Highlights

• Elden Ring provides players with a variety of Talismans that grant unique buffs and advantages in combat, such as increased damage or reduced elemental damage taken.
• Finding the best Talismans can be challenging due to the large number of options available, but early game Talismans in accessible areas are highly desirable.
• Talismans like the Shard of Alexander and the Gold Scarab can greatly enhance a player's attack power or increase Rune acquisition, respectively, offering valuable benefits beyond combat buffs.

Even though Elden Ring is a lot more accessible for newer players, it still poses a real challenge to players, especially those new to the FromSoftware universe. Fortunately, Elden Ring provides players with a variety of items that can turn the tide of battle or at the very least give them a fighting chance. However, Elden Ring retains some key information regarding equipment and skills.

For example, FromSoftware doesn't go into too much detail about weapon scaling, which is extremely important to understand. One type of equipment that players should be well aware of is Talismans since they grant players unique buffs that'll give them an edge against monsters and other potentially other players in PvP. However, with so many options available, it can be hard to identify the best Talismans in Elden Ring.

Updated January 19, 2024 by Joe Grantham: There are over 90 Talismans in Elden Ring and some of these have more powerful +1 and +2 versions available, typically found later in the game. With so many Talismans to choose from and different builds benefiting more from certain effects, it is hard to narrow down the best Elden Ring Talismans to so few.

With such an expansive open world, it is also important that players know exactly where to find the best Talismans, and those that can be found in the earlier stages of the game are even more desirable. Some Talismans also have more utility-focused roles, helping Tarnished outside of combat.

21 Claw Talisman

Increases The Damage Of Jump Attacks

Location:

• Stormveil Castle

Found very early in the game on a corpse atop a watchtower in Stormveil Castle, the Claw Talisman boosts the damage of one of the most fun playstyles in the game. Using jump attacks, whether with claws or whips, adds a new dynamic to combat, and with the Claw Talisman equipped, players will deal even more damage.

Even in the late game, an extra 15% damage on top of fully upgraded weapons can make all the difference when slaying foes.

20 Pearldrake Talisman

Reduces Elemental Damage Taken

Locations:

• Beyond the lowest waygate of the Four Belfries.
• Wyndham Ruins (+1 Variant).
• Miquella's Haligtree (+2 Variant).

There are several Talismans that provide resistance to specific types of damage, and these are extremely valuable when players know which boss they will be facing. The Pearldrake Talisman, however, reduces the damage taken from all types of Elemental damage, which includes Magic, Fire, Lightning, and Holy damage.

While the Pearldrake Talisman doesn't reduce as much damage, it is great for exploring as it is likely that players will come across multiple damage types even in small areas.

19 Sacrificial Twig

Prevents Rune Loss Upon Death, But Will Be Lost Itself In Exchange

Location:

• Multiple can be found during the game.

Sacrificial Twigs are unlike any other Talisman in Elden Ring as there are many of them to be found, and they fulfill a unique function. When players have a large amount of Runes saved up, but are unable to safely reach a Site of Grace to spend them, a Sacrificial Twig can be placed in a Talisman slot to prevent the tragic loss of all these runes in the event of death.

This is particularly useful in situations where players are forced to do battle with a boss they know they have little chance of beating, or they might even be used while tackling some of the harder Rune farms in Elden Ring.

18 Gold Scarab

Increases Runes Obtained From Defeated Enemies

Location:

• Abandoned Cave

Not all of the best Talismans have to provide combat buffs, and this is exactly the case with the Gold Scarab which boosts Rune acquisition by an impressive 20%. This makes it perfect for players who are looking to level up quickly and efficiently. Tarnished will need to slay the two Cleanrot Knight bosses in the Abandoned Cave in Caelid to get their hands on the Gold Scarab Talisman.

By making the most of the best Rune farms in Elden Ring, the Gold Scarab Talisman, and Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot consumables, players will soon be raking in the Runes. Whenever players are about to face a difficult boss they can simply replace the Gold Scarab with a more combat-orientated Talisman. The Silver Scarab Talisman which boosts item discovery is also a great option when farming.

17 Assassin's Crimson Dagger

Critical Hits Restore HP

Location:

• Deathtouched Catacombs

The Assassin's Crimson Dagger Talisman which causes critical attacks to restore 10% of the damage done plus 85 flat HP to the wielder, is perfect for those looking to play on the edge and get up close and personal with enemies.

As critical hits are often best achieved with daggers, players should try to partner this Talisman with one or two of the best daggers in Elden Ring. After all, the bigger the crit damage, the bigger the heals. The Assassin's Crimson Dagger Talisman is fittingly dropped by the Black Knife Assassin in the Deathtouched Catacombs fairly early on in the game.

