Unleashing Power: A Comprehensive Guide to Two-Handing Weapons in Elden Ring

Elden Ring, the sprawling action RPG from FromSoftware, offers players a vast array of combat options. From nimble dexterity builds to powerful sorceries, there’s a playstyle for everyone. However, one of the most fundamental techniques for maximizing melee damage, often overlooked by newcomers, is the ability to two-hand weapons. Two-handing isn’t just about gripping your sword differently; it fundamentally alters your character’s combat capabilities, boosting strength, opening up new move sets, and allowing access to unique weapon skills. This comprehensive guide will walk you through everything you need to know about two-handing weapons in Elden Ring, from the basic mechanics to advanced strategies.

The Fundamentals of Two-Handing in Elden Ring

At its core, two-handing a weapon in Elden Ring involves sacrificing the use of your shield or off-hand armament to wield your primary weapon with both hands. This simple action has profound effects on your character’s stats and combat effectiveness. Here’s a breakdown of the core benefits:

Increased Strength Scaling

The most significant advantage of two-handing is the 1.5x strength multiplier it provides. This isn’t a flat increase to your Strength stat; instead, it functions as an invisible buff during damage calculation. For example, if your character has a Strength stat of 20, two-handing a weapon effectively treats it as 30 for the purpose of damage calculation related to strength scaling. This results in significantly higher attack power, particularly with weapons that have strong strength scaling. The game doesn’t directly display this change on your stat sheet or weapon’s AR, but it’s consistently applied behind the scenes. This makes two-handing incredibly valuable for strength-based builds aiming to deliver heavy blows.

Access to Different Move Sets

Many weapons in Elden Ring have slightly different movesets when wielded in two hands compared to one hand. These variations can include changes to attack speed, range, and the type of attacks available. For instance, some weapons might gain access to powerful charge attacks, sweeping strikes, or heavy thrusts when two-handed. Discovering these unique movesets is crucial to mastering your chosen weapon, and it adds considerable depth to the combat system. Experimenting with different weapons in both one-handed and two-handed grips can reveal hidden nuances and help you find your ideal combat style.

Enhanced Stance Damage and Posture Breaking

While often less emphasized, two-handing also contributes to increased posture damage (or “stance” damage as it is called in-game). This is particularly evident with heavier weapons. Applying consistent posture damage breaks an enemy’s guard, leaving them vulnerable to a critical hit, which can drastically increase your damage output. Two-handing weapons that already excel at posture damage further amplifies this aspect, making it a strategic option when battling strong enemies or bosses. The ability to consistently break an enemy’s posture is a game-changer in tough encounters.

Increased Guard Break Power (Against Enemies Defending with Shields)

While you yourself lose the ability to guard with a shield when two-handing, your attack power against an enemy who is also guarding goes up. This is particularly useful against common enemies using shields and some boss battles where breaking a boss’s guard is important.

Increased Reach for Certain Weapons

Some weapons, especially larger ones like Greatswords, Colossal Weapons, and Great Hammers, may have an extended reach while two-handed. This can make it easier to hit enemies while maintaining a safe distance or to target specific body parts during boss battles. Using this extended range to your advantage can prevent you from getting struck by enemy attacks and allows you to engage in safer combat.

Step-by-Step Guide: How to Two-Hand Weapons in Elden Ring

The process of two-handing a weapon in Elden Ring is straightforward. Here are the detailed instructions for all platforms:

PlayStation (PS4/PS5)

1. Equip Your Weapon: First, ensure that the weapon you wish to two-hand is equipped in your right-hand equipment slot. This is your primary weapon.
2. Hold Triangle (△): On your PlayStation controller, press and hold the Triangle (△) button. This will bring up your equipment menu.
3. Press R1 (or RB on Xbox): While still holding Triangle, press the R1 button. This action will switch your weapon to the two-handed stance.
4. Release Triangle: You can now release the Triangle button, and you’ll notice that your character now wields the weapon with both hands.

Xbox (Xbox One/Xbox Series X/S)

1. Equip Your Weapon: Make sure the weapon you want to two-hand is in your right-hand equipment slot.
2. Hold Y: Press and hold the Y button on your Xbox controller. This will bring up the equipment menu.
3. Press RB: While holding Y, press the RB button. This will switch your weapon to the two-handed grip.
4. Release Y: Release the Y button, and your character will now be wielding the weapon with both hands.

PC (Keyboard and Mouse)

1. Equip Your Weapon: Ensure that your desired weapon is equipped in your right-hand weapon slot.
2. Press ‘E’: Press and hold the ‘E’ key on your keyboard. This will bring up the equipment selection menu.
3. Left Click (Mouse): While holding ‘E’, click the left mouse button on the equipped right-hand weapon slot. This will switch your weapon to the two-handed grip.
4. Release ‘E’: Release the ‘E’ key, and you will now be wielding your weapon with both hands.

