The Elder Scrolls Online's new Veterancy system adds a seasonal progression track focused on PvP zones and activities. However, players do not have to become dedicated PvPers to earn Veterancy progress. Experience gained from PvE activities in Cyrodiil and Imperial City can also contribute to the system, giving PvE-focused players a slower but practical way to unlock rewards.
CharlieEcho101x's video guide explains how Veterancy works, what rewards it offers, whether your alliance matters, and the most effective ways for PvE players to make progress without actively hunting other players.
What Is Veterancy in ESO?
Veterancy was introduced with Update 50 as a seasonal progression system connected to ESO's PvP content.
Players can access Veterancy through the Campaigns menu, where the current Veterancy rank and available rewards are displayed. The first iteration contains 100 ranks, followed by a repeatable reward after reaching the maximum rank.
Veterancy is completely free. There is no premium reward track, additional purchase, or ESO Plus requirement.
The system is also account-wide, meaning progress is shared across all characters. For example, experience earned by one character in Cyrodiil and additional progress earned by another character in Imperial City will contribute to the same Veterancy track.
This makes the system particularly convenient for players who use different characters for different activities.
How Long Does a Veterancy Season Last?
Veterancy operates on its own seasonal schedule. According to ZOS, a Veterancy season lasts approximately six months, or around six 30-day Cyrodiil campaign cycles.
The exact duration can vary depending on the game's update schedule, so players should treat the six-month period as an approximate timeframe rather than a fixed date.
When a new Veterancy season begins, the current Veterancy rank resets and a new progression cycle starts.
This means the system is designed as an ongoing seasonal feature rather than a permanent progression track that can simply be completed once and forgotten.
What Rewards Does Veterancy Offer?
Although Veterancy is designed around PvP content, its rewards are not limited to PvP-related benefits.
Across the 100 ranks, players can find rewards such as:
• Outfit styles
• Weapon styles
• Skill styles
• Titles
• Transmute Crystals
• Tel Var Stones
• Imperial Fragments
• Crafting materials
• Experience scrolls
• ESO gold
• Other useful items and collectibles
Some rewards are particularly appealing to PvE players, especially cosmetics, skill styles, titles, and currencies.
Players can also unlock permanent Veterancy titles after progressing beyond Rank 50. Some titles may return in future seasons, while others are tied specifically to a particular Veterancy season.
Because the reward track contains a mixture of items, there is no need to treat Rank 100 as the only worthwhile target. A better approach for many PvE players is to check the reward track first and decide which rewards are actually worth pursuing.
Does Your Alliance Affect Veterancy Rewards?
No. Veterancy is not divided into separate alliance-specific reward tracks.
Whether a character belongs to the Aldmeri Dominion, Daggerfall Covenant, or Ebonheart Pact, the Veterancy progression and reward track remain the same.
Your alliance still matters inside Cyrodiil because it determines your starting location, controlled keeps, travel routes, and which areas of the map may be relatively safe. However, players do not need to choose an alliance based on Veterancy rewards.
Everyone progresses through the same Veterancy system.
How Does Veterancy Progression Work?
There are two main ways to gain Veterancy progress:
1. Alliance Points (AP)
2. Experience gained inside PvP zones
AP is the more heavily weighted source of Veterancy progression. As a result, players who actively participate in PvP will generally advance much faster than players who rely on PvE activities.
Experience earned in the following areas can also contribute:
• Cyrodiil
• Imperial City
• Battlegrounds
The important point for PvE players is that the experience does not have to come from killing other players.
PvE activities inside these areas can still generate experience and therefore contribute to Veterancy progression.
The trade-off is speed. PvE-based progression is deliberately slower than earning large amounts of AP through active PvP participation.
Best Veterancy Methods for PvE Players
1. Complete Cyrodiil PvE Quests
Cyrodiil contains several settlements with repeatable quests that work much like traditional ESO PvE content.
Examples include quests in locations such as:
• Bruma
• Cropsford
• Vlastarus
• Chorrol
• Cheydinhal
These quests involve familiar PvE activities such as defeating NPCs, collecting items, rescuing characters, and investigating locations.
