Welcome, fellow players! I'm excited to share with you 5 key strategies to drastically enhance your damage output in Elder Scrolls Online. These strategies are specifically designed to optimize your performance in trial boss fights of progression group content. Let's dive in!

1. Penetration

In ESO, enemies typically have armor ranging from 9.1k in overland encounters to 18.2k in dungeons and trials. This armor effectively reduces damage by 1% for every 500 armor points. Without penetration, only about 64% of damage bypasses their defenses.

Even a slight shortfall, like 5k armor, results in a significant 10% reduction in damage effectiveness, underscoring the importance of penetration. For target dummies, a modest 1.2k penetration is usually adequate. Casual trials may demand 3k, 4k, or even 5k, though experienced groups often require less.

Consistently applying Major and Minor Breach debuffs, ideally supplemented by Crusher and a Crimson Oath proc, helps reduce the target's armor, leaving around 3.6k remaining. Extra penetration may be necessary against trash mobs, but it's vital to prioritize targets and avoid over-penetration. Adjust penetration based on group debuffs and the target's armor level for optimal damage.

2. Minor Slayer

When gearing up for trials in the Elder Scrolls Online, priority sets with Minor Slayer, typically found in trial sets or the Oakensoul Ring. While the Oakensoul Ring can suffice for trials, it mainly has duplicates buffs already provided by trial groups.

For optimal performance, focus on group-wide buffs rather than solo setups. Minor Slayer stands out as a unique self-applied buff, offering free damage that grows more valuable with increased damage output. Don’t worry if you don’t have this trial set. While Minor Slayer enhances performance, it's not essential for dealing significant damage.

3. Trash Setups

When preparing for group content, it's crucial not to rely solely on one setup. While boss fights may share similarities with dummy testing, trash pack encounters present unique challenges. Rather than focusing solely on sustained single-target damage, prioritize setups with significant AOE capabilities.

These moments can often be the most perilous in trials, with elite ads like Bulwarks, Reavers, and Soulweavers in the Rockgrove Trail posing significant threats if allowed to remain active for too long. Having a setup that excels in handling trash mobs separately from boss encounters is essential.

While a versatile setup like an Arcanist with the Coral Riptide set and Deadly Strike set may suffice, it's far more effective to have a dedicated trash setup. Experiment with various weapons and abilities, such as Master's Greatsword, Inferno Staves, Whirling Blades, and Fiery Rage, to find what works best for you.

4. Critical Damage

The critical hits in the Elder Scrolls Online are crucial but often overlooked. Critical hits deal 50% more damage than regular hits at no additional cost, representing a significant damage boost. Therefore, maximizing your critical strike chance is essential.

The critical damage stat amplifies this bonus further, increasing it up to 125%. This means critical hits can deal 2.25 times the damage of regular hits. For example, a 20,000 hit becomes a 45,000 crit, significantly boosting damage output.

Damage builds typically prioritize critical damage, utilizing elements like minor force, medium armor pieces with the divines trait, and the Harpooner's Wading Kilt set to enhance critical chance, unless the class already has a crit passive.

By combining bonuses like major fracture, minor brittle, loosen, echoes, or the Elemental Catalyst effects, you can easily reach the crit cap, often exceeding 30% in additional bonuses. While managing critical damage may seem complex, using skills like the Backstabber, Fighting Finesse with the Sul-Xan's Torment set and axes can help compensate for lacking ESO Items.

5. Champion Points

Optimizing your performance in the Elder Scrolls Online requires careful consideration of Champion Points' allocation and group composition. Here are the key points to keep in mind:

• Damage Type: Ensure you're utilizing Champion Points tailored to your damage type, considering both direct versus over time damage and single target versus AOE damage. While minor discrepancies may not greatly impact performance, larger disparities can lead to suboptimal results.
• Use Exploiter: The Exploiter provides a 3% damage increase by automatically applying Off Balance on cooldown. It's particularly effective in organized groups where someone reliably procs Off Balance. However, if this task isn't consistently fulfilled, other Champion Points options may be more beneficial.
• Group Composition: Select Champion Points that complement your group's composition. While green Champion Points have minimal impact, red Champion Points play a crucial role in enhancing survivability. Consider options like the Boundless Vitality, Fortified, Rejuvenation, and Celerity for general survivability.
• Survivability: Maintaining survivability indirectly affects your damage output. Avoiding death preserves your individual DPS and prevents interruptions from the group's overall damage output.
• Prioritize survivability without compromising damage potential. Champion Points options like tumbling for evasive maneuvers, Bracing Anchor for blocking, and ward master for barrier utilization can significantly contribute to group survival during heavy damage phases.
• Food Selection: Consider using food with maximum health to enhance survivability, especially during prolonged fights or when support resources are limited.