Spinning Gravity Thrust is one of the craziest newest Ashes of War builds from Elden Ring DLC, and it’s so powerful that I made an OP build specifically centered on it, Berserker Samurai Build.
Here I’ll cover the play style for this Berserker Samurai, what gear to use, the best Talismans, helpful gameplay tips, and the pros and cons of this build. So if you’re looking for an effective build for this Ash of War, this guide is for you.
Build Basics
Berserker Samurai’s insane damage output can instantly break almost any boss in the game, with bleed procs raw firepower. This is a super aggressive build that trades hitting and taking damage to deal as much damage as possible in a short period, so this build theme really matches its playstyle.
Berserker Samurai has high Dexterity and Arcane, and a little Faith Stat, with access to attack and defense boosting spells as mentioned above, to improve its overall firepower and survivability.
Pros & Cons
Speaking of pros to this setup, aside from the insane damage output of this weapon and Ash of War, as mentioned before, Spinning Gravity Thrust makes it like a sitting duck as it makes the target flinch and nearly stuns them.
Humanoid Types are pretty much powerless compared to this setup. And giant targets or bosses will definitely die faster than anything because of its jaw-dropping firepower and Bleed procs.
However, every setup has its weaknesses and drawbacks, and Berserker Samurai is no exception. The first one I want to talk about is the obvious issue with Ash of War, which is that its long animations make you more vulnerable to attacks. Since you’re already in mid-air, you’ll be dodging ground attacks more often, but you’ll still take damage most of the time, especially if you’re still adjusting to Ash of War’s timing.
While the idea is that you will take damage to deal massive damage to your opponent, if you over-abuse Spinning Gravity Thrust, 90% of the time it will result in your death.
Ash of War has a very slow acceleration animation, so when you are facing fast-moving targets, you will find yourself often missing a lot of targets or hitting the air.
The last thing I want to say about its disadvantages is that Spinning Gravity Thrust consumes a lot of Stamina. This means that you will be using up Stamina most of the time, especially when rushing to the target, which is the regular play style of this build.
Gear
Now that the basic play style and overview are over, let’s move on to the gear that Berserker Samurai needs.
Main Weapon: Great Katana
Let’s start with the chief weapon of this build, Great Katana. This Katana requires 14 Strength and 18 Dexterity to use effectively, and this time we will infuse it with Blood. In terms of scaling, it will have D for Strength, C for Dexterity, and lastly D for Arcane. Now this may seem bad, but trust me, this weapon is more than enough to wipe out an enemy in seconds.
Weapon Skill: Spinning Gravity Thrust
Moving on to the core of this build, Ash of War Spinning Gravity Thrust. This is one of the deadliest Ash of War I have seen so far. What it does is it lifts the user into the air and performs a violent multi-hitting spinning thrust attack that not only does a ton of damage per attack, but it also causes the target to flinch during the attack.
In addition to its insane damage multipliers, you also trigger Bleeds when using Ash of War, which makes its damage even more insane.
Pressing L2 allows you to fire Ash of War, and pressing L2 again after the first animation finishes will perform another set of animations, but the second set of animations will have a powerful Sweeping Finisher that will knock the target back.
Secondary Weapon: Dragon Communion Seal
Moving on to the secondary weapon of this build, I am using Dragon Communion Seal here in case we need to slot Arcane Scaling offensive Incantation later. I’m only using Seal for the attack buffs for this build, but you can definitely use any Seal you want as long as you have enough Elden Ring Runes.
Spells
With the weapons out of the way, let’s move on to the spells I recommend.
The first is Flame Grant me Strength, which grants an additional 20% Physical Attack Boost and Stamina Recovery Buff.
The second buff is of course Golden Vow. This buff increases overall damage by 15% and adds 10% damage negation, which is very helpful.
Talismans
Next, let’s look at the best Talismans for this build.
The first Talisman on the list is once again Shard of Alexander. This can increase skill damage by 15%, especially when performing Witching Hour Slash skill, so be sure to slot this one.
Since we’re dealing with Bleed procs a lot with this build, I recommend using Lord of Blood’s Exultation. It will give you another 20% attack damage if blood loss procs are happening nearby. This happens all the time, so it will help you deal a ton of damage.
Of course, since we’re dealing with fast multi-attacks, as usual, slotting in Millicent’s Prosthesis and Rotten Winged Sword Insignia is optimal for this build.
You’ll always have the multi-attack buff active when performing Spinning Gravity Thrust, so make sure to prioritize these Talismans. However, I’ll have other Talisman suggestions later that will suit different combat situations.
Armor Set
Now that the main gear is done, let’s move on to the best Armor Set for Berserker Samurai.
For this build, I’m wearing Land of Reeds Helm to preserve the identity of the build, in addition to using White Reed Armor and White Reed Gauntlets, and finally Land of Reeds Greaves.
However, you can also choose to wear Rakshasa Set for a higher Attack Rating, as this Armor Set provides a damage boost overall. In summary, you can wear whatever you want, as long as you have about 51 poise, which is enough most of the time.
Stats
Then, let’s move on to Berserker Samurai’s stats.
First, we start with Vigor, which I have assigned 60 points to. Since this build will be engaging enemies in melee combat, you will be taking damage quite often, so having 60 Vigor is essential for this build.
Next is Mind, which I have assigned 20 points to. Now, you may find this quite low, especially with 26 FP required to use Spinning Gravity Thrust. However, enemies and bosses usually die quickly after 1 to 4 spins, so I don’t need more than that. In the event that the boss survives after 2 to 4 spins, you can also finish the fight by opening the flask easily.
Next, talking about Endurance, I have assigned 30 points to it. Even though Spinning Gravity Thrust will drain your stamina in a few seconds, it’s actually OK to only have 30 points. As mentioned, enemies die very quickly.
Then you also need to have at least 14 Strength to effectively wield Great Katana.
Since Dexterity is our main stat for this build, I have allocated 75 points in total. And since we have equipped Millicent’s Prosthesis, it can even go up to 80.
Next is Intelligence. We don’t need these, so it will be 10 points.
Then Faith has been allocated 25 points, giving you access to the previously mentioned Flame Grant me Strength and Golden Vow.
Finally, we have allocated 45 points to Arcane so that we can have more Attack Rating, while increasing our blood loss to 132 so that we can ensure that it triggers more often.
Gameplay
Now that the stats are taken care of, let’s move on to the gameplay and optimization tips for Berserker Samurai.
Optimize Your Opener
First, you need to optimize your opener as usual. Before or at the beginning of the battle, I usually cast Flame Grant me Strength and Golden Vow, and finally Bestial Vitality.
Next, we can turn on Flask of Wondrous Physick for damage reduction and multi-attack boost. With all the buffs active, this build will be super aggressive and do as much damage as possible in this opening.
Use Spinning Gravity Thrust Properly
I know this build is a Berserker, however, if you miss Ash of War too many times as mentioned before, you will pay the price with death because of its overly long animation.
Beyond that, you still need to master the timing of casting Ash of War. Unfortunately, getting good at it requires experience, and its usage varies from boss to boss. However, most of the time you will win the fight because of its damage output.
Use Gear Wisely
Now for the last tip, I recommend swapping Millicent’s Prosthesis for Crusade Insignia when exploring the overworld or dungeons, so that you can get a lasting buff while you’re on the landscape. Of course, if you think you need more protection, swap the aforementioned Talisman for Dragoncrest Greatshield.
Berserker Samurai is a difficult Samurai build to master, and its satisfying violent thrusts can wipe out enemies in seconds. If you want to melt bosses with ease, don’t miss this guide. See you next time!
