Intelligence | Elden Ring Wiki

Elden Ring Mage Build (Beginner)

A pure ranged Build that focuses on ranging enemies down from afar, without the need to ever engage in melee combat.

• Class: Astrologer
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP, with 1 or 2 HP
• Weapon: Any Staff, any melee weapon
• Shield: Any 100% Physical Block
• Armor: Any Light Armor
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Mind
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Endurance
• Skills: Ash of War: Glintblade Phalanx
• Spells: Glintstone Pebble, Glintstone Arc, Loretta's Greatbow, Great Glintstone Shard, Carian Slicer, Carian Piercer

Glintstone Pebble is your bread and butter and has longer range than Great Glintstone Shard, but less damage. Good for thinning out enemies.

Glintstone Arc is good for packs, but is very situational, and shouldn't be used much.

Loretta's Greatbow is your long range high damage ability that can be charged for even more damage. Use this to hit enemies very far away that are dangerous.

Carian Slicer is great for fights where you can't stay at range because it's too dangerous or when enemies are very aggressive.

Carian Piercer is great for invaders and NPC invaders, and can keep you safe.

Ash of War: Glintstone Phalanx does incredible damage if you upgrade your melee weapon. It also staggers enemies easily, allowing critical attacks. Use it on aggressive enemies.

Elden Ring Sorcerer Build (Outdated)

NOTE: As of patch 1.03 Determination no longer applies the buff to any source of damage other than the weapon to which the Ash of War is applied. It can no longer be used to increase the damage of sorceries or incantations. See the next build for a similar updated variant of this build.

An advancement of the Mage Build showcasing what to use next and where to go in terms of a caster only type of Build around level 50 or so.

• Class: Astrologer or Prisoner
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP some HP
• Weapon: Meteorite Staff & Dagger
• Shield: None
• Armor: Queen's Crescent Crown & the heaviest Armor you can wear and still med roll
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Mind
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Dexterity
• Skills: Determination
• Spells: Glintstone Pebble, Glintstone Arc, Great Glintstone Shard, Loretta's Greatbow & Rock Sling

How this Build works is that you'll hold your staff in your left hand and dagger in the right, and buff yourself with Determination pressing L2 as necessary. This will provide you a ten second buff that increases all spell damage by 60% unless you hit something with your Dagger, which you don't want to do. This is very situational and may not be needed but is great when facing tough enemies or when you need to spam spells.

Glintstone Pebble will be your bread and butter to pick off enemies through out levels, and even works well against some Bosses because of its long range. Glintstone Arc is an AoE spell used when enemies are grouped up, and is very situational.

Great Glintstone Shard is great against aggressive enemies or large enemies that don't dodge, dealing about 80% more damage than Pebble, but with a higher cost and shorter range. Use this when you need to burst something charging at you down in a hurry.

Loretta's Longbow is used when you need extreme range to take out a dangerous foe and can be used to cheese many enemies in the game by staying just outside their aggro range and casting it. Buff with Determination for best results.

Lastly Rock Sling is used against enemies that are resistant to Magic Damage, because it deals Physical Damage, so it's great in the Liurnia of the Lakes area. It's further boosted by Meteorite Staff since it's a Gravity Sorcery as well.

Elden Ring Sorcerer Build (Mage Level 50)

An advancement of the Mage Build showcasing what to use next and where to go in terms of a caster only type of Build around level 50 or so.

• Class: Astrologer or Prisoner
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP some HP
• Weapon: Meteorite Staff & Dagger
• Shield: None
• Armor: Queen's Crescent Crown & the heaviest Armor you can wear and still med roll
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Mind
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Dexterity
• Skills: Determination
• Spells: Glintstone Pebble, , Great Glintstone Shard, Rock Sling & Loretta's Greatbow

Glintstone Pebble and Carian Slicer are your main spells. Carian Slicer is fast, deals high damage in a small melee AoE, and costs very little FP, it has the highest damage per FP ratio of all spells. Glintstone Pebble is used if you need to kill mobs from affar.

