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The Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring is here and while the base game should have prepared us for just how much content this expansion was going to have in store for us, the amount of new stuff to experience in the Realm of Shadow is no doubt very overwhelming. We’re not just talking about the adversaries that must be overcome but also the number of new items that can have you looking at the build that you’ve been using for hundreds of hours and wondering if enough is enough and if it’s time for a change.
From fashionable new Gear to powerful Talismans and, of course, deadly Weapons, there is just so much for you to find and experiment with. And when we say weapons, we are talking about your basic swords and daggers. No, we mean whole new weapon types that completely change how you approach your playstyle. One of the brand-new types of Weapons found in Shadow of the Erdtree that you can acquire is known as the Backhand Blade. These lightning-fast weapons are some of the most unique swords that you can find in Elden Ring which can unleash a flurry of attacks so fast that your enemies won’t know what hit them.
There is a total of 3 Backhand Blades to be found in Shadow of the Erdtree: The Backhand Blade which is the basic form of the weapon which shares the name of the weapon class, the circular blade Smithscript Cirque, and the rare Curseblade’s Cirque. While sharing similarities, each of these weapons has moves that make them special and can be turned into the cornerstone of many builds. Finding two of these weapons is straightforward enough and can be tracked down pretty easily while the third and final one will require a little luck and likely several battles with an imposing foe.
Backhand Blade
As we said before, the Backhand Blade shares the name of the weapon class it is part of and is likely the earliest of these new swords that you will be able to get. You will be able to find this blade in the DLC’s very first region known as the Gravesite Plain. Not too far from the first area that you load into when arriving in the DLC’s Realm of Shadow is a Point of Interest called the Scorched Ruins. From this location, you are going to want to head to the northeast and travel off the beaten path. Make your way to the stone structure out in the open field surrounded by a group of roaming enemies known as Inquisitors. At the center of this stone structure is a coffin and an item sitting in front of said coffin. This item is the Backhand Blade.
In order to properly use the Backhand Blade, you will need to be Level 10 in Strength and Level 13 in Dexterity. This weapon is a fast-moving Slash and Pierce weapon that, when just using it in one hand, comes with a six-attack light combo that combines vertical and horizontal slashes with a few stabs all while having a forward motion that can cover a decent distance. The Heavy Attack combo includes a forward-moving 360 swipe that can be followed up with an uppercut slash. These attacks can also be charged by holding the Heavy Attack button. When you switch to dual-wielding, you will pull out a second sword with an all-new set of combo strings. The Light Attack combo includes a total of 10 attacks in the full attack string, opening with three 1-2 slash combinations which is followed by a single slash, a double stabbing motion, and then finishing with a cross slash. This string can absolutely overwhelm your opponent and cut through their health before they have a chance to retaliate.
The weapon comes equipped by default with the Blind Spot Ash of War Weapon Skill which sees your character charge in a diagonal direction and the stabbing sideways. This move can quickly close the distance on your foe and can even get around their guard. This means that even if they are holding up a shield, you will be able to get around it and do damage, making this move a great tool to use to take down turtling enemies that would rather play defense than actually engage you.
Smithscript Cirque
This next Backhand Blade is known as the Smithscript Cirque and will require some work to track down. Not only does finding this unique circular blade require you to reach the area beyond the Gravesite Plain, but it is also found deep within an optional dungeon far from the expansion’s critical path. So the less adventurous among you might never even visit this location on a regular playthrough. Don’t worry, though, we will point you in the right direction.
Upon reaching the Scadu Altus found to the north of Castle Ensis, make your way to the Moorth Ruins found to the east of the Miquella’s Cross and the Highroad Cross Site of Grace. To the southwest of the Ruins is a large structure represented by this square on the map. This is known as the Ruined Forge of Starfall Past. This dungeon is a small maze with multiple paths and steel doors that can only be opened by pulling specific levers. It is behind one of these doors that you will find the Smithscript Cirque.
