TL;DR
- Respec services available at Rededication Shrines for gold instead of Crowns
- Werewolf and Vampire bites obtainable through community interactions or NPC encounters
- Storage coffers and consumables accessible via Master Writs and Guild Traders
- Cosmetics and mounts unlockable through achievements and in-game systems
- Strategic gold spending can replace most Crown Store purchases
The Crown Store serves as The Elder Scrolls Online’s premium marketplace, where real currency purchases convert to Crowns for exclusive items. While many offerings are cosmetic enhancements, several practical services and DLC content also appear here. Many players overlook that numerous ESO Crown Store items with gold can be acquired through alternative methods, saving valuable real-world money for truly exclusive purchases. Understanding this economic dynamic represents one of the most crucial money-saving strategies for both new and veteran players.
The key distinction lies between convenience items and true exclusives. Cosmetic outfits, mounts, and housing items often have gold-based alternatives, while account services and certain collectibles remain Crown-exclusive. Strategic players prioritize spending Crowns on items with no gold alternatives while leveraging in-game systems for everything else. This approach maximizes both your real money value and gameplay progression efficiency.
Gold-to-Crown trading through player communities provides another avenue, though this carries inherent risks and requires established trust networks. For comprehensive guidance on maximizing your in-game economy, consult our Complete Guide to advanced resource management techniques.
Character rebuilding represents one of the most frequently needed services that players mistakenly purchase with Crowns. Respecs occur at Rededication Shrines
found throughout Tamriel’s major cities. Base game locations include strategic hubs across alliance territories.
• Mournhold in Deshaan – Primary location for Ebonheart Pact players
• Elden Root in Grahtwood – Central hub for Aldmeri Dominion characters
• Wayrest in Stormhaven – Key destination for Daggerfall Covenant members
At these sacred locations, players can completely overhaul their Skill allocations and Attribute distributions. The gold cost scales dynamically based on accumulated skill points, making early-game respecs significantly cheaper. Advanced players should leverage the Armory Station system for comprehensive loadout management, including Champion Point configurations, without any Crown expenditure.
Common mistake: Players often respec too frequently during leveling phases. Optimal strategy involves waiting until reaching Champion Points before making significant investment changes, unless addressing critical build errors.
Transformative curses like Lycanthropy and Vampirism don’t require Crown purchases. When visiting the appropriate shrines, already-infected players can transmit their affliction through ritual biting. Guild membership dramatically improves accessibility, as members frequently provide bites without charge as community service.
Zone chat represents an alternative avenue, though often involving gold transactions. Bite prices typically range from 1,000-10,000 gold depending on server population and time of month. Strategic timing around full moons can increase your chances of finding willing biters.
The least desirable method involves contracting diseases from specific NPC encounters:
Vampirism transmission occurs through Bloodfiend attacks in Reaper’s March, Bangkorai, and The Rift. These nocturnal spawns appear irregularly, with infection representing a chance-based outcome rather than guaranteed transmission.
Vampire NPC Locations

Lycanthropy infection requires Werewolf NPC encounters during specific lunar phases in designated zones. The unpredictability makes this method significantly less efficient than community-based approaches.
Werewolf NPC Locations

