Top 9 Best Katanas in Elden Ring (Ranked)
The katana is one of the most aesthetically pleasing weapon types in Elden Ring and is easily a favorite among different players. That’s because katana-type weapons are some of the most versatile in the game. They are able to deal good damage and are quick enough for you to get the upper hand against your opponents quickly. Some katanas also have good range and are capable of dealing plenty of damage without draining a good chunk of your stamina.
However, not all katanas in Elden Ring are made to be the same because there are some that are stronger and better than the others. So, if you are a katana user, you might want to stick around for a while because we are here to talk about the best katana weapons that you can use in Elden Ring.
9. Serpentbone Blade
Coming in at number nine is the Serpentbone Blade, which is quite aesthetically pleasing because of the fact that it looks like a katana with a jagged blade that’s going to be painful for any kind of enemy at the moment it makes contact. While not necessarily a bad weapon (in fact, it is a pretty good weapon), it doesn’t quite cut it when it comes to creating a build that can clear the game in a hurry.
Instead of the usual bleed effect that katana weapons have, the Serpentbone Blade has a poison effect. In this game, poison isn’t as effective as bleed when it comes to melee weapons because it is better off used when you are handling a ranged weapon. As such, the poison effect that this katana comes with just seems quite underwhelming. The Serpentbone Blade does have a nice special skill in the form of a double slash, which will allow you to deal some good amount of poison damage.
8. Dragonscale Blade
At first glance, the Dragonscale Blade might seem like a weapon that you can rely heavily on because of how it looks as cool as it sounds. On top of that, considering that it can only be dropped by defeating the Dragonkin Soldier in the Lake of Rot, it isn’t the easiest katana to acquire. But it is a weapon that can be quite underwhelming when you look at the fact that it doesn’t do much and isn’t a very versatile katana.
The Dragonscale Blade comes with a weapon art that has one of the most pleasing effects in the game because it allows you to strike your opponents with lightning. But the weapon art isn’t exactly the most useful because it does allow you to strike your opponents with a slash that’s infused with lightning and ice, but it requires you to get as close to your opponent to make the most out of the weapon’s skill. You may want to power stance it with a different weapon with Bloodhound Step so that you can get to your opponents rather quickly. However, that could take a lot of work.
7. Meteoric Ore Blade
The Meteoric Ore Blade is actually very polarizing because there are those who see it as an incredibly powerful katana, but those who have a different view on the way the game should be played may not exactly like this sword. In many ways, the Meteoric Ore Blade is still a powerful weapon that is fun to use in a lot of different situations, depending on the playing style of the gamer. But we don’t really believe all of the hype surrounding this weapon.
With a weapon art called Gravitas, it is capable of dealing AOE damage that could pull opponents to you, and that means that it should be a good weapon for those who want to take out chunks of enemies that are around you. But Gravitas has a pretty long animation that may not be able to help out those who are completely overwhelmed by multiple opponents. It can be fun to use for those who want to pull opponents over to their side, but it is mostly a support weapon that can be useful when you are a master of switching between one weapon to another.
6. Wakizashi
Yes, we are aware of the fact that the Wakizashi is not a katana but is listed as a dagger, but we also know that everything about it is a katana. Its weapon animation follows the same animation of a katana, and it can be power-stanced with a katana. That means that it is a katana in everything but its weapon type. Of course, the Wakizashi is simply a smaller and lighter katana that goes well with a complete samurai build for those who truly want to look like real samurai.
The reason why we are ranking the Wakizashi higher than any of the other special katanas is the fact that this is just a smaller version of the time-tested Uchigatana. It scales well with Dex and can use any Ash of War so that you can simply change your build and your style whenever it pleases you. There’s also the fact that this weapon can be upgraded with the more common regular smithing stone. But what we really love about it is the fact that it is the lightest katana out there and can easily allow you to carry heavier equipment if you prefer to power-stance it with another katana.
