Elden Ring splits damage into two families: physical damage, which comes in Standard, Slash, Strike and Pierce, and elemental damage, which is Magic, Fire, Lightning and Holy. Knowing which one you deal and which one you’re about to take lets you pick the right talisman, buff or cracked tear before a tough fight.
All eight damage types
| Damage type | Family | Where you see it | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Physical | Axes, greatswords, straight swords and most enemy melee | The catch-all for attacks that aren’t clearly sharp, blunt or thrusting |
| Slash | Physical | Curved swords, katanas, claws | Sharp, cutting attacks |
| Strike | Physical | Hammers and many colossal weapons | Heavy, blunt attacks |
| Pierce | Physical | Thrusting swords and spears | Deals extra damage when it hits an enemy mid-attack |
| Magic | Elemental | Mostly sorceries; blue and turquoise attacks | Can be boosted by standing in Terra Magicus |
| Fire | Elemental | Many incantations and torches | Clears full Frostbite; weaker in rain or water |
| Lightning | Elemental | Incantations and Ancient Dragon weapons; yellow or red sparks | Stronger against targets in rain or water |
| Holy | Elemental | Incantations and weapons tied to the Erdtree, the Two Fingers and the Rune of Death | Golden, glowing attacks |
Physical damage
Standard, Slash, Strike and Pierce are all physical, so anything that boosts physical or melee damage boosts them, and anything that raises your physical damage negation protects you against all four. Each also has its own negation value on your armor, which is why some sets shrug off slashes but crumple under hammers.
The one with a gameplay twist is Pierce. Thrusting attacks do bonus damage when they land on an enemy who is in the middle of attacking, so spears and rapiers reward you for stepping into a swing rather than waiting it out.
Elemental damage
Each element has a matching set of tools: a talisman to resist it, a talisman to deal more of it, a cracked tear for your Flask of Wondrous Physick and a short-lived buff spell. Here’s the full kit.
Some numbers worth keeping in mind:
- The single-element drake talismans cut that element by 13%, 17% and 20% at +0, +1 and +2. Only one version of each can be worn at a time.
- The Pearldrake Talisman covers all four elements at once, but only by 5%, 7% or 9%. It’s the pick when a boss mixes elements.
- Protection of the Erdtree raises all four elemental negations by 35% for you and nearby allies, if you have 35 Faith.
- The basic fortification spells give 35% against their element for 90 seconds; the stronger versions (Flame, Protect Me, Barrier of Gold, Golden Lightning Fortification and Lord’s Divine Fortification) give 60% and also cover nearby allies, but last 70 seconds.
- Each scorpion charm adds 12% to its element but makes you take 10% more physical damage, so it’s a glass-cannon trade.
- The shrouding cracked tears add 20% to their element for three minutes.
- Terra Magicus gives a hefty 35% magic boost while you stand in its circle.
- The Pest’s Glaive adds a small 2% to all four elemental negations while it’s in your active hand.
- The Spellblade set (hat, attire, gloves and trousers) adds 2% per piece to magic skills, up to 8%.
All of these boosts are smaller in PvP, so don’t count on the same numbers against other players.
Weather and water
Rain and standing water quietly shift the elemental balance for everyone on the field, you and enemies alike: fire negation goes up by 10% and lightning negation goes down by the same amount. In practice, that means a lightning build gets a little stronger in a storm or a lake, and fire builds get a little weaker.
Practical advice
- Match the talisman to the boss. Before a big fight, figure out its main element and slot the matching drake talisman. If it uses two or more, Pearldrake is the safer pick.
- Use fire to break frostbite. Full Frostbite is removed by fire damage, so a fire attack can clear it. See Status Effects for the rest of the ailments.
- Thrust into attacks. If you use a spear or thrusting sword, punish enemies as they swing to get the Pierce counter bonus.
- Don’t forget the flask. A shrouding cracked tear is an easy 20% for your main element in your Flask of Wondrous Physick during a boss fight.
- Affinities matter too. Infusing a weapon with an Ash of War changes both its base damage and its scaling, so the affinity you pick decides how your damage is built. See Affinities, Weapon Scaling and Upgrading Weapons.