This is a guide to the best builds, and how to build your character in Elden Ring. Stat distribution for Melee and Ranged Builds, Bleed Builds, and Magic builds, as well as build explanations and more can be found here!
Build Guides | |
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Best Builds and Stat Distribution | Best PvP Builds |
List of Contents
If you're playing Elden Ring for the first time, we recommend going for a Strength or a Bleed build.
Players using the Strength build increase Strength as their main stat to output large amounts of damage.
The Bleed build, meanwhile, uses the status effect Bleed to dish out surprising amounts of damage to enemies. This build can take down even the tankiest bosses, so it should be considered if you're just starting out.
Strength Build | Bleed Build |
Your build path and the stats you prioritize will change depending on the class you pick to play, so it's best to play to that class' specializations.
For instance, if you're picking Vagabond, you will prioritizing Strength, whereas if you're playing an Astrologer, you will be maxing out your Intelligence.
Other than prioritizing your primary stat, you should not ignore Vigor or Endurance either, unless you have a reason to.
Vigor raises max HP, which helps you take more damage.
Endurance, on the other hand, raises your max Stamina and also increases your maximum equipment weight.
Stats Explained: Stat Effects and the Best Stats to Level Up
By raising Mind, you increase your maximum FP, and thus, increases the times you can use Ashes of War or Magic.
If you're a build focusing on either of these, then you should be increasing Mind.
Even if you're not focusing on Ashes of War or Magic, however, you should invest a few points in Mind because it takes FP to do Spirit Summons.
Ashes of War Skills and How to Get
If you're not using any Summons or anything that consumes FP, it's fine not to invest any points in Mind.
This holds true for any stats that you are not actively going to use in your build.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | +5 (15) |
Base | +4 (14) |
+10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base | Base |
40 | +10 (20) |
Base | +10 (20) |
+19 (29) |
Base | Base | Base | Base |
60 | +14 (24) |
Base | +10 (20) |
+30 (40) |
+1~6 | Base | Base | Base |
↑ Level up Dexterity and Mind to match your weapons / ashes of war.
This build focuses on increasing Strength as the main stat, and using weapons like Greatswords, Ultra Greatswords, and Heavy Armor.
Two-Handing weapons will also increase your damage by 1.5x, so using Strength-scaling weapons will make you deal an insane amount of upfront damage.
In order to be able to comfortably equip and use heavy weapons and armor, however, it's recommended that you also put points in Endurance to increase equipment weight and Stamina.
We also recommend leveling Strength to 40 and then increase your other stats depending on your weapon's scaling.
If your weapon scales with purely Strength, however, we recommend investing more than 40 points in Strength.
Hero Class Best Stats to Level Up and Starting Equipment
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | +5 (15) |
Base | +4 (14) |
Base | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base |
40 | +10 (20) |
Base | +10 (20) |
Base | +19 (29) |
Base | Base | Base |
60 | +14 (24) |
Base | +10 (20) |
+1~6 | +30 (40) |
Base | Base | Base |
↑ Level up Strength and Mind to match your weapons / ashes of war.
This build focuses on increasing Dexterity as the main stat, and using weapons that combo or allow you to strike fast.
Dexterity builds use Daggers, Flails, and different types of Swords.
These weapons are often light and don't have much equipment weight, so you don't need to invest in that many points in Endurance.
Many of them also inflict Bleed to enemies, which takes a bit of work to stack up, but rewards you with a big chunk of damage when Blood Loss triggers.
If you want to use a shield, you may also want to invest a few points in Strength.
Have at least 10 Strength to be able to equip most shields that have 100% damage block.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | +5 (15) |
Base | +4 (14) |
+5 (15) |
+5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base |
40 | +10 (20) |
Base | +10 (20) |
+10 (20) |
+9 (19) |
Base | Base | Base |
60 | +14 (24) |
Base | +10 (20) |
+15 (25) |
+15 (25) |
Base | Base | Base |
↑ Level up Mind or adjust Strength/Dexterity to match your weapons / ashes of war.
This build focuses on leveling both Dexterity and Strength equally, with the result being that you can equip a wide variety of weapons.
Maxing both Strength and Dexterity also ensures you your weapon scales really well, although doing both means that you will not be putting out as much firepower as pure Strength or pure Dexterity builds.
That being said, we recommend equipping weapons that have high scalings in both Strength and Dexterity.
Depending on the type of scaling that your weapon has, you may have to adjust when you level up and invest in more points in the stat that scales better.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | Any | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base | +14 (24) |
Base | Base |
40 | Any | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base | +29 (39) |
Base | Base |
60 | Any | +20 (30) |
Base | Base | Base | +34 (44) |
+0~5 | Base |
↑ Level up Strength and Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This is a build that focuses on leveling Intelligence to be able to unleash devastating magic attacks on enemies.
The goal is to use spells from a distance, so keep in mind that since you will not be investing a lot of points in Endurance, Strength, or Dexterity, you cannot engage in close-quarters combat.
The types of staves you use will depend on the type of spells you are performing, so choose carefully!