Completing the quests provides experience, while enemies defeated along the way can provide additional XP. Some activities may also generate Alliance Points.
This allows players to make Veterancy progress while completing normal PvE objectives.
There is one important limitation: Cyrodiil is still a PvP zone. Other players can attack at any time, so PvE-friendly does not mean PvP-free. Choosing a quieter campaign, avoiding major battle areas, and keeping an eye on the map can help reduce unwanted encounters. Staying away from active alliance conflicts can also make the experience more manageable.
2. Complete Scouting Missions
Scouting missions are another useful option for players who want to earn Veterancy progress without engaging in direct PvP.
A scouting mission can be obtained from the appropriate board at an alliance base. The objective sends the player to a specific keep or resource in Cyrodiil.
The basic process is simple:
1. Pick up a scouting mission.
2. Travel to the assigned location.
3. Use the scouting report.
4. Return to the alliance base and turn in the mission.
There is no requirement to capture the objective or defeat another player.
Completing the mission provides both XP and AP, making scouting particularly useful for Veterancy progression.
A well-developed mount can make this method considerably more efficient, especially when the alliance does not control many keeps and travel distances are longer.
3. Clear a Cyrodiil Delve Before Scouting
One of the most useful ways to improve this strategy is to visit a Cyrodiil delve before starting a series of scouting missions.
Cyrodiil's delves contain familiar PvE content, including NPC enemies, bosses, and Skyshards. The experience earned inside the delve contributes to Veterancy progress.
More importantly, defeating a delve boss grants the Blessing of War buff, which increases Alliance Point gains by 20% for one hour.
That creates a simple progression loop:
Clear a delve → defeat the boss → activate the AP bonus → complete scouting missions and other AP-generating activities.
The delve itself provides XP, while the temporary AP bonus can increase the amount of AP earned from subsequent activities.
For players using scouting missions as a regular Veterancy method, this makes the order of activities important: Delve first, scouting later.
4. Combine Cyrodiil Exploration With Veterancy Progress
Cyrodiil contains considerably more PvE content than its PvP-focused reputation might suggest.
While traveling between objectives, players can complete:
• Delves
• Quests
• Dolmens
• Exploration objectives
• Skyshard collection
• NPC encounters
• Other PvE activities
All of this can be combined with Veterancy progression.
Rather than spending an entire session specifically grinding Veterancy, players can use the system as an additional reward for activities they already want to complete.
For example, a player working toward Cyrodiil exploration achievements can collect Skyshards and clear delves while simultaneously earning Veterancy progress.
This approach is slower than organized PvP, but it allows several objectives to be completed at the same time.
5. Farm PvE Content in Imperial City
Imperial City is another useful location for PvE-focused Veterancy progression because experience earned there contributes to the system.
The area contains daily quests in its six districts, along with numerous NPC enemies, bosses, and other PvE activities.
Players can also capture district flags for their alliance to earn Alliance Points. Each captured flag provides 1,500 AP, creating another way to supplement Veterancy progression.
The Imperial City Sewers can be particularly useful for players who prefer PvE combat. The area contains large numbers of NPC enemies, allowing players to earn experience while farming loot and Tel Var Stones.
As with Cyrodiil, however, Imperial City remains a PvP-enabled area. Other players can enter the same areas and attack at any time.
The goal is therefore not to make Imperial City completely safe, but to use its PvE content to generate Veterancy progress without deliberately seeking player combat.
6. Combine Veterancy With Tel Var Farming
Players who already visit Imperial City to collect Tel Var Stones can effectively gain Veterancy progress at the same time.
Instead of entering Imperial City solely to grind Veterancy, players can focus on their normal objectives:
• Farm NPC enemies.
• Collect Tel Var Stones.
• Complete district quests.
• Explore the Sewers.
• Defeat suitable bosses.
• Capture district flags when conditions allow.
The XP earned during these activities contributes to Veterancy.
This is a good example of stacking objectives. One activity can provide several different benefits instead of turning Veterancy into a separate grind.
For PvE players, this can make the slower Veterancy progression feel much more natural.
