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I don't understand why people aren't calling out the atrocious weapon system in Elden Ring

Bragr

Banned
I never played a game that has so many barriers for a simple weapon change. I almost feel like I have to restart the entire game just to use a new weapon.

I'm towards the end of the game. I have a weapon I have been using for around 40 hours that is upgraded to + 8 that I am sick and tired of. I want to use a sword that is fast, but any other sword of that nature needs completely different attributes to work. I had to respec all my skills toward an INT focus and use all my smithing stones on it. I did so.

But the new weapon turned out to be disappointing, so I had to respec my character back to the old stats to keep progressing in the game.

I have TONS of weapons, but almost all of them require different player stats, and now I have nowhere near the smithing stones needed to upgrade any one of them to a usable level. I know there are items I can give to the crones so I can buy smithing stones, but it's almost impossible to find them all without guides. Same with the larvae I need for respec, I only have one left.

I either have to use guides (which is like cheating for me) or restart the game so I can re-find enough resources to upgrade a new weapon. It's forcing you to replay massive parts of the game to scrounge for upgrade materials or start the game over.

FromSoftware has been doing stuff like this for a long time, intentionally designing systems in ways that require players to use the internet to find things out, it's free marketing for them if players do that, it's incredibly cheap. But this weapon system right here is complete nonsense. I'm not sure if people are too afraid to call out dumb stuff in excellent games, but this is some bullshit.
 
I've called out multiple issues with the game.

Personally, I don't really have any issue with their weapon upgrade system. You farm and upgrade it. You do pretty much have to look up what you want to get to, and make sure there's not some other options. I think most people focus on advanced weapons in a new game + run or 2nd playthrough.
 
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Plantoid

Member
Pick 1 main stat and 1 secondary stat, work towards this and only keep in your inventory weapons that scale well with these stats

For me:
Went dex main (up to 80)
Vigor secondary (up to 60)
Rest is just to reach enough stamina and fp for the ocasional weapon skills, and meeting the 16 str requirement for the brass shield

Weapons I've been using:
Katanas (not the ones with int scaling, I used uchigatanas until I got Melania's)
Flails (for the stone dudes, i use night raider flail with keen)

This could be applied for any build, just pick a path and stay the course
 

GHG

Gold Member
You get so many materials during a playthrough though. I'm swimming in upgrade materials. Hell, you can even buy upgrade materials using runes.

Also, it's an RPG in a proper sense - any character isn't supposed to be able to use anything, that would be nonsensical. Beyond that you get enough of the required materials to respec several times during a single playthrough if you wish.

This sounds like a you problem OP.
 
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BossLackey

Gold Member
I absolutely love Elden Ring, but this might be the most difficult to upgrade your weapon game in the series. If you don't tackle areas in a very specific, erratic, and unintuitive order you end up not having smithing certain smithing stones and you can't farm them from enemies like you could in Dark Souls. Plus, because of the length of the game, there are significantly more upgrade steps compared to past games.

This definitely makes changing weapons late game significantly harder than past games. They could have done this differently.
 

Nikana

Go Go Neo Rangers!
You get so many materials during a playthrough though. I'm swimming in upgrade materials. Hell, you can even buy upgrade materials using runes.

Also, it's an RPG in a proper sense - any character isn't supposed to be able to use anything, that would be nonsensical. Beyond that you get enough of the required materials to respec several times during a single playthrough if you wish.

This sounds like a you problem OP.
Disagree.

This is a problem shared by many people I know playing the game that bought into the hype. We all know From games don't hold your hand, which is fine, but it creates problems like this where people can wander for a literal 30-40 hours with no real progression in their armor and weapons. Since the systems are not laid out and clear you can find yourself in a situation where you can't make any real progress.

