Summary
FromSoftware games are known for the variety of weapons available to players andElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreemakes the base game’s arsenal even more impressive. Thanks to the game’s strong art design and the Ash of War feature, these weapons can be both extremely over the top and cool enough to justify building a character around them. Thanks to the size ofElden Ring’s expansion, the weapons are both bountiful and very different to other armaments in FromSoftware’s arsenal of games.
Shadow of the Erdtreeadds an impressive 103 new weapons toElden Ring.
Not only are there new weapons inShadow of the Erdtree,there are also brand-new weapon types.These weapon types add entirely new move setsand present players with alternate ways to face the enemies of the Land of Shadow. The Tarnished have access to devastating Great Katanas, elegant Light Greatswords, andstylish Backhand Blades, and some weapons in these new types shine as the most fun of the bunch.
What Happens To Mohg In Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree
Elden Ring paints Mohg as a villain for taking Miquella, but the events and revelations in Shadow of the Erdtree show that he’s more of a victim.
10Milady Makes The Tarnished A Graceful Duelist
The Most Elegant Weapon In Elden Ring
SinceShadow of the Erdtreerelease,the Light Greatsword move set has taken the game by storm with its elegant moves and duelist-like design. They’re graceful, stylish, and perfect for making boss fights feel like a dance. Although there are only three (technically four, since one armament is actually two weapons) Light Greatswords, the best of the bunch for the dancing, duelist isMilady.
The best thing about the sword, other than the animations, is theAsh of War: Wing Stance, which offers some options and combos for the player to use. This needs to be added toMilady, since it isn’t the default Ash of War, but it is the best for it. It offers utility, and although the Ash of War isn’t the most flashy asShadow of the Erdtreegoes, the animation for the stance itself is amazing. It’s both calm and arrogant, making players feel like they’re goading enemies to hit them.
9Dragon-Hunter’s Great Katana Is Straight Out Of An Anime
Dragonwound Slash Is As Cool As It Sounds
Great Katanas are some of the coolest weapons around, and it’s a wonder that it took so long for FromSoftware to add the weapon type to one of their titles. Plenty of Great Katanas are both equally useful and stylish, includingRakshasa’s Great Katana, but none quite match up to theDragon-Hunter’s Great Katana. Other than having a jagged, rough design, which is a nice touch, theAsh of War is what makes this Great Katana stand out from an aesthetic point of view.
The Dragonwound Slash Ash of War fires a wave of red energy toward a foe, and the dramatic posing of said slash makes the Tarnished look like they came straight out of an anime. The particle effects of the flaming slash are pleasing to the eye, and the lore of the weapon helps it, too, since the slash itself was designed to slay colossal dragons. Dragon hunting is cool enough a concept on its own, and the weapon can be found after beating the Ancient Dragon-Man in the Dragon’s Pit.
8Rellana’s Twin Blades Offer Duality
The Stance Really Makes This Weapon Shine
Rellana is one of the cooler bossesinShadow of the Erdtreewith her quick, elegant movement and her dancer-like attacks. Her weapons add to the fight the most, with the knight able to fire off waves of Glinstone Sorcery or conjure torrents of flames. On top of all of this,there is a kind of admirable arrogance to the stance thatRellanatakes, and helps to make the boss' image as an elegant knight fully realized.
Rellana is the twin sister of Rennala, Queen of the Moon.
Once Rellana is beaten,Rellana’s Twin Blade’sare the player’s to use andthe Tarnished gets most of the cool moves that the boss used against them. This includes firing a combo of Glinstone waves, surrounding themselves with a tornado of fire, and taking up Rellana’s arrogant yet graceful stance. Even without the Ash of War, the weapon is still a Light Greatsword, and this move set is one of the best (aesthetically), especially since there are two of them.
7Spear Of The Impaler Makes Players Feel Like Messmer
The Combo From The Ash Of War Is Over The Top
There’s a reason whyMessmer the Impaleris the mascot forShadow of the Erdtree.His design is chaotically inspired, he is one of the demigods, and his lore gives him incredible presence when the player finally comes face to face with him. It’s no surprise then that his spear is up for grabs once the player is able tofell the mighty Messmer, as are some of his moves.TheSpear of the Impalerhas a great visual design, too,with its many snake details.
Players can also getMessmer’s Helm, but in real life, and it can be bought from the Bandai Namco store.
One of Messmer’s most difficult attacks to avoid in his first phase is a seemingly never-ending combo of flaming slashes and stabs. Thankfully, this is one of the few instances in which the player gets one of the boss' best moves, since the Tarnished can do this over-the-top combo too. TheAsh of War is called Messmer’s Assault and the many flips, spins and flying stabsmake it feel as though it’s a combo from a flashy hack-and-slash, rather than a Soulslike.
6Backhand Blade Is Perfect For Swift Assassin Types
It Would Be Horribly Impractical In Real Life
For whatever reason, many find the reverse grip for swords to be the more stylish option, even if it is terribly impractical.Reverse-gripping swords are something that those who love historical accuracy cannot abide by, but in a world where players can fight animated jars with long limbs, realism can be thrown out of the window. At the end of the day, reverse-gripped swords are cool, and theBackhand Bladeis no exception.
