Elden Ring: 10 Best New Weapons in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC | High Ground Gaming (2024)

FromSoftware / Brett Moss

Where to Get: Defeating Dryleaf Dane in Moorth Ruins (Dryleaf Arts); Looting Dryleaf Dane’s body in Enir-Ilim (Dane’s Footwork)

What makes the new “marital arts” weapons so exciting is how fun they are. They’re very similar to the “fighting gloves” type weapons we’ve gotten in the past, but with more style. With the new marital arts style weapons, you’ll be able to do spinning heel kicks, palm strikes, and any other variety of moves. The two options, Dryleaf Arts and Dane’s Footwork, differ in that the first is more hand-based while the second is more focused on a mix of hand-and-foot combat. They’re great options for players who want to get in close to do rapid damage, but you’ll have to be careful. Dodging is an essential skill for marital arts in Elden Ring, so don’t get too comfortable in one spot.

Perfume Bottles

Where to Get: Multiple locations since there are several versions of this weapon

Perfume Bottles are kind of odd, but they’re much stronger than they might look at first. There are several Perfume Bottles, each with a different element type. They work by combining lots of weapon arts with general melee damage, which changes depending on type. These Perfume Bottles work really well on enemies with a matching weakness (obviously), so they’re not the kind of weapon that you can really use constantly. But if you get one and can spare enough materials to level it up, it’s great for keeping when you really need it. There’s also the Rolling Sparks Ash of War which is basically a requirement for Perfume Bottles, as it creates an elemental cloud of damage that also changes depending on the Bottle you’re using.

I used Perfume Bottles a lot during my DLC run, especially against large enemies where I could more reliably utilize Rolling Sparks. On bosses like Bayle or other large monsters, they work really well.

Backhand Blade

Where to Get: Near a coffin in Gravesite Plain

Backhand Blades are probably the most exciting new weapon type in Elden Ring. Unlike your standard swords, these have unique gameplay thanks to the “backhanded” way you hold them. It’s a fast-paced weapon that honestly resembles the Dual Blades from Monster Hunter more than anything else. When two-handed (which seems like the best method), you’ll be able to use both blades at once, allowing for even faster (albeit more risky) gameplay. These swords are a gift to players who love aggressive playstyles, and since they can be infused, there’s even more reason to use them.

Rellana’s Twinblade

Where to Get: Remembrance of the Twin Moon Knight (received after defeating Rellana)

Rellana’s Twinblade is the first of three new Light Greatswords (which are new to the DLC) in this article. According to the wiki itself, Light Greatswords are different from normal ones in that they are the same length but lighter, which allows for better speed but less damage. Rellana’s Twinblade is the most interesting of them for me, because it gets multiple elemental boosts. Just like when fighting Rellana herself, her swords do both Magic and Fire damage. That means you have a greater chance of being able to use these than most elemental weapons, as you won’t be as likely to come across an enemy that is resistant to both. It also scales with Strength, Dex, Int, and Faith, which is rare to see. I highly recommend spending Rellana’s remembrance on this weapon, as it’s one of the cooler in the DLC.

Milady

Where to Get: Inside a chest atop Castle Ensis

Milady is the only one of the new Light Greatsword weapons that can be infused with Ashes of War, so it stands out by default. While not nearly as flashy as Rellana’s Twinblade, Milady stands out by being versatile and having slightly higher physical damage. There aren’t any bosses where Milady will be useless, and you’ll always have the chance to change it however you want with Ashes of War. For a weapon that has lots of range (literally and figuratively), Milady is a really good bet.

Leda’s Sword

Where to Get: Enir-Ilim, on Leda’s corpse after defeating her and her allies

Leda’s Sword is a lot of fun for those who want a Light Greatsword of the holy variant. While it’s fairly standard in terms of being a big sword, its skill is pretty interesting. The skill, Needle Piercer, spawns a bunch of needles that fly toward an enemy and damage them. But that’s not the interesting part–most skills do damage. It also removes the buffs and debuffs from the enemy hit. So for PVE this could remove helpful buffs from some enemies, but in PVP it has even more potential. I haven’t personally tried this in PVP as it’s not a part of Elden Ring I really know much about, but it seems like lots of PVP players are really interested in this weapon’s skill if nothing else. Plus, who doesn’t like swords that have ranged damage?

Star-Lined Sword

Where to Get: Defeating Demi-Human Queen Marigga in the Cerulean Coast region

Star-Lined Sword is yet another addition to the pile of great Bleed weapons in Elden Ring. This one is similar to Moonveil in that it does a hybrid of Magic and Bleed damage, but it doesn’t feel like a copy. While it’s easy to draw comparisons since both are Magic Bleed weapons, there aren’t many more to make other than that. In just the few minutes of research I did on it I already saw people talking about how the range difference between this and Moonveil make them feel very different, and it’s hard to disagree. This one is more focused on getting up close, where Moonveil was almost a ranged weapon it felt like. It’s hard to go wrong with a Bleed build, with the exception of the few bosses that can’t be bled out. For most DLC bosses, though, this weapon should serve you fine (if not much better).

Beast Claws

Where to Get: Defeat Logur the Beast Claw at Gravesite Plains (Beast Claw); Defeat the red bear at the Northern Nameless Mausoleum (Red Bear’s Claw)

The Beast Claw weapons are another new type that’s very similar to another one (punching weapons). Beast Claws have the same pros and cons as any punch-based melee build. You can set up some really high-damage combos (especially with the bleed buildup) and overwhelm some enemies with ease. However, some enemies will absolutely shut you down as soon as you get this close. It’s always a give-and-take when it comes to super close-range melee weapons, but I think the Beast Claws have enough going for them to give them a real shot. With all that bleed on them, they do have a ton of potential.

Thrusting Shields

Where to Get: Shadow Keep (both)

Shields that we can use offensively have always been something Dark Souls / Elden Ring players have wanted. In fact, there have been plenty of challenge runs where someone beats the game just using a shield, or some variation of that type of thing. However, now we’ve finally gotten a true “offensive” shield. The Thrusting Shields are unique weapons that allow you to use your shield both as a weapon and in its traditional role of blocking. If you’re someone that loves to play aggressively and hit your opponent constantly, but also love the luxury of blocking, these are the perfect weapons for you. Plus you can use Ashes of War and enchantments on both of them, so you’ll be able to fit them into any build you want.

Spear of the Impaler

Where to Get: Remembrance of the Impaler (received after defeating Messmer)

If I could only pick one weapon for “coolest” in Elden Ring, it’d be this one. While it is good as just a big spear and has a really fun weapon art/skill, the ability to throw the spear like a javelin is what puts it over the top. Honestly, I don’t think there are many things more fun that throwing spears in video games, and this is about as fun as that gets. Sending oblivious enemies off cliffs, taking out those stupid birds (shout out to the people who recommended that on various sites–those birds made me rage quit more than anything so I can’t wait to do this), or just using it on random unaware enemies is what Elden Ring is all about.