Listen up, Tarnished. We need to talk about one of the most polarizing mechanics in all of Elden Ring: the crouch attack. Whether you’re sneaking through the tall grass of Limgrave or facing off against another player in the Colosseum, this unassuming move has evolved from a simple stealth mechanic into one of the most dominant forces in both PvE and PvP combat.
What Is a Crouch Attack, Anyway?
At its core, the crouch attack is exactly what it sounds like. To crouch or stand up from a crouching position, console players simply need to press on the left stick. The default crouch button for PC players is X. Once you’re crouched, pressing your light attack button (R1/RB) executes a special attack that varies by weapon type.
But here’s where things get interesting. Crouching performs your roll attack – meaning the attack animation you get from crouching is the same one you’d perform after rolling. This might seem like a minor detail, but it’s actually the key to understanding why crouch attacks have become so powerful.
The Stealth Origins
Originally, crouching was designed as a stealth mechanic. Crouch to make it harder for enemies to discover you. Especially effective in tall grass. Attacking an Enemy that hasn’t noticed you will cause more damage than usual. This made sense from a game design perspective – sneak up on an unsuspecting enemy, deliver a critical strike, and move on.
When your enemy is unaware, your first attack will cause more damage. This stealth bonus damage encouraged players to use crouching as intended: a tool for careful, methodical exploration and enemy engagement.
The PvP Revolution
But then something unexpected happened. Players discovered that certain weapons – particularly colossal swords – had incredibly fast crouch attacks relative to their normal movesets. The community quickly latched onto what became known as the “crouch poke” meta.
Two-Handed crouch pokes with ugs literally uncounterable by any means, they buffed the ugs and it became automatically unbalanced, add some delays to crouch attacks, dude literally can spam 7-8 crouch pokes in 5 seconds This frustrated outcry from a PvP player captures the intensity of the crouch poke debate that raged through the community.
Why Crouch Attacks Are So Powerful
Several factors combine to make crouch attacks devastatingly effective:
Speed Advantage
A quirk in the attack animations of Colossal Swords like the Zweihander or Ruins Greatsword causes their slow, heavy thrust attacks to come out faster when the player character is crouching This speed boost on normally sluggish weapons created an unexpected power dynamic.
Stamina Efficiency
Unlike rolling attacks, crouch attacks don’t require the stamina cost of a roll. With Crouch not only do you skip the roll part, making the attack way faster, but you also don’t use the stamina from having to roll, making them also cheap to use stamina wise.
This is crucial in extended fights. While a rolling attack requires stamina for both the roll and the attack, crouch attacks only consume stamina for the attack itself. This means you can potentially spam more crouch attacks before running out of stamina, which is especially powerful with heavy weapons that normally have high stamina costs.
Adding to this efficiency, early versions of the game had an additional bug: As of Patch 1.08 a bug where stamina would replenish when switching to a crouching position while running hand has been fixed. Before this fix, players could exploit faster stamina recovery by crouching, making crouch attack spam even more viable.
Reach and Tracking
Many crouch attacks, especially on thrusting weapons and colossal swords, have exceptional reach and tracking. Players reported the attacks having nearly 270-degree tracking, making them difficult to dodge.
Parry Immunity
Here’s the kicker: yes you can, but not Colossals Two Handed. Two-handed colossal sword crouch attacks cannot be parried, removing one of the primary defensive options against them.
The Balance Struggle
FromSoftware has wrestled with balancing crouch attacks throughout Elden Ring’s lifespan. The 1.07 patch decreased the speed and hit detection for the crouching and rolling thrust attacks of colossal swords, making that specific move a lot less useful.
However, the story didn’t end there. the 1.08 update that introduced Elden Ring’s Colosseum DLC walked back the nerf to colossal swords, slightly increasing the speed of crouching and rolling attacks once more. This back-and-forth demonstrates how difficult it is to balance a mechanic that’s both a core PvE feature and a competitive PvP tool.
The Infamous Glitch Era
December 2022 saw perhaps the most broken iteration of crouch attacks yet. The glitch allows players to perform insanely fast crouch poke attacks with any weapon, including colossal weapons that are supposed to have their high damage offset by slow speed.
All players have to do to use the exploit is equip a straight sword, thrusting sword, heavy thrusting sword, twinblade, or torch in their offhand, and the weapon they want to crouch poke with in their main hand. This exploit allowed players to give any weapon the fast crouch poke moveset, creating absolute chaos in PvP.