Also, since using magic consumes FP, we recommend that you invest in Mind and also carry more charges in your Flask of Cerulean Tears than your Flask of Crimson Tears.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | Any | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base | Base | +14 (24) |
Base |
40 | Any | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base | Base | +29 (39) |
Base |
60 | Any | +20 (30) |
Base | Base | Base | +0~5 | +34 (44) |
Base |
↑ Level up Strength and Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This is a build that focuses on leveling Faith, which will give you buffs before and during battle, while also being able to deal damage.
Useful effects that you can apply to yourself could be healing or damage reduction spells.
Use a Sacred Seal that scales with the type of spells you want.
We also recommend using a weapon like Cipher Pata, if you want a melee weapon.
Like the previous build, we recommend that you invest in Mind and also carry more charges in your Flask of Cerulean Tears than your Flask of Crimson Tears.
Since you won't be fighting melee often, we do not recommend this build for beginners!
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | Any | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base | +10 (20) |
+4 (14) |
Base |
40 | Any | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base | +20 (30) |
+9 (19) |
Base |
60 | Any | +20 (30) |
Base | Base | Base | +24 (34) |
+15 (25) |
Base |
↑ Level up Strength and Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This is a build that focuses on leveling Intelligence and Faith, which lets you use both support and offensive spells.
With the healing provided by Faith spells, you can stay healthy while maintaining distance and slinging damaging spells at enemies.
You can choose to dual wield with a staff on one hand and a shield equipped with a Sacred Seal in the other.
However, keep in mind the overall damage output of this build will be less than Pure Intelligence or Pure Faith builds.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | Any | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | +4 (14) |
+10 (20) |
Base | Base |
40 | Any | +10 (20) |
Base | +3 (13) |
+6 (14) |
+20 (30) |
Base | Base |
60 | Any | +15 (30) |
Base | +4 (14) |
+8 (18) |
+27 (37) |
Base | Base |
↑ Level up Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This build prioritizes 3 different stats, although your main stat will be Intelligence as your main source of damage.
Strength ensures you can wield the weapons you need, while Dexterity scales well with certain weapons, such as Moonveil and Crystal Knife.
More Dexterity also means less casting time for your spells, so you can cast more spells for less time than pure Magic builds.
However, since you are not running a pure Magic build, we are compensating the lack of damage for what we can deal with a melee weapon.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | +5 (15) |
+4 (14) |
Base | Base | +5 (15) |
Base | +5 (15) |
Base |
40 | +10 (20) |
+8 (18) |
Base | +6 (16) |
+7 (17) |
Base | +8 (18) |
Base |
60 | +10 (20) |
+8 (18) |
+8 (18) |
+6 (16) |
+17 (27) |
Base | +10 (20) |
Base |
↑ Level up Strength and Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This build focuses on leveling Dexterity and Faith, with the main purpose is using healing spells to reduce the number of Flasks used and dealing damage with Dexterity-scaling weapons.
One of the great advantages to this build, aside from the healing, are the different buffs you can cast on yourself.
We recommend having 20 points in Faith and 40 points in Dexterity.
Since this build aims to keep you healthy with Faith, you can then take advantage of weapons that inflict Bleed or Poison on enemies, since those scale with Dexterity.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | +4 (14) |
40 | +10 (20) |
Base | +3 (13) |
+0~2 | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | +6 (16) |
60 | +14 (24) |
Base | +3 (13) |
+0~4 | +17 (37) |
Base | Base | +8 (18) |
↑ Level up Strength and Endurance to match your weapons / shields.
This build aims to take advantage of the Hemorrhage status effect, by using a weapon like Reduvia and using the Ashes of War: Bloody Slash.
Putting points into Arcane will increase the blood loss buildup, because blood loss scales with the stat, ensuring that Hemorrage will trigger faster.
You may also want to put points into your Mind stat for spamming Bloody Slash.
Increase your Strength according to your weapon's requirements while also increasing Dexterity, as many weapons that inflict Bleed also have Dexterity scalings as well.
However, keep in mind that there are enemies who are resistant or even immune to Hemorrhage. Having a weapon you can rely on without causing bleed build up, such as one with decent Dexterity scaling, will make your build much more versatile.
Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch) | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lv. | VIG | MND | END | STR | DEX | INT | FTH | ARC |
20 | Base | +5 (15) |
Base | Base | Base | +4 (14) |
Base | +10 (20) |
40 | Base | +10 (20) |
Base | Base | Base | +10 (20) |
Base | +19 (29) |
60 | Base | +14 (24) |
Base | Base | Base | +10 (20) |
Base | +30 (40) |
↑ Level up Dexterity and Mind to match your weapons / ashes of war.
This build focus on leveling Arcane and Faith, creating a build that uses status effects like Bleed for the melee weapon, and supplementing damage with Dragon incantations.
Make sure to level your Strength or Dexterity to fit the requirements of your weapon and also use Ashes of War that cause Bleed buildup like Bloody Slash or Seppuku.
For Dragon incantations, you could opt for Dragonfire or Ekzykes’s Decay. This build is for late game, however, as these incantations are difficult to obtain in the early game.
If you are going for a more melee-oriented build, we also recommend putting points in Endurance.
Best Builds and Stat Distribution
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