Welcome to the Power Leveling and Champion Points Grind Guide for ESO (Elder Scrolls Online). This leveling guide is dedicated to increase your experience gains as fast as possible. That way you can level up fast or increase the amount of your Champion Points as fast as possible.
The guide shows the fastest way to level 50 with your ESO character. I also made sure to include the popular ESO Skyreach grind spot as well as plenty of other farming spots.
All zones in ESO are scaled no matter what level you are, they will always be adjusted to your level. This makes it possible so that you can literally grind everywhere. Obviously, there are still better and worse grind spots. I will also make sure to list both base game and DLC based grind spots with different difficulty settings.
You can also find a Magicka and Stamina Grind Build on the website:
Important:
- If you are a completely new player I also highly recommend reading the New Player Beginners Guide which has a lot of important information for a new player.
- You can also check out the easiest way to level up through my Dolmen Farming Guide which I usually recommend to new players.
- Full Video series of me leveling up a character from zero to being raid ready.
Table of Contents for the Grind Guide
- A Few Tips
- 1-50 Power Leveling Grind
- Champion Points Grind
- Experience Boosters
- Where should you grind
- Greenshade (No DLC required)
- Alik’r Desert (No DLC required)
- Coldharbour (No DLC required)
- Court of Contempt (No DLC required)
- Old Orsinium (Orsinium DLC)
- Rkindaleft (Orsinium DLC)
- Imperial City Sewers (Imperial City DLC)
- Skyreach Catacombs (Instanced, No DLC required)
- Spellscar (Craglorn, No DLC required)
- Forgotten Wastes (Vvardenfell, Morrowind)
- Blackrose Prison Arena Normal Mode (Instanced Murkmire DLC)
- 1-50 in 44 Minutes – Showcase
- Level 0 to raid ready – Grind Example
- Old Grind Guide Videos
- Archived Grindspots ESO
If you want you can also check out the video guide I made for this guide.
A Few Tips for Leveling in ESO
Before we begin, I would like to mention a few important keynotes that are also mentioned in the videos:
- Leveling from 1-50 or grinding Champion Points can be done at the exact same locations, as long as you earn exp you will progress.
- Training gear is the most important factor to increase Exp gains.
- You get more Exp while grinding as a duo (10% more Exp), but you loose Exp when you have more than two people in the group.
- I recommend starting with a Magicka Character because it is a lot easier to get used to and you have easier access to heals.
- AoE (Area of Effect) is required to get the most out of grinding to kill multiple mobs fast.
I will first explain what you need to prepare to level from 1 to 50 and further below what you need to prepare to grind Champion Points efficiently.
1-50 Power Leveling Grind
Many people craft level 10 gear and keep it till they are at max level. This is possible due to battle scaling in the Zones. It might take a bit longer, but at least you dont have to craft a ton of gear. You can literally grind everywhere, I usually recommend grinding on Zombie spots as they die pretty fast and you can level up your Fighters Guild skill line at the same time.
- Join a newcomer Guild
- Ask someone to craft you training gear for level 10 and level 30.
- People that craft you training gear usually also give you a specific set that helps to grind Exp faster.
- I recommend choosing the easiest grindspots for beginners like Greenshade, Alik’r Desert, Coldharbour or Rkindaleft.
Champion Points Grind
Again, there is really no difference between leveling up or grinding for Champion Points, but I want to get into a bit more specific details in terms of gear and show you the available Experience boosters. You should be able to hit a 150 to 160 Champion Points pretty fast. Once you manage to do that make sure to craft training gear with a level of 150 Champion Points. You will need about 90 Materials for a full set of 150 Champion Points level gear. In the picture below you can see I am crafting Training Gear to increase my experience gained, which speeds up grinding. If possible, make it purple quality to increase the Exp gain.
Beginner Grind Setups:
Only use these if you do not already have more advanced gear. Some simple combos for both magicka or stamina setups:
Magicka Characters: 5x Law of Julianos, 4x Magnus’ Gift, 3x Willpower
Stamina Characters: 5x Hunding’s Rage, 4x Night Mother’s Gaze, 3x Agility
The jewelry (Willpower or Agility) can be bought in Guildstores for a fairly cheap price. Of course you can use whatever gear you want, just make sure it has training trait to gain Experience faster.