Hell, I am someone who has a decent knowledge of From games and I didnt find anything useful for my class until around hour 30. Sure, I found some upgrade materials, but not enough to make it feel like I wasn't bleeding materials and a weapon switch or armor switch never made sense due to the lack of materials. It all depends on luck/discovery along with how you decide to tackle the game which is open ended.
 

lyan

Member
Tell me u never played a souls game without telling me u never played a souls game before,

Btw if u want a hack'n'slash game where stats dont matter , or instead of building your character around a bleed, frost, fait or whatever build, i strongly suggest u stay away from.. From games.
I mean you can pretty much do everything not magic in dark souls with a simple quality build
 

skit_data

Member
Weapon upgrading has been cumbersome since Demon’s Souls, but even I think that the weapon upgrade system and materials are a little too much in Elden Ring. The Bells that let you buy materials are not on the main path and its a ridiculous amount of runes if you are to buy them all for a full upgrade. It sort of disincentivizes trying out different builds and respeccing, which is kind of a bummer IMO.
 

Zeroing

Banned
That is why I always advice people to first start with Nioh 2 then Nioh 1 then slowly making their way to a From game. Elden Ring is a very complex game and because it is open world it is easy to miss things, get "lost" etc
It is an hardcore game.
My advice to the OP is look up on the internet some build that you might think suits you, play with it. Looking things up on the internet is not cheating.
 
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Larogue

Member
If we let OP design Elden Ring

5IN2wOO.jpg
 

Codes 208

Member
An rpg where you build a class and need specific requirements to use weapons based around thise classes? No shit sherlock.
How do you re-spec?
You have to beat the main boss of the academy in lirunia lake. Youll need silver fetuses but i think she gives you some (otherwise you can get some in the eternal city where you get the mimic tear ash, if you havent been there yet i recommend working on Ranni’s questline as that ultimately leads to where you can get some. But be warey regarding finishing her questline as it changes the ending)
 
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sircaw

Banned
I never played a game that has so many barriers for a simple weapon change. I almost feel like I have to restart the entire game just to use a new weapon.

I'm towards the end of the game. I have a weapon I have been using for around 40 hours that is upgraded to + 8 that I am sick and tired of. I want to use a sword that is fast, but any other sword of that nature needs completely different attributes to work. I had to respec all my skills toward an INT focus and use all my smithing stones on it. I did so.

But the new weapon turned out to be disappointing, so I had to respec my character back to the old stats to keep progressing in the game.

I have TONS of weapons, but almost all of them require different player stats, and now I have nowhere near the smithing stones needed to upgrade any one of them to a usable level. I know there are items I can give to the crones so I can buy smithing stones, but it's almost impossible to find them all without guides. Same with the larvae I need for respec, I only have one left.

I either have to use guides (which is like cheating for me) or restart the game so I can re-find enough resources to upgrade a new weapon. It's forcing you to replay massive parts of the game to scrounge for upgrade materials or start the game over.

FromSoftware has been doing stuff like this for a long time, intentionally designing systems in ways that require players to use the internet to find things out, it's free marketing for them if players do that, it's incredibly cheap. But this weapon system right here is complete nonsense. I'm not sure if people are too afraid to call out dumb stuff in excellent games, but this is some bullshit.
I totally agree, I remember when I completed my mechanical engineering apprenticeship, the damn thing took 5 years to complete, at the end of it, I was bloody unhappy and decided I wanted a change, to the electrical side of things, but the bastards in charge wanted me to do another 5 years for it.

So damn selfish of them. "lollipop_disappointed:
 
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Spaceman292

Banned
I never played a game that has so many barriers for a simple weapon change. I almost feel like I have to restart the entire game just to use a new weapon.

I'm towards the end of the game. I have a weapon I have been using for around 40 hours that is upgraded to + 8 that I am sick and tired of. I want to use a sword that is fast, but any other sword of that nature needs completely different attributes to work. I had to respec all my skills toward an INT focus and use all my smithing stones on it. I did so.

But the new weapon turned out to be disappointing, so I had to respec my character back to the old stats to keep progressing in the game.

I have TONS of weapons, but almost all of them require different player stats, and now I have nowhere near the smithing stones needed to upgrade any one of them to a usable level. I know there are items I can give to the crones so I can buy smithing stones, but it's almost impossible to find them all without guides. Same with the larvae I need for respec, I only have one left.

