Elden Ring Bloody Slash: Location, Affinities, & Tips

Elden Ring is filled with many Ashes of War, which are basically skills, that allow you to perform special attacks at the cost of FP. Among them, there is one such as the Elden Ring Bloody Slash, which lets you unleash a blood slash in a wide arc, dealing massive damage to the enemies and inflicting them with bleed status.

Blood Slash Location

After making your way to Fort Haight, you’ll find a couple of basic Knights and a Pumpkin Head patrolling the castle gates.

• Make sure to engage with the Pumpkinhead, after you have taken out the Knights.
• Once you are done with them, head inside the fort.
• Now that you’re inside, ignore the giant rats crawling on the castle grounds. Otherwise, you’ll get incinerated by fireball-throwing enemies.
• Head upstairs, take them out first, and then take care of the rats afterward.

• Once you are done with normal mobs, prepare to face off against the Godrick Knight.
• He is a bit tougher than the other opponents and also uses the Bloody Slash Ash of War.

• The easiest way to take him out is to use summons to distract the Knight while you go in for the backstab.
• Furthermore, his attacks can also be easily blocked using Shields, which allows you to hit him with the guard counter.
• Once defeated, you’ll get the “Bloody Slash” Ash of War.

Stats & Use

Each Ash of War in Elden Ring is only compatible with certain weapon types and provides unique Affinity upgrades. Bloody Slash is no different in that regard.

The unique thing about the Bloody Slash Affinity Upgrades is that it provides Blood affinity, which helps with Bleed buildup and is of the easiest ways to deal extreme damage to your opponents.

Affinities 

Affinities alter the scaling, damage, and damage negation of the equipped weapon. Depending on the weapon’s affinity, its physical damage, magical damage, and status buildups can change significantly. The affinities Bloody Slash can provide are:

• Standard
• Heavy
• Keen
• Quality
• Poison
• Blood 
• Occult

Compatible Weapon Types

• Greatswords
• Curved Swords
• Katanas
• Twin blades
• Straight Swords
• Heavy Thrusting Swords
• Daggers
• Curved Greatswords
• Thrusting Swords

Tips & Usage

• Bloody Slash consumes both FP and a portion of your health, so use it strategically.
• Its wide arc is effective against single and multiple enemies for crowd control.
• Avoid spamming Bloody Slash against regular enemies due to health loss.
• Choose Heavy Affinity for Greatswords’ increased damage and opt for Blood Affinity with Katanas for Blood Loss.
• Be cautious using Bloody Slash against bosses due to its long wind-up; wait for opportune moments.
• Use Bloody Slash sparingly against bosses and swift enemies to avoid interruptions.
• In the later game, consider replacing Bloody Slash with Rivers of Blood for a similar, but health-cost-free, experience.

If you feel the HP penalty is not worth it, you can try Carian Greatsword, Hoarfrost Stomp, and Bloodhound Step in its stead as well.

Above, I have mentioned some weapon types in Elden Ring is the Bloody Slash compatible with, and to determine with which weapons this skill will work the best, consider reading the guides on Best Swords, Best Curved Greatswords, and Best Katanas. 

Next:

• Elden Ring: BEST Scythe Build
• Elden Ring BEST Dragon Build
• Best Elden Ring Ending
• Elden Ring Best Samurai Build