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Which Carian Staff is Better? The Ultimate Elden Ring Guide

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The answer to which Carian Staff is better in Elden Ring depends heavily on your build, your playstyle, and the stage of the game you’re in. There’s no single “best” Carian Staff across the board. However, if you’re looking for a quick summary:

Early Game & Intelligence Scaling Focus: The Carian Glintstone Staff is your best bet.
Mid to Late Game, Sorcery Specialist, High Intelligence: The Carian Regal Scepter is the clear winner.
Strength/Intelligence Hybrid Builds: The Carian Knight’s Sword (though a sword, it scales well with both) paired with the Carian Glintstone Staff can be surprisingly effective.

Now, let’s delve into the specifics of each Carian Staff and why they excel in certain situations.

Understanding the Carian Staff Arsenal

The Carian Sorceries are a distinct school of magic in Elden Ring, known for their focus on weaponized magic and agility. They offer fast casting speeds and often involve conjuring magical blades. To effectively wield these spells, choosing the right staff is crucial. Here’s a breakdown of the key Carian Staves:

The Carian Glintstone Staff: Early Game Powerhouse

This staff is the first Carian Staff most players will encounter. It’s dropped by the Moongrum, Carian Knight mini-boss guarding the entrance to Raya Lucarian Academy.

Strengths: Relatively low stat requirements (8 Strength, 10 Dexterity, 18 Intelligence), decent scaling early on.
Weaknesses: Its scaling falls off significantly in the later stages of the game.
Ideal For: Early to mid-game sorcerers focusing on Intelligence scaling, players with lower overall stats. It’s a good starting point to familiarize yourself with Carian sorceries. It’s also the best choice for using weapon buffs such as Scholar’s Armament.

The Carian Regal Scepter: Intelligence God

This staff is acquired by defeating Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon and exchanging her Remembrance. This makes it available only after defeating a main boss.

Strengths: Exceptional scaling with Intelligence at higher levels (especially 60+), boosts the damage of Full Moon sorceries (Ranni’s Dark Moon and Rennala’s Full Moon).
Weaknesses: High Intelligence requirement (60 Intelligence), requires Somber Smithing Stones to upgrade.
Ideal For: Late-game pure Intelligence builds, players who rely heavily on sorceries for damage output, those using Full Moon spells. This is the definitive Carian Staff for high-level sorcerers.

Honorable Mention: The Carian Knight’s Sword

While not a staff, the Carian Knight’s Sword is intimately linked to Carian sorcery.

Strengths: Scales with both Strength and Intelligence, allows for melee combat alongside spellcasting, its Weapon Skill, Carian Grandeur, is devastating.
Weaknesses: Requires Split stat investment, making it less effective for pure sorcerers.
Ideal For: Strength/Intelligence hybrid builds, players who want a more aggressive and versatile playstyle, those who enjoy using Weapon Skills.

The Meteorite Staff: An Early Game Alternative

While not strictly a Carian Staff, the Meteorite Staff deserves mention as a popular early-game option.

Strengths: Comes with S-scaling in Intelligence from the beginning, significantly boosts Gravitational Sorceries. Doesn’t need to be upgraded.
Weaknesses: Can’t be upgraded, limits its effectiveness in the late game, poor scaling for other sorceries including all of the Carian Sword sorceries.
Ideal For: Early game focused on Gravitational Sorceries, until your Carian Glintstone Staff can compete.

Comparing and Contrasting the Staves

The key difference between the Carian Glintstone Staff and the Carian Regal Scepter lies in their scaling. The Carian Glintstone Staff offers decent scaling in the early game, but its scaling plateaus as your Intelligence increases. The Carian Regal Scepter, on the other hand, has phenomenal scaling at high Intelligence levels, making it the superior choice for late-game sorcerers.

The Carian Knight’s Sword is a different beast altogether. It’s not a pure sorcery weapon, but rather a melee weapon that benefits from Intelligence scaling. This makes it a great option for hybrid builds that want to incorporate both melee combat and spellcasting. Its unique Weapon Skill, Carian Grandeur, allows you to unleash a powerful magical attack that scales with your Intelligence.

Why the Carian Regal Scepter Usually Wins

In most cases, especially for dedicated sorcerers pushing into the mid-to-late game, the Carian Regal Scepter is the better choice. Its superior scaling with Intelligence translates to significantly higher sorcery damage. The boost to Full Moon sorceries is also a significant advantage if you incorporate those spells into your repertoire. However, the high Intelligence requirement means you’ll need to invest heavily in that stat to use it effectively.

