As a passionate Elden Ring gamer with over 400 hours invested, I believe building a pure melee character is the most exciting way to play. Rushing headfirst into intense, close-quarters combat makes victory feel hard-fought and deeply rewarding.
While magic can feel cheap and overpowered, besting colossal enemies and hardcore bosses through sheer skill and steel forges an unbreakable sense of satisfaction. Trust me, these 5 unique melee builds offer incredibly fun playstyles for that relentless in-your-face aggression.
Overview of Pure Melee Builds
All pure melee builds in Elden Ring prioritize high Vigor for survivability, Endurance for equip load and stamina management, and either Strength or Dexterity as primary damage stats. With points invested into those vital statistics, you can equip top-tier armor, shields, and weapons to destroy foes at close range.
Melee builds also emphasize weapon skills like ashes of war, charge attacks, guard counters, and jumping heavy strikes during intense combat. And many opt for some Faith or Arcane to access buffs providing short-term boosts to offense, defense or mobility.
But more broadly, each pure melee build utilizes different combat philosophies and gear to dish devastation based on your preferred playstyle. So whether you favor tanking damage or artful dodging, slaying with sorcery or holy power, or simply smashing with enormous weapons, there‘s a perfect melee build for you.
1. Samurai – The Balanced Blade
Focused on: Medium armor, paired katana wielding, adaptability
Key Stats: Vigor 35 / Mind 15 / Endurance 20 / Dexterity 45 / Strength 20
Of all starting classes, Samurai offers the most well-rounded and approachable pure melee build. With the lone samurai wandering into foreign lands aesthetic, it also oozes satisfying style. Let‘s break down what makes it so balanced and flexible.
Weapons
Uchigatana – Your starting katana has excellent bleeding alongside pure dexterity damage scaling. Quick strikes that punish openings make it highly versatile against slower enemies.
Moonveil – Transient Moonlight‘s magical ranged waves give you substantial ability to pressure at range. It remains quite fast for a greatsword while packing huge damage.
Hand of Malenia – Has a special weapon skill that heals you with each successive attack, rewarding aggressive flurries. Melts bosses with innate scarlet rot buildup.
Armor Sets
The key is keeping below 70% equip load for medium roll. Great early game finds include:
- Samurai Set – Well-balanced physical damage negation and immunity boosts. Perfect thematic fit.
- Banished Knight Armor – Solid all-around defense to poise through trades.
- Tree Sentinel Set – Heavy but strong holy, strike, and immunities protection.
Strategy Tips
Be adaptive and reactionary by leveraging the quickness of your katana. Punish whiffed attacks and retreat when overwhelmed.
Shift stances often – double handed for more poise damage, sword and board for protection when sustaining pressure.
Exploit bleed buildup with the Uchigatana on high HP enemies, then finish with Moonveil‘s raw damage.
Balancing offense and defense through agile, calculated swordsmanship, the Samurai provides new players with approachable tools to steadily grow in skill. And veterans can still utilize its well-roundedness for consistent performance against diverse enemies.
2. Bloody Bandit – Rapid Bleed Specialist
Focused On: Quick attacks, blood loss hemorrhage
Key Stats: Vigor 25 / Endurance 15 / Dexterity 55 / Arcane 45
If you crave a dangerously aggressive playstyle leveraging blood loss to shred enemies before they can react, the Bloody Bandit is unmatched. Quick successive strikes apply hemorrhage rapidly, melting foes – even tanks.
Weapons
Wielding twin bleed armaments enhances your ability to proc hemorrhage rapidly. Top bleeding options:
- Uchigatana – Reliable starter katana with innate bleed.
- Nagakiba – Longer katana for extended range and quick pokes.
- Godskin Peeler – Blistering twinblade moveset attacks quickly.
- Blood Oath – Dual curved swords shed blood on strikes.
Ashes of War
Ashes enhancing bleeding attacks:
- Seppuku – Temporary self-sacrifice boosts blood loss significantly.
- Corpse Piler – Flurries of piercing strikes add up blood rapidly.
Talismans
- Lord of Blood‘s Exultation – Raises attack power as bleed procs.
- Rotten Winged Sword Insignia – Successive attacks increase damage – sustaining DPS.
- Millicent‘s Prosthesis – Boosts increased Dexterity scaling for weapon damage.
