The Best PvE Builds In Dark Souls 3

The Dark Souls series is infamous for how difficult it is, making even the most patient of players throw their controllers at the wall. With a game that requires so much patience, it can be beneficial to use a powerful build to make the game less frustrating.

Of course, the best thing to do is take a break, but some items present in Dark Souls 3 can ease the frustration. Besides summoning phantoms for co-op, your main way of improving your damage is to get better weapons, spells, or improve your stats. To help you create the strongest Ashen One possible, here are the ten best PvE builds in Dark Souls 3 that make the game significantly easier.

Updated January 30, 2025, by Charles Burgar: To help you create the ultimate PvE build, we’ve updated this list to include some specific information on each build. Builds now have detailed tables on stats and equipment. All entries have also been rewritten to better explain how the builds compare to one another and the wider PvE sandbox.

10

Bleed and Hollow

Stats And Gear

Bleed and Hollow play virtually the same. The Hollow variant wants to turn Hollow from Yoel in Firelink Shrine to scale Hollow infusions. Otherwise, the Bleed version works just as well.

Both Bleed and Hollow-focused builds utilize status ailments to destroy their foes, building up debuffs through aggressively scaling their Luck stat. Bleed builds focus solely on inflicting bleed ailments, while Hollow builds offer more versatility through consumable weapon buffs used on Hollow-infused weapons.

Regardless of how you spec this build, you’ll be inflicting so many ailments that most PvE enemies will struggle to fight back. It’s not a bad configuration in PvP either, provided you can build up status ailments on the target. Just beware that some bosses are completely immune to bleed, so be prepared for some fights to take ages.

9

Hexer

Stats And Gear

While Hexes received a nerf compared to the previous entry, Hexes are still fantastic for players who want plenty of utility. This build is a hybrid between Intelligence and Faith to cast most Hex spells, using Caitha’s Chime and the Izalith Staff to cast your spells. Pair that with Crucifix of the Mad King or your favorite hybrid weapon for some solid damage.

The main appeal of this build comes from its utility. Want to prevent a boss from using any special attacks? Use Vow of Silence. Want to make an enemy instantly bleed? Using Dorhy’s Gnawing. It’s a very versatile school of magic that veteran players should try, but be prepared to struggle somewhat until you get access to some high-end catalysts and get your casting stats up to the 30 range.

8

Mage

Stats And Gear

Pure mage characters take a long time to get off the ground, but when they do, mages can fulfill nearly every role you can imagine. As with Hex builds, Mages are incredibly versatile but can also pack a serious punch thanks to their focus on a single stat: Intelligence.

You can either focus on a pure mage build, allocating most of your levels in Intelligence and Attunement, or you can run a hybrid build with Strength or Dexterity. Caster builds are mostly glass cannons, but their wide roster of high-damage spells trivialize PvE content. If you want a more active playstyle, then a hybrid build is generally better. There are multiple ways to play a Mage in Dark Souls 3, all of which are worth trying.

7

Dexterity Build

Stats And Gear

Dexterity might not be as powerful in Dark Souls 3 as in previous installments, but you can absolutely make a Dexterity build work in DS3. In fact, some of the best weapons in Dark Souls 3 scale incredibly well with Dexterity, notably the Sellsword Twinblades and the Uchigatana.

You can get the Uchigatana at the start of the game. Defeat the swordmaster that wanders around the outskirts of Firelink Shrine to get your hands on this weapon.

Scale your Dexterity to 60, infuse your weapons with Sharp Gems, and you’ll have a build that pumps out some serious damage with fairly fast melee swings. There aren’t any flashy spells or combos to be had here, but a Dex-focused build can crush most of Dark Souls 3’s PvE content with little issue.

6

Dex/Faith Hybrid

Stats And Gear

A hybrid between Faith and Dexterity allows you to create a highly flexible build for both PvE and PvP. The Dragonslayer Swordspear and Yorshka’s Chime allow you to dish out some absurd damage in all levels of play, provided you scale your Dexterity and Faith evenly. Until you get those items, stick with Blessed or Sharp-infused weapons and the best chime you can find.

Your miracles allow you to heal and cast lightning-based miracles, giving you a solution to every problem you’ll face. The versatility on offer is some of the best you can find in Dark Souls 3, even if the build doesn’t reach its true potential until the end of your first New Game cycle.

5

Paladin

Stats And Gear

Paladins focus heavily on Faith and Strength, casting lightning spells and healing cantrips in between melee attacks. They serve as a great gish or spellsword class in Dark Souls 3, allowing you to carve through enemies with a large sword while throwing an occasional lightning bolt or healing miracle. This is similar to our last entry, except this build focuses more on Strength instead of Dexterity.

With a 60 Faith stat and the Sunlight Talisman, you can output some powerful Lightning Spears and healing miracles. Sunlight Spear and Lightning Stake will shut down most enemies, while healing miracles will be comparable to an upgraded Estus Flask. Since it’s a hybrid build, you’ll want to use rings that enhance your miracles and cast speed to prevent the build from feeling clunky. But once everything is in order, this becomes one of the best PvE hybrid builds in the game.

4

Quality Build

Stats And Gear

If you’re indecisive about what to play, it’s hard to go wrong with a quality build. Quality builds are those that invest equally into Dexterity and Strength to scale a weapon’s Attack Rating as high as possible. In practice, this means you can use virtually every weapon in the game.

If you care about min-maxing, the best weapon for a quality build is the Hollowslayer Greatsword, a boss weapon obtained after killing the Curse-Rotted Greatwood. It scales absurdly well with both Strength and Dexterity, reaching an Attack Rating of 516 when both stats are 40. But any weapon will function well here. What you lack in spells, this build makes up for with unprecedented weapon variety.

3

Pure Strength

Stats And Gear

If casting spells doesn’t sound appealing, try out a pure Strength build. Allocate at least 60 points into Strength and laugh at the absurd damage you’ll be inflicting with each swing.

Greatswords are a fantastic weapon of choice for this, with weapons like the Black Knight Sword and Lothric Knight Greatsword having good movesets and great scaling. Ultra greatswords like the Fume Ultra Greatsword allow you to wield weapons twice their size and deal ridiculous amounts of damage. If you can stand the slow playstyle, this is one of the best builds any player can use. Use rings that enhance your Stamina pool; you’re going to need it.

2

Pyromancer

Stats And Gear

With a series focused on linking the fire, it’s surprising how Pyromancy took a backseat to Sorceries and Miracles. Thankfully, Dark Souls 3 gives this school of magic a time to shine.

With 40 points in both Faith and Intelligence, Pyromancy will deal significant damage and outclass most hexes. Plenty of great damage Pyromancies, such as Floating Chaos and Black Serpent, allow you to deal with nearly any situation. Power Within and Flash Sweat are also some fantastic buffs if you want to create a hybrid build. You can even use the Demon Scar to cast Pyromancies while cutting through mobs with a burning curved sword. Versatility, damage, defense, this build has it all.

1

Sellsword Twinblades

Stats And Gear

There’s a reason the community calls these pair of curved swords the “Sellsword Winblades.” The damage this pair can dish out is nearly unmatched in Dark Souls 3’s PvE content.

Funny enough, it’s also the easiest build to get going on this list. Pick the Mercenary class, and you’ll already start with these blades. Focus on obtaining a Sharp Gem in the early game, then infuse the Sellsword Twinblades. From there, increase your Dexterity stat to 60. That’s it. You’ll now be dealing more damage than most PvE builds with virtually no investment, making this the ultimate PvE build for newer players and veteran Souls players alike.