Elden Ring remains one of the most played action RPGs in 2025 — and with the highly anticipated Shadow of the Erdtree DLC on the horizon, optimizing your build has never been more important. Whether you’re a returning Tarnished or just starting your journey through the Lands Between, these are the top 10 PvE builds that will help you thrive in the current meta.
1. Blasphemous Herald (Strength + Faith)
- Weapons: Blasphemous Blade, Erdtree Seal
- Stats: High Strength, Faith, and Vigor
- Why it works: Life-steal on hit, great AoE damage, and self-buffs like Flame, Grant Me Strength make this a sustainable and devastating option for boss fights and mob encounters.
2. Frost Mage (Pure Intelligence)
- Weapons: Dark Moon Greatsword, Lusat’s Glintstone Staff
- Stats: High Intelligence, with solid Mind and Vigor
- Why it works: Delivers massive ranged magic damage while building up Frostbite, which staggers and chips away at enemy health effectively.
3. Bleed Samurai (Dexterity + Arcane)
- Weapons: Rivers of Blood, Nagakiba
- Stats: High Dexterity and Arcane
- Why it works: Bleed builds are still among the strongest in PvE due to their damage-over-time potential. Great for quick boss kills and consistent DPS.
4. Colossal Knight (Pure Strength)
- Weapons: Greatsword (Guts’ Sword), Great Club
- Stats: Maxed Strength, high Vigor and Endurance
- Why it works: Delivers massive poise damage, enabling you to stagger bosses and outlast tough fights through sheer brute force.
5. Dragon Cultist (Arcane + Faith)
- Weapons: Dragon Communion Seal, Occult Claws
- Stats: High Arcane and Faith
- Why it works: Dragon incantations offer large-area elemental devastation. Combined with Bleed scaling, it’s highly effective in crowded areas.
6. Lightning Prophet (Pure Faith)
- Weapons: Gravel Stone Seal, Sacred Relic Spear
- Stats: Pure Faith with good Mind
- Why it works: Lightning incantations received significant buffs in 2025, making this an excellent build for ranged nuking in wide-open zones.
7. Holy Blade (Dexterity + Faith)
- Weapons: Sacred Twinblades, Golden Order Greatsword
- Stats: Balanced Dexterity and Faith
- Why it works: Offers quick melee attacks combined with healing, buffs, and holy damage — ideal for flexible PvE encounters.
8. Spellblade Hybrid (Intelligence + Faith)
- Weapons: Sword of Night and Flame, Prince of Death’s Staff
- Stats: Even split between Intelligence and Faith
- Why it works: A jack-of-all-trades caster with access to a wide range of magic types and some melee utility. Excellent versatility for unpredictable encounters.
9. Quality Warrior (Strength + Dexterity)
- Weapons: Claymore, Bloodhound’s Fang
- Stats: Balanced Strength and Dexterity
- Why it works: A reliable melee build with consistent scaling across a variety of weapons. Great for players who like to experiment with different gear.
10. Dual Daggers Assassin (Pure Dexterity)
- Weapons: Reduvia, Scorpion’s Stinger
- Stats: High Dexterity, with a bit of Arcane
- Why it works: Extreme mobility, fast attack chains, and powerful status effects make this a deadly and agile choice for PvE speedruns and exploration.
Final Thoughts
The PvE meta in Elden Ring for 2025 is more diverse than ever. Whether you’re preparing for the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC or just looking for a fresh build to take into New Game+, these setups offer the strength, versatility, and effectiveness to conquer any challenge the Lands Between throws at you.
Which build are you using right now? Drop your favorite in the comments and stay tuned to the blog for more guides and updates!
