Elder Scrolls Online

What are the best ESO factions? What is the best ESO Alliance? Does Alliance matter in ESO?
When I started out playing ESO, I had a ton of questions!
Plus all the information I wish I had when I joined the game back in 2014.
For that reason, I decided to make this Elder Scrolls Online FAQ, which addresses all the questions that wouldn’t fit in my ESO Beginner’s Guide.

Click the image for a 40% Early Bird Discount

Is Elder Scrolls Online Pay to Win?

You could Pay to Win in Elder Scrolls Online, now that you can gift Crowns and other Crown Store items to other players.
This way you can sell/trade Crowns for in-game gold, which you, in turn, can pay good players to take you through even the hardest trails.

So yes Elder Scrolls Online is now Pay to Win.
If you got the money for it, you can pay trail guild to farm the best gear, and get you all skins and achievements, but where is the fun in that?
My advice is to enjoy the game as it is, do not worry about winning ESO or Pay to Win. The Elder Scrolls Online FAQ could inspire you in any way in the game.

Can you solo ESO?

If you practice a lot, get the right gear, and learn to keep yourself alive you can solo 85% of elder scrolls online. Some things like group events, Veteran group dungeons, and trails you won’t be able to solo in ESO.

What are the best ESO factions?

Best ESO Factions only matter in PvP, Battlegrounds, and where the storyline begins.
In ESO you have three factions, Ebonheart Pact (Red), Daggerfall Covenant (Blue), and Aldmeri Dominion (Yellow).
Outside PvP you can group up with all factions, also you are free to choose up to 5 guilds no matter what faction the guild originated from.

It is beneficial to be in a guild where the majority of the members are in the same faction as you. When your friends want to PvP and you’re on the opposing team it’s fun for five minutes, after that, you just want to join your friends.

What is the max level in ESO?

The maximum level in ESO is level 50, after that, you start advancing in Champion Points with a maximum of 3600.

Even thou you can’t progress any further, Zenimax still delivers 4 major updates every year. That way you still have plenty of content, and I am sure this Elder Scrolls Online FAQ will be even longer in the future because of it.

How to use mounts in ESO?

How to use mounts in Elder Scrolls online is easy.
You get a free Sorrel Horse at level 10. If this is your first character it should auto-activate, but in case it didn’t, just press U, choose Mounts, and activate your Sorrel Horse, from now on you can just press H (as long as you
are outside) and you will use your Mount in ESO.

The important thing to remember in ESO when it comes to Mounts is to remember to train your three riding skills.
Each skill starts with 0 and can be trained up to level 60, it costs 250 gold and you can train once every 20 hours.
It will take you 180 days / 6 months or so to get all three to rank 60.
You need to do that with every character you decide to make.

Is ESO or WoW better?

ESO is “better” than WoW in many ways, but it is also more challenging.
It takes skill and practice to get
good in the Elder Scrolls online, while it takes time and patience to climb to the top of WoW.

It all comes down to the combat system, where WoW is made with what was available when it was developed. Since then MMORPGs have merged more and more with FPS. In ESO you both need to be able to block, evade, manage resources, and swap skill bars. In WoW you just need to be in range, have a line of sight, and manage the cooldowns of your skills.

When you read this answer, on an Elder Scrolls online FAQ you can be sure I am biased. I did play WoW for many years and switched to ESO. I tried returning twice, and both times the antiquated combat system was what made me stick with ESO.

What is the best class in ESO?

The best all-around class in ESO is the Magicka Templar, as it is the easiest to play fairly well in all three roles (Healer, Tank, and Damage Dealer).
The Magicka Templar is the best healer class in ESO, but when it comes to tanking a Dragonknight is easier and DPS.

But when it comes down to what is the best class in ESO, you are sure to hear from anyone playing a class as their main character, that the one they play is the best class in the Elder Scrolls online.

What is the Best Alliance in ESO?

