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In Elden Ring, poise is the secret weapon of many veteran Tarnished. It allows you to absorb hits without breaking your attack animation, enabling devastating trades and pressure-heavy playstyles. Whether you're fighting bosses or engaging in PvP, having a high-poise build can be the difference between dominating and getting staggered out of every move.

Here are 21 optimized loadouts for high-poise gameplay, ideal for players who like to face danger head-on and come out swinging.

1. Greatsword Colossus TankEquip the Greatsword with Bull-Goat Armor and the Endurance stat pushed to at least 40. This setup ensures you can take hits while dishing out colossal damage without flinching.

2. Zweihander Bleed BruiserCombine the Zweihander with Bloodflame Blade and mix in Veteran’s Armor for solid poise and bleed procs. Good for both PvE and PvP invasions.

3. Fingerprint Stone Shield TurtleA poise-heavy loadout built around the Fingerprint Shield and a one-handed Greatsword. Excellent for controlling space and playing reactively.

4. Duel Wield Great Club SetupDual Great Clubs with a heavy infusion and Giant Crusher-style armor makes this build a walking demolition machine, especially in tight PvP duels.

5. Dragon Slayer HybridCombine the Dragon Slayer's Cragblade with Radahn’s Armor for high poise and aesthetic intimidation. Add in lightning incantations for versatility.

6. Royal Knight Heavy Intelligence BuildUse Lusat’s Glintstone Staff with full Bull-Goat Armor. Thanks to high poise, you can cast uninterrupted even under pressure.

7. Beast Clergyman’s JuggernautFaith-based build with Beast Claw incantations, paired with the Tree Sentinel Set. Offers solid poise and respectable ranged options.

8. Black Flame KnightUtilize a Black Flame Blade-enhanced sword and the Crucible Tree Set for a balanced mix of Faith damage and poise-heavy trades.

9. Madness BerserkerEquip Vyke’s War Spear with the Fire Prelate Set to stay aggressive while building madness. High poise makes it hard to interrupt your charge.

10. Dual Lance BullyPower stance two lances and stack heavy armor like the Bull-Goat or Lionel’s Set. The reach and poise combination can dominate arenas.

11. Strength/Faith Hybrid TankUse Blasphemous Blade with the scaled armor from Rykard’s Set. A solid blend of healing, fire damage, and unflinching trades.

12. Colossal Curved Sword KnightEquip the Ruins Greatsword with full-on Endurance and Bull-Goat gear for those who want to stagger bosses before they stagger you.

13. PvP Spear Counterplay SetupRun a halberd with a high-poise armor set to out-trade faster pokes and punish aggressive players with Jumping Heavy Attacks.

14. Executioner’s BuildUse the Executioner’s Greataxe with scaled poise gear and Crimsonburst Tears for sustain. Excellent for late-game mobs.

15. PvE Boss BreakerRun a heavy-infused Greatsword with Erdtree Armor. Mix in poise-boosting talismans to shrug off boss combos and keep swinging.

16. Frostbite Tank BuildCombine the Death’s Poker with the Veteran’s Set for high poise and pressure via frost explosions and charged pokes.

17. Volcano KnightFire Giant’s greatsword paired with Fire Monk incantations and poise-focused gear gives great synergy for fire builds.

18. Serpent-Hunter SpecialistGreat against large enemies, the Serpent-Hunter weapon scales without stats. Pair with high poise to tank hits while charging it up.

19. Rot-Focused BruiserUse a Rotten Greatsword with Mushroom Crown and heavy armor to build up Scarlet Rot while standing tall during trades.

20. Dual-Wield Curved GreatswordsEquip the Onyx and Magma Blades in both hands with high poise gear. Great mix of elemental and stagger damage.

21. PvP Arena BulwarkHeavy armor, a colossal weapon, and defensive talismans allow you to endure early hits and swing momentum back in your favor quickly.

With so many ways to leverage poise in Elden Ring, experimenting with these builds can reshape how you approach both PvP and PvE. High-poise setups encourage a more aggressive playstyle that doesn’t rely on dodging every hit — instead, you use your resilience as a weapon.

For those who want to speed up their build crafting, acquiring materials and weapons without the grind can be a big help. Many players consider U4GM the Best Place to buy Elden Ring Runes and the Best Place to buy Elden Ring Items, particularly when time is short and you want to test multiple builds quickly.