Elden Ring has several Legendary weapons that can change the way you play. One of the more elusive ones you can get in the base game is the Bolt of Gransax, a Quality weapon that deals great Lightning damage. This is how you can build around it.
The best Bolt of Gransax build in Elden Ring
The Bolt of Gransax is a Legendary Spear in Elden Ring. This weapon scales with Strength and Dexterity, so the build we are going for will be a Quality build focusing on both these stats. The Ancient Lightning Spear weapon skill combined with the weapon’s own innate Lightning damage also makes this a great melee Lightning build.
The Bolt of Gransax build also uses one talisman from the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, along with gear from the base game. If you currently have a different character build, we recommend going to Rennala to respec your character before getting started.
| Build parameters | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Recommended level | 150 or more |
| Primary stats | Strength, Dexterity |
| Secondary stats | Vigor |
| Weapons | Bolt of Gransax Sacrificial Axe (optional) |
| Armor | Leyndell Knight Set |
| Talismans | Lightning Scorpion Charm Godfrey Icon Shard of Alexander Two-handed Sword Talisman |
| Weapon skills | Ancient Lightning Spear |
| Additional spells | N/A |
Stat distribution
Since this is a Quality build, we will first be leveling up Strength and Dexterity to 40 for damage and scaling purposes. Get Vigor to about 50 to survive hits from DLC enemies and Endurance to 30 for the equip load and stamina. Adding a few points to Mind doesn’t hurt. Then, continue investing points into Dexterity until it hits a soft cap.
This is what your endgame stats should look like:
- Vigor: 50
- Mind: 15
- Endurance: 30
- Strength: 40
- Dexterity: 60
- Intelligence: Base level
- Faith: Base level
- Arcane: Base level
Since Dexterity has a C-tier scaling, we prioritize investing more points into this stat instead of Strength. Additionally, the Ancient Lightning Spear’s damage also scales with Dexterity. Having more FP to cast the skill often is the reason why you will need some points in Mind.
Crystal Tear concoction
The best Crystal Tear for any build is the Bloodsucking Cracked Tear. Despite the slow health drain per second, the 20 percent damage boost makes it worth it. This damage increase affects the damage of your regular attacks as well as the Ancient Lightning Spear. Just ensure that you have enough regeneration to survive the health drain.
The other Tear for this build is quite flexible, with the best options being either the Dexterity-Knot Crystal Tear or the Lightning-Shrouded Cracked Tear. Whichever one you choose depends on your preference and playstyle. If you want more physical damage, the former is the one to go with. If you would rather focus on dealing more Lightning damage, you would want the latter.
Gear breakdown
The one and only weapon in this build is the Bolt of Gransax. With a D-tier Strength scaling and a C-tier Dexterity scaling, this weapon deals great physical damage. Half of its damage is also Lightning damage, which is amplified by other sources of Lightning damage boosts. Ancient Lightning Spear also benefits from all sources of Lightning damage boosts.
If you have the equip load for it, throwing in a Sacrificial Axe will benefit you. This weapon works great in any Quality build, and it restores four FP every time. This effect persists if the weapon stays on your back, so you don’t have to use it in battle.
The armor set for this build is also quite flexible. Our choice is the Leyndell Knight Set for its Dragon-themed pieces and its high physical and elemental defenses. If the set is too heavy for your current build, you can either invest in more Endurance or use lighter sets as long as you can maintain medium equip load.
Talisman breakdown
Four talismans work perfectly for this build:
- The Lightning Scorpion Charm is the centerpiece of this build since it increases all of your Lightning damage output by 12 percent. This damage increase includes the Lightning damage from your weapon’s regular attacks as well as the Ancient Lightning Spear.
- Godfrey Icon reduces the charge time of your Ancient Lightning Spear, allowing it to land faster than it normally would. This is especially important with the long windup time of the weapon skill and its virtual Dexterity stacks with your already high Dexterity stat.
- The Shard of Alexander boosts your skill damage, directly increasing the damage output of your Ancient Lightning Spear by 15 percent.
- The Two-handed Sword Talisman is a new talisman that boosts your weapon damage by 15 percent as long as you’re wielding it with both hands. Since you will wield your Sacrificial Axe actively, this talisman will always affect your build.
