Hidetaka Miyazaki and the rest of FromSoftware has officially done it. They’ve successfully answered the question, “What if we made an open-world Soulsborne game?” Against all odds, the studio behind the long line of transformative and genre-defining Dark Souls games, among others, found a way to marry their signature Soulsborne formula with one of the most expansive and memorable open-world experiences ever in a video game.
Unfortunately, while Elden Ring’s rabbit-hole of a world is its biggest strength, it’s also arguably its biggest weakness. The open-world nature of Elden Ring makes it easier than ever for players to miss out on certain important bosses and encounter ones that aren’t as integral to furthering the game’s main story.
Although we are of the thought that players should definitely experience everything that Elden Ring has to offer, difficult bosses and all, we also understand that some players prefer to know which ones are necessary to beat to progress and which ones are not.
In this guide below, we’ll focus on the handful of Elden Ring bosses that you’ll need to beat, no matter what.
Can you finish Elden Ring without beating all the bosses?
First things first, this is a matter of technicality, as in, yes, you’ll only need to fight the Elden Ring bosses listed below, but at the same time, you can’t really clear the game if you skip the rest. Most if not all optional bosses will give you power-ups like new weapons and powers that make fighting against Godfrey less of an exercise in futility. Make no mistake, we’re not undermining your skills, you’re free to stick only to the Elden Ring bosses we’ll list down below – we just don’t recommend it.
Which Elden Ring bosses are required to complete the campaign?
Now, before you claim that our list isn’t totally accurate, hear us out first. You see, some of the main bosses you’ll fight against in Elden Ring happen in quick succession and there are a handful of times when you’ll have to fight other “unnecessary” bosses to get to the “main” one. Sure, alternative routes exist, but they’re far more cumbersome than just having to slog through one difficult fight after another.
In any case, these 12 are the “main” baddies in Elden Ring that you’ll have to beat if you want to complete the game, as well as where to find them and how to beat them.
- Margit, the Fell Omen
- Godrick the Grafted
- Red Wolf of Radagon
- Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon
- Godfrey, First Elden Lord
- Morgott, the Omen King
- Fire Giant
- Maliketh, The Black Blade
- Godfrey, First Elden Lord (again)
- Hoarah Loux, Warrior
- Radagon of the Golden Order
- Elden Beast
Margit, The Fell Omen
Reward: 12,000 Runes, Talisman Pouch
Location: Near the gates to Stormveil Castle, at the ballista
The fight against Margit is split into two phases and both times are a bit tricky due to his attack speed. Don’t let the slow wind-up of his club attack fool you, he’s got a nifty knife trick that will catch you off guard twice if you can’t avoid the initial slash and the follow-up throw. Also, don’t even think about attacking Margit from behind, he’ll just swipe his tail at you for massive damage as he turns around.
Our tip? Bring everything you have at your disposal this early on in the game, like a buddy, a shield, and a phantom.
Because of Margit’s aggression, your best bet is to wait out his combo. Your first sign of a free hit is right after a big leap attack. You’ll have a few seconds to wail at him if you dodge the lightning hammer just as he lands. Meanwhile, try to block all his combos and sneak in a guard counter after the fourth hit. You can also do some damage from afar with magic, but be careful about his lightning daggers.
Godrick The Grafted
Reward: 15,000 Runes, Godrick’s Great Rune, Remembrance of the Grafted
Location: Stormveil Castle
As the Lord of Stormveil Castle, Godrick the Grafted is rightfully difficult. Similar to Margit, Godrick will force you to be on the defence most of the time with his combos. Godrick’s second phase also gives him a flamethrower in the form of a dragon’s head so you can’t exactly get too comfortable getting close to him.
The good news is that Godrick’s attacks are relatively easy to dodge and you can use jumping attacks for maximum damage. Also, Godrick has a tell that lets you know to stay away from him. You see, whenever he laughs, that’s a sign to keep your distance. Then, as Godrick transforms to his second phase, this is your chance to attack him from behind. Also, if you met up with Nepheli Loux just past the Warhawks-filled barricades en route to Godrick, you can ask her to fight Godrick with you.
At this point in the game, Nepheli is a powerful ally that can distract Godrick for you so you can get a few free hits or heal up.
