Elden Ring Moonveil Resurrection Build: Post-Patch 1.14 Guide
The Moonveil katana has long been a fan favorite in Elden Ring, celebrated for its devastating potential through powerful stance-breaking mechanics. However, over time, a series of patches nerfed its effectiveness, particularly its ability to break enemy stances with ease. For a while, many players moved away from Moonveil in favor of Elden Ring Runes more reliable weaponry. But as of patch 1.14, the tides have turned, thanks to changes in items like Ranni's Cameo and the weapon's skill, Transient Moonlight. With the right build, Moonveil is once again a powerhouse capable of dishing out tremendous magic damage, shifting the focus from stance-breaking to outright burst damage.
This article breaks down the new "Moonveil Resurrection Build" and how to capitalize on the current mechanics, focusing on magic damage output, safe distance play, and optimal talisman and stat choices.
Moonveil: The Katana That Defies Time
The Moonveil is a katana that deals 100% magic damage with its weapon skill, Transient Moonlight. The skill fires waves of magic in either a horizontal or vertical direction, depending on the attack performed. The horizontal wave is ideal for crowd control, dealing slightly less damage but hitting multiple enemies, while the vertical wave excels in single-target fights, delivering more powerful strikes over a longer distance.
For years, Moonveil was known for its ability to quickly break the stances of enemies and bosses, allowing for swift critical strikes. However, as stance-breaking was nerfed in multiple patches, the focus of Moonveil has shifted to raw magic damage. Post-patch 1.14, the build is no longer about stance breaks but maximizing magic damage through Transient Moonlight, supported by Ranni's Cameo and intelligence-focused scaling.
The New Focus: Weapon Skill and Magic Damage
With stance breaks no longer the primary feature of Moonveil, the build is centered around enhancing the power of its weapon skill, Transient Moonlight. In this build, you'll want to focus on keeping enemies at a safe distance, utilizing the katana's waves of magic to deal heavy damage before enemies even get close. This is particularly useful for boss fights where closing the distance can be dangerous.
In combat, the vertical wave should be used when engaging single targets due to its superior damage and range. The horizontal wave, while less damaging, is quicker to execute and more effective in dealing with groups of enemies. The goal of this build is to master the balance between these two attacks, ensuring maximum damage output while staying out of harm's way.
Talisman Choices: Enhancing Your Power
The Shard of Alexander and Ranni's Cameo are the core talismans in this build. The Shard of Alexander increases the damage of weapon skills like Transient Moonlight, giving you an edge in battle by increasing the potency of every strike. Meanwhile, Ranni's Cameo has received significant buffs in patch 1.14, now granting a massive 45% damage boost to weapon skills after charging for just one second. This combination ensures that your magic waves hit even harder, allowing you to melt through both regular enemies and bosses.
Another important talisman is the Magic Scorpion Charm, which boosts all magic damage at the cost of increased damage taken. Given that Transient Moonlight deals 100% magic damage, the trade-off is well worth it for this build, further amplifying your offensive capabilities.
For your final talisman, there's some flexibility depending on your playstyle. The Bull-Goat's Talisman can be useful for increasing Poise to 51, allowing you to avoid being staggered by weaker enemies. However, if you find yourself needing more stamina recovery, the Green Turtle Talisman is a solid alternative, as spamming weapon skills can quickly deplete your stamina bar. Alternatively, the Two-Handed Sword Talisman can boost your regular melee attacks when you aren't relying solely on Transient Moonlight.
Armor: A Mix of Style and Functionality
For armor, the goal is to maintain a balance between mobility and defense. The Okina Mask provides a small boost to dexterity, which is useful since Moonveil requires at least 18 dexterity to wield. This also allows you to invest more heavily in intelligence, maximizing the damage of your weapon skill.
The rest of the armor can be mixed and matched, but a good option is combining parts of the Nox Set with All-Knowing Gloves. This gives you a sleek aesthetic while reaching 51 Poise with the help of the Bull-Goat's Talisman. Achieving this Poise threshold is useful for avoiding stagger when dealing with regular enemies, though it won't always protect you from the heavier attacks of bosses. Still, it's a nice buffer for exploring the open world without being constantly interrupted.
Stat Allocation: Intelligence is Key
The stat distribution for this build focuses heavily on intelligence, the primary attribute that increases the damage of your weapon skill. With an intelligence of 80, you'll maximize the potential of both Transient Moonlight and any sorceries you might cast. This high intelligence also enables you to use the Carian Regal Scepter in your offhand if you decide to incorporate spellcasting into the build, though it's not necessary to make the build work.
Here's a breakdown of the recommended stat allocation:
- Vigor (55): Having high vigor is essential for survival, especially when taking extra damage from the Magic Scorpion Charm. You might want to raise this to 60 in tougher fights.
- Mind (41): You'll need a healthy pool of FP to spam Transient Moonlight, particularly in boss fights. This also allows you to use powerful sorceries without running out of FP too quickly.
- Endurance (25): With medium armor and 51 Poise, this amount of endurance will let you maintain a medium roll. If you prefer a lighter loadout for light rolling, you could drop some points from endurance and invest them elsewhere.
- Strength (12): The minimum required to wield Moonveil. If you're two-handing the weapon, this can effectively be even lower due to the 50% strength bonus from two-handing.
- Dexterity (18): This is the minimum required to wield the katana, with the Okina Mask providing a small boost.
- Intelligence (80): The bread and butter of this build. The higher your intelligence, the more damage you'll deal with Transient Moonlight and any magic spells you decide to use.
Flask of Wondrous Physick: Boosting Damage
For your Flask of Wondrous Physick, you'll want to use the Magic-Shrouding Cracked Tear to boost your magic damage even further. Pair this with the Blood-Boiling Cracked Tear to further increase your physical and magic damage output, but be cautious—it increases the damage you take as well. If you're facing a particularly aggressive boss, you might want to swap it out for the Winged Crystal Tear, which reduces your equip load, allowing for light rolling if you're not already at that threshold.
Gameplay Strategy: Efficient Combat
The new focus of this build is staying at range and utilizing the long-reaching magic waves from Transient Moonlight. In boss fights, you'll want to charge your weapon skill for the full second to trigger Ranni's Cameo, giving you a 45% damage boost. Avoid the temptation to rush and unleash your attacks without charging—this build rewards patience and precision.
In exploration and PvE content, rely on the horizontal wave to dispatch groups of enemies, while using the vertical wave for tougher single targets. With the appropriate flask and talismans, you should be able to cut through most enemies with just a few well-placed waves, minimizing the need for risky melee combat.
Conclusion: The Return of Moonveil
Moonveil may have been nerfed in the past, but with the changes in patch 1.14, it's back with a vengeance. By focusing on magic damage rather than stance-breaking, you can now harness the full potential of Transient Moonlight and tear through bosses with ease. If you've been waiting for a reason to dust off your katana, this build is the Elden Ring Items for sale perfect opportunity to resurrect Moonveil and once again wield one of the most iconic weapons in Elden Ring.
