Best PvP Builds (Ver 1.04)

PvP is a multiplayer feature in Elden Ring that allows players to fight against each other. Read on for the best builds being used in PvP in Ver 1.04, the talismans you need to use, the weapons you need, and more!

Build Guides
Best Builds and Stat Distribution	Best PvP Builds

Best PvP Builds (Ver 1.04)

Jump to a Build!
Rivers of Blood	Moonveil
Hand Ballista	Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear
Antspur Rapier	Greatsword Lion's Claw
Giantsflame Fire Pot	Fortissax's Lightning Spear

Rivers of Blood Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Rivers of Blood
Armor	White Mask
Talismans	Lord of Blood's Exultation Rotten Winged Sword Insignia Carian Filigreed Crest

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	Base	Base	Base	+4 (14)	Base	Base	+10 (20)
40	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base	+19 (29)
60	+14 (24)	Base	+1~6	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base	+30 (40)

Rivers of Blood is a Katana that inflicts Hemorrhage, but also comes with an exclusive skill that allows for successive attacks to build it even faster.

Due to the raw damage output it can dish out and its speed, it can potentially stunlock players that don't have high Poise.

Using a Talisman like Carian Filigreed Crest will allow you to spam its Corpse Piler Weapon Skill, which pairs well with Rotten Sword Insignia, a Talisman that raises attack power the more successive attacks you make.

Lord of Blood's Exultation is also a very valuable Talisman for this build since it increases attack power when blood loss occurs nearby, resulting in more burst damage once it triggers.

How to Counter

Since the bread and butter of this build is to spam the Weapon Skill, you can dodge behind the player using this build once they start to use it. This will give you time to punish them.

Alternatively, you can stack Poise to prevent being stunlocked and punish them after the first or second hits.

You can also use the Bloody Helice, since its Weapon Skill allows you to dodge and then follow-up with powerful counterattacks.

Moonveil Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Moonveil
Armor	Queen's Crescent Crown
Talismans	Shard of Alexander Marika's Soreseal Carian Filigreed Crest

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	+4 (14)	Base	Base	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base
40	+5 (15)	+10 (20)	+10 (20)	Base	Base	+19 (29)	Base	Base
60	+14 (24)	+10 (20)	+1~6	Base	Base	+30 (40)	Base	Base

Moonveil is another Katana that also causes Hemorrage and also comes with its own exclusive Weapon Skill that fires beams of magic at opponents.

Like the previous entry, you'll want to spam its Transient Moonlight Weapon Skill along with attacks to build blood loss.

Transient Moonlight's attacks also use projectiles so use this to catch enemies off guard if they're running away or if you're from a safe distance.

Like the Rivers of Blood build above, Carian Filigreed Crest serves to make Transient Moonlight cheaper to use, while Shard of Alexander boosts its damage.

Marika's Soreseal will increase the damage you take, but it will greatly increase all your attributes, making you even more powerful. This means that you'll need to time your dodges more accurately!

How to Counter

Strength users will find that they can block Transient Moonlight with the use of Greatshields such as the Erdtree Greatshield, which has a Weapon Skill that dispels magical attacks.

You can also opt to dodge behind the player the moment you see them sheathe the katana, meaning that they are about to unleash the Weapon Skill.

Hand Ballista / Jar Cannon Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Hand Ballista Jar Cannon
Talismans	Arrow's Sting Talisman Arrow's Reach Talisman Ritual Sword Talisman

Stat Spread

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	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	+19 (29)	Base	Base	Base	Base
60	+14 (24)	Base	+10 (20)	+30 (40)	Base	Base	Base	Base

This is a ranged build but is deceptively very powerful, especially against low Vigor builds. You can use either the Hand Ballista or the Jar Cannon for this build, though the Hand Ballista is available earlier in the game.

The objective is to snipe opponents from a distance using different types of bolts such as the Electric Greatbolt or the Explosive Greatbolt.

You do require a bit of investment in Strength to be able to wield either weapon, but neither have any stat scaling so feel free to just put enough points to be able to meet their requirements.

Ritual Sword Talisman raises your attack power when you're at full health, making this the ideal Talisman for a long-ranged build, but you will need to take care to keep yourself at max HP.

Arrow's Sting Talisman and Arrow's Reach Talisman go hand in hand as the latter increases your range, while the former raises the damage you deal with bolts.

How to Counter

If you're good at dodging, you can dodge your way towards your opponent to punish them. Neither Hand Ballista nor the Jar Cannon allow its holder to block, so they're open if you can close the gap.