16 Shard Of Alexander

Greatly Boosts The Attack Power Of Skills

Location:

• Dropped by Iron Fist Alexander

The Shard of Alexander is easily one of the best Talismans in Elden Ring, especially for Tarnished who use raw physical attacks to take down their foes. It boosts the attack power of Skills by a whopping 15%, 5% more than the inferior Warrior Jar Shard Talisman.

To get their hands on this strong Talisman, players must complete Iron Fist Alexander's quest, which spans multiple different regions in the Lands Between. If he is killed before his quest has been completed, the Warrior Jar Shard will be dropped instead and players will be locked out of the better option until New Game Plus.

15 Great-Jar's Arsenal

Raises The Maximum Equip Load

Location:

• Dragonbarrow North

Players who want to wield Colossal weapons without suffering encumbrance will enjoy using Great-Jar's Arsenal since it increases total Equip Load by 19%. However, obtaining one of the best Talismans in Elden Ring is no easy task since players will need to venture into Caelid, which is often regarded as the most challenging region in Elden Ring.

Once in Caelid, players will need to seek The Great-Jar and defeat three of its Knights (NPC Duelists). The difficulty of the duelist varies as the game uses builds from real players, but players can switch offline to make the fights easier since the game will use default builds.

14 Marika's Soreseal

Raises Arcane, Intelligence, Mind, & Faith, But Lowers Damage Negation

Location:

• Brace of the Haligtree

Even though most players use Radagon's Soreseal since it significantly increases several stats (which is why it's considered the best Talisman in Elden Ring) it mainly benefits melee builds and not magic builds. So that's when Marika's Soreseal comes in handy since it increases four stats (mind, intelligence, faith, and arcane) by +5.

But, using this Talisman comes at a cost since it increases all damage taken by 15%. So, players who decide to use Marika's Soreseal will need to balance it with a Talisman that negates some of its effects.

13 Flock's Canvas Talisman

Greatly Raises The Potency Of Incantations

Location:

• Gowry's Shack

Incantations started relatively weak in Elden Ring, but after the 1.04 patch, FromSoftware considerably buffed all Incantations to the point that they could go on par with other builds. And if a player wants to continue to increase their attack, they'll want to use Flock's Canvas Talisman since it boosts all Incantations by 8%.

But, the main reason why Flock's Canvas Talisman is one of the best Talismans in Elden Ring is that its effects can be stacked with other Incantation boosting Talismans like the Canvas Talisman or Scorpion Charm.

12 Godfrey Icon

Enhances Charged Spells & Skills

Location:

• Golden Lineage Evergaol

Some of the most overpowered Ashes of War can be made even more powerful by using Godfrey Icon Talisman since it enhances all charged attacks by 15%. Moreover, this Talisman also increases the attack of certain Sorceries like Gravity Well and Carian Piercer, which further proves that it merits a spot as one of the best Talismans in Elden Ring.

Players can obtain the Godfrey Icon Talisman by defeating the Evergaol version of Godfrey the Grafted. But, to gain access to the Golden Lineage Evergaol, players will need to use one Stonesword Key.

11 Roar Medallion

Enhances Roars & Breath Attacks

Location:

• Limgrave Tunnels

Even though there are a limited number of Roar attacks in Elden Ring, the few available can prove useful under certain circumstances. For example, Barbaric Roar and Shriek of Milos increase a player's heavy attacks by 10%. So, by using the Roar Medallion Talisman, players can increase their heavy attacks by 15%, perfect for a Colossal weapon-oriented build.

Unfortunately, even though the description says it enhances Breath Attacks, it doesn't affect any Dragon Communion Incantations. Players who wish to equip this Talisman will need to defeat a Stonedigger Troll Boss within Limegrave Tunnels.

10 Bull-Goat's

Raises Poise

Location:

• Dragonbarrow Cave

Even the most veteran Soulsborne player may find it difficult to understand Poise in any FromSoftware game. But, to make it simple, Poise is how much resistance a player has to be staggered or stun-locked. That's why the Bull-Goat's Talisman is a great way of raising a player's Poise since it increases it by 33%.

Locating the Bull-Goat's Talisman isn't too difficult since players can find it on a corpse in Dragonbarrow Cave. Once found, players can face the Erdtree Burial Watchdog, which is in Minor Erdtree Catacombs near Dragonbarrow Cave. Unfortunately, the Bull-Goat's Talisman isn't ranked higher because it doesn't provide any damage-related buff, which is most of the time more useful.

9 Green Turtle

Raises Stamina Recovery Speed

Location:

• Summonwater Village

This Talisman is the perfect companion for any melee-based build since it increases Stamina Recovery Speed by 8 points, which is extremely valuable during long battles. Moreover, players can stack the Green Turtle Talisman with the Green Turtle Shell and the Greenburst Crystal, which lowers Stamina Recovery Speed to 2 seconds.

