You’ve probably been there. You enter a fog gate, the music swells, and before you can even summon your Mimic Tear, some demigod has pancaked you into the dirt. It’s frustrating. Honestly, it’s enough to make you want to put the controller through the TV. But the thing about Elden Ring is that it isn’t just about having fast reflexes; it’s about knowing how the game is trying to trick you.
Most people play these fights like they’re playing a standard action game. They react. They see a sword move, they roll. But FromSoftware doesn’t work like that. They design bosses specifically to punish your natural human instincts. If you feel like a boss is "input reading" or "spamming," you’re probably falling for one of their psychological traps. This Elden Ring boss guide isn't just about which button to press; it's about unlearning the bad habits that keep you stuck at the Site of Grace.
The Panic Roll: Your Worst Enemy
If there is one thing that kills more Tarnished than Malenia’s Waterfowl Dance, it’s the panic roll. You get hit once, your health bar vanishes, and you start mash-clicking the dodge button.
👉 See also: No Man's Sky Money Making 2025: How to Actually Get Rich Without Glitches
The game knows you’re going to do this.
Bosses like Margit or the Nameless White Mask have these weird, delayed overhead swings. They hold the weapon up for what feels like an eternity, wait for you to roll in fear, and then smash you the exact millisecond your invincibility frames (i-frames) end. It’s a "roll catch." To beat this, you have to stay still. It sounds insane, but standing your ground and watching the wrist of the boss—not the weapon—is the secret. When the wrist moves forward, that's your cue.
Also, stop rolling backward.
Most players naturally try to create distance when they’re scared. But Elden Ring bosses almost always have "gap-closers." If you roll away from a Tree Sentinel, his next spear thrust is designed to reach exactly where your roll ends. If you roll into him, you end up behind him, usually in a blind spot where he can't hit you.
Why Your Build Might Be Sabotaging You
I’ve seen people try to fight Radagon with Holy damage. Please, for the love of the Erdtree, don't do that. He literally absorbs it.
The game doesn't always tell you this stuff explicitly, but the environment does. If a boss lives in a volcano (looking at you, Rykard), don't expect fire damage to do much. If they’re wearing heavy golden armor, they’re probably resistant to slashing but weak to strike damage.
The Status Effect Meta
In the current state of the game, especially if you’re diving into the Shadow of the Erdtree content, status effects are king.
- Bleed (Hemorrhage): This is still the gold standard. Since it does a percentage of the boss's max health, it doesn't matter if the boss has 10,000 HP or 100,000 HP.
- Frostbite: Not only does it do a chunk of damage when it procs, but it also lowers the boss's defense by 20%.
- Scarlet Rot: This is the "cheese" for a reason. If you can proc rot on Radahn or even Malenia (yes, she's susceptible to her own element), you can basically play defensively and let their health bar melt while you focus on not dying.
If you're a Strength build, don't sleep on the "Cold" affinity. You get the scaling you want plus the Frostbite debuff. It’s basically a cheat code for the late-game bosses.
The "Summon Trap" Nobody Talks About
We need to talk about NPC summons. You see a gold sign on the floor before a boss like the Promised Consort Radahn and think, "Great, some help!"
Hold on.
Every time you summon a cooperator—whether it’s a real person or an NPC like Freyja or Sir Ansbach—the boss’s total health pool increases significantly. For some of the tankier bosses, summoning two NPCs can make the fight nearly impossible because they often die in the first minute, leaving you alone with a boss that now has 60% more health than it started with.
If you're going to use help, the Spirit Ashes are usually better. The Mimic Tear or Black Knife Tiche doesn't increase the boss's health bar. They provide the distraction without the penalty. Honestly, Tiche is often better for highly mobile bosses because she dodges better than the Mimic does.
Specific Strategies for the "Wall" Bosses
Some bosses are just built different. You can't just "get good" your way through them without a plan.
Malenia, Blade of Miquella
She heals every time she hits you—even if you block. This is the ultimate "don't get hit" test.
👉 See also: Minecraft Story Mode: The Order of the Stone and Why We Miss Telltale’s Take on the Overworld
- Waterfowl Dance: When she jumps in the air, don't panic. If you're far away, run. If you're close, you have to dodge through her first flurry, then through the second. For the third, just walk toward her and she’ll usually fly over your head.
- Freezing Pots: This is the pro tip. Throwing a Freezing Pot while she's winding up Waterfowl Dance will instantly knock her out of the air. It works twice before she builds resistance.
Promised Consort Radahn
This guy is a nightmare of light beams and AOE.
- Stay Glued to Him: The further away you are, the more dangerous he is. Most of his holy light beams in the second phase strike behind him or far in front. If you stay right in his face and dodge toward his hip, you avoid 80% of the nonsense.
- Greatshield Poke: If you’re really struggling, grab a Fingerprint Shield or the Black Steel Greatshield, infuse it with Holy, and use a thrusting sword like the Antspur Rapier. You can attack while holding the block button. It’s not "stylish," but it works.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Attempt
- Check your Vigor. If you have less than 60 Vigor by the time you reach the late game, you’re playing on "Extreme Mode" for no reason.
- Use the "Buff Sandwich." Before the fog gate, use a Golden Vow (incantation or Ash of War) and then a "Flame, Grant Me Strength" or a Boiled Prawn. These stack. They can be the difference between surviving a grab attack with 1 HP or seeing the "You Died" screen.
- Watch the boss, not your character. It’s a common mistake to look at your own health bar or your own character’s feet. Fix your eyes on the boss’s midsection. You’ll see the wind-ups way earlier.
- Experiment with your Physick. If a boss does a specific type of damage (like Magic for Rennala or Fire for Messmer), use the elemental damage negation tear. It cuts that damage by nearly half for three minutes.
- Stop being greedy. "One more hit" is the most dangerous thought in Elden Ring. If the boss has a sliver of health left, stay calm. Wait for your opening just like you did at the start of the fight.
The most important thing to remember is that every boss in this game is a puzzle. If you keep dying the same way, change one thing. Change your talisman, change your roll direction, or change your spirit ash. Eventually, the puzzle clicks, and that "Great Enemy Felled" message feels better than anything else in gaming.
Before you jump back in, go to a Site of Grace and check your "Damage Negation" stats in the status menu. If any of those numbers are in the negatives because of a specific talisman you’re wearing (like the Soreseals), take them off. You’re likely taking 15% more damage for a measly 5 levels of stats that don't matter as much as you think they do.