Due to the extreme tedium of NPC infection methods, most players opt for guild assistance. Fortunately, the ESO community maintains strong traditions of freely sharing transformative bites, especially among established guild members.
Storage Coffers revolutionize inventory management by providing additional storage capacity within player homes. These containers dramatically reduce bank clutter while organizing crafting materials, gear sets, and collectibles efficiently across your account.
The optimal acquisition path involves Master Writ completion. These challenging crafting assignments reward Writ Vouchers, the special currency used to purchase Storage Coffers from Master Writ Vendors located in alliance capital cities.
Master Writs require maximum crafting proficiency and specific motif knowledge, making them late-game content. However, the long-term storage benefits justify the investment, particularly for players maintaining multiple gear sets or hoarding crafting materials.
Riding Lessons
Mount training represents one of the most common unnecessary Crown expenditures. Each character can upgrade one riding skill daily for 250 gold at stablemasters, eliminating the need for premium riding lessons entirely.
While the 180-day training cycle requires patience, the gold savings are substantial. Strategic players begin mount training immediately upon character creation, even before acquiring their first mount.
Food and Potions
Consumable items including food, drinks, potions, and poisons are abundantly available through Guild Traders. These player-run marketplaces operate in major cities, smaller settlements, and even Outlaws Refuges for discreet transactions.
Self-crafting represents the most cost-effective long-term solution. Provisioning stations enable food creation once you’ve leveled the corresponding skill line and acquired necessary recipes.
Alchemy stations facilitate potion and poison manufacturing through ingredient combination mastery. Both crafting disciplines provide excellent gold-making opportunities while supplying your own consumable needs.
Experience Scrolls
Experience acceleration scrolls present crafting challenges due to expensive ingredients and rare recipes. However, daily login rewards frequently distribute these valuable items, making Crown purchases unnecessary for regular players.
Twitch integration provides additional acquisition avenues. Watching Drops-enabled ESO streams occasionally rewards free Ouroboros Crates, which commonly contain Experience Scrolls among other rewards.

Fashion competition represents ESO’s true endgame. Outfit Stations enable complete visual overhauls without sacrificing gear statistics. Dyes provide color customization, with the vast majority unlockable through achievement completion rather than Crown purchases.
Outfit modifications incur application fees payable in gold, eliminating the need for Outfit Change Tokens. This represents another significant Crown savings opportunity for players who frequently update their character appearances.
Numerous player homes become available for gold purchase after completing associated achievement requirements. These quest-related accomplishments ensure accessibility across player skill levels and playstyles.
Style Motifs available in the Crown Store can be obtained through DLC zone daily quests or veteran dungeon completions. The Guild Trader system provides alternative acquisition through player-to-player commerce.
Research Scrolls accelerate trait learning for crafters. While Crown Store versions offer convenience with no cooldown, Master Writ Vendor versions with 20-hour cooldowns provide cost-effective alternatives for patient players.
Alliance War Scrolls functionally mirror Clovian War Tortes, providing Alliance Rank and War Skill Line experience bonuses. Crafting these consumables represents an advanced but rewarding endeavor for dedicated crafters.
Mount acquisition demonstrates the spectrum of alternatives. Basic Sorrel Horses remain gold-purchasable, while the impressive Ebon Dwarven Wolf mount becomes available through the Antiquities System without any currency expenditure.
Mastering ESO’s alternative acquisition systems requires strategic planning and community engagement. For comprehensive weapon and gear strategies, explore our Weapons Unlock guide covering optimization techniques.
Gold farming efficiency directly impacts your ability to bypass Crown purchases. Focus on activities matching your playstyle while maximizing gold-per-hour returns. Our Class Guide provides additional context for character-specific optimization.
Time investment varies significantly across methods. Community-based approaches like guild bites typically require minutes, while NPC infection methods might demand hours of dedicated hunting.
Common pitfalls include impatience with daily systems like mount training and inefficient gold allocation across multiple character needs.
Advanced players leverage multiple characters for specialized tasks. Designate crafters for writ completion, combat specialists for gold farming, and social characters for community interactions. This division of labor maximizes efficiency across all acquisition methods.
Action Checklist
- Visit Rededication Shrines in alliance capitals for gold-based respecs
- Join active guilds for free Werewolf/Vampire bites
- Train mount skills daily at stablemasters for 250 gold
- Complete Master Writs for Storage Coffer acquisition
- Utilize Guild Traders for consumable purchases
- Farm achievements for cosmetic dyes and housing unlocks
No reproduction without permission:GameCDjnh » Crown Store Items You Can Get with Gold in ESO Smart strategies to acquire premium ESO Crown Store items using gold and free methods
