Elden Ring players are already tearing through the game without leveling up

the wretch looks on
(Image credit: FromSoftware)

FromSoftware's Souls games have a reputation for difficulty, but they are also fair and mechanically consistent (except for when it's funny.) Which is why these games that usually see players finishing a playthrough at level 90–120 can be beaten without seeing the level-up screen once, and the "soul level one" run and its equivalents are a vaunted tradition in the Souls speed and challenge run community.

Two Soulsborne challenge runners, Ongbal and LobosJr, have progressed deep into Elden Ring at rune level one, defeating some of its toughest bosses like Malenia or the Godskin Duo with minimal health, endurance, and damage.

Ongbal uploads exclusively to YouTube and came into their own with some truly off-the-wall Sekiro challenges. Their build centers on the Wretch (the only class that starts at level one) and their default club, altered with the "cold" infusion for bonus frostbite damage.

Lobos has been a staple in the Souls challenge run community for years—I was introduced to him through his Dark Souls 2 all-bosses speedruns, but his no-weapon, no-HUD run of Bloodborne is a standout achievement for me. Lobos has experimented with numerous weapons in his level one run, but the Misericorde thrusting sword served him well against the mega-hard hidden boss, Malenia, and he seems to also be getting good mileage out of the extremely nasty Ringed Finger club. Both Lobos and Ongbal make extensive use of the Buckler shield's generous parry window to set up critical strikes for most of their damage-dealing, as opposed to the typical Souls series dodge-and-attack rhythm.

Survive the Lands Between with these Elden Ring guides

Elden Ring storyteller

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Elden Ring guide: Conquer the Lands Between
Elden Ring bosses: How to beat them
Elden Ring map fragmentsReveal the world
Elden Ring weapons: Arm yourself
Elden Ring armor: The best sets
Elden Ring Smithing Stone: Upgrade your gear
Elden Ring Ashes of War: Where to find them
Elden Ring classes: Which to choose

In a different take on the level one run, long-time Souls and For Honor YouTuber Iron Pineapple has released a sort of "everyman's guide" to the level one run, relying as much as possible on whatever strategies, advantages, and cheese available, no matter how ridiculous, to roll credits on Elden Ring.

Unfortunately, Iron Pineapple's run relied on many of the same speedrunning strategies that were wiped out by the 1.03 patch. While other average joes won't be able to replicate Iron Pineapple's strategies exactly, he at least was able to make it to the end before the nerfs came through.

My favorite of the now-extinct exploits Iron Pineapple used was a technique involving the Erdtree Greatshield's Golden Retaliation weapon skill. Iron Pineapple used an incantation with a self-damage effect to proc the Erdtree Greatshield's magic reflecting ability at will, turning the shield into a veritable semi-auto magic cannon.

It's only been a month, and players are already pushing Elden Ring's combat system to its very limits and discovering the most ludicrous secrets buried in the Lands Between. This is likely only the tip of the iceberg for Elden Ring hijinks. 

TOPICS
Associate Editor

Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch.

Read more
Elden Ring Malenia
'That's why they call me the Elden Ring sicko' proclaims streamer as he beats FromSoft's RPG at NG+1000 without taking a single hit
Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree trailer screencap of a red haired character holding fire in their hand
An Elden Ring player has promised to fight Messmer every day with a new weapon until FromSoftware releases Elden Ring: Nightreign
dinossindgeil celebrates a hard-earned victory over seven consecutive souls games without a single hit, at level 1.
Streamer achieves git gud godhood by beating all mainline Souls games at level 1, back to back, without getting hit—then explodes into tears of relief
Withers Big Naturals mod image - Withers with big naturals
Sure, why not, here's a guy beating Baldur's Gate 3 without a race or class at all
Elden Ring: Nightreign mage
Elden Ring: Nightreign hands-on: 6 hours with FromSoftware's wild new co-op roguelike action RPG remix
elden ring nightreign
3 hours with Elden Ring Nightreign helped me accept it's not the co-op FromSoft game I asked for, but damn fun in its own right
Latest in RPG
Henry from KCD2 wearing nice outfits
'Diversify your fashion endgame' with this Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 mod that gives Henry fly new gambesons, pourpoints, and caftans
Mark Darrah
BioWare veteran says a big delay is better than lots of little ones, because sometimes you just gotta 'burn it down and take the other fork in the road'
Honey B Lovely
The state of Final Fantasy 14 in 2025: It's in a weird spot, huh?
Alma, the handler from Monster Hunter Wilds, closes her eyes and looks a little disappointed.
This impractical method of getting a 1-second capture time in Monster Hunter Wilds can make you the fastest hunter alive—on paper
Monster Hunter Wilds Artian weapon crafting - Gemma holding hot metal
Gemma's English VA is right with us on Monster Hunter Wild's confusing menus, which makes me feel a little better for having to Google symbols all the time
No Rest for the Wicked Steam early access screenshots
No Rest for the Wicked developer Moon Studios is now 'fully independent' after acquiring the rights to the game from Take-Two
Latest in News
Naoe looking at the wrist blade in Assassin's Creed Shadows
Ubisoft backflips, says Assassin's Creed Shadows will support Steam Deck at launch, but I doubt I'll actually want to play it there
Henry from KCD2 wearing nice outfits
'Diversify your fashion endgame' with this Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 mod that gives Henry fly new gambesons, pourpoints, and caftans
Masked Counter-Terrorist in helmet in forefront with sunglasses and beret-wearing CT in background touching headset
There's hope yet for Classic Offensive after its Steam rejection: The team behind the Counter-Strike 1.6 revival mod is in touch with Valve about its 'concerns'
Recently appointed Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan.
Here comes Intel's new CEO: a semiconductor veteran that won the same prestigious award as Jensen Huang and Lisa Su
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 15: Protestors attend the SAG-AFTRA Video Game Strike Picket on August 15, 2024 in Burbank, California. (Photo by Lila Seeley/Getty Images)
8 months into their strike, videogame voice actors say the industry's latest proposal is 'filled with alarming loopholes that will leave our members vulnerable to AI abuse'
Orithopter shooting down another in Dune
Dune: Awakening confirms air-to-air combat in ornithopters