Great Glintstone Shard is only used when ranged burst damage is required. It deals 35-45% more damage than Glinstone Pebble, travels 5-10% farther, but costs 70% more FP.

Rock Sling deals very high damage but has a long casting time. It's even moer effective against enemies resistant to Magic Damage, because it deals Physical Damage. It's damage is further boosted by Meteorite Staff since it's a Gravity Sorcery. It also deals quite high poise damage, often staggering enemies in a few casts.

Lastly, Loretta's Longbow is a situational spell used when you need extreme range to take out a dangerous foe from afar. It can be used to cheese many enemies in the game by staying just outside their aggro range and casting it.

Elden Ring Spellblade Build

A melee-focused Mage Build that uses magic to enhance and deal damage up close to enemies.

• Class: Prisoner
• Flask Spread: Split evenly between HP and FP
• Weapon: Demi-Human Queen's Staff and Estoc or Rapier (Can be any Dex one-handed weapon)
• Shield: Any 100% Physical (optional)
• Armor: Any, but get pieces that increase Intelligence when possible
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Vigor
• Secondary Stats: Dexterity & Mind
• Skills: Ash of War: Impaling Thrust
• Spells: Scholar's Armament, Glintstone Pebble and Carian Slicer

The way this Build works is that you'll buff your Rapier or Estoc with Scholar's Armament to double your melee damage or so early on, allowing you to one or two shot most enemies. Make sure that you have both your Staff and Weapon out at the same time or you won't be able to buff it. You can use Glintstone Pebble to thin enemies when their are many to prevent yourself from being swarmed, and also to hit enemies that you can't get to physically.

Carian Slicer is your money maker and makes short work of Bosses and challenging enemies. You'll spam this repeatedly when you get openings to melt Boss HP. It's absolutely devastating. Just know that you deal almost no Stagger with this Spell so you will have to read enemy ques and dodge when they begin to retaliate.

You can use a Shield in some scenarios where Blocking is beneficial, but it rarely is since it drains your Stamina when Blocking and you need it to attack rapidly with Carian Slicer.

Elden Ring Magus Build (Level 50)

A melee-mage Build that uses Scholar's Armament and Glintstone Phalanx to deal Critical Damage to enemies.

• Class: Prisoner or Astrologer
• Flask Spread: Slightly more FP than HP
• Weapon: Rapier
• Shield: None
• Armor: Carian Knight Set
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Dexterity
• Secondary Stats: Vigor
• Skills: Ash of War: Glintblade Phalanx
• Spells: Scholar's Armament, Glintstone Pebble and Carian Greatsword

The way this Build works is that you'll buff your Rapier with Scholar's Armament and then hit L2 to use Glintstone Phalanx. Make sure you use the Keen version of this Ash of War or you won't be able to buff it!

Glintstone Phalanx usually staggers enemies in one or two bursts, so be ready to deal Critical Damage with your Rapier which has a Critical Rating of 130 which is pretty damn good. This allows you to kill tough enemies easily.

Use Glintstone Pebble to thin out enemies or to reach enemies you cannot get with melee attacks, or on horseback as necessary.

Use  Carian Greatsword when outnumbered or when on horseback in order to dispatch enemies easily.

Elden Ring Enchanted Knight Build (Level 50)

A medium-armor melee-based sorcerer Build that allows you to Block with a Shield while attacking with Carian Sword Sorceries in your right hand.

• Class: Astrologer or Prisoner
• Flask Spread: Most FP, Some HP
• Weapon: Carian Glintstone Staff
• Shield: Blue-Gold Kite Shield
• Armor: Carian Knight Set
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Vigor
• Secondary Stats: Mind & Endurance
• Skills: Ash of War: Barricade Shield
• Spells: Carian Slicer, Carian Piercer, Carian Greatsword and Glintstone Pebble

You need to have a well rounded stat spread for this Build since you are playing it like a melee character that uses a Shield, so good Vigor and Endurance helps with Blocking and taking damage. Make sure you have enough Intelligence to deal damage, but don't go crazy and leave your character vulnerable. You will be in melee range so you will get hit.