Counter Strategies
For those facing crouch poke spammers, the community has developed several counter-strategies:
Whips and Range
Whips: range yay!!! It might not produce the highest dmg output but it is still competent and if you want you can lace it with status effects like poison/frostbite to punish their lack of mobility
Magic and Projectiles
Fast projectile magic or spammy magic if you want to create an opening where they either have to eat magic to trade or dodge it
Jump Attacks
Jump colossal or bleed + occult builds can be devastating counter by jumping over their thrust.
The Defensive Crouch
Interestingly, crouching itself can be used defensively. PSA: You can duck under a lot of attacks by just crouching! Some high attacks will completely whiff over a crouched player, adding another layer to the mechanic’s complexity.
Best Weapons for Crouch Attacks
While the meta has shifted over time, certain weapons have remained crouch attack favorites:
- Colossal Swords – The original crouch poke kings, especially the Greatsword and Zweihander
- Great Spears – The best Strength weapon in Elden Ring used to be the Greatsword, but due to recent nerfs to that weapon’s crouch poke move, the Lance has taken its place.
- Thrusting Swords – Fast and deadly, though they received nerfs in patch 1.08
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Before you rush off to dominate with your newfound crouch attack knowledge, let’s talk about the pitfalls that catch many players:
The Accidental Crouch
If you’re finding that you’re always accidentally crouching in Elden Ring while running away from demented bosses, then you can always change which button or key crouch is mapped to in your settings. Nothing ruins a boss fight faster than accidentally crouching when you meant to sprint away from an incoming attack. Consider remapping your crouch button if this keeps happening.
Shield Incompatibility
Players cannot equip their shield while crouching. Equipping the shield automatically makes the character stand up, revealing the player’s location. This is crucial to remember during stealth sections – trying to raise your shield will blow your cover immediately.
Becoming a One-Trick Pony
If your opponents entire plan is just spamming crouch poke there is nothing you can do about it. While crouch attacks are powerful, becoming predictable makes you easy to counter. Mix up your attacks to keep opponents guessing. The best players use crouch attacks as one tool among many, not their entire strategy.
Not All Weapons Are Created Equal
Don’t assume every weapon has a good crouch attack. Some weapon classes have mediocre crouch attacks that aren’t worth using over their regular movesets. Test your weapon’s crouch attack in a safe area before relying on it in combat.
The Unsung Power of the Crouch
The following helpful facts are about the crouch and not the crouch attack itself. However, they perfectly fit the subject and I didn’t wanted to withheld them from you. This seemingly simple maneuver packs a surprising punch, especially when it comes to managing your stamina and executing precise attacks.
Many seasoned players incorporate a quick crouch before a repost. Why? Two key reasons. Firstly, if an attack depletes your stamina beyond what you have, crouching cleverly cancels that frustrating negative stamina hit. This allows your stamina to begin regenerating immediately, buying you precious fractions of a second – often the difference between landing that critical repost or meeting an untimely demise. Secondly, a brief crouch halts your momentum, providing greater control. This is invaluable for sticking a repost after a sprint, preventing an accidental and often less effective running attack.
But the benefits don’t stop there. Need to heal in a pinch? Healing while crouched won’t slow down your stamina recovery, unlike healing while standing. Keep that in mind when you’re desperately trying to get back in the fight!
So, next time you’re out in the Lands Between, don’t underestimate the power of the humble crouch. It’s a versatile tool that can give you a significant edge in combat and exploration.
Looking Forward
As we await potential future patches, the crouch attack remains a contentious but undeniably important part of Elden Ring’s combat system. Whether you love it or hate it, understanding how to use and counter crouch attacks is essential for any serious player.
The mechanic represents a fascinating case study in how player innovation can transform a simple stealth tool into a dominant combat strategy. From its humble origins as a way to sneak through tall grass to its current status as a PvP meta-defining move, the crouch attack has truly earned its place in Elden Ring history.
So the next time you’re facing down a boss or another player, remember: sometimes the best approach isn’t a dramatic roll or a flashy weapon skill. Sometimes, all you need is a simple crouch and a well-timed poke.
Just don’t spam it too much in PvP, or you might find yourself on the receiving end of some very salty messages. Trust me on that one, fellow Tarnished.
Enjoyed this guide? Don’t stop here! Check out our other Elden Ring Guides & Tips to master every aspect of the Lands Between.
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