Elden Ring: The Best Bandit Builds

In Elden Ring, the Bandit is a great starting point. You may miss your bow and dagger at first, but with practice and a little cunning, you'll be slaying the biggest bosses with ease.

Bandit best practices

Your bandit starts with a knife that bleeds well and a bow for long-range combat. These are your main hints. A bandit seeks to either draw foes out for a battle, parrying them confidently without distractions or sprint in fast to bleed their opponents out before they can react. Since we won't be focused on any stats that increase max load considerably, take advantage of this and start encounters with a free backstab to thin the herd.

Most of your runes will go into dexterity, so look for weapons that scale well with it. The flail will defend you from foes resistant to slashing and piercing damage early on without requiring you to use any strong points. The Lands Between is full of incantations that will boost your weapons, and Bloodflame Blade and Poison Armament in particular will make your bandit a significant threat early on.

Bosses detest Black Flame Blade damage, but you must have trust 17 to use it. The damage over time it inflicts is dependent on your target's HP pool, so the bonus is well worth the cost (it's also an excellent role play flavor for your character). The Wakizashi, buckler, mace, and short bow will cover most situations. Begin with the Fanged Imp Ashes to remove aggro off your squishy character during early boss bouts, and your bandit is ready to fly.