Sword of Night and Flame is one of the strongest swords in Elden Ring. Despite getting nerfed in a few patches, the weapon still holds up and can be used in a variety of builds. If you want to find the best Elden Ring Sword of Night and Flame build, you’ve come to the right place.
This is an extremely powerful and fun weapon with two strong skills. The best part is that you can use it with either a Faith or Intelligence build. With that said, let’s dive right in and find out the best builds for Sword of Night and Flame.
Sword of Night and Flame Build
A few main classes love using the Sword of Night and Flame– the Confessor and Astrologer. While you can use it on a Prisoner, I suggest going for the classes mentioned above since they scale better. The weapon scales primarily with Faith and Intelligence and rewards a playstyle that mixes close-quarters swordplay with midrange spellcasting.
While you can put a few points in Endurance rather than Vigor, I found it too difficult when my HP bar was extremely small. Even at this Vigor, you might instantly die to stronger attacks, but it still allows you to have a few more chances to heal and roll to safety.
Apart from that, putting points into INT and FAI is crucial since the blade scales off of those stats. Also, having points in Mind will allow you to have more FP and cast more spells which is the main point of this build.
How to Get the Sword of Night and Flame
Before we talk about the gear that suits this weapon, let’s briefly talk about how you can get it. Luckily, you can get the weapon relatively early in the game if you know where to look for. The Sword of Night and Flame is located in Caria Manor which is situated before the Three Sisters area.
To get here, you can either progress naturally by defeating the bosses (Margit, Godrick, and Rennala), or you can head directly here to grab the weapon. Either way, you’ll have to progress through Caria Manor a bit and find the sword in a chest.
Since the chest is found behind an area that is locked, you will need to use the walkways above and jump off at the right time.
Recommended Classes
The Sword of Night and Flame can go well with a lot of classes in the game. Primarily, many players suggest using the Prisoner or Confesser for it. While I do encourage that, I prefer using an Astrologer.
Since this weapon’s stats requirements are 12 Strength, 12 Dexterity, 24 Intelligence, and 24 Faith, you’ll have to level up those stats early in the game. The Astrologer has 16 INT at the start. So, you’ll already be more than halfway to the INT requirement. From there, make sure that you put a lot of points in FAI, STR, and DEX after you farm Runes.
The reason why I suggest going for the Astrologer is that you’ll be able to cast powerful sorceries as well which makes this build even better. Instead of just relying on the melee damage and its skill, you can use various spells to keep enemies on their toes.
Armor
When it comes to Armor in Elden Ring, you do not have to put a lot of stock in specific sets and their unique bonuses. Instead, you can mix and match various sets to make the most out of the weight, stats, and protection.
It’s not worth getting a set that gives you a measly +3 stat if the result is a lack of protection from attacks. In that regard, there are only a few armor sets that you can use viably for this build. Using light armor to fast roll and move around quickly is highly suggested.
Since you will want to focus on melee/ranged hybrid gameplay, there is no need to wear heavy gear that will hinder your movement.
Spellblade Set
Moving on to the Spellblade Set, it offers great stats and looks amazing as well. If you have played the game a bit, you’ll notice that this outfit is worn by Rogier which can be found in the Roundtable Hold. He drops this after he passes away so you can just pick it up at that point without any worries.
Keep in mind that this outfit does not boost the damage of your sorceries. Instead, it only boosts the effects of your Ashes of War. So, if you plan to use a melee weapon like the Moonveil Katana, this is a good outfit to have. Despite what the in-game description set says, it increases the damage of Magic dealing ashes of war/skills by 2% per piece.
Raya Lucarian Sorcerer Set
During the early stages of the game, you will come across a dungeon called Raya Lucaria Academy. Here, you will encounter many sorcerer enemies that have a mask and cool robes as their attire. Luckily, you can get this outfit for yourself as well.
The best part is that it works well with your INT build which is the main purpose of this guide. The Raya Lucarian Sorcerer Set is a lightweight armor that caters to Intelligence characters, offering light Physical and moderate Magical defense. This armor provides your character with protection and different resistance against all types of damage and negative status effects.
Black Knife Set
While a lot of sets fluctuate between either great physical or magical damage reduction, few manage to do both at the same time. The Black Knife Set offers decent damage reduction which is always welcomed. However, it doesn’t offer the best protection but since you’re getting the best of both worlds, it should be alright.
