Elden Ring DLC: The Classic Knight Build-Straight Sword and Pure Strength Dominance
Dec-06-2025 PST
A Simple Build with Timeless Power
The Classic Knight build keeps things straightforward: a straight sword, a shield, and a stat spread focused on pure Strength, backed by strong endurance and high vigor to tank through exchanges. There are flashier weapons in Elden Ring, but few match the straight sword's combination of speed, range, Elden Ring Items, recovery time, and ability to control neutral.
Why Straight Swords Work So Well
Straight swords continue to be one of the strongest weapon classes for PvP spacing. Their strengths include:
Fast startup frames
Excellent recovery, making them very hard to punish
Reliable pokes and pressure tools
Strong heavy attacks (with pierce damage) for whiff punishing
One of the best crouch attacks in the game
The crouch poke from straight swords is particularly oppressive, offering a fast, low-profile mixup option that hits surprisingly far.
And then, of course, the build runs a shield-not just for blocking but for one of the most devastating tools available to skillful players:
Carrion Retaliation Parry One-Shots
With a parry-focused shield and the right talismans, even a light mistake from an opponent can turn into a lethal counter. Chase runs two shield types during the invasions:
1.A shield with Carrion Retaliation
2.A shield without an Ash of War so he can flex into sword Ashes of War when needed
But the foundation remains the same: fast pokes, parries, spacing, and punish windows.
Stats & Attributes-Pure Strength Knight
Although straight swords scale well with Dexterity, this version of the build leans into pure Strength, capitalizing on raw physical scaling and supporting heavier armor for tankiness.
Key Attributes
Primary Stat: Strength
High Vigor-enough HP to survive team fights and burst damage
Strong Endurance-essential for blocking, rolling, and wearing a full knight set
Minimal Mind, Int, Faith, Arcane beyond weapon requirements
This spread allows the knight to keep pressure consistently without running out of stamina mid-fight-a common mistake among players transitioning from PvE to PvP.
Knight Armor for Knight Fashion
Beyond aesthetics, this armor offers robust poise and defense, allowing him to tank through trades when needed.
Straight sword users benefit greatly from medium-to-high poise; it lets them continue combos or poke through hits without constantly being staggered.
Talisman Loadout
The talismans stay mostly consistent through the invasions, built around parry damage, Ashes of War, and tankiness:
Dagger Talisman-increases critical hit damage (parries/backstabs)
Shard of Alexander-buffs Ashes of War damage
Tree's Favor +2-boosts HP, stamina, and equip load
Bull-Goat's Talisman-increases poise
Together, these talismans create a setup that can:
Survive multiple opponents
Secure lethal punishes
Maintain aggressive pressure with weapon arts
Take advantage of parry windows for huge payoff
Invasions, Highlights & Gameplay Breakdown
Here are the best moments and insights from those encounters, demonstrating the strengths-and occasional struggles-of the Classic Knight build.
1. Dragon Breath Chaos & a Parry One-Shot
While most players would retreat, he pushes forward, surviving the burst and eventually landing a clean parry into instant kill.
This moment embodies why parry-focused knight builds are so satisfying: one perfect reaction can erase any advantage the enemy team thought they had.2. Shield Turtles & Kick Tech
It's a reminder that situational Ashes of War can completely flip matchups-something many build creators overlook.
3. Madness, Lances, and Latency Wars
Straight swords struggle in delayed hit environments, so switching to longer-range weapons can save an invasion.
It highlights another strength of this build: weapon flexibility without compromising the knight theme.
4. The Tree Duel-Fighting Unlocked for Survival
One of the funniest invasions involves being ambushed on a narrow tree branch. Fighting locked-on would be suicide, so Chase goes unlock mode, rolling manually to stay on the branch while trading blows.
After a few tense moments of footwork, parries, and roll reads, Chase comes out victorious-a great showcase of mechanical skill and awareness.
5. Staircase Duels & the Moonlight Greatsword Escape Artist
In a duel against a Moonlight Greatsword phantom on a staircase, Chase lands a perfect backstab setup-only for the enemy to Houdini roll past him and escape the corner in a bizarre latency warp.
Even with the escape, the fight ends in a stylish finish thanks to smart parry attempts and Ash of War pressure.
6. Bird Bros & Chaos on the Mountain
One of the funniest invasions features Chase trying to protect the giant temple birds-the "bird bros"-while the host and phantoms completely ignore them. Eventually, the birds get dragged into the chaos, and Chase desperately tries to keep them alive.
He fails, of course. The birds die honorable deaths.
But the whole sequence is a perfect example of why Elden Ring invasions are unmatched for emergent storytelling.
7. High Latency Claw Players & Perfect Punishes
Against a claw user with heavy latency, Chase patiently waits for predictable running heavies-one of the easiest claw moves to parry. Sure enough, he gets the read, lands the parry, and ends the fight with a clean critical.
Even in bad connections, smart habits win fights.
8. Wizard Duos & the Knight Champion Betrayal
One memorable invasion features a random PvE knight joining the fray against two wizard players. Chase cheers for the NPC "champion," only for the poor knight to get evaporated.
This betrayal cannot stand.
Chase hunts down the wizard responsible and executes him with a plunge attack-justice served.
9. Arcane PvP, Impaling Thrust Parries, and Last-Second Trades
Highlight after highlight follows:
Backstabs denied by dragons
Parry attempts on Impaling Thrust
Square Off into lethal damage
Bubble Tears popping mid-combo
Close-quarters straight sword trades
Through all of it, the Classic Knight build remains consistent, versatile, and powerful.
Final Thoughts-The Classic Knight Endures
At the end of the invasion montage, we return to the build's roots. Straight sword and shield was iconic in Dark Souls 3, and its legacy remains strong in the Elden Ring DLC. Reliable spacing, strong punishes, more Elden Ring Runes and high-skill parry windows make it both accessible to newcomers and rewarding for experienced players.
This build isn't about flashy spell rotations or exotic gimmicks-it's about clean fundamentals, patience, pressure, and punishing mistakes with lethal force. And in Elden Ring's fast-paced DLC meta, that timeless consistency is more valuable than ever.