I either have to use guides (which is like cheating for me) or restart the game so I can re-find enough resources to upgrade a new weapon. It's forcing you to replay massive parts of the game to scrounge for upgrade materials or start the game over.

FromSoftware has been doing stuff like this for a long time, intentionally designing systems in ways that require players to use the internet to find things out, it's free marketing for them if players do that, it's incredibly cheap. But this weapon system right here is complete nonsense. I'm not sure if people are too afraid to call out dumb stuff in excellent games, but this is some bullshit.
One of the main aspects of an rpg is that you choose a path and you're stuck to it. You chose a faith build, you take your pick of faith weapons. The fact that you get so many chance to respec in Elden Ring and you can just BUY all the upgrade stones makes it the most forgiving From game in this area.

I'm just still loving the fact that they numbered the upgrade stones rather than calling them shards and chunks and whatever
 
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TintoConCasera

I bought a sex doll, but I keep it inflated 100% of the time and use it like a regular wife
Gotta love when someone doesn't know how to play a game and calls it badly designed because of that.

Dude it's an RPG, not all weapons will suit your build. Besides, I've been playing without a guide and I'm swimming both in upgrade materials and the respec item, as some areas have a lot of those (maybe even too many). You sure you are near the end?
 

GermanZepp

Member
The way i experinced the game is that you have weapons with mostly STRG and DEX atributes (and other lower stats) and then you have another kinda weapons/spells with lots of INT and FAITH with other lower stats.

But yeah you have to think and commit to level up for trying stuff. Do it thoughfully.
 

ClosBSAS

Member
Tell me u never played a souls game without telling me u never played a souls game before,

Btw if u want a hack'n'slash game where stats dont matter , or instead of building your character around a bleed, frost, fait or whatever build, i strongly suggest u stay away from.. From games.
well said mate
 

Pejo

Member
Sounds like an entitlement issue OP. This game is more lenient with ways to change your build/temporarily add stats than any other FROM game. Of course an INT scaling sword isn't going to be good with middling stats and things like that, but that's the whole point of "builds" in this game. If you're really this butthurt about it, go use a leveling exploit and give yourself all 99's across the board and use everything all at once.
 

HisExcellency

Neo Member
There are only two ways to play From games:

1. Just play the game, not worrying about min/maxing or missable stuff like weapons or even quests. Just play what you like, whenever you find, if you find it.

2. Look up everything. Check guides often for missable shit and best builds. Research what playstyle you want and the best things to do/get to use that playstyle. Just a straight up roadmap. You don't have to constantly consult guides but if you have a question you should.

It seems like you want to have your cake and eat it too. Experiencing things organically without looking things up means you'll miss shit.
 

StormCell

Member
Tell me u never played a souls game without telling me u never played a souls game before,

Btw if u want a hack'n'slash game where stats dont matter , or instead of building your character around a bleed, frost, fait or whatever build, i strongly suggest u stay away from.. From games.
Gotta love that Souls community mentality. Have anything that frustrates you about a From Software title? Welllll, you must not have played any of their previous titles if you didn't absolutely love this quality already!

"Git gud!"

It just isn't helpful for a game that has a lot going for it. I found an absolutely terrific sword a couple of hours into the game. A dozen hours later I still can't use the fuggin' thing!!! I'm close... just doesn't seem reasonable that I should have to level up 6 times basically because I *wisely* spent my first few level ups on vitality.
 

Zeroing

Banned
Seriously? A game which is cluttered with tons of different and most of the time useless stats. Even the stats has their own stats in this game.
yeah you start with clutter then when you get to a From game you realise how things there are easier to manage.... makes sense no ?
 

R6Rider

Gold Member
It's not perfect, but still better than requiring an entirely different set of materials for each affinity on your weapons.

You can also fully test the movesets of weapons now even if you don't meet the requirements.
 
