The Best Dragonknight Tank Build for ESO PvE

Overview

The objective of this build is to increase group DPS as much as possible. It's optimized for 4-man content (such as dungeons and arenas), but is also perfectly viable in most trials with minor adjustments.

Last updated January 2024 (Necrom and Infinite Archive updates).

Race

All races are viable and you can use whichever you prefer. I personally run an Imperial. However, if I had to rank them...

1. Nord
2. Imperial
3. Redguard
4. Argonian
5. Breton
6. Orc
7. Khajiit
8. Altmer (High Elf)
9. Dunmer (Dark Elf)
10. Bosmer (Wood Elf)

Attributes

40 Health, 0 Magicka, 24 Stamina

Attributes can be adjusted to your preference. Early on, you'll likely want health and stamina. Health for survival, and stamina because it's easy to hold block and waste it while learning new content. As you become accustomed to mechanics, you'll need to block less, and can put more points into health (or whatever you desire).

Mundus

The Atronach

We'll want to aim for ~2,000 magicka recovery.

Food

Max basic resource (health, stamina, and magicka) foods have good versatility.

• Bewitched Sugar Skulls
• Longfin Pasty with Melon Sauce

If you need more recovery, there are also the following options:

• Orzorga’s Red Frothgar (health and magicka recovery)
• Jewels of Misrule (health, magicka recovery, stamina recovery)
• Orzorga’s Smoked Bear Haunch (health, magicka, recovery, stamina recovery, health recovery)

Potions

Tri-Stat potions are your standard. You can use either the crafted variety (Bugloss, Columbine, Mountain Flower) or Crown Tri-Restoration potions from the crown store and daily rewards. Minor Heroism potions (Columbine, Dragon Rheum, Dragon's Blood) are better as they boost ultimate generation instead of health, but are very expensive.

Slot	Set	Weight	Trait	Enchantment
Head	Magma Incarnate (Mobs) Archdruid Devyric (Bosses)	Light / Medium	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Shoulder	Spaulder of Ruin (Mobs) Archdruid Devyric (Bosses)	Medium / Light	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Chest	Turning Tide	Heavy	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Hands	Turning Tide	Heavy	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Waist	Turning Tide	Heavy	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Legs	Turning Tide	Heavy	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Feet	Turning Tide	Heavy	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Necklace	Powerful Assault	Jewelry	Infused	Reduce Prismatic Cost
Ring	Powerful Assault	Jewelry	Infused	Reduce Prismatic Cost
Ring	Powerful Assault	Jewelry	Infused	Reduce Prismatic Cost
Main Hand	Void Bash (Mobs) Puncturing Remedy (Bosses)	One Handed Weapon	Defending (Mobs) Charged (Bosses)	Shock
Off Hand	Void Bash (Mobs) Puncturing Remedy (Bosses)	Shield	Divines	Prismatic Defence
Back Bar	Powerful Assault	Frost Staff	Infused	Crusher

Gear Notes

Armor Weights
Because Turning Tide only drops as heavy armor, our monster set head and shoulder slots need to include a medium and light piece to take advantage of the Undaunted Mettle passive. It does not matter whether you use a light or medium piece in either slot so long as you have both somewhere.

Pristmatic Defense / Tri-Stat Enchantments
If money is an issue, you can run these expensive enchantments exclusively on your large pieces (head, chest, pants, and shield) to get the majority of the benefit. The remaining slots can use cheaper enchantments with minimal impact.

Jewelry Traits and Enchantments
If your group can consistently supply synergies, use Harmony instead of Infused. If you are consistently running out of magicka, replace the Reduce Skill Cost enchantments with Magicka Recovery until sufficient.

Gear Locations

• Magma Incarnate Head - The Dread Cellar (Veteran)
• Archdruid Devyric Head - Earthen Root Enclave (Veteran)
• Archdruid Devyric Shoulders - Urgarlag Chief-bane's chest at Undaunted Enclaves
• Spaulder of Ruin - Mythic Antiquity from the Deadlands
• Turning Tide - Shipwright’s Regret Dungeon (Normal and Veteran)
• Powerful Assault - Imperial Sewers Tel-Var Merchant, Guild Stores
• Void Bash - Vateshran Hollows (Normal or Veteran)
• Puncturing Remedy - Dragonstar Arena (Normal or Veteran)

Alternate Gear

Vestment of Olorime
Better than Powerful Assault if you don't have a source of Major Courage for your group, such as runs with three DDs and no healer. Requires a competent group that knows to run through the circle of might.

