Maybe you’re looking to poison your enemies and watch their health wittle down until they meet their inevitable demise… Good! Because that’s a perfectly valid strategy, and you should be proud of yourself. The best way to work with poison in Dark Souls is to use either a fast weapon, or a weapon with multi-hitting attacks (or something that combines both aspects) to quickly poison your enemy, and then switch to your “main” weapon to continue the fight without hindering yourself. And here we’ll be taking a look at the best tools available to make your opponent’s life miserable, poisoning their body and mind at the same time!
5. Heide Knight Sword
Basically everyone’s first thought after seeing this (or any other Heide weapon) would be to infuse it with lightning, due to its innate damage. Well yes, but also no? You see, the Heide Knight sword reacts particularly well to infusion and gets a sizable poison attack bonus, larger than most other weapons. Paired together with its fast straight-sword nature, you’re sure to leave your opponent poisoned within a few seconds in combat. How to get: Dropped by Heide Knights and Roaming Soul Knight Phantom.
4. Channeler’s Trident
Everyone knows that there ain’t no party like a channeler dance party! The Channeler’s Trident is a perfect support weapon, especially if you’re playing with friends, or just random friendly phantoms. The two-handed strong attack makes you bust out your best dance moves, giving a 25% damage boost to all your nearby allies – while the one-handed version strikes your opponent three times, which makes poisoning almost a guarantee. An excellent tool for every occasion. How to get: Acquired through trading a Petrified Something or a Smooth and Silky Stone with the crows at Things Betwixt.
3. Manslayer
This one really went under my radar. In fact, I hadn’t even realized it had innate poison before making this list! After going ahead and testing it myself, all I can say is that the Manslayer is up here because it’s just a good weapon. Katanas are an overall strong weapon class, with great scaling, damage, and movesets. For a dexterity build that’s looking for a poison weapon, the Manslayer is ideal since all it’s properties should align with what you’re after. How to get: Treasure in Shrine of Amana, found in a submerged metal chest.
2. Twinblade
Remember earlier when I said that we’re looking for weapons that hit multiple times per attack? Well the whole twinblade weapon class can be described as exactly that: multi-hitting status-building monsters! Catching your opponent off-guard for a mere second will be enough to make your poison seep through their veins. Also, the title might say “Twinblade” but depending on your build (strength, dexterity or quality) there’s a bunch of other options, if you care about min-maxing. How to get: Purchased from Weaponsmith Ornifex, found in a chest in lost Bastille, or in the last room before Sir Alonne.
1. Spotted Whip
I absolutely adore that, for once, the top spot in a DS2 ranking is taken by something unusual like a whip. We don’t see those very often! A +5 infused Spotted Whip ends up with a base poison damage of 287, making it one of (if not the) absolute best weapons for the job. In battles against other players, dual wielding two of these is a great strategy. Pair this together with the Old Whip for a physical damage-dealing weapon, and you’ve got yourself an Indiana Jones build going! As a closing note, don’t forget your poison-boosting items too, such as the Crest of the Rat and the Sanctum Soldier Gauntlets. How to get: Trade the Demon of Song Soul to Straid of Olaphis.
