With their straightforward movesets, great staggering and poise, and huge damage at low stamina cost, it’s no surprise they’re a fan-favorite. But which one reigns supreme? Right here I’m going to be ranking every greatsword in the game, from worst to best!
16. Storm Ruler
The gimmick weapon for the Yhorm battle, Storm Ruler was never really intended to be a weapon outside of his bossfight. It had dreadful scaling, cannot be buffed or infused, and has a fiddly, low-payoff weapon skill that’ll likely get you killed. It also only has 10 durability, making the wood grain ring an absolute must, further limiting build diversity. But hey, it has no stat requirements at all! So you could throw it on a pure caster build if you really wanted. How to get: Found in Yhorm’s boss room.
15. Executioner’s Greatsword
While there are a handful of dedicated players who love this weapon, there are many more who hate it. It has low base damage, the generic ‘stomp’ weapon skill, and (for some reason) the inability to be infused. Its unique passive grants FP on kill and because of this sees very limited use on hybrids, but it’s hard to justify using over any of the superior hybrid choices. Just use a simple infusion for FP recovery – this isn’t worth it! How to get: Found on a corpse in the graveyard near the cleansing chapel bonfire.
14. Bastard Sword
There’s nothing necessarily wrong with the bastard sword, it just gets outshone by so many other greatswords. On paper, it’s a strictly worse version of the claymore – with shorter range and not even higher damage to compensate. It’s at least diverse, thanks to its ability to be infused and buffed, and can be acquired very early-game, so could be a decent choice for new players. But you still find it later than the claymore, so… How to get: Purchased from Greirat after he arrives at Firelink.
13. Wolnir’s Holy Sword
On the subject of the bastard sword, Wolnir’s is actually exactly the same, but with a bit of a faith-based twist. While it has an identical moveset and range, it shares the ‘wrath of the gods’ clone weapon skill that Morne’s hammer has, only without the poise buff during casting. Which makes it significantly worse, as it’s very easy to be interrupted out of. On top of that, it only hits C scaling in strength and faith, making it not great for hybrids, but it’s at least interesting and can be fun to mess around with! How to get: Transposition with the soul of Wolnir.
12. Wolf Knight’s Greatsword
Sorry Artorias, this one just isn’t for me. The WKGS is a surprisingly popular choice for 40/40 quality builds, especially in PvP, thanks to its unpredictable weapon skill. It does have great damage on the right build, but it can’t be buffed or infused, and the weapon skill is bit too unreliable and gimmicky. To top it off, since the release of the ringed city DLC it just feels like a strictly worse version of Gael’s greatsword, which has much more variety in its moveset. How to get: Transposition with the abyss watchers soul.
11. Firelink Greatsword
The weapon of choice of DS3’s own final boss, the Firelink GS is a surprisingly strong weapon! It has its oddities, such as requiring 10 in int and faith despite not actually scaling with them, but it’s hard to overlook what it does right. Its decent base damage is bolstered by a huge chunk of innate fire damage, which can be buffed further by its unique weapon skill ‘ember’! The skill engulfs the weapon in flame to unleash a huge wave of fire, granting a lingering weapon buff. It’s an unconventional choice but a very viable one, and great to try out on a quality build! How to get: Transposition with the soul of the lords.
10. Flamberge
The flamberge is the only greatsword with a base bleed auxiliary, making it a decent choice for luck builds. It can even be infused and buffed, which is absolutely fantastic for combining hollow infusion with Carthus rouge! It does fall a bit flat compared to other luck options, however, as it has quite low bleed build-up compared to other choices. It’s also quite hard to acquire, compared to the (often stronger) Anri’s straight sword. But for players like myself who love a greatsword and a luck build, this is your go-to! How to get: Rare drop from flamberge-wielding hollow slaves (the enemies that wear hoods like Greirat’s).
9. Hollowslayer Greatsword
The hollowslayer is an early-game powerhouse, boasting a passive 20% damage bonus to hollow enemies, of which there are many! Its use can be extended to the mid-to-late-game, or even used full-time on a quality build! Though it’s not recommended for any form of hybrid due to the ability to be buffed or infused. It has good base damage, D/C scaling in strength/dex, and an easy-to-use moveset and weapon skill that is effective, reliable, and beginner-friendly. If you’re just starting out in DS3 I can’t recommend this one more. How to get: Transposition with the soul of the rotted greatwood.