If you want to use ranged magic spells and melee attacks, this is the set for you. Plus, it also looks amazing and has an effect that stops enemies from hearing you while sneaking. So, you can easily backstab enemies since they won’t be able to hear you.
Talisman
Talismans play a massive role in all types of builds. That is why Elden Ring is completely filled with different types of them. There are so many Talismans that you can find across the map that it can be quite overwhelming for a newer player.
While you can equip four talismans on your character, we will mention a few more so that you have the option to alternate between them. Try all of them out and see which one suits your playstyle most. Plus, if you find a talisman that works well with this build, make sure to let us know in the comments below.
Carian Filigreed Crest
Moving on to the Carian Filigreed Crest, it does a simple thing but can be a lifesaver. If you are having issues maintaining your FP, you can use this talisman to lower the FP consumed by skills. It will allow you to spam your beam or flame attack without having to worry about FP cost that much.
Also, I suggest keeping a few FP flasks handy in case you run out. This will allow you to continuously spam your skill and sorceries as well.
Radagon’s Scarseal
The Radagon’s Scarseal is a good talisman that you can use to raise your attributes. This allows you to deal more damage and become tanky as well. However, the major downside is that you will take additional damage as well.
So, if you are using this talisman, be extremely careful or you will easily die to enemies that didn’t deal a lot of damage to you previously. However, the difference isn’t insane so you won’t have too much trouble once you get the hang of it.
Alternatively, if you want, you can also use the Radagon’s Soreseal as well which further enhances your stats but also increases the damage taken. So, if you aren’t having issues with dying too much, you can always increase your stats by equipping the Soreseal.
Two Fingers Heirloom
The Two Fingers Heirloom is a Talisman that increases your Faith stat by a full 5 points. It is a straightforward item that will increase your Faith which is a crucial stat for a Faith build user. While this might not sound like a big deal, it makes a lot of difference whether in the early game or in the long run.
During the later stages of the game, a single level-up costs tens of thousands of Runes. That is when a Talisman like this comes in handy. It allows you to invest in secondary stats like Endurance and Mind. Plus, you won’t be sacrificing the potency of your Faith due to this Talisman.
Radagon Icon
Playing as a caster in Elden RIng has a lot of pros. However, the biggest flaw is that your character is often left open to attacks. Since your character is quite squishy in this build, you will often find yourself dying while casting a spell near an enemy.
To prevent situations where the long casting times of spells cause your death, you need to equip the Radagon Icon. This Talisman allows you to greatly reduce the cast time of your spells. It comes in handy when the boss is running toward you while you are stuck in a casting animation.
Graven Mass Talisman
You can also try out the Graven Mass Talisman as well. This is a great option since it raises the potency of all your sorceries. This is great for dealing additional damage or healing yourself if needed. The best part is that it greatly increases the potency which means that all your spells will deal tons of damage.
Combine this with the next talisman, and your charged attacks will almost one shot enemies without any issues.
Staffs / Sacred Seals
If you want to use various sorceries with the sword, you’ll want to equip a good staff as well. Luckily, the game offers tons of options to choose from. I have mentioned some of my favorite weapons, but you might want to look for other ones if you cannot meet the stat requirements easily.
Some of them require you to put points into stats that you might not want to. So, in that case, make sure that you find an alternative and go for that. In the end, all you need is a decent staff that can cast spells and does the trick.
Alternatively, if you are going for the Faith build, having the ideal Sacred Seal is crucial. Since there are quite a few options to choose from, we will show you some of the best ones. Keep in mind that your playstyle might require a different seal, but the ones mentioned will be useful till the end.
Meteorite Staff
Found in the Caelid Region, this staff is the best thing your mage can find early on. You can beeline to it right from the beginning of the game without any fight. It has the best Intelligence (S) and Sorcery Scaling (248) that you can get at the start of the game and can carry you through much of the journey. Also, if you are fond of using gravity sorcery like Rock Sling then this staff can be in the S-tier for you.
Mind you, this staff cannot be upgraded at any smith, so there is a point where other staves will overtake this when they are upgraded enough. Though this staff can be your backup choice until you are collecting all the necessary resources to upgrade your main staff.
Prince of Death’s Staff
Prince of Death’s Staff is a Glintstone Staff in Elden Ring. The Prince of Death’s Staff scales primarily with Intelligence and Faith and is a good weapon for death sorceries. This staff has good scaling with E in STR, D in INT, and D in Faith. If you are someone who uses a lot of Dark Sorceries, then this weapon is ideal for you as it boosts that effect.
