As players amass a myriad of armor and armaments in Elden Ring, it will quickly become important for them to keep an eye on their Equip Load, as they might not be taking full advantage of invincibility frames. These frames, also known as I-frames, will allow players to momentarily turn invincible during rolls and when mounting or dismounting Torrent. Timing these small windows of immunity with the many devastating attacks the game throws at the players is one of the most important skills they can hone to conquer the hardest enemies in Elden Ring.
I-frames last about half a second and occur near the beginning of a roll. If players time their rolls correctly, they can avoid enemy attacks, even if their hitbox "hits" the character. This mechanic has existed in almost all of FromSoftware's games, and it is therefore not surprising to see it in Elden Ring, as it is heavily inspired by the developer's previous acclaimed series, Dark Souls.
The strongest armors in the game will offer excellent protection against any damage a character takes. However, it will likely also significantly increase the weight they are carrying. To increase Equip Load, and therefore be able to equip heavier armor without slowing down, players can increase their Endurance stat, which will additionally increase the character's stamina, and equip certain talismans, such as the Great Jar's Arsenal Talisman.
The Different Types of Rolls in Elden Ring
There are three types of combat rolls in Elden Ring: fast/light, medium/normal, and heavy/fat. A character performs a fast roll whenever their Equip Load is under 30%. While higher than that but under 70%, characters will instead perform a medium roll, which most players often aim to have. At more than 70% Equip Load, players will do what is known as a heavy or fat roll. These rolls are much slower than the previous two types and provide the least amount of I-frames. However, fat rolling can be very dangerous as it will provide very little damage immunity, and the slow recovery may leave players open to further attacks, which can quickly turn deadly when facing Elden Ring's scariest enemies.
Why Players Should Aim for Medium Rolls in Elden Ring
Considering this information, it would be logical to assume that the less Equip Load a character has, the more I-frames they should get on their rolls. However, that is not exactly the case. Although this is true when comparing light and medium rolls to heavy rolls, the Elden Ring community has found little to no difference between the first two types. After testing, it was determined that a medium roll is similar to a fast roll when it comes to stamina recovery, speed, distance, and even I-frames. With this in mind, it seems clear that fast-rolling provides no extra benefit, and players should, therefore, aim to have their Equip Load as close to 70% as they can without going over, as it will provide the most amount of protection without sacrificing I-frames when rolling.
Other Ways to Avoid Damage in Elden Ring
Although rolling is the main tool players use to avoid damage, it is not the only one. Much like in FromSoftware's previous game, Sekiro, players have a dedicated jump button that can be used for platforming or to avoid low horizontal sweeps or ground area of effect attacks. Recent tests by the Elden Ring community have shown that during a jump, the hitbox for the character's legs disappears. This means that a character's legs become immune to damage, and therefore any swing that would hit them while in the air will turn into a miss. Another way that players can benefit from invulnerability is by interacting with things in the world of Elden Ring. They cannot get hit as long as the character is "stuck" in an interaction animation, such as opening one of Elden Ring's chests or going through a fog wall.
Elden Ring is available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.