Elden Ring DLC: Best Incantations and Sorcery Spells In Shadow of the Erdtree

While Shadow of the Erdtree‘s new weapons are proving to be some of the breakout stars of the DLC, the game’s collection of Incantations and Sorceries shouldn’t leave spell casters wanting. Actually, there are quite a few new spells in the game that just may be good enough to convince melee and hybrid players to respec.

For this list, I tried to focus on the spells that are most useful in the more dangerous situations you will regularly find yourself in during Shadow of the Erdtree. In other words, there are a couple of flashy spells on this list, but the “cool factor” wasn’t my guiding light. Also, you’ll find demonstrations of these spells from YouTuber Sipder throughout this article. If you find those videos helpful, be sure to go check out their channel. Their demo videos are some of the best ones that I’ve seen thus far.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree – Best Incantations

While there are quite a few powerful new Incantations in Shadow of the Erdtree, these stood out as some of the most useful for the majority of situations. Admittedly, one of them is also just a ton of fun to use.

Heal From Afar

Heal From Afar casts a holy bolt that lets you…well, heal things from afar. Its unique functionality (relative to the other spells in the game in its class) is reason enough to seek it out. If you have any interest in playing Elden Ring with others, this spell is an invaluable tool that allows you to properly function as a support caster. 

However, it’s even better than that. This spell has a lightning-fast cast time compared to other healing abilities, which is especially valuable when you consider that you can cast this on yourself if you aim it near you and stand in its area of effect. That combination of low FP cost, versatility, and potency makes this one of the best healing spells in the game. You can also use it to snipe certain enemies that are susceptible to its effects, which is quite hilarious. 

Where to Find Heal From Afar

The Heal From Afar Incantation can be found in a cave northeast of the Moorth Ruins in the Scadu Atlus area. The path to it is paved with dangerous enemies, but it’s pretty easy to ride in and just grab it. This video will help you find it.

Golden Arcs

On their own, Golden Arcs do not deal a ton of damage. That’s obviously a huge knock against any damage dealing spell in a game where everything is tougher than you and constantly trying to kill you. 

However, Golden Rings earns its keep by virtue of its potent Stagger capabilities (especially for a Faith-based spell). This Incantation’s quick cast time and low FP cost mean that you can effectively use it against the many bosses in Shadow of the Erdtree that are susceptible to being staggered and not much else. It’s especially valuable in those Faith/Strength builds that are uniquely capable of dealing with the DLC’s considerable early challenges. 

Where to Find Golden Arcs

You’ll find the Golden Arcs incantations in a cave found in the Moorth Ruins area. The cave is located close to the Moorth Ruins Site of Grace, but you will need to explore the area a bit to find the entrance. This video should help. 

Rotten Butterflies

Look, Rotten Butterflies is expensive, elaborate, and often impractical. This visually beautiful spell surrounds you with an army of butterflies that explode and deal Rot-based damage to anything in the area. It’s undeniably powerful, but it’s probably a bit too slow for the majority of one-on-one fights against faster enemies.

However, Rotten Butterflies happens to be incredibly effective against larger, slower enemies in ways that other spells simply are not. The Rot damage is nice, but it’s the fact that this spell generates a series of “smaller” hits across a wide area rather than a single attack with a large radius that makes it so useful against larger enemies as well as groups of foes. It essentially creates a minefield around the target that proves to be tough (if not impossible) for them to navigate.

Where to Find Rotten Butterflies

You’ll get this spell by defeating Romina, Saint of the Bud at the Chuch of the Bud and giving the Remembrance of the Saint of the Bud to Enia at Roundtable Hold.

Knight’s Lightning Spear

I loved Lightning builds going into Shadow of the Erdtree, but this Incantation really takes those builds to the next level.

This absurdly powerful spell allows you to toss a large bolt of lightning from a great distance for a pretty small amount of FP. What makes this one sing, though, is the fact that the initial bolt of lightning is followed up by several smaller bolts of lightning that all strike the same target. Oh, and did I mention that this Incantation offers some really nice Stagger and knockback effects? Put it all together, and you’ve got a single target Incantation that shines especially bright in most boss fights.

Where to Find Knight’s Lightning Spear

This one can be found in the Scorpion River Catacombs across a small ledge that leads you to the other side of the room with the Deathblight eye enemies. This video will help show you where to find it.

Impenetrable Thorns

The description of Impenetrable Thorns doesn’t inspire much confidence. It’s a Faith-based spell that generates a tower of thorns from beneath the target that rises up to deal damage. It’s a variation on a concept we’ve seen before that seems to be presented in a slightly different package. However, believe me when I tell you that Impenetrable Thrones is the best Incantation in Shadow of the Erdtree. 

