smithing stones<\/a><\/strong>. The first upgrade will require a few smithing stone [1] items, then smithing stone [2], and so on, up the chain. Stones are found in random places throughout the game, as well as in caves, and the level of the smithing stone is typically dependent on the power level of the area you’re in. So in the first zone you’ll find a lot of smithing stone [1]s, and in later zones you’ll be able to gather [4]s and [5]s and so on.<\/p> To find caves, you’ll need to locate them in the overworld. They’re typically near mountains, with entrances in said mountainside, but you can also spot vague indentations of caves on the map with red circle outlines<\/strong>. These are by far the most efficient places to look for smithing stones.<\/p> <\/p>
There’s a catch, and it has to do with elite items<\/h2> So here’s the whole reason I wrote this post. Some items are what I’d basically consider “elite.” They don’t need smithing stones to upgrade<\/strong>: instead, you’ll power them up through\u00a0somber smithing stones<\/strong>. These follow the same nomeclature as smithing stone [1], just with the somber prefix, and you typically only need one of them per level of upgrade instead of multiple.<\/p> These are significantly more rare, but they offer a way to upgrade different items on a different track. In other words, they aren’t competing with your smithing stone proper upgrades<\/strong>. If you’re worried that you’re not going to be able to find enough smithing stones to upgrade two items in tandem, consider trying out a somber weapon (after you’ve tested and gelled with it).<\/p> My build that I used to get to endgame (in which I had no clue whether or not I’d have enough smithing stones) involved a standard smithing stone sword, and a somber-upgraded shield.<\/p>
<\/p>
You can also buy smithing stones in the late game<\/h2> By giving “bells” to the statue in Roundtable Hold<\/strong> (which is in the hallway to the left, facing the balcony), you can “open up” new storefront options at said statue<\/strong>.<\/p> In the mid-to-late game, these can enable players to straight-up buy smithing stones<\/strong>. So if you have a ton of smithing stone [7]s but need some [6]s to get past the hump, you could feasibly buy the ones you need, then continue on your upgrade path.<\/p> These bells are strewn about the game, but you’ll come across a number of them if you frequent\u00a0Elden Ring<\/em>‘s dungeons.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":310126,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"article_type":"","gamurs_wordpress_blocks_hide_tags":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[97,101,127,99,19779],"tags":[1947,232,19112,19114,19116,19115,116],"internal-label":[],"invoiceable_action":[],"article_type":[],"coauthors":[{"id":8,"display_name":"Chris Carter","user_login":"Chris Carter","user_nicename":"chris-carter"}],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nPSA: Elden Ring has two types of gear upgrade tracks that don't compete<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n