ESO Best Tank Subclassing Combinations – Dominate Dungeons & Trials

by JFFK · May 31, 2025

Welcome to our ESO Best Tank Subclassing Combinations article on the most impactful subclass combinations on the Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) Update 46! As the backbone of any successful group, a strong tank build is paramount for dominating dungeons and trials in the Elder Scrolls Online. With the subclassing system, the meta for ESO tanking has evolved, demanding strategic choices in skill lines to provide essential buffs, debuffs, and utilities for your team.

Table of Contents:

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While the ultimate best tank combination in ESO will always be situational, adapting to the specific demands of each encounter and your group’s composition, certain core skill lines form the bedrock of future-proof tank builds. We’ll delve into the most impactful subclass combinations that leverage powerful lines like Winter’s Embrace, Earthen Heart, Soldier of Apocrypha, Siphoning, and Bone Tyrant.

Whether you’re aiming to be a main tank or an off-tank, this article will equip you with the knowledge to craft an unyielding protector for any challenge Tamriel throws your way. Let’s dive into ultimate ESO tanking subclasses!

More Subclassing Tank Builds:

Dragonknight, Warden, Arcanist: The top U46 Tank Subclass Combination

Type: PVE Main Tank for Trials & Dungeons

Dragonknight –

Earthen Heart

Warden –

Winters Embrace

Arcanist–

Soldier of Apocrypha
Recommended Build: Dragonknight + Arcanist + Warden Tank Subclassing Build for ESO

The Dragonknight, Warden, Arcanist tank subclass combination in ESO emerges as a top-tier U46 tank build due to its unparalleled ability to function as a group buff machine, providing both Major and Minor Resolve to your group. Arcanists Soldier of Apocrypha skill line offers excellent survivability and provides Minor Resolve and Minor Evasion buff for the group. Winters Embrace offers strong self-heals, block mitigation, and group utility like Major Resolve through Expansive Frost Cloak. Dragonknights Earthen Heart skill line is a source for the unique Stagger debuff.

Earthen Heart (Dragonknight) Skill Line Explained

Dragonknights Earthen Heart skill line provides good sustain through its Battle Roar and Helping Hands passives and group support through the Mountain’s Blessing passive, as well as a unique damage buff from Stone Giant. Earthen Heart is a staple choice for main tanks.

Earthen Heart Skills
- Stone Giant skill is used for the Stagger debuff which increases enemies damage taken by 65 per stack for 5 seconds.
- Igneous Shield skill provides a small shield, applies Major Mending to you for 2,5 seconds and procs the passives listed below.
- Cinder Storm skill can be used as a small heal over time.
Earthen Heart Passives
- Helping Hands passive restores stamina when you use an Earthen Heart skill
- Mountain’s Blessing passive provides ultimate generation when you use an Earthen Heart skill and provides the Minor Brutality buff.
- Battle Roar passive helps with sustain by restoring resources when you use your ultimate.

Winters Embrace (Warden) Skill Line Explained

Wardens Winter’s Embrace skill line is a strong option for tanking, providing crucial group support and powerful defensive capabilities. It offers AoE Major Resolve for the entire team through Expansive Frost Cloak. The line also grants access to an extremely good self heal Polar Wind. Tanks can utilize skills like Winter’s Revenge or Arctic Blast for AoE Minor Brittle. Defensive passives provide armor and block mitigation, and Icy Aura can apply Major Maim to enemies. Utilities like Frozen Device offer a pull ability. Winter’s Embrace is seen as a valuable flexible slot for tanks and is considered a necessary component split between trial tanks.

Winters Embrace Skills
- Expansive Frost Cloak skill provides Major Resolve to the whole group, also freeing up this skill line for healers.
- Polar Wind skill is an extremely strong self heal which got buffed even more when subclassing released. Arctic Blast morph can be used to apply AOE Minor Brittle status effect if Polar Wind is not needed.
- Winter’s Revenge skill is good for providing AOE Minor Brittle status effect.
- Shimmering Shield skill can be used to generate extra ultimate from projectiles and the Major Heroism buff it applies (very situational).
- Frozen Device skill is a skill that you can use to pull enemies to you. Frozen Device might perform better in fights where you know the spawn locations for adds and can place the pulling AOE’s beforehand.
Winters Embrace Passives
- Glacial Presence passive increases your chance to proc the Chilled status effect.
- Piercing Cold passive grants 8% block mitigation.
- Frozen Armor passive provides 1240 armor per Winter’s Embrace skill slotted.
- Icy Aura passive reduces damage taken by applying apply Major Maim to enemies who attack you from melee range.

