COLD BLOODED
Magicka Warden PVE VAMPIRE Build
The COLD BLOODED Build is a Magicka Warden set up for Solo or Group content in The Elder Scrolls Online, with a special focus on Vampire abilities. Combine the powers of Ice magic with ESO’s new Vampire skill line using this powerful new build!
Primary Sets
Winter’s Respite provides an amazing healing effect that is always active as long as our ground-based DOTS are active - this also let’s us get greater benefit from our Vampire abilities which cost health to cast.
Necropotence is another very powerful set which gives this build LOTS of max magicka while our Betty Netch is active.
Finally, Iceheart rounds out the Cold Blooded theme for this build while also giving us extra critical chance and a free damage shield.
Winter’s Respite
Set bonus
(2 items) Adds 129 Magicka Recovery
(3 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(4 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(5 items) Casting abilities that leave an effect on the ground will create a circle of healing frost for 10 seconds. You and your allies restore 2358 Health every 1 second while inside the circle. This effect can occur once every 10 seconds.
Necropotence
Set bonus
(2 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(3 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(4 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(5 items) While you have a pet active, your Maximum Magicka is increased by 3150.
Iceheart
Set bonus
(1 item) Adds 657 Critical Chance
(2 items) When you deal Critical Damage, you have a 20% chance to gain a damage shield that absorbs 5000 damage for 6 seconds. While the damage shield holds, you deal 500 Frost Damage to all enemies within 5 meters of you every 1 second. This effect can occur once every 6 seconds.
Alternate Sets
Some good alternative sets to use on this build include Bahahra’s Curse, which has a healing effect similar to Winter’s Respite as well as Spinner’s Garments or Law Of Julianos for the extra damage. For Monster sets, Mother Ciannait also provides a free damage shield with increased magicka recovery.
Bahraha’s Curse
Set bonus
(2 items) Adds 1206 Maximum Health
(3 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(4 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Stamina, Reduces your damage taken from environmental traps by 40%.
(5 items) When you deal damage, you have a 25% chance to create desecrated ground for 5 seconds, which reduces the Movement Speed of enemies within 3.5 meters by 60%, damages them for 960 Magic Damage every 1 second, and heals you for 100% of the damage done. This effect can occur once every 5 seconds.
Spinner’s Garments
Set bonus
(2 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(3 items) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(4 items) Adds 129 Weapon and Spell Damage
(5 items) Adds 3460 Offensive Penetration
Mother Ciannait
Set bonus
(1 item) Adds 1096 Maximum Magicka
(2 items) While in combat, casting an ability with a cast time or channeling an ability grants you a damage shield that absorbs 5000 damage for 6 seconds. If the damage shield is broken, you restore 822 Magicka. This effect can occur once every 6 seconds.
Gear Set Up
| Weapon/Armor | Set | Trait | Weight | Glyph |
| Main Hand | Lightning Staff Of Necropotence | Precise | NA | Absorb Magic |
| Backup | Ice Staff Of Necropotence | Infused | NA | Spell Damage |
| Head | Iceheart | Divines | Heavy | Health |
| Shoulder | Iceheart | Divines | Medium | Stamina |
| Chest | Winter's Respite | Divines | Light | Magicka |
| Waist | Winter's Respite | Divines | Light | Magicka |
| Gloves | Winter's Respite | Divines | Light | Magicka |
| Legs | Winter's Respite | Divines | Light | Magicka |
| Feet | Winter's Respite | Divines | Light | Magicka |
| Necklace | Necropotence | Bloodthirsty | NA | Spell Damage |
| Ring 1 | Necropotence | Bloodthirsty | NA | Spell Damage |
| Ring 2 | Necropotence | Infused | NA | Spell Damage |
Consumables, Race, Mundus
Race
High Elf is a strong choice for this build due to the increased spell damage, max magicka and stamina sustain (Spell Recharge). Breton also is a great choice for Vampire builds overall because of the magicka cost reduction. For more details on all ESO Races and passive bonuses be sure to check out our Full ESO Race Guide.
