Elden Ring really is the type of game to let players take a certain weapon and make a build solely focused on that. The freedom we have has led us to want to replay the game with different builds. For that reason, it can be overwhelming to know what to play in our next playthroughs. Here, we’ll go over some of the best builds to try in New Game Plus (NG+) in Elden Ring.
Best Builds to Try in New Game Plus (NG+) in Elden Ring
This won’t be easily applicable to people who want to create a new character from scratch. This is more of a means to use the weapons and abilities we gathered in our inventories this far into Journey 1. Here are five strong and fun builds to try in Journey 2.
Heavy Weapon Build
With the recent buffs to Colossal weapons in general, tank and heavy builds have become even more viable. At the later stages in the game, you would have picked up a few strength-based weapons, allowing for an easy transition to the build for NG+. Specifically, the Devourer’s Scepter and Grafted Blade Greatsword got significantly buffed.
God of War Kratos Build
In a rather popular video by the YouTuber Shirrako, he showcases a God of War Kratos playthrough. He cosplays as him and uses weapons that mostly match what he uses in his respective game. In it, he uses two Magma Blades which can be acquired by defeating the Man Serpents at Volcano Manor. It’s a switch between a dual-curved sword build and a shield and ax build.
As for the shield he uses, he appears to be using a Large Leather Shield. It’s the starting shield for the Hero and it can also be obtained from Merchant Kale. While he uses the Icerind Hatchet to complete the look, you can also use the Highland Axe, pointed out by another Youtube user in the comments by the name of DarkCat.
Magic Build
Many people who wanted to use a traditional build consisting of mostly melee, parrying, guarding, and dodging for their first run might want to mix things up. Magic and any sort of ranged builds usually make the purists lose sleep at night, but to that, I ask, why is FromSoftware buffing so many spells?
Before, Glintstone spells dominated the magic meta, specifically the Comet Azur setup. Now, it seems as though a bunch of other Sorceries has been buffed in the latest patch. We can properly spec into and use a variety of spells that are up to snuff with the Glintstone Sorceries. Now we aren’t locked to using a few staves that outrank the others. More specialization adds for different types of status effects to inflict and cool animations to see.
Double Remembrance Build
This one will probably be closer to when you get to New Game ++ (Journey 3, or NG+2). Imagine using two Hands of Malenia or Maliketh’s Black Blades? That would be nuts, but also quite a bit of a grind. The only reason this could be somewhat viable in the first NG+ is if you kill remembrance bosses that appear relatively early to the start of the game.
Unfortunately, even with the Walking Mausoleums, you can’t duplicate remembrance weapons in one playthrough.
Jumping Heavy Attack Build
This one somewhat coincides with the Heavy Weapon builds. However, this build focuses more on using jumping attacks on enemies. While these have not been buffed in the latest patch, jumping attacks are actually quite fun and can break the enemy’s poise much quicker. Jumping is a rather new mechanic added to FromSoftware games, so why not make the most out of the new mechanic?
Big damage, constant criticals, and new ways to dodge some attacks really shake up the way you can play Elden Ring.
Elden Ring is out now for PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X/S, and PC.
