Elden Ring comes with a huge variety of starting classes to pick from. One of those is the Vagabond class. To know whether the Vagabond is a great class, you can consult the Elden Ring class tier list. Regardless, you can still optimize the build by using the best Elden Ring Vagabond Build.
- The Vagabond class is perhaps the most versatile starting class, allowing you to adapt to almost any build you want.
- Prioritize Strength (level 40) and Dexterity (level 15), with Vigor and Endurance as secondary stats (level 20).
- Recommended weapons: Lordsworn’s Greatsword, Grafted Blade Greatsword, Claymore, and the Greatsword.
- Ideal armor: Raptor’s Black Feathers.
- Suitable Talismans: The Erdtree Favor, The Claw Talisman, and Radagon’s Scarseal.
- Why Trust Us: Huzaifah Durrani has spent 500+ hours on Elden Ring, which makes him highly trustable!
Here’s a summarized look at the optimal Vagabond Build in Elden Ring:
Build Stats | Weapons | Talisman | Armor |
---|---|---|---|
Vigor: 25 Mind: 10 Endurance: 25 Strength: 40 Dexterity: 15 Intelligence: 9 Faith: 9 Arcane: 7 | Lordsworn’s Greatsword Grafted Blade Greatsword Claymore Greatsword | Erdtree Favor Claw Talisman Radagon’s Scarseal | Raptor's Black Feather |
Vagabond Build Weapons
Here are all the weapons that you can use for the Vagabond Build:
Weapons | Physical | Magic | Fire | Light | Holy | Critical | Boost |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lordsworn’s Greatsword | Attack: 136 Guard: 50 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Attack: 110 | Guard: 35 |
Grafted Blade Greatsword | Attack: 157 Guard: 48 | Guard: 48 | Guard: 48 | Guard: 48 | Guard: 48 | Attack: 100 | Guard: 43 |
Claymore | Attack: 138 Guard: 50 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Guard: 35 | Attack: 100 | Guard: 35 |
Greatsword | Attack: 164 Guard: 67 | Guard: 50 | Guard: 50 | Guard: 50 | Guard: 50 | Attack: 100 | Guard: 50 |
Vagabond is actually a great class. It comes with a good blend of starting stats and is recommended for most new players to the Soulborne franchise. With the highest starting Vigor and decent Strength, the Vagabond class is a great class for those who struggle in the early game.
But what makes it amazing is the fact that it is versatile enough to become almost any build. You can use it for a dex build as well as a strength build. But the build that works the best with Vagabond is an aggressive tank-style build.
With the Vagabond Build, you can expect to dual-wield two great swords and always jump head-in into all fights. With that being said, these are the weapons that work best with the aggressive strength-based Vagabond build.
Lordsworn’s Greatsword
Attack | |
Physical Attack | 136 |
Critical Attack | 110 |
Guard | |
Physical Guard | 50 |
Magic Guard | 35 |
Fire Guard | 35 |
Light Guard | 35 |
Holy Guard | 35 |
Boost Guard | 35 |
Lordsworn’s Greatsword is a great sword that you can get quite early on with the Vagabond build due to its requirements. You will need 16 in Strength and 10 in Dex.
To find the Lordsworn’s Greatsword, you will need to head near the Gatefront Ruins. Over there, you can find a large wagon with a chest in the back. Inside you will find the Lordsworn’s Greatsword.
The Lordsworn’s Greatsword comes with its skill, Stamp, which is an Upward cut. The weapon scales with Strength and Dexterity with an initial D scale. You can infuse the weapon with Ashes of War, allowing you to push the scaling to B for both scales.
Grafted Blade Greatsword
Attack | |
Physical Attack | 157 |
Critical Attack | 100 |
Guard | |
Physical Guard | 64 |
Magic Guard | 48 |
Fire Guard | 48 |
Light Guard | 48 |
Holy Guard | 48 |
Boost Guard | 43 |
If you want to go over the top with and strengthen your Vagabond Build, consider using the Grafted Blade Greatsword. Despite having Greatsword in its name, you can consider this titan of a sword as a colossal sword.
