I just finished Dark Souls 3 for the 5th time and came to notice that all the Souls game are on sale. That explains the sudden rise in host of embers and the inexperienced invasions. So, I thought, these guys will probably have a rough time with some of the Dark Souls 3 bosses – why not make a guide to help them out? And here we are.
For now, I’m not going to include the DLC bosses. But, if you like this guide and want more, do let me know about it in the comments. Just don’t be surprised if I can’t reply because the comment system is more bugged than the remastered DS1 release for computers.
1: Ludex Gundyr
Luded Gyndyr is the first boss of the game and by far one of the easiest bosses in the whole DS franchise. If you’re new to the game and you’re getting your butt kicked by him, no need to worry. We’ve all been there.
It’s natural to feel intimidated by his long reach and destructive second form. But, remember, he is:
- Very slow
- Has ridiculously long recovery times
- Can be parried
- And is weak to fire
So, be brave. If you’re new to the series, do keep in mind that apart from timing, the dodging direction is very important as well. Try to get behind him as that slows him down a bit more and limits his moveset.
As for his second form, try to keep a bit of distance before dodging and counter-attacking as trying to identify his attacks up-close is a bit tough when he is so big.
2: Vordt of The Boreal Valley
Vordt is all around another easy boss. All you need to do is dodge around him and smack him in the butt. Not much that he can do about it.
Do be very careful of his second stage charge, though. It causes a lot of damage. His icy breath is something to look out for as well but it’s very slow and can easily be dodged. You can also use the time that he takes to cast it in order to safely deal massive amounts of damage.
He seems to be weak with lightning, but the Wiki page only mentions that he is weak only to melee and dark. So, go figure. Not like you’ll need that extra damage. But, just saying.
3: Curse-Rotted Greatwood
If you don’t know the secret to beating this boss then you’ll never manage to do it. But, it’s simple really. See these sacks that are hanging on his legs, back and crotch? That’s his weakness. Simply try to smash those without dying and you’ll be good to go.
Be careful of his middle hand while he is on his second form. If it grabs you it may result in instant death. And that’s all there is to it really. Curse-Rotted Greatwood is an optional boss. But, you’ll need him if you wish to turn the souls of bosses into items by relying on Ludleth.
4: Crystal Sage
The Crystal Sage can be a massive pain in the butt for Knight builds. Especially during the second stage where multiple clones come out.
Some people say that the best strategy is to take out the clones one by one before attacking the Sage, preferably by using knives. But, I personally found it easier to just rush straight into the boss and deal enough damage so that he’ll go away before the close have any time to do anything.
He is weak to pretty much everything except magic, fire, and dark. At this point, you can probably rely on the sword of Irithyll to deal extra frostbite damage.
This one seems like an optional boss, but he is not. You’ll need him later to progress through the Deacons of The Deep and thus through the rest of the game as well.
5: Deacons of The Deep
- Find that one guy who has red LEDs
- Beat him to a pulp
- Repeat with the new guy
- Done. Easy
That’s all there is to it with this boss. They can instantly kill you with their curse attack but if you move fast they won’t have time to do anything.
6: Dark Souls 3 Bosses: Abyss Watchers (Lord of Cinder)
The Abyss Watchers are the first real challenge on your path and the first Lord of Cinder. They are fast with small recovery times and big combos. Beating them is a bit of a challenge no matter what.
You can both parry and backstab them. But, I wouldn’t recommend the first choice. They are way too agile and not worth the risk. And since they are so fast, your best bet is probably dual wielding a relatively light weapon in order to take advantage of the low poise while having time to counter-attack as well.
On the first stage, you don’t have to fight everyone. Once a third watcher comes out, at least two of them will start fighting each other which gives you space to do whatever you want.
On the second stage, just be careful of the after-attack flames, dodge consistently, and you’ll be good to go. If it’s any help, they are weak to lightning and frost.
7: High Lord Wolnir
Wolnir is an easy one. Simply smash his bracelets and that’s all there is to it. Try doing it before all the skeletons spawn cause they are very frustrating and a pain to deal with.
Other than that, stay away from that smoke behind him and you’ll be good.
8: Old Demon King
Not much to say about this optional boss. Just dodge consistently, avoid his ranged attacks, and you’ll be good. He is weak to dark but it’s not like that will make a huge difference.
One thing that must be noted is that he is rather slow. So, you can take advantage of that to use a big and strong weapon if you can.
9: Pontiff Sulyvahn
Pontiff is where boys become men. His combos are insanely long and deal massive amounts of damage while he leaves very little room for fighting back.
Thankfully, you have the option of parrying most of his attacks. Most people say that this is where you learn to parry or you go home. But, honestly, I found parrying to be insanely tough with this guy. So, I just went with a lightweight sword, dodged consistently, and did as much damage as I could.
In his second form, he will spawn a clone of him which mirrors his attacks. At this point, he’ll start using ranged magic attacks as well – do be very careful with them as they deal massive damage.
Killing the clone is probably not worth it since another one will spawn shortly afterward anyway. Just focus on killing the main boss.
