Dark Souls 3: Best Melee Weapons for Sorcerers

Due to its RPG nature, Elden Ring has many different mechanics and systems with varying depths of complexity. This includes character creation and roleplaying certain classes, specifically mages/sorcerers but even those characters need some form of protection that isn’t magical in nature.

That brings us to this guide, where I will discuss the best melee weapon for sorcerers in Dark Souls 3.

Best Melee Weapons Compared

Here is a comparison table of my best Melee Weapons for Sorcerers in  ark Souls 3 . Each stat can be sorted to view the highest and lowest values, which has been done for your convenience:

No	Weapons	Best for	Physical Attack	Physical Defence	Magical Attack	Magical Defence	Fire Attack	Fire Defence	Light Attack	Light Defence	Holy Attack	Holy Defence	Critical Attack	Critical Defence	Weight	Skill
1	Dragonslayer Great Axe	Best Sword for Mage Build.	69	55	13o	60	-	35	-	35	-	-	100	-	10.5	Moonlight Vortex
2	Greatsword of Judgeent	Best Looking Melee Weapon.	110	50	86	35	-	30	-	30	-	-	100	-	9.0	Stance of Judgement
3	Cleric’s Candlestick	Best Intelligence Melee Weapon.	70	40	77	30	-	25	-	25	-	-	100	-	2.0	Guiding Light
4	Dark Sword	Class All-Rounder Melee Weapon.	110	55	-	35	-	30	-	30	-	-	100	-	4.5	Stomp
5	Crystal Sage’s Rapier	Best Melee Weapon Overall for Sorcerers.	55	40	82	30	-	15	-	15	-	-	100	-	2.5	Stance
6	Immolation Tinder	Best Roleplay Melee Weapon.	118	40	75	25	0	20	0	20	0	-	100	-	10.0	Punitive Flame
7	Onikiri and Ubadachi	Best Dual-Wield Weapon.	104	45	-	25	-	20	-	20	-	-	100	-	8.5	Onislayer
8	Carthus Curved Sword	Best Long-Range Melee Weapon.	105	55	-	35	-	30	-	30	-	-	100	-	5.5	Spin Slash
9	Great Corvian Scythe	Best Long-Range Scythe Weapon.	97	45	-	30	-	20	-	20	-	-	100	-	9.0	Neck Swipe
10	Friede’s Great Scythe	Best Magic-Infused Scythe Weapon.	110	40	77	25	0	20	0	20	0	-	100	-	13.0	Elfried’s Stance

Comparison table for Best Melee Weapons.

Related Article: Dark Souls 3 Weapons Tier List

1. Moonlight Greatsword

Best Sword for Mage Build.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	69	130	-	-	-	100	-
Attack Type	Standard
Guard	55	60	35	35	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	E	-	C	-
Requires	16	11	26	-
Skill	Moonlight Vortex
Weapon Type	Greatsword
Wgt.	10.5

Moonlight Greatsword Stats Table.

This exceptional weapon, known as the Moonlight Greatsword, is crafted by reforging the soul of Oceiros, the Consumed King after defeating him in the Consumed King’s Garden. It’s a recurring weapon across FromSoftware’s games, spanning from Demon’s Souls to Dark Souls 3.

Sorcerers find this weapon remarkable, as it scales exceptionally well with Intelligence and boasts a potent ranged weapon art, aligning perfectly with the sorcerer’s playstyle, making it my highly recommended choice.

2. Greatsword Of Judgement

Best Looking Melee Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	110	86	-	-	-	100	-
Attack Type	Standard
Guard	50	35	30	30	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	D	D	-
Requires	17	15	12	-
Skill	Stance of Judgement
Weapon Type	Greatsword
Wgt.	9.0

Greatsword of Judgement Stats Table.

One of Pontiff Sulyvahn’s swords, the Greatsword of Judgement is acquired after defeating him in Irithyll of the Boreal Valley.

A blade that shines bright with the darkness of the void ready to punish the accused. That is the blade you use when you decide to use the greatsword of judgement. This is among the few blades in the game that rivals the Moonlight Greatsword in terms of beauty and spectacle.

Another great addition to a sorcerer’s roster of melee weapons for sure. The Intelligence scaling alone makes this weapon worth it but that weapon art is what truly makes it shine. Definitely, a must-have seeing as it is a boss soul weapon.