You can get this staff in the Deeproot Depths by making your way across the map and finding it in a tower when you are climbing the large roots. One of the good parts about this staff is that it is light in weight so you don’t have to worry about having a heavy load.
This is one of the best staff that I like to use with the Sword of Night and Flame. I’ve tried it in multiple playthroughs and it works wonders each time.
Lusat’s Glintstone Staff
Finally, you can also try out the Lusat’s Glintstone Staff. This is a great weapon that will work well with your sword since you already are leveling up the INT stat.
Found after killing Nox Swordstress & Nox Priest boss. This staff is a weird one. The initial Intelligence requirement is huge and it is upgraded with Somber Stones. Also, it has another doozy, it costs 50% more FP to cast each spell with this staff on the contrary the damage output is greater too.
This staff is recommended for players that prefer to keep higher FP flasks and have massive Mind investment, or if you are rocking Cerulean Hidden Tear talisman that eliminates all FP consumption for some time to truly take advantage of that enhanced damage without the downside of the FP running out early.
Erdtree Seal
The best Sacred Seal in Elden Ring is easily the Erdtree Seal. It can be looted from a corpse located in Volcano Manor. The fastest way to get here is to start Rya’s quest line. Get her necklace and then find her on top of the Grand Lift of Dectus. She will take you to the manor where you can find this item.
Players looking to go for a complete Faith build will love this seal since it offers tons of damage. While it doesn’t buff any particular type of Incantation, you can gain a lot of damage by upgrading the Erdtree Seal. However, keep in mind that you need to have at least 40 Faith to properly use this.
Dragon Communion Seal
The Dragon Communion Seal is one of the most popular choices for many players dabbling into Incantations in Elden Ring. As the name suggests, it boosts all your Dragon Incantations which are quite strong on their own as well.
If you are familiar with Dragon Incantations, you’ll know how important it is to level up your Faith and Arcane. So, use this seal to further enhance your damage and potentially one-shot most enemies. This can take a lot of players by surprise during a PvP battle.
Keep in mind that you need to gather Dragon Hearts to unlock new Incantations from the Dragon Communion Church. This can be a hassle since certain dragons can be extremely difficult depending on your build.
Godslayer’s Seal
The Godslayer’s Seal is one of my favorite Sacred Seals in Elden Ring. As the name suggests, it boosts your Godslayer Incantations, which are extremely fun to use on their own. You can find this item in Stormveil Castle if you have a spare Stonesword Key on hand.
However, to use it, you need to have 4 Strength and 27 Faith. So, make sure that you level up your Faith quite a bit if you want to make the best use of this seal. This is the primary reason why it isn’t higher on the list. You will have to level up your Faith stat a lot and ignore other stats for the time being.
If you are going for a full Faith build, then this seal will be extremely useful for you. However, for hybrid users, you might want to test out other seals on this list.
Clawmark Seal
Thanks to its low stat requirement, you can use this seal early in the game. It offers a great alternative to your Finger Seal since it enhances all beast-type spells. Plus, you can use it if you want to go for a hybrid melee build.
To get it, you need to get a Deathroot and give it to D, Hunter of the Dead, back at the Roundtable Hold. This will unveil the location of a teleporter that will take you straight to Caelid. Now, you need to interact with Guranq the Beast Clergyman.
After giving him one Deathroot, you can get the Clawmark Seal and start buffing your Beast Incantations. Since it only requires 4 Strength and 10 Faith to use, you can start using it as soon as you get it.
Sorceries/Incantations
While using the Sword of Night and Flame, Sorceries are extremely vital as they will allow you to make the most out of your build. There are tons of spells in the game that you can use. To make up for the distance (since you’re using a melee weapon) you should have some spells that can damage from afar.
Since there are a lot of options to choose from, we have mentioned some of the best ones. I would suggest that you check out other Sorceries as well to see if they suit your style or not. Otherwise, going for the ones mentioned will give you guaranteed results.
You can also go for certain Incantations if you are going for a Faith build. Doing so will allow you to easily fend off enemies and deal tons of damage to them.
Overall, you won’t need to get all of these spells since the sword’s Night and Flame stance is extremely powerful. However, having additional spells in your arsenal won’t hurt and will allow you to dish out insane amounts of damage.