7. Repair Alliance Keeps
Repairing damaged keeps and outposts provides another option for players who want to participate in the Alliance War without directly fighting other players.
When a keep has been damaged, players can use repair materials to restore its walls and doors. This can generate Alliance Points, which are particularly valuable for Veterancy progression because AP has a greater impact on the progression system than ordinary XP.
This method sits somewhere between PvE and PvP.
Players are contributing directly to the Alliance War, but they are doing so without necessarily engaging in combat.
Watching the Cyrodiil map can help identify recently attacked objectives that need repairs. Repairing these locations allows players to support their alliance while earning AP and Veterancy progress.
How Fast Can PvE Players Level Veterancy?
PvE players should expect Veterancy progression to be slower than dedicated PvP progression.
This is intentional. Players who actively capture keeps, defend objectives, defeat enemy players, participate in Battlegrounds, and generate large amounts of AP have a much more direct route through the system.
XP-based progression is a secondary path. However, slower does not mean ineffective.
Players can steadily increase their Veterancy rank by combining activities such as:
• Cyrodiil quests
• Scouting missions
• Cyrodiil delves
• Skyshard hunting
• NPC farming
• Imperial City quests
• Sewer farming
• District flag captures
• Keep repairs
Occasional PvP participation can also provide additional AP if a player happens to become involved in an Alliance War objective.
The key is to avoid treating Veterancy as a separate grind when it can simply progress alongside other activities.
A Practical Veterancy Routine for PvE Players
A one-hour Veterancy session does not need to involve organized PvP.
A practical routine could look like this:
In Cyrodiil
1. Enter a campaign and check the map.
2. Identify areas with less active fighting.
3. Find a convenient Cyrodiil delve.
4. Clear the delve and defeat its boss.
5. Obtain the Blessing of War AP bonus.
6. Pick up scouting missions.
7. Complete several scouting objectives.
8. Complete nearby settlement quests.
9. Collect nearby Skyshards or complete other PvE objectives.
10. Repair damaged alliance structures when appropriate.
In Imperial City
1. Enter Imperial City through the alliance base.
2. Pick up available district quests.
3. Farm NPC enemies while traveling between objectives.
4. Complete the district quests.
5. Capture a district flag when the situation allows.
6. Continue farming PvE enemies in the Sewers.
7. Collect Tel Var Stones and other loot.
8. Return to the alliance base and bank resources.
This approach will not match the Veterancy progression speed of an organized PvP group, but it allows players to earn rewards without turning the game into an activity they do not enjoy.
Should PvE Players Aim for Rank 100?
Not necessarily. Veterancy has 100 ranks, but completing every rank is not required. Instead, players can check the reward track and identify the rewards that matter most to them. A particular skill style, outfit style, title, currency, or seasonal reward may be enough reason to pursue a specific section of the track. After Rank 100, the system also provides a repeatable reward, so dedicated players have an additional reason to continue progressing.
For everyone else, there is no need to treat the entire Veterancy track as another mandatory ESO checklist.
Final Thoughts
Veterancy is primarily a PvP progression system, and Alliance Points remain the most efficient way to advance through it. However, PvP is not the only path.
PvE players can earn Veterancy progress through XP gained in Cyrodiil and Imperial City, while activities such as scouting missions and keep repairs can provide additional AP.
The most useful approach is to combine Veterancy with activities that are already worth doing. Clear a Cyrodiil delve before scouting, complete settlement quests while exploring the region, collect Skyshards along the way, or farm Tel Var and NPC enemies in Imperial City while allowing Veterancy to progress in the background.
The process will be slower than dedicated PvP grinding, but it gives PvE players a practical way to access the system's rewards without completely changing how they play ESO.
Most importantly, Veterancy does not require every player to become a PvPer. Find the rewards that are worth pursuing, choose the activities that fit your playstyle, and let the progression build naturally over the course of the season.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
Best Solo Sets for PvE in ESO 2026
Gold Farming Methods Ranked for ESO 2026
ESO Update 51: A Quick Guide to Solo Dungeons and Misfortunes
