Katanas are a controversial weapon class.

On one hand, katanas have some of the most convenient running attacks, weapon skills that allow you to successfully counter-attack or deal high damage to the enemy, and, as a bonus, the bleeding effect, which after all the nerfs in PvP is rarely applicable. However, in PvE everything still has it uses.

On the other, katanas have slow combos, mediocre R1 damage, a relatively vertical moveset and at times demanding weight. There are 8 weapons in total in this class, and I will describe each of them separately below.

One of the shortest katanas in the class.

Cannot be infused, but buffs can be applied. The ideal build for this katana will be an even distribution of points between strength and dexterity up to 40 (for use in a one-handed grip), or 27 strength and 58 dexterity (for a two-handed grip). The skill has the following feature - when it hits a shield, it deals full damage. A hit with the skill sometimes guarantees you a subsequent hit with an R1 attack.

Like the previous, this katana is one of the shortest in the class.

Using the weapon skill infuses it with a hefty increase to its damage, and allows it to inflict bleed much better without the need for investment in Luck. This is counterbalanced by having a small attack range, and the buff lasting for only 45 seconds. An extremely dubious choice for PvP, but in PvE it is a pretty good weapon. The skill increases physical damage by about 30% and the damage of the "Bleeding" status effect by 200%. Deals low damage in class without the skill. To get maximum damage, you need to pump dexterity to 60. In the case of using a two-handed grip, the remaining stat points (up to about 25) should be poured into strength. In the case it using one-handed, pour the remaining points into dexterity.

Like the previous katanas, this is one of the shortest.

Has a unique heavy attack moveset and the highest damage among one-handed katanas that can be infused. Heavy attacks, both in one-handed and in two-handed grip, have a long range on attacks. The highest damage values ​​are achieved when hardened in sharpness and pumping dexterity up to 70.

Uchigatana is longer than the previous three katanas, but shorter than the chaos blade. Medium katana damage, medium attack range and skill, low stat requirements. In principle, there is nothing more to say about her. It is dropped at the very beginning with by a bum near the shrine and in 100% of cases will be your first katana. With other katanas available, this is an extremely mediocre choice for PvP.

This katana has good damage and excellent attack range.

Despite this however, it is a poor choice, due to the fact that the Black Blade has almost the same physical damage as Chaos Blade. Additionally the Black Blade can be infused/buffed, which cannot be done with the Chaos Blade. The debuff in the form of 17 damage to the owner of the katana for hitting the enemy is also extremely unfortunate. If you do decide to use it, then passive health regeneration is highly recommended in the form of a sun princess ring and/or a regenerating item, for example a blessed infused off-hand item or the ethereal oak shield. If you play EXCLUSIVELY in a two-handed grip, then you can save on leveling strength and safely invest all the points in dexterity. If you need a one-handed grip, pump 16 strength, and the rest is into dexterity.

Potentially the strongest weapon in class thanks to the weapon skill, damage and combinations.

This babe opens up a turtle in heavy armor as well as Splitleaf. The WA can be very dangerous to use. Spamming it is ineffective due to the high risk of punishment in the form of biting your ass. However, if you hit an enemy, you deal an insane amount of damage.


The WA has active hyper armor. The higher your poise value, the harder it is to knock you out of your attack. The optimal poise value is 26+. At this value, your hyper-armor withstands the R1 attack of two-handed greatswords. The WA synergizes very well with shields, which allow you to use the weapon skill while having access to blocking (for example, the black knight shield). R1-WA is a true combo, but in is inconsistent. The main combos will be L1-WA and WA-L1 (WA-R1 if used with a shield).


