Elden Ring: Where to find Mimic Tear, and how to optimize it

The Mimic Tear is a Spirit Ash summon that you can find in Elden Ring. And if you haven’t found it already, you might want to prioritize it. 

 Unlike most other summons in the game, the Mimic Tear is just as customizable as your character is. That’s because the Mimic Tear will copy your character, your abilities, your equipment and even your fighting style. If you’ve ever thought that an Elden Ring boss would be much easier if there were two of your avatar, then the Mimic Tear is here to prove you right.

While the Mimic Tear got a little less powerful in Elden Ring Patch 1.03, it’s still a durable, powerful summon that can make almost any boss in the game considerably easier. If you don’t have it yet, it’s worth taking some time to find the Mimic Tear and outfit it properly.

(If you steadfastly refuse using Spirit Ash summons because you feel it makes the game too easy, feel free to skip this piece. But you should be aware that some of the late-game bosses are truly hellish without a second party to take off some of the heat.)

How to find the Mimic Tear Spirit Ashes

Before you can use the Mimic Tear, you’ll need to find it. As you might expect, one of the most powerful summons in the game is pretty well-hidden. 

The first thing you’ll want to do is find your way to Nokron, Eternal City, an optional area that you’ll encounter as part of Ranni the witch’s questline. However, simply following Ranni’s quest won’t necessarily lead you to the Mimic Tear. You’ll have to go a little bit off the beaten path.

First off, if you want a preview of what summoning the Mimic Tear will be like, you’ll have a chance to face one as you explore Nokron. Before you get into the city proper, you’ll have to fight the Mimic Tear as a boss. Like the Mimic Tear summon, the Mimic Tear boss will copy your character exactly, from your equipment to your abilities. As such, you can defeat the boss pretty easily if you equip weaker gear than usual — but truthfully, you can defeat the boss pretty easily under normal circumstances, too. No one knows your character’s strengths and weaknesses better than you do, after all.

Once you’ve defeated the Mimic Tear, you’ll have a pretty large area to explore in Nokron. You’ll want to find Night’s Sacred Ground, which can be a little tricky to reach. First, find the Ancestral Woods Site of Grace, then jump down to the roof of the nearest building. (You can survive the fall.) Follow the path of buildings all the way down, until you reach the façade of an enormous temple. The Mimic Tear ashes are within, and you’ll require a Stonesword Key to acquire them. 

I won’t go into the exact steps here — Elden Ring is all about exploration, after all — but the Elden Ring wiki outlines the process, if you’re having trouble.

How to optimize the Mimic Tear

Once you have the Mimic Tear ashes in your possession, the fun part begins. First, revisit Roundtable Hold (check our Elden Ring tips if you haven’t been there in a while) and speak with Roderika the spirit tuner. Use whatever Ghost Glovewort you have in your possession; if you need more, explore catacomb dungeons. In fact, if you want to upgrade the Mimic Tear as far as it will go, you can find one Great Ghost Glovewort item in Night’s Sacred Ground, not too far from where you find the Mimic Tear ashes.

Now, here’s the fun part. Once you upgrade the Mimic Tear as far as it will go, it will essentially just be a much, much more durable version of your character. Whatever items you equip, your Mimic Tear will equip as well; whatever skills you wield, your Mimic Tear will wield, too.

There are as many ways to customize your Mimic Tear as there are ways to customize your character. As such, I won’t recommend specific gear or spells, since they may not mesh well with your playstyle. However, I can say that as a heavy-duty melee fighter, I got much more use out of my Mimic Tear once I equipped a curved greatsword and heavier armor. Doing so meant that my Mimic Tear could stagger enemies — even bosses — and not get staggered easily himself. As my Mimic Tear soaked up punishment, I would attack bosses from the rear, or retreat to heal.

While the Mimic Tear isn’t necessary to complete Elden Ring, it’s one of the best summons you can use, particularly if you take some time to farm extra Runes and build up your character. Just be aware that you can’t use the Mimic Tear while confronting most overworld bosses. Elden Ring wouldn’t want to make things too easy, after all.