Buffs are effects applied by a Tarnished to either themself or to themself and their allies, and are used to strengthen offence or defence.
They primarily come in three categories: Weapon Buffs, Body Buffs, and Aura Buffs.
Weapon Buffs[]
All Weapon Buffs are self-targeted, and almost all of them have only offensive benefits, with very few exceptions. They cannot be applied to any type of ranged weapon or casting implement, and only a few specific ones can be used on shields.
It's possible to keep two weapons buffed at the same time by two-handing the left-hand weapon and using either a Grease or a Skill on it, then stopping the two-handing so that the right-hand weapon also can be buffed with either a Grease or a Skill. It isn't necessary to use the same buff category for both weapons.
Some weapons are buffable and some aren't. As a general rule, weapons upgraded with Smithing Stones are buffable while weapons upgraded with Somber Smithing Stones aren't buffable unless their innate skill grants them a weapon buff. Exceptions to this rule are the Crystal Knife and Ivory Sickle, two Smithing Stone weapons that aren't buffable, and the Bloodhound's Fang, Treespear, and Varré's Bouquet, three Somber Smithing Stone weapon that are buffable.
Additionally, weapons equipped with affinities that aren't either Standard, Heavy, Keen, or Quality also aren't buffable except for with the Skills that are compatible with those affinities, with no exceptions.
For Weapon Buffs that are also either Sorceries or Incantations, they can only be cast on right-handed weapons (or left-handed shields for the shield-specific ones).
| Name | Source | Damage Type | Damage Amount | Duration | FP | Stat requirements |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blood Grease | Grease | Blood Loss | 30 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Blood Grease | Grease | Blood Loss | 40 | 15 | - | - |
| Fire Grease | Grease | Fire | 85 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Fire Grease | Grease | Fire | 110 | 10 | - | - |
| Magic Grease | Grease | Magic | 85 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Magic Grease | Grease | Magic | 110 | 10 | - | - |
| Lightning Grease | Grease | Lightning | 85 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Lightning Grease | Grease | Lightning | 110 | 10 | - | - |
| Poison Grease | Grease | Poison | 60 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Poison Grease | Grease | Poison | 80 | 15 | - | - |
| Rot Grease | Grease | Scarlet Rot | 60 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Rot Grease | Grease | Scarlet Rot | 80 | 15 | - | - |
| Soporific Grease | Grease | Sleep | 30 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Soporific Grease | Grease | Sleep | 40 | 15 | - | - |
| Holy Grease | Grease | Holy | 85 | 60 | - | - |
| Drawstring Holy Grease | Grease | Holy | 110 | 10 | - | - |
| Freezing Grease | Grease | Frostbite | 60 | 60 | - | - |
| Dragonwound Grease | Grease | Anti-Dragon/Ancient Dragon | +30%/20% | 60 | - | - |
| Shield Grease | Grease | Damage taken while blocking/stamina damage while blocking | -20%/-35% | 60 | - | - |
| Scholar's Armament | Sorcery | Magic | 0.75*Sorcery Scaling | 90 | 25 | 12 Intelligence |
| Frozen Armament | Sorcery | Frostbite | 63 | 60 | 25 | 15 Intelligence |
| Unseen Blade | Sorcery | Invisibility | - | 45 | 13 | 12 Intelligence |
| Scholar's Shield | Sorcery | Damage taken while blocking/stamina damage while blocking | -30% (-70% vs Magic damage)/-35% | 60 | 30 | 12 Intelligence |
| Black Flame Blade | Incantation | Fire | 0.75*Incantation Scaling
+ (20 + 2% of enemy max HP/2 seconds) |
7 | 15 | 17 Faith |
| Electrify Armament | Incantation | Lightning | 0.75*Incantation Scaling | 90 | 27 | 15 Faith |
| Vyke's Dragonbolt | Incantation | Lightning
+ Body Buff (+15% max Equip Load) |
0.75*Incantation Scaling | 70 | 35 | 23 Faith |
| Order's Blade | Incantation | Holy/anti-Those Who Live in Death | 0.75*Incantation Scaling/100% damage vs Those Who Live in Death | 90 | 22 | 13 Intelligence
13 Faith |
| Bloodflame Blade | Incantation | Fire | 0.40*Incantation Scaling
+40 build-up over 2 seconds |
60 | 20 | 12 Faith
10 Arcane |
| Poison Armament | Incantation | Poison | 70 | 60 | 15 | 10 Faith |
| Immutable Shield | Incantation | Damage (non-physical) taken while blocking/Status Effects build-up while blocking | -100%/-100% | 30 | 15 | 19 Intelligence and 19 Faith |
| Cragblade | Skill | Physical/Stamina vs blocking/Poise | +15%/+50%/+10% | 60 | 16 | - |
| War Cry | Skill | Physical + Altered heavy attack | +7.5% and +0.05 Strength-scaling | 40 | 16 | - |
| Barbaric Roar | Skill | Physical + Altered heavy attack | +7.5% and +0.05 Strength-scaling | 40 | 16 | - |
| Braggart's Roar | Skill | Physical/Stamina recovery/Damage negation + Altered heavy attack | +10%/+10/s (+22.2%)/+10% | 40 | 16 | - |
| Determination | Skill | All/Stamina vs blocking for one hit | +60% (+30% in PvP, +20% for Critical Attacks)/+200% | 10 | 10 | - |
| Royal Knight's Resolve | Skill | All/Stamina vs blocking for one hit | +80% (+40% in PvP, +35% for Critical Attacks)/+300% | 10 | 15 | - |
| Flaming Strike | Skill | Fire | 90 | 40 | 4+10 (14 total) | - |
| Lightning Slash | Skill | Lightning | 85 | 40 | 10 | - |
| Sacred Blade | Skill | Holy | 90 | 40 | 19 | - |
| Sacred Order | Skill | All/anti-Those Who Live in Death | +10% (+2.5% in PvP)/+100% | 60 | 18 | - |
| Poisonous Mist | Skill | Poison | 60 (scales with Arcane) | 40 | 14 | - |
| Chilling Mist | Skill | Frostbite | 60 | 40 | 14 | - |
| Seppuku | Skill | Physical/Blood Loss | 30/30 (scales with Arcane) | 60 | 4 | - |
Shriek of Sorrow
|
Skill | Physical | +10-25% (more on lower health) and +0.05 Strength-scaling | 40 | 19 | - |
| Barricade Shield | Skill | Stamina damage while blocking | -50% (-30% for Greatshields) | 10 | 12 | - |
Body Buffs[]
Most Body Buffs are self-targeted and defensive in their benefits, but some, primarily those that are the upgraded form of weaker Body Buffs, also grant their benefits to nearby allies. A scant few are instead focused on increasing the caster's offensive strength.
Aura Buffs[]
All Aura Buffs target both the caster and their nearby allies, and most, with the exception of some offense-only Aura Buffs, provide both offensive and defensive benefits.