Most Elden Ring players will be familiar with the game’s most powerful Spirit Ashes, like Mimic Tear or Black Knife Tiche. And we're not here to tell you that those summons aren’t worth using; they can basically win fights by themselves. However, Elden Ring contains a wide variety of Spirit Ashes, each with their own pros and cons.
And while most of them might not be as universally good as the well-known powerhouses, they can perform as well or better in certain scenarios. Here are a few great Spirit Ashes you might have overlooked.
10 Spirit Jellyfish Ashes
- Cost: 31 FP
The Spirit Jellyfish is the cheapest Spirit Ash on this list. At first glance, this ghostly sea creature seems to merely be floating aimlessly around you. But she is surprisingly tanky, thanks to a relatively high health pool - and she can inflict Poison if given enough time to attack. She doesn’t have any spectacular effects or incredible damage, but the Spirit Jellyfish is surprisingly effective for the cost.
As an added bonus, this Spirit Summon comes with its own mini-questline, rewarding you with a unique gesture at the end of it. You can get the Spirit Jellyfish Ashes for free almost immediately after starting the game by talking to Roderika when you first meet her at Stormhill Shack.
9 Skeletal Militiaman Ashes
- Cost: 44 FP
At first glance, the Skeletal Militiaman Ashes do not seem especially impressive. They’re a pair of spear-wielding skeletons, and they perform about how you would expect, dealing middling damage and going down relatively easily.
However, the Skeletal Militiamen possess the unique ability of all the skeletons you fight in the Lands Between: they can resurrect themselves after death. And unlike you, enemy NPCs aren’t aware that hitting their remains will kill them permanently. As a result, unless they hit them by accident, your skeleton friends can resurrect indefinitely. If you want to annoy Elden Ring's bosses, you can pick these Ashes up early in the game, as they drop from the Tibia Mariner in Summonwater Village.
8 Warhawk Ashes
- Cost: 52 FP
Do you remember fighting those giant birds in Stormveil Castle? The ones with swords attached to their legs that are always flying just out of reach of your weapons? Well, it turns out many of your enemies have similar problems when trying to fight one. Unless they have hitboxes the size of skyscrapers or massive area-of-effect attacks, hitting the Warhawk will be a real challenge. As a result, this Spirit summon is surprisingly survivable relative to its health, capable of drawing enemy aggression for a long time.
Acquiring the Warhawk requires solving the Prophecy painting puzzle. The painting itself can be found in Stormveil Castle, in a room near the Liftside Chamber Site of Grace, while the painter sits north of the Church of Pilgrimage on the Weeping Peninsula.
7 Blackflame Monk Amon Ashes
- Cost: 115 FP
Blackflame Monk Amon isn’t particularly mobile or tanky, which generally doesn’t bode well for a Spirit Summon, but he is an impressive damage dealer. In combat, Amon will cast Godslayer Incantations that inflict the Blackflame debuff, which causes damage over time based on the enemy’s total health. That makes Amon an interesting alternative to Tiche, whose Blade of Death skill has a similar effect.
Perhaps the biggest reason you don’t hear more about Amon is that he is among the last Spirit Ashes you can find. He's located in a hidden area within a hidden area; you need to first reach the Hidden Path to the Haligtree by using the Haligtree Secret Medallion, then traverse the invisible walkways to reach the Stray Mimic Tear boss that drops Amon’s Ashes.
6 Fanged Imp Ashes
- Cost: 50 FP
The Fanged Imp is the first Spirit Ash you can get in Elden Ring, since it can be chosen as a Keepsake. If you don’t do that, it can be acquired by purchasing it from the Isolated Merchant south of the Main Academy Gate Site of Grace in Raya Lucaria Academy. You can actually get there without fighting a single enemy by taking the path around Stormveil Castle, but if that’s your plan, you may as well take the Keepsake instead.
Since they can be acquired so early, you might think the Fanged Imp Ashes aren’t worth using. However, while they have relatively low health, their ability to cause Bleed buildup is a powerful benefit. Eventually, you’ll be better off with stronger Bleed-causing options, like Omenkiller Rollo or the Mimic Tear, but they aren’t available until far later in the game. The combination of ease of access and raw damage potential make the Fanged Imp great for taking down Elden Ring's early bosses.