Armor Sets
Prioritize lighter armor allowing faster dodges and quickstep movement between barrages:
- Bandit Mask – Raises Arcane to increase bleed buildup.
- White Mask – Further bleed damage boost when hemorrhage triggers.
- Hoslow‘s Set – Solid physical defense without overburdening.
Strategy Tips
- Apply Seppuku pre-fight for huge bleed buff then swap to dual-wield bleed weapons.
- Stick to the enemy‘s rear, evading attacks while delivering debilitating strikes.
- Reposition constantly with Bloodhound Step ash of war to sustain offense.
- Maintain pressure and Aggressively re-apply bleeding through Corpse Piler weapon skill.
If you want to menacingly pursue targets, shredding monsters before they can even react, the Bloody Bandit is wicked fun providing that daunting dread to PvE and PvP opponents alike.
3. Blasphemous Crusader – Holy Paladin Warrior
Focused On: Giant holy-infused strength weapons, incantations
Key Stats: Vigor 40 / Mind 25 / Endurance 30 / Strength 60 / Faith 45
In the realm between, dark forces challenge your divine crusade at every corner. Adorned head-to-toe in blessed armor, and wielding sacred relics and lightning itself against heresy, the Blasphemous Crusader presents the ultimate righteous zealot styling.
This enormously satisfying build doubles down on colossal strength weapons shrouded in holy energy and ancient incantations that smite wickedness. If you dream of roleplaying an unstoppable holy avenger, this is the hero for you.
Weapons
Immense greatswords and hammers enveloped with sacred lightning or flame:
- Blasphemous Blade – Skill hurls fiery bloodflame, restoring HP per hit.
- Sacred Relic Sword – Unleashes aura wave and projectile holy orbs on charged heavy attacks.
- Giant-Crusher – Hammer‘s skill stuns enemies with a massive ground smash.
Incantations
Reap divine justice through mighty dragon cult spells and lightning:
- Lightning Spear – Hurl piercing lightning bolt with decent range. Great DPS.
- Honor‘s Greatbolt – Fires heavy large spread of thunder damage. Wrecks groups.
- Ancient Dragons‘ Lightning Strike – Calls down magma-infused thunderstrike from above.
- Golden Vow – Significant holy attack buff, also boosting defense.
- Flame, Cleanse Me – Cure Scarlet Rot buildup affliction. Fight on steadfast.
Talismans
Further empower immense weapons and incantations:
- Claw Talisman – Jump attack damage increased.
- Radagon Icon – Quicken spellcasting speed for ranged smites.
- Flock‘s Canvas Talisman – Reduces incantation FP cost for sustained holy magic.
- Shield Talisman – Reduces guarding stamina loss while blocking.
Armor Sets
Heavy holy crusader themed poise boosting armor:
- Tree Sentinel Set – High holy damage negation and immunity.
- Envoy Crown – Raises potency of holy incantations.
- Bull Goat Set – Massive poise to withstand blows mid-attack animation.
Strategy Tips
- Apply Golden Vow buff pre-fight then aggressively unleash melee combos.
- Punish distant or guarding enemies by chaining ranged incantations like Lightning Spear and Honors‘ Greatbolt.
- Time charged lightning weapon skills and ancient dragon spells to ambush advancing groups.
- If overwhelmed by numbers, guard counter with strong attack then immediately cast Flame, Cleanse Me to remove accumulated scarlet rot status.
4. Frost Reaper – Chilling Magic Swordsman
Focused On: Frost and magic infusion katana wielding
Key Stats: Vigor 35 / Mind 30 / Dexterity 45 / Intelligence 50
Combining a dexterity tailored katana with icy glintblade sorceries, the Frost Reaper freezes foes solid then shatters their brittle forms apart with elegant precision. Quick on the draw with magic, you render enemies sluggish sitting ducks ripe to execute.
Weapons
Master rapiers and katanas utilizing icy ashes of war:
- Moonveil – Transient Moonlight waves stagger while Frost builds up.
- Meteorite Katana – Gravitas pulls enemies in for additional Frost procs between slashes.
- Frozen Needle – Charged R2 arrows inflict high Frost; great range harassment.
- Rogier‘s Rapier – Fast trust while skill summons sorcery cannonade.
Sorceries
- Glitstone Icecrag – Hurl shards of crystalline ice and temporary magic glintblades trailing frost.