Setup for Magicka
Make sure to use The Atronach Mundus Stone for increased Magicka Recovery in combination with Witchmothers Brew Drink that gives you Health, Magicka and Magicka Recovery.
| Gear | Set | Weight | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chest | Law of Julianos | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Belt | Law of Julianos | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Shoes | Law of Julianos | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Pants | Magnus’ Gift | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Hands | Magnus’ Gift | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Head | Magnus’ Gift | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Shoulder | Magnus’ Gift | Light | Training | Magicka |
| Necklace | Willpower | Jewelry | Arcane/ Healthy | Magicka Recovery |
| Ring | Willpower | Jewelry | Arcane/ Healthy | Spell Dmg |
| Ring | Willpower | Jewelry | Arcane/ Healthy | Spell Dmg |
| Weapon 1 | Law of Julianos | Fire | Training | Weapon Damage Enchant |
| Weapon 2 | Law of Julianos | Fire | Training | Fire Enchant |
Beginner Setup for Stamina
Make sure to use The Serpent Mundus Stone for increased Stamina Recovery in combination with Dubious Camoran Throne Drink that gives you Health, Stamina and Stamina Recovery.
| Gear | Set | Weight | Trait | Enchantment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chest | Hunding’s Rage | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Belt | Hunding’s Rage | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Shoes | Hunding’s Rage | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Pants | Night Mother’s Gaze | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Hands | Night Mother’s Gaze | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Head | Night Mother’s Gaze | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Shoulder | Night Mother’s Gaze | Medium | Training | Stamina |
| Necklace | Agility | Jewelry | Robust/ Healthy | Stamina Recovery |
| Ring | Agility | Jewelry | Robust/ Healthy | Weapon Damage |
| Ring | Agility | Jewelry | Robust/ Healthy | Weapon Damage |
| Weapon 1 DW | Hunding’s Rage | Dagger | Training | Absorb Stamina Enchant |
| Weapon 1 DW | Hunding’s Rage | Dagger | Training | Weapon Damage Enchant |
| Weapon 2 | Hunding’s Rage | Bow | Training | Poison Enchant |
Experience boosters
There is a lot of ways to increase your Experience gains.
- 10% from Each Armor & Weapon piece (purple quality)
- 10% ESO Plus Membership
- 10% from Marriage
- 10% for being in a group of two
- 50% from Psijic Ambrosia Drink or EXP Scroll
- 100% from Aetherial Ambrosia Drink or EXP Scroll
- 150% from Mythic Aetherial Ambrosia Drink or EXP Scroll
- 100% ESO in game Events (Witches & New Life Festival etc.)
Here I showcase a few possible ways to boost your experience during your leveling process in the Elder Scrolls Online.
Be aware that the Drinks and Scrolls do not stack with each other. Lets take the most basic setup that you could easily achieve and without a lot of effort:
- 70% from Gear
- 8% from Weapon
- 10% from ESO Plus Membership
- 10% for being in a group of two
- 50% from Psijic Ambrosia or EXP Scroll
Those things already give you a 148% Experience Boost. Now lets take a look at the maximum Experience Boost that you can achieve:
- 70% from Gear
- 8% from Weapon
- 10% from ESO Plus Membership
- 10% from Marriage
- 10% for being in a group of two
- 150% from Mythic Aetherial Ambrosia Drink or EXP Scroll
- 100% ESO in game Events (Witches & New Life Festival etc.)
That’s a total of 358% Experience Boost. However, keep in mind that the in game Events are not always active.
Where should you grind? Best Farming Spots ESO
Because everything gets scaled, there are tons of good ESO grind spots in the game. The open World grind spots usually give the most Experience if you are not being interrupted by others. Therefore I usually recommend going into the instanced Skyreach Catacombs, where you can not be interrupted and you know exactly how long it will take to get to the next level.