Many players hail from Skyrim, and because of that, they tend to choose Ebonheart Pact as their alliance/faction. The players who came over from WoW and played Horde also went that way or to Daggerfall Covenant.
That more or less leaves those playing Alliance in WoW to take up the Gauntlet for the Queen, and the Aldmeri Dominion.

You can pay with crowns and get tokens that can change your Race, Name, and alliance/faction. But that is a matter for a whole different Elder Scrolls Online FAQ Question.

Does alliance matter in ESO?

Yes, and why wouldn’t it?
The Best Alliance has always mattered in ESO as long as you play PvP. In PvE, it has almost no consequence, as ESO in 2020 is updated to “One World”.
If you want to play a specific race, but want another faction / Alliance, you should buy the “Any Race any Alliance” pack in the Crown Store.
This will give you the option to choose freely amongst all races and play them in any alliance.

Does race really matter ESO?

The race matters in ESO, the benefits of each race make a major difference depending on your playstyle, overall build, and role (Tank, Healer, DPS) and whether you go the Stamina or Spellpower route.

This might be the best Elder Scrolls online FAQ question since every class can fill all roles, but the setup is very different if you choose a Dragonknight Tank or Dragonknight Damage Dealer (the triple D).
To make sure you choose the right race for your class and playstyle, watch this video or read this post here on Players Dojo.

Can you play with any ESO Faction?

As long as you play PvE, you can play with anyone no matter what alliance they belong to. If you play PvP you can only group up with members of your alliance. The game experience won’t differ much, no matter what alliance you play, as the storyline magickally takes you to play the other alliances once you have saved your alliance.

It is recommended that you start out playing the race and class you like the best, and experience the alliance you are born in first. This is because the ESO story and questline are so immersive you should miss it.
In time I will walk you through the entire game, there is so much more than this Elder Scrolls Online FAQ.

What is the best ESO faction?

If you want to play PvP on the European server, you best go with Daggerfall Covenant or Aldmeri Dominion, as they seem to be more populated in the daytime. No Faction is the best ESO Faction but seems more players are Blue Alliance on the EU server.
Ebonheart Pact seems to come out when it’s dark.
Aldmeri Dominion then takes the map back in the morning and can usually hold on to it most hours of the day on average making them the monthly or weekly winner.

What is the best class for DPS in ESO?

Sorcerer, Dragonknight, and Nightblade take turns being the best class for DPS in ESO. With each update from Zenimax, you can be sure they try and tweak the game. Zenimax calls this balancing the game, and 99% of the time it ends up a failure.

But this is by far the most asked question, and worthy of a spot in this Elder Scrolls online FAQ.
Since 2014, it seems that a majority of the time, you have stamina classes as the best class for DPS in ESO.
Still, we are talking about Sorcerer, DragonKnight, and NightBlade.
You should not choose your class from is most hot right now, as this flavor of the month thing typically only lasts 2-3 months.
Then you hold your breath with the next update and hope your class doesn’t get nerfed.

What is the easiest class to play in ESO?

The easiest class to play in Elder Scrolls online is the Magicka Templar.
With its one-button Damage Dealing and Self Healing in one, the Magicka Templar can be played by even the laziest inexperienced player.

A close second is the Sorcerer, both Magicka and Stamina build.
The Sorcerer skill Surge (Morphs to Power Surge and Critical Surge) is buffed up and self heals wonder, the Stamina version (critical surge) is especially strong. If you want a healing ability even sooner, your pets can be morphed into having healing ability, which means you can get it around level 4 or 5.

The reason the sorcerer is a close second, and not number one, is because the Surge skill takes time to get, and even if you morph a pet to be able to heal you, you still need to activate the skill, where the Magicka Templar gets the one-button damage/selfheal right away and just needs to reach the option to Morph it.

As this is only an Elder Scrolls Online FAQ, you can read or watch the beginner guides for all classes here at Lost Yogi’s website.

eso factions
ESO factions

How much DPS should I be doing ESO?

