How To Add Ash Of War To Weapons

Elden Ring Ashes of War explained

(Image credit: Bandai Namco)

Elden Band Ashes of War add abilities to your weapons, altering their scaling, adding new attacks and more. Used well, these are powerful damage modifiers that tin open up the gainsay options of anything you can apply them to. Information technology's a powerful tool in Elden Ring that will let you become the all-time from weapons, or even adapt them to builds they aren't initially suited for - how about adding magic scaling to a strength based weapon?

Information technology's not a complely obvious system though, meaning you lot might need some help mastering the Elden Ring Ashes of War options. Especially as you'll take to become out into the Elden Ring world to find them - you can merely use the ane's you find/have and while you'll encounter some easily enough, some are tucked away in odd places.

Information technology tin can be worth taking the time to track some of them downwardly however, especially if you desire to adjust a weapon for a build it wasn't meant for. While some Ashes of War add new assail or defence moves, some can link a certain stat to a weapon and make information technology scale accordingly. So if y'all've put all your points in Organized religion or Intelligence you can still wield strength based things effectively. We'll explain how Elden Ring Ashes of War works below. Nosotros'll also cover various Whetblade locations and how to utilize this additional tool to alter weapon Affinities.

What are Ashes of State of war in Elden Ring?

Elden Ring ashes of war — (Image credit: Bandai Namco)

Elden Ring Ashes of State of war are basically enchantments. However you can have them off and reapply them as much as you like to any weapon y'all want at Sites of Grace. While these Ashes of War can exist changed freely, any given Elden Ring weapon can hold only at a time.

Each Ash of War adds a Weapon Art - some sort of special power that nosotros'll explicate how to use further down - and an Affinity that affects it'south damage scaling stats. When yous apply them to a relevant slice of gear, they practise the post-obit:

Change the weapon's Affinity to raise sure stats and scaling and lower others.
Replace the existing Weapon Skill, if it has one, with a preset skill.

It's besides worth keeping in mind that Elden Band Ashes of War are limited to certain weapon and gear types. For example, the Ash of War: Thunderbolt can just exist practical to melee weapons, not whatsoever other equipment. Similarly, the Ash of War: Parry skill but works on shields and sure small armaments.

Allow'south say yous acquire the Ash of War: Holy Ground, either because you're the Prophet Form or you beat the Tree Sentinel and take it off them. You can remove it from any shield at a Site of Grace and put it on any other ane. When you do, it'll boost Holy Damage, increase certain stats, but penalise others, including physical impairment negation. It too takes away the shield's specific skill - probable the Parry, if it'due south a standard shield - and replaces it with a unique skill chosen Holy Ground, which allows you to create a circle in which you and all allies regenerate health.

Just to clarify, it's important not to confuse Ashes of War with Spirit Ashes, the Elden Ring summons items that create NPC allies and can be bought from various merchants or found. Despite very similar names, at that place'southward no real overlap between the two particular types beyond being magical in some manner.

How to use Elden Ring Ashes of State of war on weapons

Elden Ring ashes of war menu — (Paradigm credit: Bandai Namco)

Become more Runes with the Elden Ring Golden Scarab Talisman

Elden Ring golden scarab runes cleanrot knights — (Paradigm credit: FromSoftware)

Did you know the Aureate Scarab Talisman will permanently boost the Runes you lot get? Check out how to go the Elden Ring Golden Scarab right here!

It'south simple enough to apply Ashes of War to your equipment in Elden Ring - when y'all're at a Site of Grace, rest next to it and select the 'Ashes of War' carte option to manage all your endemic Ashes. Hither you can remove or utilise them to whatsoever compatible gear y'all have. This process is gratis and tin can be done whenever you lot desire. It's too useful to know that whatsoever gear y'all remove the Ashes from volition render to its default land, then to carry on the above example, the shield you take Holy Ground off volition get the Parry skill and standard stats back.

In this card yous tin also run into how unlike Weapon Arts piece of work and what their FP cost is (that'south the blue bar between your wellness and stamina). More powerful weapon skills will obviously cost more than FP, then bear in that in listen. You'll also exist able to meet how y'all weapon harm scaling changes based on the Affinity that gets applied - further down, we've got a section all near the different Affinities, so look at that place for more than advice.

With an Ash of War equipped, you can utilise its Weapon Art skill by pressing the LT/L2 on your controller. However, it'southward of import to know that sure you tin just always use 1 Ash of War as some tin can override others depending on your equipment loadout. Your active Ash of War is always shown on the left of your screen above your equipment slots.

For example, if you're using a sword and only a sword, pressing LT/L2 will always utilize the sword's skill. Although, if you're using a sword and a shield with the parry skill, the parry will ever override the sword. To avoid this, you can either remove the Parry Ash of State of war from your shield, apace put away your shield, or two-manus your weapon to also put away the shield.

