There are tons of weapons you can dual wield in Elden Ring, but which ones are the best so far?
Dual wielding weapons in Elden Ring is a mechanic that grants you access to a different moveset as long as the weapons you’re dual wielding belong to the same class. This is akin to Dark Souls 2’s powerstancing, except that you don’t need 1.5x the stats required for a weapon to powerstance.
In Elden Ring, all you need is to meet the basic stats requirement of the weapons you want to dual wield, and you’re good to go. It goes without saying that apart from unlocking a unique moveset, dual wield builds are also pretty powerful given the right weapons.
If you want to unlock the full potential of a dual wield build, then here are the best dual wield weapons in Elden Ring you want to consider:
10. Cross-Naginata
Spears really do well when dual wielded. Their running attacks are good at rollcatching in PVP, and the fact that you can poke two spears at the same time increases their overall damage output.
One spear that does particularly well in this regard is the Cross-Naginata. Compared to your typical spears, however, Cross-Naginata has the moveset of both a spear and a halberd in one. This means you can switch between thrusting and slashing attacks with this weapon.
This mixup makes it somewhat unpredictable when fighting either invaders, phantoms, or hosts. Its powerstanced attack also has a short recovery time, so you can follow up another attack right after the first one. This is by far my favorite spear in the game, and it’s something you want to try dual wielding too.
Cross-Naginata Stats:
- Physical damage: 122
- Default Ash of War: Impaling Thrust
- Causes blood loss buildup (50)
Why Cross-Naginata is Great:
- It has a unique moveset compared to other spears
- Both running and jumping attacks are great when dual wielded
- Shorter recovery time during attacks when powerstanced
How to Get Cross-Naginata:
See Cross-Naginata in Action:
9. Estoc
Rapiers are unsurprisingly efficient when it comes to pressuring your opponents with thrust attacks. The fact that they have a faster attack speed compared to spears makes them ideal if you want to play an aggressive playstyle while poking your enemies to death.
The Estoc, in particular, performs really well in this kind of playstyle, especially if dual wielded. For one, it boasts of the second highest base damage among thrusting swords, second only to the Cleanrot Knight’s Sword. It’s only a 2-point difference, but the fact that it’s way easier to obtain means you can use it earlier in the game.
Second, it has a longer reach than the Cleanrot sword which makes it a bit better for lunging toward your enemies. You can even slap an Ash of War into this weapon to make it even more effective. Either go for Bloodhound’s Step to easily dodge attacks and close the gap between your target, or my personal favorite, Glintstone Pebble, for that very sweet stagger.
Estoc Stats:
- Physical damage: 107
- Default Ash of War: Thrusting Sword
Why Estoc is Great:
- Great for poke attacks
- Has a fast moveset when dual wielded
How to Get Estoc:
See Estoc in Action:
8. Hoslow’s Petal Whips
Whips are a pretty underrated weapon in Elden Ring, but as long as you mastered them, you’ll be able to dish out devastating damage, especially if dual wielded. Hoslow’s Petal Whips stand out in that regard considering it has an innate blood loss buildup into it.
Apart from that, you can also change its affinity and Ash of war, meaning if you want to add another status buildup, you can just slap either Cold or Poison affinity to it to inflict two status effects onto your target.
What makes this weapon devastating when dual wielded is the fact that its jumping attack inflicts heavy poise damage. You can even stunlock several enemies throughout the game, and it has a pretty long reach and a wide range to add to that!
I’d say this is one of the most formidable whips in the game. The only downside is that it’s available pretty late into the game, but that just makes it all the more worth it.
Hoslow’s Petal Whips Stats:
- Physical damage: 110
- Default Ash of War: Kick
- Causes blood loss buildup (55)
Why Hoslow’s Petal Whips is Great:
- Heavy poise damage from its jumping attack
- Long reach and wide range
- Applies status effect really quickly
How to Get Hoslow’s Petal Whips:
See Hoslow’s Petal Whips in Action:
7. Urumi
Urumi is yet another formidable whip that’s a bit unique compared to other whips in that it has both slash and thrust attacks. This adds a bit of mixup to the weapon which, in turn, makes it unpredictable during PVP.