Soldier of Apocrypha (Arcanist) Skill Line Explained

The Arcanist’s Soldier of the Apocrypha skill line is an extremely good tank skill line for survivability, offering powerful damage shields and self-heals like Runeguard of Still Waters. It also provides notable group support through passives that apply Minor Resolve, Minor Protection, and Minor Evasion buff.

Soldier of Apocrypha skills
- Runic Sunder grants a unique 2200 penetration debuff, filling the gaps in group content. This makes Tremorscale redundant and dps can choose to wear less light armor.
- Runeguard of Still Waters Skill provides Minor Resolve for the whole group in addition to giving you Minor Protection.
- Rune of the Colorless Pool applies Minor Vulnerability and Minor Brittle for 20 seconds.
Soldier of Apocrypha Passives
- Circumvented Fate provides the Minor Evasion buff that reduces damage taken from AOE by 10%.
- Aegis of the Unseen grants 3271 armor while you have a Soldier of Apocrypha ability active.
- Wellspring of the Abyss helps with sustain by boosting Health, Magicka, and Stamina Recovery by 81 for each Soldier of Apocrypha ability slotted.

ESO Necromancer, Dragonknight, Arcanist Tank: High Ultimate Generation Subclassing Combination

Type: PVE Off Tank for Trials & Dungeons

Necromancer–

Bone Tyrant

Dragonknight –

Earthen Heart

Arcanist–

Soldier of Apocrypha

Combination of Necromancer, Dragonknight, and Arcanist subclassing skill lines in ESO are among the stronger options for tanking. The Necromancer’s Bone Tyrant skill line boosts survivability and offers insane ultimate generation with Necrotic Potency, while the Disdain Harm passive provides an extremely good 15% reduction in damage taken from damage over time. The Arcanist’s Soldier of Apocrypha skill line is an extremely good tank skill line for survivability, offering powerful damage shields and self-heals like Runeguard of Still Waters. It also provides notable group support through passives that apply Minor Resolve, Minor Protection, and Minor Evasion buff. The Dragonknight’s Earthen Heart skill line is considered a staple skill line, contributing the unique Stagger debuff which increases enemy damage taken.

Bone Tyrant (Necromancer) Skill Line Explained

Necromancers Bone Tyrant skill line is a valuable option for tanks, particularly for its survivability and ultimate generation. Necrotic Potency provides insane ultimate generation, and the line overall offers a decent boost to survivability and ultimate generation. A notable passive, Disdain Harm passive provides an extremely good 15% reduction in damage taken from damage over time, which is considered valuable in difficult content. Bone Tyrant is seen as a flexible slot for a Main Tank, and some advanced groups might run Bone Tyrant Necromancers for ultimate generation off trash packs. The skill line also includes Beckoning Armor which has a pull effect. Although Bone Tyrant might not be ideal in every situation, it offers significant defensive and ultimate gain benefits for tank builds.

Bone Tyrant Skills
- Necrotic Potency, contributes to ultimate generation by consuming corpses.
- Beckoning Armor (or Summoner’s Armor).
Bone Tyrant Passives
- Disdain Harm passive reduces damage taken from DoTs by 15% while active.
- Last Gasp increases your Max Health by 2412.
- Death Gleaning provides sustain by restoring 666 Magicka and Stamina on nearby enemy deaths.

Earthen Heart (Dragonknight) Skill Line Explained

Earthen Heart Skills
- Stone Giant skill is used for the Stagger debuff which increases enemies damage taken by 65 per stack for 5 seconds.
- Igneous Shield skill provides a small shield, applies Major Mending to you for 2,5 seconds and procs the passives listed below.
- Cinder Storm skill can be used as a small heal over time.
Earthen Heart Passives
- Helping Hands passive restores stamina when you use an Earthen Heart skill
- Mountain’s Blessing passive provides ultimate generation when you use an Earthen Heart skill and provides the Minor Brutality buff.
- Battle Roar passive helps with sustain by restoring resources when you use your ultimate.

