In preparation for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC coming on June 21, 2024, I built a fantastic starter build, a Cthulhu Inspired build that will melt all aliens. In this guide, we’ll talk about everything you need to know to build this mind build. Without further ado, let’s take a quick look at the summary of this build.

Overview

Starting with the traits, aka the things that define this build. This is either a Strength/Faith/Arcane build or Dexterity/Faith/Arcane, depending on the weapons you decide to stick with.

Since you can’t make monsters in this game disappear just by thinking about them, the next best thing would be Madness status effect. This means this build uses Frenzied Flame Incantations.

To complement the mind theme, it uses weapons with power of mind attacks, namely Regalia of Eochaid and Marais Executioner’s Sword. Then I will try to make it as powerful as possible without detracting from the theme.

Now for the pros. What I can say is that the best thing about this build is the damage, it’s ridiculously high! If you manage to use the weapon skills in this build when the enemy leaves a gap. Besides that, its spells also do a ton of damage, especially the ones used at a distance.

Now let’s look at the cons of this build. First of all, I would like to say that this is a build that works best in New Game+ and above. You can try it on New Game, but the problem is that it is very harsh in the early game because the lack of some early attribute points leads to low damage to early weapons.

And its Madness status effect is almost useless in PVE. But luckily, most build up Madness’ spells also deal fire damage, so the spell itself is not useless.

Also, the armor sets of this build don’t provide a lot of poise, so that’s another aspect that this build lacks. And Sacred Seal and some Talismans take a while to get, and some can even be obtained only on New Game+.

Because of all these cutbacks on this build, it is not beginner friendly. This is indeed a build that requires some gaming knowledge, even if you have experience playing Soul-like games.

Weapons

With the basics out of the way, let’s take a look at the weapons I chose for this build.

We’ll start with the weapon you can get your hands on as quickly as possible, which is Regalia of Eochaid. With this weapon, the stat points will be focused on Dexterity instead of Strength. You only need 12 points of Strength to use it, and then the rest of the build will focus on Dexterity, Faith and Arcane.

The most interesting part of this weapon, of course, is its skill, Eochaid’s Dancing Blade, which is where most of the weapon’s damage comes from. This skill can be charged up to increase damage and attack range.

Beyond that, you can also deal even more damage with another weapon that has almost the same name, but is slower. I present to you Marais Executioner’s Sword.

It works exactly the same as Regalia of Eochaid, but it’s a Greatsword. The skills are the same, it works the same, and it’s used the same way. But if you’re going to use it, the stat points should be focused on Strength instead of Dexterity. You only need 14 Dexterity to use it.

Incantations

Now let’s check out the other part of this build that deals damage, namely Incantations. Start with the obvious: Golden Vow and Flame Grant Me Strength. These are the two support incantations for this build. There’s a third one, which I’ll talk about soon.

Golden Vow increases all sources of damage by 15% and increases damage resistance to all types of damage by 10%. To get it, you need to go to Corpse-Stench Shack in Mt Gelmir. It’s on a corpse inside a shack. Note that when you get close to the shack, an NPC will invade you, but you can rush in and grab it before she appears on the map.

Another support incantation is Flame Grant Me Strength, which combines perfectly with Golden Vow. But it works better in builds that deal fire damage, as it increases this damage by 20%. It’s located behind Fort Gael in Caelid. You can get it early, as it only requires 15 Faith to cast.

Now let’s look at Frenzied Flame Incantations that this build requires. This is an area of ​​effect incantation. When cast, the user will eject a very erratic fireball from their eyes in front of them. As such, it is best used against large enemies or enormous groups, especially when they are not moving fast.

Sacred Seals

Now, let’s move on to Sacred Seals that should be used in this build. This is a fairly simple Seal, Frenzied Flame Seal. As it boosts the damage of Frenzied Flame Incantations by 20%.

To make the most of it, you should get a second one on New Game+, as using two Seals together increases the boost by 40%.

It is one of the best Seals to have early in the game and is fairly easy to get. If you start with a class other than Prophet or Confessor, you can easily buy this seal from Twin Maiden Husks for Elden Ring Runes.

Talismans

Speaking of Talismans, we need to split them into two different sets. One for weapons, and one for more focused spells.

For weapons, Talismans I recommend are: Winged Sword Insignia/Rotten Winged Sword Insignia, Millicent’s Prosthesis, Warrior Jar Shard/Shard of Alexander and Godfrey Icon. These three Talismans focus on increasing the damage of consecutive hits.