It gets even better when dual wielded as its jumping attack is capable of inflicting heavy damage against your target. It’s also one of the few weapons that can get to S scaling when fully upgraded. For this one, however, you’ll need to add the Keen affinity and level up your Dexterity considering that it’s a Dex-based weapon.
Urumi Stats:
- Physical damage: 101
- Default Ash of War: Kick
Why Urumi is Great:
- Amazing damage when dual wielded and using jumping attacks
- Can go up to S scaling with the Keen affinity
How to Get Urumi:
See Urumi in Action:
6. Antspur Rapier
The Antspur Rapier is one of, if not, the best thrusting swords in the game for one good reason: it’s the only thrusting sword that has a scarlet rot buildup. Also, unlike other weapons in the game that have scarlet rot buildup, the Antspur Rapier in particular can be infused with an Ash of War, meaning you can apply a different affinity to it.
What this means is that you can put either Frost or Poison affinity to it, and you’ll be able to inflict two status effects on your target at the same time. However, if you apply the Seppuku ash of war and activate it, you’ll be applying three different status effects!
Then of course, you can dual wield another Antspur Rapier and apply either Frost or Poison affinity (whichever isn’t applied on your mainhand), and you’ll be able to apply FOUR status effects.
Since thrusting swords have a pretty quick attack speed in general, it simply means you’ll be able to apply those status effects in no time. It gets even faster when attacking them while dual wielded.
Antspur Rapier Stats:
- Physical damage: 98
- Default Ash of War: Impaling Thrust
- Causes scarlet rot buildup (55)
Why Antspur Rapier is Great:
- It’s one of the very few weapons with an innate scarlet rot buildup
- Can be infused with an Ash of war and have its affinity changed
- Allows you to apply up to 4 different status effects when dual wielded
How to Get Antspur Rapier:
See Antspur Rapier in Action:
5. Coded Sword
If anything, I would say the Coded Sword is a very underrated sword, but there are a few reasons for that. First, it only deals Holy damage, so if you want to maximize this sword, you’ll have to build a Faith-focused character. And second, some enemies in the game have very high resistance against Holy damage while a few are even borderline immune.
However, when dual wielded, this weapon shines in the PVP scene for one simple reason: it’s unblockable. This makes it a strong counter against players who rely on turtling using spears and the Fingerprint Shield. Since this weapon goes through shields, that would make the turtling strategy pretty much useless.
Also, its Ash of War deals a good amount of damage at a decent range. The only problem is that it has a long windup which gives plenty of time for enemies to either run away or punish you while you’re locked in the animation.
When dual wielded, I could say it’s one of the best weapons in the game. It has considerable range, decent damage, can go through shields, and can’t even be parried. If you want to rock a lightsaber-type weapon, then this is it!
Coded Sword Stats:
- Holy damage: 85
- Default Ash of War: Unblockable Blade
Why Coded Sword is Great:
- Perfect for Faith builds as it deals Holy damage
- Can go through shields and can’t be parried
- Doesn’t suffer from “weapon bounce” when attacking shields or certain enemies like the Miners
- Its Ash of War performs a sweeping attack that deals high Holy damage
How to Get Coded Sword:
See Coded Sword in Action:
4. Godskin Peeler
The Godskin Peeler is hands down one of the best twinblades in the game. I’d argue that it’s way better than Eleonora’s Pole Blade since it doesn’t rely on its Ash of War to deal damage. However, the true strength of this weapon lies in its dual wielded moveset.
When dual wielded, the Godskin Peeler is capable of dishing out insane damage with both its running and jumping attacks. Also, despite having no innate Blood Loss effect, it can still be quite effective for inflicting the status by either adding a Blood affinity to it or changing its Ash of War to Seppuku.