Red Wolf of Radagon
Reward: 14,000 Runes, Memory Stone
Location: Raya Lucaria Academy
We’ve got good news, most players won’t be meeting Red Wolf of Radagon until after several hours’ worth of grinding. This means that you’ll have put in enough work and effort to find a proper playstyle as well as have a better understanding of the game. Also, the Red Wolf of Radagon isn’t as formidable as the two bosses listed before it. But, still, this is Elden Ring we’re talking about, so the word “easy” here carries just as much weight as you in space.
Red Wolf is fast but it’s easy to anticipate its movements, so just stay patient and time your attacks right so you can move on faster. If you insist on needing help, try summoning a spirit companion. Even if they won’t do much damage, having someone else to distract the Red Wolf will make it easier for you to see the boss’ attack patterns and find a good rhythm.
Rennala, Queen of The Full Moon
Reward: 40,000 Runes, Great Rune of the Unborn Remembrance of the Full Moon Queen
Location: Raya Lucaria Academy
Do not let Rennala’s status as the main boss of the entire region fool you, she’s not as difficult as her stature would suggest. While the first phase is quite tricky, all you need to do is to hit the glowing scholars to get her to fall and get a chance to deal damage. Don’t get greedy and step back as soon as she starts glowing. If you do this enough times, Rennala will enter her second phase, where she will open up with a one-shot beam before summoning crystal shards that can rapid-fire at you.
The secret here is to wail on Rennala and make her bleed. It also helps to have a summon that can attack her while you take care of her minions or kite the minions around for you while you attack her. This is entirely optional as you can actually take her down before she starts summoning different enemies.
Godfrey, First Elden Lord
Reward: 80,000 Runes, Talisman Pouch
Location: Leyndell, Royal Capital
As the first Elden Lord guarding the path to Queen Marika’s palace, you’ll need to defeat Godfrey for any chance to become one yourself. The good news is that this “main” boss isn’t all too hard. Between Godfrey’s long wind-up times and your ability to deal massive damage from afar at this point in the game, Godfrey should pose little threat to you. Just be careful when he throws his axe at you, his earlier attacks might have lulled you into a false sense of security, so do still try to stay on your toes.
Morgott, The Omen King
Reward: 120,000 Runes, Remembrance of the Omen King, Morgott’s Great Rune
Location: Leyndell, Royal Capital
We don’t care how far you’ve levelled up to get to this point in Elden Ring, it’s never going to be enough when you encounter Morgott. The Omen King is one of the most challenging bosses in a game that lives and breathes difficulty. He’s quick, deals tons of damage, and his attacks have a deceptively wide range.
We recommend summoning NPC ashes to get a chance to score free hits whenever Morgott turns his back to attack your summon. A greatshield will come in handy as well as his attacks are purely physical.
Once you’ve whittled down Morgott’s health low enough, he’ll make his combos longer and more deadly. Don’t even bother thinking about which of Morgott’s attacks at this point you can survive, all of them will kill you. Even the two-hit attack should be avoided at all costs since the first stun will lock you in place anyway.
The best way to go about Morgott is through calculated aggression: throw everything you can at him when he’s busy attacking your summons or in between his big attacks. Otherwise, stay away from him because Morgott will take you down in two hits.
Fire Giant
Reward: 180,000 Runes, Remembrance of the Fire Giant
Location: Mountaintops of the Giants
For a boss that has a very simple promise – he’s a giant that can throw fireballs and make flames shoot up from the ground – the Fire Giant is mind-numbingly difficult. The Fire Giant can’t exactly two-hit you like Morgott (well, that depends), but it’s large so you’ll want to stay on the backs of Torrent throughout the entire affair.
At the start of the fight, make your way to the Fire Giant and target its left foot (the one with a cloth wrap). Just continue hitting the foot and doubling back whenever the Fire Giant tries to attack you. The best thing about its size is that it telegraphs what it’s about to do so you’ll have ample time to react.
Then, once you’ve got the Fire Giant’s health down to half, it will start rolling around spewing out fireballs. The right way to approach this is like a bullet hell game and avoid everything that you see at all costs.
Two-handed weapons are great against the Fire Giant as well as those that deal Bleed Damage. Also, bring a whole lot of patience with you in this fight – it will definitely take a while.
Maliketh, The Black Blade
Reward: Remembrance of the Black Blade
Location: Crumbling Farum Azula
What makes the fight against Maliketh so difficult is the sudden shift in necessary playstyles in between phases. The first phase is a test of patience as you’ll want to walk around in a huge circle while avoiding and blocking his attacks before throwing in a few hits or two.
