You’ve seen the clips. A boss twice the size of a house swings a golden halberd with enough force to level a building, and some naked guy with a buckler just... taps it away. It looks like magic. Honestly, it feels like cheating when you finally nail the timing. But for most players, the parry ash of war is that scary button they tried once against a Crucible Knight, got flattened, and never touched again. That’s a mistake. Using a parry isn’t just about showing off on YouTube; it’s a fundamental mechanic that changes how the game’s rhythm works. Instead of rolling like a caffeinated gymnast, you stand your ground. You dictate the pace.
It’s about control.
Most people think of Elden Ring as a game of dodging. You memorize the "iframes," you roll through the swing, and you poke the boss in the butt. Repeat until dead. Adding the parry ash of war to your shield—or even a dagger—flips that script. Suddenly, the boss's attack isn't a threat you need to escape; it’s an opening you’ve been waiting for. But there is a lot of misinformation out there about how parrying actually works in FromSoftware’s engine, especially regarding "active frames" and why some shields are basically traps for new players.
The Math Behind the Clink
Let’s get technical for a second because the game doesn't explain this at all. Every parry ash of war has a specific startup and a window of active frames. If the enemy's weapon hits your hitbox during those active frames, you get the "clink." If you’re too early, you get hit. If you’re too late, you "partial parry," which drains your stamina and usually leaves you open to a follow-up that’ll send you back to the Site of Grace.
The standard Parry you find on most medium shields is, frankly, garbage. It has a long startup. You have to predict the future just to land it. This is why people get frustrated. If you want to actually succeed, you need to look at the frame data discovered by community testers like FramePerfect and the contributors at the Elden Ring Wiki. For instance, the Golden Parry and Carian Retort are objectively superior to the standard version. They have more active frames and start up faster. They turn a tight window into a barn door.
Why Medium Shields Lie to You
Most players pick up a heater shield, see it has the parry skill, and think they’re good to go. They aren't. Medium shields have some of the worst parry data in the game. You’re looking at roughly 6 frames of startup and only 2 to 4 frames of active parry window at 30 FPS (though this scales with frame rate). Compare that to a Buckler, which uses a unique "Buckler Parry" animation. The Buckler starts faster and stays active longer. It’s the training wheels that also happen to be the pro-tier meta.
If you’re struggling, swap the shield, not the strategy.
💡 You might also like: The Combat Hatchet Helldivers 2 Dilemma: Is It Actually Better Than the G-50?
Carian Retort vs. Golden Parry: The Real Kings
If you’re looking for the best parry ash of war, the conversation usually begins and ends with two specific skills. Golden Parry is incredible because it adds range. You don't even have to be touching the enemy. You can parry a spear from three feet away. It costs a tiny bit of FP, but the safety it provides is unparalleled. You aren't standing right in the "danger zone" where a missed timing means a direct hit to the face.
Then there is Carian Retort. This one is a bit of a Swiss Army knife. It functions exactly like a high-tier physical parry, but if someone throws a glintstone pebble at you, it sucks the spell into the shield and spits out three glintblade swords that fly back at the caster. It’s hilarious in PvP. More importantly, it has the same "generous" frame window as the Golden Parry but doesn't cost FP unless you're actually absorbing a spell. For pure physical combat, it's the most efficient tool in the game.
The Psychological Game of the Riposte
Parrying isn't just about the animation; it's about the "stance break." In Elden Ring, many bosses—think Margit or Malenia—require multiple parries before they actually drop for a critical hit. This is a huge shift from Dark Souls 1, where one parry meant one dead enemy.
This creates a high-stakes gambling loop.
You land the first parry. The boss stumbles. You don't get the big "thud" sound yet. Now you're staring at them, waiting for the next swing. Your heart rate is up. You know if you mess up the second one, the first was wasted. But when that third parry lands and Morgott falls to his knees? That's the highest high the game offers. It's a level of mastery that makes you realize these "gods" are just NPCs with predictable patterns.
- Crucible Knights: These guys are basically parry tutorials. Their swings are wide, telegraphed, and consistent. If you can't parry a Crucible Knight, you haven't lived.
