Best Bleed build in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree

There are several different bleed builds to choose from in Elden Ring. As strong as most of them are, with minor additions from the new options in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, they can be made even stronger. This guide will show you how to get the most out of a bleed build.

The best Bleed build in Elden Ring

Bleed builds can take different forms in Elden Ring. They can be incorporated into Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, or Faith builds, but their main stat is always going to be Arcane so that you can proc blood loss frequently. With some of the newer acquisitions in Shadow of the Erdtree, this is the best bleed build for your character.

Since this build is an Arcane build, its strength is to blood loss within a few attacks or casts. If your original build differs from this one, respec your character before getting started

Stat distribution

Since this build revolves entirely around your Arcane stat, invest your initial reallocated points into the stat until it hits 50. The next step is boosting your survivability, so invest points into Vigor until it hits 40. Get enough Endurance to wear your gear while being able to medium roll, and then invest more points into Arcane until it hits the 80 soft cap.

This is what your endgame stats should look like:

• Vigor: 50
• Mind: 20
• Endurance: 25
• Strength: 11
• Dexterity: 15
• Intelligence: 21
• Faith: 24
• Arcane: 80

These Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, and Faith levels are needed to meet your weapon and spell prerequisites. Beyond this point, you can either invest in Vigor for more health or choose to level up Arcane until it hits the hard cap and maxes out.

Crystal Tear concoction

Any build benefits from the buff that the Bloodsucking Cracked Tear provides. Having a flat 20 percent increase to all of your outgoing damage helps tremendously against bosses and other strong enemies. However, this Crystal Tear also drains your health every second. Fortunately, this effect can be balanced out with one of these other Tears.

To mitigate the health drain, mix the Bloodsucking Cracked Tear with either the Crimson-Sapping Cracked Tear or the Crimsonburst Crystal Tear. The former restores your health as you deal damage to your enemies, while the latter slowly regenerates your health over time, allowing you to sustain through the health drain. Choose one based on your preference and playstyle.

Gear breakdown

This build uses two main weapons: the Ripple Blade and the Maternal Staff. Both of these weapons scale amazingly well with your high Arcane stat. You can use the Maternal Staff to cast Impenetrable Thorns, which will proc bleed almost immediately because of your Arcane stat.

Whenever you run low on FP or HP, switch to physical attacks with the Ripple Blade. While this weapon doesn’t inflict blood loss by default, you can use a variety of greases on it to exploit enemy weaknesses. The Ripple Blade also scales up to S-tier through your Arcane stat.

For your weapon swap, having an Uchigatana with the Blood affinity is ideal. You will be using this weapon to buff yourself with Seppuku, increasing your blood loss procs even more. Once you buff yourself, swap this weapon out to the default Ripple Blade/Maternal Staff setup.

As far as armor goes, stick with the White Mask to grant you a damage buff every time you cause blood loss. The rest of your armor set can be filled with pieces of Alberich’s Set to increase the damage of your Impenetrable Thorns.

Talisman breakdown

Four talismans work perfectly for this build:

• The Lord of Blood’s Exultation is the best talisman for any bleed build. Your attack damage increases by 20 percent every time you proc blood loss in the vicinity. This effect stacks fully with the White Mask, improving the damage boost to 30 percent.
• The Graven-Mass Talisman greatly increases the damage of your Sorceries. This talisman will increase the damage output of your Impenetrable Thorns by eight percent.
• The Taker’s Cameo restores your health every time you kill an enemy. This effect restores 30 HP in addition to three percent of your maximum HP whenever an enemy dies, helping you sustain your health costs.
• The Ancestral Spirit’s Horn restores your FP every time you kill an enemy, granting you four FP per kill. When used in conjunction with the Taker’s Cameo, killing groups of enemies will recover your resources in no time.