Fellow Tarnished, we’ve got some juicy news that’s going to make strength build enthusiasts absolutely lose their minds. Bandai Namco just dropped the stats for one of Elden Ring’s upcoming new starter classes on their EU TikTok channel, and let me tell you—this Heavy Knight is everything we never knew we needed.
Meet Your New Favorite Muscle-Bound Friend
This reveal has the community buzzing. The Heavy Knight (still awaiting official English translation) is essentially what would happen if you took Dark Souls’ Iron Tarkus and asked him to hit the gym even harder.
Picture this: heavy black iron armor, no shield, and a brand new curved greatsword. This knight screams “I don’t need magic when I have MUSCLES” from every piece of their imposing silhouette.
The Numbers Don’t Lie (But They Do Make Us Laugh)
Here’s where things get both hilarious and strategically brilliant. The Heavy Knight’s starting stats are:
- Level: 8
- Vigor: 14
- Mind: 7
- Endurance: 17
- Strength: 15
- Dexterity: 11
- Intelligence: 7
- Faith: 7
- Arcane: 9
Look at those intelligence and faith stats. This absolute unit probably couldn’t read a spell scroll if their life depended on it, but who needs literacy when you can just crush your problems with raw physical force?
Why PvP Players Are Going Wild
Now, before you dismiss this as just another meme class, here’s why the hardcore PvP community is already calling this the new meta pick. When you’re level-restricted in PvP (most action happens around level 150), every single stat point is precious real estate.
The Heavy Knight’s distribution is a min-maxer’s fever dream. Those dump stats in intelligence and faith aren’t wasted points—they’re strategically redistributed into the stats that actually matter for melee builds. Many hefty dexterity weapons still require significant strength investment, making this knight’s 15 starting strength incredibly valuable.
What We’re Still Waiting For
While we’ve got the goods on our beefcake friend here, we’re still in the dark about the other new class: the Knight of Ides. All we know is they come equipped with the Milady light greatsword from the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC and sport armor reminiscent of Demon’s Souls’ iconic Fluted Armor. That’s going to be a completely different beast—likely optimized for dexterity or quality builds.
The Bottom Line
This Heavy Knight isn’t just about the memes (though the memes are fantastic). It’s a carefully crafted starting class that could genuinely shake up both PvE and PvP strategies. Whether you’re a newcomer looking for a straightforward “hit things until they stop moving” approach or a veteran min-maxer planning your next invasion build, this knight has something to offer.
The Heavy Knight will arrive as part of the Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition, with other platforms receiving the content via a free update. No official release date yet, but when it drops, you can bet the Lands Between are going to see a lot more extremely buff, extremely illiterate knights wandering around.
Ready to embrace your inner meathead, Tarnished? The Heavy Knight awaits.
Don’t forget to check out our article “Elden Ring Tarnished Edition – What’s New in the Lands Between?” for further information (and speculation) about the Tarnished Edition.
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