An Elden Ring maidenless run is a challengerun, a long journey, even if you’re a veteran souls-player. Your goal will be, most likely, beat each and every main boss with a soul level-one character which means you’ll have to face off an enemy like Radan without taking damage, because you can’t increase your character stats like vigor.

Firstly, maidenless runs are not for everybody – a skilled veteran souls-player could find challenging trying to beat a mid-boss, like a Draconic Tree Sentinel, with only a +10 katana and a tiny vigor bar which’s where I’m currently stuck in my maidenless run. On the other hand, this kind of run offers a high-satisfying level of achievement and game variety as well as you’ll be forever recall as a chad person.

So, are you bored of your Eden Ring character level 200 who can destroy each enemies in a hit, aren’t you? So, let’s talk about maidenless run’s requirements.

Maidenless run requirements 📋

In my point of view, whether you’re a pro player or not, Elden Ring it’s your first souls-game or you’ve fougth against all From Software bosses, what matters on a maidenless run is patience and motivation – if you’re a motivated thrill-seeker action-packed player that want to try something “different” and challenging, then this specific Elden Ring’s run could fit in your expectations of suffering having fun.

A Fresh start, wiki

I’ll suggest you to pick up a Samurai starting build – a highly dexterity and stamina build equipped by default with a katana which deals quite good damages and blood build-up. This’s the “easy going” style for a maidenless run fresh start.

As a maidenless your main behavior should be figure out how to beat your next main boss without leveling your stats. I’d definitely suggest you to start with taking the Uchigatana hidden inside the Deathtouched Catacombs, in Stormhill, exactly nearby Iron First Alexandrer first location and upgrade both of your Uchigatana +2 at Kalè’s place. Now, you got a pair of Uchigatana +2. Just great!

Once completed this first steps, you should go through the bridge guarded by the Mad Pumpkin and reach Summerwater village, in East Limgrave. You’ll find the Green Turtle Talisman which boost your stamina regen and would hopefully help you against your first main boss, Margit.

However, before fight against him you’d pay a visit at another dungeon which will give you the opportunity to boost a few character’s statistics without Melina – Do you recall where Radagon’s Soreseal is located? Yep, inside Fort Faroth, exactly in eastern Dragonbarrow. Please, for the sake of your mental health, do not try to fight any enemy in both Aeonia and Dragonbarrow, just run directly to Fort Faroth location.

Margit’s one of the most tricky Elden Ring bosses. An unexperienced player would probably die more then twice by his slow follow-up attacks, but one of his weakness is blood build-up! What’s next? Now that you got a character with two Uchigatana +2, regen or stats booster talisman, don’t be a stranger and knock to Margit’s doar as soon as possible.

Quick tips and tricks – your character is a cannon-glass which means that their main role is dealing damages as fast as possible and dodging each enemy attacks. A light armor o a vest could definitely grant you an infinity-frame (iframe) advantage and fast-rolling (dodging), rather than wearing a full-body armor which’s quite useless for a souls level-one character.

Where’s Melina? It’s a maidenless run, buddy… 😨

What does exactly maidenless mean? Basically, you’ll try to beat the game without accepting Melina’s offer in Limgrave. Saying nope to her means that you won’t able to leveling your character stats as well as riding Torrent (which closed some paths and shortcuts). Futhermore, you won’t be able to use Spirit Ashes, included mimic summoning, due to Ranni’s mainquest first steps failure – she won’t give you her Spirit Calling Bell, because you basically don’t have Torrent’s ring on your inventary which triggers Ranni questline, and you won’t able to visit Roundtable Hold.

There are a few more restrictions – as mentioned above you won’t be able to be teleported to Roundtable Hold location by Melina. At first, I thought that was like a huge problem to came through, specially for weapon upgrades. However, I discovered by chance that Ranni’s War ConuseIor, named Iji, can upgrade every Elden Ring weapons both to level +25, smithing stones, and +10, somber stone, like Master Hewg does.

Therefore, playing a maidenless run would restrain you to complete several Elden Ring’s questlines like Roderika’s, Hewg’s, Rogier’s as well as D’s, Melina’s quests and more because you won’t reach Roundtable Hold, at all.

At least, but not last, you’ll have only two Talisman Pouch – one by default and the second one from Margit defeat. I’m not gonna lie to you, two talisman slots are quite enough to beat Elden Ring main bosses.

📣 CAN YOU COMPLETE ELDEN RING IN A MAIDENLESS RUN?

To be honest with you, I’m not quite sure at this very moment that you’ll be able to complete a maidenless run killing all main bosses, neither to go into Leyndell capital because, for reasons, I’ve found out that From Software designed that a player must have accepted Melina’s offer to actually set foot in Leyndell.

As far as I know, it’d should be possible completing a maidenless run, I mean somehow – From Software’s game are used to speedruns, modding and weird-style run like maidenless, am I right? By the way, I’ll suggest you to take a look at LobosJr’s Twitch channel who’s one of my favorite souls-player streamers.

At this time being, I’m still figuring out how to beat the Draconic Treesentinel in front of Leyndell gate with my souls level-one character. So, right now I don’t have any clue. I’ll let you know as soon as I beated the Draconic Treesentinel updating this article.

My maidenless souls level-one Samurai build

I’ve come up with a Samurai build, because it’s my sweet spot to start with – since first minutes you got a katana with 45 blood build-up by default and a character with stamina-oriented starting stats. A cannon-glass, so to speak, that I used to playing with a hit-and-run combat style.

For the records, my maidenless took me like 22 hours of gameplay – I beated Margit, Godrich, Radan as well as Rennala, main bosses.

My Samurai build is characterized by light weight and fast-role equipment, with two Uchigatana, Green Turtle Talisman and Radagon’s Soreseal which I’ve rarely swiped with Dragon Talisman magic damage protection to avoid one-hit-KO from Raya Lucaria’s mages.

I’m not gonna lie to you, the only thing that matters in an Elden Ring souls level-one run it’s learning how fast-dodging, stamina-management and dealing as much damages as possible without being hitted. While, in a regular ER run you’ll likely increase all your stats, included vigor one, to face off enemies in a more “greedy” playstyle.

Samurai starting build weapons list

I think that one of the most important things that you’ve to figure out by yourself on a maidenless run it’s which kind of weapon you’ll use through the whole run, since there’re limited smithing and somber stones in the game world to upgrade your equipments.

For instance, a Samurai starting build can use from the start as a weapon without leveling character’s statistics:

• Wakizashi
• Cinquedea
• Crystal Knife
• Long Bow
• Misericorde
• Dagger
• Nox Flowing Sword
• Uchigatana
• Morningstar
• Spear
• Hookclaws
• Venomous Fang
• Katara
• Whips
• Hand Axe
• Highland Axe
• Scimitar
• Falchion
• Scavenger’s Curved Sword

Elden Ring’s maidenless challenges tier list

To sum up, here’s a short tier list of what you should expect playing a maidenless run. Thank you. 🧡

• Average game difficulty compared to a normal run: 9/10
• Preparation needed and game mechanics knowledge (like finding the right item for your souls level-one build): 7/10
• player frustartion and dissapointment: 8/10
• player desire to give up: 10/10
• chances to work yourself up and crush your controller into a wall: very likely
• Satisfation after you beated a boss with your souls level-one character : 100/10