Though FromSoftware’s various Soulslikes have unique identities and gameplay mechanics, they do share elements that go beyond being punishingly difficult. Take, for example, how the games feature poisonous swamp areas and very annoying dogs that make me want to chuck my controller out the window.
On the bright side, most games feature a glowing greatsword. The very cool Moonlight greatswords are big, seafoam-colored, and incredibly powerful. They’re the Hulk of swords in FromSoftware games.
Bloodborne was my first FromSoftware Soulslike, so I hold its Moonlight blade in high esteem. Its version of the Moonlight greatsword, the Holy Moonlight Sword, isn’t found in the base game, but in The Old Hunters expansion. You can obtain it after defeating the ugly mug of Ludwig, The Holy Blade. In its base form, it’s a regular greatsword. As a trick weapon, it can be transformed into the glowing greenish-blue sword that sends beautiful magic wave projectiles flying at enemies.
FromSoftware’s latest Soulslike is also its most popular: Elden Ring has sold over 30 million copies. It, of course, features its own big cyan sword: the Dark Moon Greatsword. Instead of it being found out in the world, however, it’s given to the player at the culmination of Ranni the Witch’s questline. She’s the blue-skinned, four-armed major NPC whose questline extends throughout the game.
After completing it, which also involves tasks like finishing Blaidd’s quest and defeating Radahn, Ranni gives the player the Dark Moon Greatsword. Its base form is a regular greatsword, and its skill makes it glow like moonlight, buffing its damage with magic and allowing the player to hit enemies from afar with those classic magic waves.
What makes a greatsword great?
Carrying its weight means making sacrifices
Moonlight greatswords don’t just appear in my favorite Soulslikes: You’ll find them in Demon’s Souls and the Dark Souls trilogy too. Every FromSoftware fan has a different favorite, and they debate which is the strongest.
Interestingly, though not surprisingly, not every FromSoftware Soulslike has a Moonlight greatsword. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice lacks a giant, aqua-colored glowing blade. Features like a grappling hook and vertical traversal, its revival ability, and the lack of customization all make Sekiro stand out from other Soulslikes, as does its absence of a Moonlight greatsword. The shinobi Wolf only has his katana for a main melee weapon, meaning there’s no magic-projectile-spamming greatsword for him to wield. At least he has a good parry.
Some Sekiro players will point to the late-game boss Divine Dragon’s sword as a possible Moonlight greatsword, though there’s nothing in the game that officially describes it as such. The boss wields the Seven-Branched Sword, and its glowing light-green appearance certainly makes it look like a Moonlight greatsword.
Though the Moonlight greatswords are typically associated with FromSoftware’s Soulslikes, they’ve shown up in other games. A Moonlight laser sword has appeared throughout Armored Core games, most recently in Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon as the mouthful A-C01W2: Moonlight light wave blade.
In fact, the Moonlight greatsword didn’t even originate in a Soulslike — big green swords have been around in FromSoftware’s games long before people started dying endlessly in 2009’s Demon’s Souls. It originated in the studio’s debut game King’s Field in 1994 with such an iconic design that future Moonlight greatswords rarely deviated from. King’s Field’s Moonlight Sword appeared in later King’s Field games and even more FromSoftware titles pre-Demon’s Souls, like Otogi: Myth of Demons and Ninja Blade.
Next on the docket for FromSoftware is The Duskbloods (which is not, sadly, Bloodborne 2, despite appearances). I’m no gambler, but I’d bet a gold coin or two that the Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive will feature FromSoftware’s next great and glowing Moonlight sword.
