Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Making a solid build in Elden Ring can be pretty complicated... or as simple as finding a solid weapon, upgrading it, and stacking a couple buffs. This video will show you how to get set up early in Elden Ring, and then use that basic build as a foundation to make a build for each of the 5 damage stats: Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Faith, and Arcane.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- This guide builds off of my Quickstart Guide which will get you set up with a bunch of essential items: youtu.be/N6U0N6OGCRc
- WHAT TO LEVEL UP AFTER THIS GUIDE:
For any build, Vigor is your top priority. Follow this guide to get your chosen build set up, and then I strongly recommend you focus on getting Vigor to 40 ASAP. Seriously, Vigor really is more valuable than anything else, no matter what your build is. Also keep an eye out for Smithing Stones so you can upgrade your weapon(s) further-- most of your damage comes from weapon upgrades, not stats! Vigor and Weapon Upgrades are the two most important things.
After that I suggest you get the minimum Strength and Dex required to wield your chosen weapons, and the Endurance required to medium roll with all your gear, so you can remove Radagon's Soreseal. The Soreseal is great early-on because it gives you +5 to Vigor, Endurance, Strength, and Dexterity. However, *it also makes you take 15% more damage.* If you're below 38 Vigor (before the +5 from the Soreseal) then the HP you get from the Vigor increase will outweigh the extra damage taken (like if you have 30 Vigor and equip the Soreseal, that brings you up to 35 Vigor; your max HP will go from 994 to 1216, which is a 22.3% increase, so you still have a net increase of effective health). Once you go past 38 Vigor (before Soreseal), the returns from the Soreseal's +5 Vigor are outweighed by the +15% damage taken debuff, so you want to get rid of the Soreseal at that point. In early areas like Limgrave and Liurnia it's not gonna be a huge problem for you, but you definitely want to take the Soreseal off before you start exploring places like Caelid and Altus Plateau.
After that, go wild! 40 Vigor is good until after you kill the main boss in Leyndell, at which point you want to start working towards 60 Vigor for the endgame areas. In the meantime you can level your main damage stat (str/dex/int/fai/arc depending on your build), you can get some extra Endurance if you want some more equip load to play with, you can level Mind if you want more FP to work with (or if you want to use Spirit Ashes which require a bunch of FP to summon), you can level up some of your other damage stats so you can use more weapons, etc. You really don't want to spread your stats out too much though: typically you focus on Vigor, a bit of Endurance/Mind as needed, and then your primary damage stat.
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - Prerequisite Items and Other Stuff
18:57 - Build #1: Crystal Sword (Strength)
24:42 - Build #2: Icerind Hatchet (Dexterity)
30:00 - Build #3: Meteorite Staff (Intelligence)
38:55 - Build #4: Winged Scythe (Faith)
46:34 - Build #5: Reduvia (Arcane)
52:05 - Outro
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Making a solid build in Elden Ring can be pretty complicated... or as simple as finding a solid weapon, upgrading it, and stacking a couple buffs. This video will show you how to get set up early in Elden Ring, and then use that basic build as a foundation to make a build for each of the 5 damage stats: Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Faith, and Arcane.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- This guide builds off of my Quickstart Guide which will get you set up with a bunch of essential items: youtu.be/N6U0N6OGCRc
- WHAT TO LEVEL UP AFTER THIS GUIDE:
For any build, Vigor is your top priority. Follow this guide to get your chosen build set up, and then I strongly recommend you focus on getting Vigor to 40 ASAP. Seriously, Vigor really is more valuable than anything else, no matter what your build is. Also keep an eye out for Smithing Stones so you can upgrade your weapon(s) further-- most of your damage comes from weapon upgrades, not stats! Vigor and Weapon Upgrades are the two most important things.
After that I suggest you get the minimum Strength and Dex required to wield your chosen weapons, and the Endurance required to medium roll with all your gear, so you can remove Radagon's Soreseal. The Soreseal is great early-on because it gives you +5 to Vigor, Endurance, Strength, and Dexterity. However, *it also makes you take 15% more damage.* If you're below 38 Vigor (before the +5 from the Soreseal) then the HP you get from the Vigor increase will outweigh the extra damage taken (like if you have 30 Vigor and equip the Soreseal, that brings you up to 35 Vigor; your max HP will go from 994 to 1216, which is a 22.3% increase, so you still have a net increase of effective health). Once you go past 38 Vigor (before Soreseal), the returns from the Soreseal's +5 Vigor are outweighed by the +15% damage taken debuff, so you want to get rid of the Soreseal at that point. In early areas like Limgrave and Liurnia it's not gonna be a huge problem for you, but you definitely want to take the Soreseal off before you start exploring places like Caelid and Altus Plateau.
After that, go wild! 40 Vigor is good until after you kill the main boss in Leyndell, at which point you want to start working towards 60 Vigor for the endgame areas. In the meantime you can level your main damage stat (str/dex/int/fai/arc depending on your build), you can get some extra Endurance if you want some more equip load to play with, you can level Mind if you want more FP to work with (or if you want to use Spirit Ashes which require a bunch of FP to summon), you can level up some of your other damage stats so you can use more weapons, etc. You really don't want to spread your stats out too much though: typically you focus on Vigor, a bit of Endurance/Mind as needed, and then your primary damage stat.
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 - Intro
00:47 - Prerequisite Items and Other Stuff
18:57 - Build #1: Crystal Sword (Strength)
24:42 - Build #2: Icerind Hatchet (Dexterity)
30:00 - Build #3: Meteorite Staff (Intelligence)
38:55 - Build #4: Winged Scythe (Faith)
46:34 - Build #5: Reduvia (Arcane)
52:05 - Outro
If I helped you out, consider returning the favor and leaving a like, a comment, and subscribing!