When facing tough enemies buff with Barricade Shield to reduce the Stamina consumption of Blocking so that you have more Stamina to use Carian Slicer or Carian Greatsword.

Spam Carian Slicer to melt bosses and tough enemies and use Carian Greatsword when mounted or when getting too close to some enemies is risky. Use Carian Piercer against NPC Invaders, and use Glintstone Pebble to tackle flying enemies or enemies you cannot reach with melee attacks.

Elden Ring Moonveil Samurai Build (Level 50)

A melee-mage Build that uses Transient Moonlight to stagger enemies and deal critical damage.

• Class: Prisoner or Samurai
• Flask Spread: Slightly more HP than FP
• Weapon: Moonveil
• Shield: None
• Armor: Land of Reeds Set
• Primary Stats: Intelligence &Vigor
• Secondary Stats: Dexterity
• Skills: Transient Moonlight
• Spells: Loretta's Greatbow, Glintstone Pebble and Carian Greatsword

The way this Build works is that you use Transient Moonlight with R2 instead of R1 to stagger enemies and then critically strike them. Using the Assassin's Cerulean Dagger and Carian Filigreed Crest recovers the cost of using Transient Moonlight so that you never run out of FP.

Use Loretta's Greatbow to take out difficult enemies at range, and use Glintstone Pebble to do the same when they aren't quite as far away.

Carian Greatsword is used to AoE enemies that are grouped up, and is benefited by Radagon Icon.

Elden Ring Sword Sage Build (Level 50)

The Sword Sage is a combination of Intelligence and Faith, using the Sword of Night and Flame and Death Sorceries.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Split between FP & HP
• Weapon: Sword of Night and Flame & Meteorite Staff
• Shield: None
• Armor: Any that still lets you med roll
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Faith
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Mind
• Skills: Night-and-Flame Stance
• Spells: Rancorcall & Ancient Death Rancor

The way this Build works is that you increase your Intelligence and Faith high enough to use Sword of Night and Flame and Ancient Death Rancor, which requires 34 Int and 24 Faith.

Sword of Night and Flame has an amazing Weapon Art that allows you to do a Comet-like beam with L2 and R1 that does insane damage and has great range. L2 and R2 is a flame strike in an AoE in front of you that can wipe out packs of enemies.

Rancorcall and Ancient Death Rancor require Intelligence and Faith to use, so are a natural fit here. Meteorite Staff is not the ideal staff to use here, and you'll want to swap this out for Prince of Death's Staff once you get it, as it scales off both Int and Faith. It also boosts the damage of Death Sorceries, which both of these are.

Ancient Death Rancor does incredible stagger damage to enemies, allowing you to pin them down if you spam this, which is fantastic solo and in co op play. It's particularly good against fast moving enemies and bosses that are hard to hit with Sword of Night and Flame's Weapon arts

Elden Ring Darkmoon Spellblade Build (Level 100)

A melee mage build that focuses on the use of the Dark Moon Greatsword and other Glintblade Sorceries to destroy its enemies.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP, some HP
• Weapon: Dark Moon Greatsword & Carian Glintblade Staff
• Shield: None
• Armor: Any that still allows med rolling
• Talismans: Godfrey Icon, Radagon Icon, Stargazer Heirloom & Green Turtle Talisman
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Mind
• Secondary Stats: Vigor
• Skills: Moonlight Greatsword
• Spells: Magic Glintblade, Glintstone Pebble, Greatblade Phalanx, Loretta's Greatbow & Unseen Form

Generally how this Build works is that you'll sent up your combo of either Magic Glintblade & Moonlight Greatsword or Greatblade Phalanx & Moonlight Greatsword against enemies depending on what you are facing (Magic Glintblade for weaker ones, Greatblade Phalanx for tougher ones).

It generally goes something like this, buff your Greatsword with L2, cast Magic Glintblade or Greatblade Phalanx and then either hold R2 or charge forward into range and then hold R2 and then hit R2 again. You're trying to time it so that the wave from the Greatsword connects with the enemy around the same time as the spell, or just before, so that the spell staggers after the wave, allowing you an opening for a second wave.

