Broadsword
Broadsword is a compact, Strength-friendly straight sword available from the Confessor class or a Limgrave merchant. Its broad slashes, strong ordinary affinity options, and Square Off skill make it a dependable early weapon with no quest or rare-drop requirement.
Key Takeaways
The Broadsword is a compact, flexible straight sword whose value comes from reliable fundamentals rather than a built-in status effect or unusual weapon action.
Straight-sword fundamentals
Its fast, versatile moveset makes it a practical choice for close-range play, with light attacks for routine pressure and heavier attacks for committed openings.
Square Off defines its identity
The Broadsword’s default skill, Square Off, gives the weapon a distinct stance-based option for stronger follow-up attacks instead of relying only on its normal chain.
Accessible requirements and availability
It uses modest Strength and Dexterity requirements and is available as a starting weapon for the Confessor or through a Limgrave merchant, depending on the character and route.
Flexible upgrade path
As a standard weapon, it can be upgraded with regular Smithing Stones and customized with compatible Ashes of War and affinities.
Its main trade-off is reach
The Broadsword is well suited to close spacing, but its shorter reach can make it less forgiving than longer straight swords when controlling distance.
A compact alternative to the Longsword
Compared with the Longsword, it emphasizes a shorter, more compact profile rather than maximum straight-sword reach, making spacing the key choice between them.
Overview
The Broadsword is a standard Straight Sword in Elden Ring: a compact, adaptable melee weapon whose straightforward moveset and customizable Ash of War support many early and mid-game builds.
The Broadsword is a conventional Straight Sword rather than a unique, legendary, or DLC weapon. Its identity comes from dependable close-range attacks, modest equipment demands, and a moveset that is easy to use without committing to a specialized status, elemental, or weapon-specific playstyle. It is suitable for characters that want a practical sidearm while they develop their attributes or decide on a longer-term build.
Compared with the Longsword, the Broadsword favors a more compact profile and a different balance of reach, handling, and attack output. That makes it a useful choice for players who prefer staying close to an opponent and maintaining a simple attack rhythm, while the Longsword is the more obvious alternative for players who value additional spacing and its distinct attack options. These are practical differences in use, not a universal ranking.
The weapon also fits Elden Ring’s flexible upgrade system. The Broadsword can be developed along the game’s regular reinforcement path and, where the applicable Ash of War rules allow it, customized with different skills and affinities. This lets the same weapon support different physical or attribute-focused setups instead of locking its owner into one permanent role. Its default skill provides a more deliberate attack option alongside the ordinary sword sequence.
As a base-game weapon with no separate DLC or alternate named variant required for its identity, the Broadsword occupies a useful place in early progression and remains a viable general-purpose option when upgraded for the character using it. Its main appeal is consistency: it offers familiar Straight Sword handling, supports build experimentation, and asks less of the player than weapons whose value depends on a specialized skill, unusual range, or tightly defined attribute investment.
Statistics
Elden Ring publishes no 0–100 stat bars, so this page lists the verified requirements, scaling and handling figures instead. Taken from the project's verified weapons database, not from generated text.
- CategoryStraight Swords
- Damage TypeStandard/Pierce
- Primary ScalingStr D / Dex D
- Weight4.5
- SkillWave of Destruction
- Str Req12
- Dex Req11
- How to ObtainChest, Limgrave
Figures verified against Consolidated Game Weapons Database.
Compared to similar straight swords
| Weapon | Str Req | Dex Req | Weight | Primary Scaling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broadsword | 12 | 11 | 4.5 | Str D / Dex D |
| Inseparable Sword | 10 | 18 | 4.5 | Dex C |
| Warhawk's Talon | 13 | 16 | 4 | Str D / Dex C |
| Miquellan Knight's Sword | 11 | 17 | 4 | Dex C |
| Carian Knight's Sword | 10 | 13 | 4 | Dex D / Int D |
Requirements, scaling grades and weight are the game’s own published figures. From Consolidated Game Weapons Database.
How to Obtain
- Purchase route: reach the Nomadic Merchant on the beach south of Coastal Cave in western Limgrave and have enough runes for the listed price.
- Starting-equipment route: select the Confessor origin during character creation. The Broadsword is not restricted to the base game’s later progression, Shadow of the Erdtree, a quest, or New Game+.
- 01If you choose the Confessor origin during character creation, you receive the Broadsword as starting equipment. This is the immediate, guaranteed route and requires no quest, boss, DLC, or New Game+ progression.
- 02In western Limgrave, travel to the beach south of Coastal Cave and find the Nomadic Merchant there. Open his shop and purchase the Broadsword. The merchant route is guaranteed while the merchant is available; no enemy drop or quest reward is involved.
Availability
Requires No DLC, NG+, quest, or difficulty requirement.
The Broadsword is available through the base game's normal character-start and merchant systems; its availability does not change between standard progression and DLC areas.
