Of the many tools at the Tarnished’s disposal in the Lands Between, Incantations stand as some of the most versatile and powerful. Drawing upon the faith of the caster and the ancient power of the Erdtree, dragons, and even the frenzied flame, Incantations offer everything from devastating offensive power to crucial, life-saving buffs. For any PvE-focused build investing in Faith, knowing which spells to prioritize can dramatically smooth your journey from lowly Tarnished to Elden Lord.
This guide will break down the best Incantation spells for PvE, categorized by their primary function, and explain why they are so effective against the world's challenges.
The Foundational Buffs: The Core of Any Faith Build
Before we discuss obliterating enemies, we must talk about survival and enhancement. These spells are non-negotiable for any serious Faith build and provide immense value for a minimal FP cost.
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Blessing's Boon / Erdtree Heal: While Blessing's Boon provides a slow, over-time HP regeneration, the true star for end-game PvE is Erdtree Heal. This massive-area, high-potency heal is invaluable in co-op, for healing your Spirit Ashes (like the mighty Mimic Tear or Black Knife Tiche), and for saving on Crimson Flasks during long, grueling boss fights. Seeing your entire health bar and your allies' refill in a single cast never loses its impact.
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Golden Vow: Simply put, this is the best overall buff in the game for melee-hybrid builds. For 80 seconds, it provides a solid 15% increase to all damage dealt and a hefty 10% increase to all damage negation. It stacks with virtually every other buff, including weapon skills like Royal Knight's Resolve and body buffs like Flame, Grant Me Strength. The utility it provides for both offense and defense makes it an essential part of any pre-fight ritual.
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Flame, Grant Me Strength: A powerhouse buff for 30 seconds. It increases physical and fire-based attack power by 20%. This is an absolute must-have for any build using fire incantations like Catch Flame or the Black Flame series, or for Strength/Faith builds using weapons with fire affinity. It stacks multiplicatively with Golden Vow, creating a massive damage spike.
Top-Tier Offensive Incantations
This is where the fun begins. These spells will be your primary means of dismantling bosses and clearing groups of enemies.
For Raw Damage & Boss Melting:
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Black Blade: Awarded for defeating Maliketh, the Black Blade, this incantation is a boss-killer's dream. It fires a projectile that deals immediate damage and, more importantly, applies a debuff that reduces the target's maximum HP and continuously drains their health for a short time. This effect is devastating against bosses with enormous health pools, effectively shaving off a significant percentage of their total health from a safe distance.
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Pest Threads: Don't let its humble appearance fool you. This incantation is a secret weapon against large-sized enemies and bosses. The threads seek the target and, on large hitboxes, can hit multiple times per cast. Against dragons, ulcerated tree spirits, elden beasts, and other gigantic foes, Pest Threads can deal staggering, almost unfair amounts of damage very quickly.
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Lightning Spear: The reliable workhorse of the Faith build. It's obtained early, has excellent range, good damage, and a relatively fast cast speed. It can also be charged for increased damage. Its versatility makes it perfect for picking off enemies from a distance, interrupting attacks, and dealing consistent damage to bosses weak to lightning, which is a surprising number of them.
For Crowd Control & Area Denial:
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Wrath of Gold: An incredible "get off me" tool. This incantation creates a massive, expanding golden shockwave that knocks back nearly all enemies around you. It is invaluable when surrounded, to create space for a heal, or to interrupt relentless enemy combos. Its high poise damage can also stagger larger foes.
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The Dragon Cult Incantations (Honorable Mention - Ancient Dragons' Lightning Strike): While all lightning spells are strong, this one deserves special note for its effectiveness against large, stationary, or slow-moving targets. It calls down multiple red lightning bolts in front of you. When all bolts hit a large boss, the damage output is catastrophic.
The Early-Game MVP:
- Catch Flame: This might be the most efficient incantation in the game. It has an incredibly fast cast speed, low FP cost, high damage, and can be chain-casted rapidly. It is brutally effective in close quarters and can stun-lock many humanoid enemies. For any build that starts with or early on invests in Faith, Catch Flame will carry you through entire dungeons and bosses.
Utility & Situational Spells
These spells solve specific problems and are worth the memory slot when needed.
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Bestial Sling: Another incredibly fast cast. Its primary PvE use is to quickly break enemy poise, setting them up for a critical hit. It's also excellent for applying status effects like bleed or frost if used with the Dragon Communion Seal.
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Law of Regression: A unique incantation that dispels all magical effects over a huge area. Its main legendary use is to solve a certain puzzle in the capital, but it also nullifies enemy buffs and is the only way to cure the deadly death blight status effect.
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Flame, Cleanse Me: An absolute lifesaver in specific areas. For a minimal FP cost, it cures both Poison and Scarlet Rot. This makes navigating the Lake of Rot, the Poison Swamps of Caelid, and dealing with rot-inflicting bosses like Dragonkin Soldiers and Astel a completely manageable affair. It saves countless boluses and flasks.
Seals: The Catalyst Matters
Your seal isn't just a tool to cast spells; it's a weapon that amplifies them. While the basic Finger Seal works early on, you should aim for:
- Godslayer's Seal: Boosts Godslayer Incantations (like Black Flame), which are some of the best in the game for PvE.
- Gravel Stone Seal: Boosts Dragon Cult Incantations (lightning spells).
- Dragon Communion Seal: For builds also investing in Arcane, this seal boasts the highest potential spell scaling in the game and boosts Dragon Communion incantations (like rot breath).
- Erdtree Seal: The best pure Faith scaling seal at very high Faith levels (70+), making it the best choice for buffs and generic incantations in the endgame.
Conclusion
Building a character around Incantations in PvE is an immensely rewarding experience. By combining the relentless offensive pressure of spells like Black Blade and Pest Threads with the near-invincibility provided by Golden Vow and Erdtree Heal, a Faith-based Tarnished becomes a versatile powerhouse capable of handling any challenge the Lands Between can throw at them. Experiment with different seals and spell combinations to find the playstyle that best suits you, and go forth with the power of the gods at your fingertips.
