Elden Ring Nightreign Scholar Build: Best Weapons and Relics

Scholar is a support-focused Nightfarer in Elden Ring Nightreign. His high Arcane, item-focused passive, enemy analysis, and Communion links make him effective at weakening enemies and supporting a team. His best setup combines reliable weapons with Relics that improve his damage, survivability, and support abilities.

This guide covers Scholar's core skills, recommended weapons, Relic combinations, and the vessel options that help you build around his strengths.

Scholar Skills: Bagcraft, Analyze, and Communion

Scholar's three abilities complement each other: Bagcraft improves consumable use, Analyze weakens enemies and supports allies, and Communion links targets to spread damage.

Bagcraft

Bagcraft increases Scholar's item capacity and improves consumable effects as its levels increase. Each item category levels independently: Level 2 strengthens its effects, while Level 3 adds a category-specific bonus.

Use offensive items to maintain pressure and recovery items, boluses, greases, or food when the encounter calls for them. Prioritize categories you use regularly instead of saving consumables for the final boss.

Analyze

Analyze lets Scholar observe enemies and allies through his monocle. It applies debuffs to enemies and beneficial effects to allies. Completing an enemy analysis also increases the stance damage of the next hit against that target.

Fully analyzing Scholar grants a temporary shield. If it blocks an attack, it releases a shockwave that damages and briefly staggers nearby enemies.

Because analysis takes time, use it from a safe position. Observing different enemy specimens and including allies helps build progress during an expedition.

Communion

Communion is Scholar's Ultimate Art. It connects targets with threads, allowing damage dealt to one linked enemy to spread to other connected enemies. It can also link allies to provide healing support.

The skill has additional defensive effects: attacks from threaded enemies can damage the attacker, and a portion of shared damage is returned as HP. However, damage received from a linked enemy can break the connection.

Use Communion when enemies are grouped or your team needs support. Spread-out targets and frequently broken links reduce its effectiveness.

Best Weapons for Scholar

Scholar has high Arcane, making weapons with useful Arcane scaling worth considering. However, Arcane does not improve every weapon's status buildup, so check each weapon's actual scaling.

Recommended Weapons

The Antspur Rapier is a strong option for Scarlet Rot, while the Frozen Needle adds Frostbite as an alternative. If you find a second Antspur Rapier, dual-wielding can help apply Scarlet Rot more consistently, but do not force this setup over a better weapon.

Other Weapon Options

These weapons are alternatives when they appear during an expedition:

• Eleonora's Poleblade: A fast twinblade with bleed pressure.
• Rivers of Blood: Offers a weapon skill suited to aggressive bleed-focused attacks.
• Reduvia: Provides a ranged weapon skill and bleed pressure.
• Ripple Blade: Benefits from Arcane scaling and offers a direct-damage option.
• Ripple Crescent Halberd: An Arcane-scaling alternative with longer reach.

These are situational choices rather than guaranteed upgrades. Compare their actual scaling, movesets, and usefulness against the enemies in your current expedition.

Best Scholar Relics and Vessel Setup

Scholar's starting vessel is the Scholar's Urn, with two Red slots and one Yellow slot. The following Relics are especially relevant to his skills and team-support role.

Which Relics Should You Prioritize?

• Cleansing Tear: Boosts damage against Communion-linked enemies and provides defensive and Art gauge bonuses. Unlock it through Scholar's second Remembrance Quest (Journal Chapter 5).
• Night of the Fathom: Increases maximum HP and lets Flask and item effects benefit nearby allies. Obtain it by defeating Maris, Fathom of Night, for the first time.
• Note "My Dear Successor": Improves the support effect of Scholar's Character Skill and grants Character Skill Cooldown Reduction +3. Unlock it through Scholar's third Remembrance Quest (Journal Chapter 8).

Alternative: Grand Burning Scene

Grand Burning Scene has two useful versions:

• Balancers reward: Intelligence +2, Arcane +2, and prevents Character Skill progress from slowing. Available at the Small Jar Bazaar for 1,000 Murk after defeating the Balancers.
• Dreglord reward: Restores HP through medicinal items, shares item effects with nearby allies, and provides a Small Pouch at expedition start. Obtain it from the Collector Signboard after defeating the Dreglord as both Undertaker and Scholar.

Use either version as an alternative when you lack one of your preferred Relics.

Scholar's Urn, Goblet, and Chalice

The Urn suits Red-and-Yellow Relic combinations, while the Chalice offers more flexibility with its White slot, which accepts any standard Relic color.

Unlock the Chalice through Scholar's first Remembrance Quest (Journal Chapter 3). The Goblet costs 1,200 Murk at the Small Jar Bazaar.

Choose the vessel that best fits the Relics available to you.

Scholar's Strengths and Weaknesses

Scholar excels at team support through Communion, Analyze, and Bagcraft, but his low survivability makes close-range fights risky. He is strongest with coordinated teammates; for solo runs, prioritize defensive Relics and reliable weapon damage.

Scholar Build FAQ

Are Scholar's Remembrance Relics required?

No. Cleansing Tear and Note "My Dear Successor" work well with Scholar, but any compatible Relics with useful effects can support your build.

Is Scholar better for solo or team play?

Scholar is generally stronger in teams thanks to Communion and his support abilities. For solo expeditions, prioritize survivability and consistent damage.