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Elden Ring is a full-fledged RPG with all of the things that we know and love from the genre. Just like in Dark Souls, there are many different classes to choose from, dozens of weapons to use, lots of gear to find, and many stats to level up.
All of these things make a difference in terms of the gameplay and there are hundreds of combinations that cater to different playstyles. Naturally, when a game has so many things to choose from, a few combinations aslways end up being superior to everything else.
It takes a long time to try out everything yourself. Experimentation is always encouraged in a game like Elden Ring, but it still doesn’t hurt to have a headstart in knowing what are some of the best options that you can try.
Worry not, we’re here to save your time as usual. Here’s our guide for the Elden Ring Best PvE Builds, ranked in order of how much we recommend them!
Best Elden Ring PvE Builds
A good PvE build in Elden Ring needs to have a good starting point and then be effective in its upgrade path too. Of course, different playstyles exist. So, the recommendations are going to be our preference for each of those playstyles!
1. The Speedrun Build (Arcane + Vigor)
A certain Reddit fan of the Speedsouls community came up with an Elden Ring PvE build that can obliterate most enemies in the game with ease.
- Recommended Class: Warrior, Bandit
- Core Stats: Dexterity (14), Vigor (30), Strength (30), Arcane (30)
- Recommended Talisman: Greatshield Talisman
- Recommended Seal: Dragon Communion.
Mandatory Gear:
- Right Hand: Moghwyn’s Sacred Spear (paired with anything that inflicts bleed damage)
- Left Hand: Fingerprint Greatshield (with the Ash of War of your choice, such as Bloody Slash)
- Armor: Up to the player.
Additional notes: You should buff Arcane as your primary focus. Using skills and buffs that inflict bleed effects is recommended for this build. And some extra suggestions for seals are Rotten Breath and a Swarm of Flies.
And lastly, you can use Mimic Tear to get some of the enemy’s attention off of you when you are casting certain Ash of War attacks.
You’ll also find these setups helpful when defeating Elden Ring Bosses like Malenia.
2. The One-Cast Kill Mage (Intelligence)
Being a warrior is great and all, but sometimes you just want to be a wizard. With this build, you will be able to become a very powerful sorcerer who will have the capability to tear through any threat that stands in your way.
- Recommended Class: Astrologer, Prisoner, Wretch
- Core Stats: Intelligence (52), Strength (30), Mind (30), Vigor (30)
- Recommended Talisman: Primal Glintstone Blade, Graven-School Talisman, Cerulean Amber Medallion.
Mandatory Gear:
- Left/Right Hand: Lusat’s Glintstone Staff
- Armor: Lusat’s Glintstone Crown, Snow Witch Set, Raya Lucarian Set
- Spells: Unseen Form, Comet Azur.
Additional notes: This build is mainly centered around spells and magic. Thus, as long as you don’t hit the hard cap – it’s always a good idea to level up your stats as much as possible. And of course, it’s a very flexible build that you can change for your playstyle.
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3. Blackflame Build (Pyromancer)
One of the coolest Pyromancer builds in Elden Ring that you can make is the Black flame Build. It’s incredibly powerful and will have you decimate most enemies in the game without having to think twice! And it makes you look cool while you do it.
- Recommended Class: Prophet, Confessor, Hero
- Core Stats: Dexterity (40), Vigor (30), Strength (30), Mind (50), Faith (50)
- Recommended Talisman: Moon of Nokstella.
Mandatory Gear:
- Right Hand/Left Hand: Uchigatana, Nightrider Flail, Bloodhound’s Fang, Godslayer Seal
- Armor: Black Knife Set, Land of Reeds Set, Spellblade Set
- Spells: Black Flame, Black Flame Blade, Catch Flame, Bloodflame Blade
- Skills: Ash of War Bloody Slash, Ash of War Unsheathe.
Additional notes: The Blackflame Build is very flexible and we encourage experimenting with it. There are already several options that we recommend that you can mix things up with, and you should feel comfortable in trying those that aren’t listed too.
Also, a great way to level up fast in Elden Ring.
4. Holy Bow Build (Faith)
Not everyone wants to be a mage or a sword-slinger when archery is a viable option too. And that’s what brings us to the Holy Bow build, which is very powerful and lets you main a bow as your primary weapon type.
It’s not as powerful as some of the other builds on this list, but it gives the gameplay a fun twist, especially for secondary playthroughs.
- Recommended Class: Bandit, Warrior, Hero, Samurai
- Core Stats: Faith (50), Dexterity (40), Vigor (30), Strength (30), Mind (50)
- Recommended Talisman: Arrow’s Reach Talisman, Sacred Scorpion Charm, Ritual Sword Talisman, Arrow’s Sting Talisman.
Mandatory Gear:
- Right Hand/Left Hand: Black Bow, Finger Seal
- Armor: Silver Tear Mask, Ruler’s Mask, Black Knife Set, Omenkiller Set
- Spells: Blessing of the Erdtree, Protection of the Edtree, Swarm of Flies, Golden Vow, Elden Stars
- Skills: Ash of War Barrage, Ash of War Mighty Shot.
Additional notes: This build is not as flexible as some of the others. But you can still switch up some of the things such as using a different bow or switching up the skills and spells if you prefer something different from what we recommended.
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5. Black Knife Build (Dexterity + Arcane)
This list wouldn’t be complete without something for those who like to play on the lighter side of things too. If you ever wanted to be an assassin in Elden Ring, then this build will help you realize that dream in the most effective possible.
- Recommended Class: Bandit
- Core Stats: Dexterity (40), Vigor (30), Strength (30), Arcane (40), Endurance (30)
- Recommended Talisman: Lord of Blood’s Exultation, Winged Sword Insignia.
Mandatory Gear:
- Right Hand/Left Hand: Reduvia, Scorpion’s Stinger, Misericorde
- Armor: Black Knife Set
- Skills: Ashes of War Blood Blade, Ashes of War Bloody Slash, Spinning Slash, Poison Moth Flight.
Additional notes: This build is fairly flexible depending on the player’s preference. Our recommendations work perfectly as viable builds, but you can change some of the skills or choose a different weapon based on your choice.
6. Best Beginner Build (Samurai + Dexterity)
If you’re looking to start off in the game and need a straightforward build to begin – we’ve got you covered too. In this build, you will be able to take down most early-game enemies and as you go on, you can enhance your skills or change some things to become stronger.
The purpose of this build is to give you a decent start that you can learn off of, and that’s why it focuses on brute strength rather than magic.
As for why Samurai, that is because this class gives you the Uchigatana right off the bat – which is a great weapon. That and a Longbow too.
- Recommended Class: Samurai
- Core Stats: Dexterity (40), Vigor (30), Strength (30), Endurance (30), Mind (30)
- Recommended Talisman: Lord of Blood’s Exultation.
Mandatory Gear:
- Right Hand/Left Hand: Uchigatana, Great Bow
- Armor: Any medium armor works, such as the Land of Reeds Set.
- Skills: Ash of War Mighty Shot, Ash of War Unsheathe.
Additional notes: What you see is what you get with this build. It’s nothing special but it’s great for beginners and gives you both close and long-ranged options.
That’s it for now with our Elden Ring best PvE builds, ranked in order of our preference!
As usual, keep in mind that these builds are the best six recommendations that we have based on our experiences. If you think some suggestions aren’t good and have different preferences, that’s completely fine!
We’re simply here to point you in the right direction and get you started in the unforgiving world of Elden Ring.
Experimentation is the key and your playstyle is what matters in the end. With that being said, we hope you found the guide helpful and while you’re here, make sure to check out some of our other helpful Elden Ring guides too!
