Elden Ring - Heavy Thrusting Swords

The thrusting-sword guard-poke trick with real weight behind it: this class holds the single highest physical attack rating of the five, and only six weapons to choose between.

Combat

Pros

• Sword Lance reaches 323 physical at max standard: the highest number in any of these five classes, ahead of Broadsword's 286 and Milady's 284.
• Keeps the thrusting-sword ability to attack while guarding, plus more damage to health and poise than the light version.
• Built-in feint on every entry except Sword Lance.
• Guard boost 31-42 across the class, the best group here, Sword Lance 42, Bloody Helice and Dragon King's Cragblade 34.

Cons

• Is explicit that they are overall slower and cost more stamina than smaller Thrusting Swords.
• Weight 6.5 (Great Épée) to 9 (Sword Lance): roughly three times a Rapier.
• Only 6 weapons in the class, and the coverage has holes: one Faith option (Queelign's, 12 Fai), one Arcane option (Bloody Helice, 17 Arc), and no Intelligence weapon at all (items.json).
• Dragon King's Cragblade demands 37 Dexterity (items.json): the steepest single requirement in this group, for the lowest physical in its class (92 at +0).

Builds

Strength or Quality is the mainline.

• Sword Lance is the Strength pick: 21 Str / 11 Dex, the only C Strength at +0 in the class, and A Strength on Heavy infusion; it upgrades on regular Smithing Stones and is infusible despite being a Remembrance trade.
• Quality players want Godskin Stitcher (C/C at max standard, 311 physical) or Great Épée (B/B, 243).
• Arcane bleed goes to Bloody Helice: B Arcane at max standard, 296 physical, 55 blood, but Somber so no infusions.
• Faith goes to Queelign's Greatsword: A Faith on Flame Art for 212 physical / 266 fire.
• Because four of six take regular Smithing Stones, the next chunk of damage per level here genuinely does come from picking the infusion that matches your stat, Heavy A-Str is the biggest single jump available.

Best Weapons

Weapon	Image	Attack	Weight	Str	Dex	Int	Fai	Arc	Why Take It
Sword Lance		132	9	21	11	-	-	-	132 physical at +0 and 323 at max standard, both class highs; 42 guard boost, class high; the only C Strength in the class; +10% mounted attack damage. measures it at 758 attack rating (AR) one-handed / 817 two-handed at 80 Str under Heavy infusion, and says it outperforms Rusted Anchor there. The trade-off: it is the only heavy thrusting sword with no feint.
Godskin Stitcher		127	7	14	17	-	-	-	127 physical at +0 and 311 at max standard: second only to Sword Lance, with C/C Strength/Dexterity at max standard, making it the cleanest quality pick in the class at 14 Str / 17 Dex. Drops from the Godskin Noble in the Temple of Eiglay at Volcano Manor, so it is a realistic mid-run upgrade.
Great Épée		124	6.5	15	16	-	-	-	Lightest in the class at 6.5 with 303 physical at max standard and A Strength on Heavy (279). The budget version of Sword Lance for builds that cannot spare 21 Strength or 9 units of weight.
Bloody Helice		121	8	16	19	-	-	17	55 innate blood loss and B Arcane at max standard (296 physical), with Dynast's Finesse, a back-stepping dodge that chains into a heavy forward thrust and then a two-hit follow-up. also notes the dodge costs no FP if you have not met the stat requirement, which pure casters can abuse for the evade. Somber, so it cannot be infused or buffed. Chest behind the Sanguine Noble in Writheblood Ruins.
Queelign's Greatsword		117 + 35 fire	7.5	14	18	-	12	-	The only weapon in the class with a critical above 100: 117 (items.json), plus 35 innate fire at +0. On Flame Art it reaches A Faith at 212 physical / 266 fire, the highest fire number in the class. Obtained in the Shadow Keep after giving Fire Knight Queelign the Iris of Occultation.

Notes

• Attack while guarding, same as Thrusting Swords and Spears.
• Feint: roll-cancel a charging heavy for an alternate animation: every entry except Sword Lance.
• Bloody Helice and Dragon King's Cragblade share a unique R2 (a heavy forward thrust) and therefore a unique feint animation.
• The two-handed moveset is essentially the one-handed one with more health and poise damage, two-handing costs you the guard-attack synergy for a flat damage bump.
• Patch 1.08 reduced crouching-attack speed and powerstanced jump-attack stagger/poise damage in PVP; patch 1.14 increased uncharged first-heavy attack speed.

All Heavy Thrusting Swords

Name	Image	Physical	Magic	Fire	Light	Holy	Crit. Boost	Weight	Str.	Dex.	Int.	Fai.	Arc.	Sell Price	Skill
Bloody Helice		121 57	0 40	0 40	0 40	0 40	100 34	8	E 16	D 19	0	0	D 17	200	Dynast's Finesse
Dragon King's Cragblade		92 46	0 32	0 32	59 46	0 32	100 34	8	E 18	D 37	0	0	0	100	Thundercloud Form
Godskin Stitcher		127 55	0 38	0 38	0 38	0 38	100 33	7	D 14	D 17	0	0	0	500	Impaling Thrust
Great Epee		124 52	0 36	0 36	0 36	0 36	100 31	6.5	D 15	D 16	0	0	0	100	Impaling Thrust
Great Épée		124 52	0 36	0 36	0 36	0 36	100	6.5	D 15	D 16	0	0	0	100	Impaling Thrust
Queelign's Greatsword		117 50.0	0 34.0	35 45.0	0 34.0	0 34.0	117	7.5	D 14	D 18	0	D 12	0	100	Impaling Thrust
Sword Lance		132 73.0	0 39.0	0 39.0	0 39.0	0 39.0	100	9.0	C 21	E 11	0	0	0	500	Spinning Gravity Thrust