?
Yes, stamina Arcanist DPS is viable. Replace Inspired Scholarship with Reaping Scholarship for weapon damage buffs, and favour medium armor sets like Pillar of Nirn. The rotation remains similar, but you will lean on Cephaliarch’s Flail as a spammable instead of Runeblades.
What is the best spammable for Arcanist DPS?
Fatecarver is by far your hardest-hitting ability and should be used whenever at 3 Crux. For filler between Fatecarver casts, Escalating Runeblades is the top choice for both magicka and stamina builds due to its range and damage.
How important is light attack weaving on Arcanist?
It is very important, especially because Fatecarver is a channel that can be cancelled early if you start weaving too quickly. Practice getting a light attack in before each skill without interrupting the Fatecarver channel. The Maelstrom staff back bar further rewards this.
What sustainability issues should I expect?
The Arcanist has decent built-in sustain via Tome-Bearer’s Inspiration or Recuperative Treatise. However, Fatecarver can drain resources quickly. Slotting a recovery glyph on jewelry, using Witchmother’s potent brew food, and allocating CP into sustain helps immensely.
Is the Arcanist better suited for melee or ranged combat?
The class performs well in both settings. Magicka builds excel at range due to Runeblades and the safety of channeling Fatecarver from afar. Stamina builds naturally gravitate to melee for the flail and Fighter’s Guild abilities, but both can handle any distance with proper bar setups.
With the right build and practice, your Arcanist can become a terrifying force on the battlefield, blending scholarly precision with raw apocalyptic might.
