Necromancers in The Elder Scrolls Online are a class with a lot of quirks. Most notably, many of their class abilities are criminal acts when used in city hubs. The class is one of the more versatile in the game, able to easily take on multiple different roles and a variety of unique builds. Thus, they can make use of most armor sets throughout the game (with the right spec, of course).
Necromancers in The Elder Scrolls Online typically stick to Magicka-based builds for damage and healing and thus typically rely on Light Armor sets, but there are useful bonuses unique to Medium and Heavy Armor too. While most armor sets can be found from enemy loot or out in the world, some must be crafted at specialty crafting areas spread throughout Tamriel.
Updated January 26, 2022 by Erik Petrovich: Necromancers in Elder Scrolls Online can take on many different roles, but certain stat bonuses stick out over others for the class in general. The Unfathomable Darkness set, for instance, increases a variety of DPS stats like Crit Chance and outright Damage and grants a near-constant passive damage ability, while sets like Bahraha's Curse can be more useful for hybrid builds somewhere in between the traditional dungeon roles. No matter what armor set you try to get for your Necromancer in ESO, be sure to check three things first: whether you need access to a specific DLC, what the set bonuses are, and whether you are proficient enough in certain skills to create Craftable armor sets.
7 Unfathomable Darkness - Medium Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Adds 657 Critical Hit Chance
- Three Pieces: Boosts Offensive Penetration by 1487
- Four Pieces: Increases both Weapon and Spell Damage by 129
- Full Set Bonus: Dealing any form of damage summons a Murder of Crows for 12 seconds, which peck enemies for 871 Physical Damage every 3 seconds
The Unfathomable Darkness armor set is a set tailor-made for DPS players as all of its four gear bonuses boost different offensive stats. Two pieces equipped boosts Critical Hit Chance by 657, three pieces boosts Offensive Penetration by 1487, and four pieces equipped increases Weapon and Spell Damage by 129. These are all useful in their own right, but the full set bonus is what makes the Unfathomable Darkness set worth tracking down.
With five pieces equipped, the Unfathomable Darkness set causes the player to summon a Murder of Crows from Nocturnal's plane of Evergloam. For 12 seconds these crows peck at nearby enemies every 3 seconds, but because the ability can proc every 15 seconds, Necromancers will nearly constantly be surrounded by these ethereal birdies.
How To Get The Unfathomable Darkness Set
The Unfathomable Darkness set is an overworld set in The Clockwork City, part of the eponymous Clockwork City DLC. All pieces drop from the bosses in the Clockwork City's various Delves, Public Dungeons, Trials, and across the overworld.
6 False God's Devotion - Light Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Three Pieces: Grants the Minor Slayer buff, which increases damage to dungeon, trial, and arena enemies
- Four Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Full Set Bonus: Reduces the cost of all Magicka-related skills by 8%, restores 2454 Magicka and increases movement speed by 30% when tagged enemies die
The False God's Devotion set is a useful one for many classes, thanks to its huge reduction in Magicka cost granted when five pieces are equipped. False God's Devotion is one of ESO's best Necromancer armor for those playing in the DPS role. The abilities and stat boosts granted from two to four items equipped are extremely useful to the Magicka-wielding Necromancer, but the set's real power comes from the full set bonus.
The Magicka restoration and Major Expedition buff granted by the full set bonus can proc much more often than some other armor sets. Some sets in The Elder Scrolls Online grant great buffs that can only proc once every few seconds (or, rarely, once in a fight). However, the False God's Devotion set full bonus can proc once every second.
How To Get The False God's Devotion Set
Look for the pieces to the False God's Devotion set in the Sunspire Trial, part of the Elsweyr expansion, where pieces to the set drop off bosses throughout.
5 Mother's Sorrow - Light Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Adds 1096 Spell Critical Chance
- Three Pieces: Increases Max Magicka by 1096
- Four Pieces: Adds 1096 Spell Critical Chance
- Full Set Bonus: Adds a further 1528 Spell Critical Chance
The Mother's Sorrow armor set grants bonuses to Magicka and Spell Critical that are well put to use by a damage-oriented Necromancer, making it a great contender for the best set for Necromancers ESO has.
It's a simple set without any special abilities or skills granted, but the huge improvement to Spell Critical (totaling a whopping 2,842 bonus) means the player's Magicka-based attacks will hit harder more often. Players consider it one of the most useful Magicka-Based armor sets in the game, thanks to its broad appeal across the game's six classes.
