If you’re putting together the perfect Elden Ring build for PVP you’ll need the correct equipment. We’ve already covered the weapons you need for Elden Ring PVP, and in this guide we’ll be covering the best PVP Ashes of War.
Ash of War are equippable skills you can place on your armaments in order to change the stats they scale with, or to give you access to a unique attack. There are dozens of Ash of War across the game, and they can totally change the build you’re able to make by opening up your scaling options. These Ash of War below are the ones you need to make a solid PVP build.
You should also take a look at our lists of best talismans and best weapons for PVE.
Bloodhound’s Step
If you’re already a PVP player then you will be fully aware of this, and you either use it regularly, or you hate it. Bloodhound’s Step is a skill that allows you to do a big, big dodge, and that dodge has an absolutely criminal amount of i-frames, allowing your character to dodge through so, so many attacks.
If you’re an “honest” PVP player, but don’t want to find yourself in a bad situation, maybe equip Bloodhound’s Step to a dagger or something that you can easily swap to if you find yourself up against a BHS spammer. Frustrate them as much as they frustrate you.
Royal Knight’s Resolve
If you really want to anger the people you’re playing against, Royal Knight’s Resolve is how it’s done. RKR buffs the damage of your next hit by 80%, which is huge, and with the right weapon and buffs, this can easily lead to a one-hit kill. Devastating.
RKR has been “nerfed” slightly in Elden Ring patch 1.03, which essentially fixes a few bugs that led to RKR’s effect persevering for too long when the player is using other actions, but with the right set up, it’s still going to be devastating in online play.
Carian Retaliation
We all love a good parry, but Carian Retaliation is all that and more. This Ash of War does also come in a sorcery variation, but it essentially acts as a parry – but more than that, it can parry spells. So this will give your chosen shield a big INT scaling buff, in addition to a fancy new move. If you’re handling sorceries, like in our Magic Swordsman build, this is a great choice.
And yes, it can be used as a standard parry, though it’ll be a little more FP intensive than the normal version.
Storm Stomp
This simple attack can be equipped to all melee weapons, and it doesn’t actually seem that useful. Well, if you’re feeling ready to tank a hit, then Storm Stomp is actually great. Storm Stomp starts up fairly fast, and when used, you’re almost guaranteed to trade a hit with your opponent.
Doesn’t sound super good, right? Well if you’re using a weapon that has a faster hit rate than your opponent, then you can probably follow up that trade with a quick counter, disrupting their flow. As long as they don’t have high poise, this is a great way to get a few cheeky strikes, perfect for inflicting that last bit of Bleed build-up.
Flaming Strike
While the range of this skill isn’t terrific, it can be very useful. Good for quick mix-ups in close-range combat and keeping back groups of enemies, Flaming Strike batters your foes while setting your weapon on fire, allowing you to follow up with fiery slashes.
Flaming Strike is a simple enough skill, not particularly powerful, but incredibly useful in the right scenario with smart play.
Flame of the Redmanes
Like the idea of Flaming Strike but want a bit more utility? Then you want Flame of the Redmanes. This is a similar skill to Flaming Strike, also lighting your weapon on fire to follow up attacks, but has a slower start up time, which results in a longer effective range.
Timing this skill on an opponent’s wake up will allow you to roll-catch them, assuming they immediately attempt to roll away.
Giant Hunt
This is a stab with a long start up, digging your weapon down and forward before striking up towards the sky. This can flip opponents for a hard knockdown, and can potentially be used straight after a crouched poke with a Colossal Sword.
There’s nothing too special about Giant Hunt, but it’s a solid attack you can use to mix up your opponents and deal solid damage.
Glintstone Pebble
If you want to give your weapon extra INT, Glintstone Pebble is a good place to go. Not only does this add INT scaling to your weapon, but also acts as a spell you can use without a staff. This shoots a glintstone pebble – not a shock – and as long as you’re within a good range, you can combo this straight into a heavy attack.
If you’re going for a Magic Swordsman build but you’re not interested in using the Moonveil, this is an essential skill to use with your main weapon.
Written by Dave Aubrey on behalf of GLHF.