Now, we are going to check Talismans to equip when using spells, including: Fire Scorpion Charm, Faithful’s Canvas and Flock’s Canvas. They can greatly increase the damage caused by this build.

The above is all you need to know about assembling this build. Its high damage and fun gameplay experience will leave you with impressive memories in Shadow of the Erdtree DLC!

In preparation for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, which releases on June 21st of this year, I created a great starter build to get a head start on getting into the new expansion, and that’s Maelstrom Rogue Build. But the one weapon you need to complete this build is Crescent Moon Axe.

Crescent Moon Axe is a melee weapon in Elden Ring that has great synergy with Maelstrom Rogue. But it is not easy to obtain this weapon. In this guide, we’ll go over a few locations to farm Crescent Moon and provide some tips on how to make things easier so that your farming process is less harmful to your health.

Crescent Moon Axe Drop Location

This weapon is only dropped by one type of enemy, they are large variants of Exile Soldiers, and they are very rare throughout the game, only appearing in Stormveil Castle and Castle Sol. While these farming spots worked and didn’t take that long, I was wondering if there was a more efficient way. So I investigated these two locations in particular.

To my surprise, I discovered a unique location on Castle Sol that wasn’t covered by any of the locations I’d seen before. So this guide not only covers this location but also the former locations for those looking for this weapon early on.

Stormveil Castle

The first location is right in the middle of Stormveil Castle, on the map. When you arrive at this hall with patrolling Grafted Scion, there is an obvious doorway to the west, where you will find a passage locked by fog that can be opened with a Stoneword Key.

After going down the stairs, clues will lead you to Armory, where there are two large Exile Soldiers that drop Crescent Moon Axe.

Farming Tips

Now, I want to share some tips about farming in this location.

First, start at Rampart Tower Site of Grace. Note, instead of taking the elevator down, go outside and look for this tilted tile, which you can use as a guide to jump to the roof below.

Now, look for the two rats and a lone Exile Soldier. You need to get to where the soldiers are. To do this, first jump to the edge of this wall on the roof, then jump to where the rat is. You’ll take fall damage, but not much. But if you have more Elden Ring Runes, purchasing some consumables can make you safer while exploring.

Regardless of whether you deal with the rats or not, you need to look for the wooden platform where the soldiers are and get down from there. Go through the doorway and you’ll enter the Armory with two tall Exile Soldiers.

Now, there are two ways to get back, depending on whether you use Silver-Pickled Fowl Foot. If not, you can simply open the map and fast travel to Rampart Tower Site of Grace, then repeat the process.

But if you use Silver-Pickled Fowl Foot and don’t want to lose the boost, take the stairs up, turn right, and then turn again for the shortcut elevator. It will take you back to Rampart Tower Site of Grace. Just don’t forget to send it down when you reach the top.

Castle Sol

The second option is at Castle Sol. It’s located in the last indoor area before the boss arena. This is the most efficient option. But this place is only accessible at the end of the game. So this is the best option for high-level characters to farm Crescent Moon Axe.

If you want to get this weapon in the next New Game or something similar, then this must be for you. There are no gimmicks or hidden paths here. It’s very straightforward.

Then start from Church of the Eclipse Site of Grace and follow the south until you find the building in front of the church exit. Don’t go under the stairs as this will trigger some enemies. Instead, head straight for the stairs, turn left and walk a few steps.

Note that there is an Albinauric hanging from the ceiling here, which emits hatred and screams, causing two giant Exile Soldiers to spawn. As soon as he screams, turn around and quickly kill Exile Soldier that appears around the corner, then turn around and kill the second soldier closer to you.

You’ll find a regular Exile Soldier at the back stairs, but you can ignore him. While he can be a little annoying in throwing grenades, it’s still much better than other soldier variants. So, you just kill two Exile Soldiers and run back to Site of Grace and repeat, as it’s not one hit of the soldiers that will drop this weapon.

It’s that simple. On average, it takes about 36 seconds to run to a farming site, defeat two Exile Soldiers, and run back to Site of Grace. If you have access to Mountaintops of the Giants, it’s the most efficient place to farm Crescent Moon Axe. However, you need to be at least level 100 to enter. Therefore, if you want to farm it early, you can only do so in Stormveil Castle.

That’s all we have for Farming Crescent Moon Axe. I hope you found this guide helpful and good luck!