Mundus
The Lover
Food/Drink Buff
Mistral Banana-Bunny Hash
Potions
Tri-Stat Potions
Skills
Main Weapon: LIGHTNING STAFF - Click on a Skill Name to learn more
ULT: Shooting Star
Backup Weapon: FROST STAFF - Click on a Skill Name to learn more
ULT: Northern Storm or Swarming Scion
Skills Discussion & Rotation
Buffs
Keep up Blue Betty, Ice Fortress and Lotus Flower. Be sure to apply Elemental Drain to any boss.
Rotation
Start with Backbar DOTs: Blockade Of Frost and Winter’s Revenge. Bar Swap:
Then: Sated Fury -> Deep Fissure -> Fetcher Infection -> Heavy Attack -> Deep Fissure -> Heavy Attack -> Bar Swap
Then: Recast Blockade and Winter’s Revenge -> Bar Swap -> Deep Fissure -> Fetcher Infection -> Heavy Attack -> Deep Fissure -> Heavy Attack -> Bar Swap
Notes
Rebuff after the above rotation. Turn off Sated Fury as needed once the health loss is too strong to heal. For example, you may want to turn off Sated before you rebuff.
Companions
If you like playing Solo, this build can benefit greatly from using Companions! This Solo build will benefit the most from the additional healing and defensive options a tank focused Companion can offer, so if you are going to use a Companion I would suggest a full tank build for them. I recommend Bastian Hallix for Companion on this build with the set up below. More information on Companions Builds and Skills can be found in our detailed Companion Guides section.
Recommended Gear
All Heavy Armor - Mixed Vigorous and Quickened Traits
One Handed Weapon and Shield
Recommended Skills
1. Provoke
3. Kindle
4. On Guard
6 ULT. Unleashed Rage
Additional Skills
The skills below may also be helpful in other situations such as trash pulls.
Full Companion Build
Champion Points 2.0
Below you will find the recommended Active and Passive Champion Point Stars for this build, broken down into 300, 600, 900, and 1200 CP ranges.
For more information on Champion Points click on a Star name below or browse our detailed Champion Points Guides.
Constellation Descriptions:
GREEN: The Green Craft Constellation is focused on crafting and utility-centered upgrades.
BLUE: The Blue Warfare Constellation focuses primarily on increasing player damage, healing and defenses.
RED: The Red Fitness Constellation is focused on character survival and sustain.
- 300 Champion Points -
GREEN
BLUE
RED
- 600 Champion Points -
GREEN
15 Wanderer
BLUE
RED
10 Sprinter
8 Hasty
20 Hero’s Vigor
- 900 Champion Points -
GREEN
BLUE
20 Precision
20 Piercing
20 Preparation
RED
20 Sprinter
16 Hasty
20 Hero’s Vigor
30 Tumbling
- 1200 Champion Points -
GREEN
BLUE
20 Precision
20 Piercing
20 Preparation
20 Hardy
30 War Mage
RED
20 Sprinter
16 Hasty
20 Hero’s Vigor
30 Tumbling
20 Defiance
Similar Builds For ESO
How To Create Powerful ESO Builds
Crafting the Perfect Build for you in The Elder Scrolls Online can be frustrating. Which skills are best for each class? What about passives? The best race? The best armor type and weapons? The best trait and glyphs? There are literally THOUSANDS of different options!
This is why we created the ESO Zero To Hero Build Academy - A Simple, yet Powerful build system that teaches the fundamentals of ESO Theorycrafting, step-by-step.
Build your character exactly how YOU want by following this simple process from start to finish and FINALLY start enjoying ESO the way you want to play it!
Our Guides are designed with New and Intermediate players in mind! Stop wasting hours searching the internet for the best ESO build information - get what you need NOW to succeed!
Hack The Minotaur (HTM) is a professional Gaming Blogger and Youtube Creator with decades of experience in Gaming. Hack is the owner of HackTheMinotaur.com - an Elder Scrolls focused site for character builds and guides, and now RPGDOJO.com - your source for News, Builds And Guides for the latest and greatest Role Playing Games in the Universe.
Hack loves gaming content, particularly Traditional RPG's, Action RPG's and MMO's. Go check out his YouTube Channel for even more builds and guides on popular series like the Elder Scrolls, Fallout and Cyberpunk and make sure to check out his Twitter for updates on what content is coming next!
