ESO Tank Levelling Guide – Best Methods & Tips
Levelling as a Tank in The Elder Scrolls Online takes longer than DPS or healer roles, but it’s also the best time to unlock skill lines, level abilities, collect passives, and master your class mechanics. This guide outlines the fastest levelling methods, best gear setups, and essential skills to make the process efficient while preparing you for endgame Tanking.
Getting Started: Essential Preparation
Join Guilds for Faster Leveling & Support
- You can join up to 5 guilds. Look for large PvE/social guilds with at least 300+ members.
- Guilds are great for finding crafters to make Training gear, which significantly boosts XP gain.
- You can also fast travel to guild members to unlock new zones quickly.
Best Ways to Level as a Tank
There are several ways to level up efficiently:
- Overland Questing & Exploration – Best for solo players, provides steady XP.
- Dungeon Levelling – Fast XP while learning Tanking mechanics.
- Master Writs – Fastest method but expensive.
- XP Grinding – Best for pure XP farming but repetitive.
A mix of these methods is recommended to speed up levelling while unlocking key skill lines.
Setting Up Your Tank for Levelling
Unlocking Essential Skill Lines
- Equip a Destruction Staff → Kill an enemy to unlock the Destruction Staff skill line.
- Equip One-Hand & Shield → Kill an enemy to unlock the primary Tank skill line.
- Unlock your class skill lines → Place one skill from each tree on your active bar.
Guild & PvP Skill Lines:
- Mages Guild → Collect lorebooks to level up.
- Fighters Guild → Kill undead & daedra.
- Undaunted → Unlock in major cities by speaking to NPCs.
- Support & Assault (PvP) → Complete the Cyrodiil tutorial at level 10 to unlock useful passives like Continuous Attack for faster mount speed.
Psijic Order (Summerset DLC/ESO+)
- Complete Summerset’s main quest to unlock the Psijic Order skill line, which includes useful Tank abilities.
1st Skill Bars
With a brand new character your skill bar should look something like this:
Best Gear Setup for Tank Levelling
Overland Solo Leveling:
- 5 Light Armor, 1 Medium, 1 Heavy – Maximizes XP gains while boosting sustain.
- Destruction Staff – Provides extra damage for faster questing.
Dungeon Leveling:
- 5 Heavy Armor, 1 Medium, 1 Light – Gives better survivability for Tanking.
- One-Hand & Shield – Primary Tank weapon.
- Destruction Staff – Secondary bar for crowd control & sustain.
Always use Training gear for faster XP. If you can’t craft it yourself, ask in a guild.
Best Levelling Strategies
1. Daily Random Dungeons & Battlegrounds
- Random Normal Dungeon – Grants bonus XP daily.
- Random Battleground – PvP option with good XP rewards.
2. Overland Exploration & Skyshards
- Go to each zone and do a “zone clear” by completing Delves, Public Dungeons, Dolmens and World Bosses for XP and Skill Points.
- Collect Skyshards (3 = 1 Skill Point).
- Collect Lorebooks to boost the Mages Guild skill line.
- Complete Public Dungeon Group Events and Daily quests in each zone.
3. Psijic Order Questing (Summerset DLC)
- Unlocks a unique skill line useful for Tanks.
- Provides bonus XP and exploration rewards.
Levelling Checklist
- Use Training gear for faster XP.
- Join Fighters, Mages & Undaunted Guilds to unlock essential skill lines.
- Complete the Cyrodiil tutorial at level 10 for PvP skill lines.
- Upgrade Mount Speed daily at the stables.
- Do Random Dungeon & Battleground daily for XP bonuses.
- Collect Skyshards & Lorebooks in every zone.
- Participate in Public Dungeons & Dolmens for XP and loot.
- Begin crafting research: Learn Divines, Sturdy, and Reinforced for your armor and shield. Infused for Ice Staves. Decisive, Infused, and Charged for one-handed weapons, and Infused and Harmony are critical for jewellery.
Additional XP-Boosting Activities
PvP (Cyrodiil & Battlegrounds)
- Unlocks War Horn & Purge, essential for Tanking.
- Earns Transmutation Crystals to change gear traits later.
- Reaching Support 9 unlocks Barrier, a strong defensive ultimate and the Magicka Aid passive.
Undaunted Pledges (Level 45+)
- Grants Monster Sets & Transmute Crystals.
- Available daily, with rewards improving over time as you do harder content.
Crafting Writs (Daily XP & Materials)
- Simple daily activity that grants XP and crafting resources.
- Helps with crafting progression for endgame gear needs.
XP Grinding (Fastest But Repetitive)
Grinding involves killing large groups of enemies repeatedly:
- Skyreach Catacombs (Craglorn) – Best solo XP grind spot.
- Blackrose Prison (Murkmire) – Group-based XP farming.
- Dolmens & Public Dungeons – High mob density for quick XP.
Grinding is not ideal for beginners but can be useful in a group for XP boosts.
Master Writs (Fastest for Experienced Players)
- Expensive but highly effective for levelling.
- Requires Alchemy & Enchanting Master Writs.
- Pre-craft items and turn them in bulk for quick XP.
Final Tips for Efficient Tank Levelling
✔ Always wear Training gear for faster XP.
✔ Prioritize skill line unlocks early.
✔ Run daily dungeons & battlegrounds for bonus XP.
✔ Level Fighters, Mages, and Undaunted guilds early for later-game passives.
✔ Collect Skyshards & Lorebooks for extra skill points.
✔ Use PvP for skill unlocks & Transmute Crystals.
✔ Consider XP grinding if you want a faster, more repetitive method.
By following this guide, you’ll efficiently level up as a Tank while preparing for endgame content in The Elder Scrolls Online!
