Are Range Weapons Op?

It’s no secret anymore that any player can make just about any weapon good once they mess around with it enough. Bows have always had a special place for me because I love the archer playstyle, so when I picked up Elden Ring for the first time I went straight for the bow. It didn’t take long to find out just how strong ranged weapons could be, and that you could adapt them for almost anything. That’s not to say that they’re the best, or the easiest to play. But when played right there are Jar Cannon fighters that can kill Malenia, and Greatbow builds that can one shot Radahn in new game+.

Ranged weapons basically break down into four groups: Bows, crossbows, greatbows, and ballista. Each of them have their uses and their drawbacks, but it was really easy to ignore weapons like ballista because they’re just so slow and clunky. You also have weapons like crossbows which don’t scale with any stat which can make them hard to fit into a build that relies on scaling.

There are plenty of ranged weapons to choose from, and it got really easy when I made this list to almost completely forget about some of the crossbows and ballista weapons in the game. That all said, I ended up making my list on each of the following factors: Availability, diversity, and damage.

That all sounds a bit pompous but it all mattered when I really thought about it. So what does it all mean? Well it basically means just how much value can I get out of the weapon. 

Availability was a big key factor for this list. There are a lot of good weapons like the Albinauric bow which have the highest damage output of any of the standard bows in the game. The problem is that the bow is found so late in the game that it really can’t be useful until the player is on their second playthrough. By that point I had all but locked into the Pulley Bow for its range and had enough damage boosting to not worry about the few extra points. 

Diversity was the next big ticket item for the list. Can the weapon be customized, how many builds can it be used in, and how far can it get me through the game? Being able to use a weapon is great, but if it’s too niche it ends up getting forgotten in the chest after a while.

The last big factor is just straight up power. This is usually equal parts damage stats and scaling, but range weapons are some of the worst scaling weapons in the game so that became less of a factor over the stats. In some cases, a weapon made it higher on the list because of what it could do, but if a weapon can’t scratch a boss, it doesn’t do much for you when it matters most. So damage is a big player in several of the weapons that ended up making the top of the list. 

 

Ranking the Top 12 Ranged Weapons

There are 25 ranged weapons in the game, every list has to have its limits. This list is my top 12 ranged weapons across all four categories based on their power, availability, and diversity.

 

12. Jar Cannon

Stats: 

• Physical (192)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 15.0
• Skill: Kick
• Requirements: Strength (34), Dexterity (12)

The Jar Cannon made the list for one reason and one reason only, damage, damage and more damage. This is the only ballista that made my list, mostly because Ballista just aren’t that great. The Jar Cannon has the most straight damage of any ranged item in the game, and just for the damage and the ammunition it can use is enough to make this weapon good, even against the hardest bosses in the game. 

• It may be pretty unwieldy, but the Jar Cannon does a huge amount of damage from the moment you get it. The Cannon starts at 192, but scales to 672 with the proper upgrades.
• The Jar Cannon is like the Crossbows because it doesn’t scale. But that means that a lot of effort can be put towards maxing out stats like the Strength stat needed for the Jar Soldier build.
• Several of the bolts like the Explosive bolt and the Lightning Greatbolt do quite a bit of AOE damage to small enemy groups. What the cannon lacks in mobility it makes up for in mass damage
• The Jar Cannon has an interesting glitch that allows it to put its damage on normal arrows or bolts. I've seen this referred to as a full auto cannon build, but it's really just a gimmick that may or may not eventually be smoothed over by the Elden Ring staff. While it works though, it's easy to see anywhere ranging from 700-1200 damage per shot when using your bow as long as the jar cannon is in your backup hand

 

Location:

The Jar Cannon is found in the Volcano Cave just north of Mt. Gelmir. The weapon is dropped by the boss, Demi-Human Queen Margot, at the end of the dungeon crawl so it does require a boss fight to get it.