- Easiest grind spots for Beginners with the BASE GAME are Greenshade, Alik’r Desert, Coldharbour (No DLC required)
- Easiest grind spots for Beginners with Orsinium DLC are the Old Orsinium or Rkindaleft Public Dungeon.
- Most effective grind is the Blackrose Prison Grind in Murkmire, though you need 2 players.
- Instanced grind spot can be found in Skyreach Catacombs in Craglorn, decent EXP but it has one advantage, it is intanced so nobody is going to bother you (No DLC required)
- Very effective farming spots but crowded most of times can be found in Spellscar and Forgotten Wastes
Greenshade Zombie Grind (No DLC required)
Greenshade is one of my most popular farming spots. The Zombies here are very easy to kill and you can pull a lot of them together at once, very good Experience. However, this grindspot is usually only free in the morning as it is very popular. The Verrant Morass Wayshrine is close by, make sure to unlock it so you can teleport there again.
Alik’r Desert Zombie Grind (No DLC required)
This is another very good Zombie grinding spot, same as with Greenshade, quite popular so make sure to grind in the morning. Zombies die very fast and barely do any damage. The Sentinel Wayshrine is close by make sure to unlock the wayshrine.
Coldharbour Zombie Grind (No DLC required)
You need to teleport to someone to instantly access this grinding spot, also very popular and no DLC is required to grind here. Zombies die very fast and barely do any damage.
Court of Contempt (Coldharbour)
This is also one of my favourite grind spots, it is easy to access once you have Coldharbour unlocked and you will be killing a lot of Undead and Daedra which also levels up your Fighters Guild at the same time! Occasionally questers run through this area, but they usually move on pretty fast.
Orsinium Public Dungeons
Those 2 Dungeons, Old Orsinium & Rkindaleft, are the most effective way to level characters easy and fast. Tons of mobs and it easy to find a good rotation, plus the mobs do not hit that hard.
Old Orsinium ESO Grind Guide
This is a very easy grind spot, you can start grinding here with level 3, you just have to be careful with pulling not too many mobs at once. The mobs do really low damage and they die super fast. The Video shows you how you can open the door to get into the right area for the grindspot. The quest that you need is called Flames of Forge and Fallen.
Old Orsinium rotation + how to open the Door
Here a quick video on how to do the most efficient rotation in the Old Orsinium dungeon and how to open the door! The quest that you need is called Flames of Forge and Fallen.
Rkindaleft Leveling Spot
In case old Orsinium is full you can go to Rkindaleft. Mobs hit a little bit harder but it is still quite easy compared to Imperial City!
Rkindaleft Rotation
Imperial City Sewers
Imperial City has 2 very nice grindspots. Those 2 spots are basically the most efficient ones if you want to grind Championpoints up as fast as possible.
Skyreach ESO Leveling Spot (Craglorn, No DLC required)
the ESO Skyreach grind spot is one of the more popular methods because it is instanced. Which means noone will steal your monsters! I recommend having at least 200-300 Champion Points to actually be able to efficently kill the monsters because they have quite a bit of health. Make sure to kill mobpacks separately if you are new. Later on you can pull them all together and nuke them down.
Spellscar (Craglorn)
Spellscar is located above Belkarth in Craglorn and gives the best experience gain per hour at the moment, but obviously it is also always quite busy. You just need to find a good rotation to pull as much monsters as possible to gain as much experience as possible. The zone is big so it has plenty of space and also a lot of monsters.
Forgotten Wastes (Vvardenfell)
Forgotten Wastes has TWO grindspots that are very good. They are even both at the same location. Spot 1 is downstairs where you just run in a circle and do nothing else, this here gives slightly better experience. The second spot is upstairs, where you always run over the bridge, kill the mobs and jump down and repeat.
Blackrose Prison Arena Grind Spot
Blackrose Prison Arena is currently one of the best grind spots available. Some players manage to pull 7 million EXP per hour without any Event buff. During an Event you can push even higher and closer to 10 million EXP per hour.