5 Banished Knight Engvall Ashes
- Cost: 100 FP
Everybody loves Banished Knight Oleg, with his dual straight swords, but it’s worth giving his counterpart, Engvall, some love. In many ways, Engvall is the budget version of Oleg; they have the same FP cost, and Engvall appears to be a bit tankier, but Oleg deals more damage and is more aggressive, which is often what you’re looking for from a Spirit Summon.
However, Engvall is way easier to get. You get him by killing the Grave Warden Duelist boss in the Murkwater Catacombs, in Limgrave. Oleg can technically be found even earlier, but the process to get him is a nightmare even at much higher levels. You need to spend two Stonesword Keys to get into the Fringefolk Hero’s Grave, get past the Chariot and Spectral Soldiers, then kill the Ulcerated Tree Spirit boss at the end. For an endgame Spirit Summon, Oleg is probably the better bet, but Engvall is nearly as good for substantially less work.
4 Rotten Stray Ashes
- Cost: 35 FP
The Rotten Stray causes Scarlet Rot to build up in your enemies. In the late game, you will encounter many bosses that are either immune to Scarlet Rot, or deal so much damage that the Rotten Stray will die almost immediately (or both). But against early bosses, like Margit, the Fell Omen, the Rotten Stray will put in work. That’s in part because you aren’t really intended to have access to Scarlet Rot so early in the game, so the bosses don’t have any real resistance to it.
If you can keep the boss occupied long enough for the Rotten Stray to trigger the status effect even once, Scarlet Rot will chew through the boss’ health. And if you know where you’re going, it can be acquired without fighting any enemies. It’s a short walk north of the Sellia Under-Stair Site of Grace, in Caelid. Taking the transporter trap in Limgrave's Dragon-Burnt Ruins will get you most of the way there.
3 Dolores The Sleeping Arrow Puppet
- Cost: 87 FP
As her name would suggest, Dolores’ claim to fame is her ability to cause Sleep, a relatively rare status effect. Many enemies—and some bosses—can have sleep inflicted by her arrows, trivializing what might otherwise be difficult fights. And while a few bosses are completely immune to the status effect, many more will at least be temporarily staggered, giving you an opportunity for free damage.
Dolores is one of Selivus’ puppets, and can be acquired in a few different ways. You can get her for free (or buy her later for five Starlight Shards) if you turn Nepheli into a puppet for him. Alternatively, you can wait until he and Pidia die after giving Ranni the Fingerslayer Blade. If you didn’t transform Nepheli, you can loot Dolores the Sleeping Arrow Puppet from Pidia’s corpse.
2 Stormhawk Deenh Ashes
- Cost: 47 FP
Stormhawk Deenh is basically a better version of the Warhawk. It's just as difficult to hit, but costs less FP. Most importantly, when summoned (and periodically afterward), Deenh will use a war cry that buffs both your physical damage and how easy it is for you to break enemy poise by an astounding 20 percent. It’s worth noting Deenh’s ability doesn’t stack with other aura buffs, such as Golden Vow. So, if you’re using one of those, you should opt for a different Spirit Summon.
However, for a low-mind melee character, Deenh is one of the best buffs you can get. To find the Stormhawk's Ashes, take the waygate labeled “Precipice of Anticipation” at The Four Belfries to return to the start of the game. Deenh’s Ashes are in a chest on the balcony above where you spawn with a new character.
1 Greatshield Soldier Ashes
- Cost: 74 FP
The Greatshield Soldier Ashes summons five, greatshield-wielding soldiers. Against smaller enemies—especially those you fight in enclosed areas, like Elemer of the Briar or the Godskin Noble in Volcano Manor—these humble soldiers can create an impenetrable wall, allowing you to attack from a safe distance.
They tend to get destroyed by giant enemies whose attacks can get around their shields, and against Malenia their survivability is actually something of a disadvantage, since she will heal her entire health bar any time she hits them with Waterfowl Dance. Still, if you are playing a ranged build, the Greatshield Soldier will be one of your better tanking options. You can find this Spirit Ash in Nokron, Eternal City, in a graveyard near the Siofra River Well Site of grace.