Map Location:

 

Video Location:

 

Builds and Essentials:

Glass Cannon Build

• Helm Options: Hierodas Glintstone Crown, Imp Head (Fanged)
• Boot Options: Champion Gaiters, Night's Cavalry Boots
• Chest Armor Options: Champion Pauldron
• Glove Options: Champion Bracers, Night's Cavalry Gauntlets
• Alternate Hand Options: Black Bow, Misbegotten Bow, Serpent Bow

Glass Cannon Basic Tutorial:

Jar Soldier Build:

• Helm Options: Jar
• Boot Options: Radahn's Greaves
• Chest Armor Options: Eye Surcout
• Glove Options: Champions Bracers
• Alternate Hand Options: Gargoyle's Greatsword, Magma Wyrm Maker
• Consumables: Fire Pot, Oil Pot, Giantsflame Fire Pot, Volcano Pot
• Arrows: Explosive Greatbolts, Lightning Greatbolts, Fire Greatbolts

Jar Soldier Build Tutorial:

 

Talismans:

• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Blue Dancer Charm (Glass Cannon Build)
• Starscourge Charm
• Shard of Alexander
• Jar Warrior Shard
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Fire Scorpion Charm (Jar Soldier Build)

Spells:

• Flame, Grant Me Strength
• Theodrix's Magma

 

 

11. Crepus's Black-Key Crossbow

Stats:

• Physical (68)
• Range (47)
• Weight: 5.0
• Skill: Kick
• Requirements: Strength (14), Dexterity (16)

The Black-Key Crossbow and Pulley Bow both made the list for one major reason, range. Crossbows don't scale and can't be altered with ashes of war or magic, which means you can't do much with them. But the Black-Key Crossbow can be a faithful companion for who needs a strong backup piece.

• The Crepus Black-Key Crossbow has a range of 47, which makes it almost as long ranged as a normal bow or a greatbow. If you end up using the Arrow's Reach Talisman, this crossbow has some great range to hit the targets and get in your status effects earlier.
• One of the big reasons that Crepus's Black-Key Crossbow makes the list is the fact that it can be picked up early on. It's found at the Roundtable Hold, making it very easy to grab and start powering
• Crossbows don't scale, something I don't really understand in the Souls franchise. That being said, this one is well balanced, and it makes it pretty easy to get into the crossbow builds. Or it just gives you one extra tool for when you need it.
• The Crepus Black-Key Crossbow doesn't necessarily come with its own special bolts, but the Black-Key Bolts definitely share a name with it. What makes these fun is that they inflict scarlet rot damage, and anyone with a good arcane build can make use of having that option in their back pocket. The same is true for the bleed build, which this crossbow can use with the burred bolts.

 

Location:

You can find the crossbow fairly early on in the Round Table Hold. It requires a key to unlock the statue, but once the player gets to the Hold, they basically get the Crossbow for free right away. This does require progressing the storyline to get to this point, but really you can just do a speed run past the enemies to get to the sites of grace that you need to get to in order to get to this weapon.

Map Location:

Video Location:

 

Builds and Essentials:

Sniper Bleed Build

• Helm Options: White Mask
• Boot Options: Champions Gaiters
• Chest Armor Options: Fell Omen Cloak
• Glove Options: Royal Remains Gauntlets, Champion’s Bracers
• Alternate Hand Options: Reduvia's Dagger, Shield of the Guilty
• Bolts: Lordsworn Bolts, Explosive Bolts, Lightning Bolts, Burred Bolts,

Talismans:

• Arrows Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Kindred of Rot's Exultation
• Lord of Blood's Exultation
• Radagon's Soreseal

 

10. Full Moon Crossbow

Stats: 

• Physical (50)
• Magic (50)
• Range (42)
• Weight: 4.0
• Skill: Kick
• Requirement: Strength (10), Dexterity (10), Intelligence (14)

Crossbows rarely make my list because they don't scale well, they can't be customized with ashes of war, and they can’t really be changed to match any builds. So why does the Full Moon Crossbow make the list? Accessibility and reliability.

What really makes this weapon good is that it technically stacks 100 damage split between two stats. That makes it one of the strongest hitting range weapons early in the game. But it also works well as an accessory to magic builds, and can work in a pinch to take down tougher enemies.

• Between the Physical and the Magic damage, most of the time the Full Moon Crossbow can land 100, and that makes it the hardest hitting crossbow in the game. There are risk factors against enemies with magic resistance, but most of the time this crossbow gets it done pretty quickly
• Finding the Full Moon Crossbow takes some out of the way searching, but the merchant selling Meteor Bolts is very easy to find. That means right from the start the player has access to infinite ammo for this weapon
• The Full Moon Crossbow is basically just a more Strength and Intelligence build since it relies so heavily on magical backup. Luckily there are a whole stash of talismans, armors, ashes of war, and skills that buff up magic in Elden Ring. The Full Moon Crossbow comes ready with a dedicated build that can make it a threat even to the demigods when the player uses it right.

