Elder Scrolls Online Beginner's Guide 2024

Just like with any MMORPG, getting acquainted with ESO is tough. This is especially noticeable if you have never played a game of this genre before. Tamriel holds plenty of activities and exciting locations for you to delve into. We have prepared this ESO beginner’s guide 2024 to ensure your journey starts smoother.

Here, we will explain all the basic in-game mechanics. From creating your character to choosing the race. We will also go over all the available classes, as well as touch the topic of skill points and skill lines. After reading this article, you will learn how to play ESO even if you have not heard of it before. Become ready to explore the world of Tamriel and join us!

Over a decade has passed since the release of the game. A ton of content has been revised, and numerous DLCs have been released. However, it is never too late to join the army of fans if you really like this universe. If, for some reason, you have been putting off this idea, it is high time to learn how to start ESO in 2024. The project is more than alive and is constantly developing. This game is a unique one of its kind and is definitely worth your attention even after all these years.

Before we get to our ESO starting guide, spare us a second here. At SkyCoach, you can Buy ESO Gold at the best market price and with the fastest delivery. This is by far the easiest way to become richer in the game. Having enough currency ensures a smoother start. It also lets you save time since you will not have to grind gold for days.

 

 

Creating a Character

Creating your character is the first task you must complete when you launch the game. 

Experiment with the appearance and set everything to your own preference. This does not really impact your gameplay. What actually matters is what Alliance/Faction you decide to join. Currently, you can pick out of three ESO factions, such as:

• Aldmeri Dominion – Summerset Isles, Valenwood, and Elsweyr.
• Daggerfall Covenant – Hammerfell, High Rock, and Orsinium.
• Ebonheart Pact – Skyrim, Morrowind, and Black Marsh.

We have also enlisted the major zones, each corresponding to this or that faction. We will briefly touch the topic of the races in our ESO gaming guide here, but we will return to it later on. Depending on whatever side you choose, you must also pick a race when creating a character:

• Aldmeri Dominion – High Elf, Wood Elf, and Khajiit.
• Daggerfall Covenant – Breton, Redguard, and Orc.
• Ebonheart Pact – Nords, Dark Elf, and Argonians.

Do not try to find any OP from the very start. Also, do not focus too much attention on what races prefer more experienced players. Just trust your instincts and choose the one you truly like. Later on, you can change both the faction you have chosen as well as your race. However, it will cost you some Crowns, which are only bought for real money.

Why Alliance Choice is Important

We would like to underline the importance of Alliance choice in our ESO complete guide before moving any further. While you will always have an opportunity to change it, picking the one you like from the start is important.

Choosing your Alliance in Elder Scrolls Online is pivotal, as each offers a distinct storyline. Besides, your choice binds your character to a PvP faction. This will be important when you enter Cyrodiil, a large PvP zone where all factions fight against each other. Obviously, you will have to team up with people who belong to your Alliance. At the same time, you will always be an enemy for all other factions.

However, this rule does not work when it comes to PvE content. Let’s imagine you have decided to play any of these activities:

• Trials
• Dungeons

Here, just like in any other PvE content, you can group up with a player from any faction. So, if for some reason, you and your friend have chosen different Alliances, you can still team up for PvE activities.

Choosing a Race

Continuing our ESO beginner guide, let’s focus on the process of choosing a race. You already know that each race belongs to this or that Alliance. However, each of them also features unique traits you want to know about before picking one. Below, you can find a short description of all 10 races currently available in the game:

1. High Elf – Excels in Magicka, though lacking in Stamina bonuses.
2. Argonian – Offers swift swimming and robust healing and tanking abilities.
3. Wood Elf – Grants Stamina and speed enhancements.
4. Breton – Shines in Magicka builds with excellent sustain, albeit lacking in damage.
5. Dark Elf – Proves versatile, offering maximum stats and damage boosts.
6. Imperial – Lacks damage buffs but boasts resource and ability cost reduction.
7. Khajiit – Excels in damage dealing with heightened critical hit chance.
8. Nord – Provides strong resistances, alongside Stamina and Health boosts.
9. Orc – Offers speed, damage, and maximum stats but lacks sustain.
10. Redguard – Stands out for Stamina sustain, though without damage buffs.