3. Cleric’s Candlestick

Best Intelligence Melee Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	70	77	0	0	0	100	-
Attack Type	Standard/Thrust
Guard	40	30	25	25	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	D	C	-
Requires	8	12	-	12
Skill	Guiding Light
Weapon Type	Straight sword
Wgt.	2.0

Cleric’s Candlestick Stats Table. 

If some new players join the game, they cannot use every weapon. If they want to have the best weapon for sorcerer Dark Souls 3 before upgrading, Cleric’s Candlestick is suitable. However, one of the downsides that I think this weapon has is that it can not be infused or buffed.

In addition, this weapon has a low potential for damage compared to the other weapons. But the spell buff of this weapon is 200. Thus it is the best option for casting sorceries.

4. Dark Sword

Class All-Rounder Melee Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	110	0	0	0	0	100	-
Attack Type	Standard/Thrust
Guard	55	35	30	30	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	C	D	-	-
Requires	16	15	0	0
Skill	Stomp
Weapon Type	Straight sword
Wgt.	4.5

Dark Sword Stats Table.

This weapon can be collected by killing Darkwraiths in Farron Keep. These can be found outside the Abyss Watcher’s boss room and can be farmed easily.

The dark sword is exactly what it sounds like. A simple sword being shorter than expected but all the more powerful. It is a simple dark blade with an intricate handle that suits the aesthetic of the dark wraiths very well. There is very little to be said about this sword’s design as it is very simple as it was designed this way.

5. Crystal Sage’s Rapier

Best Melee Weapon Overall for Sorcerers.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	55	82	-	-	-	100	-
Attack Type	Thrust
Guard	40	30	15	15	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	E	E	C	-
Requires	13	18	-	-
Skill	Stance
Weapon Type	Thrusting sword
Wgt.	2.5

The players who rely on magic-based attacks and spells, Crystal Sage’s Rapier is the best weapon for sorcerer Dark Souls 3. This weapon is the best for long-range and close attacks. It is evident from its appearance. It has the ranking of A as per Intelligence. Thus it is most probably the best choice for spell and magic casting. Also, it can lock the enemies naturally. Players can use the same weapon two-handed.

Furthermore, it has 82 magic and 55 physical points. Every magic player wants to use this weapon. It can lock the enemies and has a long reach. Players can get it in the early stage of the game by repositioning the Crystal Sage’ soul. It has A-scaling after full up-gradation. It does not need high Dexterity or Strength for wielding. Besides, it has increasing item discovery so all the players can get its benefits. But players cannot use it to cast spells.

6. Immolation Tinder

Best Roleplay Melee Weapon. 

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Boost
Attack	118	-	75	-	-	100	-
Attack Type	Thrust
Guard	40	25	20	20	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	D	B	-
Requires	18	18	12	12
Skill	Punitive Flame
Weapon Type	Halberd
Wgt.	10.0

Immolation Tinder Stats Table. 

This weapon is obtained by killing fire witches in Irythil of the Boreal Valley outside the Pontiff’s boss room.

It does have a melee attack which can be used as a thrust attack but otherwise, the weapon art spews flames around the user in a circle on the ground to damage any enemies that get too close. It has 132 fire and 206 physical damage points in its full potential.

In my opinion, it is a decent weapon, but it cannot be considered the best melee weapon for sorcerers as there are simply better weapons out there but this can be used for roleplaying as a fire witch or doing a challenge run with only staff.

7. Onikiri & Ubadachi

Best Dual-Wield Weapon. 

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Aux
Attack	104	-	-	-	-	100	33
Attack Type	Slash/Thrust
Guard	45	25	20	20	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	C	-	-
Requires	13	25	-	-
Skill	Onislayer
Weapon Type	Katanas (Paired)
Wgt.	8.5

Onikiri and Ubadachi Stats Table. 

Everyone wants to use two katanas in the game. Ubadachi and Onikiri are such two useful katanas. Players can use them with magic.

Further, these combined weapons are suitable for aggressive and rapid attacks. They can make enemies bleed quickly. The offhand blade is short, so players have to get closer to their enemies to get maximum damage output. The players can use the Onislayer skill to deal with poise damage and massive health.