 

Location:

The Full Moon Crossbow is found in a bell tower in the Raya Lucaria Academy. The player can start at the Debate Parlor Site of Grace and then travel up to the rooftops. The crossbow is found in a bell tower, out of the way a bit, on the southern and western side of the academy.

 Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Magic Bowman Build

• Alternate Hand Options: Digger Staff, Wing of Astel, Carian Glintblade Staff, second Full Moon Crossbow, Troll Knight's Sword
• Chest Armor Options: Spellblade's Travelling Attire, Lazuli Robe, Fell Omen Cloak
• Glove Options: Spellblade's Gloves, White Reed Gauntlets,
• Boot Options: Spellblade's Traveling Boots.
• Helm Options: Blue Hood, Spellblade
• Arrows: Meteor Bolts

Talismans:

• Arrows Sting Talisman
• Arrows Reach Talisman
• Shard of Alexander
• Warrior Jar Shard
• Magic Scorpion Charm- increases magic damage
• Ritual Swords Talisman- Raises attack power when HP is full

Spells:

• Any Phalanx Spell
• Rennala's Moon
• Freezing Mist
• Terra Magica

Video Build:

9. Red Branch Shortbow

Stats: 

• Physical (65)
• Range (29)
• Weight: 2.5
• Skill: Barrage
• Requirements: Strength (8), Dexterity (16)

The Red Branch Shortbow isn't my favorite light bow on the list, but I really appreciated it early game. It was one of the first weapons I picked up, it scaled really well with dexterity builds, and it has a longer range than the Misbegotten bow. The bow doesn't hit that hard, but with the barrage skill it works as a good backup bow for some longer-range aspects and can be good for dancer builds.

• The Composite bow and the Red Branch Shortbow are basically tied for their stats, but if you're going for a lighter build, the Red Branch Shortbow is just slightly lighter in weight. It's not much, but it can be enough to make a difference for some of the talismans that improve damage output.
• The Red Branch Shortbow is one of the bows that is easily upgraded and easily customized with Ashes of War. If you want to change the way it fires, this bow can easily be modified to suit your needs.
• The Red Branch Shortbow has the barrage skill, which makes it a faster bow to use than the Composite bow that it competes with. When it comes to status effects and other skills that come from arrows, the faster rate of fire is important for getting status effects to trigger.

 

Location:

The Red Branch Shortbow is a drop that can be found by killing pages and high pages in any of three locations: Leyndell Royal Capital, Tombsward Ruins, and the Royal Moongazing Grounds. The bow has a 4% drop rate, but it can be obtained pretty quickly with some patience and farming.

Map Location:

This is the Tombsward Ruins location which is the easiest place to farm this bow early in the game

Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Builds:

The Red Branch Shortbow isn't really a bow that a lot of builds are made around, but it serves as a decent smaller version of the Black Bow or a longer ranged alternate to the Misbegotten Bow. I usually use the bow for a backup to builds that focus on sleep, poison, or bleed effects.

Talismans:

• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Green Turtle Talisman
• Winged Sword Insignia

Arrows:

• Stormwing Arrow- The reason I choose Stormwing Arrow over the normal arrow most times is because it's the normal arrow with longer range, more power, and better poise damage. You can also get the materials infinitely to make them by handing over the right bell offerings to the twins at the Roundtable Hold.
• Status and Elemental arrows should be chosen by whatever suits your build strength. These bows are just meant to deliver the type of damage you want to cause to your opponent

Ashes of War:

• Barrage
• Mighty Shot
• Rain of Arrows

Video Build and Demonstration:

 

8.  Albinauric Bow

Stats: 

• Physical (82)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 4.5
• Skill: Mighty Shot
• Requirements: Strength (7), Dexterity (18)

It was a hard choice to choose between the Albinauric bow and the Erdtree bow, but I had to end up with the Erdtree Bow because of the fact that it has more potential around it. Both bows are found later in the game and the big problem with the Albinauric bow is that it is found so late that the player is running up against soft cap walls at this point.

