I started Elden Ring as a mage first time around. My cool staff made the tutorial fight nice and easy - I didn’t even have to dodge because I’d splatted the Soldier of Godrick before his massive sword got within swinging distance of my pathetic robed body. However, once I got out of the tutorial, I quickly found I wasn’t gelling with this playstyle.
Something about the magic wasn’t doing it for me. Maybe I was just being extra nooby in my first FromSoftware game, but diddling enemies from afar didn’t seem like the way to make the most of Limgrave, and any time I got up close I was promptly twatted. The latter was definitely due to inexperience, but a lack of points in endurance and strength certainly didn’t help either. I persevered for a little while to see if I could find an upgraded staff or some better armour, but I urge you to not waste your time. Start over, change your class. Once I did that, I never looked back.
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I’d saved my character design, so customising my Tarnished to have his signature mullet-and-moustache combo was a doddle a second time around. Not a second was spared as I scrolled as far away from Astrologer as possible and selected Warrior. This had felt like a basic bitch choice the first time around, but the dexterity called to me and, in the immortal words of Mads Mikkelsen: “I am the bitch.”
I sprinted through the tutorial for the second time in six hours, and emerged into Limgrave with renewed vigour and twin swords. Was it better this way, or was I just not enjoying Elden Ring? I can confidently say it’s the former. Sword-and-sword or sword-and-shield both gave me an advantage in fights, and I felt like I was interacting with Elden Ring as it was meant to
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