Summary
- Boss design in Elden Ring can push players to their limits, with frustrating moves and mechanics that test patience and skill.
- From the Putrid Avatar's scarlet rot attacks to the Valiant Gargoyles overwhelming tactics, every boss requires strategic thinking.
- The Godskin Duo tops the list of frustrating bosses, forcing players to battle two formidable enemies sharing a health bar.
Elden Ring is an undeniably brilliant game, but in an adventure so large, there's bound to be some extremely frustrating bosses. Because there are so many different ways to approach the game, inevitably there will be bosses that give players trouble, but some of the toughest enemies provoke unbridled frustration like no others.
FromSoft games are known for their fairness, but sometimes the design of their bosses can push a player's patience to the breaking point. That's where frustration comes in. In Elden Ring, frustration arises when bosses have a seemingly unfair move set, an impenetrable layer of defenses, or reinforcements that break the flow of the game. The only thing better in Elden Ring than beating a boss is finally beating a frustrating boss.
10 Putrid Avatar
A Repeat Boss Made More Pungent
- Found in Caelid
- Drops a Greenburst Crystal Tear and Flame-Shrouding Cracked Tear
- Weak against fire, strong against holy and frostbite damage
One of the first enemies players discover as they enter the amazingly-designed Caelid is the Putrid Avatar. Though it resembles the Erdtree Avatars from elsewhere in the game, the Putrid Avatar has several unique attacks involving scarlet rot that make it a major pain to fight.
Throughout the fight, the Putrid Avatar will jump into the air then slam down, casting a wide pool of scarlet rot in its wake. For melee characters, this move is infuriating, as they have little option but to roll away and wait for the scarlet rot to dissipate. This boss requires the patience of a saint to beat.
9 Fell Twins
A Gruesome Twosome Of The Highest Order
- Found just outside Leyndell
- Drops Omenkiller Rollo Spirit Ash
- Weak against frostbite and scarlet rot damage, strong against holy damage
As the Tarnished ventures east of Leyndell in the hopes of activating one of the best Great Runes in the game at the nearby Divine Tower, they will find their screen enveloped in pitch-black darkness. Then, two fell ogres attack from the darkness at the same time.
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There is no escape from this boss fight, and both enemies prove a fearsome and infuriating challenge when so close to the Divine Tower. The only hope of defeating the Fell Twins is by separating them so they can be attacked one by one, but this is no mean feat. These two have dealt out more than their fair share of infuriating deaths.
8 Commander Niall
What's A Commander Without His Lackeys?
- Found in Castle Sol
- Drops the Veteran's Prothesis
- Resists slashing damage and is weak to nothing
In the far north of the game lies Castle Sol, where Commander Niall commands the remnants of his forces against the snowy blizzards outside. Commander Niall is a lot like Commander O'Neill that the Tarnished can find in Caelid, but Niall has several sneaky tricks up his sleeve to make his fight incredibly infuriating.
Commander Niall spawns in with two high-powered knight compatriots that must be dealt with before fighting him. Even if the Tarnished manages this, Niall himself has a litany of devastating moves that can melt a high-level health bar in seconds. Compared to O'Neill in Caelid, Niall is a fearsome boss that can one-hit even endgame-level characters, ensuring cries of anguish from his victims.
7 Full-Grown Fallingstar Beast
A Hard Shell, A Harder Boss
- Found in Mt. Gelmir
- Drops Smithing Stones, Somber Smithing Stones, and Fallingstar Beast Jaw on defeat
- Is strong against all physical damage, but weak against magic, fire, and holy damage
One of the strangest discoveries in Mt. Gelmir isn't the snake-cult deep within, but this onyx-clad bull-like creature residing in a high-up crater where a meteor must have landed long ago. However, instead of a delightful visit from the stars above, the Full-Grown Fallingstar Beast delivers a crucible of both frustration and anger in equal measure.
Not only does the Fallingstar Beast's thick onyx hide make all physical damage much weaker, it is incredibly fast, racing around the arena and never giving the Tarnished a moment to breathe. To make matters worse, the Fallingstar Beast also uses frequent gravity magic spells that make it effective both from afar and in melee range. The only path through is pure mastery, making the fight extremely frustrating just moments away from entering Volcano Manor.
6 Runebear
The Most Fearsome Beast In The Lands Between
- Found in Earthbore Cave
- Drops the Spelldrake Talisman
- Strong against magic and bleed damage, but weak against fire and sleep
In the world of Elden Ring, there are seemingly many more dangerous creatures and monsters than a bear. However, anyone who has played the game knows that the most fearsome creatures in the game may just be the oversized bears that inhabit one of Limgrave's best locations.
