If you’ve been playing ESO for a while you’ve probably encountered people by now who brag about their high DPS or asked you what your DPS is before agreeing on grouping up with you.
First of all, this should not discourage you from playing, nor should you feel pressured to reach a certain number. Enjoy the game and play with people you like. It’s just a game.
Ok, let’s talk about what you actually came here for. How to test your DPS.
There is no “official” DPS test, it is however commonly agreed upon that your DPS should be tested on either a 3M dummy or a 6M dummy. We will talk about the “rules” a little later, first, we need to find out how we can see our DPS.
DPS addon (If you are on PC)
If you are on PC, there are are a few addons that will tell you your DPS. I recommend Combat Metrics, it’s my favorite and seems to give the most consistent results.
If you are not sure how to add addons, check out our guide on the most efficient way to install addons.
Damage Meters will show you your DPS in a live window which you can place where ever you like.
After each fight, you can also open up the main interface window which will show you a ton of stats.
The Combat Metrics window will display your uptime for buffs and abilities, which ability dealt the most damage and so on. In the lower-left, you will see your DPS and which target you were hitting it on.
In this case, I was dealing on average throughout the whole fight: 31’533 damage every second.
Link to Combat Metrics on ESOUI
Another addon you can use is Recount however, I much prefer the interface of Damage Meters.
How to see your DPS on console
Unfortunately for console players, addons are not an option. However, when you kill a target dummy, such as the 3M skeleton, you will get a log in your chat window which tells you your DPS.
Testing your DPS properly
Like I mentioned earlier;
It is commonly agreed that a proper DPS test should be carried out on a 3M (health) or 6M dummy.
The idea is that you should finish the dummy off from 100% health down to 0% with no breaks. Neither should you have any help from another player. Having a tank applying fracture and other debuffs would be considered cheating.
The reason we want to finish the whole dummy off is that if you just hit it for a few seconds, you will never run out of Stamina/Magicka. It would also be too easy to drop ultimates and smash it up for a few seconds and get an ultra-high DPS score.
This is not only a test of raw power but also a test of sustain. If you can’t maintain your resources until the end of the fight, well in a real case scenario you would be dead.
This is why a 6M dummy is a lot more challenging than a 3M dummy. It is a true test of resource management and technique to do your DPS test on a 6M dummy.
How to find a dummy
You can craft dummies by buying ingredients and the Praxis for writ vouchers which you acquire by doing master writs.
Dummies can also be bought on on the guild stores for a hefty sum of money.
The best way is to use someone else’s dummy 🙂 If you are part of a trading guild, visit their official residence where they have all the crafting stations etc. Usually, they have dummies placed out as well.
How high should your DPS be?
But now you might be wondering, is my DPS good enough? I thought so.
So I put together a list to give you an idea of where you should be depending on your level.
If you are below what is stated, don’t worry, just keep working on your character and build up your gear. You will get there. No stress 🙂 It depends on so many more factors than just your level.
| CP 160 | 10K – 15K DPS |
| CP 300 | 15K – 20K DPS |
| CP 600 | 20K – 30K DPS |
| CP 810 | 25K – 35K DPS |
30K DPS is enough to complete almost all the content in the entire game. Only high score runs require more.
And for you who think that my list is estimating the DPS way to low, my answer to you is, why are you even reading this guide? 🙂
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