How to Farm the Lizard Greatsword Fast in Elden Ring
The Lizard Greatsword is one of the more unusual weapons added in the Elden Ring expansion. Unlike traditional greatswords, this weapon combines solid melee damage with a unique ranged projectile attack, giving players a versatile option for both close-range and mid-range combat.

Designed in the shape of a fork-tongued lizard and carried by imps throughout the Realm of Shadow, the Lizard Greatsword stands out not only because of its bizarre appearance, but also because of its surprisingly effective moveset. Whether you are building a Strength/Dexterity hybrid character or simply want a fun and unique weapon to experiment with, this greatsword is worth farming. An abundance of Elden Ring Runes allows you to farm with ease.
Here is everything you need to know about how to obtain the Lizard Greatsword, where to farm it efficiently, and why it can become a powerful addition to your arsenal.
Where to Find the Lizard Greatsword
The Lizard Greatsword can only be obtained in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC areas. It is not found as a chest reward or boss drop. Instead, the weapon drops from specific imp enemies located inside certain catacombs.
There are currently two known farming locations:
Scorpion River Catacombs
Fog Rift Catacombs
Both dungeons contain imps capable of dropping the weapon, though the overall drop rate is fairly low.
The base drop chance is approximately 2% at standard item discovery, meaning players may need to farm enemies multiple times before the weapon finally appears.
Best Farming Location
While both catacombs work, most players prefer farming the Lizard Greatsword in Fog Rift Catacombs because of how quickly you can reset the first imp encounter.
After entering the dungeon, one of the earliest enemies you encounter is an imp capable of dropping the weapon. This makes the route extremely efficient:
Enter the catacombs
Kill the first imp
Reset at the Site of Grace
Repeat
Because the run is so short, it becomes much easier to farm repeatedly without wasting time navigating the entire dungeon.
Increasing your Item Discovery stat can dramatically improve farming efficiency. Using equipment and consumables such as:
Silver-Pickled Fowl Foot
Silver Scarab Talisman
Arcane scaling gear
Can help reduce the amount of grinding required.
Lizard Greatsword Overview
The Lizard Greatsword is classified as a Greatsword weapon and scales primarily with:
Strength
Dexterity
This makes it ideal for quality builds that invest in both offensive stats.
The weapon also features one of the more unique heavy attacks in the game. When performing a charged heavy attack, the sword launches a projectile resembling the lizard's forked tongue straight toward enemies.
This gives the weapon additional versatility that most greatswords lack.
Unique Projectile Attack
The projectile mechanic is what truly separates the Lizard Greatsword from other weapons in its category.
When using heavy attacks:
The blade thrusts forward
A tongue-like projectile fires outward simultaneously
Both the physical thrust and the projectile can hit enemies at the same time for increased damage.
The projectile itself deals:
Pierce damage
Additional stance damage
Full status buildup from weapon infusions
If both parts connect successfully, enemies suffer:
Higher total damage
Increased stance pressure
Double status buildup potential
This creates some extremely strong synergy with status-based infusions.
Excellent for Status Builds
One of the strongest aspects of the Lizard Greatsword is how well it works with status effects.
Because the projectile inherits the weapon's buildup effects, players can apply:
Bleed
Frostbite
Poison
Scarlet Rot
From safer distances while still maintaining strong melee pressure.
When both the blade and projectile strike together, the buildup effectively doubles, making status procs happen much faster than expected.
This makes the weapon especially effective for aggressive hybrid builds.
Weapon Skill: Stamp (Upward Cut)
The Lizard Greatsword comes with the Stamp (Upward Cut) skill by default.
This skill allows players to briefly brace themselves against incoming attacks before launching a powerful upward slash.
The defensive portion of Stamp helps reduce stagger pressure, making it easier to trade against aggressive enemies and bosses.
Because greatswords already possess strong poise damage, combining Stamp with the weapon's projectile attacks creates a surprisingly versatile toolkit.
Ashes of War Compatibility
Another major advantage is that the Lizard Greatsword can be infused with Ashes of War.
Players can customize the weapon to fit many different playstyles, including:
Heavy Strength scaling
Keen Dexterity scaling
Bleed setups
Frostbite builds
Magic hybrid builds
The only restriction is that the Ashes of War that directly apply weapon buffs cannot be used.
However, the weapon can still:
Be enchanted with spells
Receive consumable buffs
Benefit from various temporary effects
This flexibility gives the weapon strong build diversity.
Upgrade Materials
Like most standard weapons in Elden Ring, the Lizard Greatsword upgrades using regular Smithing Stones rather than Somber Smithing Stones.
This makes upgrading relatively accessible compared to unique boss weapons.
Players planning to fully upgrade it should gather:
Smithing Stone [1] through [8]
Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone for max level
Because the weapon performs well with multiple infusions, experimenting with different upgrade paths can be worthwhile depending on your build.
Is the Lizard Greatsword Worth Using?
Despite its strange appearance, the Lizard Greatsword is actually a very strong and underrated weapon.
Its biggest strengths include:
Flexible Strength/Dexterity scaling
Ranged projectile attacks
Excellent status application
Strong stagger potential
Ashes of War customization
The weapon especially shines in PvE, where repeated projectile thrusts can safely pressure enemies while building up stance damage and status effects simultaneously. A large amount of cheap Elden Ring Runes can also provide an excellent gaming experience.
It may not be the absolute strongest greatsword in the game, but it offers a unique moveset that feels very different from traditional options.
For players looking for something unusual, effective, and fun to use, the Lizard Greatsword is absolutely worth farming in Shadow of the Erdtree.