What Are The Best Builds in Dark Souls 3?
There are many different builds available in games that allow as much customization as Dark Souls 3. Some of them are for PVE (player versus environment) and others specialize in PVP (player versus player). Here we’ll show you some of the top builds created by our community of dedicated players.
5. Pure Sorcery Glass Cannon Mage, PVE
Introducing the glass cannon. This build is for 100% ranged DPS. It is primarily PVE focused, but can be adjusted for PVP if need be. Essentially you will become a powerful yet squishy spell slinger.
Build Guide:
- Starting class: Sorcerer
- Max potential reached at soul level (SL) 120
Stat Goals:
- 40 Vigor – to give around 1600 embered HP
- 40 Attunement- for around 300 FP with 6 spell slots available
- 12 Endurance- so that you can cast at least 2 spells without running out of stamina
- 10 Vitality- To give a little wiggle room for equipment load to keep the fast roll
- 8 Strength- to allow the early use of a decent shield
- 12 Dexterity- the base you start with
- 60 Intelligence- the cap before diminishing returns
- 15 Faith- for tears of denial
- 12 Luck- the base you start with
Suggested Rings:
- Bellowing Dragon Crest Ring- increases magic damage by 20%
- Young Dragon Ring- increases magic damage by 12%
- Magic Clutch Ring- increases magic damage by 15% but give -10% absorption
- Lloyd’s Sword Ring- give 10% to all damage at full HP
- Red Tear stone Ring- all damage increased by 20% when below 20% HP
- Dusk Crown Ring- reduces FP cost of spells by 25% but lowers max HP by 20%
- Sage Ring- reduces casting time of spells (equals +30 Dexterity)
- Linger Dragoncrest Ring- increases spell durations by 30%
- Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring- silences movement, helping avoid detection
Suggested Gear:
- Crown of Dusk- adds 10% to spell damage, but -30 magic resistance
- Scholar’s Candlestick- adds 25% buff to spell damage
- Dark Hand- can be used as a shield in the left hand and has 0 equip load
- Court Sorcerer’s Staff- at +10 with 60 INT has the highest spell buff in the game
- Crystal Sage’s Staff- with 60 INT gives 207 spell buff, but can buff your spells by 40%
Suggested Spells:
- Flash Sweat
- Power Within
- Tears of Denial
- Crystal Homing Soulmass
- Crystal Soul Spear
- White Dragon Breath
- Great Heavy Soul Arrow
- Farron Flash Sword
- Hidden Body
- Spook
- Great Magic Shield
4. Ashen Knight, PVE
The Ashen Knight is your basic build created for melee tank and spank game play. You will deal reasonable damage and be able to take a beating. It does not focus on magic and can carry you through multiple NG cycles as a quality build.
Build Guide:
- Starting class: Knight
- Max potential is reached at level 120
Stat Goals:
- Vigor- 25
- Attunement- 10 (base)
- Endurance- 27 (allowing enough stamina for multiple swings and guarding)
- Vitality- 15 (base)
- Strength- 40 (below cap)
- Dexterity- 40 (below cap)
- Intelligence- 9 (base)
- Faith- 16 (enough to wield one of the weapons for the build)
- Luck- 7 (base)
Suggested Rings:
- Havel’s Ring- allowing for additional carrying capacity
- Chloranthy Ring- give increased stamina regeneration
Suggested Gear:
- Broadsword (early game)
- Sunlight Straight Sword (primary weapon)
- Black Bow of Pharis (secondary)
- Shield of Want (left hand)
- Knight armor set (early game)
- Lothric Knight armor set (primary)
3. Righteous Punishment, PVE/PVP
This build is all about faith. It is usable in PVE and very effective in PVP. Few enemies through the game have resistance to lightning and every dragon is weak to it. So get ready to bully those bosses and own on some plebs.
Build Guide:
- Starting Class: Assassin
- Max potential reached at level 125
Stat Goals:
- Vigor- 25
- Attunement- add any points not going into required stats when leveling
- Endurance- 20
- Vitality- optional
- Strength- optional
- Dexterity- 30
- Intelligence- optional
- Faith- 60
- Luck- optional
Suggested Rings:
- Morne’s Ring- casting mode
- Ring of the Sun’s Firstborn- casting mode
- Lloyd’s Sword Ring- casting mode
- Lightning Clutch Ring- casting mode
- Chloranthy Ring- melee mode
- Hornet Ring- melee mode
- Leo Ring- melee mode
- Ring of Favor- melee mode
- Sage’s Ring- PVP mode
Suggested Gear
- Estoc or Rapier infused with lightning at 40 faith
- Estoc or Rapier raw before 40 faith
- Preferably armor that keeps you in fast roll (<30%)
- Staff for casting Spook
- Pyromancy hand for early game buffing
- Saint’s Talisman- for 42+ faith
Suggested Spells:
- Magic weapon- early game
- Carthus Flame Arc- for those time when the enemy may be lightning resistant
- Lightning Blade- imbuing weapons with additional lighting damage
- Great Lightning Spear- end game
- Lighting Spear- early game
- Sunlight Spear- from Carthus Worm
2. Yuria of Londor Build, PVE/PVP
We all love our cosplay. What better to play than the most mysterious of characters within the game. Yuria is loyal to the Ashen One if you have treated her friend correctly and will therefore appear in the Firelink Shrine where you have the option to do her questline, allowing you to get her gear at the end of the main story or kill her. Beware though, she is no small challenge. This build is fast and offensive.
Build Guide
- Starting class: Deprived
- Max potential reached at level 89+
Stat Goals:
- Vigor- 43+
- Attunement- 15+
- Endurance- 40
- Vitality- 10 (base)
- Strength- 10 (base)
- Dexterity- 30+
- Intelligence- 10 (base)
- Faith- 10 (base)
- Luck- 10 (base)
Suggested Rings:
- Chloranthy Ring
- Ring of Favor
- Carthus Milk Ring
- Untrue Dark Ring
Suggested Gear
- Dark Drift +5 (Yuria’s blade)
- Dark Hand (purchasable from Yuria for 12k souls)
- Yuria’s armor set
- Black firebombs
- Throwing knives
1. The Fume Build, PVE
One of the most popular stats in all Dark Souls series is strength. The feeling of power that you have behind the swings of the mightiest weapons is indescribable. The Fume sword is the mightiest of them. It can effectively carry you through the game world.
Build Guide:
- Starting class: Knight
- Max potential is reached at level 100+
Stat Goals: During leveling, you want to keep strength, dexterity and endurance pretty equal until maxing out and completing the build.
- Vigor- optional
- Attunement- 10 (base)
- Endurance- optional
- Vitality- 15 (base)
- Strength- 60 (optional)
- Dexterity- 50 (optional)
- Intelligence- 9 (base)
- Faith- (base)
- Luck- 7 (base)
Suggested Rings:
- Havel’s Ring +3- needed for the heavy sword and armor
- Chloranthy Ring +3 - for increased stamina regeneration
Suggested Gear:
- Any great sword (early game)
- Fume Ultra Great Sword (primary weapon)
- Armor that is light, keeping you hopefully around mid-roll (<50%)
There are many builds available for Dark Soul’s 3. Here we have just touched on five of the most common and powerful of them. Each player can create a build of their own or take one of these. Get out there and let’s see what you can do!
