Uploaded May 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

---

ESO - Stamina Nightblade vMA Daggers (95k+ on Raid Dummy) - See Description - Elsweyr

This video showcases a very potent vMA Dagger rotation (though I used 1 Axe here) for the Stamina Nightblade. This is ready for use in Elsweyr and is mostly suited to 12-man Trials.

Somehow unexpectedly, this is the strongest rotation I came up with for the Stamblade. Taking the old rotation and gear but simply replacing Surprise Attack with Rapid Strikes was also stronger and gives a noticeable improvement to sustain.

Build as seen in video - https://i.imgur.com/Kh6UAKK.png
vMA Daggers Parse from video (95.7k) - https://i.imgur.com/nTyEsaB.png
'Classic' Rotation (93.4k) - https://i.imgur.com/KGjddDI.png
'Classic' Rotation but with Rapid Strikes (95.0k) - https://i.imgur.com/pBv58kB.png

This is a rotation performed on the new Raid Dummy. This means there are a selection of buffs and debuffs present, which allows easy comparison between different classes, and for other players to compare against each other, if they wish, as a 'solo' player, without the need of help from another player; a really valuable addition to the game.

Why is Rapid Strikes better? It got buffed by 21%, it does a better job of proccing Relequen ticks, and sustain is easier than with Surprise Attack. I did a quick sustain test - ran out of Stamina in 80 seconds with pure Rapid Strikes spam. With Surprise Attack I was out after 37 seconds.

I am using the Max Stam/Stam Regen food for all Stamina setups in these comparison tests. The key is to simulate raid sustain. Gear-wise, I am using Velidreth and Perfected Relequen / Lokkestiiz, which looks to be the best bet for many situations.

I'll quickly outline the important Stamina Nightblade PVE changes for Elsweyr:
- Relentless Focus loses Minor Berserk and Endurance, but a Bow Proc heals for 33% of the damage. Each stack reduces damage taken by 3% up to 15% until bow proc is consumed. Duration increased to 30 seconds from 20. Almost a completely different skill now, but in well-organised groups this is a buff.
- Summon Shade now scales with primary stats (Stamina and Weapon Damage here). Now it's worth using on a Stamblade.
- Surprise Attack no longer applies Major Fracture. If used on the flank of an enemy, you reduce their Physical Resistance by 5% of what's left. Not so noteworthy in optimised groups, and hurts solo play.
- Incap while slotted grants Reave, which restores up to 100 Mag/Stam when dealing damage with an LA/HA on a target with a negative effect active on them. Small bonus.

The disadvantage with the vMA Dagger build is the lack of a monster set. E.g. No Velidreth when multiple spores hit. One of the great advantages though is having both Lokkestiiz and Relequen double barred. It doesn't matter which bar you activate syniergies on, whereas with Lokke daggers, only front is useful.

-- Rotation

Rending Slashes, Poison Injection and Rearming Trap can all be empowered by the vMA Daggers' Cruel Flurry. You'll notice I try to always empower my Rending (by ensuring I cast Rapid Strikes beforehand) and also Injection (by not consuming Cruel Flurry before I go to my backbar). Trap is not as important, because only one Trap gets the empowerment per Rapid Strikes cast.
The Backbar rotation is different from what we've seen recently. No issue in casting 5 backbar skills in a row if you're not using Advancing Yokeda. E.g. If Hail, Caltrops, Injection, Shade and Incap all need to be cast, there's nothing wrong with that if you follow it up with a good burst.
During an Incap Burst Phase, try and pack in as much Rapid Strikes and Bow Procs as possible. Ensure your empowered Injection is already up at this point, and do cast an Empowered Rending early-on in the burst phase if not beforehand. Don't worry about lining it all up perfectly otherwise your burst window will likely be too small and your backbar DOTs may run out during.
In Execute, it's not worth making use of Cruel Flurry (except for empowering Injection one last time as you pass 25% Boss HP). At this point, don't bother to recast Shades and Rending, and feel free to let your Relentless drop. Now it's just Killer's Blade Spam whilst recasting Hail Caltrops and Injection only if you're confident they will last near another full duration.

Trap on Backbar is a flex spot. Replace it with Leeching Strikes/Mirage if and when required. Leeching being less useful now since Rapid Strikes contributes to a slower Stamina Drain, and the Shades, costing Magicka, means that the Stamina Nightblade still has insanely good sustain despite the loss of built-in Minor Endurance.

If there are any questions, do let me know in the comments.
Cheers @Freezedm for the new animations.

--

Rooftop by weyumi soundcloud.com/weareweyumi
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
Music promoted by Audio Library youtu.be/JpvhrORiYu8