summary
The Tarnished Edition DLC adds five new infusible weapons that provide strong early-game options. The Hefty Scimitar offers a convenient farming-free Curved Greatsword, while the Reverse-Bladed Sword and Idis Sword excel at lower levels. The Reed Great Katana is especially effective with elemental infusions, and the Ritual Thrusting Shield introduces a unique attack-and-block playstyle. For players looking to strengthen their characters and prepare for these new weapons, buy Elden Ring Runes can also help support early-game progression.
Five New Infusible Weapons
The five weapons covered here are:
· Hefty Scimitar – Curved Greatsword
· Reverse-Bladed Sword – Backhand Blade
· Idis Sword – Light Greatsword
· Reed Great Katana – Great Katana
· Ritual Thrusting Shield – Thrusting Shield
One major advantage is accessibility. These weapons can be obtained relatively early, making them useful alternatives before players reach the DLC areas containing their stronger counterparts.
However, most are designed more as early-game equivalents. Once you reach the DLC and obtain their counterparts, upgrading the newer weapons will generally provide better long-term performance.
Hefty Scimitar
The Hefty Scimitar is arguably one of the most convenient additions because it solves a long-standing problem with Curved Greatswords.
It can be obtained from the Heavy Knight starting class or purchased from the Nomadic Merchant in Limgrave. More importantly, it is an infusible Curved Greatsword that does not require enemy farming.
Curved Greatswords offer:
· High damage
· Good attack range
· Slash damage
· Strong powerstance potential
However, they are generally slower than standard Greatswords and have fewer weapon skill options.
Unfortunately, the Hefty Scimitar has relatively poor range and usually the lowest damage among comparable infusible Curved Greatswords. Its main exception is a Heavy infusion, where it can outperform the Dismounter.
Its biggest advantage is convenience. Players who want a Curved Greatsword without farming can simply pick up the Hefty Scimitar. Starting as a Heavy Knight also makes dual-wielding two copies immediately possible.
Reverse-Bladed Sword
The Reverse-Bladed Sword is an early-game Backhand Blade that can be purchased at Roundtable Hold.
It shares the same moveset and range as the regular Backhand Blades but has higher base damage and weaker scaling. This makes it particularly effective during the early game.
Once character and weapon levels become higher, the DLC Backhand Blades generally pull ahead. A notable exception is a Cold infusion, where the Reverse-Bladed Sword benefits from better Strength and Dexterity scaling.
The major drawback is that some of the Backhand Blade's strongest potential comes from DLC Ashes of War such as Blind Spot and Swift Slash. Without those skills, the Reverse-Bladed Sword loses much of its appeal.
Still, its paired-weapon functionality is convenient. You only need to upgrade one weapon to access its dual-wielding moveset, and certain buffs can affect both hands.
Idis Sword
The Idis Sword is the second infusible Light Greatsword available in the game. It can be obtained early in Liurnia or selected through the Idis Knight starting class.
Like the Reverse-Bladed Sword, it has higher base damage but lower scaling than its DLC counterpart. This makes it especially useful for low-level and early-game builds.
Its heavy attack is particularly interesting because it works well with multi-hit setups and can complement a guard-counter build.
Unfortunately, the weapon cannot reach its full potential without the DLC's Wing Stance Ash of War. Once players obtain the stronger Light Greatsword later, switching weapons will generally be worthwhile.
Reed Great Katana
The Reed Great Katana can be found in Dragonbarrow, north of Fort Faroth. It serves as an early alternative to the DLC Great Katana.
It has higher base damage, slightly weaker scaling, shorter range, and a one-unit heavier weight. Despite those disadvantages, it has one important strength: several elemental infusions perform exceptionally well.
The Reed Great Katana can outperform the regular Great Katana with:
· Flame Art
· Sacred
· Cold
· Magic
This makes it particularly attractive for Faith or elemental-focused builds. Lower stat requirements also make it easier to fit into certain early-game setups.
For players planning to use Heavy or Keen infusions with buffs such as Bloodflame Blade, the regular Great Katana may eventually become preferable. Nevertheless, the Reed Great Katana is an excellent early-game bleed and elemental weapon.
Ritual Thrusting Shield
The Ritual Thrusting Shield introduces the thrusting-shield playstyle to the base game.
Its biggest advantage is not raw damage. Instead, it allows players to attack while blocking, making it suitable for guard-counter and shield-poke builds.
Unfortunately, it is clearly weaker than the DLC's Duelling Shield, with inferior damage, guard damage negation, and Guard Boost.
Still, it performs well enough. Its quick attacks provide respectable stagger and stance pressure, while its blocking ability gives the weapon a unique defensive identity.
Final Verdict
Overall, these five weapons are valuable additions primarily because they give players early access to weapon types that previously required DLC progression or farming.
The Hefty Scimitar stands out for convenience, the Reed Great Katana has surprisingly strong elemental applications, and the Ritual Thrusting Shield introduces an interesting defensive playstyle. For players looking to build these weapons effectively and progress through the game, cheap Elden Ring Runes can provide additional resources for character progression.
Most importantly, these weapons provide useful bridges between the base game and DLC. They may eventually be replaced by stronger versions, but they can still make early-game builds much more flexible.
