Badass Giant Swords from Video Games
What’s in this article?
Melee weapons are a staple in anime and video games with weapons such as the katana and scythe being fan favorites. While these weapons are pretty badass in their own right, few can hold a candle to how visually impressive giant swords are.
Whether it’s a dark claymore wielded by a valkyrie and a gemstone encrusted blade used by a fictional king, giant swords in games communicate with an audience that its wielder is physically strong and likely capable of powerful moves that overwhelm enemies at the cost of their speed and stamina.
Here, we’ve put together some of the coolest giant swords from video game franchises that you’re bound to recognize and want a sword replica of.
What’s With All the Giant’s Swords in Video Games?
The oversized swords featured in video games and other media are based on the claymores used by real-life medieval warriors. The claymore is a giant sword variety of the Scottish two-handed sword that bears strong similarities to the German zweihander. These swords were far from standard weapons as their size made them unwieldy to use even in the best circumstances.
However, the claymore’s large and heavy blades made them good for smashing against armor and the long reach of the swords made them somewhat viable for use by a fighter on horseback.
That said, these claymores were the heaviest swords of their time. This made them too heavy for most users which is why these giant swords have gained a fearsome reputation in real life and in fiction. Berserk, the manga that popularized the giant sword that influenced Final Fantasy and Black Clover, has its protagonist Guts use a rusted giant sword as a visual shorthand for telling the reader that Guts is insanely strong, perhaps even superhumanly so.
5 Famous Giant Swords from Video Games
Fantasy swords fit for dragon slayers are everywhere in video games, especially ones that incorporate classic fantasy tropes. Their intimidating size makes them fit for slaying dragons, demons, and titans like the Greek Hyperion alike.
1. Cloud’s Buster Sword from Final Fantasy
Even if you don’t play Final Fantasy, you can likely tell Cloud’s Buster Sword apart from a sea of other video game swords. It’s Cloud’s signature weapon and since he’s the most popular character from the game by far, the sword is practically a mascot of the game too.
In the Final Fantasy games, the Buster Sword is typically Cloud’s most well rounded weapon, giving him a decent all-around stat boost. In real life, your Buster Sword replica will be light enough that you don’t have to drag it behind you.
The replica Buster Sword is made of high density foam and painted to have metallic details on both the blade and hilt, giving it a visual heaviness with none of the actual weight.
- Material: High density foam
- Length: 140 cm
2. Snow-Tombed Starsilver from Genshin Impact
Snow-Tombed Starsilver is a craftable sword that Genshin Impact players can obtain from Dragonspine. It is found in a vault at the heart of Dragonspine where an ancient civilization once thrived. A cataclysm that entombed the civilization in endless snow led its princess to give the sword to a hero from another land in the hopes that the sword would help him on his journey to find a solution.
The hero fails to find one and returns to the princess, only to find that she and her people are dead. Because of this, he leaves Snow-Tombed Starstilver in a vault where it is later discovered by the player character who is also a hero from another land.
You don’t have to go on a years-long journey to make use of this Snow-Tombed Starsilver replica. The sword is made of lightweight PVC and is designed for both cosplay and long term display. The material used means that you won’t have to worry as much about denting the sword compared to foam-only claymores.
- Material: PVC
- Length: 160 cm
3. Wolf’s Gravestone from Genshin Impact
Whereas Snow-Tombed Starsilver is a niche weapon with no clear best user, the Wolf’s Gravestone is widely considered by Genshin Impact fans as one of the best claymores in the game for Diluc because of its high base attack and attack stat oriented passives and substats.
The game’s lore says that it was once the sword of a knight sworn to Boreas, the wolf spirit residing outside of Monstadt. After Boreas’ passing, the knight left his sword to be Boreas’ gravestone, hence its name.
You won’t have to bury a direwolf to get a Wolf’s Gravestone replica because this one is available online for anyone looking for a quick gift idea for a gamer friend. The sword is made of high density foam, making it light and portable for cosplay purposes.
- Material: High density foam
- Length: 99.06 cm
4. Radahn’s Starscourge Greatsword from Elden Ring
Elden Ring’s Starscourge Radan will use his Starscourge Greatsword against you should you decide to challenge him in the game. Its massive size shows off his reputation as one of the mightiest living demigods as he is the only one capable of going toe-to-toe with Malenia and ending the fight in a stalemate.
Unfortunately for the player, the only way to get this weapon in the game is by defeating Radahn so you better be ready to prove your skills and strength. Outside of the game, though, forget about having a replica forged in fire as this replica of Radahn’s Starscourge Greatsword has you covered, be it for full video cosplay or tiktok.
Unlike most swords on this list, this replica is made of fiberglass with a metal core frame. This makes it stronger and allows it to emulate the obsidian-like look of the in-game blade better, but at the cost of its weight.
- Material: Fiberglass and metal
- Length: 140 cm
5. Artorias’ Greatsword from Dark Souls
The Greatsword of Artorias may have a formidable appearance but it has a fairly wholesome backstory as it is said to have been born from the soul of Sif who guards the grave of the legendary Artorias. The game’s story says Artorias died protecting Sif so it sucks that the player is forced to kill Sif to progress in the game.
If you have a furry buddy to cosplay with, this replica of Artorias’ Greatsword is the last piece you need for a cool Dark Souls cosplay. The sword is smaller and thinner so it’s made of stainless steel, giving it a more true-to-depiction appearance. The sword has a black blade and a spacious hilt for two-handed use.
- Material: Stainless steel
- Length: 140 cm
Conclusion
Giant swords from video games are going to be near unusable for the average cosplayers if they were faithfully recreated in real life. If you don’t have the immense strength needed for that, these replica swords are as close as it gets.
