You’re staring at a golden boss fog, your Finger Seal is shaking, and you’re exactly five points short of casting that massive Incantation you just found. We’ve all been there. Elden Ring loves to dangle power just out of reach, but that’s where the Faith-knot Crystal Tear—often just called the faith tear by players—comes in to save your build.
Most people think it’s just a late-game luxury. Wrong. You can actually snag this thing before you even touch a major boss. It’s basically a temporary +10 to your Faith stat, which is a massive jump when you're early in the game. Honestly, if you aren't using this to cheese stat requirements or beef up your Holy damage, you're making the Lands Between way harder than they need to be.
Where to actually find the Faith-knot Crystal Tear
Finding this isn't as simple as killing a big tree avatar, which is how you get most of the other tears. You have to head south. Way south.
You’re looking for the Weeping Peninsula.
Once you cross the Bridge of Sacrifice (watch out for the ballistae, they’re annoying), you want to head toward the Church of Pilgrimage on the northern cliffs. But don’t stop at the church. You need to go slightly east/northeast from there, down toward the lower cliffside.
You’ll know you’re in the right spot when you see a bunch of those little poison flower enemies hanging around a stone bowl.
- Location: North of the Demi-Human Forest Ruins.
- The Vibe: It’s tucked away at the base of a cliff.
- The Guard: Just some flowers. Seriously. You can just ride Torrent in, grab it, and bolt.
It’s one of the few powerful items you can get without a life-or-death struggle. Just don't fall off the cliff trying to find the path down. It happens to the best of us.
How the Faith Tear actually changes your gameplay
Basically, for three minutes (180 seconds), your Faith stat goes up by 10. That’s huge.
Why? Because Elden Ring has these strict "soft caps" and requirement gates. If you have 20 Faith, popping your Flask of Wondrous Physick suddenly gives you 30. That might be the difference between being able to cast Golden Vow or just standing there looking silly.
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The Holy-Shrouding Cracked Tear combo
If you’re serious about a Faith build, you aren't just using the +10 stat boost. You're pairing it with the Holy-Shrouding Cracked Tear.
This second tear is found in Liurnia of the Lakes. You have to kill the Erdtree Avatar at the Minor Erdtree in the northeast (near the Mausoleum Compound). It’s a tougher fight than picking flowers in the peninsula, but it adds a 20% boost to Holy damage.
When you mix these two together, you aren't just meeting requirements. You’re becoming a tactical nuke.
Imagine using the Coded Sword or Sacred Relic Sword with a 20% damage buff on top of the extra scaling from +10 Faith. It’s disgusting. In a good way.
Common misconceptions about "Scaling"
I see this on Reddit all the time: "I used the faith tear and my damage barely moved!"
Here's the reality. Scaling in Elden Ring isn't linear. If your weapon has a "D" scaling in Faith, that extra 10 points won't do much. But if you have an "A" or "S" scaling weapon, those 10 points are gold.
Also, check your soft caps. If you're already at 80 Faith, adding 10 more is almost useless because you've hit the point of diminishing returns. The faith tear is best for:
- Early game: Jumping from 15 to 25 Faith.
- Mid game: Reaching 60 Faith for high-end Incantations.
- Hybrid builds: If you’re a Strength/Faith build and only have 25 Faith, this gets you to 35 for the better buffs.
Why you should ignore the "Meta" sometimes
A lot of guides tell you to use the Opaline Bubbletear or the Greenburst Crystal Tear for stamina. Those are fine. They’re safe. But playing safe is boring.
Using the faith tear allows for "glass cannon" moments that are way more satisfying. You can slot spells you technically shouldn't be able to use yet. It lets you experiment with high-level playstyles 20 levels before you're "supposed" to.
Just remember: it only lasts three minutes. If the boss fight drags on, you're going to lose that stat bonus mid-swing. That can be a nasty surprise if you're suddenly unable to recast your protection spells because your stats dropped back down.
Actionable steps for your build
Stop reading and go do this now:
- Ride to the Weeping Peninsula: Grab the Faith-knot Crystal Tear from the bowl near the flowers.
- Kill the Liurnia Avatar: Get that Holy-Shrouding tear for the damage stack.
- Check your Incantations: See which ones are 5-10 points above your current level. Slot them.
- Test it on a Troll: Pop the flask and see the damage difference on one of those big guys in Limgrave.
You've basically got a free 10 levels in your pocket. Use them.