This shadowy realm needs a hero. The Sword of Light in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree is the legendary Straight Sword that can pierce the darkness. In theory, at least. Here’s where to get this sword and if it’s worth your time.
How to upgrade the Stone-sheathed Sword to the Sword of Light in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree
To get your Sword of Light in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree, you need to upgrade the Stone-sheathed Sword at an Altar of Light. There are three ritual altars related to the Stone-sheathed Sword. You get the base weapon by pulling it from one of the altars. Then, the other two transform into crafting tables at random. You need to find the Sword at one altar and bring it to one of the other two to get either the Sword of Light or the Sword of Night.
You can tell which altar is which by the color of the pattern on the back of it. You’ll make the Sword of Light if it’s a white-yellow glow. A dark glow makes the Sword of Night. A prompt shows up to tell you which one you’re about to make, so don’t worry too much about clicking the wrong one. But you only get one Stone-sheathed Sword. Make it count.
Stone-sheathed Sword Altar locations
There are three altars to find in Shadow of the Erdtree. They are in the following locations.
- Fog Rift Catacombs. During the long room where a massive, multi-layered spike trap drops from the ceiling, head to the dais at the front of the room. Trigger the trap by walking close to the balcony and hopping into the small divot. Then, trigger the trap when on the top platform and hop on top of the trap entirely. Run all the way to the end to get a bonus room, where the altar lies.
- Ruins of Unte. These ruins are found by heading through a secret path in the Shadow Keep. Head to the far east side when you reach the long bridge covered with Shadow Militia.. You’ll find a ladder that goes down to a small room, which hides an invisible wall that leads to a stone coffin. Climb in that. Then, you enter the Ruins proper by throwing a Hefty Furnace Pot in the dead Furnace Golem‘s head. The altar is found to the right of the small mausoleum containing the Giant Golden Arc Incantation.
- Ancient Ruins of Rauh. From the Rauh Ancient Ruins, West Site of Grace, head through the dungeon or jump on the northern Spiritspring (if you unblocked it by breaking the above rocks) to reach a ledge to the northwest holding a broken bridge. Turn toward the tower to the east of you and simply walk forward. An invisible bridge holds you and Torrent just fine.
Order doesn’t matter here. The first altar has the Stone-sheathed Sword, and the other two are randomly either Light or Dark. You may have to visit all three locations to unlock the weapon you want. We recommend using the Fog Rift Catacombs altar to get the Stone-sheathed Sword since it’s by far the most annoying one and leaves the other two available for you to grab at any time.
Is the Sword of Light good in Shadow of the Erdtree?
The Sword of Light is a Legendary Straight Sword with C Strength, D Dexterity, and D Faith scaling at the top end. It deals a large amount of Physical and Holy damage, scaling with Strength/Dexterity and Faith respectively. Its weapon skill, simply called “Light,” covers a small area of lasers around you for a few seconds before giving a temporary bonus to Holy damage. The boost to Holy damage is 20 percent and lasts for around a minute.
As a dedicated weapon, the Sword of Light is a passable Holy damage Straight Sword. It has fine scaling, good attack rating, and the forever solid Straight sword moveset. But as a way to buff pure or hybrid caster Faith builds, the “Light” weapon skill is quite potent. Twenty percent Holy damage is nothing to scoff at, even if it requires you to watch a laser light show to activate it. Buffing before a boss can let you chunk out sizeable damage with Rings of Light or any other Holy spell. With a Strength requirement of only 14, pure Faith casters can use this weapon as an emergency beat stick while slinging spells safely.
Overall, it’s not terrible. It serves better as a great sidearm for Faith casters than its own weapon, but it’s a fierce contender for a very competitive slot in that regard.