Enter the structure and descend down the ladder to enter the dungeon. Starting at the nearby and appropriately named Ruined Forge of Starfall Past Site of Grace, go through the door and across the bridge to find the lever to open the door to the left. Now go through the opening to enter another room with a second sealed door on the right. To reach the lever, follow the path to the right, and while in a hallway, you will find a ladder along the right wall. Climb this ladder and follow the path until you are able to drop down to the second floor of the room you were just in. Once again cross a bridge and pull the nearby lever. Behind the now open door is a waterfall with a body nearby. You will find the Smithscript Cirque on this body.
You will need to have 9 Strength, 14, Dexterity, and 11 in both Intelligence and Faith to use the Smithscript Cirque. Despite the circular design of the weapon, these blades have almost the exact same moveset as the basic Backhand Blade with the Light Attack combo for both single-handed and dual-wielding being the same between both weapons. The Smithscript Cirque’s default Ash of War Weapon Skill is also Blind Spot just like the Backhand Blade. The difference with this weapon is that its Heavy Attack sees you throwing the blades towards your foes, turning these slashing blades into projectiles. You can perform a two-throw combo with these Heavy Attacks with the second throw from a charged Heavy Attack seeing the blades going up and over your opponent instead of horizontally around them. This makes these weapons extremely unique and allows you to close the distance and perform rapidfire attacks or keep your distance with these flying discs.
Curseblade’s Cirque
The third and final Backhand Blade can actually be acquired really early. Like, “first item you pick up” early. But you will have to be really lucky for that to happen and this weapon might actually take some time to get if you just run afoul of the RNG. The Curseblade’s Cirque, appropriately, comes from the Curseblade enemy which is the fast and elegant-moving beasts that wield these circular blades. You will encounter one of these enemies right at the start of the DLC just past the Gravesite Plain Site of Grace and it will be your first taste of what the rest of the expansion has in store. There is also another one that you can farm by going to the Stagefront Site of Grace right outside the Divine Beast Dancing Lion boss arena. Turn around from the Site of Grace and head down the stairway to find a Curseblade that you can also farm for the weapon. Upon defeating this enemy, there is a chance that it will drop the Curseblade’s Cirque but this is done at complete random.
The Discovery stat will increase the chance of this enemy dropping items the higher the stat is. The Discovery stat is increased by putting levels into your Arcane stat with each level in Arcane improving your Discovery by 1 and will do so all the way up to Level 99. There are several items from Gear to Talismans to Consumables that can increase your Discovery. The far and away best Talisman for you to put on is the Silver Scarab which will give your character a massive 75-point bump to Discovery. Some of the other best Talismans that you will want to use are Marika’s Scarseal or Marika’s Soreseal which will increase your Discovery by 3 and 5 points, respectively. You can also use the Silver Tear Mask to get a +8 bump to your Discovery or the Albinauric Mask which will provide an increase of 4. You can also use the Consumable item called the Silver-Pickled Fowl Foot which increases your Discovery by 50 for 3 minutes.
Even with a high Discovery stat, getting the weapon will still require some luck so if you defeat the enemy and they don’t drop the item, just reload the area by resting at a nearby Site of Grace, which will be the Gravesite of Stagefront Site of Grace, respectively, and just keep trying. You will know that the enemy is dropping an item if they release a white wisp immediately upon death, but the Curseblades can also drop pieces of their Gear instead of the weapon so just be aware that you are guaranteed to get the Curseblade Cirque when they drop an item. Just keep trying and don’t get discouraged. Keep taking out this enemy over and over and you will eventually get the final Backhand Blade.
To use the Curseblade’s Cirque properly, your Tarnished requires 9 Strength and 22 Dexterity and the moveset is exactly the same as the normal Backhand Blade. Yeah, it doesn’t even have the fancy throwing move from the Smithscript Cirque or some sort of unique basic combo string, but it does have a built-in Bleed build-up so for those of you who love to hemorrhage your opponents, this might be the option for you. What is exclusive to this extremely rare weapon is, of course, the Ash of War Weapon Skill known as Deadly Dance. This move sees your character fly through the air, swinging the blades at anyone unfortunate enough to get in your way. This also has a follow-up move where you will jump in the air and slam your foot down, flattening some of the lesser enemies you can come across. You will likely recognize this move as it is the attack that the Curseblade that sits on the archway in the Gravesite Plain uses every time it gets down to engage you.