- Freezing Mist – Creates frosty cloud that rapidly inflicts Frostbite status.
- Founding Rain of Stars – Call down shards of glintstone stars over a wide area denying space.
Talismans
- Magic Scorpion Charm – Boosts magic attack power for intensified icy sorceries.
- Graven Mass Talisman / Graven School Talisman – Reduces FP cost of sorceries allowing more sustained casts
Armor Sets
Robes tailored to frigid magical prowess:
- Snow Witch Set – Raises potency of Frost related attacks, skill efficiency.
- Raya Lucarian Robe – Boost to magic damage negation and spell FP efficiency.
Strategy Tips
- Engage at range with Freezing Mist to inflict initial Frost buildup then use glintstone sorceries as you close distance.
- Weave in Frost ashes of war katana skills to speed up chill proc when within melee reach, then pull back.
- Once Frostbite triggers, enemy defenses are temporarily lowered – aggressively unleash melee combos.
- Retreat and repeat hit-and-run frost harassment until target‘s posture is fully broken – then critical strike.
Gracefully balancing ranged icy barrage alongside Frost-infused finesse swordsmanship, the Frost Reaper disables and dispatches foes with calculative cruelty. Both evasively nimble and hard-hitting critical, this highly technical build deals tremendous damage when mastered.
5. Lion‘s Claw Duelist – Tanky Charging Warrior
Focused On: Colossal weapons, charging strong attacks
Key Stats: Vigor 50 / Endurance 40 / Strength 60 / Dexterity 22
If aggressively rushing headfirst into packs of enemies and trading lethal blows suits your unrelenting playstyle, the Lion‘s Claw Duelist cannot be beaten for unga bunga value. Wielding house-sized ultra greatswords charged with fiery arcane power, clash into the fray and unleash explosions of vertical chops and horizontal slams.
This build only cares about one thing: Overwhelming physical and fire damage from an indomitable tower of medieval masonry pummeling you at unstoppable momentum.
Weapons
Enormous colossal greatswords with fiery ashes of war:
- Flamberge – Infuse heavy gem for strength scaling and flame art affinity.
- Grafted Blade Greatsword – Boosted charge attacks bathe enemies in flame.
- Ruins Greatsword – Skill sends out colliding waves of earthen debris across ground.
Ashes of War
- Lions‘s Claw – Negates enemy collisions during sprint and jump attack windup while significantly boosting damage on caveman plunge downward slam. Critical for build‘s namesake.
- Flame of the Redmanes – Slams flaming weapon down, heavily staggering foes to sustain aggresssion.
Talismans
Push poise, equip load and mighty jumping smash attack damage further:
- Great-Jar‘s Arsenal – Massively raises max equip load to tower in impenetrable armor.
- Bull-Goat Talisman – Provides big poise boosts to tank through enemy strikes uninterrupted.
- Claw Talisman – Jump attack damage raised again for devastating Lions‘s Claw plunging activation.
Armor Sets
Top-tier enormous strength boosting heavy armor sets:
- Lionel‘s Armor – Maximizes physical damage and robustness.
- Bull-Goat Set – Huge poise; withstand savage blows without flinching.
- Tree Sentinel Set – Strong holy resistance against divine foes.
Strategy Tips
- Stack holy and physical damage resistance buffs before attacking groups.
- Charge across battlefield through waves of attacks while poise tanking damage.
- Look for high vantage points and platforms to leap down onto clustered enemies, activating equipped ashes of war like Lion‘s Claw for meteoric plunges from above.
- Use vertical chops to catch rollers; horizontal sweeps to smash groups.
- Maintain constant pressure through endless charged strong attacks enhanced by temporary consumables like exalted flesh.
Embody the juggernaut warrior fantasy, colliding into skirmishes at a thousand miles per hour to deliver unrelenting devastation. Survive through sheer grit as you cleave apart all before you through mountainous fiery steel.
Those are my picks for the 5 most enjoyable pure melee builds in Elden Ring after 400 hours of passionate gameplay. From swift blades and bloodletting to righteous paladins and frosty slayers, mastering close-quarters combat through different playstyles offers a special sense of hard-earned accomplishment against the game‘s daunting challenges. Hopefully these insights from one hardcore fan guide your own adventures in the realm between!
Let me know which unique melee build resonates with your preferences in the comments below. And if you have any other great pure melee templates to share, I‘d love to hear them!