If you are a dedicated Damage dealer, your DPS (Damage Per Second) in boss fights should be above 50.000.
The best Damage Dealers do more than 100.000 DPS
If you are a dedicated healer, you should still help your group by adding damage when you’re not healing. A healer’s DPS should be above 15.000.
Tank DPS should be 5 to 10.000 unless we are talking endgame trails where your main focus should be survival while debuffing the mobs and buffing your teammates.

How much DPS should you be doing, is an arbitrage question. The real question should be how much DPS should I be doing, be on the best trail teams?
This is also easy to answer since mobs end game trail damage dealers do more than 90.000 DPS. With only 12 members to a trial team, 2 are taken by the healers, and 1-2 are taken by Tanks, you need to be in the top 8 of damage dealers in your guild.

This question deserves its guide, and not just a mention in this Elder Scrolls online FAQ, I recommend you read my
Max out your DPS – ESO DPS Tutorial.

How do I increase my DPS in ESO?

  • To increase your DPS in ESO the following factors come into play.
  • Increase your level.
  • Upgrade your gear.
  • Choose beneficial Set bonuses.
  • Distribute your Champion Point to support the DPS build.
  • Level your skills & upgrade your skills.
  • Debuff boss mobs with Major Fraction & Major Breach.
  • Learn to weave light attacks in between each skill use.
  • Learn the best skill rotation.
  • Use buff food ( 2-stat or legendary).
  • Use buff potions.
  • Choose the best Race.
  • Utilize Class Buff.
  • Remember to bar-swap

To increase your DPS in Elder Scrolls online, many aspects come into account. How strong are your characters built and level-wise?
If you haven’t reached level 50 and 160 Champion points yet, you should focus on that, as the right level 160cp gear will help a lot.

I have written and recorded the Elder Scrolls beginner’s guide to DPS.
You find the written ESO DPS guide here, and the video tutorial here.
This would be too lengthy to address in detail, in this Elder Scrolls online FAQ.
(Links will be added when they are 100% done).

Why is my DPS so low ESO?

  • Check your gear, is it broken go fix it.
  • If your gear is more than 10 levels lower than you, get new gear.
  • Are your weapons upgraded to gold/legendary?
  • If not upgrade to at least purple.
  • Champion point 160 weapons should ALWAYS be Legendary (you lose 200 weapon power/SpellPower if they are not gold).
  • Did you level your skills?
  • Did you upgrade your skills?
  • Do you use the right skills (DOTS+DD)?
  • Do you use light/Medium/Heavy attacks between skill use?
  • Do you debuff the mobs?

If you are new to the Elder Scrolls online, you should watch this DPS tutorial I made. It explains every aspect of how to maximize your DPS.

I also made it into this page, so you can read it instead.
Max out your DPS – ESO DPS Tutorial.

How do you get more bag space in ESO?

You have three ways to get more bag space in ESO, you can get it at the Bag vendor in any major city. Secondly, you can buy more bag space with crowns at the Crown Store. Lastly, you can upgrade your riding skills, that way you can get another 60 bag spaces. In total, you can upgrade up to 210 bag spaces.

You can check the upgrade cost here.

Is ESO Plus worth it in 2023?

With ESO Plus you get access to all zones except the big expansions, that alone makes it worth it, so you don’t have to buy all the DLCs and then end up dropping the game in 2 months. You also get crafting bags, and if you played ESO just a little bit, you don’t need this Elder Scrolls Online FAQ to tell you Bag space is in high demand!

ESO Plus alone does not make ESO Pay to Win, but it makes the game so much more enjoyable.

This is it for this Elder Scrolls online FAQ, kudos for making it so far.
I highly recommend reading the article here on Players Dojo
19+ BEST ways to make gold in the Elder Scrolls Online“.

Elder scrolls online FAQ – the end.

This was all for this Elder Scrolls online FAQ this time, but check in again as this gets updated regularly.
By now it should be clear what is the best ESO factions, if alliance matters in ESO, and how to get the highest DPS.
Also, I highly recommend you read my Elder Scrolls Online Beginners Guide 2024 if you haven’t read it yet.

Elder Scrolls Online FAQ
Elder Scrolls Online FAQ