The last upgrade is always the hardest. Regular weapons need an Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone to go from +24 to +25, and special weapons need a Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone to go from +9 to +10. Neither can be bought from the Twin Maiden Husks, so every copy has to be found. This guide lists all of them per playthrough, grouped by region, so you can plan which weapons get finished first.
| Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone | Regular weapon +24 to +25 |
| Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone | Special weapon +9 to +10 |
| Regular stones per playthrough | 21 (13 base game, 8 Shadow of the Erdtree) |
| Somber stones per playthrough | 14 (8 base game, 6 Shadow of the Erdtree) |
| Buyable? | Only one regular stone, from Gatekeeper Gostoc for 20,000 runes after Nepheli’s questline |
| Earliest reliable source | Nepheli Loux and Sellen questline rewards |
| New Game+ | All world copies respawn in the next cycle |
Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone locations (base game)
Four of the thirteen come from NPCs, which makes them the only copies you can get before the late game. The rest sit in the last regions of the Lands Between.
| # | Region | How to get it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stormveil Castle | Reward for finishing the Nepheli Loux questline |
| 2 | Stormveil Castle | Sold by Gatekeeper Gostoc for 20,000 runes once Nepheli rules Stormveil |
| 3 | Raya Lucaria Academy | Reward for siding with Witch-Hunter Jerren at the end of the Sellen questline |
| 4 | Bestial Sanctum (Dragonbarrow) | Gurranq, Beast Clergyman: hand over all nine Deathroot (he also drops one if killed) |
| 5 | Mountaintops of the Giants | Corpse inside the huge skull on the cliff southeast of the Church of Repose |
| 6 | Consecrated Snowfield | Dropped by the pair of Night’s Cavalry escorting the carriage at night |
| 7 | Consecrated Snowfield | Corpse in Yelough Anix Tunnel, guarded by an Alabaster Lord |
| 8 | Consecrated Snowfield | Corpse on the frozen waterfall near the Cave of the Forlorn, above Great Wyrm Theodorix |
| 9 | Crumbling Farum Azula | Dropped by one of the Farum Azula dragons |
| 10 | Crumbling Farum Azula | Dropped by a second Farum Azula dragon, southeast of the Dragon Temple Rooftop grace |
| 11 | Crumbling Farum Azula | Pickup near the Dragon Temple area |
| 12 | Miquella’s Haligtree | Corpse below the hugging statue, guarded by a Lesser Leonine Misbegotten |
| 13 | Miquella’s Haligtree | Chest behind the arena after beating Loretta, Knight of the Haligtree |
Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone locations in Shadow of the Erdtree
Half of the DLC copies come from the Ruined Forges: finish the forge, interact with the furnace at the end, and the stone is your reward.
| # | Region | How to get it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gravesite Plain | Furnace at the end of the Ruined Forge Lava Intake |
| 2 | Gravesite Plain | Dropped by the Magma Wyrm in Dragon’s Pit |
| 3 | Gravesite Plain | Chest at the top of the Suppressing Pillar |
| 4 | Scadu Altus | Furnace at the end of the Ruined Forge of Starfall Past |
| 5 | Jagged Peak | Dropped by Ancient Dragon Senessax |
| 6 | Jagged Peak | Corpse near the Skeletal Slimes on the climb to the Jagged Peak Summit grace |
| 7 | Rauh Base | Balcony pickup in Taylew’s Ruined Forge, in the room with the Smithing Golems |
| 8 | Rauh Base | Furnace at the end of Taylew’s Ruined Forge |
Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone locations
Somber copies are rarer and none of them can be bought. Three of the base-game ones are tied to Elphael and the Haligtree, so a late Haligtree run finishes most special weapons at once.
| # | Region | How to get it |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Consecrated Snowfield | Reward for bringing Latenna to the Apostate Derelict |
| 2 | Consecrated Snowfield | Dropped by Anastasia, Tarnished-Eater on her invasion near Ordina, Liturgical Town |
| 3 | Mohgwyn Palace | Chest at the foot of the giant statue past the Dynasty Mausoleum Midpoint grace |
| 4 | Leyndell, Ashen Capital | Corpse in front of a gargoyle west of the starting grace (ash city only) |
| 5 | Crumbling Farum Azula | Small gazebo behind the resting dragon south of the Dragon Temple Rooftop grace |
| 6 | Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree | Hidden chest reached from the Prayer Room grace |
| 7 | Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree | Corpse on the lower walkway guarded by an Avatar |
| 8 | Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree | End of the Millicent questline: use the Unalloyed Gold Needle on her flower after beating Malenia |
| 9 | Gravesite Plain (DLC) | Dropped by the Ghostflame Dragon |
| 10 | Scadu Altus (DLC) | Dropped by the Ghostflame Dragon |
| 11 | Cerulean Coast (DLC) | Dropped by the Ghostflame Dragon |
| 12 | Jagged Peak (DLC) | Dropped by Ancient Dragon Senessax |
| 13 | Jagged Peak (DLC) | Pickup on the Jagged Peak Mountainside, guarded by slime enemies |
| 14 | Enir-Ilim (DLC) | Corpse at the end of a broken stairway |
Fastest route to your first +25 and +10
- Regular weapon: push Nepheli’s questline. Her reward plus Gostoc’s stone gives you two copies from one questline.
- Add Sellen’s Jerren ending and Gurranq’s Deathroot reward for two more.
- Special weapon: the first easy somber copy is the Mohgwyn Palace chest; after that, Farum Azula, the Ashen Capital and Elphael.
- With the DLC, Gravesite Plain gives three regular copies (forge, Dragon’s Pit, pillar) right after the start.
Tips
- Plan before you spend: 21 regular and 14 somber copies per cycle is enough for several weapons, but not for every weapon you want to try. Check the build tier list first.
- Every stage up to +24 or +9 can be bought; see the Miner’s Bell Bearing locations to unlock unlimited stones.
- Some sources are lost to quest choices: siding with Sellen instead of Jerren, or killing Gostoc early, removes those copies for the cycle.
FAQ
How many Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones are there?
21 per playthrough: 13 in the base game and 8 in Shadow of the Erdtree. There are also 14 Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones: 8 in the base game and 6 in the DLC.
Can you buy Ancient Dragon Smithing Stones?
Only once per cycle: Gatekeeper Gostoc sells one for 20,000 runes after Nepheli’s questline. No merchant sells the Somber version.
Where is the earliest Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone?
The NPC rewards come first. The Nepheli Loux questline and Gostoc’s shop are usually the earliest two copies, followed by the Sellen questline if you side with Jerren.
Source: locations checked against Fextralife’s Elden Ring wiki, Game8 and Game Rant.
Further reading: Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone and Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone on the Fextralife Elden Ring wiki.