Ultimate Elden Ring Build Guide: The Dark Moon Greatsword
Understanding the Dark Moon Greatsword
The Dark Moon Greatsword is a versatile weapon that excels in both physical and magic damage. Here are some of its key attributes:
· Physical Damage Scaling: This weapon scales with Strength and Dexterity.
· Magic Damage Scaling: It scales primarily with Intelligence, making Intelligence the main focus for our build.
· Frostbite: The sword comes with innate frostbite, inflicting a significant damage over time effect while reducing enemy defenses by 20%.
· Unique Ash of War: The sword’s special ability allows you to raise it to imbue it with frost, significantly enhancing its magic damage and frost buildup. You can also unleash Frost Blades with charged attacks, providing good range and high stance damage without further FP costs.
Recommended Stats at Level 150
To wield the Dark Moon Greatsword effectively, at Level 150, aim for the following stats:
· Vigor: 40
· Mind: 20
· Endurance: 20
· Strength: 16 (Meets weapon requirements)
· Dexterity: 11 (Meets weapon requirements)
· Intelligence: 80 (Main scaling stat for damage)
This allocation provides a good balance of survivability and damage output.
Essential Spells
While the Dark Moon Greatsword is the star of the show, leveraging your high Intelligence for spells can give you an edge. Here are the must-have spells:
1. Terra Magica: A crucial spell that increases all magic damage while standing in its area of effect. This not only buffs spells but also boosts your weapon damage.
2. Greatblade Phalanx: This spell summons three large blades that target the nearest enemy, dealing substantial posture damage—perfect for softening up foes before a charged attack.
3. Magma Shot: A fiery projectile that helps in resetting frostbite whenever needed.
4. Glenstone Ice Crag: A quick-ranged projectile that builds up frostbite effectively.
5. Comet Azure: A powerhouse spell that can trivialize boss encounters, making it a staple in your spell repertoire.
6. Standard Comet Variations: Good for clearing weaker enemies and providing quick ranged attacks.
Staff Recommendations
For casting spells, the Carrion Regal Scepter is an all-around excellent choice, easily obtainable early in the game. Alternatively, Lazuli's Glintstone Staff offers higher spell damage but at the cost of increased FP consumption. If you primarily use Terra Magica, any basic staff will do since its buff does not scale with staff level.
Armor Choices
For optimal performance, we recommend wearing the Spellblade Set, which increases your Ash of War damage by 2% per piece equipped (a total of 8% while the Ash of War is active). However, feel free to choose heavier armor or prioritize aesthetics based on your preference.
Talisman Selection
To enhance your build, these talismans are essential:
1. Godfrey's Icon: Boosts charged attack damage by 15%, benefiting both spells and your Ash of War on the Dark Moon Greatsword.
2. Shard of Alexander: Adds a 15% damage increase to your Ash of War.
3. Sacred Scorpion Charm: Increases magic damage by 12% at the cost of taking 10% more damage. A worthwhile trade-off for the added damage.
4. Ritual Shield Talismans: Adds a 10% damage boost when at full health, always beneficial for maximizing damage.
5. While you may wonder about the Axes Talisman, its damage increase is minimal, making it less worthwhile for this build.
Flask Configuration
For your Flask of Wondrous Physick, include:
· Magic-Shrouding Crack Tear: A must-have. This item provides a 20% magic damage increase for three minutes.
Your second tier is flexible. You could select:
· Spiked Crack Tear: For increased charged attack damage.
· Stone Barb Crack Tear: Enhancing posture damage.
· Cerulean Hidden Tear: Offering unlimited FP for a limited time.
Don’t forget to equip any random dagger with Golden Vow for an additional free buff, further enhancing your combat effectiveness.
Conclusion
By following this guide, you now have all the tools necessary to create a formidable build centered around the Dark Moon Greatsword. With the right stats, spells, talismans, and armor, you’ll maximize your damage output while taking full advantage of this weapon’s unique abilities.
As you engage with the formidable foes and challenging bosses in Elden Ring, keep in mind the following strategies to ensure your success:
Gameplay Strategies
1. Frostbite Application: Focus on applying frostbite effects with your charged attacks. Use the unique Ash of War to imbue the sword and fire off the Frost Blades from a distance, creating opportunities to stagger enemies.
2. Spell Synergy: Utilize Terra Magica before engaging in combat to elevate your magic damage significantly. Combine this with Greatblade Phalanx to disrupt and damage enemies from afar.
3. Aggressive Charging: After applying the necessary buffs and spells, don’t hesitate to initiate charged attacks. Utilize the Godfrey's Icon and Shard of Alexander to amplify your damage and capitalize on the posture damage dealt by the Greatblade Phalanx.
4. Maintain Distance: When your health begins to drop, or against swift enemies, don’t shy away from using ranged spells like Comet Azure or Magma Shot to keep them at bay while dealing substantial damage.
Adaptation: Be aware of your surroundings. Use your spells strategically based on enemy weaknesses. For instance, if an enemy is resistant to magic, rely more on physical attacks. If you’re looking to quickly enhance your build, consider purchasing cheap Elden Ring Items from MMOEXP, which can provide you with valuable resources to further strengthen your gameplay and maximize your effectiveness in battle.