These bears have massive HP bars and attack with terrifying ferocity. Unless mounted on Torrent, there is no escape from the Runebear's wrath. Trying to fight it head on is an exercise in misery, so most will simply run away. However, the Earthbore Cave Runebear can't be escaped, making the fight extremely frustrating and requiring extreme patience to find the best moments to attack.
5 Margit, The Fell Omen
Delay This Test As Long As Possible
- Found at the entrance to Stormveil Castle
- Drops a Talisman Pouch on defeat
- Strong against holy damage, but weak to slashing attacks
Margit is maybe the most famous boss in Elden Ring, and for good reason. He guards the bridge to Elden Ring's first fearsome legacy dungeon, Stormveil Castle, and he is a clear gameplay design choice to push back any player who isn't yet strong enough.
Margit is reviled among the player base, not only for his hefty attacks and mighty health bar, but also because his moves are very difficult to dodge. Unlike the bosses of Dark Souls, Margit marks a shift in enemy design where their moves will begin, but delay execution, meaning a player may roll too early and still be hit by the attack. Margit's entire design is meant to discourage this behavior, but it can be a frustrating habit to shake.
4 Astel, Stars Of Darkness
Eldritch Horror, But Again
- Found in Yelough Anix Tunnel
- Drops the Meteorite of Astel sorcery on defeat
- Strong against all kinds of elemental or magical damage, but weak to physical attacks
The first time players are likely to meet Astel is during Ranni's difficult but rewarding questline, and it's a hell of a moment. This creature defies the design philosophy of every other enemy in the game so far, and it is a difficult fight, too.
The problem comes when players stumble onto the exact same enemy again later in the Consecrated Snowfields. Not only is it a copy and paste boss, and it appears in an anticlimactic dungeon fight, but is even more difficult than the first appearance. Suddenly, the awe and respect afforded to Astel in the first fight turns to fury, then frustration, when faced with the prospect of grinding through the fight once again.
3 Divine Beast Dancing Lion
A Boss So Furious Even The Camera Can't Keep Track
- Found in Belurat, Tower Settlement
- Drops the Remembrance of the Dancing Lion and Divine Beast Head on death
- Strong against magic, lightning, and frostbite, but weak against fire, rot, and bleed damage
As one of the first major bosses a player is likely to face in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion doesn't disappoint in terms of spectacle. However, it soon becomes clear that it is the most cogent example of the DLC's intense difficulty spike.
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Not only does the Divine Beast Dancing Lion dish out a menagerie of high-damage moves, but in its second phase it indiscriminately spreads elemental damage across the entire arena, making it difficult to land a single hit. That becomes even more frustrating when the boss' size and speed make it difficult for the camera to keep up, making the experience very frustrating.
2 Valiant Gargoyles
Two Behemoths Who Refuse To Play Ball
- Found in the Siofra Aqueduct
- Drops the Gargoyle's Greatsword and Gargoyle's Twinblade
- Strong against fire, lightning, holy, and slashing damage, but weak against striking blunt damage
At the top of the Aqueduct near the awe-inspiring Siofra River area of Elden Ring lies an unwelcome reminder of the gargoyles atop the cathedral way back in the original Dark Souls. The Valiant Gargoyles are just like their predecessors, wielding large weapons and attacking simultaneously to overwhelm the player.
The trick with these two is patience, because attacking them both at the same time is a suicide mission. However, waiting for the opportune moment to attack one where the other won't get involved requires a lot of patience, and when opportunities are thin on the ground, frustration rises fast. This is one of those instances where the difficulty spike can feel cheap or unearned.
1 Godskin Duo
Fighting Two Of The Hardest Enemies At The Same Time
- Found in Crumbling Farum Azula
- Drops the Smithing-Stone Miner's Bell Bearing [4] on death
- Strong against striking, fire, and holy, but crucially weak to sleep damage and effects
There was no question which boss would top the list. The Godskin Duo is an unskippable boss, placed near the end of the game in Crumbling Farum Azula, one of the most difficult areas of the game world. This fight forces the player to battle two of the hardest enemies in the game at the same time. Not only that, but they share a health bar, so it's impossible to permanently kill one of them.
Fighting these two fairly is one of the most frustrating experiences in the game. That's why many have resorted to the cheese tactic of throwing sleeping pots at the pair that will incapacitate at least one of them for a short period of time. Without this tactic, the Godskin Duo are undoubtedly the most frustrating boss to fight in the entire game.
Elden Ring
- Released
- February 25, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- From Software
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X