But, locating the Green Turtle Talisman won't be easy (unless players use a handy guide) as it's found deep in a cavern, plus they'll need to use a Stonesword Key to access it. Finally, and most importantly, killing 200 Turtles does not increase the stats as some players have suggested.

8 Graven-Mass

Greatly Raises The Potency Of Sorceries

Location:

• Albinauric Rise

A must-have Talisman for any magic-wielding build, the Graven-Mass Talisman will increase a player's Sorcery Damage by 8%. Players can stack the Sorcery Damage buff with other Talismans that increase damage, like the Graven-School or Magic Scorpion Talismans.

To get the Graven-Mass Talisman, players will first need to locate the village of Albinaurics, which is near Liurnia Lake Shore. Once there, players will need to find and solve the Albinauric Rise Tower Puzzle, which will require either a Fanged Imp Ashes or a Bewitching Branch.

7 Cerulean Amber

Raises Maximum FP

Locations:

• Lakeside Crystal Cave
• Castle Sol (Variant +1)
• Lunar Estate Ruins (Variant +2)

Most FromSoftware hardcore fans agree that any magic-based build can essentially cheese through any boss fight since Spells and Incantations have a high-based damage output. And with the Cerulean Amber Talisman, players will be able to spam magic attacks almost non-stop since it raises their FP by 6.5%.

On top of that, players can find two other Cerulean Amber variants that raise FP even more (the +2 Variant increases FP by 11%). Moreover, if the player already has the Cerulean Seed Talisman (located in Carian Study Hall), it will boost their FP Recovery.

6 Radagon Icon

Shortens The Casting Time Of Spells

Location:

• Raya Lucaria Academy

Undoubtedly, most Talismans depicting Elden Lord Radagon provide some of the best effects in the game, and with the Radagon Icon, there's no exception. This Talisman shortens the cast time for Spells and Incantations by about 4 seconds, which can be useful when casting certain high-tier Spells.

Unfortunately, the casting time for dragon-related Incantations is unaffected by the Radagon Icon buff. Players who haven't traveled to Raya Lucaria Academy should be wary as they traverse the area since many optional bosses are scattered around.

5 Magic Scorpion

Raises The Power Of Magic Attacks, But Lowers Damage Negation

Location:

• Seluvis's Rise

The Magic Scorpion is a double-edged Talisman since it buffs magic-type attacks by 12% on the one hand, but on the other, it increases damage received. Nonetheless, the damage increase is well worth the risk, but new players should make sure to increase their Vigor stats if they plan to use the Magic Scorpion.

Obtaining the Magic Scorpion requires careful planning since players must talk to Preceptor Seluvis before completing the Ranni the Witch quest line. Once the player completes the questline, there's no way of obtaining it except if they start over.

4 Crimson Amber

Raises Maximum HP

Locations:

• Weeping Peninsula
• Volcano Manor (Variant +1)
• Leyndell (Variant +2)

The Crimson Amber is another Talisman that has multiple Variants, the default one increasing HP by 6% and the +2 Variant by 8%. This Talisman is great for players with low Vigor since the +2 Variant grants 116 HP, which is particularly useful for magic-based classes like the Astrologer.

But, the main problem with acquiring the +2 Variant of the Crimson Amber is that players will need to go through Leyndell Royal Capital, which is teeming with enemies and grotesque bosses. So, players who want to use the Crimson Amber Talisman should come prepared with plenty of Flasks.

3 Radagon's Scarseal

Raises Vigor, Endurance, Strength, & Dexterity, But Lowers Damage Negation

Location:

• Weeping Peninsula

Without any doubt, one of the best all-rounded Talismans in Elden Ring is Radagon's Scarseal since it raises 3 several important stats, especially for melee class builds. But, with great power comes great responsibility since players receive 10% more damage from all sources, which can seem scary for new players.

But, new players shouldn't feel worried about using Ragadon's Scareseal since players can counter the negative effect by raising defensive stats. Moreover, the increase in stats is well worth the trouble since it can make a huge difference while fighting some bosses.

2 Erdtree's Favor

Raises HP, Stamina, & Endurance

Locations:

• Fringefolk Hero's Grave
• Subterranean Shunning-Grounds
• Forbidden Lands

HP, Stamina, and Endurance are arguably the most important stats for any Elden Ring player to have regardless of whether they dual wield Uchigatanas or use the powerful Meteor Staff. Moreover, the +2 Variant increases stats HP by 4%, Stamina by 9.5%, and Endurance by 8%, which is a massive buff compared to the other Talismans.

But, to reach the much-coveted +2 Variant, players will need to fight three Ulcerated Tree Spirits, which can prove to be a real challenge. Fortunately, players can run past them (if they have enough Stamina) and loot the Talisman without facing them.