In this article we are going to take a look at how shield scaling works in ESO (Elder Scrolls Online). Many players usually wonder how exactly damage shields scale in ESO, this isn’t really explained in the game itself. The only way to figure this out is by reading the patch notes in the official ESO forum. However, even there the notes are burried deep between hundreds of posts.
If you haven’t been reading the patch notes when they launch it is pretty much impossible to figure this out on your own. Which means you have to rely on experienced players answering this question.
Shield Scaling in ESO
Each shield works different in ESO. However, they can be categorized into a few different categories. Lets take a look at some of the most popular shields. Before we go into details please know that the Champion Point Perk Bastion increases the shield size of any shield, whether it is a skill or a set.
Light Armor & Sorcerer Shields Scaling
- Light Armor Shield: Annulment (base skill) – Harness Magicka (morph) – Dampen Magicka (morph)
- Sorcerer Shield: Conjured Ward (base skill) – Hardened Ward (morph) – Regenerative Ward (morph)
Both of these shields are very popular among players in ESO and function the same in terms of shield scaling. These shields scale off max magicka. That means the shield size will increase with a higher max magicka pool. However, there is one limitation, the shield size is capped at 50-60% of your max health.
For example Annulment tooltip says “Damage shield strength capped at 50% of your Max Health.” But the tooltip doesn’t tell you that it scales of max magicka, you just have to “know” that.
Takeaway: A player with 50k max magicka and 20k health will have a smaller shield than a player with 40k max magicka but 30k health.
Example of a damage shield. Sorcerer with a 21232 Hardened Ward shield.
Max Health Shields Scaling
- Bone Shield (base skill) – Bone Surge (morph) – Spiked Bone Shield (morph)
- Sun Shield (base skill) – Blazing Shield (morph) – Radiant Ward (morph)
Lets take a look at these two shields, because they work different to the ones that we explained above. These are considered tank shields, therefore they scale with max health and not with max magicka. The tooltip of the Bone Shield says: “This ability scales off your Max Health.” Basically these shields are meant for tanks, whereas the ones above are meant for damage dealers.
Takeaway: A player with 30k max health will have a smaller shield than a player with 40k max health.
Alliance War Barrier Scaling
Barrier (base skill) – Replenishing Barrier (morph) – Reviving Barrier (morph)
Another example is the Alliance War Barrier. The tooltip says: “Invoke defensive tactics to protect yourself and nearby group members with wards that each absorb up to 11621 damage for 30 seconds.” That means the shield scales off your highest offensive stats (max magicka or max stamina) and doesn’t have a health cap, otherwise it would mention it.
Takeaway: The higher your max magicka or max stamina the bigger the shield.
Sets Shield Scaling
Hexos’ Ward set – Lunar Bastion set – Mother Ciannait set
Now you probably wonder whether shields that come from sets function the same as shields that are activated by skills. Of course not, in general the set mentions whether it scales of a certain stat or not. When we look at Hexos’ Ward the tooltip says: “Dealing direct Critical Damage grants you a damage shield that absorbs up to 12305 damage for 6 seconds.” That means the only way to increase the shield size is via the Champion Point Perk Bastion. It doesn’t matter how much health or magicka you have.
Takeaway: Set Shields can only be increased by the Champion Point Perk Bastion, unless it specifically mentions something else.
Bastion Champion Point Perk
All shields have in common that they scale with the Bastion perk from the Champion Point System. The tooltip says: “Increases the effectiveness of your damage shields and damage against shielded enemies by 3% per stage, max 15%.” Which means you can increase the shield size on any shield with this perk.
Conclusion Shield Scaling in ESO
There are plenty of different ways shields scale in ESO (Elder Scrolls Online). Important is always that you read the tooltip. If it says it scales off max health, then that is the only thing that matters. If it says it is capped by health, then it will scale off magicka. If it doesn’t say anything then it scales off max magicka if it is a skill. If it doesn’t say anything and it is a set then you can only affect the shield size by the Champion Point perk Bastion.
If you want to learn everything about shields in ESO you can also visit the “How do Shields Work in ESO Guide“.
