ESO: Undaunted Beginner Guide

Image: ZeniMax Online Studios via HGG / Angus Green

Human Made

Penned by Angus Green

Angus is our resident Elder Scrolls Online specialist. He lives in Eugene and is a teacher by day.

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

As you start getting into Elder Scrolls Online, entering dungeons can be a bit…daunting (pun intended). But for those who know no fear of beast nor blade, the Undaunted Guild in Elder Scrolls Online is the club for you! Dungeons are an essential part of the game, and being part of the Undaunted comes with great perks. Other than the esteem of being one of the Undaunted, you’ll get keys for completing quests. These keys can be traded in for a chance to unlock specific monster set shoulder pieces.

In this Undaunted Beginner’s Guide, we’ve put together some tips to help you navigate the ins and outs of this elite guild. Let’s get to it!

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Getting Started

The Undaunted Guild is easy to enter, as it only requires you to be Level 45 at the start. You can enter dungeons as low as Level 10, but you won’t get Undaunted rewards until you join the guild and begin accepting quests. The starting quest, “One of the Undaunted,” will become available to you in your alliance’s major city.

Here’s where to find the quest givers:

You can technically start with any of the quests, regardless of your alliance. We recommend Kailstig the Axe’s Fungal Grotto, as it’s the quickest to get through. After this initial quest, dungeon quests are handed out at the Undaunted Enclaves in Eldenroot, Grahtwood (AD), Wayrest, Stormhaven (DC), and Deshaan, Mournhold (EP).

Leveling the Undaunted Skill Line

Once you conquer your very first dungeon, you’ll be greeted with a beautiful initiation song and the Undaunted skill line. The skill line actually offers some really amazing abilities. The passives are useful for pretty much any character. For example, the Undaunted Command passive that gives you 4% of your max health, stamina, and magicka back when you activate a synergy, and the Undaunted Mettle passive that increases your max health, stamina, and magicka by 2% for each type of armor you’re wearing (light, medium, or heavy).

These Undaunted skills are often considered BIS in most situations. Inner Fire allows tanks to taunt enemies from a distance. Energy Orb is a powerful AOE heal for healers, and Mystic Orb is a powerful AOE damage spell for Magicka DPS. Stamina DPS don’t get a whole lot of options for good skills here, sadly. 

Undaunted Pledges

You can accept and complete three different Undaunted quests each day. You gain one key by completing pledges on normal difficulty, or two keys on veteran difficulty with Hard Mode activated. Maj Al-Ragath and Glirion Red the Beard both give out non-DLC pledges available to all players, and Urgalarg Chief-Bane gives out strictly DLC pledges. This means you can only get 2–4 keys if you don’t have the corresponding DLC bought or unlocked through ESO+.

Queuing for a random normal or veteran dungeon often places you in one of the daily pledges, but not always. You’ll get the same experience bonus for doing a random daily dungeon whether it’s normal or veteran, so don’t feel like veteran is your only option.

Players often swear by completing pledges only with guild members or friends, but playing with random community members is one of my favorite parts of the game. You’ll sometimes encounter selfish players, of course, but you can always kick them or leave the group and try again. More often than not, I’ve met some great players that I’ve even added to my friends list after the fact.

Undaunted Keys

You can exchange keys with any of the quest givers for monster set shoulder armor. One key will get you the mystery coffer, which rewards you a random set piece from any of the dungeons the pledge-giver offers quests for. These pieces are also randomized in terms of style and trait, so you have a chance at light, medium, or heavy armor with any trait (other than nirnhorned). Paying five keys narrows down your potential reward to two dungeons, but you might still get the wrong style and trait.

Personally, I suggest getting the random coffers once you get to CP160. This way, you can make permanent use of any piece you get, rather than leveling out of it. You’ll also be able to fill up your sticker book much faster and get to transmuting items for a cheaper amount. For those who haven’t transmuted items yet, transmutation crystals (which can be gained by doing a random daily dungeon or through other specified tasks) can modify or recreate an item. You’ll need access to a transmutation station, which is available in the Clockwork City (DLC), or through a friend or guild member who has bought the transmutation station for their house. 

Dungeon Gear

Some of the best gear in the game can be found only in dungeons. Dungeon gear is tradeable for only two hours once you receive it, and only with the people you ran the dungeon with. If you’re farming for a specific set, it’s best to call it out at the start of the dungeon. “LF Medusa,” for example, means “looking for the Medusa set.” Doing this can sometimes net you that highly-coveted Medusa Inferno Staff if your teammates are feeling particularly generous.

Now that Update 32 is live, you’ll eventually get every single drop from a dungeon if you run it enough — it’s no longer left up to RNG. You may not get the items you’re looking for right away, but trading items around with your group members speeds up the process quite a bit. Here is where you can get each type of set piece:

• Mobs / Bosses: Set Armor (Mobs don’t guarantee these drops, but it’s good to check since you can luck out and get a piece when you aren’t expecting it)
• Treasure Chest: Set Armor, Jewelry, or Weapon (Higher rarity chests are more likely to get you jewelry or weapons)
• Last Boss: Set Jewelry or Weapon AND Monster Set Helmet (Heavy, Medium, or Light)

Dungeon Etiquette and Wait Times

Most players queuing for dungeons are DPS, making their wait time significantly higher. Healers and tanks are played much less often, and therefore get extremely fast queue times. As a tank, I’ll get the ready check screen almost as soon as I queue for a random dungeon. I often have to wait for a bit longer as a healer — around 1–5 more than a tank. As a DPS, you generally have to wait 5–30+ minutes if there are a lot of other players in line ahead of you.

This is one of the main reasons you’ll find a lot of fake tanks and healers — DPS players get sick of waiting and join the queue as something else. My advice? Don’t be that person. If you must, at least slot a taunt or heal and be ready to do considerable DPS to make up for it.

Join the High Ground

That’s it for our Undaunted Beginner’s Guide — thanks for reading! If you truly know no fear of Daedric planes, keep up with the latest content on ESO and your other favorite games by following us on social media and subscribing to our newsletter.

Happy gaming!