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Ah, you were at my side, all along…
Elden Ring’s Dark Moon Greatsword continues a nearly thirty-year FromSoftware tradition. Every King’s Field and Soulsborne game (sans Sekiro) has included the iconic blade.
You can acquire the Dark Moon Greatsword around Elden Ring’s midgame, at the culmination of Ranni’s questline. There can be a lot of game left after this point, but you’ll have to face some of the most challenging Elden Ring bosses before acquiring the Dark Moon Greatsword, so it’s a good idea to invest in another strong Elden Ring weapon like the Moonveil Katana to see you through those challenges.
You can check out our full, step-by-step guide for Ranni’s quest if you’d like the most granular details. I’ll lay out the broad strokes here for the spoiler-averse:
The Dark Moon Greatsword’s ashes of war, cheekily titled «Moonlight Greatsword,» empowers the weapon to deal bonus magic damage and send out its signature magic beams on heavy attacks. Crucially, only the act of empowering the weapon costs FP. You can send as many moonbeams as you want while the buff remains active.
Additionally, the Moonlight Greatsword causes frost buildup even while unbuffed. Frost is similar to the Bleed effect, but deals damage, slows, and causes slower stamina regeneration after it is triggered. Unless I somehow find something even cooler, the Dark Moon Greatsword is the weapon I plan on bringing into Elden Ring’s punishing late-game areas.
Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister’s copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he’s not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch.
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