A feature of this WA is the ability to headshot, which is more characteristic of small arms and some throwing weapons. In this case, the WA is guaranteed to interrupt the "Perseverance" WA and it becomes possible tocombo the next L1 or R1 attack. Because of this you can get a 3-hit combo (R1-L2-L1).To land this, you will need to use the R1 from a distance to ensure the WA deals a headshot. However, the combo will stop working as latency gets higher (at ~100ms). Also, the WA can stagger the enemy before the strike. If you use the WA point-blank to the enemy, then there will be no additional stun before the strike, and it will not be difficult to dodge the WA. To have an additional stagger before hitting the WA, you need to use the WA at a slight distance.


The optimal builds are a dark build (13 strength 30 dexterity 30 int. 30 faith) and a normal build through dexterity (13 strength 72 dexterity).

My personal favorite in the class.

Broken weapon. Despite the identical size of the model, it has a significantly longer range on running attacks than the chaos blade or twin katanas. Also, it is practically not inferior in this regard to the washing pole. Running attacks have an extended hitbox (thrusting attack, but has significant "horizontal coverage" when compared to other katanas). This feature makes the possibility of running around your attack with a sprint and backstabbing you harder to do. Has a standard set of power attacks for the class, but they have a longer hitstun. It is the only weapon in the class and one of the few for which there is a guaranteed combination of two heavy attacks.


Possesses an excellent weapon art. Thanks to it, you can successfully deal a lot of damage to the enemy or catch those who like to spam the roll button. Each attack of the skill is included in one or another guaranteed combos. For example: R1-WA (R2) is a guaranteed combo that you will use in 99% of cases R2-WA (R1) - if you hit one heavy, then why pinch the second when you can hit with a skill and deal even more damage.


The best build for this katana is 15/30 Str and 60 Dex. Consumes very little stamina per hit, second only to the Darkdrift.
Also this katana has recovery cancel, but it is not very effective, because it cancels a total of 50 ms from recovery.

Long trash.

Contrary to popular belief, it is one of the worse weapons in principle. A katana that has no guaranteed combo, not even R1-R1. The author of this katana has earned a special cauldron in a toxic swamp. Use as a weapon at your own peril and risk, except for a running attack, she has nothing. However, the Frayed Blade's attack is only slightly shorter than the Washing Pole's attack, making the washing pole almost useless. It can be used in cases where you do not have enough dexterity to use paired katanas or a frayed blade, but definitely not as a main weapon. Uses a lot of stamina.

Katana attack range (measured in SP - Greatshield poke. The distance created when attacking a wall with a spear and continue holding block):


Rating of katanas by damage (counted by one-handed grip) with an optimal build (60 points are given for distribution with the starting class of knight):

1. Do not build through elemental infusions with katanas (with the exception of onikiri and the washing pole). In the case of a dexterity build, your damage will be an order of magnitude higher.

2. Don't pump your luck even if you are playing PvE. This is useless for bloodlust and frayed blade, since they fill the status effect very quickly even without luck.

3. In your left hand, take either a shield with hp regeneration and with the "Weapon Mastery" skill (ideal options would be the warrior's round shield or the the ethereal oak shield), or a fast weapon with a horizontal moveset (hand axe or dagger). Stabbing weapons can also work well with katanas.

4. I do not recommend using katana's parrying skills or parry-item like caestus or parrying shield together with katanas (does not apply to PvE). In PvP, you are more likely to get punched in the face than pairing someone. The number of parrying frames for katanas is like that of caestus, but you need to take into account that you need to spend a split second to get up in a stance.

5. Light-roll builds (<30% load) are ineffective with katanas due to their heavy weight and slow moveset. The exception to the rule is the darkdrift, which is fairly low in weight. Paired katanas can also be used with light roll, but remember that the less armor, the more damage you will take.

6. Do not stop at the two-handed grip of the weapon. The one-handed grip also has its advantages - an increased attack range (applies to all katanas except the washing pole) and the possibility of synergizing with other weapons / shields.

Thanks for reading the guide! Any feedback and criticism will be welcome.
Many thanks to the player Sky8unny for formatting the guide, Knight-Kettle for motivation to make this guide and Euco for the translation <3