Mounted combat offers a lot of benefits inElin, to the point that some builds will be entirely dependent on mounts, summons, and companions to fight for them. At the same time, it isn’t immediately explained how mounts work or what benefits they give you.

This guide will cover how to obtain mounts as well as what creatures make for the best steeds in battle. The majority of them are fully actualized people and not farm animals but occasionally you’ll be able to ride a quadruped into battle without worrying about the implied relationships and power dynamics of mounting your friends.

The Tinker’s Camp in Elin is where the player can learn the riding and symbiosis skills.

The game is in Early Access, so this guide might be updated in the future as the game gets further developed.

How To Use A Mount

Before you can use a mount you’ll need to obtain the Riding skill. This is available by default to some starting classes, such as the farmer. Most players will need tohead to the trainer in the Tinker’s Campand fork up some platinum coins.

Once you’ve gained the skill, it’ll appear on your ability bar. Simply activate the skill on a friendly character and you can ride them. This works on pets, villagers, and plot-relevant companions. Your mount will becounted towards your maximum number of companions,but the game will warn you if your party is too large for your current charisma.

The player of Elin prepares to buy a horse from the animal tamer in Yowyn.

If you don’t have a suitable starting mount, theanimal tamer in Yowyn sells horses for a few thousand Oren. Animal tamers can also sell more exotic mounts such as carbuncles and dinosaurs.

How Do Mounts Work

The Ride ability doesn’t give a lot of information on what you gain from a mount, either in travel or combat. Some details for how the ability works are intuitive and others you need to derive fromclosely comparing the attributes of both you and your steedwhen mounted and dismounted.

To change the visuals of your mount, you’re able to use a hitching post. By default everything you mount becomes a horse.

Elin’s Maiden of Blades Misaki is given a series of mutation potions to improve her speed and damage resistances.

There are also drawbacks to riding a mount, though they are negligible in comparison:

The symbiosis skill operates like riding but in reverse. The character you ‘host’ will become attached to you, become less likely to be attacked and will share some buffs.The symbiote character will act based on your speedand not that of your mount.

A player in Elin explores the void dungeon with a team of adventurers and creatures.

What Makes A Good Mount

There are a few considerations for what makes a good mount.Durability and speed are the main qualities to search forbut you also want them to complement your playstyle.

Some mounts has a hidden attribute that reduces their speedwhen acting as a mount. When mounting, if the message “this creature is too weak to carry you” appears you’ll find it’s speed stat is severely reduced. This is mostly applied to creatures that it would be gamebreaking to use as a mount otherwise, such as the silver bell with its 300 speed and immunity to most damage.

A Carbuncle in Elin has contracted Ether disease, giving it extra speed.

Alongside the animal tamers, there are a few different ways of getting mounts:

Uses

Starting Villagers

Loytel doesn’t really make a good mount but willhelp you grind the skilland fills an early party slot.

Adventurers

With an affinity over 75, you’ll gain an option to recruit most characters you encounter, but will also need a charisma above their highest attribute. Find any adventurer with a simple interest and give repeated gifts until they’ll agree to anything.

Captured Monsters

Beasts will have fewer equipment slots than more humanoid mounts, requiring you touse gene engineering to augment their abilities. There’s an intuitive sense that a lightning drake probably makes for a good steed.

Divine Apostles

Mostdeities award a powerful party memberwhen you reach enough piety with them. Since they’re recruited automatically, you don’t need to fuss with grinding skills and attributes. Some work well as mounts, while others do better as parasites.

Recruitable NPC adventurers and unique characters willrequire you to win a duel before they’ll join you. They’ll bring a team of equal size to yours, but you can ignore their team and focus on damaging them.

Good Example Mounts

If you’re looking to set a target for yourself, these characters are all consistently recruitable and perform well in one of the things we want a mount to do:

Golden Knight Aliga

Tank

The golden knight’s feats make them highly resistant to damage. They have a variant of the Opatos worship benefit that reduces all damage they take. Paired with the Earth Hammer’s ability to double her health, she becomes a very durable steed.

Both the hammer and the golden knight herself are piety rewards from Opatos. To get this much piety,you’ll need to sacrifice a good deal of ores at shrines.The quantity of ore appears to matter more than the rarity.

Steel Dragon Corgon

With both abreath attack and the ability to taunt, they’ll do a great job of keeping enemies away from your squishier party members.

This companion isrewarded for progressing Loytel’s questline. You’ll encounter them while developing Vernis and exploring the mines.

Carbuncle

Speed/Spellcaster

The carbuncle is a great spellcasting pet with a high base speed but not high enough to be given the penalty for super-fast mounts. They don’t have good endurance innately but their healing magics extend the durability of an entire party.Since your mounted carbuncle will faint instead of dying, your party will always have a healer who can cast resurrection.

Carbuncles can be obtained from animal tamers. you may find two tamers together on thesecond floor of the Fortune Bell.

Maiden of Blades Misaki

Tank/Speed

Misaki’s unique featCelestial Fox gives her increasing speed, life, and damage resistancethe higher her level gets. Each tail she grows takes more investment but if you’re patient she’ll become one of the strongest mounts in the game. Adjust her equipment permissions toensure she doesn’t equip a speed-debuffing waist gear.

One of the stronger NPCs you can recruit to your village, you’ll need a sizable charisma to woo her. She is found tending theshrine of Horome in Nefu Village.

How To Upgrade Your Mount

There are a few different tricks you may use to make a good mount even better, and some of them areapplicable to your pets and party membersmore broadly.

Broomification appears to have a negative interaction with Misakiand some other mounts, suppressing their native speed bonuses. It’s best used on characters that don’t have a high base speed.