The Battle for Supremacy: The Rise of Competitors to Elden Ring's Coded Sword

Datamines have revealed that Elden Ring’s upcoming Shadow of the Erdtree expansion will introduce a new weapon type. This is exciting news for fans, as a fresh addition to the game's arsenal is always welcome. However, the new weapon will have to compete with the highly coveted Coded Sword.

The Coded Sword is a prized possession among Elden Ring players, and for good reason. Its unique elemental damage type, along with the powerful Ash of War, make it a formidable weapon. Additionally, its striking appearance is sure to turn heads on the battlefield. Underestimating the Coded Sword would be a grave mistake.

Elden Ring Needs More Elemental Weapons as Powerful as the Coded Sword

What sets Holy damage apart in Elden Ring is its relative overpoweredness. The majority of players and enemies lack Holy Resistance, making the Coded Sword, Cipher Pata, and Holy-damage Incantations incredibly potent. However, this effectiveness comes with a caveat – the final bosses Elden Beast and Radagon are two of the few enemies that are resistant to Holy damage, rendering it ineffective against them. This limitation aside, the Coded Sword remains a top contender for the best weapon in the game.

The Holy damage on the Coded Sword is unique in that it works differently than other Elemental or status effect weapons. Most infused weapons have an inherent standard damage that pairs with the added damage types, but not the Coded Sword. The Coded Sword deals exclusively Holy damage, making it a formidable force against enemies with low Holy resistance. Because it lacks a standard damage type, the Coded Sword does not scale with Strength or Dexterity, but instead exclusively scales with Faith. Its B-tier scaling can be upgraded to A-tier scaling, making it an extremely potent weapon.

The Coded Sword's Ash of War packs a powerful punch in both PvE and PvP modes in Elden Ring. Its Unblockable Blade attack is unique to this weapon and the Cipher Pata, albeit with slightly less range. It effortlessly penetrates all shields and cannot be blocked or parried. This makes it an ideal weapon to take down heavily shielded enemies.

To counter this, players must either dodge or use weapons with superior range to keep their distance. NPCs equipped with shields are particularly vulnerable to this attack, making it a great way to punish their defensive behavior. Even with some recent rebalancing in Elden Ring, the Coded Sword remains a force to be reckoned with thanks to its elemental damage and shield-penetrating abilities.

The Coded Sword in Elden Ring is widely regarded as one of the coolest weapon designs in the game. While the hilt and crossguard are fairly typical in design, the blade itself is truly unique and instantly recognizable. Made entirely of cipher symbols, the sword's blade glows golden and extends nearly threefold during the Ash of War attack.

To truly compete with the best weapons in the game, Elden Ring's DLC needs to introduce its own equivalent to the Coded Sword, specifically focused on other Elemental and status effect weapons. The inclusion of expanded weapon variety for underutilized effects like Sleep, as well as other Elements and status effects such as Red Lightning, Death Blight, Frost, and Madness, would greatly enhance the gameplay experience for fans.

Elden Ring is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.