Elden Band Ashes of War Affinities explained

Elden Ring ashes of war affinities menu — (Image credit: Bandai Namco)

As previously mentioned, Ashes of State of war requite Elden Ring weapons a Weapon Fine art skill and an Affinity. The Affinities other than Standard will more often than not ameliorate ane particular damage scaling stat and will reduce the others, making your weapon very specialised to a particular stat. Bear in mind that not any weapon can take whatever affinity - information technology'll depend on the weapon itself. Hither are all the weapon Affinities besides as what they practice:

Standard: Default damage scaling that is more often than not balanced across several attribute stats.
Heavy: Boosts Strength damage scaling. Good for large weapons.
Peachy: Enhances Dexterity damage scaling. Good for lighter weapons.
Quality: Slightly boosts Strength and Dexterity. A prissy improvement over Standard scaling - if you don't know what else to pick, choice this 1.
Magic: Lowers default scaling but adds Intelligence damage scaling and splits weapon harm to Physical and Magic damage types.
Sacred: Weakens default scaling but adds Faith damage scaling and splits weapon damage to Physical and Holy impairment types.
Fire: Reduces default scaling just splits weapon damage to Physical and Fire damage types.
Flame Art: Weakens default scaling but adds Organized religion impairment scaling and splits weapon harm to Concrete and Fire damage types.
Lightning: Weakens default scaling simply boosts Dexterity scaling and splits weapon damage to Concrete and Lightning impairment types.
Poison: Enhances Force, Dexterity, and Arcane weapon damage scaling, and adds Toxicant build-upwards to attacks.
Cold: Lowers default scaling just boosts Intelligence scaling and add Frostbite build-up to attacks.
Blood: Reduces default scaling merely adds Cabalistic scaling and Bleed build-up with attacks.
Occult: Weakens default scaling but adds Arcane impairment scaling and prevents undead enemies from being revived.

Elden Ring Whetblade locations

Elden Ring ashes of war glintstone whetblade — (Epitome credit: Bandai Namco)

Affinities are tied to Ashes of State of war, but past finding special items called Whetblades yous tin expand your options, each one essentially adding two or three new Affinities to your roster. Find them all and you'll effectively be able to add together any Affinity to any compatible weapon. We've listed their locations below for you to check out.

Whetblade locations
Whetblade	Affinities	Location
Whetstone Knife	None (used to employ Ashes of War at Sites of Grace)	Gatefront Ruins, Limgrave: The soldiers camp by the Stormgate. Discover the stairs in the Southeast side to notice a treasure chest with the Whetstone and the Tempest Stomp Ash of War.
Iron Whetblade	Keen/Heavy/Quality	Stormveil Castle, Limgrave: Behind a Stonesword Key door on the W side of the Castle past the Grafted horror with many artillery.
Glintstone Whetblade	Magic/Cold	Raya Lucaria Academy, Liurnia of the Lakes: After killing the Red Wolf, head West at the courtyard fountain and head up the gradient to find a corpse on a balcony by some kneeling undead.
Red-Hot Whetblade	Fire/Flame Fine art	Redmane Castle, Caelid: From the Chamber Outside the Plaza Site of Grace run back by the flamethrower turrets and take the Northwest path towards the tower straight ahead. Evade the Fe Maiden and once you're within, you should find the Whetblade.
Sanctified Whetblade	Lightning/Sacred	Fortified Estate, Leyndell, Purple Capital: Climb the dragon's fly from the Artery Balcony Site of Grace, then head left and up the wooden balcony when y'all reach the main doors. Caput inside the petty side-door to find the Whetblade on an anvil.
Black Whetblade	Poisonous substance/Blood/Occult	Night'southward Sacred Ground, Nokron: Found on a corpse in front of an altar in the church.

How to get more than Ashes of State of war in Elden Ring

Elden Ring ashes of war gravitas reward — (Paradigm credit: Bandai Namco)

Elden Ring Ashes can exist establish in all style of means, much in the same way that weapons and armor can exist plant all over the place. Hither's how you can happen across or buy Ashes of War in Elden Ring:

Equally rewards for defeating bosses or unique enemies.
Institute in hard-to-accomplish areas blocked by enemies.
Pre-equipped on certain weapons.
Can be bought from sure merchants, such as Bernahl at the Warmaster'south Shack in Limgrave
You tin indistinguishable Ashes of War you already own by providing Smithing Master Hewg with Lost Ashes of War.

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and raconteur with a Masters from Sussex University, none of which has actually equipped him for anything in real life. As a result he chooses to spend near of his time playing video games, reading old books and ingesting chemically-risky levels of caffeine. He is a house believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by calculation a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another only to be safety. Yous can find old work of his at USgamer, Gfinity, Eurogamer and more than likewise.