What Does Two-Handing a Weapon Do in Dark Souls?

Two-handing a weapon in Dark Souls, a core mechanic across the series, alters your character’s grip, impacting their combat effectiveness. Primarily, it increases your Strength stat by 50% for weapon-wielding purposes. This allows you to wield weapons that you normally wouldn’t meet the strength requirement for. Beyond this stat boost, two-handing changes movesets, increases damage output, and affects defensive capabilities.

The Core Benefits of Two-Handing

Two-handing, activated by pressing the designated button (usually Triangle/Y on controllers, or E on PC), fundamentally changes how you interact with your weapon. Let’s break down the key advantages:

• Strength Bonus: This is the most significant benefit. With the 50% Strength bonus, you can wield heavier weapons earlier, opening up access to powerful offensive options sooner than anticipated. This is particularly useful for builds focused on Strength weapons.
• Modified Movesets: Two-handing drastically alters the attack animations and movesets of many weapons. Often, the two-handed moveset offers different types of attacks, greater range, more poise damage, or faster execution speeds. For example, a straight sword might gain a thrusting attack, while a greatsword could gain a sweeping arc.
• Increased Damage: While not universally true, two-handing often results in increased damage output. This can be due to the altered moveset providing more powerful attacks or simply from the increased strength stat enabling better scaling with the weapon.
• Guard Break Vulnerability: You are more vulnerable to guard breaks when two-handing a weapon without a shield equipped. Opponents can stagger you easily, leaving you open to critical attacks. This is a considerable risk, making careful timing and positioning essential.
• No Blocking with a Shield: While obvious, it’s crucial to remember that you cannot block with a shield when two-handing. This dramatically changes your defensive approach, forcing you to rely on dodging, rolling, and parrying.
• Poise Damage: Two-handing often increases the poise damage inflicted on enemies. This means you’re more likely to stagger them, interrupting their attacks and creating openings for your own. This is especially effective against heavily armored opponents.
• Stamina Consumption: Depending on the weapon and attack, two-handing can affect stamina consumption. Some attacks might consume less stamina, while others consume more. This necessitates careful stamina management.
• Faster Attack Speed (Situationally): Some weapons, particularly larger ones, can feel faster when two-handed due to altered animation timings and less restrictive movements. This, however, is weapon-dependent.

Situational Awareness: When to Two-Hand

Two-handing isn’t always the optimal choice. It’s a tactical decision that depends on the situation, your build, and your playstyle.

• Offensive Opportunities: Two-handing excels when you have a clear offensive advantage. If an enemy is staggered, knocked down, or has a predictable attack pattern, two-handing can maximize your damage output.
• Breaking Enemy Defenses: When facing enemies with high defenses or strong shields, the increased poise damage from two-handing can be invaluable for breaking their guard.
• Boss Fights: Some boss fights favor aggressive, damage-focused strategies. Two-handing can be a viable approach if you’re confident in your dodging abilities.
• Exploration and Clearing Areas: When exploring unfamiliar areas with weaker enemies, two-handing can speed up the process of clearing them, provided you are comfortable without a shield.
• Adapting to Enemy Types: Some enemies are particularly vulnerable to specific two-handed attacks. Experimentation and observation are key.

The Risks and Trade-offs

While two-handing offers significant advantages, it also comes with drawbacks:

• Reduced Defense: The most obvious disadvantage is the loss of blocking capability. This makes you significantly more vulnerable to incoming attacks, requiring precise timing and positioning to avoid damage.
• Increased Guard Break Vulnerability: As previously stated, enemies can break your guard more easily when two-handing, leading to critical hits.
• Reliance on Dodging: Without a shield, you become entirely reliant on dodging and rolling. This demands strong reflexes and a good understanding of enemy attack patterns.
• Stamina Management: Due to the increased damage and attack power, you may be tempted to spam attacks, leading to stamina exhaustion. Careful stamina management is crucial.

