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Surprise Attack Skill - ESO
Surprise Attack is a skill in the Assassination skill line under the Nightblade category in ESO (the Elder Scrolls Online)
Assassination
Cost: 2295 Stamina
Target: Enemy
Maximum range: 7 meters
Effect
Slash an enemy, dealing 2399 Physical Damage and applying the Sundered status effect.
If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance. This attack will also be guaranteed to be a Critical Strike, up to once every 3 seconds.
New effect
Converts to a Stamina ability and deals Physical Damage. Always applies the Sundered status effect and deals guaranteed critical damage when flanking an enemy.
- Name:
- Surprise Attack
- Description:
- Surprise Attack is a skill in the Assassination skill line under the Nightblade category in ESO (the Elder Scrolls Online)
- Found in
- Nightblade » Assassination
- Unlocks at
- Assassination Rank 1 and Veiled Strike Rank IV
Status effects
Skill styles available for Surprise Attack
Champion Points that buff Surprise Attack
- Backstabber (only while slotted)
- Deadly Aim (only while slotted)
- Fighting Finesse (only while slotted)
- Master-at-Arms (only while slotted)
- Mighty
- Piercing
- Precision
- Untamed Aggression (only while slotted)
- Wrathful Strikes (only while slotted)
Unmorphed version
Assassination
Cost: 2295 Magicka
Target: Enemy
Maximum range: 7 meters
Effect
Slash an enemy, dealing 2323 Magic Damage.
If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance.
Other morph
Assassination
Cost: 2295 Magicka
Target: Enemy
Maximum range: 7 meters
Effect
Slash an enemy, dealing 2556 Magic Damage.
If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance.
When you leave Sneak or invisibility while in combat, increase your damage done with this ability by 10% for 15 seconds.
While slotted on either bar, you gain Minor Expedition, increasing your Movement Speed by 15%.
New effect
Deals increased damage, which furthers when leaving Sneak or invisibility. While slotted you gain Minor Expedition.
Top builds using Surprise Attack
Nightblade
Solo
Stamina
Powerful SOLO Stamina Nightblade Build for ESO (Elder Scrolls Online)
AlcastHQ
Necromancer
Solo
Stamina
PvE
Powerful SOLO Stamina Werewolf Build for PvE ESO Elder Scrolls Online
AlcastHQ
15
Nightblade
PvE
RP/Solo Stamina Nightblade
Rosenthal
27
Necromancer
PvE
Necromancer PvE DPS - The Lich (Worm Cult S1)
Mace Wolfheart
Arcanist
DPS
Powerful Werewolf Build for ESO – Damage Dealer DPS
AlcastHQ
14
Nightblade
PvP
Dark Assassin
Thorin-III
Other Builds & Guides that use the Surprise Attack skill
- 100% Crit Surprise Attack Nightblade testing on the PTS for U35 Lost Depths in ESO
- Best ESO Nightblade PVP Build – Stamina NB Stealth
- Powerful 2H Stamina Nightblade Build for ESO (Elder Scrolls Online)
- Powerful SOLO Stamina Nightblade Build for ESO (Elder Scrolls Online)
- Powerful SOLO Stamina Werewolf Build for PvE ESO Elder Scrolls Online
- Powerful Stamina Nightblade Build for ESO – Damage Dealer DPS
- Powerful Werewolf Build for ESO – Damage Dealer DPS
- Stamina Nightblade Beginner Build ChampPoints 160 PvE
- Stamina Nightblade Beginner Guide for ESO
Assassination skills
| Ultimate abilities | |
|---|---|
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Ravage an enemy with a swift strike, dealing 3716 Magic Damage and causing them to take 20% more damage from your attacks for 8 seconds. |
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Ravage an enemy with a swift strike, dealing 3840 Disease Damage and causing them to take 20% more damage from your attacks for 8 seconds.
If cast with 120 or more Ultimate, you instead deal 4223 Disease Damage, stun the enemy for 3 seconds, and increase the duration of the damage taken effect to 12 seconds.
Deals Disease Damage. Improves the ability significantly if cast with more Ultimate.
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Ravage an enemy with a spinning attack, dealing 3718 Magic Damage and increasing your damage against them by 20% for 8 seconds.
Also afflicts the enemy with Major Defile, reducing their healing received and damage shield strength by 12%.
While slotted on either bar, any time you kill an enemy you gain 10 Ultimate.
Also afflicts the enemy with Major Defile. While slotted on either bar, gain Ultimate whenever you kill an enemy.
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Active abilities |
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Slash an enemy, dealing 2323 Magic Damage. If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance. |
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Slash an enemy, dealing 2556 Magic Damage.
If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance.
When you leave Sneak or invisibility while in combat, increase your damage done with this ability by 10% for 15 seconds.
While slotted on either bar, you gain Minor Expedition, increasing your Movement Speed by 15%.
Deals increased damage, which furthers when leaving Sneak or invisibility. While slotted you gain Minor Expedition.