But even with that issue, the Albinauric bow makes for a fun bow in the NG+, and it hits hard. It's also a very customizable bow, and I really like to swap back and forth between the Albinauric and the Black bow for the same kinds of specialty builds.

• The fact that the Albinauric Bow hits as hard as it does is great because it means more damage. If you're using it for sniping that means that it recovers a little bit of that lost damage once the arrows start to drop off. It also just adds a bit of extra punch to elemental builds, so even in the late game it can be that small difference that takes out tougher enemies.
• The Albinauric Bow is one of the bows that can be imbued with a different Ash of War. This is really useful because we already have a bow with barrage in the Black Bow, and Mighty Shot as a skill for the Pulley Bow. Since the Horn Bow gets used mostly for magic builds, that leaves the Albinauric Bow open for one of my favorite Ashes of War, the Rain of Arrows.
• The Albinauric Bow is beautiful because it just takes normal smithing stones. I love my fancy bows, but the fact that you can max it out so easily once you find it makes it my favorite choice for adding a little punch to my sniper builds.

 

Location:

This weapon is dropped by the Albinauric Archers that can be found in the Consecrated Snowfield, around the Ordina Liturgical Town sight of grace. There is also an Ordina Evergaol that has a few rooftop archers that can be hunted to try and get the drop. The bow has a 4% drop rate, so it's not the most common item to get, but it is a nice bow to get your hands on, even if it is for an NG+ build.

Map Location:

Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Sniper Build

• Helm Options: Albinauric Mask (for status buildup builds), Ash-of-War Scarab (Reduces FP consumed by special abilities), Black Knife Hood, Greathood (Goldeneye holy build), Lazuli Glintstone Crown (Magic Bowman Sniper), Mask of Confidence (For status buildup builds like the bloody bowman)
• Boot Options: Night's Cavalry Greaves
• Chest Armor Options: Fell Omen Cloak, Night's Cavalry Armor
• Glove Options: Night's Cavalry Gauntlets
• Alternate Hand Options: Staff of choice for spell casting, or a light bow for close range combat)
• Arrows: I favor stormwing arrows for breaking enemy stances at long range. For any other arrow it depends on the type of damage, or type of status you want to inflict with your customization.

Elemental Bow Build

• Helm Options: Ash-of-War Scarab (Reduces FP consumed by special abilities), Black Knife Hood, Greathood (Goldeneye holy build), Lazuli Glintstone Crown (Magic Bowman Sniper), Mask of Confidence (For status buildup builds like the bloody bowman)
• Boot Options: Night’s Cavalry Greaves
• Chest Armor Options: Night's Cavalry Armor, Fell Omen Cloak
• Glove Options: Night's Cavalry Gauntlets,
• Arrows: Any arrow that deals some kind of elemental damage. The Magic and Fire builds are usually the easiest to buff up, with help of spells like Flame, Grant Me Strength

Talismans:

• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Green Turtle Talisman
• Milicent's Prosthesis
• Winged Sword Insignia

Ashes of War:

• Rain of Arrows
• Mighty Shot
• Enchanted Shot

Video Build and Demonstration:

 

 

7. Misbegotten Shortbow

Stats: 

• Physical (68)
• Range (25)
• Weight: 3.0
• Skill: Barrage
• Requirements: Strength (16), Dexterity (8)

The Misbegotten Shortbow is, arguably, the best short bow in the game. You sacrifice a little bit of range, but get the hardest hitting light bow pretty early on if the player goes south from the starting point. This bow is also scaled better with strength than dexterity, so with a little tweaking this bow can be easily worked into any strength focused build.

• The average light bow sits at about 65 for physical damage, but the Misbegotten Shortbow sits at 68. Three points isn’t that much but it still makes it the hardest hitting short bow in the game.
• The Misbegotten bow scales with both Strength and Dexterity, although it scales a bit better with strength. Most of the strength oriented builds are barbarians or berserkers so there isn’t too much in the way of range with these.  But having a small bow that can take a few quick shots at the enemy in the middle of battle is really handy for me, especially when I’m navigating areas like dungeons or the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds on the pipes. 
• If you're not against doing speed runs, this bow can be picked up almost right after leaving the starting area. Misbegotten are not the strongest enemies, even if they can be annoying. It's not a bad strategy to get used to your play style, pick up some good gear while farming, and pick up this bow right after leaving the first steps.
• All of the light bows seem to work pretty well for horseback archery because they don’t make Torrent slow down when he’s running. Normally having a shorter range would be a downside but I’ve noticed that in mounted archery, I usually end up fairly close to the enemies anyways. 

