Elden Ring: How to Remove Skills From Shields

Believe it or not, one of the best skills in Elden Ring is not having a skill at all. There’s more depth than that, though. This “skill” is only applicable with shields of any size and torches, but only for those that don’t require Somber Smithing Stones. Here, we’ll give you a rundown on how to remove skills from shields in Elden Ring.

How to Remove Skills from Shields in Elden Ring

To remove a skill, you’ll need to find the Ash of War: No Skill. This can be purchased from Bernahl at the Warmaster’s Shack back in Limgrave. It’s a rather missable item early on in the game. You’ll also need the Whetstone Knife if you want to apply Ashes of War onto normal weapons.

Once you have those, you can either go to the anvil at the Church of Elleh, the blacksmith at the roundtable, or a Site of Grace. If you plan on using multiple shields with this property, you will need to duplicate this Ash of War, or at least transfer it from shield to shield.

The reason why this ability is so strong is that you’re essentially giving up the ability to do things like parry with the shield and allowing yourself to use the ability tied to your right-hand weapon. If you have a weapon with an ability like Hoarfrost Stomp and you’re using the Brass Shield, you’re basically unstoppable.

These combinations only work if you have a shield on your left hand with a damage-dealing armament on your right. You can even use something like a greatsword so you can deal massive damage while also protecting yourself against it. Luckily, certain shields will already come without a skill. In some cases, you won’t even need to attach an Ash of War onto it.

Elden Ring is out now for the PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series S/X, and PC.