You can use Unseen Form to help you navigate levels, avoiding ranged enemies that might hit you unsuspectingly, allowing you to range them down with Glintstone Pebble or Magic Glintblade.

Loretta's Greatbow is there for very long range when the situation calls for it. Sometimes you just need a bit of range, and this spell single handedly takes care of that.

Elden Ring Battlemage Build (Level 100)

I melee mage Build that uses Sorceries as their only means of damage while wielding a Shield in their off-hand to protect themselves and buff their damage.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP, some HP
• Weapon: Carian Glintstone Staff & Dagger
• Shield: Jellyfish Shield
• Armor: Any and can still med roll
• Primary Stats: Intelligence
• Secondary Stats: Mind, Vigor & Strength
• Skills: Contagious Fury & Royal Knight's Resolve
• Spells: Carian Slicer, Carian Greatsword, Carian Piercer, Glintstone Pebble, Loretta's Greatbow

The way this Build works is that you use the Jellyfish Shield in your left hand and the Carian Glintstone Staff and Dagger in your right, and use Carian Slicer as your melee attack. It's cheaper than Glintstone Pebble, allowing you to use it nearly twice as much, helping to preserve FP.

You can use your Jellyfish Shield to Block effectively, and also use its Skill: Contagious Fury to boost your damage by 20% for 30 seconds, including your Spell Damage. This lets you defeat enemies more easily, and sometimes gives you just enough damage to one shot enemies with Glintstone Pebble, where Royal Knights Resolve would be too much damage and a waste of FP.

Carian Greatsword is there for AoE when needed, and Loretta's Greatbow is there for long range damage as necessary. Having these options makes you much more flexible, which a Battlemage should be in my opinion.

Lastly, when you want to go full on Carian Slicer, like before a Boss, you'll swap your Staff to your left hand and buff with Royal Knight's Resolve with your Dagger before spamming L1 to melt tough enemies or Bosses.

Elden Ring Deathblade Build (Level 100)

An Intelligence/Faith Build thas uses the Sword of Night and Flame to full effect, while also using both Sorceries and Incantations to dispatch enemies.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP, some HP
• Weapon: Sword of Night and Flame, Prince of Death's Staff & Golden Order Seal
• Shield: None
• Armor: Any that allows you to med roll. Spellblade Set boosts Night and Flame's Magic attack by 2% per piece
• Talismans: Fire Scorpion Charm, Magic Scorpion Charm,, Dragoncrest Shield Talisman +1 & Godfrey Icon
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Faith
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Mind
• Skills: Night-and-Flame Stance
• Spells: Golden Vow, Flame, Grant Me Strength, Black Flame, Loretta's Greatbow, Terra Magica, Magic Glintblade, Ancient Death Rancor

The way this Build works is that you'll prioritize using the magic attack of Sword of Night and Flame, by using things that boost its damage, as well as the damage of your regular weapon attacks. Magic Scorpion Charm, Golden Vow, Spellblade Set and Terra Magica all boost this damage, making it much more deadly. You can still use the Flame attack when you want as well, but you'll buff with Flame, Grant Me Strength instead of Terra Magica when using it to boost Fire Damage instead of magic.

You also deal incredible damage just with regular melee attacks, as the Sword of Night and Flame has one of the highest Attack Ratings in Elden Ring. If you can get someone to drop you a second one, consider dual wielding them for even more deadly melee attacks.

You'll supplement your melee attacks and weapon skills with magic, most notably Black Flame when you need some mid range Fire Damage, or Magic Glintblade when you need mid range Magic Damage. You'll use Loretta's Greatbow to take out things from really long range, and Ancient Death Rancor is there to stagger enemies and Bosses (particularly those that you can target the head), giving you an opening to use Sword of Night and Flame's Skills.

