Understanding Weapon Attributes and Scaling
Before diving into the different weapon classes, it’s crucial to understand the underlying mechanics that govern their effectiveness. These mechanics determine how your character’s stats interact with your chosen weapon.
Your character’s attributes are the foundation of your build. These are the primary stats that directly influence weapon damage and effectiveness:
Strength (STR): Primarily affects the physical damage output of weapons and is essential for wielding heavier armaments.
Dexterity (DEX): Increases attack speed, casting speed for spells, and the damage of certain weapons.
Intelligence (INT): Determines the power of sorceries and is vital for magic-based builds.
Faith (FTH): Governs the power of miracles and pyromancies.
Luck (LCK): Affects item discovery and, in some cases, the damage of certain weapons.
Weapon Scaling: The Key to Damage
Weapon scaling is a crucial aspect of damage output. It determines how much a weapon’s damage increases based on your character’s attributes. Each weapon has its own scaling grade for different attributes. This grade is represented by letters: S, A, B, C, D, and E, with S being the highest (best) and E being the lowest. Weapons with higher scaling grades for a particular attribute will benefit more significantly from investing points into that attribute. For instance, a weapon with “S” scaling in Strength will deal considerably more damage as your Strength stat increases compared to a weapon with “D” scaling in Strength.
Damage Types Explained
Understanding the different damage types is vital for maximizing your combat effectiveness. Weapons deal different types of damage, and enemies have varying resistances to those damage types. The primary damage types are:
Physical Damage: This is the most common damage type and is further categorized into Strike, Slash, and Thrust. Strike damage is effective against heavily armored enemies, slash damage is versatile, and thrust damage is effective against those susceptible to it and can often be used in conjunction with a parry.
Elemental Damage: Includes Fire, Lightning, Magic, and Dark. Elemental damage can bypass certain defenses, but it’s also subject to specific enemy resistances.
Attack Power (AR): Is the total damage a weapon deals. It is a combined calculation that takes into account the base damage of the weapon, the scaling grades, and your character’s attributes. Knowing the AR of your weapon will help determine your damage output, which is crucial for choosing the best option.
Swords and Their Variations
Swords are the most versatile and common weapon type in Dark Souls 3. They offer a balance of speed, damage, and reach, making them suitable for various playstyles.
Variations of Swords
Straight Swords: Straight swords are fast, reliable, and great for beginners. Notable weapons include the Long Sword, which is a solid all-around choice, and the Lothric Knight Sword, which boasts excellent range and damage, especially when infused with Sharp. These swords often excel in dexterity builds.
Greatswords: Greatswords offer more reach and damage than straight swords but are slower. They are great for managing space and stagger enemies. The Claymore is a classic, providing good reach, damage, and moveset, while the Black Knight Sword provides powerful damage and a useful weapon art. These generally suit strength builds.
Ultra Greatswords: Ultra Greatswords are the heavy hitters of the sword category, dealing massive damage and staggering enemies with each swing. They are slow and require careful timing, but they can obliterate most foes in a few hits. The Zweihander offers a large sweeping arc, making it effective against multiple opponents, while the Fume Ultra Greatsword delivers tremendous damage and a powerful weapon art at the cost of being heavy. They are the quintessential Strength builds.
Curved Swords: Curved swords are fast and effective at applying pressure, with a focus on combos and aggressive play. They are best at close quarters, excellent for dexterity builds, and the Sellsword Twinblades are famous for their fast attacks and high damage potential when buffed. The Pontiff Knight Curved Sword, on the other hand, offers a unique frostbite effect.
Katanas: Katanas are known for their speed, range, and bleed buildup. They favor dexterity builds and offer a distinct playstyle. The Uchigatana is an excellent early-game option and boasts a good moveset, while the Chaos Blade provides incredible damage but takes away health with each hit.
Axes and Hammers: Power and Brutality
For those who prioritize raw power and stunning enemies, axes and hammers are excellent choices.
Ax and Hammer Types
Axes: Axes offer a balance of damage and speed, making them a solid choice for a variety of builds. The Battle Axe is a reliable early-game option, while the Black Knight Axe, with its high damage and unique weapon art, is a formidable weapon later in the game.
Great Axes: Great Axes offer even more raw power than regular axes but are slower and can be clunky. The Dragonslayer’s Greataxe offers lightning damage, and the Vordt’s Great Hammer, with its frostbite effect, has massive staggering power.
Hammers: Hammers provide high strike damage, excellent for breaking enemy poise and staggering opponents. The Mace is a simple yet effective weapon, while the Large Club provides great damage and is an excellent choice for strength builds.