Carian Phalanx
The Carian Phalanx is a great spell that has multiple uses. For starters, you can cast it and run toward the enemy in PvP to force them to back off. This forces them to stop attacking you and roll through all the daggers. Meanwhile, you can run at them at full force and swing your sword if you are carrying it.
Otherwise, you can use it as a defensive spell as well. If the enemy gets too close, the daggers will fly toward them and force them to roll away. The best part is that if you use it against bosses or normal enemies, they are bound to get hit with all the daggers since they can’t dodge it easily
Swift Glintstone Shard
The Swift Glintstone Shard is a simple spell that is good for the earlier stages of the game. It causes your character to fire a single bolt of magical projectile that goes in a straight line. While it doesn’t deal a lot of damage, the casting time is extremely low.
Plus, it doesn’t consume a lot of FP either, so you can potentially spam it on weaker enemies or even bosses to reduce their HP. Since it is a quick attack, you can use it and immediately run away if the boss is charging toward you.
Black Flame
The Black Flame incantation is a strong spell that is quite common. When you use it, you will throw a ball of raging black fire that will continue to sap foes’ HP for a short time. Plus, you can charge this attack to enhance its potency and cause the fireball to explode upon impact.
The easiest way to get this is to buy it from Brother Corhyn at the Roundtable Hold for 7,500 Runes.
Black Flame Ritual
This incantation allows you to summon a circle of black flame pillars around your character. The longer you charge, the larger the circle will be. This forces enemies to run away from you while this effect is active. If you are getting overwhelmed, use this to cause the enemy to run while you chase them.
To get this, head over to the Mountaintops of the Giants and enter the Spiritcaller’s Cave. Here, you will have to fight a Spirit-Caller Snail. While this fight is easy, it will summon both the Godskin Apostle and the Godskin Noble. Defeating them can be quite troublesome so be prepared for that
Beast Claw
The Beast Claw is one of the best Incantations in the game, and it can be made even better thanks to the Clawmark Seal. To get it, you need to give 5 Deathroot to Gurranq and collect this Incantation. You can use it in quick succession and it only uses 10 FP per use.
The best part is that you only need 8 points in Faith to use this spell; making it a strong spell that you can potentially spam during combat.
Lightning Spear
The Lightning Spear is one of the best Incantations in Elden Ring. This is especially true for the Confessor and Prophet classes as it goes extremely well with them. If you are a Souls veteran, you’ll know that this spell has been in every Dark Souls game which is a great thing.
As the name suggests, you can throw a large spear of lightning to the ground to deal damage. Not only does it deal tons of damage, but it also looks extremely cool as well. While the casting time is a bit longer than I’d like, you can reduce it by applying the appropriate Talisman.
Sword of Night and Flame Playstyle
There are multiple ways in which you can play using the Sword of Night and Flame. Regardless of which method you choose, you’ll have to rely on a melee/ranged hybrid since the blade excels in both those fields. Depending on which build you go for, you will want to use different skills of this armament.
Faith Build
Firstly, if you want to go for the Faith build, you will have to use Sacred Seals instead of Staffs. Also, you’ll have to rely on Incantations instead of Sorceries. As for the sword, your basic playstyle will be similar but you will want to stay close to your target.
Since the Flame skill scales with Faith, you will have to stay near your target to hit it. This skill deals a lot of damage but has a low range when compared to the beam attack. However, it has a wider area of effect and can deal damage to multiple enemies in case you get surrounded.
Just make sure that you are ready to roll around a lot since your character will be squishy due to having low Vigor.
INT Build
Moving on to the INT build, you’ll want to equip a Staff and use Sorceries for this. Also, this build has more range than the FAI build, so you’ll often want to keep your distance. Instead of the flame skill, you’ll use Comet Azur, which has a longer range.
It allows you to fire a laser in a straight line (like the Kamehameha). This skill deals a lot of damage and can shred through most enemies in the game. Despite being nerfed, I still love using this skill against certain bosses. Even in PvP, you’ll have great results, but it is a bit easier to dodge since players now know what to do against it.
Conclusion
And there you have it; that’s the best Elden Ring Sword of Night and Flame build that you can follow. With this build, your sword will deal tons of damage, and all the other items will complement it. This is a strong weapon that can be extremely deadly in the hands of the right person.
Do you like the Sword of Night and Flame? Or do you prefer other weapons instead? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
