Elden Ring's DLC has expanded the game's already massive arsenal, giving players more ways than ever to customize their builds and dominate both PvE and PvP. While strength and pure intelligence builds often steal the spotlight, dexterity-faith hybrids remain one of the most underrated and versatile playstyles in the game.
In this guide, we'll break down a powerful Dexterity. This build revolves around weapons that scale effectively with dexterity and faith, offering strong damage, unique Ashes of War, and powerful utility effects. From healing denial to debuffs and chip damage, this setup gives you the tools to control fights and overwhelm opponents.
Why Choose a Dexterity-Faith Build Elden Ring Items?
Dexterity-Faith builds occupy a unique niche in Elden Ring's meta. Instead of focusing purely on raw damage, they emphasize flexibility, utility, and pressure.
With this hybrid approach, you gain access to:
Fast, responsive weapon movesets
Holy-based Ashes of War
Buffs and defensive incantations
Healing denial and debuffs
Strong ranged and close-range options
This makes the build ideal for invasions, duels, and chaotic multi-player encounters. You're not locked into one playstyle-you can adapt on the fly depending on the situation.
Core Weapons for the Build
The heart of this setup lies in its weapon selection. Each weapon serves a specific purpose and excels in different scenarios.
Tree Spear
The Tree Spear is a standout choice and a personal favorite for many dex-faith players.
Key strengths include:
Excellent range
Strong thrusting moveset
Unique charged heavy double-thrust
Solid PvP pressure
Unlike many special weapons, the Tree Spear can be buffed despite having faith scaling. This gives it a major damage advantage when paired with incantations, allowing it to outperform similar weapons when properly enhanced.
Its range and mix-up potential make it ideal for spacing, chasing opponents, and controlling narrow areas.
Spear of the Impaler
This weapon shines thanks to its multi-stage Ash of War. The ability has three possible follow-ups, letting you adjust your attack based on enemy reactions.
Many players still struggle to dodge this skill consistently, making it especially deadly in invasions. It excels at catching panic rolls and punishing hesitation.
When used properly, the Spear of the Impaler becomes a high-pressure tool that forces mistakes.
Winged Scythe
For invasions, the Winged Scythe is one of the strongest utility weapons in the game.
Its Ash of War temporarily blocks enemy healing when it connects. In team fights or prolonged encounters, this is incredibly powerful.
Once an opponent is unable to heal, they become vulnerable to chip damage, pressure, and coordinated attacks. This makes the Winged Scythe perfect for targeting hosts and high-priority enemies.
Black Knife
The Black Knife provides excellent finishing power and sustained pressure.
Its Ash of War applies a damage-over-time effect that burns away enemy health. Even if opponents dodge part of the attack, they still take residual damage.
This makes it perfect for:
Finishing low-health targets
Forcing panic rolls
Pairing with healing denial
Wearing down tanky enemies
When combined with Winged Scythe's healing block, the Black Knife becomes a lethal tool for closing fights.
Sacred Relic Sword (Debuff Utility)
The Sacred Relic Sword offers strong AoE pressure and a debuffing Ash of War that removes enemy buffs and negates flask effects.
In invasions, where players only get limited flask uses, this ability can be devastating. Removing their Physick effect or buffs puts them at an immediate disadvantage.
This weapon shines in group fights and tight spaces.
Talisman Setup
The talisman loadout for this build focuses on survivability, damage, and consistency.
Crimson Amber Medallion +3
Boosts maximum HP, improving survivability in extended fights.
Erdtree's Favor +2
Increases HP, stamina, and equip load. This is essential for maintaining mobility while wearing heavier armor.
Two-Handed Sword Talisman
A must-have for this build. Since most weapons are used two-handed, this provides a consistent 10% damage boost.
Bull-Goat's Talisman
Armor and Fashion
Armor choice is flexible, but this build leans toward moderate tankiness.
Recommended pieces include:
Circlet of Light
Beast Champion Armor (Altered)
Bull-Goat Gauntlets
Bull-Goat GreavesThis setup provides strong defense and poise while maintaining decent mobility. The Circlet of Light also grants small stat bonuses to faith and arcane.
As always, fashion is subjective. As long as you maintain medium rolls and sufficient poise, feel free to customize.
Stat Allocation
Stat distribution is straightforward for this build.
Primary: Dexterity
Most weapons scale better with dexterity than faith, so this should be your highest offensive stat.
Secondary: Faith
Invest enough faith to meet weapon requirements and use key buffs. Faith also enhances holy damage and utility incantations.
Support Stats
Vigor: High priority for PvP
Endurance: Supports stamina and equip load
Mind: Moderate investment for Ashes and buffs
Avoid over-investing in faith at the expense of dexterity unless you want a more caster-oriented variant.
Buffs and Incantations
Faith gives you access to valuable buffs that enhance survivability and pressure.
Golden Vow
Boosts attack and defense. A staple buff for invasions.
Blessing's Boon
Provides passive HP regeneration, helping you stay in fights longer.
Elemental Defense Buffs
Situational buffs can be used against magic-heavy, fire-based, or lightning-focused teams.
These buffs allow you to adapt to enemy compositions and gain small but meaningful advantages.
Invasion and PvP Strategy
This dex-faith build thrives in invasions thanks to its layered utility.
- Control Healing
Open fights with Winged Scythe whenever possible. Blocking healing shifts momentum immediately.
Once healing is denied, switch to Black Knife or pressure weapons to drain HP safely.
- Apply Debuffs
Use Sacred Relic Sword or similar tools to remove buffs and Physick effects. This weakens coordinated teams and limits comeback potential.
- Abuse Range and Spacing
Weapons like Tree Spear excel at controlling space. Use thrust attacks, crouch pokes, and charged heavies to keep opponents at bay.
Spacing is crucial when facing multiple enemies.
- Manage Crowd Control
In 2v1 or 3v1 scenarios, prioritize casters and support players. Use terrain, choke points, and elevation to limit angles of attack.
Pots, AoE Ashes, and narrow corridors all work in your favor.
- Mix Aggression and Patience
This build rewards controlled aggression. Push when healing is blocked or buffs are down, then reset when pressure rises.
Avoid overcommitting in group fights.
Advanced Combat Techniques
To master this setup, focus on these mechanics:
Roll-catching with thrust attacks
Jump attack mix-ups
Ash of War feints
Crouch pokes in tight areas
Hyper armor trades
Combining these techniques with utility effects makes you extremely difficult to counter.
Strengths of the Build
This dexterity-faith setup excels because it offers:
Multiple healing counters
Strong chip damage
High adaptability
Excellent spacing tools
Strong buff synergy
Viability in both duels and invasions
Few builds provide this level of versatility.
Weaknesses to Watch For
Despite its strengths, the build has limitations:
Lower burst than pure strength builds
Reliance on buffs
Moderate FP management
Requires good positioning
Good fundamentals are essential for consistent success.
Conclusion cheap Elden Ring Runes
The Dexterity-Faith build is one of the most underrated and rewarding playstyles in Elden Ring's DLC. By combining fast weapons, holy utility, healing denial, and debuffs, this setup gives you unmatched control in PvP and invasions.
Weapons like the Tree Spear, Winged Scythe, Black Knife, and Spear of the Impaler provide answers to nearly every situation. When paired with strong talismans, smart stat allocation, and effective buffs, this build becomes a versatile powerhouse.
Whether you're hunting hosts, surviving 3v1 encounters, or testing your skills in duels, this dex-faith setup rewards adaptability, timing, and smart decision-making.
