Elden Ring Magic Build Guide - How to Build a Sorcerer (Level 50 Guide)

[@Fextralife]

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[@wesleyvl8572]

I just get the game andt its epic

[@jacobkoon9568]

You should make like a Gandalf build🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@MrStarLicker]

Call the 3rd phase Gandalf

[@jacobkoon9568]

@@MrStarLicker this vid or a new one?

[@CaitSith87]

@@MrStarLicker gandalf used like 3 spells in 10 hours of movie. Doubt that is a great term to name a pure mage build. Most obvious one would be merlin.

[@sg137iu]

Anyone watching this after 1.03 - It needs to be updated. Determination no longer works this way, Greater Shard is now cheaper and has more range.

[@copticknight6748]

Yup Determination doesn't do anything.

[@Kragozen]

Are you saying to use greater shard instead of pebble?

[@sg137iu]

@@Kragozen No, definitely not a replacement, but they did make it better in 1.03

[@drunkendevil]

I see. So it wasn’t working as intended. Caster get a slight nerf then?

[@england101510]

Thank you for this! I was wondering how the patch had affected this build.

[@Outlaw5.56]

Rock sling was an absolute godsend in the early game, hell even late game it’s one of the more effective spells in the game.

[@Ominous21]

Fr Fr it's helped me a bunch.

[@sanctuarygaming4984]

FYI it also does strike damage, so the best spell for the Crystalian mini-bosses that are everywhere

[@timothychilson2458]

Mine hits like a noodle..

[@MultiLoofer]

@@timothychilson2458 up your int

[@jonfall7941]

Plus it also breaks stance in enemies, so if you hybrid at all, or you play with friends. Crits baby, crits.

[@WheelchairXL]

Another useful spell that goes under the radar is ambush shard. It hits from behind so it's a safer way to take down enemies with shields than having to get in closer to bait the shield drop. It also doesn't trigger the dodge of enemies that juke your glintstone shard while advancing.

[@nater218]

I would highly recommend ambush shard to anyone in Stormveil Castle. It makes it quite easy to kill the birds before they can drop fire barrels.

[@mattfitzgerald4391]

Can also use it while running away from them.

[@dennydude]

That was my main damage spell for a while. I loved its' range!! But then I got the magic bow 😂

[@internaut4257]

@@nater218 eh, pebble is sufficient for the feather bois

[@shinner5382]

@@nater218 try gravity well instead, they'll force drop any birds and insta stagger them

[@PaintbrushHero]

Edit: Fromsoft removed these two weapon arts interaction with spells after patch 1.03! Ash of War: Royal Knight's Resolve is even better than Determination for buffing spell damage. Cost the same FP cost but is a 80~100% damage buff compared to 60%. You get it from Volcano Manor. I put it on the Misericordi dagger and man, what a life changer.

[@michaelbeard4883]

I think it’s because it’s a lvl 50 build

[@keeganbate8935]

@@michaelbeard4883 yeah, you could feasibly get it, but then you're getting into some later level stuff at level 50, which isn't what this build is trying to do

[@dudeskeela]

the real tech is always in the comments

[@Rift04]

@@michaelbeard4883 it's complete different for everyone lol some people beat the game at LVL 50 and some beat it at LVL 150

[@impexxable]

@@Rift04 this video isn't for those people though. You can tell in how he says to use the meteorite staff until late/end game.

[@cozybones4037]

I must say it's absolutely mad how you're able to pump out as many guides as you do. I strongly look forward to your Lv100 Mage guide. Keep it up!

[@lovecheese45]

@@freedmfe8934 yeah but with all the builds they've done, it's pretty awesome.

[@linzengren]

“You gotta use the least FP to deal most the dmg” Me: spams pebble

[@Trojianmaru]

And yet sometimes, it's actually cheaper to use a slightly stronger attack. Like when you hit an enemy with a pebble, and it almost kills them, so you can have to fire a second, but a slightly more expensive spell would of killed them in 1 hit, n cost less than 2 pebbles. But try telling that to my afk brain when I'm in spam mode 😂 that'd require actually stopping to think, much rather spam pebble, then chug estus flasks.

[@Blaublatt101]

pew

[@PopularNobody]

I'm level 128 but you've still given great tips I didn't even know about. Thank you

[@DamaDojo1]

theres rune farms yk

[@leodavies3143]

I decided to drink everytime you said staff. I'm 2:30 minutes in and I think im gonna die before the end of this video

[@Fextralife]

HA!

[@pooldeadpool1535]

Also, pro tip: if you're up against a dodgy enemy and you can't hit them with the pebble, try rock sling. Its slower and costs more but those dodgy bastards dodge a bit too early for rock sling so it's slowness becomes its strength. And to make up for the distance they cover while casting it usually staggers them a bit.