Elden Ring Crystal Mage Build (Level 100)

The Crystal Mage Build is an Intelligence focused Build that uses Crystal and Glintstone Sorceries to dispatch enemies at range.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Mostly FP, some HP
• Weapon: Crystal Staff, Finger Seal or Clawmark Seal
• Shield: Jellyfish Shield
• Armor: Any that still allows you to med roll
• Talismans: Magic Scorpion Charm, Ritual Sword Talisman, Dragoncrest Shield Talisman, and Godfrey Icon
• Primary Stats: Intelligence
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Mind
• Skills: Contagious Fury
• Spells: Crystal Torrent, Shattering Crystal, Glintstone Pebble, Great Glintstone Shard, Comet, Terra Magica & Bestial Vitality

This Build uses the Crystal Staff to boost the damage of both Crystal Torrent and Shattering Crystal. Lusat's Glintstone Staff costs too much FP to use consistently, and we don't meet the requirements to use Carian Regal Staff yet, so this is the next best one when it comes to scaling.

You'll use Contagious Fury by keeping your Shield in your left hand, buffing your spell damage by 20% for 30 seconds when you use it. This helps range things down more easily, and it has a short animation, allowing you to use it rather easily in boss encounters.

Use Shattering Crystal to AoE and against big enemies, as they get hit by the most Crystals. Crystal Torrent is there to melt bosses and enemies at good range, and when combined with Terra Magica, it can kill most enemies and some Bosses in a single cast.

Glintstone Pebble and Great Glinstone Shard are there for trash enemies, while Comet can be used on the more difficult ones, where using Crystal Torrent is not possible due to its long animation. It can be held down for even longer range, allowing you to hit distant enemies effectively.

Bestial Vitality is there for a small heal over time to restore health to reactive Ritual Sword Talisman when you reach full HP, increasing your damage by 10% once again.

Elden Ring Frost Knight Build (Level 100)

The Frost Knight Build is a melee focused Build that uses the Ice Spear Ash of War to deal Magic Damage at range, and to set the Frostbite Status Effect reliably on enemies.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Split HP and FP
• Weapon: Clayman's Harpoon & any Staff
• Shield: Carian Knight's Shield
• Armor: Any that still allows you to med roll
• Talismans: Magic Scorpion Charm, Carian Filigreed Crest, Curved Sword Talisman & Greatshield Talisman
• Primary Stats: Intelligence
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Mind
• Skills: Ice Spear & Carian Retaliation
• Spells: Scholar's Shield, Terra Magica, Magic Glintblade, Greatblade Phalanx & Scholar's Armament

This Build uses Ice Spear to add even more Magic Damage to the Clayman's Harpoon, and to range down enemies from a distance. It also sets the Frostbite Status Effect with enough hits, wiping out a chunk of enemy HP, increasing the damage they take, and reducing their Stamina recovery.

Additionally, Ice Spear does tons of Stance damage at range, allowing you to break enemy stances easily, allowing for frequent critical attacks. When combined with Block Counters, that also do very high stance damage, you can soften enemies up as they approach and then finish them with Block Counters or stagger them and then finish them.

Scholar's Shield will make the Carian Knight Shield nearly 100% Magic Resistant, allowing you to block magic attacks with ease. And on top of that it, boosts your Guard Boost by 25%, allowing you to block attacks more easily. It's not a bad replacement for Barricade Shield (post 1.03 patch) if you can get your Guard Boost high enough, which is why we use the Greatshield Talisman.

Terra Magica is there to buff your damage in fights where you can setup beforehand, just make sure to remain in its area to gain increased damage. You can use Scholar's Armament if you went Standard or Heavy on your weapon instead of Cold or Frost to further buff your damage.

Magic Glintblade is there for a longer range option, and Greatblade Phalanx is useful for stagger damage.

Elden Ring Moonveil Shinobi Build (Level 100)

A melee-mage Build that uses Transient Moonlight and Glintstone Phalanx to stagger enemies and to set both Hemorrhage and Frostbite on them.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Slightly more HP than FP
• Weapon: Moonveil, Uchigatana and any Staff
• Shield: None
• Armor: Any that can still med roll
• Talismans: Carian Filigreed Crest, Assassin's Cerulean Dagger, Magic Scorpion Charm, & Green Turtle Talisman
• Primary Stats: Intelligence &Vigor
• Secondary Stats: Dexterity & Mind
• Skills: Transient Moonlight & Glintblade Phalanx
• Spells: Loretta's Greatbow, Great Glintstone Shard, and Terra Magica

The way this Build works is that you will swap to your Cold Uchigatana and throw up Glinstone Phalanx before swapping back to dual wield. You'll move to melee range using L2 and R2 to use Transient Moonlight, staggering enemies with the combination of both the Phalanx and Moonveil as they hit at roughly the same time. You may not need both, but this is the play for tougher enemies and bosses. Once downed, spam L1 to set Hemorrhage and Frostbite on the target to finish them off  quickly.

