Elden Ring Dragon Incantation Build - Dragon God Guide (Shadow of The Erdtree Build)

Jun. 28, 2024

Elden Ring Dragon Incantation Build – Dragon God Guide (Shadow of The Erdtree Build)

In theElden Ring Dragon Incantation Build, I’m going to be showing you myDragon God Guide. This build focuses on the use ofDragon Communion spellsand utilizes a new item calledRock Heartto further boost the damage of these spells.

In this Elden Ring Build Guide, I’ll be showing you my Dragon Communion Spell build. This is aShadow of the Erdtreebuild that takes place after level 150. If you’ve been looking for a Arcane build for Shadow of the Erdtree that wrecks and makes quick work of enemy bosses then you might want to check this build-out.

We have over 110Elden Ring builds. Each one is meticulously crafted to offer unique playstyles, strategies, and experiences, ensuring there’s something for every adventurer in the Lands Between. Whether you seek the raw power of heavy weapons, the finesse of spellcasting, or the versatility of hybrid builds, our collection has you covered. Explore the depths of the game’s mechanics and unleash your full potential with our diverse array of builds.

First, let’s discuss theRock Heart.Rock Heartis a consumable item that you can use infinitely. To obtain this item, you need to find theDomain of Dragons Paintinglocated inShadow Keep. It’s not too far in; you just need to get past theGolden Hippopotamusboss, then go down the ladder and find it in a small room under a bridge area. Once you’ve found the painting, you’ll need to go up to theJagged Peakarea of the game. This means going throughDragon’s Pit, defeating the boss there, and then riding up to the mountain to find the spot shown in the painting. Once you do, you’ll have theRock Heartitem. This is a relatively easy item to get quickly if you know where to look. OurShadow of the Erdtree Mapcan guide you there easily.

The way this item works is similar to other consumables, but you can’t use it while wearingarmor. You’ll need to remove your armor to use it, and once you do, you’ll turn into a dragon. You’ll notice increased resistances and a flat 10% damage negation across all damage types. Additionally, this transformation weighs zero, providing 10% damage negation with no weight. This is particularly useful for builds that utilize theBlue Dancer Charm.

TheBlue Dancer Charmboosts physical damage but requires low equip weights. While this may not be the most optimized for every build, it is worth considering for light builds using theBlue Dancer Charm. In dragon form, you can use the consumable again to grant yourself a one-minute buff that increases yourDragon Communion Incantationdamageby 20%, significantly boosting your damage. This buff stacks with theRoar Medallion, which has been updated to boostDragon Communion SealandDragon Communion spell damageas well. You’ll have multiple ways to enhance your damage.

From this point, you can take this build in a couple of different directions. I’ll explain my approach, but you could certainly do it differently. I focused on using theDragon Communion Sealto cast my spells, increasingArcaneandFaithto meet the requirements for some spells, and went theArcaneroute. This has its advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is that I don’t need to use another seal. If you go theFaithroute and use theDragon Communion Sealin your offhand, you’ll have higher incantation scaling for these spells, resulting in more damage.

Holding theDragon Communion Sealin your offhand grants an extra damage boost. The downside is that I use a weapon and theDragon Communion Sealwhile exploring, allowing me to cast spells with L1 or attack with R1 without swapping back and forth. This setup is convenient if you prefer not to manage your inventory constantly during combat. Additionally, I have a bleed weapon set to the occult affinity, benefiting from high Arcane. This way, I have high damage forDragon Communion spellsand a bleed option. If you go theFaithroute, you likely won’t use a bleed weapon.

For this build, I’m using a new weapon called theBloodfiend’s Fork. What I love about this weapon is that it’s very lightweight, has good reach, native blood loss buildup, and scales withArcanewhen you switch toOccult. It offers decent blood loss buildup and damage, making it a reliable backup weapon.

Since this is primarily a caster build optimized forDragon Communion spells, I’m not focusing on maximizing melee damage. If you prefer, you could choose a different weapon with more damage and weight, but I like theBloodfiend’s Forkbecause its lightweight nature allows me to maintain a relatively low equip load, maximizing the benefits of theBlue Dancer Charm. Additionally, this weapon deals 100% physical damage.

TheAsh of Waryou put on the weapon isn’t super important; you can pick any that you like. I find thatSword Danceworks well, as it can typically kill an enemy in one use for a relatively lowFPcost. Another option isBraggart’s Roar, which increases stamina recovery and damage. However, I’ve noticed it doesn’t boost your damage negation while in dragon form. This might be a bug, and if it’s patched to include damage negation in dragon form, it would be a solid choice. Essentially, you can choose anyAsh of Warthat suits your playstyle.

In my offhand, I have theDragon Communion Seal. If you were going theFaithroute, you would likely use theErdtree Sealin your main hand, theDragon Communion Sealin your offhand, and your other weapon in your backup slot, casting from your main hand.

For armor, we’re not wearing any because of theRock Heart. Since you can’t use armor with this item, there’s no need for it in this build.

When it comes to talismans for this build, there are several options to consider, but let’s start with theBlue Dancer Charm. This charm increases your damage based on how light your equip load is and only boosts physical damage. This applies to your spells that deal physical damage, which manyDragon Communion spellsdo, making it highly effective for this build.

TheRock Heartitem doesn’t weigh anything, keeping us very lightweight. Spells likeEkzykes’ Decay,Dragonmaw, andDragonclawall benefit from this increased damage when you’re lightweight with theBlue Dancer Charmequipped. It boosts both your weapon attack damage and spell damage, which is really beneficial.