Great Hammers: Great Hammers offer the highest damage in the hammer category, but they are also the slowest. The Great Club is a classic choice, offering tremendous damage and a powerful weapon art, while Ledo’s Great Hammer deals massive damage and boasts a unique weapon art.
Spears and Lances: Reaching the Enemy
Spears and lances provide exceptional reach and are great for keeping enemies at bay.
Spear and Lance Varieties
Spears: Spears offer a good balance of range and speed. The Spear is a solid early-game option, offering good reach and a simple moveset. The Dragonslayer Spear is a specialized weapon that deals lightning damage, adding versatility.
Lances: Lances are similar to spears but often provide greater reach and damage while mounted or rolling. The Lothric War Banner offers a unique buff, while the Dragonslayer’s Swordspear is a versatile weapon that can be used as both a spear and a sword.
Other Weapon Categories
These categories offer unique playstyles and diverse weapon options.
Curved Greatswords: Curved Greatswords offer a combination of curved sword speed with greatsword damage and range. The Harald Curved Greatsword is popular for its high damage and wide sweeping attacks.
Reapers: Reapers are known for their long reach and sweeping attacks, making them effective against multiple enemies. The Scythe is a classic choice, offering a good balance of range and damage, while the Great Scythe provides excellent bleed buildup.
Whips: Whips are known for their long reach and unique playstyle, but they lack the damage of other weapon types. The Notched Whip offers bleed buildup, while the Whip provides excellent range.
Bows and Crossbows: These are ranged weapons. Bows are excellent for drawing enemies and attacking from a distance. Crossbows are good for burst damage and are usually more effective with infusions. The Longbow is a classic option. The Black Bow of Pharis offers exceptional range, and the Arbalest is a crossbow known for its high damage potential.
Staves and Catalysts: For players who prefer to cast spells. Staves are used to cast sorceries, while Catalysts are used for miracles and pyromancies.
Fist Weapons: These are for close-range combat. The Caestus is a popular choice for its speed and low stamina consumption, while the Demon’s Fists provide high damage and unique weapon arts.
Weapon Infusion and Upgrading: Customizing Your Arsenal
Weapon infusion is a crucial mechanic in Dark Souls 3, allowing you to tailor your weapons to fit your build.
Infusion Details
Infusion involves applying a gem to a weapon to change its damage type, scaling, and sometimes even its weapon art. Some of the most common infusions include:
Heavy: Adds scaling to Strength, making it ideal for strength builds.
Sharp: Adds scaling to Dexterity, making it ideal for dexterity builds.
Refined: Balances Strength and Dexterity scaling, for hybrid builds.
Fire/Chaos: Adds fire damage and scales with Intelligence and Faith.
Lightning: Adds lightning damage and scales with Faith.
Dark: Adds dark damage and scales with Intelligence and Faith.
Bleed: Adds bleed build-up.
Poison: Adds poison build-up.
Upgrade Materials
Weapons are upgraded using Titanite, and the amount needed increases as you level up the weapon. There are several tiers of Titanite materials, including Titanite Shards, Large Titanite Shards, Titanite Chunks, and Titanite Scales/Twinkling Titanite for special weapons.
Weapon Skills and Weapon Arts: Unleashing Special Abilities
Every weapon has a weapon art, which is a special ability activated by pressing L2 (PlayStation) or LT (Xbox) while holding the weapon.
Weapon Art Varieties
Weapon arts vary depending on the weapon type. Some weapon arts allow for special attacks, while others provide defensive stances or buffs. Two-handed weapons have unique weapon arts that can be utilized when held with both hands.
Acquiring Your Weapons: Finding Your Arsenal
Weapons can be found in various ways:
Drops: Many weapons are dropped by enemies.
Chests: Explore the world and search for chests.
Merchants: Purchase weapons from various merchants.
Tips and Strategies for Weapon Selection
Assess Your Stats: Choose a weapon that complements your primary attributes and build.
Experiment: Try different weapon types and infusions to see what works best.
Adapt: Change your weapon based on the environment and the enemies you are facing.
Synergize: Consider the weapon’s weapon art and how it compliments your build.
In Conclusion
The Dark Souls 3 weapons system provides immense depth and replayability. Experimenting with different weapon types, infusions, and builds is essential to mastering the game’s challenging combat. Ultimately, the “best” weapon is the one that suits your playstyle and allows you to overcome the challenges that await.
Consider the suggestions above as a starting point. This guide is not exhaustive; the world of Dark Souls 3 is full of surprises. Remember to experiment, have fun, and, above all, persevere.