[@Trojianmaru]

Agreed, same reason to use glintstone blade, that delayed cast is great at cheesing cocky enemies who like to roll under your pebbles like they're trying to troll you

[@treasurewuji8740]

They read input so it ends up being stupid

[@DanteYewToob]

Glintstone Arc is absolutely clutch for castles and dungeons. I’m tight corridors you basically send a blade of death that fills the whole corridor and it doesn’t stop on walls or most obstacles… it will clip through corners and some cover, letting you just mow down enemies in the tight spaces without needing to aim or anything. Arc is amazing. It’s fast, great for groups, dominates corridors and it really shines against zombies and foot soldiers.

[@TwIzTed_JeZTeR]

For those watching this now and you haven't read the patch notes for 1.03, *the ash of war: determination will no longer buff your spell damage* this has been updated in the crystal mage guide.

[@KevinLambertperfected]

I also use ambush Shard against enemies with shields a lot. If you lock on to them, it casts from behind them so isn't blocked by their shield.

[@Omni0404]

Shield you say? Hoarfrost stomp, hoarfrost stomp, hoarfrost stomp =D

[@baregum]

@@Omni0404 bro frost stomp is stupid good lol. it's so satisfying to use too.

[@endlessabyss159]

One consideration as a situational substitute for pebble is magic glintblade, it stalls the hit so enemies that dodge spells constantly dodge the CAST but usually not the HIT, have killed several difficult enemies with it Edit: and it only costs 12 fp which isn't too bad, especially if u charge it all the way

[@MrVisualHigh]

Not to mention that it’s great for attacking enemies that haven’t noticed you yet. You can usually queue up several blasts before the first one hits. Also good for shield enemies as you can queue up a shot then reposition yourself so the shot hits them from behind.

[@shinner5382]

Pebble for exploration and glintblade for bosses. The glintblade has poise damage too and will stagger bosses when you hit it several times

[@UnreliableUsername]

I would like to recommend a dagger weapon you can get very early on called Misericorde, it has an insane critical hit at 1.40, its awesome for playing a shadow mage if you get it to just +10 which isnt hard to do and then it hits over 1100 damage on a backstab so you go around backstabbing as many enemies it works on such as humanoid and switch to staff once they know you are there, its gotten me through the game easily so far as a combination and greatly reducing FP cost. Make sure to slap a magic ash of war into it so it gives int scaling

[@katonryuka]

doing the same thing right now, i had my doubts cus of the low base damage but i tested and it makes a lot more critical damage than any other weapon i had

[@Dissius]

Just slap Glintblade phalanx from Rogier's rapier on it and you get a very nice stance-breaking defense spell.

[@gloryordeath1165]

See this is the exact reason why I watch every build video you post even if I'm not necessarily playing that type of build myself, because they all have information in them that does benefit my build or planned future builds. One of my other playthrough characters is kind of a cross between Spellblade Magus and Moonveil Samurai and I was thinking when I should switch from the meteorite staff to an upgradeable one AND which one should it be, and needless to say this video really helped towards answering those questions. Said before but it's worth saying again, thanks for your (and anyone else's if this isn't a solo effort) for all the work you put into all the videos AND the Wiki, no matter what game it is Fextra is always the first and most wiki I turn to

[@mr.frankfurt4986]

I'm currently a level 120 mage, I've put almost 70 hours into my mage run, and Glintstone Pebble does NOT need to be a staple of your gameplay. I have not used it since I was around level 40. There are plenty of ways to make variety work just fine. It is true that it has some of the best damage/cost ratios in the game, but who cares if it is boring as all hell? Just experiment around with different spells that look cool to you and learn which ones are good against which enemies, look for niche uses of spells and have fun. In spite of not being as optimal as other spells, some of my favourite spells that I used in important battles to great success are: Glintstone Cometshard, Night Comet, Shattering Crystal, Cannon of Haima, Star Shower/Stars of Ruin, Carian Greatsword and Meteorite. Some of these really do have terrible damage/cost ratios or are completely outclassed by other, more "meta" spells, but one can of course make them work and they are a ton of fun to use.

[@cherrycola4476]

It stays fun if you say pew with every cast

[@cgeyik]

Bear in mind that this guide is outdated. For example, Determination will not buff the weapon (staff in this case) in your other hand.

[@davidbloedel9814]

Glad you finally did this video! This is the one I’ve been waiting for ever since the first mage video 2 weeks ago. My mage is level 40 atm, so I’ve been looking forward to this.