Building Around Two-Handing

If you choose to focus on two-handing, consider the following build considerations:

• Strength Build: A Strength build is the most natural fit for two-handing. Maximize your Strength stat to take full advantage of the 50% bonus and wield the heaviest, most damaging weapons.
• Endurance: High Endurance is essential for stamina management. You’ll need to be able to attack, dodge, and roll effectively without running out of stamina.
• Vitality: Vitality dictates your health. Since you’ll be more vulnerable to damage, having a decent health pool is important.
• Armor: Choose armor that provides a good balance of protection and mobility. Avoid heavy armor that slows down your rolls.
• Rings: Consider rings that enhance your stamina recovery, increase your damage output, or improve your dodging capabilities.

Master the Art of the Grip

Two-handing in Dark Souls isn’t just about swinging a bigger weapon. It’s a tactical choice that requires understanding the risks and rewards. By mastering the art of the grip, you can unlock new offensive capabilities, adapt to different combat situations, and ultimately become a more formidable opponent.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Does two-handing stack with items that increase Strength?

No, the 50% Strength bonus from two-handing does not stack with other Strength-boosting items like the Ring of Might in Dark Souls 2 or specific armor sets. The game calculates the bonus independently.

2. Does two-handing affect the Parry window?

No, two-handing does not directly affect the parry window of weapons or shields. The parry window is determined by the parrying tool itself (shield, dagger, or specific weapon arts).

3. Can I two-hand a shield?

Yes, you can two-hand a shield. However, it generally serves no practical purpose beyond changing the appearance of your character. It doesn’t provide any significant defensive or offensive benefits.

4. Does two-handing affect the damage of spells or pyromancies?

No, two-handing a weapon does not affect the damage of spells or pyromancies. Spell damage is determined by your Intelligence or Faith stat, your catalyst (staff or talisman), and the spell’s scaling.

5. What’s the best weapon to two-hand in Dark Souls?

The “best” weapon depends on your build and playstyle. However, greatswords, ultra greatswords, and greathammers often benefit greatly from two-handing due to their high damage output and altered movesets.

6. Does two-handing affect weapon scaling?

While it doesn’t directly change the scaling values (S, A, B, C, D, E), the increased Strength stat from two-handing effectively improves the scaling of Strength-based weapons, leading to higher damage output.

7. Can I cancel a two-handed attack?

The ability to cancel a two-handed attack depends on the weapon and the specific attack. Some attacks can be canceled by rolling or backstepping, while others commit you to the animation.

8. Does two-handing affect my Equip Load?

No, two-handing does not affect your Equip Load. Your Equip Load is determined by the weight of your equipped items (armor, weapons, rings) and your Vitality stat.

9. Can I two-hand a weapon that requires Dexterity?

Yes, you can two-hand a weapon that primarily scales with Dexterity, but you won’t receive the same stat bonus as you would for a Strength-based weapon. The 50% Strength bonus only applies to the Strength requirement.

10. Does two-handing improve bleed or poison build-up?

In most cases, two-handing doesn’t directly improve bleed or poison build-up. However, if the two-handed moveset allows for more frequent or faster attacks, it can indirectly lead to faster build-up.

11. How do I switch between one-handing and two-handing?

The button to switch between one-handing and two-handing is usually Triangle/Y on controllers, or E on PC. Tap the button to switch. Holding the button typically results in a different action (like accessing Weapon Arts in Dark Souls 3).

12. Does two-handing affect backstabs or ripostes?

No, two-handing does not affect the damage of backstabs or ripostes. Backstab and riposte damage are determined by the weapon’s critical stat and your character’s stats.

13. Is it viable to play the entire game two-handing?

Yes, it is entirely viable to play the entire game two-handing, provided you’re comfortable with the reduced defense and rely on dodging and rolling effectively. Many players prefer this aggressive playstyle.

14. Does two-handing affect the range of my weapon?

While not a direct stat change, two-handing can affect the effective range of your weapon due to the altered moveset. Some two-handed attacks have greater reach than their one-handed counterparts.

15. In what situations is one-handing preferable to two-handing?

One-handing is preferable when you need the defensive capabilities of a shield, when facing multiple enemies, or when you need to conserve stamina. It offers a more balanced approach to combat.