The best weapon in Elden Ring is the one that scales with the stats you’re already leveling, because a weapon you meet the requirements for and keep upgraded beats a “meta” pick every time. If you want names: Rivers of Blood for Dexterity and Arcane bleed, Moonveil or the Dark Moon Greatsword for Intelligence, the Blasphemous Blade for Faith, and the Giant-Crusher for pure Strength. In Shadow of the Erdtree, Milady and Rakshasa’s Great Katana are standouts. Early on, the Uchigatana, Bloodhound’s Fang and Claymore will carry you a long way.
The tier list and picks below are for PvE on app version 1.16.1, the latest patch listed on the wiki.gg patch notes page as of October 2026. Neither 1.16 (October 2024) nor 1.16.1 (August 2025) changed weapon balance, so rankings have been stable for a while. Weapon names and locations mention bosses and NPC questlines, so skim carefully if you’re avoiding spoilers.
What players actually ask about Elden Ring weapons
“Which weapon is the best? I keep changing my mind.”
That exact question started a Steam Community thread with 25 replies, and the most common answer was to stop chasing the strongest weapon and “find one or two you feel really comfortable using.” One reply broke it down by stat: Strength for heavy, tanky play, Dexterity for fast hits and bleed, Intelligence for sorcery, Faith for healing and buffs, Arcane as the advanced pick. Specific suggestions included the Starscourge Greatsword, Bloodhound’s Fang and the Claymore as a safe “when in doubt” choice.
“Should I replace Bloodhound’s Fang?”
A level 40 player asked this in another thread, and the top reply said to keep it, calling the Fang one of the best weapons in the game for its moveset, skill and bleed. A more useful point came later: one player noted that a fully upgraded weapon around +20 regular or +9 somber hits in a similar range whatever you pick, so comfort and your Ash of War matter more than the name for most of the game. That’s the advice to take seriously.
“Is there a tier list everyone agrees on?”
No, and the forums prove it. An “ALL weapons tier list” thread on Steam drew 42 replies arguing about placements. Several people named the Dark Moon Greatsword, Giant-Crusher, Moonveil, Bolt of Gransax and Axe of Godfrey as top picks, while others questioned rankings. One reply summed up the mood: “That’s an elusive ranking system if I’ve ever seen one.” Treat any tier list, including ours, as a shortlist rather than a rule.
“What’s good in the DLC?”
A Shadow of the Erdtree tier list thread put Milady, the Backhand Blade, Euporia, Bloodfiend’s Arm and Red Bear’s Claw in its top tier, and replies pushed back on some picks, like perfume bottles and Smithscript Daggers. Milady and the Backhand Blade are worth grabbing first: both are in Gravesite Plain, the DLC’s opening region, and both are infusable, so they fit almost any build.
Elden Ring weapons tier list (PvE, patch 1.16.1)
This list rates weapons on damage once upgraded, how easy they are to get, and how forgiving they are to use. S tier weapons can carry a build through the whole game and the DLC. B tier weapons are great early picks you’ll eventually swap out or keep for fun.
| Tier | Weapon | Type | Main stats | Where to get it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Rivers of Blood | Katana | Dex 18, Arcane 20 | Drop from Bloody Finger Okina, Church of Repose (Mountaintops of the Giants) |
| S | Moonveil | Katana | Dex 18, Int 23 | Magma Wyrm boss in Gael Tunnel, Caelid |
| S | Dark Moon Greatsword | Greatsword | Str 16, Int 38 | End of Ranni’s questline |
| S | Blasphemous Blade | Greatsword | Str 22, Dex 15, Faith 21 | Trade Rykard’s remembrance to Enia at Roundtable Hold |
| S | Milady (DLC) | Light Greatsword | Str 12, Dex 17 | Watchtower chest at Castle Ensis, Gravesite Plain |
| S | Rakshasa’s Great Katana (DLC) | Great Katana | Str 12, Dex 27 | Rakshasa, Eastern Nameless Mausoleum (Scadu Altus) |
| A | Bloodhound’s Fang | Curved Greatsword | Str 18, Dex 17 | Bloodhound Knight Darriwil, Forlorn Hound Evergaol (Limgrave) |
| A | Giant-Crusher | Colossal Weapon | Str 60 (40 two-handed) | Carriage south of Outer Wall Phantom Tree grace, Altus Plateau |
| A | Starscourge Greatsword | Colossal Sword | Str 38, Dex 12, Int 15 | Trade Radahn’s remembrance to Enia |
| A | Sword of Night and Flame | Straight Sword | Int 24, Faith 24 | Chest in a tower at Caria Manor, Liurnia |
| A | Backhand Blade (DLC) | Backhand Blade | Str 10, Dex 13 | Next to a coffin in a gazebo, Gravesite Plain |
| A | Bloodfiend’s Arm (DLC) | Colossal Weapon | Str 28, Arcane 16 | Bloodfiend drop, Prospect Town (Gravesite Plain) |
| B | Uchigatana | Katana | Str 11, Dex 15 | Samurai starting weapon, or Deathtouched Catacombs (Limgrave) |
| B | Claymore | Greatsword | Str 16, Dex 13 | Chest in Castle Morne, Weeping Peninsula |
| B | Greatsword | Colossal Sword | Str 31 (21 two-handed) | Chest behind a carriage northwest of Caelem Ruins, Caelid |
| B | Reduvia | Dagger | Dex 13, Arcane 13 | Bloody Finger Nerijus, near Murkwater Cave (Limgrave) |
Strength figures are for one-handed use unless noted. Two-handing a weapon lowers the Strength you need; the Uchigatana, for example, drops from 11 to 8.
