New to Elden Ring? Pick a sturdy class, unlock Torrent by resting at three Sites of Grace, spend your runes often, and steer clear of the bosses that clearly outclass you until you come back stronger. Everything below expands on those first few hours.
Which class should I pick?
Your starting class matters less than it looks. It only sets your opening stats and gear, and a few levels later any class can grow into any build. By level 10 every class has the same total number of points. If you want a safe default, take the Vagabond: it has the most Vigor of any starting class, so you get the biggest health bar while you learn the game.
| Class | Level | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Vagabond | 9 | Melee beginners; 15 Vigor and 14 Strength, Longsword and Halberd |
| Samurai | 9 | Dexterity fighters; Uchigatana plus a Longbow for ranged pulls |
| Confessor | 10 | Hybrid melee and Faith casting, 14 Faith with healing spells |
| Astrologer | 6 | Pure sorcery; 16 Intelligence, 15 Mind and Glintstone Pebble |
| Prophet | 7 | Faith casters; 16 Faith and 14 Mind |
| Warrior | 8 | Fast, aggressive play with two Scimitars and 16 Dexterity |
| Hero | 7 | Strength builds; 16 Strength and a Battle Axe |
| Prisoner | 9 | Spellblades; 14 Dexterity and 14 Intelligence, Estoc and a staff |
| Bandit | 5 | Archers and Arcane builds; 14 Arcane, Great Knife and Shortbow |
| Wretch | 1 | A blank slate: 10 in every stat and only a club |
Changed your mind later? After you defeat Rennala you can redistribute your points through Rebirth, paid for with a Larval Tear.
Your first hour in Limgrave
- Leave the Tree Sentinel alone. The golden knight patrolling between the starting area and the Church of Elleh is the Tree Sentinel, and he is far too strong for a fresh character. Ride around him and come back once you have a horse and some levels.
- Shop at the Church of Elleh. The merchant there sells a Crafting Kit, a Torch and a telescope, and the church also has a smithing table you will use soon.
- Grab the Whetstone Knife. It sits in Gatefront Ruins along with the area map, and it lets you put new skills on your weapons. An Ash of War: Storm Stomp waits in a chest below the ruins.
- Get your horse. After you have rested at three Sites of Grace (or at the Gatefront grace), Melina appears and hands you the Spectral Steed Whistle. Equip it as a quick item to call Torrent.
- Get the Spirit Calling Bell. Once you have the horse, return to the Church of Elleh grace and a witch named Renna gives you the Spirit Calling Bell and the Lone Wolf Ashes.
- Find the Flask of Wondrous Physick at the Third Church of Marika in eastern Limgrave. It is easy to ride past, so make a point of it.
Sites of Grace, death and runes
Sites of Grace are your checkpoints. Resting refills your flasks, sets your respawn point and brings back most normal enemies, and the grace menu is where you level up, set your flasks and memorize spells. You can also fast travel between any graces you have found.
When you die you go back to your last grace and drop all the runes you were carrying. Return to the spot to pick them up again, but die on the way and they are gone for good. Two habits save a lot of grief: keep Golden Runes in your inventory until you are ready to spend them, because items are never lost on death, and spend loose runes on levels whenever you can afford one. If there is a Stake of Marika near where you fell, you can choose to respawn there instead.
How to level up
Runes are both money and experience. Spend them at a Site of Grace on any of the eight attributes. For a first character, raise Vigor early and often, since extra HP fixes more mistakes than extra damage, then put the rest into the stats your weapon or spells scale with. Endurance gives you more stamina and a higher equip load, and Mind adds FP for skills and spells.
Watch your weight. Above 70% of your maximum equip load your roll gets slow and clumsy, and past the limit you cannot roll at all.
Flasks, Golden Seeds and Sacred Tears
Your healing and FP come from the Flask of Crimson Tears and the Flask of Cerulean Tears, which share one pool of charges that you split at a grace. Golden Seeds, found at the foot of small glowing saplings, add charges, and Sacred Tears, kept in churches, make each sip stronger. Both are used at a grace. Our Golden Seed locations and Sacred Tear locations guides list them all. The Flask of Wondrous Physick is a third flask: mix two Crystal Tears into it at a grace for a custom buff.
Spirit Ashes
Spirit Ashes let you summon a fallen enemy to fight beside you. You need the Spirit Calling Bell, you must be close to a Rebirth Monument (an icon appears at the left of the screen), summoning costs FP, and only one spirit can be out at a time. You get one summon per fight, and none at all while playing online with others. Good early picks are the Lone Wolf Ashes and the Spirit Jellyfish Ashes that Roderika gives you in Stormhill. To make them stronger, see How to Upgrade Spirit Ashes.
Weapons and Ashes of War
Upgrading your weapon is the single biggest power boost in the early game. Read How to Upgrade Weapons to understand regular and somber Smithing Stones, and Weapon Scaling to see which stats your weapon wants. Ashes of War, applied at a grace with the Whetstone Knife, change a weapon’s skill and can also change its affinity to match your stats.
Combat tips that help right away
- You can jump. Heavy attacks, attacks from above and sneak attacks all chip away at an enemy’s stance much faster than light swings.
- Well-timed blocks cost you less stance than holding block early. Once an enemy’s stance breaks, hit them with a critical attack. See Guard Counter and Parrying.
- On Torrent, ride into a spiritspring and jump to launch high into the air without fall damage.
- Night changes things: some enemies only show up after dark, such as the Night’s Cavalry. Use the grace menu to pass time if you want to fight or avoid them.
- Statues striking a pose are often a hint. Try the matching gesture nearby and something may happen.
What to avoid
- Do not sell items for runes. Most sell for very little, and anything you do not want can sit in your chest.
- Do not stay to fight bosses that crush you in two hits. Elden Ring has only one difficulty, and the answer is usually to explore elsewhere, level up and return.
- Do not rush the main path. Caves, catacombs and side areas hold the upgrade materials and talismans that make Margit and Godrick much fairer fights.
Where to go next
Once you feel at home in Limgrave, our Game Progress Route lays out a sensible order for the rest of the Lands Between. When you reach the end, the Endings section explains every way the story can finish.