[@tonydeluna8095]

For sure this game does keep you awake late at night! Thank you for your awesome videos Fextra!

[@blackmushi26]

I've been waiting for this. Thank you so much :) This is my life now this is where I live.

[@Polopollo75]

I'm definitely doing a mage for my 3rd playthrough! (did the dual strength weapons jumping first, gave up after the academy, now blood dragon and I love the bleed and rot! This mage is definitely the ranged build I will need to try for the 3rd playthrough! Learning to use FP per enemy sounds like a challenge indeed!

[@Pokerface-jpg]

lmao doing the same but I beat the game with strength and dex

[@samvincentcash]

Thanks!

[@cjbrickfilmz7248]

Carian slicer is another really good spell for places like caves. Really low FP with pretty high damage

[@Prophallus88]

Determination is nerfed with patch 1.03 and can't be applied on staves as you mention here. "Patch 1.03 : No longer applies the buff to weapons held in the other hand. Preventing the damage increase to benefit weapons that cannot have this Ash of War applied, nor Sorceries or Incantations."

[@DragonKnightX12]

I basically made the same build, but instead of pebble I use Glintstone blade. The one Prisoner starts. It actually does pretty good damage per cost, and another perk is that it's way easier to hit enemies. Some are set to dodge when you cast, so the delay make sure they get hit.

[@apex403]

Thank you sir! I beat the game yesterday with my 2 handed bonk build, and just started a sorcerer last night to go in a completely different playstyle :) Much appreciated

[@ClintMasterFlex]

Man I'm almost level 80 in game and just now learning you can hold that bow spell to do more damage... it's little things like that I miss that can make me so much better... thank you

[@Markness]

Can’t wait for the level 100 version of this! I have a similar build but adding the dagger/spells should make things a bit better.

[@RyuKazeko]

Whenever I respec and switch builds, Fextralife makes a video about that build. I am legit scared at this point because I decided to switch to pure mage and saw this video while fast traveling to grand library.

[@Z-moneyGaming]

You guys dont sleep!! thanks for the awesome guides

[@caffiend81]

Thankfully the spell selection opens up dramatically passed the midgame. I haven't really used pebble for quite some time. It takes way too long to find good alternatives, though.

[@spsanders69]

Awesome videos and content. Truly Appreciate it! Just found your videos and then your Wikis. O my goodness, you have some very well made wikis and content. Thanks! Playing a Samurai up to 38, then got a bit frustrated, and started up a Mage (Astrologer) and it feels like easy mode. So many of the things I had issues going toe to toe with melee wise at well above the level of the content. Then come in with a mage at the beginning and taking down giants and trolls, and now got the meteorite staff and working on gear, already up to 25. I really need to work on the melee style I guess, but crazy what I am taking down without much of a sweat.

[@tonyheckenlively5110]

Dude! Your Ashes of War (Determination) tip is a game changer for a pure mage build. I just slaughtered the Wolf Boss in the academy! Thank you very much!

[@oph1066]

Does this still work or not?I tried this and can see zero difference in the damage

[@schugrasmus]

@@oph1066 doesn’t work anymore since the latest patch.

[@Bretout]

CohhCarnage (Twitch Streamer) Recently showed a video on how equipping a staff in the Off-hand with a "Boost Sorcery" Effect also effects the casting of that type of sorcery in the main hand. So if you are confident with dodging instead of blocking then i reccomend doing that. Instead of using it in the main hand.

[@beejaytea5964]

Imp Head (Cat) is a great option before Queen's Crescent Crown. It was literally the first piece of gear that dropped for me, so very early game too.

[@ScrubbyGames]

Yeah good item no doubt. Took me a little while to get as it's a rare drop, but no more than an hour or so. I also had to put 4-5 levels into endurance as to not become heavy but is worth the investment imo for the INT buff

[@arsonystgamez666]

So, the great (and also pretty funny) part about the meteor staff is that you can get it without fighting any bosses. It's in a ruin in Caelid. It has remarkably low stat requirements (I think astrologer starts with 16 int) so you only need a couple levels, which you will most certainly have by that point.

[@Nejiiix]

Mage from Minute 1 here: Lorettas Greatbow is indeed great. Not only for the situations you described, but also when you don't have much space and know you are facing a harder enemy that might give you hell in a closer combat with Glintstone. Something else I'd recommend is getting Ash of War: Hoarfrost Stomp. It is a cheap Ash of War, that clears out trash-mobs very fast and very efficient at a decent range. Plus, you can already get it in the Lake Area (Caria Manor to be more precise).