Mechanics and Handling
The Broadsword is a close-range Straight Sword with a compact, slash-focused moveset. Its attacks come out quickly enough to punish recovery windows, but its relatively short reach makes spacing more demanding than with longer alternatives. It is most comfortable at close range, where its direct attack pattern can stay on an opponent without relying on a complicated weapon gimmick.
Slash-focused moveset and spacing
The standard light-attack chain uses broad horizontal slashes, making it effective against targets directly in front of the wielder and useful for catching side movement at close distance. The weapon's heavy attacks continue that slashing identity rather than giving it the long thrusting profile associated with some other Straight Swords. Charged heavies require a clearer opening, but can provide a stronger punish when an enemy is committed to a slow action.
The Broadsword's reach is a practical limitation. Its attacks cover the immediate space around the wielder, but opponents outside that envelope can cause swings to miss or leave the player advancing farther than expected. Running, jumping and crouching attacks can change the approach angle, while two-handing changes the handling and attack presentation but does not remove the need to fight at close range.
Square Off
The Broadsword comes with Square Off as its default weapon skill. Activating the skill places the weapon in a brief stance; the follow-up light attack is a forward thrust, while the heavy follow-up is an upward slash. This gives the weapon a deliberate attack option that its normal slashing chain lacks and lets the user choose between a more direct reach option and a heavier vertical strike.
Square Off is most useful when the player has enough room to commit to the stance and follow-up. It is not a passive damage effect: the player must enter the stance, select the follow-up and spend FP. The skill can be replaced when the weapon is used with a compatible Ash of War, subject to Elden Ring's normal affinity and skill restrictions.
Guarding, status and commitment
The Broadsword has no innate status buildup or conditional weapon-specific multiplier. It can be used one-handed alongside a shield for guarded openings, or two-handed when the player wants the weapon itself to occupy both hands; neither choice changes the weapon into a dedicated blocking tool. Its short, repeatable attacks support sustained close-range pressure, while missed swings and poorly timed Square Off commitments can leave the user exposed.
Upgrades and Variants
Strengths, Weaknesses and Best Uses
Strengths
- Square Off gives the Broadsword a useful stance-based option: its follow-up attacks can pressure openings more effectively than relying only on the standard light chain.
- Its Straight Sword moveset supports quick repeated attacks while leaving room for a shield, off-hand tool, or other defensive option.
- The weapon has modest attribute requirements and follows the Standard reinforcement path, making it practical for early characters and for builds that want to change affinities as their attributes develop.
- Its infusible nature allows the damage type and scaling emphasis to be adapted to a build rather than locking the user into one role.
Weaknesses
- The Broadsword has less reach than some other Straight Swords, so spacing errors are more costly against enemies with longer weapons or wide attack coverage.
- It has no innate status buildup, so bleed, frost, poison, or other status plans require an affinity or external source rather than coming from the weapon itself.
- Its compact moveset and ordinary reach offer fewer specialized answers than weapons built around sweeping range, high stagger, or distinctive elemental effects.
Best uses
- A dependable general-purpose sidearm for PvE, especially when paired with a shield or another defensive off-hand.
- A flexible early-to-mid progression weapon for Strength, Dexterity, or hybrid builds that may change affinities during the game.
- Close-range play that uses Square Off to punish recovery windows, then returns to fast light attacks when a stance opportunity is unavailable.
Compared With Similar Weapons
| Weapon | Class and role | Moveset distinction | Skill and build flexibility | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broadsword | Slash-focused attacks with strong close-range pressure | Square Off; compatible with Ashes of War and affinities | Players wanting a direct, efficient straight sword for strength-oriented or mixed builds | — |
| Longsword | More versatile attack profile, including useful thrusting attacks | Square Off; compatible with Ashes of War and affinities | Builds that value broader spacing and attack-angle options | — |
| Lordsworn's Straight Sword | Balanced moveset with thrusting options | Square Off; compatible with Ashes of War and affinities | Players seeking a flexible alternative without changing weapon class | — |
| Noble's Slender Sword | Longer-feeling spacing and thrust-oriented attacks | Ashes of War and affinities provide build flexibility | Dexterity-focused builds that prioritize reach and lighter handling over the Broadsword's direct slash pressure | — |
Used In
- Nomadic MerchantSells the Broadsword in Limgrave.
- LimgraveThe Broadsword is available from a Nomadic Merchant in this region.
Lore and Design
The Broadsword has little character-specific lore. Its item description presents it as a common straight sword of the Lands Between, associated with widespread practical use rather than a named order, faction, or legendary wielder. That framing distinguishes it from weapons whose descriptions preserve a clear connection to a royal house, religious tradition, or historical figure.
No documented developer commentary or official design history is established here, so the Broadsword’s broad blade and straightforward role should not be assigned a specific real-world inspiration or creator intent. Its significance is primarily functional and setting-level: it represents the ordinary military equipment available to people living and fighting across the Lands Between.
Trivia
- The Broadsword is one of the two weapons provided in the Confessor class’s starting equipment, alongside the class’s initial shield.