- Malenia, Blade of Miquella: Yes, you can parry her. It takes three successful parries to break her stance. It's risky because of her life-steal, but it’s the most consistent way to shut down her oppressive neutral game.
- Bell Bearing Hunters: These guys are nightmares... unless you parry. Their shield bash is unparryable, but their sword swings are bait.
Common Misconceptions That Get You Killed
One of the biggest lies players tell themselves is that they can parry everything. You can't. Generally speaking, if an enemy is three times your size and using a colossal weapon with two hands, you can't parry it. Radahn’s gravity swords? Forget about it. A giant crab’s pincer? Nope.
📖 Related: What Can You Get From Fishing Minecraft: Why It Is More Than Just Cod
You also can't parry flails or whips. This is a hard-coded rule in the game engine. I’ve seen countless players in PvP trying to parry a Nightrider Flail only to get bonked into oblivion. Know your limits. If the weapon looks like it weighs more than a small car, or if it's a flexible object like a whip, your parry ash of war will do nothing but make you look silly right before you die.
Another mistake: watching the weapon. Don't watch the sword; watch the hand. The weapon might have a weird delay or a flashy effect, but the hand always moves toward you when the active hit begins. That is your cue. It’s a rhythmic "tell" that transcends the visual clutter of the game's more chaotic fights.
Skill Ceilings and the PvP Landscape
In the world of invasions and duels, the parry ash of war is a terrifying deterrent. A skilled parrier doesn't even need to use the skill to win; they just need the threat of it. If I see a player pull out a buckler or a small shield with Carian Retort, I immediately stop using telegraphed running attacks. I become hesitant.
That hesitation is a weapon.
However, "parry fishing" is a real problem. If you just stand there spamming the L2 button, any decent player will just circle around you for a backstab or use a jump attack. Jump attacks are unparryable. This is the ultimate counter. If you see someone getting ready to parry, you jump and hit them with a heavy. It works every time.
The true masters of the parry ash of war in PvP use it reactively, not proactively. They wait for you to get comfortable, for you to go for that "guaranteed" third hit in a combo, and then—clink. Game over. It’s a one-shot tool if they have a Misericorde dagger equipped in their second slot.
👉 See also: Free games free online: Why we're still obsessed with browser gaming in 2026
How to Actually Get Good
Stop trying to learn parrying against the final boss. Go to the Stormhill Evergaol. The Crucible Knight there is the perfect sensei. He is relentless, his timing is honest, and he will punish your mistakes without being so chaotic that you can't learn.
First, just stand there and die. Seriously. Watch his arm move. Don't even press a button. Just watch. Then, try to hit your parry right when his hand starts moving forward. Not when he raises it—that's the "wind-up." The parry happens during the "delivery."
Once you can comfortably parry a Crucible Knight ten times in a row, you’ve graduated. You can now take that parry ash of war and apply it to 70% of the humanoid enemies in the game. It makes the "Banished Knights" in Farum Azula look like toddlers. It makes the "Reduvia" invaders a joke.
Actionable Steps for Your Build
If you want to integrate this into your playstyle today, don't just slap a skill on a shield and hope for the best. Follow this setup:
- Get the Buckler: Buy it from Gatekeeper Gostoc (or his bell bearing). It has the best default frames if you don't want to spend FP.
- Find Carian Retort: It’s sold by Pidia in Caria Manor. Put this on a Small Shield (like the Iron Roundshield) for better physical defense than the buckler while keeping the elite parry frames.
- Equip the Assassin’s Crimson Dagger: This talisman heals you when you land a critical hit. Since a parry leads to a critical, you essentially turn enemies into walking health potions.
- Carry a Misericorde: This dagger has a 140 critical boost. It is the highest in the game. You parry with your shield, quickly swap to the dagger, and delete the enemy’s health bar.
The parry ash of war isn't a niche tool for "pro gamers." It’s a core system that rewards observation over reflex. It’s about being calm when a demi-god is screaming in your face. It turns the game from a frantic survival horror into a rhythmic dance. Next time you're stuck on a humanoid boss, put away the heavy roll and try the shield. It’ll be frustrating for twenty minutes, and then it’ll be the most fun you've ever had in the Lands Between.
Stop rolling. Start parrying. The learning curve is steep, but the view from the top is worth it.