Is Elden Ring Hard as a Mage? A Complete Magic User‘s Survival Guide
As a hardcore fan of FromSoftware‘s iconic Souls games, I‘ve adventured far and wide across the treacherous Lands Between as an Astrologer mage since Elden Ring‘s launch. And while magic struck fear into enemy hearts late-game, I struggled mighty to master this tricky playstyle originally.
So is embracing the arcane arts worth the early pain for ambitious Tarnished? Absolutely. Once you unlock enough spells and stat boosts, mage builds become utterly devastating–allowing you to dominate foes from a safe range with fiery sustained damage few melee users could ever dream of!
But reaching that god-tier level of power takes knowledge, skill and perseverance. This comprehensive caster‘s survival guide is your complete playbook to understanding whether Elden Ring‘s mage path is right for you, plus how to excel as a mystical battle-hardened spellslinger across every stage of the game!
Why Start as a Mage in Elden Ring?
Veteran Souls players know magic in FromSoftware‘s titles trades raw brute force for tactical versatility from range. This remains true in Elden Ring–sorcerers shine brightest after hitting certain breakpoints but initially feel weak in close quarters until your repertoire expands.
So if you crave only patience and knowledge stand between you and devastating arcane abilities like raining stars on fools or disintegrating them with beams of cosmic energy–read on! Mages eventually reach S-tier, but the early game presents a thrilling mechanical challenge as you amass tools needed to tap that power.
Pros of Playing a Mage
- Insane damage potential once built
- Attack safely from range
- Crowd control large groups of enemies
- Tackle encounters more creatively
- Feel extremely powerful in late game
Cons of Playing a Mage
- Squishy at low levels with little vigor
- Mana management is tough early on
- Need to avoid close combat scenarios
- Requires patience to scale into power
- High skill floor for new players
So in summary–do you crave rising from humble sorcerer to an Elden Lord raining fiery death upon enemies who dare oppose you? Will patience and persistence earning that power excite rather than frustrate you? If so, grab your glintstone staff and let‘s continue!
Best Starting Class and Attributes For Mages
While any Tarnished in the Lands Between can adopt magic with time, the Astrologer remains the quintessential starting class for pure mage builds. Don‘t let its frail appearance fool you–this battle-hardened sorcerer has trained mind, body and soul specifically for mystical combat!
With formidable Intelligence and Mind scores of 16 and 15 respectively out the gate, even the Astrologer‘s Glintstone Pebble can shred groups of foes quickly. Later boosts to Intelligence especially scale your spell damage exponentially.
But don‘t neglect Vigor! Having enough health to survive enemy encounters is crucial until your magic overwhelms them. Here‘s how I prioritized leveling up as an Astrologer through Elden Ring‘s early to late stages:
Early Game (Levels 10-40)
- Vigor – Boost to 20-25 first for survival
- Mind – Raise Mind to 20-25 to increase FP (important for spellcasting)
- Intelligence – Start bumping Intelligence to increase sorcery damage
Mid Game (Levels 40-80)
- Intelligence – Keep raising Intelligence up to 50+ for deadly spells
- Vigor – Get Vigor to 30-35+ to not get one-shotted
- Mind – Consider pushing Mind to 30-35 for more sustained casts
Late Game (Levels 80+)
- Intelligence – Intelligence first to max out spell damage
- Mind – Comfortably spam spells with 40-50+ Mind
- Vigor – Vigor isn‘t as crucial once you nuke everything first!
See the key trend here across all stages? Balance Vigor and Mind carefully to cast spells more often while surviving punishment from enemies in return! Other attributes like Endurance help too, but master this dynamic above all else!
Best Early Game Spells for Mages
Your trusty Glintstone Pebble remains invaluable through entire playthroughs for sniping or dragging lone enemies. But what other potent sorceries help fledgling mages turn the tide in scary first encounters until your power grows?
- Glintstone Arc – Fires a spread of projectiles with area damage
- Carian Slicer – Conjures magic blades for melee strikes
- Scholar‘s Armament – Imbue your weapons with magic temporarily
- Glintstone Stars – Blast enemies with a spreading volley of shards
- Carian Greatsword – Summon a large rotating magic sword to attack
Learn these essential entry-level spells first through merchant purchases or defeating key bosses. Together they form a strong all-around base toolkit to adapt to multiple situations. Most importantly, they buy time to unleash your heaviest sorceries safely!