8. Carthus Curved Sword

Best Long-Range Melee Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Aux
Attack	105	-	-	-	-	100	30
Attack Type	Slash
Guard	55	35	30	30	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	D	-	-
Requires	15	18	-	-
Skill	Spin Slash
Weapon Type	Curved Sword
Wgt.	5.5
Focus Cost	6 (-/12)

Carthus Curved Sword Stats Table.

The Carthus curved sword can be acquired by the player in the Catacombs of Carthus by skeletons who wield them.

This sword has excellent scaling with Intelligence which allows the user to use it with great efficiency even if they are a sorcerer or a strength build a dexterity build, etc. This is a fine sword to add to your collection as a sorcerer as no one will mess with you when you are carrying this weapon around.

9. Great Corvian Scythe

Best Long-Range Scythe Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Aux
Attack	97	-	-	-	-	100	30
Attack Type	Slash
Guard	45	30	20	20	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	D	C	-	-
Requires	16	18	-	-
Skill	Neck Swipe
Weapon Type	Reapers
Wgt.	9.0
Focus Cost	13

Great Corvian Scythe Stats Table.

This weapon drops in the Road of Sacrifice from the Corvians. It has the longest reach, probably more than any other scythes in Dark Souls 3. Also, it has S-scaling with the combination of Crystal in Intelligence. This weapon is the best for all the players who want to roll Intelligence or Dexterity in the further build.

The demerit of this weapon is that its bleeding effect applies to the attacker, so players should play carefully. It can keep all the enemies at bay because of its longer range than the other weapons. The Neck Swipe skill of this weapon is deadly and ensures a big strike on the targets.

10. Friede’s Great Scythe

Best Magic-Infused Scythe Weapon.

	Phy	Mag	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit	Aux
Attack	110	77	-	-	-	100	45
Attack Type	Slash
Guard	40	25	20	20	-	-	-
	Str	Dex	Fai	Int
Scaling	E	B	C	E
Requires	12	16	12	11
Skill	Elfried’s Stance
Weapon Type	Reapers
Wgt.	13.0
Focus Cost	-(-/18)

Friede’s Great Scythe Stats Table.

Friede’s Great Scythe becomes obtainable after defeating Sister Friede in the Ashes of Ariandel DLC.

The weapon’s unique feature involves summoning a magic-infused scythe in the off-hand, which leads to a Bloodborne-like attack. With a damage output of 140 magic and 200 physical damage, it offers the highest combined damage potential for solid slashes among all weapons.

Notably, the scythe scales exceptionally well with Intelligence, allowing high-level players to effortlessly mow down hordes of enemies. This makes it a deserving candidate for the best melee weapon for sorcerers.

Why Others Were Not Chosen

While there are several viable options for melee weapons that sorcerers can use, I’ve handpicked some of the best contenders. Here are some of the melee weapons that didn’t make the cut:

• Lothric Knight Sword: While a solid option, it has a low drop rate.
• Uchigatana: While it has respectable stats, it can break easily.
• Drakeblood Greatsword: Has low physical scaling and damage.
• Dancer’s Enchanted Swords: Unimpressive stats, and the 2-way split damage makes it weak.
• Crescent Moon Sword: Has no Strength scaling, and has difficult wield requirements.
• Demon’s Scar: Doesn’t possess any heavy attack, and has no magic bonus attributes.
• Exile Greatsword: Although it deals the highest damage, it is the heaviest and has the worst range.
• Old Wolf Curved Sword: Mostly good for equipping in the offhand.

My Recommendation For The Melee Weapon

I would recommend going with the Crystal Sage Rapiers as the best overall weapon for Sorcerer builds. Since players will rely on mage-focused stats, Crystal Sage Rapiers stands out for offering the best damage output with decent performance on both physical and magic damage. 

Apart from that, I also utilized Dark Sword because of its ability to infusion. It works perfectly for sorcerer builds without putting a dent in the performance of spells. In the end, the choice narrows down to your own playthrough choices and stats distribution. You should always experiment with different weapons to easily discover which fits best for your playthrough. 

Up Next:

• BEST Dark Souls 3 Infusions Ranked.
• Dark Souls 3 Best Daggers Ranked.
• Dark Souls 3 Dex Weapons.