[@heyhoojoe]

PSA on staves: staves that boost particular sorceries will apply their bonus even when you cast the spell with the (better scaling) staff in your other hand! Lusat's staff, which boosts ALL sorceries, however, only applies its bonus to spells cast with it. For maximum damage you can cast with Lusat's and passively boost with Prince of Death's, Meteorite, etc. In terms of FP efficiency, this way of boosting spells makes Lusat's even less appealing for general gameplay, but there are situations in which dps is king, and screw the costs.

[@zjflorence]

Thanks for the determination hint. I've been using clayman's harpoon and it's surprisingly good to keep distance when forced to melee.

[@8swat8]

The Imp head helmet is also a really good early gaming option with its +2 Int

[@dennydude]

It took me so long to find one on my mage. But I fully agree, I still have that helmet on!

[@Awf00L]

I'd add a few tips based on my own experience. Another useful nice to have spell is meteor, it's very effective with large bosses/enemies such as dragons, giants and so on, paired with meteor staff it's even more effective, you can easily get the spell right after you get the Loretta one. As for a melee weapon, the best one for a pure intelligence build is the Carian Knight sword, it deals decent damage and scales nice with intelligence, it also requires only 10 dext and strength points, making it possible to save points to invest in intelligence as far as you're not willing to pump up dext/strength for a hybrid style.

[@ArcNine9Angel]

Just used Meteorite against Adula, was amazing when I could get it to land, even better if paired with Terra Magica + flask.

[@PopularNobody]

Prisoner's starting spell is better than glintstone imo. A.I. reacts to spell casting not the actual spell itself and because it's delayed you can usually set up like 5 before the A.I. even approaches you.

[@SteveAkaDarktimes]

can be bought in lakeland.

[@drschwandi3687]

Same with rock sling.

[@YOLOfication]

I was browsing through for a Sorcerer build and 5min later it pop up ... wow thank you

[@Tryptic2x]

Ash of Determination only buffs the weapon it is attached to (in your case the dagger), it wont buff your spells that you sling with your staff (it was changed via patch).

[@travm.6013]

Is that true, I do believe you. All my test after patch 1.04.1 have shown the same thing.

[@Niixxee]

Also swift glintstone shard can be used while running and in the air. It also has a lower fp cost so paired with no cost determination, it's my bread and butter. Yes I've used spells in the air like I'm the shit. Yes it looks very cool

[@Splifyznuts]

Yea I dropped regular shard when I got this. So nice !

[@keaneo1995]

Can't wait for the level 100 video for this build

[@dennisdegroot8003]

Fex, take a look at this: 1) Lightning resistance is LOWER than any other resistance. Try it out, respec and put 99 in faith and then in other stat that give resistance and you will see that the rest is 224 while lightning resistance is at 150... BUG? 2) Armor defense does not properly increase your numbers on your stat sheet. I tried it out of a lot of Armor and I can say with 100% certainty that your Armor stats are higher than your character's stat sheet. Example: 4/4 Bull-goat armor should give Phy 45 but on my stat sheet my Phy is 39... BUG?

[@n9tailsyt26]

beyond helpful! Im level 132 and never knew about those talismans or even thought to run that dagger with determination! but cant wait to see 100 build and see what end game staff to use, Its been a debate between Azur & Lusat

[@nickytwostones]

Lusat hands down

[@8sojdam462]

The Rennala's one😉

[@PaintbrushHero]

Ash of War: Royal Knight's Resolve is even better than Determination for buffing spell damage. Cost the same FP cost but 80~100% more damage compared to 60%. You get it from Volcano Manor.

[@guilhemp1383]

Glintblade staff. It doesn't have the extra cost and the sorceries it buffs are the most useful ones

[@joegreen1591]

Neither of those staves are worth it outside of using them when your FP is free with Physic buff. Meteorite and Boss staff are the only real staves needed.

[@MemeCastGuy69]

Rhis is a dope video, very informative for me where I just picked up the game again n had forgotten tbat I started a magic character like a year ago who is level 65. LoL I gotta say that Radicon magic speed increase was pretty damn mininal when you showed it side by side haha.

