Everything from giant hammers to big clubs, all the way down to the humble straight sword.
These classic lengths of steel have many types through the game, and each serve different purposes and playstyles.
Which are the best, though? Can there be a best?
Let’s take a look!
10. Crystal Straight Sword
There are a lot of consumables in Dark Souls.
Stuff like antidotes and firebombs get used and tossed, as is the nature of such items.
What you probably don’t expect to be a one-and-done deal is your weapon.
Yet that’s what the Crystal Straight Sword is!
Anything with the ‘crystal’ prefix is destined for obsolescence – and this weapon is no different.
That means your Crystal Straight Sword cannot be repaired or upgraded. It will always be exactly the same as when you picked it up.
This means that when it breaks (and it will) it’s gone forever.
It’s not that bad a weapon, though. And if you’re looking for something to use between other drops it’ll work.
But by the time you can reliably start farming these things, there are better & more permanent swords to look into.
How to Obtain: Drops from Undead Crystal Soldiers.
9. Shortsword
Sometimes you just need something simple to get the job done, like a loaf of plain white bread to satiate hunger.
The Shortsword is that loaf.
Even its name isn’t anything unremarkable.
It is a sword, and it’s short.
All that said, it gets the job done.
It can be upgraded for whatever kind of build you need, does consistent (if not low) damage, and is easy to use.
The shortsword caters to those new to Dark Souls, or to people who can’t be bothered to find anything better just quite yet.
How to Obtain: Starting weapon for Hunters, and can be purchased from the Undead Merchant.
8. Darksword
Here’s another plain but effective weapon.
The Darksword doesn’t really do too much – but it’s still a reliable, solid choice for striking through your foes.
It scales fairly well to strength, and can be a solid choice as a main arm, should your build reflect that.
The Darksword also scales excellently to magic. So if you’re into sorcery then an Enchanted Darksword +5 is a strong contender for your whacking needs.
The big downside to the Darksword is how stupidly complicated it is to obtain, requiring that you join the hidden Darkwraith covenant and jump through all the hoops needed to do so.
If your time is more valuable than your magical attack power, then maybe skip this one.
How to Obtain: Reach rank 2 in the Darkwraith Covenant.
7. Sunlight Straight Sword
This weapon is that of Dark Souls favorite sunboy, Solaire.
In order to acquire it, you’ll have to defeat him.
If you’re willing to do that and get the blade then you’ll find it’s pretty useful.
It can be ungraded in all the ways a normal weapon could, which is unusual for a named weapon that drops from an NPC.
The Sunlight Straight Sword shares a lot of traits with the Longsword, though it attacks slower and has overall lower stats.
Still, it looks really cool.
And it can definitely be your main arm, especially if you take the time to really juice it up.
How to Obtain: Defeat Solaire of Astora and he’ll drop it.
6. Silver Knight Straight Sword
If you’ve ventured into the depths of Dark Souls, then you’ll surely recognize the Silver Knight.
Those tall boys are responsible for a lot of untimely deaths (with the majority coming from scaling the side of Anor Londo).
Defeat enough of these dudes and they’ll eventually drop one of their trademark swords.
These lengths of silver steel are fairly decent, too. At least for the point in the game where you’d initially encounter Silver Knights.
The Silver Knight sword has a good base attack, but requires very high stats to get the most from its scaling.
Nabbing it early gets you the most out of it before your levels, and other weapons, make it obsolete.
How to Obtain: Drops from Silver Knights in Anor Londo.
5. Barbed Straight Sword
Bleed is one of the hallmark status effects of any Souls game.
Being affected by it causes a bar to gradually start to fill, and when it does fill up, you lose 30% of your hit points. Super annoying, right?
Here’s a secret though: it’s only annoying when it happens to you.
If you inflict bleed on your enemies, it’s super helpful (and awesome).
The Barbed Straight Sword is one of only a few weapons that can reliably cause enemies to Bleed.
It adds a small bit with every swing, eventually triggering the mass HP loss.
Being a sword, it has the same swings and chops as you’d expect.
And if you’re good you can make your foes bleed in no time flat.
How to Obtain: Occasional drop from Knight Kirk, who hangs around in the Darkwraith Covenant area.
4. Drake Sword
Perhaps being the most infamous beginner’s trap in the Souls series, the Drake Sword is a weapon that shines very bright – but not for very long.
Obtained by chopping off the tail of a certain annoying fire-breathing wyvern, this draconic blade is super-powerful when you first obtain it early game.
But that rush soon wears off as other weapons enter the arena.
Still, for the time when it can be useful, it’s super useful.
It has a cool shockwave charge attack and gives you a bonus to magic and flame defense.
It’s a really cool weapon for sure, and can help new players get a grip on what the game is asking of them.
But it doesn’t serve too much of a purpose once everybody’s feet are already wet.
How to Obtain: Chop off the tail of the big red Wyvern that hangs around the bridge area early on.
3. Longsword
If you’re into sorcery, then you should take a serious look at the longsword.
There are other swords that can scale their attack power to your magic – but none of them are as easy to obtain or as reliable as our friend the Longsword.
Using Green Titanite Shard you can get a +5 Enchanted weapon within your first few hours of a new game, and it will last you for a long time.
The Longsword is the perfect fit for somebody deep into the world of spellcasting.
Easy to obtain, easy to upgrade, and will be at your side until the credits roll.
All hail the Longsword!
How to Obtain: Rare drop from Undead Soldiers and starting gear for the Warrior class.
2. Astora’s Straight Sword
This sword is naturally enchanted, meaning that it can permanently defeat skeletons without any upgrading.
That alone makes it worth the (minimal) time and effort it takes to go loot it from the Valley of the Drakes.
But it also has a very respectable attack power to boot.
Like the Drake Sword, Astora’s Straight Sword won’t last you the whole game. It has a shelf life due to poor scaling.
But for the early portions of your adventure you cannot go wrong with this blade.
Also, being able to KO skeletons means that you can explore the catacombs much earlier, and by extension, get that illustrious Rite of Kindling that much sooner!
How to Obtain: Guarded by the Undead Dragon in the Valley of Drakes.
1. Balder Side Sword
Not all swords are made equal.
Sure, they have sharp edges and are meant for battle – but few in Dark Souls are as universally good as the Balder Side Sword.
It’s unique in that it not only has slashes, but also a very powerful thrust attack.
This solid stab breaks through enemy defenses and always does great damage.
And if you’re running a dex build then this is the sword for you, boy howdy.
The scaling with that stat is top-notch.
It may take some getting used to the different method of attack. But if you master using it, the Balder Side Sword can be the bane of all enemies.
(Especially if you equip the Leo Ring as well).
How to Obtain: Drops from Balder Knights in the Undead Parish.
Brian knows more about RPGs than he does world history. Combine with his love of writing and you get somebody who can, and will, go on forever about every nuance of every game he's played.