How To Get The Mother's Sorrow Set
To find the pieces to this set, travel to Deshaan. Kill world bosses, complete quests, and take on other public overworld content to find the pieces to the Mother's Sorrow set.
4 Medusa - Heavy Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Three Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Four Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Full Set Bonus: Adds 892 Spell Critical Chance and grants Minor Force, increasing Critical Hit damage by 10%
The Medusa armor set is similar to the Mother's Sorrow ESO Necromancer armor set in that it grants a bonus to Critical Damage in place of a bonus to Base Magicka. Necromancers who play in the Tanking or DPS roles can make good use of this set, though there are more useful Heavy Armor sets for Tank Necromancers.
Generally, Necromancers will use four pieces of the Medusa armor set – two on Jewelry, and one on a Weapon (two-handed weapons typically count as two pieces). This will give them a total of 1971 Spell Critical in addition to their other Armor Set bonuses.
How To Get The Medusa Set
Look for the pieces to this set in the Arx Corinium dungeon in Shadowfen, where it drops off of creatures and monsters throughout.
3 Law of Julianos – Craftable
- Two Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Three Pieces: Increases Max Magicka by 1096
- Four Pieces: Adds 657 Spell Critical Chance
- Full Set Bonus: Increases Spell Damage by 300
The Law of Julianos armor set is a good go-to set for players who would rather craft their gear than hunt down monsters and rely on drop chances.
hile the Medusa set makes critical hits harder and the Mother's Sorrow set gives a much bigger bonus to Spell Critical, the Law of Julianos set is useful for having both Spell Critical and Spell Damage improvements. It's considered by some to be the ESO best armor for Necromancer players thanks to this dual buff.
How To Get The Law of Julianos Set
To craft this set, find the Boreal Forge in Wrothgar, located in the South-West portion of the map. Players must have the Orsinium DLC to access this Orcish, mountainous zone.
2 Bahraha's Curse - Light/Medium/Heavy Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Increases Max Health by 1206
- Three Pieces: Increases Max Magicka by 1096
- Four Pieces: Increases Max Stamina by 1096 and reduces Trap Damage by 40%
- Full Set Bonus: Dealing any form of damage grants a 25% chance to create Desecrated Ground for five seconds, which reduces enemy movement speed by 60%, pulses for 349 Magic Damage every second, and heals the caster for all damage dealt.
The Bahraha's Curse armor set is unique to Hew's Bane, the setting for the Thieves Guild DLC for Elder Scrolls Online. It increases Max Health, Magicka, and Stamina when two, three, and four pieces are equipped respectively (the four-item bonus also reduces incoming Trap Damage).
The full set bonus is a useful AoE ability that gives players the chance to create Desecrated Ground when dealing damage. This reduces the movement speed of enemies within a few meters by a huge 60% and deals 349 Magic Damage every second over its five-second-long duration. It's perfect for taking control of a fight going the wrong way thanks to this snare effect, which can let a group reposition themselves and recover some resources before heading back into the fight.
How To Get The Bahraha's Curse Set
To get the pieces to the Bahraha's Curse armor set players must have access to the Thieves Guild DLC, which opens up Hew's Bane south of mainland Hammerfell. As an overworld set, Bahraha's Curse pieces drop from Delve bosses, World Bosses, and other PvE bosses throughout the zone.
1 Ebon Armory - Heavy Armor, Jewelry, Weapons
- Two Pieces: Increases Max Health by 1206
- Three Pieces: Boosts Healing Received by 4%
- Four Pieces: Increases Max Health by 1206
- Full Set Bonus: All group members receive a 1000-point increase to Max Health, including the wearer
The Ebon Armory armor set gives great bonuses to health and health regeneration with its initial three gear bonuses, but its real strength comes with the full set bonus. With five items of the Ebon Armory set equipped every member of the player's group (including the player themselves) gets a good-size boost to Max Health.
This is a fantastic set for Necromancers who sway towards the Tanking side of things, and it's one of the more useful sets in the game when it comes to doing group content. It pairs well with defense-boosting heavy armor ESO Necromancer sets, and it is still useful when not at its full party-buffing potential in Jewelry or Weapons.
How To Get The Ebon Armory Set
To find this set, run both Part One and Part Two of the Crypt of Hearts dungeon. It drops off of bosses and enemies throughout.
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