Vigor is the attribute that raises your maximum HP. It also adds fire defense and, from 31 onwards, Immunity against Poison and Scarlet Rot. Its soft caps sit at 40 and 60.
What Vigor does
Every point of Vigor makes your health bar longer, which is the simplest way to survive more hits from anything in the Lands Between. On top of that, each level adds a bit of fire defense, so fire attacks hurt a little less. Vigor also feeds Immunity, your resistance to Poison and Scarlet Rot buildup, but only once you pass 30. You raise it the usual way: spend Runes at a Site of Grace once Melina has given you the ability to level up.
Soft caps and HP breakpoints
HP gains grow slowly at first and peak in the 30s, where each point gives you over 40 HP. After 40 the gain per point drops to the mid-20s, and after 60 you only get around 5 or 6 HP per point. That makes 40 a natural target for most builds and 60 the point where Vigor stops being worth much.
| Vigor | Max HP | HP per point at this level |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 300 | — |
| 10 | 414 | +18 |
| 20 | 652 | +28 |
| 30 | 994 | +43 |
| 40 | 1,450 | +48 |
| 41 | 1,476 | +26 |
| 50 | 1,704 | +24 |
| 60 | 1,900 | +13 |
| 61 | 1,906 | +6 |
| 70 | 1,959 | +5 |
| 80 | 2,015 | +5 |
| 99 | 2,100 | +3 |
Immunity gained from Vigor follows its own curve:
| Vigor range | Immunity per point |
|---|---|
| 31–40 | +3 |
| 41–60 | +0.5 |
| 61–99 | +0.25 |
Fire defense gains are +1 per point from 16 to 30 and +2 per point from 31 to 40.
Which builds want Vigor
All of them. Whether you fight with a greatsword, a staff or a sacred seal, you die when HP hits zero, so Vigor is the one attribute no build can skip. Pure casters often keep it lower early on, but the game gets far more forgiving once even a caster reaches the 40 mark.
Starting classes with the most Vigor
| Starting class | Vigor |
|---|---|
| Vagabond | 15 |
| Hero | 14 |
| Samurai | 12 |
| Warrior | 11 |
| Prisoner | 11 |
The Astrologer starts lowest with 9.
Gear that raises Vigor
- Crimson Hood: head armor, +1 Vigor.
- Radagon’s Scarseal: +3 to Vigor, Endurance, Strength and Dexterity, at the cost of taking more damage. Radagon’s Soreseal gives +5 for an even bigger damage penalty, and you cannot wear both.
- Godrick’s Great Rune: +5 to every attribute once activated with a Rune Arc, until you die.
To boost HP directly instead, see the Crimson Amber Medallion talismans on the HP page.