8. Greatsword of Judgement
The judgement is the often overlooked cousin of the moonlight greatsword, sacrificing intelligence scaling for better scaling in physical stats. It has subpar physical damage that is carried up by its hefty chunk of innate magic damage, and even sports an in-built weapon buff that boosts the magic damage further! The buff is part of its unique stance weapon skill, which unleashes waves of dark magic and coats the blade in a lingering, sparkly magic. It’s fantastic for intelligence builds with physical stat investments, for players that want a true spellsword experience. How to get: Transposition with the soul of Pontiff Sulyvahn.
7. Drakeblood Greatsword
With both passive lightning and magic damage, the drakeblood is an elemental powerhouse that’s simply impossible to defend against in ordinary cases. Stronger still, if infused, the innate damage will begin to scale with their respective stat! Meaning yes, chaos or dark infused drakeblood greatswords will have 4 scaling damage sources, all at the same time! The damage potential of this weapon is nuts, but it is let down by its extremely low range. Still, get in your opponents face with this weapon, and you’ll utterly shred them! How to get: Dropped by the drakeblood knight in archdragon peak.
6. Black Knight Sword
The black knight sword is another very common choice in PvP for quality builds. It has incredible base damage and deals increased damage to poise on its 2-handed heavy attacks, making trading with it dangerous for your foes. Further still, it possesses the ‘perseverance’ skill, which temporarily grants huge poise and allows you to tank through nearly any attack! When timed right, this can easily spell death for your opponents in just a single exchange, and is the reason why this blade is such a common sight in duels! How to get: Found on a corpse in the lower parts of the Smouldering Lake.
5. Moonlight Greatsword
A fan-favorite since even the early days of the original Demons Souls, this weapon is a staple in the games and the fandom. It’s an intelligence greatsword, reaching B-scaling, and has one of the flashiest movesets and weapon skill in the entire game! Charged heavy attacks fire magical projectiles that chunk hard, and if both the blade and projectile hit it’ll easily annihilate your opponents! The weapon skill ‘moonlight vortex’ is an extremely cool and devastating thrust that boasts high poise health, making it difficult to interrupt. If you’re running a casting build, this should be an end goal. How to get: Transposition with the soul of Oceiros.
4. Gael’s Greatsword
Gael’s is one of the most intricate weapons available, and favors quality builds. Its unique skill ‘blade of peril’ has so many ways of being weaved into combos and can result in some truly inescapable and relentless onslaughts fit for any scenario! It’s extremely unpredictable and will keep your opponents on their toes for the entire battle. The high skill ceiling does make it hard to master, but it you put in the time you won’t look back! How to get: Transposition with the soul of Gael.
3. Claymore
On the subject of weapons fit for any scenario, the claymore is the jack-of-all-trades weapon for both PvP and PvE! It’s able to be fit into any build thanks to its versatile moveset and A-scaling on infusions, plus its ability to be buffed! To top it off, it possesses hyperarmor on a handful of attacks and deals fantastic damage. It’s not the flashiest, but it’s reliable and fills any role you need! How to get: Found on the plateau where the fire breathing Dragon rests in High Wall of Lothric.
2. Onyx Blade
The onyx blade is widely seen as one of the best hybrid build weapons in the game. It sports D/D scaling on strength/dex, and C/C on int/faith, meaning hybrid casters will be able to utilise it best providing they have the base stats to equip it! But no matter what build you use it on, it’s the weapon skill ‘Elfriede’s blackflame’ that makes it all the more popular. Using it enwreathes the sword in a black fire – looking absolutely badass in the process – dealing damage to foes in front and adding a huge 145 fire damage for 45 seconds! The skill has a true combo after a single 2-handed R1 hit, too, allowing for some huge damage while you buff. How to get: Dropped by Sir Vilhelm in the painted world DLC.
1. Twin Princes’ Greatsword
Another hybrid weapon and easily the best greatsword in the game for PvP, the twin princes’ is incredibly strong. While it may have lesser scaling than something like the onyx blade, it’s the versatility in its weapon skills that sets it apart. Its skill ‘sacred light and flame’ is the combined effect of the two swords which make the weapon. Using it holds a stance, with the heavy attack releasing a wave of flame and the light attack unleashing a fast, long-range thrust of light! Both of these skills have tons of applications during fights, be it combos with the high-damage wave of fire to shred opponent’s HP, or throwing the long-range pokes out to catch fleeing foes! This weapon is truly fearsome, but not all that common thanks to how you get it. How to get: Transpose the two twin princes’ boss soul weapons at Ludleth, requiring NG+ at least!