At the very least, this spell is cheap, incredibly fast, and deals a respectable amount of base damage. Its biggest draw, though, is its ability to deal Bleed damage and therefore scale with many of the gear, items, and stats that enhance or synergize with Bleed. With the right build, Impenetrable Thorns triggers the Bleed effect in record time while dealing quite a bit of base damage and allowing you to work from a distance. It’s incredibly good.  

Where to Find Impenetrable Thorns

You’ll find this spell in the Shadow Keep Area not far from the Storehouse, Seventh Floor Site of Grace. It’s difficult to spot, so I recommend checking out this video to make sure you don’t miss it.

Multilayered Ring of Light

It’s difficult to convey just how powerful this spell is through mere words. It’s not enough that Multilayered Ring of Light is a cheap, Faith-based Incantation with a fast cast time that deals an impressive amount of base damage. No, what really makes this one so absurd is the fact that can target enemies from great distances and deal absurd amounts of Stagger damage to them so long as they are affected by the ring’s pulsating series of strikes. 

The only enemies that can consistently deal with this Incantation are those that are constantly on the move and capable of escaping its area of effect and attacking you before you can cast it again. In other words, only the toughest enemies in the game can really do anything about it. Everything else will suffer the wrath of this nearly unavoidable disc that deals top-tier damage and is capable of stun-locking many enemies. 

Where to Find Multilayered Ring of Light

You’ll earn this Incantation by defeating the Misbegotten Crusader in the Stone Coffin Fissure dungeon in Southern Shore.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree – Best Sorcery Spells

While the new Sorcery spells in Shadow of the Erdtree aren’t quite as powerful as some of the DLC’s best Incantations, these stood out as ones you can certainly incorporate into currently tight rotations.

Glintblade Trio

You can get this spell early into your Shadow of the Erdtree adventure, and I suspect that many players will find themselves relying on it quite often. 

The ability to unleash a trio of Glintblade spears at an enemy for relatively little FP is undoubtedly nice. I even like the slight “delay” on this cast that often confuses enemies in and out of PvP. What makes this spell special, though, is its ability to stagger larger enemies relatively quickly. When combined with the many items in the game that enhance the cast time and effectiveness of Glintstone magic, this spell becomes an arguable necessity in many Sorcery builds. 

Where to Find Glintblade Trio

Glintblade Trio can be found in Castle Ensis. You’ll need to pass the Castle’s iron gate and then explore the rooftops for a while before you’ll be able to find this one. It’s very easy to miss, so check out this video to make sure you grab it while you’re in the area.

Blades of Stone

It’s going to be a while before you can acquire Blades of Stone, but I certainly think you can make the argument that it’s the best Sorcery spell in Shadow of the Erdtree. 

I just struggle to think of another Sorcery spell in Shadow of the Erdtree that does as much as this one does. Blades of Stone produces a projectile that can be fired into the ground to conjure a series of rock blades wherever it lands. It’s effective from longer distances, it deals quite a bit of damage, and, when charged, it can also function as an incredibly handy AoE ability that is difficult to avoid. This is one of those Sorceries you’re going to grow tired of casting due to its effectiveness.

Where to Find Blades of Stone

You’ll unlock Blades of Stone by turning in the Remembrance of the Wild Boar Rider to Enia after defeating Commander Gaius in Shadow Keep. 

Rellana’s Twin Moons

Rellana’s Twin Moons is slow, expensive, and demands a whopping 72 Intelligence to use. On top of that, it can only effectively be deployed from close ranges, which is pretty much a death sentence for casters. In most cases, it would be an easy skip. 

Here’s the thing, though. This spell happens to deal an absurd amount of damage to anything that gets caught up in its wide area of multiple attack procs. It deletes large groups of enemies, and it can evaporate chunks of a boss’ health bar unlike anything else in the game. If you are willing to use the right Flask ingredients, Talismans, and a little Mimic Tear assistance to cut into its cast time and range issues, you can definitely ride this spell to victory. 

Where to Find Rellana’s Twin Moons

You’ll acquire Rellana’s Twin Moons by turning in the Remembrance of the Twin Moon Knight after defeating Rellana in Castle Ennis. 

Gravitational Missile

Gravitational Missile produces an orb that sucks lesser enemies into its range of effect and generates a series of “pulses” that deal damage to anything that gets too close. The final pulse triggers a massive explosion that ends the spell’s effect. 

This thing is obviously powerful against groups of lesser enemies due to its wide area of effect and ability to stun enemies. Don’t overlook this spell’s versatility, though. It can’t kill larger enemies and bosses quite as quickly, but it is cheap, quick, and covers a wide area. That makes it an incredible opening spell that you can then follow up with a variety of more direct casts. It’s currently one of the best “supplementary” damaging spells in the game. 

Where To Find Gravitational Missile

You’ll earn this spell by defeating the Fallingstar Beast enemy in the Fingerstone Hill area of the DLC. You can find them here.