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These challenge runs are usually fan ideas or just some metric for good players to prove that their builds and gaming setups are designed to kill a god. Also, Elden Ring doesn’t have a difficulty slider, so this self-imposed hurdle ought to equalize things. If these Elden Ring challenge runs don’t attract maidens, then players should have it writ upon thy meager graves that they have gotten gud.

Updated November 2, 2022, by Sid Natividad: As was prophesized by the fallen leaves, the Elden Ring challenge runs have become even more challenging. New ideas keep popping up like mushrooms, daring the bravest and most foolish to ascend to even more stupendous heights. Of course, some of the best players in Elden Ring are likely just bored out of their wits; they’re looking for the most interesting Elden Ring challenge runs to keep themselves occupied until the Elden Ring DLC finally arrives.

13 Bow Only

Here’s where mouse and keyboard setups just might excel, because aiming with a controller is a little too stubborn. A bow-only challenge run is straightforward enough. Players must simply refrain from using any other weapon that doesn’t involve a string and arrow.

Bows can be powerful enough as long as players keep hitting their marks and upgrade them well. The real challenge here is the ammunition. Since arrows are finite, players will need to dedicate some grind to keeping their quivers topped up. In any case, it’s one of the more manageable Elden Ring challenge runs. Oh, and Sorceries are prohibited.

12 Dual Dagger Assassin Run

It might look cool or even thematic to run a pure stabby assassin build in Elden Ring, but it’s harder than it looks. Because daggers have the worst range out of all Elden Ring weapons, this Elden Ring challenge run is nightmarish during boss fights.

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Some players might also be aware that there are some overpowered daggers such as Reduvia. Now, since this is a challenge run, there’s a bit of wiggle room or gray area regarding which daggers are permitted. It’s all up to player discretion, but the pure meleedaggers are recommended, of course. Players should therefore try to avoid Reduvia, Black Knife, Blade of Calling, or similar daggers.

11 Summoner Run

Despite being nerfed, some of the Spirit Ashes or Summons in Elden Ring are still capable and powerful on their own. Thus, players can consider this as one of the more forgiving Elden Ring challenge runs available. The gameplay is simple enough; players just need to let their NPC/Ash/Spirit summons do all the work.

If there’s a summon prompt on the screen, then players must use it and avoid the active role as much as possible. At best, players can merely run around the boss, trying to catch their attention, but they cannot attack bosses or regular enemies.

10 Enemy/NPC Cosplay Run

The enemy/NPC cosplay or roleplay run involves dressing up and acting as a particular character or enemy and sticking to their appearance, gear, spells, and combat behavior as much as possible. This means making up builds that copy certain enemies or NPCs in the most lore-accurate guesswork possible.

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A lot of players have probably done this already for bosses or NPCs. So, to spice things up, some players can choose low-level enemies such as the zombie Tarnished in the starting area, or weak NPCs such as Roderika. There’s no shortage of options here.

9 Encumbered Run

The encumbered or even over-encumbered run involves beating the game while at 70+ percent or 100 percent equip load. In the over-encumbered state, players can’t dodge, backstep, or jump, introducing a new kind of sluggish hell for players to trudge upon in their journey in the Lands Between.

Before anyone tries to claim that this is impossible, players should note that some madman has already beat the game in an over-encumbered character state. In some ways, this Elden Ring challenge run can also be considered as difficult as those Level 1 runs.

8 Offline Solo, No-Summons Run

If players want to start out simple and work their way up the challenge run hierarchy, then the “solo, no-summons” run should be a good jump-off point. It boils down to playing the game like a stubborn Souls purist where players ignore the Ash and Spirit summon mechanics as well as the NPC and co-op player summons.

This, for many in the community, is the true solo run. Some might have already completed the game in their first playthrough using this method. It’s considered a challenge run because players are practically handicapping themselves by not using Ash and Spirit summons; as the game’s bosses seem to have been designed with those summons in mind.

7 Hitless Naked Run

For an even more nerve-wracking challenge, then a no-hit or hitless run should step up the difficulty significantly. Players are basically allowed to do everything else as long as they don’t get hit. Getting hit (by anything) means deleting the character and then starting over again. Since they’re not getting hit anyway, players might as well ditch the armor.