[@dereksmidl8352]

Thanks for taking the time to explain this. I was making a mistake using rocksling with what I thought was a more impressive staff based on what I had to go through to get it 😂. I now realize there’s an entirely different way to play this game than my og sword with bloody slash added to it. First ash of war I got and I’ve stuck with has been that and the same basic shield since like 2 hours into my play through. Now after 48 hours I realize going balanced with all stats at level 20 Ive just been doing myself a disservice. I do however have a +3 confessor sword though 😂

[@dereksmidl8352]

Not entirely accurate I don’t have a 20 in mind or arcane as those don’t really appear to affect anything with my obviously poor set-up

[@zarghroth]

Would recommend the magic glintblade spell aswell (prisoner starts with it). Really useful for mounted combat and bosses that roll around a lot

[@nomancave591]

Honestly best spell I've used so far and I've found a lot of others ones. Only lvl 43 though

[@1234lukerr]

​@CrazyCatx Turtle Pope (church of vows)

[@wickeddrac7489]

Honestly one of the better spells as it draws out the dodge from mobs, bosses and invaders, cast it, they dodge and then it hits them, been great to use so far

[@karonmark]

Thanks so much, been waiting for this video of yours

[@jeremyfantana8052]

Ive been running bloodhounds step on rogiers rapier ever since i got the two. (spellsword build) It Doesnt give you any more offense efficiency but is perfect for creating distance and just looks so awesome especially in boss fights.

[@Trojianmaru]

Damn, I been swapping back n forth between Moonveil and bloodhound claws (just can't manage to cheese that night sentinal, or kill him fairly even at Lvl 120, so havn't got the Ash of war) but using it on the rapier sounds really badass.

[@IncredibleEdible1]

I know you're busy good sir but I am so ready to see the lvl 100 version with the update

[@SkeeLoGreene]

I'm running a Spellsword build, but some of the info here was super helpful. Holding on the Metorite Staff will help me save Smithing Stones and runes trying to upgrade other staves

[@coldtruthrg120]

Just a suggestion for people like me who get hit alot, get the serpent god curved sword. It's passive ability gives you health on kills even when you kill something with your sorceries or incantations

[@brokenbiscuit3609]

I'm so glad the weapon has a low strength/dex requirement cause I can actually use it

[@blueveil3277]

Another tip (I guess): There's a better version of Determination at Mt. Gelmir, inside one of the Imp Rooms in the Manor. If it works in a similar way...

[@michaelespinosa9168]

Volcano manor after you jump down the hanging cages is royal knight resolve

[@blueveil3277]

@@michaelespinosa9168 exactly. It's a 80% buff instead of 60% like this one.

[@raptordcuo6879]

@@blueveil3277 What is it called?

[@blueveil3277]

@@raptordcuo6879 Royal Knight Resolve

[@stolatoskc]

I prefer adula’s moonblade then the glint arc. It has good reach as well. I will try the determination ashes. I actually use bloodhound steps which can really dodge anything. Really a lifesaver for quick bosses or enemies.

[@dreadroberts5627]

Me too, but this is a lvl 50 build (I doubt a lot of people have that at lvl 50). It'll likely be included in the lvl 100 build. Also, if you're higher level, then don't bother with determination. Swap it out for the superior 'Royal Knight's Resolve' that you get in Volcano manor.

[@Trojianmaru]

@@dreadroberts5627 honestly I prefer to have a shield and staff in the left hand, and the Moonveil Katana and a melee weapon with bloodhound's step, or a beast torch in the right hand. With 3 weapons and a shield and 20 Endurance, there's no room for any royal Knight weapon. Plus after determination was nerfed to no longer buff spells, I doubt the royal version will buff spells either.

[@dreadroberts5627]

@@Trojianmaru This was posted before the patch

[@lexi0n_]

Really excited for the level 100 builds. I have been playing a mix of your Enchanted and Magus build so far, really fun.

[@Trojianmaru]

And if you check the build page, he isn't even gonna stop at Lvl 100 builds. Lvl 100 builds are Late-Game Builds, n he has a section called End-Game Builds. Maybe Lvl 150, or even higher (till eventually he has 8 different builds where every stat is 99 😂)

[@lexi0n_]

@@Trojianmaru yeah haha, But i wonder how much better it will be. This build already feels very powerful. Absolutely chewed through bosses with my maxed out Tiche summon

[@FlarkeFiasco]

The determination trick is AWESOME! whoa, I had no idea this worked for spells. Some of my favorite midgame spells, in addition to the ones you listed, have been ambush shard, the starlight spell, and the magic glintblade. Ambush is nice for any shielded enemies. Light spell is better than a torch, and gives you a free hand. Costs a slot and a minor amount of FP, but lasts quite awhile. I've seen the tops of caves before where stuff is supposed to fall in you. Really underrated. Lastly, magic glintblade is kind of just busted. Activating a full stamina bar of them before a boss even starts usually takes them super super low right out the gate. Being able to cast at range, then have them gap close and get hit, while you dodge, is incredible. Lastly, as a bonus, I wanted to say I use glintstone cometshard as my "better than pebble" thing. It's still buffed by Roger's gloves, it pierces through enemies, it has good speed, REALLY good damage, and like 30% further distance than pebble. A lot of times, if most of your spells, like rock shard, or pebble aren't one shorting an enemy, just use this and your good

[@moimen06]

A lantern is also better than a torch, frees up the hands, and no need to use a spell slot.