Soldier of Apocrypha (Arcanist) Skill Line Explained

The Arcanist’s Soldier of the Apocrypha skill line is an extremely good tank skill line for survivability, offering powerful damage shields and self-heals like Runeguard of Still Waters. It also provides notable group support through passives that apply Minor Resolve, Minor Protection, and Minor Evasion buff.

Soldier of Apocrypha skills
- Runic Sunder grants a unique 2200 penetration debuff, filling the gaps in group content. This makes Tremorscale redundant and dps can choose to wear less light armor.
- Runeguard of Still Waters Skill provides Minor Resolve for the whole group in addition to giving you Minor Protection.
- Rune of the Colorless Pool applies Minor Vulnerability and Minor Brittle for 20 seconds.
Soldier of Apocrypha Passives
- Circumvented Fate provides the Minor Evasion buff that reduces damage taken from AOE by 10%.
- Aegis of the Unseen grants 3271 armor while you have a Soldier of Apocrypha ability active.
- Wellspring of the Abyss helps with sustain by boosting Health, Magicka, and Stamina Recovery by 81 for each Soldier of Apocrypha ability slotted.

ESO Nightblade, Dragonknight, Arcanist Tank: Supreme Sustain & Utility Subclassing Combination

Type: PVE Off Tank for Trials & Dungeons

Nightblade –

Siphoning

Dragonknight –

Earthen Heart

Arcanist–

Soldier of Apocrypha

The Nightblade Siphoning line is exceptional for its amazing resource sustain, particularly aiding blocking and is the best line for ultimate generation through the Catalyst passive which grants 30 ultimate upon consuming a potion. This synergy between personal resource sustain and ultimate generation from Siphoning skill line, formidable defense and group protection from Soldier of Apocrypha skill line, and core debuff/resource management from Earthen Heart skill line makes this a very strong and versatile tanking combination, often split between trial tanks.

Siphoning (Nightblade) Skill Line Explained

The Siphoning subclass skill line is a valuable option for tanking, primarily for its significant sustain and ultimate generation. It provides insane sustain, particularly through the Siphoning Attacks skill, which is the best sustain skill for blocking and capable of trivializing fights requiring prolonged blocking. Siphoning is also considered the best line for ultimate generation due to the powerful Catalyst passive, granting 30 ultimate when consuming a potion. While not always the perfect fit, Siphoning can be used by Off-Tanks and is a strong flexible option for enhanced resources and ultimate gain.

Siphoning Ultimate
- Soul Siphon ultimate heals for a significant amount and can be used for tough heal checks. Applies the Major Vitality buff.
Siphoning Skills
- Siphoning Attacks is used for resource sustain and proccing passives for ultimate generation.
Siphoning Passives
- Transfer procs after casting a Siphoning Skill, generating 2 Ultimate.
- Catalyst is a passive that grants 30 Ultimate when consuming a potion.
- Magicka Flood increases max Magicka and Stamina by 8% when a Siphoning ability is slotted.

Earthen Heart (Dragonknight) Skill Line Explained

Earthen Heart Skills
- Stone Giant skill is used for the Stagger debuff which increases enemies damage taken by 65 per stack for 5 seconds.
- Igneous Shield skill provides a small shield, applies Major Mending to you for 2,5 seconds and procs the passives listed below.
- Cinder Storm skill can be used as a small heal over time.
Earthen Heart Passives
- Helping Hands passive restores stamina when you use an Earthen Heart skill
- Mountain’s Blessing passive provides ultimate generation when you use an Earthen Heart skill and provides the Minor Brutality buff.
- Battle Roar passive helps with sustain by restoring resources when you use your ultimate.

Soldier of Apocrypha (Arcanist) Skill Line Explained

Soldier of Apocrypha skills
- Runic Sunder grants a unique 2200 penetration debuff, filling the gaps in group content. This makes Tremorscale redundant and dps can choose to wear less light armor.
- Runeguard of Still Waters Skill provides Minor Resolve for the whole group in addition to giving you Minor Protection.
- Rune of the Colorless Pool applies Minor Vulnerability and Minor Brittle for 20 seconds.
Soldier of Apocrypha Passives
- Circumvented Fate provides the Minor Evasion buff that reduces damage taken from AOE by 10%.
- Aegis of the Unseen grants 3271 armor while you have a Soldier of Apocrypha ability active.
- Wellspring of the Abyss helps with sustain by boosting Health, Magicka, and Stamina Recovery by 81 for each Soldier of Apocrypha ability slotted.

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