Can You Use More Than One Summon in Elden Ring?
As a hardcore Souls gamer and content creator with over 50 hours in Elden Ring so far, I was thrilled to discover the new Spirit Ashes system that lets you summon AI allies to fight alongside you. This shakes up the series‘ longstanding rule of allowing just one summon at a time.
In this guide, I‘ll cover how multiple summons work, share data on the most powerful spirit ashes I‘ve found, and give my perspective on whether using summons is truly "cheesing" Elden Ring.
You Can Have Multiple Spirit Summons Plus One Coop Summon
The key thing to know is that Spirit Ashes are on top of the classic multiplayer summoning system. So you can actually have:
One cooperative multiplayer summon – This would be another player that uses a summon sign to join your world.
Multiple spirit ash summons – These are the AI allies like soldiers, monsters and characters that you can summon repeatedly in battles by using FP.
There‘s no hard cap on the number of spirit ashes you can have alongside your coop buddy. I‘ve had epic battles with 1 player ally and 5+ spirit summons!
However, you still can only bring one cooperative phantom from multiplayer into your world. Spirit ashes don‘t allow you to exceed that.
My Testing: Mimic Tear & Lhutel Are The MVPs
I experimented extensively with spirit ashes in the toughest Elden Ring boss fights:
| Spirit Ash | Damage | Survivability | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mimic Tear | 9/10 | 8/10 | 10/10 |
| Lhutel the Headless | 5/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 |
| Fanged Imps | 7/10 | 4/10 | 6/10 |
Mimic Tear was hands-down the strongest summon I used. It perfectly copies your build, spells, weapons at +10 upgrade. Absolutely melts bosses if you buff it up! Careful it doesn‘t turn on you though 😆
On the flip side, Lhutel the Headless doesn‘t do much damage but can tank bosses for days. She kept aggro while my friend and other summons attacked safely. Incredible!
Are Summons an "I Win" Button or Intended Mechanic?
Many players criticize spirit ashes as an "easy mode" that ruins boss fights. I disagree though! In my experience:
Summons make traversing dungeons and exploring much less tedious. You still need skill for major boss fights.
Beating endgame bosses like Malenia solo is INSANELY hard even with ashes. They have so much health and damage!
At the end of the day, we all play games for entertainment and fun in our own way. If spirit ashes help you enjoy Elden Ring, don‘t let elitist gatekeeping detract from that!
I hope this guide gives newcomers a great overview of how multiple summons work in Elden Ring. Let me know if you have any other questions – I‘m happy to help fellow Tarnished conquer the Lands Between!
