Mastering your weapon loadout in Elden Ring requires discovering gear that seamlessly balances offensive reach with defensive utility. The Great Epee stands out as an exceptional heavy thrusting sword available very early in your journey across the Lands Between. This unique weapon allows players to attack securely from behind a raised shield while dealing massive stagger damage to imposing bosses.
Where to Find the Great Epee
Finding this powerful heavy thrusting sword requires a quick trip to the southern region of Limgrave. It is located inside a treasure chest at a small enemy camp perched on a cliffside just southeast of the Agheel Lake South Site of Grace. The camp is guarded by a handful of standard soldiers and a lethal mobile mercenary, but you can easily sneak past them or clear the area to claim your prize.
Because the weapon is available without defeating any major mandatory bosses, it serves as a foundational option for early character progression. This early availability makes the Great Epee Elden Ring location incredibly valuable for both newcomers and speedrunners looking to establish a reliable physical build right away.
The Best Strength and Shield Build
One of the most effective ways to utilize this weapon is by pairing it with a high-stability Greatshield for an unstoppable defensive setup. By using the heavy thrusting sword unique animations, you can perform safe poking attacks without dropping your guard. This approach minimizes the risk of taking direct physical damage during chaotic boss encounters.
For this strategic playstyle, prioritizing the Strength attribute along with Heavy weapon scaling maximizes your overall physical damage output. Equipping the Barricade Shield Ash of War further enhances your defensive capabilities, turning your character into an immovable fortress that can outlast the toughest challenges in the game.
Powerful Dexterity and Status Effect Setups
If you prefer a more dynamic and agile playstyle, transforming this weapon into a dexterity-focused powerhouse yields fantastic results. Applying a Keen infusion greatly increases its scaling with your Dexterity stat, allowing for rapid piercing attacks that shred enemy health pools. This approach works beautifully when utilizing fluid evasive maneuvers instead of relying heavily on a massive shield.
Furthermore, the multi-hit heavy attacks of this weapon make it an exceptional candidate for status effect application. Infusing the sword with Blood or Poison allows you to rapidly build up debilitating conditions on your targets with consecutive thrusts. This versatility ensures that your character remains highly competitive during late-game areas where enemies possess massive health bars.
Optimal Talismans and Ash of War Options
To maximize the efficiency of your piercing attacks, equipping the Spear Talisman is highly recommended as it boosts your counter-thrust damage significantly. Additionally, the Curved Sword Talisman can enhance your guard counters if you are running a traditional shield setup. These specific equipment choices synergize perfectly with the weapon baseline capabilities to maximize your combat efficiency.
When selecting an Ash of War, options like Impaling Thrust or Piercing Fang provide excellent shield-breaking utility against defensive foes. Alternatively, Bloodhound Step can grant unparalleled mobility, letting you reposition instantly for a lethal counterattack. Experimenting with these various configurations allows you to tailor the weapon functionality to match your preferred tactical approach.
