The Drake Sword vs. The Claymore: A Dark Souls Showdown
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No, the Drake Sword is not better than the Claymore in the long run. While the Drake Sword offers a tempting power boost early in Dark Souls, its limited scaling, upgrade path, and eventually outstripped damage output make it a short-term crutch. The Claymore, on the other hand, is a versatile and reliable weapon that scales well with stats, boasts a fantastic moveset, and can carry you through the entire game and beyond with proper upgrades. The Claymore is the clear winner for players seeking a weapon that stands the test of time in Lordran.
Why the Drake Sword Seems Appealing (But Ultimately Falls Short)
The Drake Sword’s appeal lies in its accessibility and initial high base damage of 200. Obtained relatively early by shooting the Hellkite Dragon’s tail with a bow, it allows players to bypass the initial struggles of the game, particularly if they’re new to the Souls series. This makes early enemies significantly easier to deal with, and allows for quicker progression through areas like the Undead Burg and Parish.
However, this initial strength is deceiving. The Drake Sword’s biggest flaw is its lack of scaling with player stats. Unlike most weapons in Dark Souls, its damage does not increase significantly as you invest points into Strength or Dexterity. Furthermore, its upgrade path is limited to +5 using Dragon Scales, a relatively rare resource, and the maximum attack power is only 300. This means that as you level up your character and find weapons with better scaling, the Drake Sword quickly becomes outclassed.
Its special R2 attack, while visually impressive, consumes a significant chunk of durability. This can lead to unexpected weapon breaks, especially in prolonged encounters.
The Claymore: A Timeless Classic
The Claymore is a fantastic quality weapon, scaling well with both Strength and Dexterity. This makes it an excellent choice for a variety of builds. Its moveset is widely considered to be one of the best in the game, featuring a versatile mix of thrusting and sweeping attacks. The Claymore’s 1-handed R2 attack is a particularly valuable tool, providing a quick and effective thrust that can catch enemies off guard. It’s a very strong weapon.
Unlike the Drake Sword, the Claymore can be upgraded to +15 with Titanite Shards, Large Titanite Shards, and a Titanite Slab. Furthermore, it can be infused with different elemental damage types like Fire, Lightning, or Chaos, allowing you to tailor it to specific enemies and situations. This flexibility ensures that the Claymore remains a viable weapon throughout the entire game, even in the late-game areas and boss fights. It is often found on The Bridge.
The Claymore’s consistent damage output and versatile moveset make it a reliable choice for both PvE and PvP combat. While it may not have the flashy appeal of some other weapons, its practicality and effectiveness are undeniable.
The Verdict
While the Drake Sword offers a temporary advantage early in the game, the Claymore’s scalability, versatile moveset, and upgrade potential make it the superior choice in the long run. The Claymore is a weapon that can carry you through the entire game, and is a great choice for both new and experienced players. Ditch the Drake Sword when it gets out-scaled and embrace the Claymore.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. When should I stop using the Drake Sword?
You should stop using the Drake Sword when you have enough levels and titanite to upgrade a weapon beyond its damage. Generally, around the Depths, where you can find an item that lets you upgrade normal weapons past +5. Definitely by the time you’re done with Blighttown. At this point, the Drake Sword will fall off in damage and become a burden.
2. What weapons are better than the Drake Sword?
Almost anything out-classes the Drake Sword eventually. Your best options are probably Zweihaender, Man Serpent Greatsword, Black Knight Axe, Gargoyle Halberd, or Claymore. Many weapons can surpass the Drake Sword with proper upgrades and scaling.
3. Is it worth upgrading the Drake Sword?
It’s up to you if that’s worth it. You cannot add lightning damage to it; at best, it gets to 300 attack. People refrain from upgrading it because you obtain dragon scales relatively late and can lean off the crutch onto their favorite weapon +10 after Blighttown. The limited upgrade path and rare resources make it a less efficient investment compared to other weapons.
4. How strong is the Drake Sword?
The Drake Sword comes with a starting damage output of 200, making it far superior to any other non-upgraded weapons players are likely to find in the game’s early stages. However, this damage does not scale well with player stats, and its upgrade path is limited.
5. Can the Drake Sword break?
Yes, the Drake Sword can break. It breaks fast if you use its R2 two-hand special. It goes down 30 durability a pop. Be mindful of its durability, especially if relying on the special attack.
6. Can you get 2 Drake Swords?
No, you can only get one Drake Sword per playthrough. The tail is just one way of dealing enough damage to get the sword. You can technically hit him in the face/body and once you deal enough damage, you will get the sword.
7. How many arrows do I need for Drake Sword?
Obtaining the Drake Sword requires dealing damage to the Hellkite Dragon’s tail. An easy way to obtain the sword is to purchase ~100 arrows and the short bow from the Undead Merchant in Undead Burg and fire up at the drake from the lower part of its bridge.
8. Which is stronger, the Claymore or Katana?
Claymores are stronger since they’re designed to beat up armoured knights as well as slice through console peasants that only have old outdated gear with which to fight. The katana was specifically designed for unarmoured opponents, with its slashing blade perfect for slicing and dicing. The Claymore’s versatility gives it an edge.
9. Why is the Claymore called Claymore?
The word ‘claymore’ comes from the Gaelic claidheam-hmor, meaning ‘great sword’. The weapon itself is a two-handed cutting sword used in the Highlands of Scotland and by Scottish mercenaries in Ireland between the early sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries.
10. Is the Drake Sword a Dex weapon?
While the Drake Sword requires 10 Dex to wield, it doesn’t scale well with Dexterity. You can try using a light crossbow (8 dex) to obtain it, but the sword itself isn’t considered a Dexterity weapon in terms of scaling benefits.
11. Is the Drake Sword good late game?
No, the Drake Sword is not good late game. Drake sword is only good until around the point where your stats are high enough to get decent scaling bonuses. Depending one what your stats are like, good swords to pick up would be that balder side sword, the claymore, uchigatana.
12. What sword is bigger than the Claymore?
The German Zweihänder is generally longer than the Scottish Claymore. In fact most of the continental Great Swords are longer than a Claymore such as the Italian Spadone or the Spanish Montante.
13. What does a +1 sword do?
+1 weapons are magical weapons which are generic. They offer no additional benefits except the ability to add an ADDITIONAL 1 to both the attack and damage of the weapon. An example is a shortsword. A normal shortsword does 1d6 damage before any modifiers like Strength or Dexterity. The +1 modifier enhances its effectiveness.
14. Should I get a diamond sword or axe?
If a diamond sword does 7 damage, then a diamond axe would do 9 damage. To get the most damage, you have to wait a bit more for the cooldown to finish. Using an axe is sometimes quicker because you need to hit an enemy once, and it might just die right then and there, whereas a sword would take 2 or 3 hits. The choice depends on your preferred play style.
15. How does the Drake Sword relate to game-based learning?
Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of weapons like the Drake Sword and Claymore in Dark Souls, and making informed decisions about which to use and when, reflects problem-solving and strategic thinking skills. These are the same skills that are promoted by the Games Learning Society found at GamesLearningSociety.org . By analyzing weapon stats, enemy vulnerabilities, and upgrade paths, players develop critical thinking and decision-making skills that can be applied in other contexts.