Mobs
Main Bar: One Handed Weapon and Shield	Back Bar: Frost Staff
Pierce Armor	Destructive Clench
Unrelenting Grip	Elemental Blockade
Igneous Shield	Pulsar
Coagulating Blood	Razor Caltrops
Power Slam	Balance
Ultimate: Replenishing Barrier	Ultimate: Aggressive Warhorn

Bosses
Main Bar: One Handed Weapon and Shield	Back Bar: Frost Staff
Pierce Armor	Destructive Clench
Unrelenting Grip	Elemental Blockade
Igneous Shield	Engulfing Flames
Coagulating Blood	Resolving Vigor
Stone Giant	Balance
Ultimate: Replenishing Barrier	Ultimate: Agressive Warhorn

Skill Explanations

Main Bar: One Handed Weapon and Shield

• Pierce Armor - Primary taunt. Applies Minor and Major Breach.
• Unrelenting Grip - Actively pulls enemies towards you.
• Igneous Shield - Damage shield for anticipated attacks. Also grants Major Mending for 3 seconds, enabling a healing burst.
• Coagulating Blood - Burst heal.
• Power Slam - Used in conjunction with the Void Bash set to immediately pull nearby groups of enemies to you.
• Stone Giant - Used to apply Stagger to enemies, increasing their damage taken.
• Replenishing Barrier - Emergency shield, but mostly used passively for the Magicka Aid passive which increases our magicka recovery by 5% on the main bar.

Back Bar: Frost Staff

• Destructive Clench - Ranged taunt with a passive pull.
• Elemental Blockade - Applies the chilled status effect to affected enemies, which also applies Minor Maim, reducing their damage dealt by 5%, and Minor Brittle, increasing damage taken by 5% and critical damage taken by 10%.
• Pulsar - Applies Minor Mangle, reducing enemy max health by 10%. Also immobilizes when used in combination with Elemental (Frost) Blockade. Applies minor protection to you.
• Razor Caltrops - Used to activate Powerful Assault to buff group DPS. Also applies Major Breach and slows enemies with a large area of effect.
• Resolving Vigor - Similarly used to activate Powerful Assault. Also grants you a nice heal and Minor Resolve, increasing your resistances.
• Balance - Grants you Major Resolve, greatly increasing your resistances for 30 seconds. Also enables you to swap health (your highest stat) for magicka (likely your most in demand) as needed.
• Agressive Warhorn - Primary ultimate for boosting group damage.

Common Skill Rotations

Mobs

1. Balance to pre-buff with Major Resolve.
2. Destructive Clench to range taunt any dangerous mobs. This starts combat, allowing...
3. Razor Caltrops to buff the group with Powerful Assault while debuffing and snaring enemies.
4. Elemental (Frost) Blockade to begin applying the chilled status effect and prepping immobilization.
5. Void Bash a centralized enemy. This pulls multiple nearby enemies to you in a neat stack.
6. Pulsar, which immobilizes enemies on the Elemental Blockade and reduces their health.
7. Block an attack and then bash an enemy towards the main stack, debuffing enemies with Turning Tide.
8. Unrelenting Grip to pull in residual mobs.
9. Pierce Armor to taunt surrounding enemies.

Bosses

1. Balance
2. Pierce Armor
3. Resolving Vigor
4. Elemental Blockade
5. Engulfing Flame
6. Stone Giant
7. Warhorn, utility skills, and reapplication of buffs/debuffs as needed

Warfare	Fitness	Craft
Blessed - 20 Eldritch Insight - 20 Quick Recovery - 20 Hardy - 20 Elemental Aegis - 20 Preparation - 20 Tireless Discipline - 20 Battle Mastery - 20 Piercing - 10 Ironclad - 50 (Slot) Duelist’s Rebuff - 50 (Slot) Unassailable - 50 (Slot) Bulwark - 50 (Slot) Flawless Ritual - Additional	Defiance - 20 Tumbling - 30 Mystic Tenacity - 20 Hero's Vigor - 20 Hasty - 16 Sprinter - 20 Tireless Guardian - 20 Fortification - 30 Nimble Protector - 6 Savage Defense - 15 Boundless Vitality - 50 (Slot) Fortified - 50 (Slot) Rejuvenation - 50 (Slot) Celerity - 50 (Slot)	Fortune's Favor - 20 Wanderer - 45 Inspiration Boost - 45 Steadfast Enchantment - 50 Breakfall - 50 Liquid Efficiency - 75 (Slot) Rationer - 30 (Slot) Steed's Blessing - 50 (Slot) Gilded Fingers - Additional Meticulous Disassembly - Additional

If you have questions, suggestions, or comments regarding this build, please feel free to post them on the forum thead.