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It’s way harder than it sounds, but players are able to overlevel here or for some, usage of Ash or Spirit summons is allowed. This should make things more manageable. More hardcore Elden Lords could also mix up the rules where they combine the solo, no summons run with a hitless run— just in case they don’t hate their sanity too much already.

6 Dark Souls Run

The Dark Souls run is simpler than it sounds. Players change up their self-imposed rules by ignoring the new Souls mechanics that Elden Ring brings to the franchise. Basically, players will only run a playthrough as if Elden Ring was Dark Souls 3 or older Dark Souls games. Players will have to adhere to these rules if they want to proceed with this challenge:

No Ash or Spirit summons No customizing Ashes of War (as is on the weapons) No Torrent No jumping No Flask of Wondrous Physick No Guard Counters No Map

That ought to make things interesting. Disobey any of those once and it’s off to the recycle bin for the character. No cheating.

5 Roguelike/Deathless Run

Roguelike games, for the uninitiated, are a sub-genre of gaming where players will have to start at the very beginning of the game all over again if they die. Granted, Elden Ring and other Souls games already have a roguelike mechanic (or roguelite) in the form of dropping Runes but it’s still not as hardcore or as punishing as starting over again from scratch.

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This also essentially counts as a deathless run. Should the character die, then they must be deleted or ignored and a new one will be created in their place to start all over again until the players complete the game. With Spirit or Ash summons or overleveling, a deathless run might be easier than most other challenge runs; players might want to combine this with the rules of other challenges.

4 Consumables-Only Run

By far one of the most intensive challenges when it comes to skill and resourcefulness, a consumables-only run will test players to the best of their ability and patience. There’s a lot of preparation time involved here as players will have to grind and craft for their consumables. The multitude of throwing knives, throwing pots, and perfumes should make up the bulk of the player’s arsenal.

Everything else is allowed, as long as players use only finite consumables for fights. The crafting costs, FP usage cost, and the janky cost-to-benefit ratio of these items ensure that the challenge in this kind of run never runs out. Bosses like Rykard are certainly annoying in this challenge.

3 Torches Only Run

Bad weapon challenges are quite rampant in Souls games and torches happen to be some of the worst. In fact, they’re not even supposed to be weapons. Most of them are just fantasy flashlights that reveal hidden enemies. Only one of them has a special function that can put some enemies to sleep.

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Regardless, it’s no doubt tough to have nothing but a measly torch and fire damage against Elden Ring’s enemies. Some of them tend to be resistant to fire and the torches’ pathetic range and lackluster Ashes of War make managing in most fights a brutal affair.

2 Dance Pad/Any Weird Controller Run

Dance pads, Guitar Hero controllers, Taiko Drums, or even potatoes hooked to the controller interface, just about any odd controller will do for this Elden Ring challenge run. Someone already succeeded in the dance pad version and even stomped Malenia with it (she’s an optional boss). So there are no excuses to be made here.

Any controller that’s not a gamepad, or not a regular console controller, or not a mouse and keyboard will do. Players will have to search for instructions online on how to hook these odd controllers up with their systems. The amount of practice and re-adjustments the players have to do as well as the input lag should make this challenge run one of the most extreme in the history of gaming.

1 No Maidens, No Torrent/Level 1 Run

White-faced Varre keeps calling players maidenless as if it were an insult. So it’s time to prove to him that one doesn’t need maidens to become Elden Lord, even if it means ignoring Melina and her extended car— sorry, Torrent warranty offers. While the players are at it, they also don’t get to level up. That means starting out as a Wretch.

Now, there are some grey areas here. If players really need or want Torrent, then they can accept Melina’s Accord dealership offer but refrain from leveling up. The most important aspect of the challenge here is that players stay at level 1, that’s the non-negotiable part. They can die and get hit, as long as they stay at level 1… that is unless they want to combine this with the other challenges and become the truest, Gigachaddest Elden Lord.

Elden Ring is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S|X.

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