You do not need to create another character to use the weapons and armor associated with Elden Ring's Idus Knight and Heavy Knight classes. With the Tarnished Pack, you can obtain that equipment on an existing save by buying it from merchants or finding it in the Lands Between. What requires a new character is selecting Idus Knight or Heavy Knight as a starting class, since that choice is made during character creation.
Starting class and equipment are two different things
Bandai Namco's official patch 1.17 notes, published on August 27, 2026, make the distinction clear. Both classes were added to character creation, but their starting equipment can also be acquired during exploration. Players who are already deep into their playthrough therefore do not have to give up their progress just to wield the new weapons or wear the armor.
This does not mean an existing character can change their starting class to Idus Knight or Heavy Knight. The pack adds those options when creating a new character, while acquiring the items afterward is a separate route. Wearing a class's armor does not automatically change a character's original starting attributes, either.
Where to find the new classes' weapons and armor
Bandai Namco confirms that the gear can be bought from merchants or collected in the world, but its announcement does not list every location. For specific directions, an August 27 PC Gamer guide by Sean Martin, with contributions from Tyler Colp, identifies these routes:
- Idus Knight, Silver Grooved set: buy it from the Nomadic Merchant in northern Liurnia of the Lakes, on the east side of the ravine leading to the Ruin-Strewn Precipice, north of Bellum Church. This is the armor set associated with the class.
- Idus Sword: loot it from a corpse resting against a tree in southern Liurnia, northwest of the Liurnia Lake Shore Site of Grace.
- Heavy Knight, Steel set: buy it from the Isolated Merchant at the Isolated Merchant's Shack in western Weeping Peninsula, south of the Fourth Church of Marika.
- Hefty Scimitar: purchase it from the Nomadic Merchant in eastern Limgrave, northwest of Fort Haight. This is the Heavy Knight's starting weapon.
Item names follow the sources consulted. Reaching each merchant or location depends on which regions and routes you have accessed in your own game; installing the DLC does not automatically place the equipment in your inventory.
What to check before using the pack on an existing save
- Confirm that you own the content. On PC, PlayStation and Xbox, Tarnished Pack is add-on content for Elden Ring. Updating the game alone is not the same as purchasing the pack. The Tarnished Edition for Nintendo Switch 2 already includes the content.
- Update the game. Patch 1.17 was distributed on August 27 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Steam. Bandai Namco scheduled the pack for August 28, 2026.
- Carry on with your existing character. Visit the listed merchants or item locations and collect the pieces you want. A new save is necessary only if you specifically want to choose one of the new starting classes.
The Steam listing gives August 27 as its store release date, while Bandai Namco's official notes specify August 28 and separate release times by platform and region. These dates should be read in context rather than assuming a store's displayed date applies to every market.
Is there a catch for late-game characters?
There is a caveat, but it is not a general restriction on the starting-class equipment. The patch also adds NPC invasions in Caelid and Leyndell, Royal Capital. Bandai Namco explicitly states that the Leyndell invasion will not occur after the city becomes Leyndell, Ashen Capital. Being able to obtain the starting equipment from merchants or world pickups should therefore not be confused with being able to trigger every new event at any point in a playthrough.
Tarnished Pack also adds three Torrent appearance options found in Stormveil Castle, Liurnia of the Lakes and Altus Plateau. Once you obtain one, the option to change the spectral steed's appearance appears in the Site of Grace menu. None of these additions changes the central rule: you can keep your character and collect the new equipment, but you cannot change that character's starting class.