Godskin Peeler Stats:
- Physical damage: 121
- Default Ash of War: Black Flame Tornado
Why Godskin Peeler is Great:
- Deals insane damage when dual wielded with its running and jumping attacks
- Pretty effective for inflicting blood loss when used with a Blood affinity or Seppuku
- Features unique R2 and running R2 attacks
How to Get Godskin Peeler:
See Godskin Peeler in Action:
3. Scavenger’s Curved Sword
The Scavenger’s Curved Sword is by far my favorite weapon to dual wield. It has pretty decent damage and can go up to B scaling with the Keen affinity. Besides, it also has an innate Blood Loss buildup, making it a strong weapon if you’re going for a Bleed build.
As with all curved swords, the Scavenger’s Curved Sword has a pretty fast moveset which allows you to get a few hits in on your enemy before you can retreat safely to avoid damage. Also, the range on this one is a bit longer compared to other curved swords.
When dual wielded, however, this weapon can become a killing machine. I personally prefer going for the Occult affinity on this one as it will allow you to focus on leveling up your Arcane and further increase its blood loss buildup while still maintaining a relatively high AR.
All I could say is that when dual wielded, this weapon wrecks.
Scavenger’s Curved Sword Stats:
- Physical damage: 105
- Default Ash of War: Spinning Slash
- Causes blood loss buildup (45)
Why Scavenger’s Curved Sword is Great:
- Insane damage when dual wielded
- Works best with the Occult affinity and an Arcane-focused build
- Pretty fast moveset
How to Get Scavenger’s Curved Sword:
See Scavenger’s Curved Sword in Action:
2. Starscourge Greatsword
Whether you just want to wear this as a trophy for killing General Radahn or want to actually use it for killing enemies, there’s no denying that the Starscourge Greatsword is a very powerful weapon. Unlike the other weapons in this list that require another copy to dual wield, the Starscourge Greatsword will switch to powerstance when you “two-hand” it.
However, it won’t be able to benefit from the extra 50% Strength boost that you would normally get from other weapons.
When dual wielded, the Starscourge Greatsword grants access to a unique moveset, and its normal attack will deal more damage per swing compared to other colossal weapons since you’re hitting your target with both blades for each swing.
What makes it absolutely crazy when dual wielded is its unique Ash of War, the Starcaller Cry. When used, your character will shout and pull enemies within a wide area toward you. You can then follow up with additional input to slam down both weapons for an insanely powerful AOE attack.
With this Ash of War, you can deal with packs of enemies pretty quickly. However, it also works well in PVP situations as a means of crowd control, especially when you’re going up against a ganking squad. It can even hit through walls which makes it absolutely crazy.
Starscourge Greatsword Stats:
- Physical damage: 129
- Magic damage: 83
- Default Ash of War: Starcaller Cry
Why Starscourge Greatsword is Great:
- Deals insane damage with its Ash of War
- Great for crowd control and dealing with packs of enemies
- Deals a considerable amount of Magic damage as well
How to Get Starscourge Greatsword:
See Starscourge Greatsword in Action:
1. Giant Crusher
Any Strength-focused build would surely focus on equipping colossal weapons, one on each hand, to maximize their damage output with every swing. It’s for this reason why a dual wielded Giant Crusher is really effective in both PVP and PVE scenarios.
This colossal weapon is among the best weapons in the game that have the highest AR when focusing on Strength. It can get an S scaling with the heavy affinity at max upgrade level.
When you dual wield this beast, you can get absurd amounts of damage that goes beyond a thousand. However, you can make it even stronger by applying the Royal Knight’s Resolve on each of them, activate the Ash of War before you attack, then use a jumping attack on your target.
On average, you can deal at least 2,000 damage which is more than enough to kill weaker bosses and shave off a considerable portion of a strong boss’ HP. Pair them with the Claw Talisman, and you can take down any boss with relative ease.
Giant Crusher Stats:
- Physical damage: 155
- Default Ash of War: Endure
Why Giant Crusher is Great:
- Can deal pretty absurd damage with a single attack
- Synergizes well with the Claw talisman for even more damage
- Can take down bosses pretty quickly when paired with the Royal Knight’s Resolve AOW
How to Get Giant Crusher:
See Giant Crusher in Action:
These weapons were chosen based on personal experience and opinion. I know there are lots of amazing weapons in the game that are great for dual wielding. But so far, these are the weapons mainly used by a lot of players and were fun to use after testing them out for several hours.
