How to level up in ‘Elden Ring’

Elden Ring is, at its core, a traditional RPG. Defeating enemies gets you XP that you use to level up your character, with each level making you tougher and giving you the potential for new abilities. But for those that might be new to FromSoftware’s Souls games, exactly how this works isn’t necessarily clear.

So let’s break it down.

How to level up

XP in Elden Ring is known as “runes,” which are usually received by killing enemies or from “Golden Rune” items found in the world. At Sites of Grace, you can use runes to increase a single stat point and level up, with stat increases also coming with boosts to various resistances that increase your defense.

However, the number of runes needed to level up increases each time you do it. In the early hours, you’ll need somewhere between 1,000 and 3,000 runes, though by the time you hit level 30-40, that will be roughly 10,000 runes per level. In the “Status” screen, you can see the next rune requirement to level up in the top left and it’s good practice to bank your runes as soon as possible once you hit that number.

Once you’ve spent runes on a level-up, it’s permanent and will not be affected by any deaths, so I can’t over-state how important it is to spend them when you’ve got them and avoid exploring/fighting when you’re carrying a fat stash.

So, you’ve got enough runes to level up, but what do you put points into?

The best attributes to boost

For beginners, you can’t go wrong with “Vigor” and “Endurance.” Vigor governs the amount of HP you have, meaning that you can take more damage before dying. This makes it useful for almost every player (unless you’re so skilled that you can avoid all attacks, though if you are I don’t know why you’re reading this).

Endurance is the amount of stamina you have, which affects how many times you can attack, what you can block, and how far you can run. Putting points into Endurance also raises your equip load, allowing you to wear heavier armor without encountering the dreaded “fat roll” dodge that comes from an over-encumbered warrior.

Depending on your playstyle, “Strength,” “Dexterity,” and “Mind” are also great picks. The first two increase the damage you inflict with various weapons and Mind increases your FP meter, so it’s crucial for magic-focused characters.

So far, there doesn’t appear to be any junk stats in Elden Ring, with all eight key to various playstyles and classes. You should also bear in mind that you can respect all those points later in the game, though you’ll need to defeat a tricky boss and obtain a rare “Larval Tear” item first.

If you’re new to Souls, I’d recommend focusing on melee combat and armor, so if you pump your Vigor, Stamina, and Strength, you shouldn’t go too far astray. Good luck out there!