Last updated: 2 July 2026

How to Upgrade Weapons in Elden Ring

Weapon upgrades are the single most reliable way to increase damage output in Elden Ring — far more impactful than levelling stats once your build is established. The system splits into two tracks: regular Smithing Stones for most weapons (up to +25) and Somber Smithing Stones for boss and special weapons (up to +10). This guide covers how each track works, where to find every tier of material, which Bell Bearings to grab first, and why focusing resources on one weapon instead of spreading them thin wins fights faster.

01Where to Actually Upgrade — Your Two Blacksmiths

Upgrades happen at blacksmith NPCs, not at Sites of Grace. You will use two throughout the game:

• Smithing Master Hewg — found in the Roundtable Hold, down the corridor to the left of the main hearth. He is available as soon as you reach the Hold (usually after Margit) and handles all upgrade levels for both regular and special weapons, plus duplicates Ashes of War. He is your primary smith for the entire run.
• War Counselor Iji — a giant troll at the Road to the Manor Site of Grace in northwest Liurnia of the Lakes. He sells Somber Smithing Stones [1] and [2] early on, making him a useful stop before you find the relevant Bell Bearings. He cannot duplicate Ashes of War.

Both smiths charge the same rune fees for upgrades. Hewg is almost always the more convenient choice because the Roundtable Hold is a central hub you visit constantly.

02Two Upgrade Tracks: Regular vs. Somber

Every weapon in Elden Ring belongs to exactly one upgrade track:

• Regular Smithing Stones (+0 to +25): Used for the vast majority of weapons — starter swords, axes, spears, shields, bows, and most craftable armaments. Eight tiers of Smithing Stones bring the weapon from +0 to +24; a single Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone pushes it to the cap of +25.
• Somber Smithing Stones (+0 to +10): Used exclusively for special weapons — typically weapons obtained from boss drops, unique treasure chests, or NPC trades. These weapons have fixed Ashes of War and distinctive move sets. One Somber Stone per level brings the weapon to +9; a Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone takes it to +10.

You can tell which track a weapon uses by opening the upgrade menu: if it asks for Smithing Stone [1], it is a regular weapon. If it asks for Somber Smithing Stone [1], it is a special weapon. The game always makes this explicit before you confirm.

Special weapons are not inherently better — the +10 cap versus +25 can feel like a gap, but the weapon AR scaling is tuned so a +10 Somber weapon is comparable in damage to a well-upgraded +25 regular weapon.

03Regular Smithing Stones — Tier Breakdown

Each tier of Smithing Stone covers three upgrade levels and you need 12 stones per tier in total (2 for the first level in the tier, 4 for the second, 6 for the third):

• Smithing Stone [1]: upgrades +0 → +3
• Smithing Stone [2]: upgrades +3 → +6
• Smithing Stone [3]: upgrades +6 → +9
• Smithing Stone [4]: upgrades +9 → +12
• Smithing Stone [5]: upgrades +12 → +15
• Smithing Stone [6]: upgrades +15 → +18
• Smithing Stone [7]: upgrades +18 → +21
• Smithing Stone [8]: upgrades +21 → +24
• Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone: upgrades +24 → +25 (finite, no Bell Bearing)

The rune cost per upgrade increases as you go higher, but the materials are the bigger bottleneck. Early tiers are cheap and plentiful; tiers 5–8 require a trek to late-game regions unless you have the right Bell Bearings.

04Somber Smithing Stones — Tier Breakdown

Somber Stones are simpler — one stone per upgrade level, no batching:

• Somber Smithing Stone [1]: upgrades +0 → +1
• Somber Smithing Stone [2]: upgrades +1 → +2
• Somber Smithing Stone [3]: upgrades +2 → +3
• Somber Smithing Stone [4]: upgrades +3 → +4
• Somber Smithing Stone [5]: upgrades +4 → +5
• Somber Smithing Stone [6]: upgrades +5 → +6
• Somber Smithing Stone [7]: upgrades +6 → +7
• Somber Smithing Stone [8]: upgrades +7 → +8
• Somber Smithing Stone [9]: upgrades +8 → +9
• Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone: upgrades +9 → +10 (finite, no Bell Bearing)

Because only one stone is required per level, special weapons are actually faster to fully upgrade once you have the Bell Bearings. The scarcity of Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones (only 8 in the base game) is the real limiter at the top end.

05Bell Bearings — Unlock Unlimited Stone Purchases

The most important upgrade milestone is handing a Bell Bearing to the Twin Maiden Husks at the Roundtable Hold. Each one permanently adds that tier of stones to their shop for unlimited purchase at a fixed rune cost — no more hunting specific mines once you have the right bearing.