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|
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Slash an enemy, dealing 2399 Physical Damage and applying the Sundered status effect.
If you strike an enemy from their flank you set them Off Balance. This attack will also be guaranteed to be a Critical Strike, up to once every 3 seconds.
Converts to a Stamina ability and deals Physical Damage. Always applies the Sundered status effect and deals guaranteed critical damage when flanking an enemy.
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Flash through the shadows and ambush an enemy, dealing 1602 Magic Damage and afflicting them with Minor Vulnerability for 10 seconds, increasing their damage taken by 5%. |
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Flash through the shadows and ambush an enemy, dealing 1655 Physical Damage and afflicting them with Minor Vulnerability for 10 seconds, increasing their damage taken by 5%.
Also grants you Empower and Minor Berserk for 10 seconds, increasing the damage of your Heavy Attacks against monsters by 70% and your damage done by 5%.
Converts to a Stamina ability and deals Physical Damage. Also grants you Empower and Minor Berserk.
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Flash through the shadows and ambush an enemy while unleashing a fan of knives, dealing 1603 Magic Damage to them and enemies around you.
All enemies hit take an additional 2050 Magic Damage over 5 seconds and are afflicted with Minor Vulnerability for 10 seconds, increasing their damage taken by 5%.
Now deals damage in an area around you, and deals additional damage over time to enemies hit.
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Thrust a magic blade with lethal precision to stab an enemy, dealing 1161 Magic Damage. Deals 300% more damage to enemies below 25% Health. |
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Throw a magic blade with lethal precision to strike an enemy, dealing 1161 Magic Damage. Deals 330% more damage to enemies below 25% Health.
Allows you to use the ability at range and increases the execute multiplier.
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Thrust a caustic blade with lethal precision to stab an enemy, dealing 1161 Disease Damage. Deals up to 400% more damage to enemies with less than 50% Health.
Heals you for 2399 if the enemy dies within 2 seconds of being struck.
Converts into a Stamina ability, deals Disease Damage, and now scales linearly based on missing Health rather than a flat value. Also heals you if the target dies within two seconds of use.
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Expose an enemy's weaknesses to afflict them with Major Breach, reducing their Physical Resistance and Spell Resistance by 5948 for 20 seconds. When a marked enemy dies, you heal to full Health. You can only have one Mark Target active at a time. |
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Expose an enemy's weaknesses to afflict them with Major Breach, reducing their Physical Resistance and Spell Resistance by 5948 for 1 minute.
You can detect marked enemies even if they use stealth or invisibility for 3 seconds. When a marked enemy dies, you heal to full Health.
You can only have one Piercing Mark active at a time.
Ability has an increased duration, and you can see the target if they use stealth or invisibility.
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Expose an enemy's weaknesses to afflict them with Major Breach, reducing their Physical Resistance and Spell Resistance by 5948 for 20 seconds.
When a marked enemy dies, you heal to full Health and gain Major Berserk, increasing your damage done by 10% for 10 seconds.
You can only have one Reaper's Mark active at a time.
If the marked enemy dies, you gain Major Berserk, increasing your damage done.
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When slotted on either bar, your Light and Heavy Attacks generate a stack of Grim Focus, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 30, up to 10 times. Fully-charged Heavy Attacks grant two stacks. When at 5 or more stacks, you can consume 5 stacks to fire a spectral arrow to deal 4182 Magic Damage and heal for 33% of the damage dealt, if you are in melee range. |
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When slotted on either bar, your Light and Heavy Attacks generate a stack of Merciless Resolve, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 30 up to 10 times. Fully-charged Heavy Attacks grant two stacks.
When at 5 or more stacks, you can consume 5 stacks to fire a spectral arrow to deal 4752 Magic Damage and heal for 50% of the damage dealt, if you are in melee range.
Increases the damage and healing of the spectral arrow.
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When slotted on either bar, your Light and Heavy Attacks generate a stack of Relentless Focus, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 40, up to 10 times. Fully-charged Heavy Attacks grant two stacks.
When at 5 or more stacks, you can consume 5 stacks to fire a spectral arrow to deal 4183 Disease Damage and heal for 33% of the damage dealt, if you are in melee range.
Converts into a Stamina ability and deals Disease Damage. Increases the amount of Weapon and Spell Damage each stack grants, and reduces the cost.
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| Passive abilities | |
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Increases your Critical Chance rating against enemies you are flanking by 1448, increasing your chance to critically strike by |6.6%. |
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When an enemy dies within 2 seconds of being damaged by you, you restore 1000 Magicka and Stamina. |
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Increases your Critical Chance rating by 548 for each Assassination ability slotted, increasing your chance to critically strike by 2.5% per ability. |
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WITH AN ASSASSINATION ABILITY SLOTTED Increases your Critical Damage by 10%. Dealing Critical Damage grants you and your group Minor Savagery, increasing your Weapon Critical rating by 1314 for 20 seconds. |