You will need to either have ESO Plus or the Murkmire DLC to enter Blackrose Prison Arena. You can also check out the Blackrose Prison Arena Guide for further tips and tricks.
Method:
- Set Blackrose Prison Arena to normal
- Only do the first arena up to the boss.
- Before the boss spawns, reset the group. We are basically going out before we have to fight the boss, because he barely gives EXP. If you want the loot, then kill him.
- Repeat
1-50 in 44 Minutes – Showcase
This is simply a showcase, so you can see that it is possible to get to level 50 in a very short duration. Now this is not a guide and not recommended at all, because you will have to dump a lot of gold into this method and you will still have to level up most other stuff anyway. You will need many Alchemy Writs to make this work, like I showcase in the video.
Full Video Series level 0 to Raid ready
You can find a full video playlist of me leveling a character from 0 to raid ready.
Old Grind Guide Videos
Archived Grind Spots ESO Leveling Guide
These grind spots here are old and outdated, they still work to some degree but are unnecessary difficult.
Cyrodiil Grind spots (PvP Zone, No DLC required) ESO Leveling Guide
There is 2 good grindspots in Cyrodiil. Cracked Woodcave and Lispand Tarn. It is easy to grind there because mobs die really fast. Just watch out for enemy players!
Cracked Woodcave (PvP Zone, No DLC required) ESO Leveling Guide
Make sure to pull all the mobs together and kill them at the red dot marked on the map. You can watch the video below to see how it is done.
Cracked Woodcave Rotation
ESO Leveling Guide Cracked Woodcave Rotation.
Lipsand Tarn (PvP Zone, No DLC required) ESO Leveling Guide
Make sure to pull all the mobs together and kill them at the red dot marked on the map. You can watch the video below to see how it is done.
Summary & FAQ
Leveling up in ESO (Elder Scrolls Online) is not really hard, you can get a brand new character ready in 24 hours given you know what you are doing. For example, when I power leveled my stamina Nightblade I got him to max level in 22 hours, including maxed out Fighters Guild, Psijic and Undaunted alongside all of the normal Weapon Skill-lines. This ESO Leveling Guide should help you get the knowledge to grind up fast. Now you do have to invest time, if this is your first character leveling up will take a lot longer, you might not have the right gear, you might not have the right experience potions, you might not exactly know how to pull good area of effect damage which is very important, alongside a lot of other tricks!
Unlike most other MMOs, leveling up in ESO is very casual friendly. The daily login rewards often provide you with experience scrolls that boost your experience gains by 50%, 100% or in rare cases even 150% (these are all free). Therefore I do recommend loging in daily to get these experience scrolls. of course at the start everything is overwhelming, your first character will take you quite a while. However, once you understand the game it will be easy. Most experienced veteran players can level up a character within a day if they want. You have to optimize your leveing setup though, you can learn more about that in the ESO Leveling Guide.
Leveling to level 50 can be done in a few hours if done right. To understand how this can be done we do recommend reading the ESO Leveling Guide. However, for most new players it will take around a month to get to level 50. For very experienced players with prepared gear it can be done in 4-5 hours. For an average player it is usually a few days to get to the maximum level. Champion Points on the other hand are another grind that you need to keep in mind, this will take a lot longer, several months actually.
Enemies in ESO do scale to your level, therefore making it possible to level pretty much anywhere. Technically, you scale to the level of the enemies, not the other way around, but that doesn’t really matter. You can pretty much go anywhere with any level instantly. Because scaling is so powerful, it makes it possible to level up characters pretty much anywhere, because experience is pretty even, you can learn more about that in the ESO Leveling Guide.
Power leveling in ESO is very common among the endgame players. Very experienced players often level up to 50 within a few hours only. Of course you need to know all the tricks of how to grind efficiently, you can learn more about that in the ESO Power Leveling Guide. Don’t expect to be that fast with your first character, because you will mostly be busy learning all the mechanics of the game and thus won’t be able to power level instantly. However, your 2nd or 3rd character leveing process can already be way faster.
