IIRC only the weapon skill Corpse Piler adds fire, so if you’re just power stancing (LB attacks) it with the cold Uchi it will be just bleed damage on each plus the frost. I think this is what Let Me Solo Her used, and it’s still hella strong so yeah there’s that. The Winged Sword Insignia talisman from Stillwater cave boss at the bottom of the southernmost cliff in Liurnia stacks damage from successive hits. It stacks even more with the Thorny Cracked Tear physik, but that’s found on the way to Haligtree which is optional. The Leyndell catacombs in the sewers has a boss that gives the Lord of Blood’s Exultation talisman which also stacks bleed damage.
If you keep a shield in a second offhand slot (Great shield or medium?), Barricade Shield ashes are good to maximize guard boost for using guard counters. Curved Sword talisman boosts that damage.
One of my most fun setups was a strength arcane build using two Grossmessers (one Occult, one Heavy) with a greatshield in a second offhand slot, plus the Dragon Communion seal for dragon breath spells. I’d use guard counters then swap the shield out to power stance the swords (or use Sword Dance which has decent stance damage), then if they weren’t dead yet their stance was usually at least broken to finish them off with whatever dragon spell worked best.
Did you ever get to the underground bloody area via
White Mask Varré’s quest? It has the defacto spot for quick and easy rune farming if needed.
Yes, I went through Varre's quest, and found the farming spot. The question now is what do I dump those easy runes into? I'm at the level now where each level is pretty expensive; farming for stats I've not invested in feels like pissing on a house fire. And I've only got 9 Larval tears left, so enough to experiment, but not so many that I can do so anytime I want.
I think this is why I'm such an inefficient
Elden Ring player; I don't have the time or patience to study and tweak all the little knobs that could maximize a build, and
Elden Ring has no shortage of knobs; it's got knobs coming out of its ears. There's just so much you
can do, it's hard to know what you
should or
could do. And so we're clear, I'm not faulting the game; it's amazing. It's just too complex for my caveman brain. Like if Google Maps gave you every possible route to your destination, then shrugged and said "There could be traffic, accidents, road closures, etc. at any given point, but I'm not gonna tell you about any of it; figure that shit out."
I think a lot of my problem is the heldover simplicity from Dark Souls 1. I'm used to "find a weapon you like, upgrade it, dump into the stats that make it hit harder, go kill shit."
Elden Ring? Ashes of war, weapon affinities, talismans, great runes, power-stancing, mixed physic flask, etc.; there's so many ingredients
without a recipe! I feel like I'm in the kitchen with my grandfather who makes amazing food, but when asked how he does it: "Oh, y'know, some salt, a little pepper, a dash of garlic powder, a handful of onions, put it in the oven at the right temperature, then you eat it when it's done."
Thanks, Papa; not helpful at all, but thanks.
It's been a while since I've assessed my assigned talismans (given 90% of the ones I have either don't apply, or don't offer enough benefit to appreciably change my struggle,) perhaps I have overlooked one in the vast array that might actually be helpful.
