Spirit Ashes

Spirit Ashes are the feature that separates Elden Ring from the Souls games before it, and the one most responsible for how many people finished it. Ring a bell and a ghost steps out of the ground: a pack of wolves, a jellyfish that soaks hits, a headless knight with a lance, or a copy of yourself. For the length of the fight the boss has two targets, and a two-target boss is a different, fairer game.

This guide explains how the system works, from the bell that unlocks it to the Gloveworts that upgrade it, and then covers every Spirit Ash with a page on our wiki, one section each, with where it comes from, what it costs to summon and the fights it suits. Two roundups rank them and a FAQ handles the common questions.

How Spirit Ashes work

Nothing happens until you own the Spirit Calling Bell. Renna hands it over, along with the Lone Wolf Ashes, when you return to the Church of Elleh after dark with Torrent unlocked; miss her and the Twin Maiden Husks sell it later. With the bell in your inventory, any Spirit Ash in a quick slot can be used wherever the summon icon appears on the left of the screen, which covers most boss arenas and a lot of open ground near them. How To Summon Spirits covers the controls and the early ashes.

Each summon costs FP, from 11 for the Noble Sorcerer to 132 for Black Knife Tiche, and the Mimic Tear charges HP instead. Only one ash can be active at a time, they cannot be used while another player is in your world, and evergaols and a few field bosses block them altogether. Ashes level up through Spirit Tuning, which Roderika offers at the Roundtable Hold once her questline reaches Hewg: regular ashes take Grave Glovewort, renowned ones take Ghost Glovewort, and How To Upgrade Summons and the Glovewort guide map the flowers. A +10 summon is a different creature from a +0 one, and upgrading the two or three you actually use matters more than collecting all of them.

Every Spirit Ash on the wiki

Mimic Tear

At a glance: Nokron, Eternal City, behind an imp statue; costs HP rather than FP; renowned. The Mimic copies your character as it stands at the moment of summoning, gear, spells, flasks and all, and then fights with your build's strengths and none of your hesitation. It is the strongest summon in the game for almost any build and our Mimic Tear page explains how to load it out before you ring the bell, and why it still tops our rankings after the nerfs. The boss version drops the Silver Tear Mask.

Black Knife Tiche

At a glance: drop from Alecto in the Ringleader's Evergaol at the Moonlight Altar; 132 FP; renowned. Tiche is the assassin's answer to the Mimic: fast, evasive, and armed with the Blade of Death that drains a boss's health over time. She survives fights that kill heavier summons because she is rarely where the attack lands. Reaching her means finishing enough of Ranni's questline to open West Liurnia, as the page explains.

Lhutel the Headless

At a glance: Cemetery Shade in Tombsward Catacombs, Weeping Peninsula; a Legendary ash. A Mausoleum Knight with a lance and a greatshield who teleports out of danger and throws her weapon, Lhutel is the tank most players use through the middle of the game, and she is available in the first region. Our page covers the catacombs and the Shade fight.

Redmane Knight Ogha

At a glance: Putrid Tree Spirit in the War-Dead Catacombs, Caelid, after Radahn; Legendary. Radahn's loyal knight fights at range with a greatbow and gravity magic, which makes him the pick for bosses that punish anything standing next to them. The catacombs are among the nastiest in the game, and the guide walks through them.

Banished Knight Oleg

At a glance: a high-health Banished Knight with paired greatswords. Oleg is a pure meat shield, one of the two knights known as the Wings of the Storm, and he holds a boss's attention longer than anything else you can summon early. The page covers where his ashes are and how to use him.

Banished Knight Engvall

At a glance: Grave Warden Duelist in Murkwater Catacombs, Limgrave. Oleg's counterpart carries a halberd instead of swords and trades some of his durability for reach and stagger. He is the natural first upgrade from the Lone Wolves; see Banished Knight Engvall.

Bloodhound Knight Floh

At a glance: Red Wolf of the Champion in Gelmir Hero's Grave, Mt. Gelmir. A stray Bloodhound Knight with the Bloodhound's Fang moveset, Floh is aggressive and bleeds targets, and our page singles him out as a strong pick against Malenia, where a summon that keeps attacking is worth more than one that survives. Details in Bloodhound Knight Floh.

Kaiden Sellsword

At a glance: Erdtree Burial Watchdog in Cliffbottom Catacombs, Liurnia; 88 FP. A dismounted mercenary with a large sword who both hits hard and braces through attacks, and a common mid-game choice before the renowned ashes arrive. The page covers his stats.

Mausoleum Soldier Ashes

At a glance: Deeproot Depths; 75 FP; five headless soldiers at once. The soldiers flicker in and out of visibility and spread a boss's attention five ways, which is more useful than their individual damage suggests. They take Ghost Glovewort to upgrade; see Mausoleum Soldier Ashes.

Noble Sorcerer

At a glance: Erdtree Burial Watchdog in Stormfoot Catacombs, Limgrave; 11 FP. A failed Academy student who casts glintstone pebbles from range. He dies quickly but costs almost nothing, which makes him the summon for low-Mind characters in the opening hours; see Noble Sorcerer Ashes.

Omenkiller Rollo

At a glance: the Fell Twins on the Divine Tower of East Altus bridge; 113 FP. The first Omenkiller, with paired cleavers that build blood loss fast. He is a damage dealer rather than a tank and suits bosses that bleed. Covered in Omenkiller Rollo Ashes.

Ancient Dragon Knight Kristoff

At a glance: Ancient Hero of Zamor in Sainted Hero's Grave, Altus Plateau; renowned. A Leyndell knight devoted to the ancient dragons, Kristoff fights in heavy armour and calls down red lightning, which makes him one of the few summons that deals ranged elemental damage while also holding a boss's attention. Our page covers the grave and how to use him against early and mid-game bosses.

One more early summon is covered as a mechanic rather than an ash page: Roderika's Spirit Jellyfish, the tank of the opening hours, handed over at the Stormhill Shack.

Which to upgrade

Our Spirit Ashes tier list puts the Mimic Tear first, Black Knife Tiche second and Latenna, Kaiden Sellsword, the Spirit Jellyfish and the Godrick Soldiers behind them, and Best Spirit Summons works through the same question by role. The practical answer is to upgrade whatever you own that is renowned as soon as Ghost Glovewort allows, carry one tank and one damage dealer, and pour everything into the Mimic Tear once Nokron opens.

Elden Ring Spirit Ashes FAQ

What is the best Spirit Ash to start with?

Lhutel the Headless if you can clear Tombsward Catacombs, otherwise the Spirit Jellyfish from Roderika. Both hold a boss's attention while you learn its patterns.

Are Spirit Ashes worth using?

Yes. They are a designed part of the game's balance, not a cheat, and most bosses are tuned with a second target in mind.

Which Spirit Ashes are worth upgrading?

The Mimic Tear, Black Knife Tiche and one durable early ash such as Lhutel. Upgrades are cheap for regular ashes, so a second early summon is fine too.

Why can I not summon?

Either there is no summon icon in that spot, a co-op partner is in your world, or you are in an evergaol. Check the left edge of the screen for the icon before pressing the bell.