 Location:

The Misbegotten Shortbow is a dropped item from the enemies around Castle Morne and Morne Tunnel on the Weeping Peninsula. The drop rate is about 2% so it requires a little farming, but it's worth it since you can use the resources from farming to immediately upgrade it.

Map Location:

Video Location:

Horseback Archer Build

This isn't really a build so much as a way to fight. Fighting on Torrent can be a critical play style against a lot of enemies, and this bow seems to work really well for closer range hit and run tactics. The focus of the build is anything that buffs your dexterity and strength.

 

Talismans:

•  Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Blue Dancer's Talisman
• Radagon's Soreseal
• Starscourge Heirloom
• Lance Talisman
• Winged Sword Insignia

Video Build and Demonstration:

 

 

6.  Black Bow

Stats: 

• Physical (70)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 4.0
• Skill: Barrage
• Requirements: Strength (9), Dexterity (20)

The Black Bow is one of the legacy weapons in the game and that makes it nostalgic, but as far as the normal bows go, it's not overwhelming. Most of the other specialty bows have a little more punch, but the Black Bow is actually one of the most consistent and scales really well. But what makes it so special is it is the most mobile, and the most build diverse weapons in the game.

• The Black Bow has a base damage of 70 which isn’t that good compared to other bows. However the bow is a normal bow that is made to play like a shortbow which makes it stronger than any other shortbow, and faster than any other normal bow. All that mobility really makes up for its lackluster attack power.
• The Black Bow is just consistent. It scales well, and it can be found early enough that you can use it throughout most of the game. It also stays useful, even in the late game where a lot of ranged weapons tend to lose their edge.
• The Black Bow is a default range weapon in a lot of builds just because it's a simple bow that delivers arrows fast. Barrage makes it great for status buildup and the bow gives plenty of mobility to elemental builds.

 

Location:

The Black Bow can be found before beating Malekith on a rooftop near the Avenue Balcony site of grace. Once you appear at the grace, just run down the stairs and sprint to the left to avoid the archer waiting there. Go over the railing down into the streets and there should be a turnoff to the right going up some more stairs. Keep left from here up to the rubble that lets you get on the rooftop while avoiding the undead enemies here, then hop the rooftops until you find the corpse with the bow near the circular roofs. 

Map Location:

Video Location:

Best Builds:

Black Bowman Build

• Left Hand: Erdtree Seal, Frenzied Flame Seal, Sacred Order Seal (The one I have)
• Head: Black Knife Hood, Okina Mask, Skeletal Mask
• Armor: Black Knife Armor, Nox Swordstress Armor, Raptor's Black Feathers, Champion Pauldron, Fell Omen Cloak, Sage Robe, Battlemage Robe, Etc. The goal of the armor is to keep the weight as low as possible while also giving yourself whatever protection or buffs you can fit in.
• Glove Options: Royal Remains Gauntlets, Spellblade Gloves, Warrior Gauntlets. I chose Royal Remains because they have a slow healing rate if you lose health. But if you run a magic hybrid build, it's a good idea to run the Spellblade set picked up from Rogier at the Roundtable Hold.
• Boot Options: Confessor Boots, Champion Gaiters, Bandit Boots. Ideal boot weights should fall under 5lbs if possible. I try to keep my options no heavier than 6.5 if I can sacrifice weight in another area.
• Arrows: Arrows, Stormwing Arrows, Fire Arrows, Spiritflame Arrows, Lightningbone Arrows

Video Build:

