Playing A Nightblade In The Elder Scrolls Online

The Nightblade

The Nightblade

The Nightblade is arguably the most thrilling class to play in The Elder Scrolls Online. The Nightblade is a rogue archetype that relies primarily on stealth and dark magic to incapacitate and kill an enemy. If you’re the type of player that prefers to launch hidden attacks from the shadows, the Nightblade will most definitely match your playing style.

When you first create your character in The Elder Scrolls Online, you’re not given a whole lot of information regarding the four classes. If you’re contemplating being a Nightblade, all you’re told is:

Nightblades are adventurers and opportunists with a gift for getting in and out of trouble. Relying variously on stealth, blades, and speed, Nightblades thrive on conflict and misfortune, trusting to their luck and cunning to survive.

When playing a Nightblade in The Elder Scrolls Online consider the following:

Best Race For A Nightblade

The Elder Scrolls Online has a robust character creation system, and you can play any character class with any Race. With that said, some Races are better suited for specific classes (for more information be sure to read The Best Elder Scrolls Online Race). Nightblades rely primarily on stealth, and need to allocate as many points as possible to Stamina and Magicka (as opposed to Health) to take advantage of their unique skill sets. As such, the following Races make excellent Nightblades due to their race-based bonuses:

RaceAllianceBonusReasoning
ArgonianEbonheart PactHealthNatural healing ability frees up points to be spent on Magicka and Stamina
BretonDaggerfall CovenantMagickaIncreased Magicka pool to draw from
KhajiitAldmeri DominionStealthMelee Combat, known for stealth and agility
Wood ELfAldmeri DominionStealthStamina, also has Archery bonus for long range sneak attacks

Helpful Tip:

Out of the four Races mentioned above, the Khajiit and Wood Elf are the two most natural choices for the Nightblade.

  • If you tend more towards direct combat, the Khajiit makes a better choice than the Wood Elf due to the Melee Combat bonus.
  • If you prefer indirect combat from a distance, the Wood Elf makes a better choice than the Khajiit due to the Archery bonus.

Nightblade Class Skills

The Nightblade has three distinct class skill lines:

  • Assassination – allows you to quickly incapacitate or kill your enemies.
  • Shadow – allows you to use stealth and invisibility to surprise your enemies.
  • Siphoning – allows you to self-heal by draining the strength of your enemies.

Each skill line has unique Active abilities, Passive abilities, and a powerful Ultimate ability.

Assassination Skill Line

Skill NameTypeDescription
Master AssassinPassiveIncreased damage while in stealth mode
ExecutionerPassiveRestore Magicka by killing enemy with an Assassination ability
Pressure PointsPassiveIncreased critical strike chance
HemorrhagePassiveIncreased bonus critical strike damage
Assassin’s BladeActiveIncreased damage multiplier against low health enemies
Teleport StrikeActiveTeleport directly to your enemy to damage and stun
BlurActiveEnemies have a chance of missing you when they attack
Mark TargetActivePlace a mark on a target and deal extra damage
HasteActiveIncreased Attack Speed
Death StrokeUltimateDamage enemy and reduce their healing; damage increases as Ultimate charge increases

Shadow Skill Line

Skill NameTypeDescription
Refreshing ShadowsPassiveIncreased stamina regeneration
Shadow BarrierPassiveIncreased armor and spell resistance
FortitudePassiveIncreased health
Dark VeilPasssiveIncreased Shadow ability duration
Shadow CloakActiveTurn Invisible
Veiled StrikeActiveDeal increased damage and stun enemies
Summon ShadeActiveSummon a shade to attack enemies
Path of DarknessActiveDeal Magicka damage and increase movement speed
Aspect of TerrorActiveInduce fear in two nearby enemies
Consuming DarknessUltimateCreates area of darkness that snares enemies and grants allies protection and invisibility

Siphoning Skill Line

Skill NameTypeDescription
Catalyst PassiveIncreased potion effectiveness
Magicka FloodPassiveIncreased maximum Magicka
Soul SiphonerPassiveIncreased healing from Siphoning abilities
Transfer PassiveGain Ultimate when dealing Siphoning damage
StrifeActiveDeals enemy damage and heals player
AgonyActiveStuns enemy and causes damage
CrippleActiveSiphons movement speed from enemy and causes damage
Siphoning StrikesActiveRestore Magicka and Stamina when attacking
Drain PowerActiveIncreased Weapon Damage for each enemy damaged
Soul ShredUltimateDeals damage and stuns all foes in radius; ally may activate Soul leech initiating a high damage attack

Nightblade Weapons

Characters are not restricted in the types of weapons they use in The Elder Scrolls Online. Due to their skulking nature however, Nightblades tend to favor daggers and small swords for close combat wet work, and bows for long range sneak attacks.

Helpful tip:

  • If you’re the type of player that prefers close combat with a sword or dagger, be sure to focus on the Assassination skill line first, and the Siphoning skill line second. Also, learn Dual Wield for bonus damage multipliers.
  • If you’re the type of player that prefers distance attacks with a bow, be sure to focus on the Shadow skill line first, and the Siphoning skill line second. Choose Wood-Working as a craft to upgrade your bow.

Nightblade Armor

There are no armor restrictions in The Elder Scrolls Online, and characters can wear whatever they choose. Players may be tempted to wear Heavy Armor due to the Nightblade’s low Health (compared to other classes), but Heavy Armor is a poor choice for stealth-based characters, despite its excellent damage resistance. Rather, players should select Medium Armor for the Nightblade. When worn, Medium Armor grants bonuses in:

  1. Sneak (improved sneak ability)
  2. Stamina (increased Stamina regeneration)
  3. Dexterity (increased critical strike chance)
  4. Agility (increased attack speed)

Helpful Tip:

To take full advantage of the Medium Armor bonuses, equip your character with as much Medium Armor as possible, as quickly as possible. The more Medium Armor you wear, the more bonuses you’ll have available. Nightblades should choose Clothing as a craft in order to create and upgrade Medium Armor ASAP.

Final Thoughts

Playing a Nightblade in The Elder Scrolls Online offers an entertaining and unique challenge. Nightblades aren’t tanks that can soak up a ton of damage, and need to play the game from the shadows — avoiding conflict when necessary, and striking foes when the odds are in their favor. Nightblades benefit from stealth, and their unique skill set allows them to cause devastating damage at higher levels.

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Shane Scarbrough
Shane Scarbrough

Shane Scarbrough is the founder of the Skyrim Fansite. He's a business owner, video game journalist, and role playing game aficionado. When he’s not working he enjoys reading, writing, and playing video games. He's currently on his third playthrough of Skyrim, and is playing as a Templar in The Elder Scrolls Online. You can find Shane on Google+ and FaceBook.

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