Regular weapon Bell Bearings (each unlocks two consecutive tiers):

• Smithing-Stone Miner's Bell Bearing [1] — unlocks Stones [1] and [2]. Found in the Raya Lucaria Crystal Tunnel (Liurnia), dropped by the Crystalian boss inside.
• Smithing-Stone Miner's Bell Bearing [2] — unlocks Stones [3] and [4]. Found in the Sealed Tunnel southeast of the Outer Wall Phantom Tree Site of Grace in Altus Plateau. No boss required — it is on a body inside.
• Smithing-Stone Miner's Bell Bearing [3] — unlocks Stones [5] and [6]. Found in the Mountaintops of the Giants region. Located in a chest in the First Church of Marika area — accessible late-game.
• Smithing-Stone Miner's Bell Bearing [4] — unlocks Stones [7] and [8]. Dropped by the Godskin Duo boss in Crumbling Farum Azula (mandatory late-game boss).

Somber weapon Bell Bearings (each unlocks two consecutive Somber tiers):

• Somberstone Miner's Bell Bearing [1] — unlocks Somber Stones [1] and [2]. Dropped by the Fallingstar Beast boss in Sellia Crystal Tunnel, Caelid.
• Somberstone Miner's Bell Bearing [2] — unlocks Somber Stones [3] and [4]. Dropped by the Crystalian duo in Altus Tunnel (Altus Plateau).
• Somberstone Miner's Bell Bearing [3] — unlocks Somber Stones [5] and [6]. Found on a body near the First Church of Marika (Mountaintops of the Giants).
• Somberstone Miner's Bell Bearing [4] — unlocks Somber Stones [7] and [8]. Found on a body north of the Tempest-Facing Balcony Site of Grace in Crumbling Farum Azula.
• Somberstone Miner's Bell Bearing [5] — unlocks Somber Stone [9]. Found on a corpse inside a small church in Crumbling Farum Azula, near the Beside the Great Bridge Site of Grace.

Important: There are no Bell Bearings for Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones (regular) or Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones. Those must be found individually throughout the world — treat them as one-time investments for your single most important weapon.

06Where to Farm Stones Early (Before Bell Bearings)

Before you secure the Bell Bearings, mining tunnels and cave enemies drop Smithing Stones reliably. Key early farming spots by region:

• Limgrave Tunnels (Limgrave): The first dungeon on most routes — Crystalians and ore deposits drop Smithing Stones [1] and [2]. Run it multiple times if needed in the opening hours.
• Gael Tunnel (Caelid border): Accessible via a south Caelid entrance, drops Smithing Stones [1] and [2] along with Somber Stone [1] and [2] nodes.
• Smithing-Stone Miner enemies: Any glowing-eyed stone-carrying enemy in a crystal tunnel drops the tier of stone they are mining. The ore clusters on tunnel walls can also be struck for drops.
• Volcano Manor area: Enemies in Mt. Gelmir and inside Volcano Manor drop Smithing Stones [4] and [5], making this a productive mid-game farm region.
• War Counselor Iji shop (Liurnia): Sells Somber Stones [1] and [2] directly for a manageable rune price — the easiest way to get a boss weapon to +2 early.

Shadow of the Erdtree DLC: The Land of Shadow has its own crystal tunnels seeded with higher-tier stones and additional Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones scattered across the map. If you enter the DLC with an established character, these can help bring a second weapon to max level without depleting base-game reserves.

07Upgrade Priority — Why One Weapon Beats Spreading Materials

New players commonly make the same mistake: splitting Smithing Stones across three or four weapons «just in case.» The result is a +6 weapon, a +5 weapon, and a +4 weapon — all of them hitting below the threshold that makes fights feel manageable. The correct approach is almost always the opposite.

Concentrate all stones on your primary weapon until it reaches the highest tier your current Bell Bearings support. A single +12 weapon outperforms two +6 weapons against the same boss because damage per hit matters more than having options. Switch to a secondary weapon only after the primary is maxed or at a comfortable plateau.

Practical milestones to aim for by region:

• +6 before Margit / Godrick: Smithing Stone [1] and [2] are plentiful in Limgrave Tunnels. This alone can make the opening boss duels much more forgiving.
• +12 by Leyndell: Get Bell Bearing [1] and [2] in Liurnia and Altus Plateau. By the capital, a +12 weapon is a reasonable standard.
• +20 by Mountaintops / Farum Azula: Bell Bearing [3] and [4] come from late-game regions. Push your main weapon here as soon as materials allow.
• +25 for endgame and NG+: Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones are the bottleneck. Save them for the weapon you are confident will carry you through the final stretch.

Somber weapons follow the same logic: get the boss drop weapon to +5 or +6 as quickly as possible by using Iji's shop and the first two Bell Bearings, then keep pace with your region progression.