Easy Mode (PVE) Builds
Demon’s Souls is a challenging Action RPG. The environments are setup to make you fail over and over until you finally succeed. Several of the bosses will take you many attempts to defeat.
There are no difficulty settings in Demon’s Souls (2009) or the Demon’s Souls Remake (2020). That said, with the right build(s) you can lower the difficulty of Demon’s Souls. Here are our top recommendations for “Easy Mode” builds that will make your journey through Boletaria easier.
If you are having trouble with any of Demon’s Souls bosses, make sure to head over to our full boss guides!
Spell Build
Spell based builds in Demon’s Souls are almost broken how powerful they are in PVE. Nearly every boss in the game is weak to either magic or fire damage (or both). Start with the Royalty class, which yields you the Soul Arrow spell and the Fragrant Ring. Your mana will regenerate (slowly) when equipped with the Fragrant Ring, which is very helpful on a pure magic build. The main spells you will use will be Soul Arrow, Soul Ray, and Homing Soul Arrow. Flame Toss, Fireball, and Firestorm are also helpful for bosses and enemies weak to fire.
To maximize your damage as a pure spell build, pump as much into your Magic stat. Magic increases the damage you do with spells, making it a key stat for a pure spell build. Do not exceed 50 magic (generally) as diminishing returns set in heavily. Increasing your Intelligence stat is helpful to expand your Spell Memory slots (number of spells you can use). Increasing Intelligence to either 18 (3 Spell Memory) or 24 (4 Spell Memory) is recommended. The Intelligence stat also increases your maximum mana pool, which is obviously important for a pure spell build. It is also helpful to invest some of your souls into the Vitality (health) and Endurance (stamina and equip weight) stats.
See our full guide on stats soft caps
There are a range of equipment options for a pure Spell Build. Most players will want to get the Kris Blade and Ring of Magical Sharpness, which increase your magic damage. Clever Rat’s Ring is also helpful, as long as you are unlikely to take damage when it is activated (less than 30% health). You can generally wear whatever armor you prefer, though the Monk’s Head Wrappings is important. When equipped you gain 30% extra spell damage. A single-handed offhand weapon with the Crescent modifier is helpful for passive mana regen.
Magic / Melee Hybrid Build
If you want to benefit from the OP nature of Demon’s Souls spells, but still want to melee a bit, the Magic / Melee Hybrid build is for you! While not required, starting with the Royalty class is helpful for Soul Arrow and the Fragrant Ring. For this hybrid build, you still want to pump as much Magic stat as you can afford (to maximize your damage). The soft cap is 50, so that is a good goal (but do not exceed it). However, you need to meet the minimum stat requirements for your chosen melee weapon(s). Also, you will not be able to afford as much Intelligence stat on this build. Capping your Intelligence stat at 18 is recommended. (This is only six soul levels from the Royalty starting Intelligence stat.) Fill in your stat build with Vitality and Endurance to increase your health, stamina, and equip weight.
You have several options for magic based melee weapons in Demon’s Souls. A very strong and easy magic based weapon to get is the Crescent Falchion. You can find this weapon in Island's Edge (1-4). You can turn any number of melee weapons into magic based by using the Moon (Moonlightstone) upgrade path. Since you are splitting your damage across a number of different stats in a hybrid build, it is best to select a main weapon that has relatively low strength and dexterity requirements. Faster weapons are generally superior given that you will likely be wearing lighter armor.