Best Late Game Spells to Devastate Bosses
The below Tier S destruction spells represent the incredible damage potential realized once your Astrologer reaches higher levels and boosts Intelligence into god tier territory!
| Spell Name | Effect | FP Cost | How to Obtain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comet Azur | Unleash the pinnacle mage power fantasy–an enormous sustained beam of energy vaporizing anything foolish enough to stand in your way! | 40 | Defeat Primeval Sorcerer Azur in Mt. Gelmir |
| Stars of Ruin | Summon a violent meteor storm to pummel grouped enemies with relentless cosmic sorcery | 34 | Purchased from Sorceress Sellen |
| Founding Rain of Stars | Call down a truly biblical rain of glintstone projectiles blanketing huge areas in damage | 30 | Defeated after completing Ranni‘s questline |
| Loretta‘s Greatbow | A massive spectral greatbow sending arcane arrows flying long distances for deadly sniping | 36 | Automatically learned after defeating Loretta in Caria Manor |
| Adula‘s Moonblade | Conjure a frosty crescent-shaped magical blade twice your size to slam down furiously on distant foes | 30 | Looted from Royal Knight Loretta in Haligtree area |
Simply reading their effects likely sparks giddy imaginings of the raw devastation each spell unleashes, no? I too cackled maniacally blasting bosses apart as they stood baffled by my magic‘s might in late-game!
Ideal Staff Choices to Project Your Power
A skilled sorcerer‘s choice of staff can greatly impact spell damage potential. I strongly recommend keeping two equipped and strengthening them equally via smithing stone upgrades. This lets you swap between both to vary up combat. Here were my personal favorites:
Academy Glintstone Staff – Available almost immediately with balanced scaling across Intelligence levels, this staff sees you through much of early-mid game nicely until locating superior alternatives.
Carian Regal Scepter – Dropped after defeating Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon in Raya Lucaria Academy. This staff‘s S-tier scaling from mid-late game boosts high Intelligence builds tremendously.
Lusat‘s Glintstone Staff – Discovered in a late game area, Lusat‘s staff gives best possible potency at the cost of 50% more FP per cast. I used this strategically on tougher enemies, swapping back to Regal Scepter for groups.
Regal Scepter maximized damage for my playstyle while finishing bosses with Lusat‘s staff in clutch situations–allowing me to melt through them with Comet Azur when the stars aligned properly (pun intended)!
Best Spirit Ashes to Draw Enemy Aggression
Another key survivability tactic that helped me immensely was strategic use of spirit summon ashes. These spectral warriors fight briefly alongside you to distract aggressive enemies. Certain tanky spirit archetypes help mages by drawing attention so you can blast safely from range.
Early Game
Banished Knight Engvall – This knight can take and dish plenty of punishment early, giving you windows to pelt foes with Glintstone Pebbles.
Jellyfish Shield – Don‘t scoff at this weird glowing jelly creature! It can absorb enemy aggression surprisingly well as a meat shield.
Late Game
Mimic Tear – This spectral clone mirroring your exact build continues casting spells identically. Extremely powerful summon, but beware–it inherits any weaknesses as well!
Tiche – Speedy assassin spirit capable of inflicting potent elemental debuffs via her weapon skills, leaving groups confused who to target!
Their companionship was invaluable as my magic devastated groups too distracted attacking them to notice inevitable obliteration barreling their way!
Final Verdict – Embrace Patience, Reap Untold Power!
After many hours perfecting my mystical deadly craft across the Forbidden Lands, I stand resolute in declaring magic users can rise above early adversity in FromSoftware‘s shattering epic to become Elden Lords!
The thrill of narrowly overcoming an onslaught of enemies through creative spell-casting and spectral companionship until their broken bodies litter the battlefield proved one of my favorite gaming highlights in years!
So if a mage‘s patient path to power intrigues you, rest assured the journey will transform you into an Elden Ring legend for the ages–if you have the courage to weather early hardship in pursuit of unmatched mystical might! Now grab your glintstone staff, don some robes and let‘s turn these foul Tarnished to ash!