Bloody Bowman Build

• Helm Options: White Mask, Silver Tear Mask, any helm that boosts arcane or dexterity.
• Boot Options: Any pair of lighter boots, Champion Gaiters
• Chest Armor Options: Marais Robe, Black Knife Armor, Raptor's Black Feathers, Champion Pauldron, Fell Omen Cloak, Battlemage Robe, etc. The goal of the armor is to keep the weight as low as possible while also giving yourself whatever protection or buffs you can fit in.
• Glove Options: Royal Remains Gauntlets, Spellblade's Gloves, Champion’s Bracers, White Reed Gauntlets. The ideal weight for gloves should be under 3, ideally under 2. I chose Royal Remains because they have a slow healing rate if you lose health. But if you run a magic hybrid build, it's a good idea to run the Spellblade set picked up from Rogier at the Roundtable Hold.
• Alternate Hand Options: Shield of the Guilty, Reduvia's Dagger, Bloody Uchigatana,
•  Arrows: Bloodbone Arrows, Serpent Arrows, Stormwing Arrows

Talismans:

• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Blue Dancer's Talisman
• Winged Sword Insignia
• Radagon's Soreseal
• Prosthesis-Wearer Heirloom
• Lord of Blood's Exultation

Video Build:

5.  Pulley Bow

Stats: 

• Physical (77)
• Range (55)
• Weight: 5.0
• Skill: Mighty Shot
• Requirements: Strength (11), Dexterity (11)

If you're a sniper, this is the bow for you because it has the best bow range in the game. Not only that it hits harder than the average bow and it's fairly easy to handle. There's no doubt that it delivers on what it does, which is make for a perfect long-range sniper, or be a useful tool for the player that likes to whittle down a strong enemy from far away.    

• Most of the standard bows in Elden Ring have 50 for their range, including the Greatbows. The Pulley Bow has 55 range instead, making it the precision bow of the entire game. Once it's paired with the Arrow's Reach Talisman, it has the longest reach by far of any bow, which is made even longer with Stormwing Bone arrows.
• The Pulley Bow isn't just a long-range bow, it also has one of the higher straight damages of any bow, starting with a 77. This makes it middle of the pack, but it still makes it the third strongest of the seven bows you can get. Even if it’s weaker than the Longbow in direct power, it still beats it in range and scaling.
• The Pulley Bow scales better than just about any other bow in the game. If the player is going for a high-level archer build, the bow consistently performs even the Albinauric bow once the player hits 40 Strength and 40 Dexterity. This seems high, but once you make the build yours, the bow can be put up against most greatbows.

Location:

            The Pulley Bow is found on a corpse that is on top of the siege tower just north of the Gelmir Hero's Grave site of grace.

Map Location:

Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Sniper Build

• Helm Options: Albinauric Mask (for status buildup builds), Ash-of-War Scarab (Reduces FP consumed by special abilities), Black Knife Hood, Greathood (Goldeneye holy build), Lazuli Glintstone Crown (Magic Bowman Sniper), Mask of Confidence (For status buildup builds like the bloody bowman)
• Boot Options: Champions Gaiters, Night's Cavalry Greaves, Trousers
• Chest Armor Options: Raptor's Black Feathers, Fell Omen Cloak, any light armor to increase Blue Dancer Talisman benefits
• Glove Options: Spellblade's Gloves, Night's Cavalry Gauntlets
• Alternate Hand Options: Staff of choice for spell casting, or a light bow for close range combat)
• Arrows: I favor Stormwing arrows for breaking enemy stances at long range. For any other arrow it depends on the type of damage, or type of status you want to inflict with your customization.

Talismans:

• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Blue Dancer Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Winged Sword Insignia

Pulley Bow Build and Demonstration:

 

4. Serpent Bow

Stats: 

• Physical (75), 
• Poison Buildup (15)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 3.5
• Skill: Mighty Shot
• Requirements: Strength (8), Dexterity (15), Arcane (11)

The Serpent bow is probably one of my favorite bows, and one of the best-looking bows in Elden Ring, but that's not the best reason for it. If you need a reason, the answer is poison. By itself it has 15 poison buildup, but poison is one of the easiest builds to get into, and with this bow it's one of the stronger game builds.

• Poison is one of the better bows builds in the game, just in general. Poison buildup is easy to stack, there are plenty of poison-based support spells, and there is even armor dedicated to it. The Serpent Bow is just an all-around good weapon, and it's very easy to create a strong build with this bow as a main damage dealer.
• It doesn't matter which type of arrow you get; this bow always deals 15 in poison buildup. But with the Serpent arrows, that number jumps right up to 93. Even with the weaker crafted arrows, this bow deals a solid 65 in poison buildup and that's enough to get any enemy feeling the poison fast.
• This bow starts out with 75 damage without the poison and that makes it one of the more solid bows in the game for damage. That really just leaves the Pulley Bow and the Albinauric bow with more damage per shot, but neither of them deal status effects as well.