[@ArcNine9Angel]

While I prefer lantern for it's use and forget ease, Starlight does light up the area more from what I can tell and that can be valuable with all the dark places in caves and such. On another note, Rogier's set only benefits 'skills', not spells. So only the glintstone pebble ash of war (maybe a unique one as well I don't know about), so sadly very very niche and next to useless.

[@Princeofunderworld32]

I’m stuck on whether to put determination on my sword as standard or quality lol

[@knaz7468]

One thing I'll add (level 100+ glass cannon sorcerer here) is that one massively overlooked spell in this game is Magic Glintblade. When I first got it and saw the delay in cast-to-hit I was like "why?", but in boss fights when your spirit summons is tanking, magic glintblade is simply unbeatable. You can hyper cast like 10 of them, facing in any direction (so good for horse combat too, or just when running away in general) and then they all auto target and hit. I didn't start using it until very late game where I tried it on a whim, and man ... it is the only thing I use now. I have all the most powerful spells in the game and this one dumb early game spell beats them all. It's also great for NPC invasions which are tough for glass cannon builds ... but with this thing they end up spending all their time trying to roll away from the initial cast, only to be hit by the delayed cast! It's terrific. I highly recommend it. Not needed for day to day trash clearing, only tough fights where u need to unload and be mobile.

[@dexteritycheck]

If you dual wield the Meteorite Staff (off-hand) + Lusats Glintstone Staff (main hand), the dmg boost from Lusats Glintstone Staff applies to Rock Sling ONTOP of the Gravity dmg boost from Meteorite staff. My rock slings were going from 1200 dmg to 1500 dmg with this setup when I upgraded them. I have not tested if you lose the Determination buff if you swap to another offhand, but theoretically you could be throwing Rock Slings out at an increased 80-85% dmg. If you use Marika's Sorceal Talisman as well as Primal Glintstone Blade Talisman, this should offset the higher FP costs of using Lesats + Determination. Rock Sling Meteorite Staff = 1200 damage Meteorite Staff + Lusat's Glintstone Staff = 1500 damage Meteorite Staff + Lusat's Glintstone Staff + Determination = 2200? damage

[@Trojianmaru]

Shame determination no longer works on spells, but I do like the sound of double staff casting.

[@Niixxee]

So pro tip on determination. Let me know how you guys like it. I run a light weapon, but I make sure to run one that I don't have sufficient stats for as well. If you use determination on a weapon that you are not proficient in, it'll activate still with no fp cost! It seems that the animation is sightly faster as well, as it's not truly activating. The goal is to have a weapon that keeps you at medium weight but you cannot proficiently use. This way you can use determination as much as you like without worrying about fp cost. You're not swinging it no way. Happy hunting 😉😉

[@Splifyznuts]

When you say not proficient in , you mean like a weapon that has a higher strength req than what you have?

[@apollosungod6673]

I think when you do that the buff doesn't last as long, but your point still stands tbh

[@Niixxee]

@@Splifyznuts correct. Basically make sure it has the red x. Requirements are 1. Red X, not proficient weapon. 2. That weapon keeps you at medium weight. 3. Your weapon can actually run determination. I'm using urumi, the whip, at the moment

[@Splifyznuts]

@@Niixxee sounds good thanks

[@dennismcdonald9895]

Sure wish I had found your site a 100 hrs. ago. Fantastic advice, thank you!!!

[@ryanmoore3954]

Another awesome build dude thank you! Can’t wait to see the next set of build videos

[@kennyarmstrong4191]

Massive love from Scotland 💙🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 You guys are the only reason I can stumble my way through these Fromsoft games! For some reason I never managed to just "get gud" and need my Fextra sat nav 🤟😊

[@ozberkakbas6157]

How to use ash of war and the magic in the same row. I need to change the wepons all the time to do that but he can go it without changing anything

[@ThERuineDDest]

Glintstone Shard is the exact same damage to fp ratio as Glintstone pebbles, fires twice as fast and takes 1/3 of the stamina per shot. At the cost of about 1 roll worth of range, also the projectile travels at almost double the speed. in 99% of the situation is just a straight up upgrade over glintstone pebbles. Highly recommend using it instead.

[@maiivelicesmecioglu]

Range?

[@TripleDice]

@@maiivelicesmecioglu Range is substantially less unfortunately.

[@acephas3]

Fextraaaaa!!!! So, my brother 1-shotted Radhan. His INT was at least 50, he used Terra Magicus(?), the talisman that lets you charge for much longer, and one that boosts either magic attack. He held it for at least 20 seconds, then released. Radhan didn’t even make it to his second phase.