10: Dark Souls 3 Bosses: Aldrich, Devourer of Gods (Lord of Cinder)
As a Lord of Cinder, Aldrich can be a bit of a pain. He launches numerous attacks at once with the rain of arrows being by far the most dangerous one.
- To avoid the arrows, run into zig-zag motions and not in a straight line. Also, try to keep your distance when he launches the arrows or leap behind him if you can since that’s a safe zone from them
- The ranged blasts are highly destructive. Try to keep your distance where he fires them as that makes dodging easier
- You can safely hit his tail while he is teleporting
- Stay locked on while he fires his arrows as he can still attack you in the middle of the rain
- Don’t be too scared of the fire in the second stage. It doesn’t deal a lot of damage
He ate my waifu, so I ended his laifu.
11: Dark Souls 3 Bosses: Yhorm The Giant (Lord of Cinder)
Yhorm is easy. You just need to know his weakness. Have you noticed the weapon that lies beside his throne? That’s what you need to bring him down.
All you need to do is fully charge it, aim at his head, fire, repeat. His second form is highly destructive. But, if you can dodge his attacks successfully then he really is the one of the easiest Dark Souls 3 bosses – especially if you consider that he is a Lord of Cinder.
12: Dancer of The Boreal Valley
Hands down one of the best fights in the game. The Dancer is insanely difficult not because of the destructive attacks, but because of just how unpredictable she is.
Compared to the rest of the bosses, she is moving at a much different pace with weird combos that are tough to memorize. But, once you do memorize them, that’s all you really need.
Do be very careful of the grab attack as it can kill you immediately – depending on how much you leveled up your health. Other than that, get your dodging game on point and you’ll be good to go.
If it helps you, she is weak to lightning and dark.
13: Oceiros, The Consumed King
I’ll never understand why so many people struggle with Oceiros. All I had to do was move behind him and smack him to oblivion. This technique got me through him numerous times almost always with the first try.
Just be careful with his second stage charges and you’ll be fine. Consider using a light weapon with fast attacks since he is moving a little bit unpredictably.
14: Champion Gundyr
Champion Gundyr is basically Ludex in his prime and we can safely assume that we’re fighting him on an alternate dimension/timeline. He is basically the same thing but with more combos, faster attacks, and much smaller openings than before.
All you need to do is memorize his moves and you should be good. You can parry him, but, good luck doing that with his fast attacks. I personally felt safer just dodging and counter-attacking.
Other than that, just keep a bit of distance when you want to drink an Estus cause he doesn’t give you a lot of room.
15: Dragonslayer Armour
This guy took the saying: “The best offense is a good defense!” a bit too literally. It’s shield bash after shield bash.
No special tactics are required in order to beat him. Just dodge, hit, dodge, hit. Be careful with the dragon attacks on the second stage, and that’s about it.
16: Dark Souls 3 Bosses: Twin Princes (Lord of Cinder)
Ever thought you’d feel good about beating a couple of cripples? Yeah, me neither. Darn you Dark Souls.
Beating the Twin Princes is easy. All you need to do is start predicting and avoiding the teleportations and you’re set for a victory. Other than that, careful with the ranged attacks as well.
Last, but not least, do keep in mind that you need to defeat both of the brothers in the second stage or Lorian will keep on getting revived time and time again. So, try hitting from behind.
17: Soul of Cinder
Soul of Cinder requires a ton of patience. His attacks may be easy to dodge, but they deal a lot of damage.
It’s best to attack him while he is on mage form. Especially while he is casting soul stream which leaves him wide open. If you don’t feel comfortable fighting him in the other forms, there’s nothing wrong with holding back till he switches.
As for the second form, just try to stay away from the massive combo which can kill you instantly and the grab. You can tell when he is about to launch the combo since he is taking a ton of time to begin.
The lightning attacks may be intimidating. But, if you stay calm, keep your distance, and dodge correctly then there’s nothing to worry about.
18: Ancient Wyvern
Climb to the top of the wooden platform, move over where the pre-installed messages are, then jump down and kill him with a plunging attack. Probably one of the most boring fights ever.
19: Nameless King
One of the toughest bosses ever. The reason that Nameless King is so tough isn’t because he has a variety of moves or anything. It’s because he deals so much damage and leaves very little to no room for healing.
If you manage to learn his moves and dodge accurately, then he immediately becomes an easy boss. The hard part is gathering the patience to get through him because it’s such a long fight.
He is weak to fire and dark. But, again, those don’t make a huge difference anyway. Again, I’d recommend using a fast weapon because a single mistake can cost you more than half of your life.
That’s all for now. Sorry for the short tips but the list is a bit too long to get into detailed descriptions.
Personal Setup:
Gamepad: GameSir G3s Headset: HyperX Cloud 2 CPU: Ryzen 5 2600 GPU: GTX 1060 6GB RAM: 16GB DDR4
Recommended Specs:
Gamepad: GameSir G4s Headset: Anything will do
CPU: Ryzen 3/Core i3 GPU: GTX 1660/RX 570 RAM: 8GB DDR4