 

Location:

The Serpent Bow is found in a pool of rot at the back of the Abandoned Cave in Caelid. The cave is in the Dragonbarrow area just east of the Smoldering Wall site of grace. You can find the entrance on the cliff side fairly easy, then jump down with Torrent.

Map Location:

Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Poison Archer Build

• Helm Options: Silver Tear Mask, Mushroom Crown
• Boot Options: Fingerprint Greaves
• Chest Armor Options: Fingerprint Armor,
• Glove Options: Godskin Noble Bracelets
• Alternate Hand Options: Black Bow, Coil Shield, Venomous Fang, Serpentbone Blade
• Arrows: Serpent Arrows, Poisonbone Arrows, St. Trina's Arrows, Stormwing Arrows

Talismans:

• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Shard of Alexander
• Kindred of Rot's Exultation
• Milicent's Prosthesis

Poison Archer Build:

 

3. Horn Bow

Stats:

• Physical (65)
• Magic (30)
• Range(50)
• Weight: 4.5
• Skill: Mighty Shot
• Requirements: Strength (10), Dexterity (14), Intelligence (12)

The Horn Bow is basically the key weapon for any player trying for a Magic Bowman build. With the magic damage, the bow churns out a solid 95 in base damage from the bow, with arrow damage added onto that.  Whether it's the main weapon in a Magic Bowman build, or a backup weapon, the Horn bow makes pretty quick work of enemies even in the late game.

• This bow is found in the Siofra River area which means that you can find it pretty early on, even if you’re exploring outside your recommended area because it is recommended level 50-60. I like magic marksman builds a lot though so it doesn’t take too much to just hop over to mistwood to find the way down to Siofra. 
• Being able to customize your bow is a huge deal and the Horn Bow can be customized with ashes of war and upgraded with smithing stones. That makes it easy to keep leveled up and matching your place in the game pretty much from start to finish.
• The Horn Bow is the bow made specifically for magic damage and it does it well. Spellblade and Sorcerer builds both benefit from Dexterity and Intelligence scaling which makes this bow fit right in as a way to save FP and still deal magic damage with Rain of Arrows or Mighty Shot.

 

Location:

You can find the Horn Bow on a corpse under the bridge that leads up to the Hallowhorn Grounds. This is located right next to the Siofra River Bank site of grace, following a path down the riverbank until you reach the bridge.

Map Location:

Video Location:

Builds and Essentials:

Magic Bowman Build

• Alternate Hand Options: Digger Staff, Wing of Astel, Carian Glintblade Staff
• Chest ArmorOptions : Spellblade's Travelling Attire, Lazuli Robe, Fell Omen Cloak
• Glove Options: Spellblade's Gloves, White Reed Gauntlets,
• Boot Options: Spellblade’s Trousers
• Helm Options: Mask of Confidence (boosts arcane), Okina Mask (Higher dexterity build), Queens Crescent Crown (For spellblade builds), Spellblades Pointed Hat (spell and frost buff),
• Arrows: Dwelling Arrows, Magicbone Arrows, Spiritflame Arrows

Talismans:

• Arrows Sting Talisman
• Arrows Reach Talisman
• Shard of Alexander
• Warrior Jar Shard
• Magic Scorpion Charm
• Ritual Swords Talisman
• Primal Glintstone Blade

Basic Magic Archer build:

Glinstone Magic Marksman dedicated build:

 

 

2. Golem Greatbow

Stats: 

• Physical (130)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 14.5
• Skill: Through-and-Through
• Requirements: Strength (24), Dexterity (18)

 

The Golem Greatbow is pound for pound the strongest bow in the game, and it hits like it too. I usually favor the Lion Greatbow for most of my builds because it's lighter and has a specially made build, but the Golem Greatbow has its own unique powers that make it strong enough to take on even the toughest enemies. 