They can be dual-wielded and, with their quick move set and Ash of War, there is something so satisfying about dodging and weaving enemy attacks with elegance and style. The built-inAsh of War: Blind Spotamplifies the evasive nature of the weapons, but the incredibly overpowered Swift Slash is also a cool option. Using it in PvP may attract some justified hate,but in PvE it does make players feel a little like Vergil fromDevil May Cry.
Wait, Where Is The Land Of Shadow Actually Located In Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree?
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree’s map is separated from the rest of Elden Ring leaving players to wonder where the Land of Shadow is geographically.
5Ancient Meteoric Ore Greatsword Packs A Punch
There’s Something Lovely About Rough, Massive Swords
Although symmetrical, clean greatswords will always have their place in fantasy media, an asymmetrical, roughly hewn weapon just has something about it to set it apart.The Ancient Meteoric Ore Greatswordis an example of this, as it is aColossal Greatsword that looks like a giant shard of obsidian and packs as big of a punch as one would expect. It scales with Strength, Dexterity, and Arcane and is a great weapon for big sword lovers.
Found in the Ruined Forge of Starfall Past, the Ancient Meteoric Ore Greatsword has a surprisingly quick Ash of War for a weapon its size.White Light Charge allows the Tarnished to lunge forward, then explode with white light(as one would expect). It is similar to the Stinger move fromDevil May Cry,and almost any attack with hack-and-slash roots tends to translate well intoElden Ring.
4Star-Lined Sword’s Combo Looks Like A Devil May Cry Weapon
The Ash Of War Is Very Cinematic
TheStar-Lined Swordis unique in that it is a katana that looks and plays nothing like a katana. It might as well be a straight sword, but this isn’t what makes the weapon so good. It has aunique design with a jagged blade that contrasts with the simple and uniform hit and handle. It is also the perfect weapon for a Dexterity/Intelligence build, somewhat being a successor to Moonveil in a way by (somehow) being a katana.
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The Ash of War is where this weapon shines. In general,long, stylish combos seem to be popular with FromSoftware in this expansion,and very few are quite as over the top as Onze’s Line of Stars. Not only is the combo from this Ash of War long, it involves flips, teleporting and constellation-inspired effects. It also has an impressive range and wouldn’t be amiss in a hack-and-slash game, which seems to be a running theme with the newShadow of the Erdtreeweapons.
3Death Knight’s Longhaft Axe Has A Brilliant Design
Offers Speed For Such A Large Weapon
Defeating the Death Knight is no easy task, as one would expect fromShadow of the Erdtree, but it is well worth the effort since the knight’s weapon is the prize of the fight. Not only is the sun-like design around theDeath Knight’s Longhaft Axehead a nice touch with the armament’s lightning properties, especially forDark Soulsfans, it hits hard and has good range with its long sweeps. It’s a great weapon for Faith users.
The Ash of War allows players to engulf themselves in lightning and teleport forward. With a follow-up attack, the player leaps up into the air and slams the axe down, summoning a lightning bolt where the attack lands.It is called Blinkbolt: Long-Hafted Axe and follows the same general idea as otherAsh of War: Blinkboltby allowing players to use lightning and teleport. In general, Blinkbolt Ashes of War are stylish, and the Longhafted Axe excels with its one.
One Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree Side Quest Should’ve Been Part Of The Main Story
A side quest in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree gives players so much important context for the DLC’s story that it should be in the main quest.
2Greatsword Of Solitude’s Ash of War Is Similar To An Iconic Dark Souls Weapon
Storm Ruler Has Returned Again
AsElden Ringweapons go,theGreatsword of Solitudemay be a little tame in appearance compared to the many, many ludicrous options availablefor the Tarnished. Sure, the visual design is neat and tidy, and there is something aesthetically pleasing about how simple it is, yet this is not why the sword is as cool as it is. It’s Ash of War is what makes it stand out above others, being a two-hit combo called Solitary Moon Slash.
What makes this weapon great is that it feels like a reference to prior weapons in FromSoftware’s library of titles. Whether or not that’s the case is another thing entirely,but the Ash of War’s first attack summons an arc of light that is very similar to the slash of wind from the Storm Ruler fromDark Souls 3that is used against Yhorm the Giant. This weapon is also featured inDemon Soulsagainst the Storm King boss, and the white arc unleashed by the Greatsword of Solitude is eerily similar to the white arc of wind summoned by the Storm Ruler.
There are actually two Storm Rulers inDark Souls 3, one of which is wielded by Siegwald of Catarina.
1Smithscript Greathammer Is Elden Ring’s Mjolnir
It Has Great Comedic Value
One could argue that Mjolnir is the single most iconic weapon to come out of mythology. It is Thor’s mighty hammer and has been adapted many times, from theMCUtoGod of War. TheSmithscript Greathammerseems to be FromSoftware’s attempt at adapting the legendary, mythological armamentwith its Mjolnir-like hammerhead and runes along its surface. Unlike Mjolnir, this Greathammer is huge and is quite imposing.
Where the weapon excels is in another reference to Mjolnir with its strong attack. AlthoughElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreeisn’t known for its humor, being able to throw a hammer larger than the Tarnished at a foe is both comedic and cool, especially because it will return to the user. Players can even add their own Ash of War to it since this throwing ability is tied to the weapon’s strong attack, and they can add the Thunderbolt Ash of War to properly cosplay as Thor as they smash through the Land of Shadow.
