ESO Scrying Level 1–10 is fastest when you begin with green and blue Antiquities in a small zone, then travel between zones for their one-time purple treasure leads. You don’t have to reach level 10 to start collecting most Mythic fragments: Scrying level 7 and Antiquarian Insight IV are the important milestones.
If you have Summerset access, Artaeum is a great place to start because it’s compact and has few enemies interrupting the journey between dig sites. Without Summerset, you can still follow the same green-and-blue approach in another accessible zone. The difference is mainly how long you spend travelling between excavations.
ESO Scrying Level 1–10 – How much Scrying experience each lead gives
| Lead rarity | Unlock level | Antiquities XP per excavation |
|---|---|---|
| Green (Simple) | 1 | 1 |
| Blue (Intermediate) | 3 | 3 |
| Purple (Advanced) | 5 | 5 |
| Gold (Master) | 7 | 10 |
| Red (Ultimate) | 10 | 10 |
The Antiquarian Insight passive controls which rarity you can scry. When you hit the necessary skill-line level, spend a skill point on the relevant upgrade. You’ll also be increasing your Excavation rank as you complete the digs, so both skill lines can progress together.
ESO Scrying levels 1–3: Repeat green treasures
First unlock Antiquities at the Antiquarian Circle in Solitude. Travel to Artaeum or another accessible zone with a starter green lead, then open Journal → Antiquities and scry it. Finish the excavation, return to the Journal and repeat with another available green lead. Green treasures award one point of Antiquities experience each.
As soon as Scrying reaches level 3, unlock the next Antiquarian Insight rank so you can start using blue leads. There is no reason to stay on green leads alone after this point: blue treasures give three times the experience.
ESO Scrying levels 3–5: Alternate green and blue leads
Complete a starter green lead, then check your Journal for the blue lead it awards. Scry and excavate that blue treasure for three experience points. Repeat the green-to-blue cycle. In Artaeum, the short travel distances make it faster than riding across a much larger zone for each dig.
For each excavation, complete the Scrying puzzle before travelling to the search area. If you capture every glowing focus on the puzzle board, you’ll narrow the map down to the true dig area. Capturing only some of the foci still lets you search, but may give you false dig-site locations and waste travel time.
ESO Scrying levels 5–7: Visit new zones for purple leads
At Scrying level 5, invest in the Antiquarian Insight upgrade that unlocks purple leads. Start with a green treasure in a zone where you haven’t finished the introductory treasure chain, complete its blue treasure, then follow the purple lead it gives you. The three excavations award nine Antiquities experience points altogether: one from green, three from blue and five from purple.
The purple treasure at the end of this starter chain is normally a one-time reward per zone. Once you’ve completed it, move to another zone with an unfinished purple chain instead of trying to repeat the same purple reward. If you run out of new zones, continue levelling with green and blue leads or work on other available Antiquities.
Accessible base-game zones work for this approach, so you don’t need Summerset just to use the route. Start with places you’ve already discovered wayshrines in; reducing travel time makes a bigger difference than fighting through high-level enemies for an unrelated gold lead.
Levels 7–10: Complete gold leads
Once you reach level 7, unlock Antiquarian Insight IV. Gold or Master leads now become usable and award ten Antiquities experience points when you complete the excavation. Look for sources tied to activities you already enjoy: world bosses, delve bosses, public dungeon bosses, treasure chests and gathering can all provide specific leads.
If you’re planning to collect Mythic gear, this is the ideal point to start. Most Mythic items have five separate fragments, and each fragment needs its own lead, Scrying puzzle and excavation. Level 10 isn’t necessary for those Master-quality leads, although you’ll need it for Ultimate rarity.
Why your Scrying experience isn’t going up
Simply picking up a lead doesn’t advance your Scrying or Excavation skill lines. You need to complete the search and dig up the antiquity. Likewise, finishing the Scrying puzzle only reveals dig locations; it isn’t the same as excavating the item.
If your next lead is locked, check your Antiquarian Insight passive, your Scrying rank and whether you’re standing in the lead’s excavation zone. If you can’t use the Antiquarian’s Eye, equip it from Collections → Tools and enter the highlighted search area first. When a dig fails, look for another mound in the area and try again.
ESO Scrying Level 1–10 – When you can stop levelling Scrying
For most players who want Mythic equipment, level 7 is enough to begin collecting the gold fragments they need. Continue towards level 10 if you want to tackle Ultimate-rarity Antiquities, complete the skill lines or make digging and scrying easier with further passive upgrades. Otherwise, you can start working through the Mythic item you’re actually interested in.
Related Guides
Official source: ESO Support: Antiquities, Scrying and Excavation.