Some great bolts have a surprising AoE that can hit even with dodging so time your dodges well. However, it's sometimes better to just block it and drink a flask as these weapons have slow reload times.

Mohgwyn Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear
Armor	White Mask
Talismans	Shard of Alexander Lord of Blood's Exultation Carian Filigreed Crest

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	Base	Base	+4 (14)	Base	Base	Base	+10 (20)
40	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	+10 (20)	Base	Base	Base	+19 (29)
60	+14 (24)	+1~6	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base	Base	+30 (40)

Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear allows for Strength users to basically run a bleed build without investing into Dexterity. While the weapon itself isn't very impressive, its Weapon Skill, Bloodboon Ritual, makes it stand out.

It creates a large AoE that deals an insane amount of damage and also coats the weapon afterwards with bloodflame, which will continue to build blood loss on an enemy for a short time.

Since you will be spamming the Weapon Skill constantly, you will need to invest some points in Mind. However, this weapon primarily scales off Strength and Arcane, so make those stats the priority.

You can also pair this with the Fingerprint Stone Shield due to its insane stats and blocking power. It will also allow you to block and attack at the same time.

Use Carian Filigreed Crest and Shard of Alexander to make Bloodboon Ritual cheaper to cast and hit harder, which will result in triggering Lord of Blood's Exultation for more attack power.

How to Counter

If you encounter someone running this build with Fingerprint Stone Shield, they're most likely going to turtle behind it, so try to get them with Magic or build-up status effects of your own.

Weapons like Cipher Pata or Coded Sword also work well since they ignore shields and deal magic damage.

Antspur Rapier Rot-Bleed Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Antspur Rapier
Armor	White Mask
Talismans	Kindred of Rot's Exultation Lord of Blood's Exultation Radagon's Soreseal

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	Base	Base	Base	+4 (14)	Base	Base	+10 (20)
40	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base	+19 (29)
60	+14 (24)	Base	+1~6	Base	+10 (20)	Base	Base	+30 (40)

This build requires two Antspur Rapiers to maximize its devastating effects, which could be obtained either from NG+ or having a cooperator drop it for you.

The goal of this build is to inflict Scarlet Rot and Hemorrage very quickly. This can be achieved by equipping Ash of War: Seppuku for stronger blood loss buildup and more attack power.

Kindred of Rot's Exultation works the same way as Lord of Blood's Exultation but it triggers off of Scarlet Rot instead of blood loss.

Radagon's Soreseal increases the damage you take, but it will greatly increase your attributes and thus increase both your attack power and the blood loss buildup.

How to Counter

This is similar to the Rivers of Blood build, but more dangerous due to the status effect build ups.

Magic works best since you can cast from a distance or dodging behind the player and punishing them when they overcommit.

Greatsword Lion's Claw Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Greatsword Icon Shield
Talismans	Ritual Sword Talisman Blessed Dew Talisman Shard of Alexander

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	+4 (14)	Base	Base	Base	Base
40	+5 (15)	Base	+10 (20)	+19 (29)	Base	Base	Base	Base
60	+14 (24)	+1~6	+30 (40)	+10 (20)	Base	Base	Base	Base

Many Ashes of War got buffed in Ver 1.04 and that includes Lion's Claw. This skill allows a player to somersault and crash towards enemies, dealing massive damage.

The skill also gives hyperarmor, which means that you are more difficult to stun or stagger while the animation is playing.

The update increased the Greatsword's damage, while Lion's Claw's cast time was increased and its recovery speed were decreased. This combination means that it is quite possible to spam this Ash of War and deal large amounts of damage to other players if they are hit.

The tracking on the skill itself is actually very good, forcing other players to time their dodges correctly.

Equipping the Icon Shield and the Blessed Dew Talisman slowly regenerates your health, which decreases the need for using up Flasks of Crimson Tears. This is especially useful if you are the one Invading another player because you have less Flasks to use.

Ritual Sword Talisman increases attack power when a player is at max HP, opening opportunities for one-shotting enemies with low vigor. Shard of Alexander in turn increases the damage dealt by skills, which makes this build even deadlier.

How to Counter

Since the bread and butter of this build is to spam the Weapon Skill, you can dodge behind the player using this build once they use it. This will give you time to punish them.