[@Priwen-CCG]

Also you can use meteorite staff in one hand and say staff of loss on the other and cast invisibility spells like night shard grom your meteorite staff but have it be buffed by staff of loss even without upgrades since it is a passive

[@marcocaballero]

Awesome. My mage build is level 40 and is very similar to this, but Determination would be a great addition to it! Although I really like my Glintstone Sword too…

[@KamelGuru]

No reason you can't use both. Dagger+0 with determination for boosting spells, and Glintstone Sword for stabbing

[@keychainere]

I’m still using the sword. The sword is ace!

[@voidabstraction]

I am using frost Wakizashi in right hand with parry on it, and that 1.40x crit dagger as switch for crits and determination. Still got meteor in left. But I'm somewhere between spell blade/mage. NG+ will get another Wakizashi to dual wield. I feel this way it's a pretty versatile build that's comfortable up close and far away.

[@baregum]

just use dagger for determination only and switch to main sword if things get too close

[@ronniesanders8546]

Take a drink every time he says Staff.

[@sensenmann3000]

The wiki page mentions that this build is outdated and no longer works from patch 1.03 onwards. Why is this not mentioned in the title or description? 🤔

[@bobbehhh]

Can you please change the title or add some type of update? I followed this guide and spent some time getting everything only to find out Determination was bugged and no longer boosts magic damage.

[@travm.6013]

Not bugged, FromSoft changed how Determination works so it doesn't affect spells anymore, it only affects the weapon it is cast on. At least that is what i have heard.

[@plucascreams9517]

Demi-human Staff got to S-scaling at level 17/18. Using it now, but I might use Lusat's staff once I've upgraded it to S-scaling as well.

[@blueveil3277]

I heard that Lusat increases FP consumption of spells (I have no confirmation of this yet) Try the Academy Glintstone staff. It also gets to S scaling, looks cool and got no debuffs.

[@mediumvillain]

Swift Glintstone Shard seems to be more or less a straight upgrade over Glintstone Pebble in terms of initial casting speed & mana efficiency; slightly less damage but costs less FP, is spammable, and fires faster. Paired w Great Glintstone Shard its basically a light & heavy version of pebble, which is a bit more engaging that just spamming pebble. I'm not sure about the range difference, most early spells seem to have annoyingly weak range or a shallow trajectory, and for whatever reason there's no menu page to see a spell's statistics.

[@bobbylambersonjr8562]

Really good guides man. Keep it up. Maybe Bloodblade for the first 100 lvl build? 👀

[@andrewm1857]

New to the game level 30 Astrologer looking to work towards your sorcerer build as i get closer to level 50. Love the video, now going back to watch the earlier ones as i'm still learning how to use casters effectively without dying (I know thats a pretty constant thing in Souls games but still)

[@Demonsthere]

I'm kinda surprised you didn't make a build focused on shields/greatshields, with the guard counter mechanics. I've been running your barbarian builds, but transitioned into Black Iron Tarkus, with a greatshield and greatsword, with most bosses you can just stand your ground and trade hits, or see them bounce off your shield

[@AnimeSquirrel]

I think his paladin/crusader build does this.

[@Splifyznuts]

Have you tried the “Visage Shield”? It’s been in my chest but I been wanting to try it out. But too scared to use tears to swap stats

[@2121Maxx2121]

Didn't the Determination buff for magic get removed in patch 1.03? Just asking so this can be updated at some point, or for anyone looking at this guide for the early game. If I'm wrong, please downvote to oblivion. Thanks!

[@jimjam4366]

Yup, it got removed.

[@9outof10]

Getting Rock Sling early in the game basically re-balances the entire early game. It melts the early bosses and makes the beast sanctuary rune farm much easier.

[@frankarthur6159]

Been waiting for this guide to see if I did it correct

[@holyheadcrabber]

The thumbnail artwork for these build videos are great. Who does them?

[@impexxable]

I'm beyond level 50, but still watch all your videos as I usually learn at least one new thing. I was using the "Burger King" mask and didn't realize that my HP was taking a hit, along with my weight and only for 3 more intelligence over the Queen's crescent. I'm at 70 INT and the 3 extra is not worth it.

[@Trojianmaru]

There's also 2 talisman that give +3int and +6 int. Combined with the int boost juice, and the hat, n you can easily give yourself +20 int. I have nat80 int, and when I combine all my intelligence boosters, I end up hitting 99 Intelligence with some of it going to waste. N honestly that extra 19 intelligence just isn't worth it. Also it won't matter as much now, but once your intelligence gets higher, it's better to use the juice that increases magic damage, instead of increasing Intelligence.