As you can see, each race has its pros and cons. If this is your first time you enter the game, do not hesitate to pick the one you like. Do not try to follow the meta right from the start. Think of what your playstyle is going to be built around, and go ahead. After all, you can always change your race for an extra payment in the Crown Store. BLOG20

All ESO Classes Listed

Up next, we have prepared a list of all classes in our ESO new player guide. As of right now, there are seven classes to choose from. The latest one added to the game is Arcanist who joined the forces around a year ago. Similarly to the races described above, all classes feature their own strengths and weaknesses:

• Arcanist – Proves to be a reliable choice practically for any type of content yet feels different and a bit complex compared to other classes.
• Dragonknight – Excels as a formidable tanking class, showcasing strength and resilience.
• Nightblade – Thrives on stealth with bursts of damage, yet vulnerability to attacks.
• Sorcerer – Boasts potent summoning abilities, conjuring pets for combat and healing support.
• Templar – Stands out as adept healers and an ideal choice for beginners.
• Warden – Shines as another potent healing class, offering valuable group buffs and mobility.
• Necromancer – Emerges as a powerful class, though mastering rotations can pose a challenge.

As always, stick to the class you personally like. Do remember that the choice should depend on what playstyle you are going to stick to. At the same time, you should know that you cannot change your class like you do it with an Alliance or race.

 

ESO Attributes Explained

The next topic we would like to cover in our Elder Scrolls Online guide is connected to attributes. No matter what Alliance, race, or class you choose, your character will also have three main attributes, such as:

• Health – Represents your total health pool, indicating how much damage you can sustain.
• Magicka – Signifies magical energy for spellcasting, influencing damage and healing potency.
• Stamina – Reflects physical energy for actions like sprinting, dodging, and using stamina-based abilities, impacting their effectiveness.

If you are playing on a PC/Mac, you can press the “C” button (by default) to open the screen where you see all these and other attributes. This is also the place where you spend attribute points to enhance this or that direction.

With each level-up, you earn attribute points to enhance Health, Magicka, or Stamina. Typically, you will focus on either Magicka or Stamina. Allocate points based on your character's dominant skill type: Magicka for Magicka-based skills, Stamina for Stamina-based. Health is usually reserved for tanking or PvP scenarios.

In PvE, it is common to allocate all points into one pool, but PvP demands a mix. For better survivability, distribute points into Health alongside your dominant Magicka/Stamina pool. In PvE leveling, adding points to Health can provide a helpful buffer if needed.

How to Change Attributes

Any player can change their attributes for spending in-game gold only. However, you need to visit your Alliance’s capital city to do this:

• Aldmeri Dominion: Eldenroot in Grahtwood.
• Daggerfall Covenant: Wayrest in Stormhaven.
• Ebonheart Pact: Mournhold in Deshaan.

Upon arrival, check the map for Rededication Shrines. Eldenroot hosts the Shrine of Auriel, Wayrest holds the Shrine of Akatosh, and Mournhold features the Shrine of Kyne.

What Are Skill Lines

ESO features numerous Skill Lines to develop, covering various aspects such as class abilities, weaponry, armor, guilds, alliance war tactics, crafting, and more. Initially, it might feel overwhelming due to the multitude of options available. It is crucial to maintain a steady pace in skill development. Prioritize class and weapon abilities, but also allocate points into class, weapon, or armor passives once your ability bar is filled.

Additionally, do not overlook the importance of the Racial Skill Line. This aspect allows your character to significantly enhance their abilities through racial passives. Unlike other skill lines, there are no active abilities here, only passive bonuses. Fortunately, the Racial Skill Line advances automatically as you play the game and engage in quests.

What Are Skill Points

Moving on with the ESO tips for beginners, let’s talk about Skill Points. They are vital for unlocking abilities and passives in various Skill Lines we have mentioned above. One can earn them through the following ways:

1. Hitting level 50 gets you 64 points.
2. Main Story quests give 11 points.
3. Alliance story quests earn 18 points.
4. Grabbing three skyshard pieces gets you one point. They're all over.
5. Story quests in base and DLC dungeons total 24 and 26 points respectively.

Players also use Skill Points to morph their abilities. This becomes possible only if you use a particular skill for a really long period of time. When this happens, the game notifies you about the possibility of morphing this or that skill. BLOG20

Max Level & Champion Points

As of the moment of writing this article, the maximum level you can hit in ESO is capped at 50. However, your leveling journey does not end once you reach this threshold. After that, you can keep earning Champion Points.

You can get an uncapped total of 3600 Champion Points, but do not let this number overwhelm you! There is a soft cap at around 1500 Points where additional points offer diminishing returns, and earning them becomes faster with fewer points.

For beginners, remember this crucial point: Gear reaches its maximum potential at Champion Point 160. Avoid immediately outfitting your level 50 character with gold-level gear at endgame. Wait until you reach at least Champion Point level 160 to equip the strongest gear available.

To ensure you hit the max level ASAP, you can use our ESO Powerleveling Service available at the best market price. We work with any platform and are always there to help you save your precious time. Instead of grinding XP yourself, you can trust this job to our PROs. You can also choose an extra option to level up all the way up to 160 Champion Points to get access to the best gear straight away.