Giantsflame Fire Pot Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Giantsflame Fire Pot
Armor	Jar
Talismans	Companion Jar Ritual Sword Talisman Fire Scorpion Charm

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	+4 (14)	Base	Base	Base	Base	+10 (20)	Base
40	+5 (15)	+10 (20)	+10 (20)	Base	Base	Base	+19 (29)	Base
60	+14 (24)	+10 (20)	+1~6	Base	Base	Base	+30 (40)	Base

This build takes advantage of the equipment that increases throwable pot damage, such as the Jar helm and the Companion Jar to practically one-shot enemies with the Giantsflame Fire Pot.

The Fire Scorpion Charm increases fire damage, while the Ritual Sword Talisman increases damage at full HP. This makes it crucial to land your shots. However, if you do manage to hit, the damage is staggering.

Faith is one of the main stats you need to focus on due to the Giantsflame Fire Pot having B scaling in Faith, while the secondary stat is Mind to have more FP.

How to Counter

Similar to the Hand Ballista / Jar Cannon Build, you can dodge your way towards a player running this build. Time your dodges well due to the AoE damage or if you have sufficient fire protection, block with a shield and then just drink a flask.

Fortissax's Lightning Spear Faith Build

Equipment

Equipment
Weapon	Gravel Stone Seal
Talismans	Flock's Canvas Talisman Two Fingers Heirloom Lightning Scorpion Charm

Stat Spread

Stat Distribution Ex. (Assuming Wretch)
Lv.	VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FTH	ARC
20	+5 (15)	+4 (14)	Base	Base	Base	Base	+10 (20)	Base
40	+5 (15)	+10 (20)	+10 (20)	Base	Base	Base	+19 (29)	Base
60	+14 (24)	+10 (20)	+1~6	Base	Base	Base	+30 (40)	Base

Ver 1.04 gave Fortissax's Lightning Spear a huge buff, decreasing its FP and Stamina cost, increasing its cast speed and decreasing its recovery time.

It also gives you hyperarmor, enabling you to withstand being stunned or staggered while the animation is playing. These buffs made this build extremely viable in PvP since an enemy player getting close will grant you the opportunity to one-shot them with this Incantation.

The Seal needed for this build is the Gravel Stone Seal because it passively increases the damage of Dragon Cult Incantations, which includes Fortissax's Lightning Spear.

Two Fingers Heirloom will increase your Faith and paired with the increased potency of Incantations from Flock's Canvas Talisman, will make Fortissax's Lightning Spear deal large amounts of damage to enemies.

This damage can be further increased with Lightning Scorpion Charm but do take note that using this Talisman will lower your damage negation and make you take more damage.

How to Counter

Dodging both instances of Fortissax's Lightning Spear can be tricky, but can be made easier with Bloodhound's Step. Once both lightning spears have been dodged, punish the player and then dodge away if they start casting again.

Alternatively, you can use a weapon with Blood loss buildup to try to deal as much damage as possible before dodging the lightning spears.

What is PvP?

Multiplayer Feature That Allows Players to Fight Each Other

PvP (Player vs. Player) is one of he multiplayer features of Elden Ring.

If you're playing online, you can have the option of either taking on the role of an Invader and going into another player's world to defeat them or being the Host that gets Invaded!

How to Play Multiplayer: Co-Op and PvP Guide

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Character Creation Guide	How to Increase Your Health
Stats Explained	What is Dexterity?
All Status Effects	How to Heal
How to Level Up	Rune Farming Guide
What Happens When You Die?	How to Upgrade Flasks
What is Arcane?	Where to Find Melina
How to Remove Skills	-
Best Guides
Best Starting Keepsakes	Best Starting Classes
Best Early Game Weapons	Best Spirit Ashes
Best Builds	Best PvP Builds
Best Equipment	Best Ashes of War
Best Talismans	Best Sorceries
Best Incantations	Best Weapons
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How to Change Time	How to Get the Mount and Use It
Fast Travel	Summon Pool Stakes
Illusory Wall Guide	All Scarab Locations
How to Use Stakes of Marika	How to Sprint
How to Get Into the Academy of Raya Lucaria	How to Get to Nokron
All Painting Locations and Rewards	-
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How to Parry	How to Use Ashes of War (Weapon Arts)
How to Summon Spirits	How to Guard Counter
How to Backstab	How to Two-Hand
Power Stance Guide	How to Upgrade Weapons
Hidden Combat Mechanics	Stat Scaling Explained
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Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone	Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone
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Ghost Gloveworts	Grave Gloveworts
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