How to Return to One-Handing

To return to a one-handed stance, simply repeat the same steps. Hold Triangle (PlayStation) / Y (Xbox) / ‘E’ (PC), and then press R1 / RB / left click on the weapon icon. You will revert to the one-handed stance with shield enabled, if equiped.

Strategic Applications of Two-Handing in Elden Ring

Understanding when and why to two-hand weapons is critical for success in Elden Ring. Here are some key strategic situations where two-handing can give you an edge:

Boss Battles

Many boss battles in Elden Ring require aggressive, high-damage output strategies. Two-handing your weapon provides a considerable boost to damage and helps to break a bosses stance, making it easier to deal critical damage. Bosses in Elden Ring are known for being difficult, and maximizing damage in small windows is crucial to victory.

Against Heavily Armored Foes

Enemies clad in heavy armor are very resistant to standard attacks. The increased strength scaling provided by two-handing makes your attacks more potent against armor, allowing you to break through their defenses and deal more consistent damage. The added stance damage from two-handing is also very helpful against heavily armored foes, allowing you to reliably stance-break them more frequently.

When You Need a Quick Burst of Damage

If you need to deliver a burst of damage in a short window, two-handing allows you to maximize your weapon’s attack power. This can be particularly useful for taking down quickly some enemies that are charging at you or getting a quick chunk of damage on a tough enemy during a moment of opening. The increased damage also increases your ability to poise-break the enemy, thus opening them up to counter-attack.

In PvP

In player-vs-player (PvP) encounters, two-handing can be a risky but rewarding option. The increased damage and access to different movesets can make you less predictable and more lethal, but it does leave you vulnerable without a shield. The benefit of poise-breaking the other player is immense though, allowing you to follow-up with critical attacks or more damage.

With Colossal Weapons

Colossal weapons, in particular, are often designed to be wielded with both hands. While you *can* wield a Colossal Weapon with one hand, the moveset is often limited and your strength stat might not be high enough to wield it effectively. The stat scaling bonus that two-handing provides makes using Colossal Weapons more realistic even if you don’t have a very high strength stat.

Choosing the Right Weapons for Two-Handing

While you can two-hand virtually any melee weapon in Elden Ring, some weapons are better suited for it than others. Here are a few categories that greatly benefit from being wielded with two hands:

Strength-Scaling Weapons

Weapons with high strength scaling, such as greatswords, colossal weapons, and great hammers, benefit the most from two-handing due to the strength multiplier. These weapons will see the biggest damage boost from the 1.5x strength multiplier. If you are using a Strength-focused build, you will most definitely want to two-hand your weapon regularly.

Weapons with Unique Two-Handed Movesets

Some weapons are designed with specific two-handed movesets in mind, offering unique attacks or combat options when wielded this way. These weapons often have more powerful or longer range charge attacks, or different types of strikes that are not available when wielding one-handed.

Weapons That Benefit From Posture Damage

Weapons that have naturally high posture damage, like great hammers or axes, become even more effective at stance-breaking enemies when two-handed. The benefit you get when you stance-break an enemy is often massive, as they will be vulnerable for several seconds.

Tips for Effective Two-Handing

• Be Mindful of Your Stamina: Two-handed attacks, especially with heavier weapons, often consume more stamina. Pay close attention to your stamina bar and avoid overexertion. Running out of stamina at the wrong moment can leave you wide open to enemy attacks.
• Practice Timing: Mastering the timing of two-handed attacks is essential, as they may have a slower startup or recovery time than their one-handed counterparts. Practice against regular enemies to find the sweet spots for two-handed attacks.
• Adapt to Your Enemy: Two-handing isn’t always the optimal choice. Adapt your combat strategy based on the enemy you are facing. There are times when a shield or quick one-handed attacks may be more suitable.
• Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment: Try different weapons and two-handed movesets to discover what works best for your playstyle. The variety is vast in Elden Ring, and experimenting can lead to some fun and very powerful setups.
• Use it in tandem with Jumping attacks: Jumping attacks in Elden Ring deal a lot more stance damage when compared to normal standing light attacks. When combining this with the increased stance damage that two-handing gives, you can stance-break enemies much more quickly.
• Use it with power-stancing: Some weapons allow power-stancing. This occurs when equipping two of the same weapon types in each hand. This changes the light attack to be a double strike. However, this can also be combined with two-handing the weapon to further increase the damage and stance-breaking power.

Conclusion

Two-handing weapons is a crucial skill for any player looking to master combat in Elden Ring. The increase in damage, access to different movesets, and enhanced stance damage it provides makes it an indispensable tool for success. By following this comprehensive guide, you’ll be well-equipped to understand and utilize the power of two-handing, allowing you to overcome even the most formidable challenges the Lands Between has to offer. Remember to experiment with different weapons and adapt your approach based on your current needs. Happy adventuring, Tarnished!