After this, the real fun begins as Maliketh starts becoming aggressive, in which case you’re better off fighting close quarters to have a better shot at dodging. Occasionally, Maliketh will scream as well, which is a sign for you to jump away.
Telegraphing Maliketh’s attack isn’t easy, but if you can stay consistent and patient, this challenging battle will be over soon enough.
Godfrey, First Elden Lord (Again)
Reward: 300,000 Runes, Remembrance of Hoaroah Loux
Location: Leyndell, Ashen Capital
No, this is not a typo. You’re going to have to fight Godfrey twice in Elden Ring and the second time around is much harder because Godfrey will have far more health. But, the actual fight itself shouldn’t go too differently. Godfrey’s move set remains the same and he’s just as vulnerable to Bleed damage as before. Just keep on attacking him until you whittle down his health to half, which is when the real fun starts.
Hoarah Loux, Warrior
Reward: 300,000 Runes, Remembrance of Hoaroah Loux
Location: Leyndell, Ashen Capital
Halfway through the second fight against Godfrey, he will shed his “godhood” and become Hoarah Loux once again. In this form, Hoarah Loux will be far more aggressive and attempt to get close to you so he can tackle your character and throw you up in the air – do not let him do this. To make matters worse, Hoarah Loux has a wider area of effect attack that will do serious damage.
The good news here is that everything that worked against Godfrey works just as well against Hoarah Loux, so whatever you did in the first half of the battle, do it again. Try to get behind Hoarah Loux as often as possible and hack away. Don’t get too greedy and soon enough, Hoarah Loux should go down.
Radagon of The Golden Order
Reward: 500,000 Runes, Elden Remembrance
Location: Leyndell, Ashen Capital
This is it. The final boss. Naturally, Radagon will be one of the most difficult beasts in Elden Ring.
Throughout most of the fight, Radagon will use two attacks: a quick first attack followed by a couple of swings from his hammer as if he’s trying to hook you. Don’t attempt to block it. Instead, move away from where he’s swinging the hammer. Meanwhile, the second attack will see him smashing the floor for an AoE attack that takes up a sizable chunk of the arena – try to move away as far as possible when you see him preparing for this.
Another attack to keep an eye on from Radagon is a combo or barrage where he’ll smash the floor successively in a quick fashion.
The key to beating Radagon is patience and perfection. Although this can be said for most Elden Ring boss fights, it applies best to Radagon. You can’t slip when fighting against him. You’ll have to be quick on your toes without taking your eyes off of him so you know when to chip in a couple of hits.
Once you beat Radagon, the Elden Beast will appear.
Elden Beast
Reward: 500,000 Runes, Elden Remembrance
Location: Leyndell, Ashen Capital
Being that the Elden Beast is the true final boss of Elden Ring, all we have to say is that we’re hoping you’ve prepared for it, meaning that you should be at least anywhere between levels 100-150 to attempt to end the game. Otherwise, don’t even bother as you’ll only end up wasting hours if not days trying to do the impossible. Then again, you probably wouldn’t have gotten this far anyway.
The reason why we’re telling you this is because it’s literally impossible to survive let alone beat the Elden Beast if you can’t even survive at least one attack, which is something that someone with 50 Vigor will struggle to do. The good news is that if you’ve got enough allocated on your Vigor, Endurance, and Dex, fighting against the Elden Beast becomes less about strategy and more about finding the right balance between knowing which hits to take and which ones to avoid.
There’s really no sugarcoating it, fighting against the Elden Beast is a nightmare and downright unfair. It flies away far too often and sometimes without warning, so the few chances that you get to land a hit aren’t always guaranteed.
As we’ve already mentioned, the Elden Beast is the final boss, so you might as well just slog through it.
Conclusion On Elden Ring Bosses
If you noticed that we didn’t get into much detail about how exactly you should beat a boss in Elden Ring, it’s by design. FromSoftware’s Hidetaka Miyazaki mentioned before Elden Ring’s launch that they made it so that the game would be more accessible and approachable than previous Soulsborne titles, which is true.
There’s no one tried and proven way to beat bosses in Elden Ring outside of experimentation and finding out what works best for you and your character’s build or playstyle.
After reading through our guide on the Elden Ring bosses, we encourage you to only use it as a starting point to build your preferred strategy. Otherwise, you’ll just end up banging your head on a wall, figuratively and probably even literally.