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Mossybrew

Member
I either have to use guides (which is like cheating for me)

Well, here's where you're wrong, you have some brainworm where looking up info on a game is cheating? No. This game especially, you are going to NEED to look some stuff up - call it "engaging with the community" if that feels better. Now, how much googling you do is up to you - I've gotten online help and advice on a lot of stuff in the game, but every play session I'm still finding surprises and stumbling into cool places I never knew existed, even mechanics that are new after like 60+ hours of playing (you can uh, make perfumes? what's this?). This game is so huge and packed with content that you can still have the fun of surprise and discovery even while doing a lot of research online.
 

jaysius

Banned
Choices matter, the other side of this coin is the shit that was Diablo 3 where skills were so loosey goosey you could respec every minute if you wanted to.

Having the game this way makes leveling carry real weight, there are resets available as you know. Respecing for a single weapon isn’t smart though, you just realize that said weapon isn’t going to work for you on this game, try it next time.

OP is a perfect example of what I stated about the dangers of reviewers making nonSouls fans want to play this with inflated scores, they won’t understand the base things that are hard about this game series like a vet of the series will. This isn’t Diablo 3.
 
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Mr Hyde

Member
I've always loved the RPG elements in Souls-games. You pick a class, and work your way towards a suited build that is tailored to your playstyle. Given the amount of weapons and stats (and the war ashes on top of it) it makes for so much replayability. There are so much content and build variety in Elden Ring and it gives me a big smile. I'm 90 hours in the game and during that time I've been making notes on which build I'm going for in my next playthrough. I really don't see this as a flaw, but rather one of its biggest strengths. I've always said Souls-games are a digitized version of old school table top roleplaying games.
 

Novacain

Member
Get ready to be destroyed by grognards invalidating your experience because you dared notice a speck of dust upon the flawless ball sack of From Software.

How dare you not properly appreciate things? I demand you acknowledge immediately that this game company and their franchises are amazing and not for your inferior brain.
 

IntentionalPun

Ask me about my wife's perfect butthole
You will just get endless comments from From fans about how you shouldn't have bought the game.. there's no room for criticism for this game on the internet.. and I think most players understand that.

So those of us who just dont have time for the lack of QOL features dont have a lot of room to speak.

Not a big deal to me I'll just play something else.

The one common theme I'm seeing with those who love the game is they've managed to put in dozens of hours every week since launch. I do spend 100s of hours in the same games but it's over years and years of playing not 3 weeks lol
 
This is a problem for by brother who is currently playing through the game as well. He wants to try all the different weapons he gets, but most of them are not useable early on. There are talismans and a great rune you can use that buff your stats so you can try them out for a while and see if you want to commit to a certain one. Once you get a healthy amount of respecs, you can even commit to several special weapons in one playthrough which is great. It is just the first 30-40 hours were you are kind of restricted to one or two weapons. Definitely an improvement over previous titles where they only really allowed you to use one maybe two weapons per play though. Now, I can comfortably use five or six fully upgraded weapons at endgame and NG+.

Also, finding the balls for the infinite stones is a chore if you don't want to explore everything. They are sorta just sprinkled throughout the world.
 

Life

Member
Definitely an issue - should be able to break down the weapon for scrap upgrades or or merge it with another to at least give you a headstart. It's far from "game-breaking"
 

GHG

Gold Member
Disagree.

This is a problem shared by many people I know playing the game that bought into the hype. We all know From games don't hold your hand, which is fine, but it creates problems like this where people can wander for a literal 30-40 hours with no real progression in their armor and weapons. Since the systems are not laid out and clear you can find yourself in a situation where you can't make any real progress.

Hell, I am someone who has a decent knowledge of From games and I didnt find anything useful for my class until around hour 30. Sure, I found some upgrade materials, but not enough to make it feel like I wasn't bleeding materials and a weapon switch or armor switch never made sense due to the lack of materials. It all depends on luck/discovery along with how you decide to tackle the game which is open ended.

These games require time investment, curiosity and exploration, that's just how it is.

I don't understand how you can play for that amount of time and not find anything for your class? Within 10 hours I had a weapon for pretty much every class in my inventory along with a bunch of summons, spells and ashes. That's not a luck/discovery thing either because the vast majority of the meaningful loot is hand placed and single instanced per playthrough.
 
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