• The Golem Greatbow has the highest physical damage of any of the bows in the game with a strong 130. Even needing 18 Dexterity and 24 Strength doesn't seem that hard to deal with when you figure that the bow is capable of taking out most enemies pretty easily.
• The one-shot builds for the Golem Greatbow and the Lion's Greatbow make them worthwhile, even if they take a bit of dedication to make. Not every build is created equal, but these have a good means of dropping enemies pretty easily once you put it together.
• Lion's Greatbow is a great weapon, but it also requires killing one of the tougher optional demigods to get it. Then Golem Greatbow can be found in multiple locations by killing Golems, which means it's a lot easier to get than trying to prepare for a boss fight with Radahn.
• It's no secret that Greatbows have some pretty long times in between firing arrows. But like many of the Greatbows, the Golem Greatbow can almost double its firing speed when combined with jumping.

 

Location:

• One can be found on the Limgrave Tower Bridge in Stormhill.
• You can find two on the path towards the colosseum in Caelid by defeating the golems. These are also the only source of Golem's Magic Arrow.
• One can be found on top of the Grand Lift of Dectus in the Altus Plateau.
• One can be found outside the entrance of Castle Morne, at the southern tip of the Weeping Peninsula.

Video Location:

 

Builds and Essentials:

Golems 'I-H-K' Build

• Helm Options: Black Knife Hood, Lazuli Glintstone Crown, Imp Head (Fanged)
• Boot Options: Night's Cavalry GreavesChest ArmorOptions : Night's Cavalry Armor, Spellblades
• Glove Options: Night's Cavalry Gauntlets
• Alternate Hand Options: Lion's Greatbow, Morgott's Curved Sword, Troll Knight's Sword
• Arrows: Golem's Great Arrow, Golem's Magic Arrow, Radahn's Spear

Talismans:

• Shard of Alexander
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman

 

Video Build and Demonstrations:

Radahn Kill Demonstration:

 

 

1. Lion Greatbow

Stats: 

• Physical (120)
• Range (50)
• Weight: 9.5
• Skill: Radahn's Rain
• Requirements: Strength (22), Dexterity (18)

            

The Lion's Greatbow is hands down the best bow in the game for the player. It hits hard, has infinite ammo for the player to easily get, and has a build that can put down even some bosses in one or two hits. It may be a nightmare trying to kill Radahn to get it, but this bow is definitely worth it in the end.

• Both the Golem Greatbow and Lion’s Greatbow have players that make 1-H-K builds around them in New Game+. But Lion’s Greatbow has a special skill that can strengthen certain arrows fired from the bow. That gives it just a little bit of edge and makes for a niche, but strong way to stack up damage.
• Radahn's Rain is essentially the Rain of Arrows skill but for a single greatbow. Rain of Arrows is a strong ability, especially against large opponents. But being able to drop a dozen or more arrows on the enemy for the price of one is a great little skill to have. 
• Most of the other Greatbows in the game run in the neighborhood of 14 lbs per weapon, but the Lion's Greatbow comes in at a nice 9.5 instead. This means that even
• All the Greatbows only need 2/3 strength to equip, and Lion Greatbow has lower stat requirements than other greatbows. If you’re trying to dedicate yourself to a heavy damage bow build, then this bow is probably one of the easiest greatbows to equip.

 

Location:

Defeat Radahn and take his remembrance to the Roundtable hold. It can be traded there for the Lion Greatbow along with Radahn’s Spears.

 

Builds and Essentials:

“1-H-K” Build

• Helm Options: Ash-of-War Scarab, Okina Mask, Imp Head (Fanged)
• Boot Options: Night's Cavalry Greaves
• Chest ArmorOptions : Night's Cavalry Armor
• Glove Options: Royal Remains Gauntlets, Zamor Bracelets, Night's Cavalry Greaves.
• Alternate Hand Options: Lion's Greatbow
• Arrows: Radahn's Spears, Golem's Magic Arrow

Talismans:

• Shard of Alexander
• Arrow's Sting Talisman
• Arrow's Reach Talisman
• Ritual Sword Talisman
• Winged Sword Insignia

 

Video Build:

 

 

Archers of the Lands Between

There is no doubt that bows take a dedicated player. They don’t scale well compared to multiple other weapons, and they require a lot of farming or finesse to play. But ranged weapons are probably one of the most underrated groups with the most overpowered potential. The right build can easily take out demigods in a single shot, or compete with the fiercest enemies in the game. 

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