How to get the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana in Elden Ring Shadow Of The Erdtree

Looking for the Dragon Hunter's Great Katana in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree? Great Katanas are a new weapon type in Elden Ring's new expansion Shadow Of The Erdtree, and they're perfect for any Tarnished who wants a Katana with a bit more oomph. The Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana is one of these new blades that's accessible at the start of Shadow of the Erdtree, and as its name might suggest, its anti-dragon effect makes it the perfect weapon to hunt a winged reptile or three. In order to obtain this razor-sharp sword, you'll need to take a deep dive into the Dragon's Pit, a brief dungeon full of some annoying enemies.

If you're struggling to find the Dragon's Pit or defeat the enemies within, read on. In this guide we'll outline everything you need to do to unlock the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree.

How to get the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana in Shadow Of The Erdtree

You'll need to head to the Dragon's Pit in order to find this blade. This small dungeon is located amongst the cliffs to the southeast of Castle Ensis and the Castle Front Site of Grace. If you start at the Castle Front and veer southwards along the road, you'll eventually come across the Pillar Point Site of Grace. Continue your trek towards the southern cliffs, and west of the Suppressing Pillar you should see several broken dragon statues leading towards a cave entrance. Enter, and you'll find the Dragon's Pit Site of Grace.

The Dragon's Pit isn't a huge dungeon, and you're unlikely to get lost. It does stretch far underground, however, and the main enemy you'll encounter here are draconic skeletons. Two of them await you as soon as you enter the main chamber of the Dragon's pit - one is in plain view, and the other is hiding under the ledge you stand on as you first enter the chamber. After you've killed them, be sure to smash their skeletons one last time with an attack, or they'll resurrect themselves.

Once they're dead, proceed deeper in the cave and dispatch the skeleton that jumps out at you from the shadows. You'll eventually make your way to a windy ledge with more draconic skeletons to contend with, including an archer who shoots at you from afar. You can technically run past all of these foes if you prefer, entering a deeper part of the dungeon that's guarded by more skeletons and branches off into two rooms - stairs which lead to upper level guarded by a dragon, and what appears to be a lower ceremonial chamber with a ledge leading into a bottomless pit.

You'll have to deal with the dragon to unlock the secret of the ceremonial chamber. The giant creature will charge at you as soon as you enter its room, unleashing a wave of fire that sets the floor alight, so get ready to dodge. Once you roll around it and get your bearings, you can actually kite the dragon by retreating back down the stairwell which you came from. The dragon's too big to fit through the stair opening, and while it'll breathe fire at you as best it can, you can pick it off from afar at your leisure with Sorceries, projectiles, or simply well-timed weapon strikes.

Once the dragon's dead, head to the ceremonial chamber. Near the bottomless pit, you'll see a message on the ground that wouldn't have appeared if you had come here first. It reads "Be Brave. Show no fear." This is your hint to jump into the pit. Instead of dying, you'll land on soft sand and see the entrance to the boss chamber.

The Ancient Dragon-Man awaits you inside. He can be taken out relatively quickly with repeated, strong melee combos, but he's also a fast pain in the neck who can halve your health with a few strikes from, you guessed it, the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana. He can also use a dragon's head to spray an AoE attack across the room, so be sure to roll, parry, and slash him repeatedly before he can pull off anything fancy. Once he's done, his sword is yours.

Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana description and stats

The Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana slices and dices with its special skill Dragonwound Slash, which deals extra damage against - you guessed it, dragons. This anti-dragon effect is infinitely useful in the Jagged Peak region of Shadow of the Erdtree's map, which has dragon enemies ready for slaughtering.

Aside from Dragonwound Slash, the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana deals an impressive base Physical damage of 152 that surpasses the regular Great Katana, which you'll likely find earlier in your trek through the Shadow Realm. If you haven't found the Great Katana yet and are only used to normal Katanas from the base game, like the Nagakiba or the Hand of Malenia, get ready for a much more powerful weapon - albeit one that might feel a smidgen slower at times.

Despite this, the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana is well worth the trouble, and aside from draconic foes, it's perfect for attacking multiple groups of enemies at once with its impressive range and quick slicing arcs. As with most Katanas, its also great for a bleed-focused character build.

Great Katana stats:

That's all we've got on finding the Dragon-Hunter's Great Katana in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree. For a look at top gear in Elden Ring's base game, check out our guide to the 24 best weapons in Elden Ring and how to get them. We've also got tips on how to start Shadow Of The Erdtree, so you can dive right into the Shadow Realm and start collecting new weapons of war as quickly as possible. Alternatively, if you need help with the new quests added with the DLC, we've also got walkthroughs for the Leda, Ymir and Thiollier questlines.