Elden Ring Tarnished Edition Guide: New Weapons, Armor, and Builds

summary

Elden Ring Tarnished Edition adds new classes, armor sets, Torrent cosmetics, and powerful weapons. This guide covers the best ways to obtain the new gear and highlights effective builds using jump attacks, Frostbite, bleed, charged flail skills, and guard counters. Players looking to upgrade their new weapons and optimize these builds can also buy Elden Ring Runes to help cover the costs of leveling, upgrading equipment, and purchasing essential items.

1. Choose the Right Starting Class

The two new starting classes provide different approaches to early-game progression.

Heavy Knight

· Starts with the new Hefty Scimitar.

· Comes equipped with heavy armor and strong defensive stats.

· Provides excellent survivability for newer players.

· Works particularly well with Strength and Endurance.

· Can use two Hefty Scimitars for powerful dual-wield attacks.

How to Get a Second Hefty Scimitar

· Travel toward Mistwood.

· Locate the merchant selling another copy.

· Purchase the second weapon.

· Dual-wield both weapons for powerful jump attacks.

· If your equipment load becomes too high, invest additional points into Endurance.

This setup is particularly effective when combined with Heavy affinity and jump-attack-focused talismans.

2. Collect the New Torrent Armor

Tarnished Edition adds three new cosmetic armor options for Torrent.

Tree Sentinel Torrent Armor

You do not necessarily need to defeat Godrick first.

· Travel to the throne-room area from Liurnia.

· Find the entrance that allows access to the area before Godrick's defeat.

· Search the chest to obtain the Tree Sentinel-style Torrent armor.

· This is one of the earliest Torrent customization options available.

Funeral Knight Torrent Armor

· Travel toward the Hermit Shack in Altus Plateau.

· Search around the nearby landmark with the swords.

· Obtain the Funeral Knight armor from the area.

· Its darker design pairs especially well with heavy knight armor.

Carian Torrent Armor

· Progress through the area connected to Ranni's questline.

· Obtain the corresponding reward.

· Its appearance provides a strong match for Carian-themed character builds.

Tip: These items are primarily cosmetic, so choose your Torrent based on the theme of your character rather than combat statistics.

3. Get the Best New Weapons

Not all eight new weapons serve the same purpose. Prioritize them according to your build.

Great Katana

The Great Katana is one of the strongest general-purpose additions.

· Excellent attack range.

· Strong running attacks.

· Effective against larger enemies.

· Works well with Bleed.

· Can also use Cold affinity.

· Frostbite and Bleed can provide strong status pressure.

For players who want a combination of reach, damage, and status buildup, this is one of the safest choices.

Light Greatsword

The new Light Greatsword offers a fast and flexible moveset.

· Excellent R1 attacks.

· Strong R2 attacks.

· Good stance pressure.

· Works particularly well with Wing Stance.

· The starting-class weapon has strong early-game base damage.

As you progress, consider transitioning to a Light Greatsword with stronger scaling.

Backhand Blade

The Backhand Blade is ideal for aggressive players.

· Excellent mobility.

· Fast attacks.

· Strong multi-hit potential.

· Works extremely well with Bleed.

· Combines effectively with multi-hit talismans.

A Bleed-focused Backhand Blade setup can melt large health bars when you maintain constant offensive pressure.

4. Experiment With the Golden Order Flail

The Golden Order Flail introduces a completely different mechanic.

How the Skill Works

· The weapon's skill becomes stronger as it charges.

· Taking damage helps build its charge.

· Once sufficiently charged, the skill releases a powerful Holy attack.

· Night Maiden's Mist can help charge the weapon outside direct combat.

· You can enter an encounter with the skill already prepared.

Best Targets

The strategy works best against enemies with lower Holy resistance.

However:

· Do not rely exclusively on it against Holy-resistant bosses.

· Some major bosses have extremely high Holy resistance.

· Treat the Flail as a specialized weapon rather than an all-purpose replacement.

5. Build Around the Ritual Thrusting Shield

The Ritual Thrusting Shield is another major addition for defensive players.

A strong setup combines:

· Ritual Thrusting Shield

· Deflecting Hardtear

· Guard Counter-focused talismans

· Cragblade

· Stamina-management equipment

Why It Works

With the Deflecting Hardtear:

· Time your block immediately before an enemy attack lands.

· A successful deflection greatly reduces the defensive cost.

· Repeated successful deflections build toward stronger guard counters.

· Guard counters can deal significant stance damage.

This makes the shield particularly effective against enemies with predictable attack patterns.

6. Upgrade Your Weapons Efficiently

Avoid upgrading every new weapon simultaneously.

Instead:

· Choose one primary weapon.

· Invest most of your early Smithing Stones into it.

· Upgrade a secondary weapon afterward.

· Collect Bell Bearings as soon as practical.

· Use the expanded Smithing Stone availability to experiment with additional weapons.

Recommended Priorities

· Strength build: Heavy Knight + Hefty Scimitars.

· Status build: Great Katana + Bleed or Cold.

· Aggressive build: Backhand Blade + Bleed.

· Skill-focused build: Golden Order Flail.

· Defensive build: Ritual Thrusting Shield + Guard Counter.

7. Prepare for Bosses

Different new weapons perform better against different bosses.

Use Great Katana When:

· You need long attack range.

· The boss is vulnerable to Frostbite or Bleed.

· You want reliable running attacks.

· You need a flexible weapon for general progression.

Use Backhand Blades When:

· You can stay close to the boss.

· You want rapid multi-hit attacks.

· Bleed buildup is effective.

· You can maintain aggressive pressure.

Use the Flail When:

· The enemy has low Holy resistance.

· You have enough time to charge the skill.

· You can safely use Night Maiden's Mist.

· You want a high-damage opening attack.

Use the Thrusting Shield When:

· The boss has predictable attacks.

· Guard counters are easy to time.

· You prefer a defensive playstyle.

· You want to focus on stance damage.

8. Recommended Build Progression

For a straightforward Tarnished Edition playthrough, follow this progression:

· Early game: Heavy Knight + Hefty Scimitar.

· First upgrade phase: Obtain the second Hefty Scimitar.

· Mid game: Collect Bell Bearings and begin upgrading alternative weapons.

· Status phase: Switch to Great Katana with Cold or Bleed.

· Late game: Experiment with Backhand Blades and the Light Greatsword.

· Specialized encounters: Use the Golden Order Flail against Holy-vulnerable enemies.

· Defensive encounters: Switch to the Ritual Thrusting Shield and Deflecting Hardtear.

Final Tips

Tarnished Edition is most valuable because it expands the number of viable playstyles rather than simply adding more equipment.

Keep these principles in mind:

· Do not spread upgrade materials too thinly.

· Match weapon affinities to your build.

· Use Bleed and Frostbite when bosses are vulnerable.

· Learn enemy attack patterns before relying on guard counters.

· Use specialized weapons for favorable matchups.

· Collect the new Torrent armor whenever you pass through its location.

· Experiment with different talisman combinations instead of relying on a single setup.

With the right equipment and upgrade strategy, the new Tarnished Edition weapons can significantly change how you approach familiar areas and bosses across the Lands Between. Players who need additional resources for leveling and weapon upgrades can also consider cheap Elden Ring Runes to prepare their characters more efficiently.