Best weapon for each build
Pick by the stat you’re pumping. Every weapon here is listed on the wiki.gg pages linked in the table, so you can check exact scaling before you commit.
- Strength: the Giant-Crusher hits hardest but needs 60 Strength one-handed and weighs 26.5, the heaviest melee weapon in the game. The Greatsword is the cheaper colossal option you can grab in Caelid much earlier.
- Dexterity: Rakshasa’s Great Katana in the DLC, or the Uchigatana and then Rivers of Blood in the base game. Milady and the Backhand Blade are light, fast and infusable, so you can give them any Ash of War.
- Bleed and Arcane: Rivers of Blood, whose Corpse Piler skill piles extra bleed on top of its passive 50 buildup. Reduvia is the early version, and Bloodfiend’s Arm brings Arcane to colossal weapons in the DLC.
- Intelligence: Moonveil for a fast katana that fires projectiles from its skill, or the Dark Moon Greatsword, a slower greatsword with C scaling in Intelligence and its own Moonlight Greatsword skill.
- Faith: the Blasphemous Blade. Its skill, Taker’s Flames, heals you on hit, and its passive restores health when nearby enemies die.
- Quality (Strength and Dexterity): the Claymore early and Bloodhound’s Fang through the midgame.
Best early weapons you can get in Limgrave and nearby
Three picks stand out because you can get them in the first few hours.
Bloodhound’s Fang is a guaranteed drop from Bloodhound Knight Darriwil in the Forlorn Hound Evergaol in southern Limgrave, and Blaidd’s questline points you there. The payoff is a curved greatsword with passive bleed (55).
Uchigatana is in Deathtouched Catacombs, behind an illusory wall on the right side of the stairs where the first skeleton stands. Hit the wall to reveal it. If you started as a Samurai, you already have one.
Claymore sits in a chest at Castle Morne on the Weeping Peninsula. Ride the lift up from the Castle Morne Lift grace, then climb the pile of bodies in the courtyard to the building on the right. It comes with the Lion’s Claw skill and needs only 16 Strength and 13 Dexterity.
How weapon upgrades and Ashes of War work
Elden Ring has two kinds of upgradeable weapons, and mixing them up wastes materials.
| Regular weapons | Somber (unique) weapons | |
|---|---|---|
| Max level | +25 | +10 |
| Material | Smithing Stones (2, 4, then 6 per level within each tier), plus one Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone for +25 | One Somber Smithing Stone per level, plus a Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone for +10 |
| Ashes of War | Yes, and you can change the affinity | No, the skill is fixed |
| Examples | Greatsword, Milady, Backhand Blade, Bloodfiend’s Arm | Rivers of Blood, Bloodhound’s Fang, Starscourge Greatsword, Reduvia, Rakshasa’s Great Katana |
The stone counts come from the wiki.gg Smithing Stones page. Fextralife’s Somber Smithing Stones page puts the total rune cost of taking a somber weapon to +10 at 97,000.
For regular weapons, Ashes of War are where the variety comes from. According to the wiki.gg Ashes of War page, you can apply them through Smithing Master Hewg or at any Site of Grace once you have a Whetblade, and the Ash isn’t used up, so you can swap it back out whenever you like. Each Ash comes with its own affinity (Bloody Slash adds Blood, for example), and other affinities need the matching Whetblade. Somber-upgraded weapons can’t take Ashes at all, which is the trade-off for their built-in skills.
Before you commit, check the requirements: Fextralife’s Weapons overview notes that every weapon has stat requirements, and you can’t use its skill until you meet them.
Frequently asked questions
What is the strongest weapon in Elden Ring?
There isn’t one for every build. For raw damage per hit, colossal weapons like the Giant-Crusher top the charts, while Rivers of Blood and Moonveil are the most popular all-round picks because their skills reach further than a normal swing.
Can I use any weapon with any build?
Only if you meet its stat requirements. Below them you can’t wield it effectively or use its skill, so pick weapons that scale with the stats you’re leveling.
Can I respec if I pick the wrong weapon?
Yes. After you defeat Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon, you can Rebirth next to the Raya Lucaria Grand Library grace for one Larval Tear and redistribute your stats.
Are DLC weapons better than base game weapons?
Not automatically, but several Shadow of the Erdtree weapons, like Milady and Rakshasa’s Great Katana, rank among the best in the game. You can use them in the Land of Shadow and back in the Lands Between.
How many weapon types are there?
The wiki.gg Weapons page lists 30 melee categories, from daggers and katanas to perfume bottles, plus bows, crossbows, ballistas, staves, sacred seals, torches and shields.
Sources
- Elden Ring Wiki (wiki.gg): Patch notes
- Elden Ring Wiki (wiki.gg): Weapons
- Elden Ring Wiki (wiki.gg): Smithing Stones
- Elden Ring Wiki (wiki.gg): Ashes of War
- Fextralife Elden Ring Wiki: Somber Smithing Stones
- Steam Community: What weapon is the best?
- Steam Community: ALL weapons tier list
Featured image: FromSoftware / Bandai Namco
