These starting weapons in Dark Souls 3 aren’t necessarily weapons that you can start the game with, rather they are a countdown of the best weapon options that are available for players fairly early in the game. This broader criteria exists in order for us to include better early game weapons to help players, and not just the weapons that each class starts with.

Though most of these are weapons that require specific stats and a specific build, the fact that they are available so early on makes it easy to get them and then choose to level up your character according to these weapons. This is a good investment as you can stick with these weapons till the end of the game.

So, let’s take a look at the best starting weapons you can get in Dark Souls 3:

10. Uchigatana

Uchigatana: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKsEDhK-INo

Requirements: 11 STR, 16 DEX

The Uchigatana is the very first katana that you can get in the entire game. It has fast swings and fairly high base damage, but more importantly, the Uchigatana can be infused and buffed and can even take you through your entire journey. It is very useful for parries because of its ‘Hold’ skill. All this coupled with its fast swings and decently high base damage make it a great option for a Dex build.

Location: After defeating Iudex Gundyr, make your way to Firelink Shrine. Go to the leftmost area, at the base of the tower and you will find the Swordmaster NPC. This is a very tough fight, especially for this stage in the game, but he can still be beaten and will drop the Uchigatana and his armor upon defeat.

Why this weapon is great:

• Very fast 
• Good damage
• Great skill
• Good reach 
• Fairly low requirements

9. Irithyll Straight Sword

Irithyll Straight Sword: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9G7JPAFPn8

Requirements: 12 STR, 14 DEX

This is a very underrated weapon in Dark Souls 3, but one that is actually really amazing. This weapon is very quick, has good base damage and can be used for your entire playthrough, though it can’t be buffed or infused due to its super effective inherent frost damage. Sure it is a bit harder to level it up due to it requiring the already sparse Twinkling Titanite, but the overall performance definitely makes up for it.

Location: Similar to the Uchigatana, this weapon can only be acquired by killing a very tough enemy. In the Undead Settlement, go to the bottom of the elevator at the end and defeat an Outrider Knight to get the sword. Since doing this is necessary in order to progress in the game, you can’t miss it.

Why this weapon is great:

• Very fast
• Really good damage
• Inherent frost damage which is very powerful.
• Can be used in a quality build focusing more on strength
• Also very good for PvP

8. Arstor’s Spear

Arstor’s Spear: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l544hr7YV9U

Requirements: 11 STR, 19 DEX

Of the many spear class weapons available in the entire game, Arstor’s Spear remains one of the best in its class in the entire game. It levels primarily with Dex but at a very low requirement that can be met pretty early on in the entire game. It also has a very good and practical moveset as well as the ability to deal poison damage on hit.

Location: Can be made after transposing the soul of the Curse Rotted Greatwood.

Why this weapon is great:

• Long range
• High damage
• Inherent poison damage within the weapon
• Very good moveset
• Once upgraded to +5, it gains a B-scaling in dexterity

7. Claymore

Claymore: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzYotRt5m_s

Requirements: 16 STR, 13 DEX

A classic. The Claymore has been the choice of many strength builds since the series started with Dark Souls in 2011 and it remains a fan favorite in DS3. This is a strength weapon so it obviously scales best with strength and has the typical greatsword moveset, which is amazing and super practical in DS3. It can be infused and buffed, as well as being fairly low weight and very powerful. Its base damage is amazing for pretty much the entire early-game, only getting better the more you level it.

Location: At the High Wall of Lothric, in the far left corner of the upper platform where the dragon is.

Why this weapon is great:

• Great moveset
• Quite strong
• Does very good damage
• Low weight
• Also very good singlehanded
• Very good if dual wielded as well

6. Butcher’s Knife

Butcher’s Knife: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5MvL-i4hlg

Requirements: 24 STR

The Butcher’s Knife is a very rough looking weapon and one that is, quite frankly, very ugly. But what it lacks in looks it more than makes up for in terms of damage and functionality. This is a full strength weapon through and through, and seeing how most people’s first playthrough is strength, this is a super powerful and high damaging weapon to have. It can be buffed and infused as well, giving it the option to do even more damage.

Location: Is dropped by an NPC at the end of the Road of Sacrifices where the first big drop is next to the gate.

