Elden Ring: How to get the Devourer's Scepter

Of all of Elden Ring's fancy legendary armaments, the Devourer's Scepter may be the easiest to find early on. That could be great news if you've gone all in on a strength/faith build, but if not, you probably won't be able to do much with it in the early game.

But once you can conquer its mighty stats, not unlike the Golden Order Greatsword, what you have is a mighty mace with the unique ability to also heal you. The scepter's Ashes of War move is called Devourer of Worlds, an area-of-effect wave that deals damage to everything in its range and turns it into health for the user.

There are two opportunities to get the Devourer's Scepter, once near the start of the game and once darn near the end. Here's how to get it:

Elden Ring: Where to find the Devourer's Scepter

The first way to get the Devourer's Scepter is to kill an NPC that's usually very friendly: Knight Bernahl. If you're like me, you may have just been calling him the "Warmaster" at this point, because at the start of the game he lives at the Warmaster Shack in Limgrave. He sells a bunch of Ashes of War that are great for getting your feet wet with Elden Ring's combat, but don't worry if you decide to off him, you'll still be able to buy his stuff by turning in his bell bearing at the shop in the Roundtable.

Despite holding the Devourer's Scepter somewhere in his pockets, he won't use it if you pick a fight with him. He'll opt for a greatsword instead, but that's no reason to underestimate him either. If you're a relatively low level, around 20-30, he can slice you down in just a few hits. He's also a lot smarter than your average NPC. His behavior is closer to an actual player. He'll dodge around simple spells with ease and rush you while you're trying to drink a flask. Speaking of flasks, he'll take a break to heal as well, but he only seems to carry one.

Take Bernahl down at the shack and you'll get the full Beast Champion armor set he's wearing and the scepter. That's option one, the easy way, but if you progress too far in the game Bernahl will disappear from the shack and move on to the Volcano Manor in the northwest of the map.

Once that happens, your only option is to fight him in his final form: Recusant Bernahl. The second time you meet Bernahl, he actually invades you at the Crumbling Farum Azula. This time he has wised up enough to use the Devourer's Scepter himself. Because of this he's technically more dangerous than before, but assuming you're also powerful enough to have progressed to the Crumbling Farum Azula area, you should be more than capable of taking him down.

Fighting Recusant Bernahl is certainly the longer road to the scepter, but it also feels like the "proper" way to get it. Nabbing it earlier at the Warmaster Shack is cool, but it's not like my scrawny wizard can carry it. Swole stats aside, the Devourer's Scepter is a nice addition to a growing collection of legendary armaments. 

Elden Ring guide: Conquer the Lands Between
Elden Ring bosses: How to beat them
Elden Ring map fragments: Reveal the world
Elden Ring weapons: Arm yourself
Elden Ring armor: The best sets