While you don’t have to use theBlue Dancer Charmfor this build, it fits well because we’re already lightweight and manyDragon Communion spellsdeal physical damage. However, you can drop it if you prefer to focus on other types of dragon spells without worrying about physical damage.

I also use theCrusade Insignia, which boosts your damage by 15% for 20 seconds after you kill an enemy, refreshing each time you kill one. This applies to both melee attacks and spells, constantly enhancing your damage output.

Another useful talisman for exploration is theBlessed Blue Dew Talisman, which slowly replenishes your FP. This is great for an FP-hungry build, allowing you to use dragon spells regularly without worrying too much about FP management. However, I usually swap this out during boss fights.

For added protection, I use theDragoncrest Greatshield Talisman. In dragon form, you have a default 10% damage negation, which is quite low, especially in the challenging DLC areas. TheDragoncrest Greatshield Talismanboosts your physical protection by 18 or 19%, giving you about 28 or 29% physical damage negation. Combining this withErdtree’s FavorandGolden Vowbuffs, you get even more protection, making you quite resilient.

You might be wondering about theRoar Medallion. I do use it, typically during boss fights or in place of theClaw Talisman. TheRoar Medallionwon’t buff your weapon damage directly, but if you useBraggart’s Roarand have theRoar Medallion, your charged heavy attacks will deal more damage. This can be an effective strategy, especially in boss fights where theClaw Talismanmight not be as useful.

TheFlock’s Canvas Talismanis another good choice, increasing your spell damage. You can slot it in place of theBlessed Dew Talismanduring boss fights for more spell power. Additionally, theShard of Alexandercan boost the damage of skills likeSword Dance, making it another viable option.

There are many talismans that work well for this build, and I suggest experimenting with them to find what suits your playstyle best. The setup I use has worked well for me, but feel free to adjust things during boss fights or other challenging encounters.

For spells, we focus onGolden VowandFlame, Grant Me Strengthto boost our damage.Golden Vowalso provides added protection, which is crucial for this build.Flame, Grant Me Strengthboosts fire and physical damage. Although we don’t have fire spells in this build, it still enhances our physical spells, making it useful. I typically useFlame, Grant Me Strengthonly before boss fights, whileGolden Vowis used more frequently alongsideRock Heartfor consistent damage and protection.

The primary offensive spells in this build areRotten Breath,Ekzykes’s Decay, andDragonmaw.Rotten Breathis a weaker version ofEkzykes’s Decay, but it can be used from horseback, allowing you to apply Scarlet Rot while riding. This makes it valuable for maintaining mobility in certain fights.Ekzykes’s Decayis more powerful and can setScarlet Rotearly in boss fights, which is extremely helpful. It also deals physical damage, fitting well with our build.

Dragonmawhas several advantages: high burst damage, large hitboxes, and high stance damage, which can break an enemy’s stance after a few casts. Most importantly, it provides hyper armor, allowing you to cast without interruption, even when taking hits. This is critical since you have zero poise in this build.Dragonmaw‘s ability to maintain casting through attacks makes it essential for handling aggressive bosses.

We also consider other new dragon incantations:

Ghostflame Breathis a more FP-efficient version ofBorealis’s Mist, offering similar frostbite buildup and slightly more damage. While we don’t use it in this build due to its focus on physical damage, it can be an excellent choice for magic damage builds.

Bayle’s Tyrannydeals significant fire AOE damage with hyper armor, similar toDragonmaw. Although it’s currently less optimal due to potential bugs, it could improve with future patches. It’s both a fire magma spell and a dragon communion spell, making it versatile for talisman boosts.

Bayle’s Flame Lightningcombines fire, physical, and lightning damage, with a long-range claw attack. It can be used from further away thanDragonmawand offers hyper armor. These spells, includingBayle’s Tyranny, have high arcane requirements, making them better suited for builds with significant arcane investment rather than faith.

Ultimately,Dragonmawremains the most reliable for this build, but keeping an eye on future patches could reveal improvements toBayle’s TyrannyandBayle’s Flame Lightning, making them more competitive options.

For attributes at level 165 in this build, I have:

Initially, I aimed for45 Arcaneand30 Faithto meet the requirements and get good scaling. Eventually, you’ll want to increase Arcane to 80 and then raise Faith for even better scaling with theDragon Communion Seal.

If you prefer going theFaithroute, you would aim for 80Faithand only the minimumArcaneneeded for the spells, leading to higher spell damage but a trickier setup.

For theFlask of Wondrous Physick, I recommend using theOpaline Hardtearto boost protection since we are quite light on defense. This will help mitigate damage from the first hit when entering combat, allowing you to safely cast spells likeDragonmaworEkzykes’s Decay. The bubbles provided by this tear can absorb the damage of one hit, which is invaluable when you’re about to engage enemies.

RegardingGreat Runes,Radahn’sandGodrick’sare the best choices for this build.Godrick’s Runeis particularly useful because it grants a significant boost to all stats, which can help manage the diverse stat requirements of this build. Radahn’s Rune is also excellent as it increases health, FP, and stamina, all of which are crucial for a dragon communion build.

That wraps up ourDragon Godbuild. I hope you enjoyed this guide. It’s one of the more powerful builds I’ve created so far. As always, let us know if you have questions or other tips in the comments below. We have a ton more builds coming forElden RingandShadow of the Erdtreeso stay tuned for those. If you need help finding the spells, items, or equipment in this build, and securing some personal objectives, make sure to check theElden Ring Map.

Castielle

Senior Editor at Fextralife. I enjoy gaming, playing and watching sports, cooking yummy food, watching a good movie and hanging out with Fex.