Regardless, the weapon works well due to its Strength and Dex scaling, which have an initial C and E scale, respectively. But you can upgrade the weapon to get a B and D scale on those stats. You will have to beat Leonine Misbegotten boss to attain the Grafted Blade Greatsword. If you want to have an easier time fighting the boss, consider using your Ashens Remains to aid you in battle.
Grafted Blade Greatsword comes with its skill, Oath of Vengeance. It gives your poise a boost. If you do not know what poise is, it is the attribute that dictates how easily you can get staggered while in the middle of an attack. Therefore, with a higher poise, you can truly become a tank.
Claymore
Attack | |
Physical Attack | 138 |
Critical Attack | 100 |
Guard | |
Physical Guard | 50 |
Magic Guard | 35 |
Fire Guard | 35 |
Light Guard | 35 |
Holy Guard | 35 |
Boost Guard | 35 |
The Claymore is yet another Greatsword that you can use with your Elden Ring Vagabond Build. Although my aim is to use two Greatswords together, it will be perfectly fine if you opt to only use the Claymore as a two-handed weapon.
Again, it is a weapon that you can get quite early on in the game with a 16 Strength and 13 Dex requirement. To get the Claymore, you will need to go to Castle Morne. From the main courtyard entrance, head right. It will lead you to a path to the entrance of a building in the North. The sword can be found in a chest right as you enter the building.
The Claymore comes with a great skill that suits the Vagabond playstyle. It is called the Lion’s Claw, and it allows players to somersault toward enemies. Due to its initial 138 physical damage as well as strength scaling, the Claymore is a great fit.
Greatsword
Attack | |
Physical Attack | 164 |
Critical Attack | 100 |
Guard | |
Physical Guard | 67 |
Magic Guard | 50 |
Fire Guard | 50 |
Light Guard | 50 |
Holy Guard | 50 |
Boost Guard | 50 |
The Greatsword, despite its simple name, is an excellent weapon, comparable in size to the Grafted Blade Greatsword. It’s a direct nod to Guts’ sword from Berserk and works well with it. With a strength requirement of 31 and 12 in Dex, it’s accessible earlier than the Grafted Blade. While it scales for both, prioritize Strength with its C scale. Enhance its scaling with heavy Ashes of War for an A grade in Strength.
To obtain the Greatsword, go to Dragonbarrow on Caelid’s map, near Caelem Ruins Site of Grace. Raid a caravan northwest of the ruins, but be wary of guarding enemies. The Greatsword comes with the Stamp skill, effective against larger enemies and useful for absorbing a hit.
These Strength-focused blades, including the Greatsword, complement the Vagabond build, aiming for a berserker-like warrior feel.
Vagabond Build Talisman & Armor
As for the Elden Ring Vagabond Talisman, you want to use those that can assist in wielding strength-based swords.
Erdtree Favor
The Erdtree Favor works great with the Vagabond Build, as due to the weapons, I’m rocking a heavy build. To help you maintain agility in battle, the Talisman will provide you with additional endurance, health, and equip load. The increased equipment load will give you the slight edge needed to remain in the medium roll category.
To get the Erdtree Favor, you need to head to the starting area of the game. And that is where you will find the Fringefolk Hero’s Grave. You will need two stoneword keys to get past the imp statues. You could try getting this Talisman early on in the game if you picked the stonesword keys as your keepsake.
Claw Talisman
The Claw Talisman will help with the Vagabond play style. Essentially it boosts your jump attacks, allowing you to deal more damage. As you will be using the jump attacks quite often to rain down on enemies, having this Talisman will be favorable.
You will need to head towards Stormveil Castle to find the Claw Talisman. Once you fast-travel to the Rampart Tower Site of Grace, try to head to the destroyed pillar after jumping onto the rooftop. Following the path will eventually lead you to a watchtower-like structure.