Use ESO Addons

The biggest advice to those asking how to start playing ESO as a beginner is to use Addons. They can greatly ease your process of getting to know the game. On top of that, you will gain way more information and details to help you perform better. From speeding up your leveling to gathering rare resources, Addons help in every aspect of the game.

For your convenience, we have prepared a separate Best ESO Addons Guide to check out. There, we have compiled a list of the most useful mods created throughout these years. They are absolutely legit to use and the devs do not punish players for doing so.

Weapon Leveling

Unlocking a weapon skill line follows a simple process: equip the desired weapon, defeat enemies to earn experience, and the skill line will unlock. To advance it, participate in combat while the weapon is equipped. If you have a corresponding ability on your action bar, both the skill line and ability will receive boosts through questing and combat.

Switching to another weapon type follows the same process: equip, defeat enemies, and repeat. However, it is wise to consider your preferred playstyle and end-game build to streamline the process. Otherwise, you might reach endgame with one weapon fully leveled, only to realize you desire a different build, necessitating starting from scratch with a new weapon.

Armor Leveling

Moving on with our ESO tips for new players, omitting the topic of defense would be a mistake. The game features three separate armor types:

• Light
• Medium
• Heavy

Every armor category boasts its unique skill lines and passives, with powerful Ultimates unlocked upon reaching level 50. While armor might not appear essential at first glance, each type harbors invaluable passive abilities. Thus, prioritizing the unlocking and progression of all three armor types from the outset confers a notable edge in combat and survivability. To initiate an Armor skill line, equip three pieces of identical type: 3 Light, 3 Medium, or 3 Heavy pieces.

ESO Guilds

In Elder Scrolls Online, three primary story-based guilds stand out:

1. Fighters Guild
2. Mages Guild
3. Undaunted

Every guild presents its own narrative arc and quests, rewarding skill points upon conclusion. Moreover, downloadable content introduces additional guild skill lines, such as the Psijic Order from the Summerset DLC.

Each guild boasts its unique skill line, featuring distinctive abilities and passives attainable through various means. These exclusive skills and passives enrich your character's capabilities, enhancing your overall build. To join two guilds, visit their respective halls situated in your Alliance's starting city, namely Daggerfall in Glenumbra, Davon's Watch in Stonefalls, or Vulkhel Guard in Auridon.

• Visit Fighters Guild Hall to join the Fighters guild.
• Visit Mages Guild Hall to join the Mages guild.

To enlist in the Undaunted, completing the guild's unique quest within one of the aforementioned cities is essential. Seek out the guild's recruiter at the Tavern, fulfill the objectives, and you'll earn your place among their ranks.

Elder Scrolls Online Tips & Tricks for Beginners

As we are about to finish our guide, here are a few more Elder Scrolls Online tips you need to know about as a beginner:

This is just a small part of what we can cover within this section. You will have to explore a large world full of special mechanics and locations. Just make sure you enjoy playing the game and remember every moment spent in ESO.

Conclusion

Fellow travelers, we are glad that you have made it to the end of our Elder Scrolls Online beginner’s guide. Our team has tried their best to tell you about every aspect of the game you need to know about when starting out. Of course, there is plenty more for you to discover later on. However, these tips and explanations will be a great start for you.

From creating your character, to leveling up armor and weapons, we have tried to delve into every important topic. We hope you enjoy the game even after all these years since its release. Good luck and we will see you in Tamriel!

F.A.Q.

What should I do as a beginner in ESO?

• Slot All Possible Abilities
• Food Matters
• Crafting Low-Level Equipment
• Travel Smart
• Get Rid of Junk

What is the best start class in ESO?

Sorcerer would be a great pick if you are only starting out your journey in ESO. This class features strong abilities suitable for both dealing damage and healing yourself.

What is the best starting point in ESO?

While it is up to you to decide, which starting zone to appear at, Khenarthi's Roost is generally a preferable one among most new players.

Where do I start first in ESO?

To into the main storyline, visit Vulkhel Guard (Auridon), Daggerfall (Glenumbra), or Davon's Watch (Stonefalls) to meet the Hooded Figure who gives the very first quest to you.

What is the easiest class for beginners in ESO?

Opting for the Magicka Sorcerer class is great for beginners for two reasons: it is easy to learn and it is perfect for soloing most content even when you are playing at higher levels.

Is ESO easy for beginners?

The in-game tutorial will help you get acquainted with the game’s basics smoothly. This makes ESO quite beginner friendly and easy-to-start even after all these years.

Is it easy to start ESO?

Once can start playing ESO even in 2024 and experience the immersive world of Tamriel. Tons of quests and activities await you. You will not face any problems with getting acquainted with the game despite its fairly complex nature.