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Carian Staff

Your Intelligence Level: This is the most important factor. The Carian Regal Scepter is only worth using if you have high Intelligence (60+).
Your Playstyle: Do you prefer to stay at range and cast spells, or do you like to get up close and personal with melee attacks?
Your Build: Are you a pure sorcerer, or a hybrid build?
The Stage of the Game: The Carian Glintstone Staff is a great choice early on, but you’ll want to upgrade to the Carian Regal Scepter as soon as you can meet the stat requirements.
Your Sorcery Preferences: Do you favor the Carian Sword Sorceries? If you do then upgrading the Carian Glintstone Staff or getting the Carian Regal Scepter should be your priority.

FAQs: Your Carian Staff Questions Answered

Here are 15 frequently asked questions to further clarify the choice of the best Carian Staff for you:

FAQ 1: What Intelligence level should I use the Carian Regal Scepter?

Ideally, you should aim for 60 Intelligence to fully utilize the Carian Regal Scepter’s scaling. However, it starts to become a noticeable upgrade over the Carian Glintstone Staff at around 50 Intelligence.

FAQ 2: Does the Carian Regal Scepter affect all Carian Sorceries?

No, the Carian Regal Scepter only boosts the damage of Full Moon Sorceries (Ranni’s Dark Moon and Rennala’s Full Moon).

FAQ 3: Is the Carian Knight’s Sword a good weapon for a pure sorcerer?

Not really. The Carian Knight’s Sword shines in hybrid builds that invest in both Strength and Intelligence. A pure sorcerer is better off sticking with a staff.

FAQ 4: Can I upgrade the Meteorite Staff?

No, the Meteorite Staff cannot be upgraded. This severely limits its late-game potential.

FAQ 5: What are the Carian Sword Sorceries?

The Carian Sword Sorceries are: Carian Slicer, Carian Piercer, and Carian Greatsword. These spells conjure magical blades for swift, close-range attacks.

FAQ 6: Where do I find the Carian Glintstone Staff?

It’s dropped by Moongrum, Carian Knight, at the entrance to the Raya Lucarian Academy.

FAQ 7: How do I get the Carian Regal Scepter?

Exchange Rennala’s Remembrance at the Roundtable Hold with Enia after defeating Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon.

FAQ 8: What are Somber Smithing Stones used for?

Somber Smithing Stones are used to upgrade unique weapons, including the Carian Regal Scepter and the Carian Knight’s Sword.

FAQ 9: What stats does the Carian Knight’s Sword scale with?

It scales primarily with Strength and Intelligence, but also has some scaling with Dexterity.

FAQ 10: What’s the Weapon Skill of the Carian Knight’s Sword?

The Weapon Skill is Carian Grandeur, a powerful charged magical attack.

FAQ 11: Is it worth using two staves at once?

While you can equip two staves, you generally only cast spells with the staff in your right hand. Equipping another staff in your left hand is only useful if it has a passive buff you want to take advantage of (e.g., the Staff of Loss boosts Night Sorceries). In general it is better to use your left hand for a shield or other supportive item.

FAQ 12: Does the Magic Scorpion Charm affect Carian Sorceries?

Yes, the Magic Scorpion Charm increases magic attack power, which includes Carian Sorceries.

FAQ 13: How can I increase my casting speed?

The Radagon Icon talisman and high Dexterity can increase your casting speed.

FAQ 14: Are there any other staves that boost specific sorceries?

Yes, the Azur’s Glintstone Staff increases casting speed at the cost of increased FP consumption, the Lusat’s Glintstone Staff greatly boosts sorcery damage but significantly increases FP cost, and the Staff of Loss enhances Night Sorceries.

FAQ 15: Where can I respec my stats to better suit a Carian build?

You can respec your stats by using a Larval Tear at Roundtable Hold after defeating Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the “best” Carian Staff depends on your individual needs and preferences. Experiment with different staves and builds to find what works best for you. For players with the highest intelligence stat, the Carian Regal Scepter is the best for straight damage. However, don’t discount the effectiveness of the Carian Glintstone Staff in the early game and the versatility of the Carian Knight’s Sword for hybrid builds. Happy spellcasting, Tarnished!