5. Hand of Malenia
The Hand of Malenia was probably meant to be one of the most powerful weapons in the game because you can only acquire it after defeating Malenia, who is quite possibly the toughest boss in Elden Ring. But the problem with this weapon is that it takes too long to showcase its power and does better when you equip it with certain accessories that will allow you to boost the effectiveness of its special skill called Waterfowl Dance.
If you’ve faced Malenia before, you’ll know how powerful Waterfowl Dance is because it allows you to strike your opponents multiple times with a push of a button, and this goes well with accessories that increase damage output with every successive hit. But, unlike Malenia, you can be interrupted while you are still preparing for the Waterfowl Dance, and players might die before they can even land a single Waterfowl Dance slash. So, as powerful as the Hand of Malenia’s damage output is, it isn’t necessarily the most convenient weapon to use.
4. Moonveil
Long considered a broken weapon due to how powerful magic damage is in Elden Ring, the Moonveil is one of the most favored katanas in the game and is actually a katana that people use from start to finish because of how comparatively early you can acquire the weapon. It is one of the strongest weapons in the game for those who want to use Int-Dex builds because of its powerful special skill called Transient Moonlight.
The Transient Moonlight skill is similar to the Uchigatana’s standard skill called Unsheathe. However, whenever you use this skill, it comes with an extra wave of magical energy that is capable of hitting opponents from a distance while dealing insane magical damage. You have the option of using the vertical slash or the horizontal slash, which have their own advantages. But as strong as the Moonveil may be, the only reason why we don’t have it any higher on this list is the fact that it drains your FP like a busted pipe.
3. Nagakiba
The Nagakiba is what you would call the bigger version of the Uchigatana, and that means that it was supposed to be the upgraded version of the starter katana in the game. Nevertheless, it isn’t exactly an upgrade of the Uchigatana but is simply a different version of it because it does have its own strengths and weaknesses as well. And this weapon is just as long as the Hand of Malenia and deals more damage than the Uchigatana.
Like the Uchigatana, this is a standard weapon that can be infused with almost any kind of Ash of War, and that means that you can build a pretty versatile character using this weapon. But the problem with the Nagakiba is that it is heavier and slower than the Uchigatana, and that may not be favorable for those who want to stay nimble on their feet. And the fact that it also scales with Strength may be a problem for pure Dex builds.
2. Rivers of Blood
If there’s a weapon we believe is simply broken, then that is the Rivers of Blood katana that you can acquire fairly late in the game but is worth the wait and the effort because it is simply powerful. The bleed status effect in Elden Ring is quite powerful because it takes a chunk out of your opponent’s life points, and there is no weapon that bleeds out your opponent better than the Rivers of Blood, which is simply incredible.
Its special skill is called Corpse Piler, which allows you to release waves of bloody slashes that can hit opponents from a good distance while also dishing out bleed damage. The reason why Corpse Piler is so overpowered is the fact that it takes no time for you to use it because there is little to no activation at all. Of course, it can kill opponents rather quickly because of the bleed damage that it comes with. The only knock on this weapon is that it isn’t necessarily effective against opponents that are resistant to fire damage or bleeding.
1. Uchigatana
The Uchigatana may be the starting weapon of the Samurai class, but it is far from a basic weapon because it is one of the best weapons you can use in Elden Ring. It is the very fact that it is so basic that makes it incredibly strong because it can be upgraded using regular smithing stones and can use almost any kind of Ash of War. This makes the Uchigatana incredibly versatile as it allows you to create any kind of build you want, depending on the Ash of War you are using.
A lot of Dex and Arc builds tend to make the most out of this weapon by using the Seppuku Ash of War, which increases the bleed damage of the weapon incrementally. This allows you to deal more bleed damage than the Rivers of Blood, although you do have to sacrifice your range. Nevertheless, the Uchigatana is so versatile that you can simply use another build if there’s an opponent that you feel you cannot defeat using the current Ash of War your katana is infused with. As such, the possibilities are endless with this katana, especially if you want to power-stance it with other powerful katanas in Elden Ring.