[@noahbuster4333]

Hoarfrost stomp! helps with AOE and does great damage and costs 10FP. The only downside is the range is not that great but the cone is perfection. Beats casting pebble for ever too. I have a sword in one had and my staff in the other and switch based on situation.

[@MrVisualHigh]

Hoarfrost is so broken XD I got through most of the game without it til I got stuck on Malena and looked up a strat that uses it. After that fight the rest of the game was a cakewalk.

[@Cysubtor_8vb]

Was wondering why I hadn't heard of Determination being suggested over the Jellyfish Shield (which is a lower 20% boost yet for 30 seconds) and was fearing I was missing out, but then learned Determination has been fixed in a patch and no longer works this way.

[@IGymClassJosh]

Been patiently waiting on this one thanks!

[@mhazam77]

Mage is very versatile in spell wise. And there is a ton of alternative for glinstone starting spell

[@josueramirez9835]

Bro I didn’t know anything about attribute scaling until this video, thank you 🙏🏽

[@oerwhat]

Can't wait for these upcoming lvl 100 builds 🙌

[@nathansmith9597]

Get a good 1H weapon that scales off Intelligence and doesn't have crazy strength / dexterity requirements. You can blast from range 99% of the time, but you really should have a good weapon (i.e., not a +0 dagger) for crits and backstabs, if nothing else. In practice, you will actually use it for more than that -- "last hitting" to conserve FP, etc. Carian Knight's Sword is a good choice and can be obtained really early if you don't mind going a little out of your way and taking down a caravan. (Not trivial, but doable even at low levels.)

[@kevinsaunders1715]

Look at Lusat's Glintstone Staff, pretty easy to get and way better, strange it hadn't been mentioned.

[@michaelgore9077]

It would be better if the damage increase was more tho im pretty sure it only gives you 10% increase to damage while costing 50% more to cast i like carian regal scepter personally

[@grumd0]

The bit with "Same S-tier scaling = same damage" is wrong IIRC. Scaling can still be different even if two staffs both have an "S" written there. When trying to change the equipped staff between them, you'll see that "S" letter can be red or blue (better or worse). And the damage of the spells will be different. Tested it yesterday with Meteorite and Carian Regal staffs.

[@stavroskechagias5742]

idk if i am doing something wrong but having the dagger in your right hand to use the ashes of war stop you from being able to use your staff while on a horse

[@BronsonA]

I hope the final video he was talking about was the SpellBlade 2.0 vid he mentioned in the Enchanted Knight video, I'm running the SpellBlade at the moment and that got me so hyped to see where it could go

[@Fextralife]

It's called Magus. Check it out

[@BronsonA]

@@Fextralife You are a legend! Thank you for that and for all your other videos, looking forward to watching them all!

[@blackvalio4060]

You have the 12, str and 18 dex so why not moonveil?

[@fullyrekt1538]

Left hand Lusat's staff at +10 :int: S :SS: 339 Azurs Glintstone Crown Right hand: Wakizashi Dagger :Major Knights Resolve Left hand, golden order seal Physick: Cerulean Hidden tear Magic-cracked tear Talisman: Primal Glintstone Blade Radagon Icon Graven-mass Talisman Marikas soreseal Rotation: golden Valor, barswap, Terra Magicus, Physick, Dagger ( Major Resolve), comet Azur.

[@gmtime5439]

If you don’t have it, get Comet Azur spell from Primeval Sorcerer Azur and Cerulean Hidden Tear from the Ulcerated Tree Spirit boss. I one shot Radahn soon after getting these. And when I say one shot I mean I used one spell, once. The spell being Comet Azur. Since then I’ve one shotted two more great rune bosses and a plethora of other bosses and I’m only level 63.

[@mitchell6428]

Everyone has seen the reddit posts. Thanks for sharing for the millionth time

[@gmtime5439]

@@mitchell6428 time for your Ritalin?

[@Tantemify]

Astrologer's first spell Glintstone Pebble is the ultimate spell of elden ring in PvE. Its damage to fp cost efficiency is the best. Aside from Rocksling, the other spells are too slow and too niche and too mana intensive. Come to think of it, i only use pebble and rocksling for almost of all my fights.

[@Cameroo]

Rocksling is best for bosses and ambushing harder monsters. Once they b-line towards you, things get nasty fasty. Then its Glintstone Pebble time

[@agnichannel1466]

Once you have 30mind you wont bother much with cost effective. Its about how fast you melt enemies now. I have been using glintstone shard and right now considering to use comet because its very rare to me to ran out of fp potion.