Use Loretta's Greatbow to take out difficult enemies at range, and use Great Glinstone Shard to do the same when they aren't quite as far away, as it has been patched since 1.03 to be much better.

Make sure to Critically Strike enemies you stagger to regain FP if they are not Bosses, since you likely won't need to spam dual wield attacks to finish them off.

Elden Ring Cold-Blooded Raptor Build (Level 100)

A Strength/Intelligence Build that uses Claws to deal damage rapidly, and to also set the Hemorrhage and Frostbite status effects.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Split HP and FP
• Weapon: Bloodhound Claws, Sacrificial Axe & Academy Glintstone Staff
• Shield: None
• Armor: Raptor's Black Feathers, Haima Glintstone Crown and any other gloves and legs that allow you to med roll
• Talismans: Lord of Blood's Exultation, Claw Talisman, Green Turtle Talisman & Winged Sword Insignia
• Primary Stats: Strength & Intelligence
• Secondary Stats: Vigor & Mind
• Skills: Royal Knight's Resolve & Golden Vow
• Spells: Great Glintstone Shard, Loretta's Greatbow, Terra Magica, Adula's Moonblade, Greatblade Phalanx

The way this Build works is that you'll two hand your Claws, which brings out a second one and buff with Royal Knight's Resolve to boost the damage with both Claws. This is possible because they are only considered one Weapon, and buffs both Claws. You'll then Jump Attack enemies or bosses for increased damage, finishing them off with R1 attacks if they survive. Keep the Sacrificial Axe in your left hand to regain 4 FP per kill, even when dual wielding your Claws.

You'll build up Hemorrhage and Frostbite on anything that doesn't die in a few hits, ripping off huge chunks of HP rapidly, making your damage output very high.

You can supplement your melee playstyle with spells to give you ranged attacks, though they will be less powerful than a pure mage Build. Still you have options depending on the situation, and Greatblade Phalanx is fantastic as it works well with a melee playstyle and helps to stagger enemies.

Elden Ring Dark Knight Build (Level 150)

An Intelligence Build that power stances Greatswords to great effect, dealing high magic and physical damage in melee and at range.

• Class: Any
• Flask Spread: Mostly HP, some FP
• Weapon: Helphen's Steeple, Dark Moon Greatsword & Staff of Loss
• Shield: None
• Armor: Night's Cavalry Set
• Talismans: Claw Talisman, Magic Scorpion Charm (or Ritual Sword Talisman), Great-Jar's Arsenal & Primal Glintstone Blade
• Primary Stats: Intelligence & Vigor
• Secondary Stats: Endurance & Mind
• Skills: Moonlight Greatsword & Ruinous Ghostflame
• Spells: Night Comet, Night Shard, Terra Magica & Loretta's Greatbow

The way this Build works is that you will power stance Helphen's Steeple and Dark Moon Greatsword, with Steeple in your right hand and Dark Moon in your left. You'll buff with Moonlight Greatsword, and then buff with Ruinous Ghostflame and then do primarily jump attacks on enemies to kill most regular enemies in one attack. Some more difficult enemies may take more.

You can rebuff easily because Ruinous Ghostflame has a modest cast time, and it only lasts half as long as Moonlight Greatsword, so you'll need to use it twice for every one cast of Moonlight. You may not be able to rebuff with Moonlight in tough fights, but you absolutely should with Ruinous in order to gain more Frost build up.

You can swap our Steeple for Staff of Loss when you need to cast Night Comet or Night Shard, to range down enemies where it's easier to do. You can swap back and forth as necessary, maybe even multiple times during the same fight.