Climbing the ladder will take you to a corpse from which you can loot the Talisman. The Claw Talisman will give +15% damage to all jumping attacks, making it a must-have item for Vagabond build.
Radagon’s Scarseal
If you want even more endurance and Strength initially, then you can consider using the Radagon’s Scarseal. It raises your Vigor, Endurance, Strength, and Dexterity by +3. However, there is a caveat. You will take 10% more damage as a side effect.
Early on, this might be a significant number, but as you progress, it might become worth it. Especially if you upgrade all your flasks using golden seeds and sacred tears, then the slight damage might not be too significant as you’ll be better equipped to deal with it.
You can get the Radagon’s Scarseal by fighting the Weeping Evergaol in the Weeping Peninsula. For this purpose, you will also need stonesword keys.
Raptor’s Black Feathers
Let’s first review the stats of Raptor’s Black Feathers:
Damage Negation:
Physical | VS Strike | VS Slash | VS Pierce | Magic | Fire | Lightning | Holy |
8.0 | 8.8 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 10.2 | 10.2 | 10.9 | 9.5 |
Resistance:
Immunity | Robustness | Focus | Vitality | Poise |
57 | 35 | 60 | 60 | 5 |
As for armor, I mostly want to work with something that keeps me in the medium-roll range. But the one suggestion for the Vagabond Build is the Raptor’s Black Feathers. It is essentially a cloak-like chest armor, part of the Raptor’s Armor set. It is a light-medium armor and strengthens your jump attacks by +10% damage.
This, combined with the Claw Talisman, could give you a total of 25% increase. The armor can be found in the Sage’s Cave behind an illusory wall in a chest behind.
Vagabond Build Stats
Here’s a look at ideal stats, though they might take you some time to get:
Vigor | 25 |
Mind | 10 |
Endurance | 25 |
Strength | 40 |
Dexterity | 15 |
Intelligence | 9 |
Faith | 9 |
Arcane | 7 |
As for the stats, it can depend on which weapons you are using with your Vagabond Build. If you are opting for the colossal swords, then you will definitely need a higher strength. Otherwise, you can go on the lower end of Strength and remain near the 18 range.
Again, it depends on which weapons you are using and their requirements. But for the very safe side, assuming you want to go all out, I will say that a 40 strength is the best out there for the Vagabond Build. As for dexterity, you only need to reach the base requirement for most of the weapons, and that’s usually around 13-15, so a 15 in Dex is fine.
Once you have all these stats, you need to pump your points into Vigor and Endurance. The Vagabond build is very aggressive, so you need to have the health needed to trade blows. Furthermore, if you are wielding all the heavy greatswords or colossal swords, then you certainly need endurance to maintain your medium roll.
Faith, Arcane, and Intelligence do not have any role in the Vagabond build; therefore, you can leave them at their default.
Tips
With that, we have the agabond build. We discussed all appropriate options for weapons that suit the strength-heavy build. Additionally, there are some Talismans that you can use to aid you in the appropriate playstyle.
The one thing to remember is that the jump attack is your friend with the Vagabond Build. For your stats, Strength is the number one priority until we meet our requirements.
From there onwards, it’s just about increasing your endurance and Vigor to give you the edge in battle, especially in terms of defense.
At the end of the day, a build depends more on the player’s preferences, and it can be customized to their needs. If you are looking for another build to dive into, consider this: Elden Ring Rivers of Blood Build guide.
Next:
- How To Parry In Elden Ring
- Elden Ring Best Melee build
- Horse Location in Elden Ring
- Elden Ring Best Intelligence build
- Elden Ring Best Samurai build
Thanks! Do share your feedback with us. ⚡
How can we make this post better? Your help would be appreciated. ✍
I\'m not versed in FromSoftware games and gameplay but it feels like the guide is well made and you\'ve thought about all there is to say. It matches what I\'ve figured out of vagabond build and answer a few of my questions. Thanks
I’m new to Elden Ring and playing Vagabond and this will/has been a tremendous help! Thank You!