Summary
- Progression in Elden Ring can be challenging due to difficulty spikes from bosses.
- Players must strategically choose which bosses to face for the greatest rewards.
- Bosses like Elden Beast and Promised Consort Radahn offer high rune rewards, enhancing gameplay.
Progression in Elden Ring can be tough. While the start of a player's journey in the Lands Between will likely see them rolling through the mobs of basic enemies with ease, all that it takes is one tricky boss to start a difficulty spike.
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Players will often have to roam around, looking for places to get stronger before they continue to tackle the main path. The open world lends itself to facing enemies in an order controlled by players, so it can be helpful to know which bosses yield the greatest rewards. Here are the bosses that drop the most runes, ranked in order of their rewards.
Updated March 13, 2025 by Connor Hogg: Despite the introduction of the massive Shadow of The Erdtree expansion, the tried and true bosses in FromSoftware's epic journey across the Lands Between still drop their masses of runes when the player bests them. However, with the new areas and challenges posed by the Land of Shadow, there are plenty of new bosses to challenge for players looking to level up quickly.
1 Morgott, The Omen King
120,000 Runes
- Health: 10,399
- Strong Vs Holy & Fire
- Also drops Remembrance of the Omen King, Morgott's Great Rune
The twin brother of Mohg, 
Morgott, the Omen King hated his status as an Omen and was banished to the underground civilization beneath the capital. He awaits the Tarnished at Leyndell and is a required boss to complete the game.
Morgott's attacks cause blood loss but he can also summon other weapons to attack from range and to restrict players from getting closer. While this boss fight is difficult, the Omen King rewards the Tarnished with fewer Runes than some of the other bosses who pale in comparison.
2 Borealis The Freezing Fog
100,000 Runes
- Health: 11,268
- Strong Vs Frostbite, Slash & Pierce
- Also drops a Dragon Heart
Borealis, the Freezing Fog is an ice dragon that awaits the player in the Mountaintops of the Giants near the Spiritcaller Cave Site of Grace. Although Borealis is an entirely optional boss, players are likely to struggle against this huge frosty foe.
Borealis summons a blizzard in the fight area that can obscure him as he flies around, making any breath attacks seem to spring from nowhere. Players should try to use ranged weapons to attack from afar while staying clear of Borealis' breath.
3 Commander Niall
90,000 Runes
- Health: 15,541
- Strong Vs Slash
- Also drops Veteran's Prosthesis
A brave warrior who offered his leg in return for the lives of captured soldiers, 
Commander Niall resides in Castle Sol where he defends one half of a medallion that grants players entry to the Haligtree. Although this area is entirely optional, players will miss the brutal land of Miquella and Malenia if they do not challenge the powerful Commander.
Niall brings the souls of two knights to fight alongside him, and each of them will attack with cold strikes while Niall himself will buff his allies and attack with Frost and Lightning.
4 Golden Hippopotamus
200,000 Runes
- Health: 33,866
- Strong Vs Hemorrhage and Frostbite
- Also drops Aspects of the Crucible: Thorns, Scadutree Fragment x 2
A boss that has multiple forms across the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, the most powerful version of the 
Golden Hippopotamus is at the base of a Marika statue in the Shadow Keep. An Aspect of the Crucible, the Hippopotamus is slow and clumsy, and while it attacks with a huge area of effect, it can be circled to attack while it readies its next attacks.
The golden quills on its back can be fired into the air to attack from above, but players should make sure to get to this boss when they can for a mass of runes that are easy if players don't get on the wrong side of the giant thing.
5 Rakshasa
90,000 Runes
- Health: 20,235
- Strong Vs Fire
- Also drops Rakshasa's Great Katana and Rakshasa's armor set
An optional Shadow of the Erdtree boss in the East Nameless Mausoleum near the Recluse's River Downstream Site of Grace. Jumping, dashing, and swinging her katana in long flurries that can easily catch the Tarnished out, 
Rakshasa can be a formidable enemy.
Her armor means that she deals more damage while also taking a lot more in return, and the description of the set claims that it is dyed red with the blood of her previous victims. Players should time their attacks carefully and retreat as soon as she closes the gap and comes in close.
6 Rykard, Lord Of Blasphemy
130,000 Runes
- Health: 89,613
- Strong Vs Fire
- Also drops Rykard's Great Rune, Remembrance of the Blasphemous
The heretical son of Rennala and Radagon, 
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy has become part of an immortal snake and is the Shardbearer residing in Volcano Manor. As players can choose which Shardbearers to defeat while on their journey, some fans may never fight, or even discover the location of Rykard.
This can be a challenging boss fight, but the Serpent Hunter Greatspear that can be found earlier in Volcano Manor will make the battle much easier with its unique effects against this boss.
7 Godskin Duo
170,000 Runes
- Health: 26,350
- Strong Vs Holy & Fire
- Also drops Smithing Stone Miner's Bell Bearing (4)
A boss that is required to progress through the story, the 
Godskin Duo is an uneven fight. Located in the Crumbling Farum Azula, a Godskin Apostle, and a Godskin Noble - both fights that players could have encountered earlier in the game - fight together with a shared health bar.
If either of the pair dies in the combat, they can be brought back to life by their partner, which can make this fight quite tricky. If the attacks line up awkwardly, players can have a really hard time, but the runes that this fight rewards make progression from this point inevitable.
8 Great Wyrm Theodorix
180,000 Runes
- Health: 25,649
- Strong Vs Fire & Frostbite
-
Also drops 3 x
Dragon Heart
Although it can be tempting to avoid the trickier optional bosses, 
Great Wyrm Theodorix gives a worthy reward for such a challenging boss fight. In the frozen river at the Consecrated Snowfield, the wyrm will pose a threat to any who is near him with his flaming attacks.
A troll soldier who was transformed into his bestial form after he engaged in dragon communion, he attacks the same way as a magma wyrm boss, but with much more health and much more potential damage output. If players find him, he could be an effective early windfall of runes.
9 Fire Giant
180,000 Runes
- Health: 42,363
- Strong Vs Fire & Frostbite
-
Also drops
Remembrance of the Fire Giant
In one of the most important parts of Elden Ring's story, the Tarnished must acquire the fire, protected by a lone giant, to burn the Erdtree. The defender giant is a mandatory boss to further the story, but the 180 thousand runes that he drops make the fight more than worth it.
To beat this boss, players should remember to use their steed, Torrent, intelligently. Many of the Fire Giants' attacks are slow but do massive damage, so low-vitality characters should take extra care.
10 Gideon Ofnir
180,000 Runes
- Health: 6226
- Strong Vs Slash and Immune to Death Blight
-
Also drops the
All-Knowing Armor
Set and Scepter
An ally who turns against the player, 
Gideon Ofnir is a necessary boss fight, but players have a lot of freedom when they actually choose to combat him.
Gideon is a caster with a bevy of projectile attacks that can quickly shred through player health, so it is important to use the pillars in the boss room as cover and to close any distance so that he can be interrupted when he tries to cast his bigger, more potent spells.