Why this weapon is great:

• Very powerful
• Very high damaging
• Easily upgradable
• Can be buffed and infused
• Amazing weapon skill that gains back a little HP on each successful hit

5. Sellsword Twinblades

Sellsword Twinblades: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8BdJuaJqP8

Requirements: 10 STR, 16 DEX

If you come across this weapon in PvP, consider yourself finished. These swords are Dex centered and can even be buffed and infused, which takes their damage numbers off of the charts. However, this weapon isn’t really viable if you choose to single hand it with a shield as it just turns out to be another sword.

This weapon should be dual wielded if you truly want it to shine and to melt enemy health bars. These swords require a ton of bravery as you need to be completely aggressive for it to work, not afraid of anyone you face.

Location:  Enter the Road of Sacrifices and enter the water before heading right. Enter the castle walls in the corner of this area. Beyond the Black Knight are the Sellsword Twinblades. Alternatively, these swords are the starting weapon of the Mercenary class.

Why this weapon is great:

• Lightning fast
• Does a ton of damage
• Levels up with Dex, allowing it to scale up very well
• Perfectly compliments aggressive playstyles 
• Can be buffed and infused
• If you choose the mercenary class, you can get this from the absolute start of the game

4. Crystal Sage’s Rapier

Crystal Sage’s Rapier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz2-wymjEj4

Requirements: 13 STR, 18 DEX

This weapon comes with intelligence as the primary attribute without actually infusing it. Due to this unique quirk, this weapon is perfect for magic builds such as sorcerers and pyromancers, on top of it also having a unique feature of shooting up the luck stat for the player, making it much easier to discover rare items that are littered throughout the game.

Other than that, it has a standard rapier moveset, meaning that it hits very quickly and you can get a ton of hits in a small amount of time. 

Location: Can be acquired after beating the Crystal Sage and transposing his soul.

Why this weapon is great:

• Very quick
• Inherent quirks that make it very unique
• Very good for any sort of magic build
• Also has a cool attribute of making rare items easier to find

3. Deep Battle Axe

Deep Battle Axe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZOVFYAPkJk

Requirements: 12 STR, 8 DEX

The Deep Battle Axe is essentially a beefed up version of the standard Battle Axe, which is the starting weapon of the Warrior class. This is a very straightforward weapon and one that is made very accessible to players, as well as it having a great weapon skill that stuns opponents and allows you to heal.

Location: It is dropped from a Mimic chest, right past the gate with the fire breathing dragon on top. 

Why this weapon is great: 

• Great for strength builds
• High damaging
• Can be buffed
• Great skill

2. Zweihander

Zweihander: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzeO5UZ5P68 

Requirements: 19 STR, 11 DEX 

Ah yes, the fearsome weapon of the legend himself, Giant Dad. Ever since the days of DS1, this weapon has been terrifying players and NPCs alike, as the last thing they see before dying is 3 tons of steel flying right into their face. Only able to be wielded by the strongest, the Zweihander is an Ultra Greatsword, a weapon class known for its insane damage, ridiculous range and slow speed.

This weapon can be buffed and infused, adding higher damage numbers to something that’s already so ridiculous to begin with. And upon frequent upgrading, it can take you well into the end of the game. This is the Claymore's more temperamental older brother.

Location: Can be bought from Greirat at Firelink Shrine after you give him Loretta’s bone which you get from the Undead Settlement for 6000 souls.

Why this weapon is great:

• Insane damage
• Insane range
• Can be buffed and infused
• Easily upgradable
• Hard to use but when mastered, it's super effective

1. Dark Sword

Dark Sword: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNOIVp-G_K4

Requirements: 15 STR, 15 DEX

Very similar to the Irithyll Straight Sword, this is a sword with great damage and can also be buffed and infused. With a heavy infusion, it gets an A scaling in strength, meaning that you can dump all your stats into that 1 category and use this sword, effectively making you a death machine, very much like the Darkwraiths that you stole this weapon from.

From level 1 to level 100, there are few weapons that will stay by your side like the Dark Sword!

Location: Is a random drop from any of the Darkwraiths in either High Wall of Lothric or those in Farron Keep. The best way to farm for this weapon is to keep killing the Darkwraiths that spawn outside of the Abyss Watchers boss arena.

Why this weapon is great:

• Can be buffed
• Can be infused
• Can be gotten fairly earlier in the game
• Is one of the strongest straight swords in the entire game
• Can be used throughout your entire playthrough

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