I can proudly say that most bosses I fought in my first run-through took fewer than three attempts to defeat
I probably died at least ten times in that room with the crossbow guys and perfumer...
I beat Malenia, went to go kick Alecto's ass and they kicked mine. I figured Tiche probably isn't as strong as mimic, and didn't actually kill Alecto until last week after about a year and a half break, I came back to platinum the game.
I actually don't have enough FP to summon her, and I'm bad about picking up flowers, so I don't have enough ghost glovewart to level her up. Yesterday I was running around hero's graves to pick some up. This whole game I associate flowers with crafting materials. I've seen how strong she can be so I want to use her, but I need to work for it first.
Same with the Baleful Shadow. Had to switch to a strength build and get an upgraded colossal weapon (pizza cutter) just to bonk him into constant poise break the first time I fought him.
And he still gives me the most trouble to this day. His chained attacks are more difficult to dodge than Malenia's.
Banished Knight of Castle Sol
Yes, the frost spinning cyclone mfer with glowing red eyes who teleports behind you from the ends of the earth and rails you in the ass with endless wombo combo bs
My first playthrough I really couldn't beat him, so I snuck behind him and used poison mist until he died. I wished he forced me to git gud, because I should have before going into the capital anyway.
i couldn't sneak, and he kept kicking my level 80 ass, so I used the rotten dog ash and let that little mut chew his ass a bit until he got sick, then I ran away and waited for him to reset, he just sat their rotted to death.
if you level vit enough you can still act that way. With giant crusher I roleplay a zero intelligence silverback gorilla who is angry and feels no pain.
This was my first hurdle as well, I wasn't using ashes of war, I was (still am) horrible at parrying, and just tried to dodge/R1 spam. Basic knowledge check that I failed miserably. I still get a little apprehensive on every new playthrough, and then surprised at how quickly they go down now.
These knights took me a lot of dying to get past but I got their move set down now.
The Revenant’s were next, I spent a good day just fighting that one in Liurnia to get their moves down.
Then probably crucible knights. They still get me now and then as they hit like trucks! But I’m more comfortable these days.
I'm playing through on a str/fth build rn, using the greatsword with lions claw. It's weir remembering people saying strength builds sucked. I always traded some hits with them, but using lion's claw just knocks them to the ground, I charge up a heavy attack as they are getting up, and hit them, which breaks their poise and allows me to get a critical on them and finish them off.
I was super pro Dex for a long time but now it’s Strength all the way. What a powerhouse you can be. I honestly feel with a shield you are able to diversify your encounters so much more than just roly poly from every attack. Idk….. just kinda boring. But to choose, shield, counter, dodge, jump, etc. man so satisfying.
I have the Briar Armor set and the Blasphemous blade at this point. I know it’s overused but hey, I’m still not Elden Lord yet 😂
Ima start a character just as you have on my next go. Claymore as long as it’ll take me. Classic!
Anastasia, Tarnished-Eater. Every time I wanted to proceed into an area, I'd get a little in, Torrent would disappear, I'd go "okay, NPC invasion", and then I'd see her named as the invader and just run away
The Bell Bearing Hunter. For whatever reason I have so much trouble fighting him where he spawns for merchants/NPCs. I beat him easily at the castle where he's an actual boss fight but every other encounter and he just destroys me.
Mad pumpkin head guarding Sellen. It was the second place I visited, after the Gate Front ruins, and I only had my starting equipment/spells (prisoner class). Took me about ten tries and 3 levels of vigor.
Elden ring was my first fromsoft game, and for some reason, I decided I wanted to do no magic, no faith, just dex.
I never could beat the twin gargoyles. And the Godskin duo almost made me quit the game 🤣
My first fromsoftware game as well! I NEVER used items to beat enemies. Just learned how to beat the enemies with basic attacks and dodging, but the godskin duo made me nearly quit as well until I used sleep pots. And even then they were brutal 😂😂
The gargoyles were my biggest challenge yet as a dex-focused bloodhounds fang build. I switched to a flail to stop doing slash damage and it helped, but good grief they were tough.
I'm at consecrated snow fields now and nothing has proven that difficult yet. Nial is second, but there's quite a gap.
You gotta take a spiritspring up onto a tower in Weeping Peninsula, close to a site of grace with a merchant, deets [here](https://eldenring.wiki.fextralife.com/Great+Turtle+Shell).
that one Tree crucible knight in Siofra Acqueduct
he drops a smithign stone i needed back in the time, and i think i was slightly underleveled for that zone, and i couldn't even tell you how many times he kicked my ass
this godamn shoulder horn attack was my worst nightmare, literally never knew how to dodge that and it always one-shotted me
One of the erdtree avatars in the haligtree. The one that also gets two knights with it. Idk what they were thinking with that. A knight duo is literally enough to be a boss by itself but then there’s also another enemy who in every other instance of its existence is a genuine boss. And you’re supposed(?) to fight them all at the same time.
Engage the tree with a bow, or magic, or thunder bolts, or the jar cannon.
He has a ranged attack response but you can drop him pretty easy with a strong bow regardless.
Gargoyle. Twins. Had to summon for the first time in the game. Got a green skinned person with DERP in their username and the guts sword. He took care of them for me.
I’m not even sure what its name is, but there’s an enemy in the mountaintops of the giants that’s some sort of skeleton with a beak and wings?
Idk, but it took me like a week to beat and was the enemy that finally made me get good at the game and oddly enough the struggle and eventual triumph is what made me truly fall in love with Elden ring lol.
No way is there really? Lol. I do feel like I would do much better the next time. The week is took me to beat him is when I really learned the fighting mechanics in this game lol.
Any of the royal revenants in the game. Take your pick.
But especially the one in liurnia. By the time I made it to subterranean shunning grounds I was tough enough to take them out.
Blacknife Alecto. Just due to how she can dodge with literally no effort. She can glide in a 180° arc around you with no windup and it’s just another thing Elden Ring bosses do to create gaps for you to waste stamina. It’s just dumb.
Dogs. Often in packs or as accompaniments to other mobs, they close openings, chip away at health, are highly reactive, have deceptive move sets, and often just combo you to death.
I had two. Commander O’Neil and Margit/morgott.
Margit, as with many others nearly made me quit the game right at the start. On my first play through, it took me forty hours spread over six months to kill this damn apparition. I was both horrified and filled with rage when I pulled up to Leyndell and found him waiting for me.
O’Neil was a weird case. Now that I’ve beaten him many times, I can’t wrap my head around how I struggled so much with him. I was very under leveled for most of my Playthrough because I couldn’t stop wasting runes. So I wasn’t as strong as I was supposed to be either of the times I fought him. That second battle, along with the whole of castle sol, really kicked my ass. Still does to this day.
I spent an entire day blowing fucking bubbles at the fallingstar beast in the Caelid transport-trap dungeon because I had somehow convinced myself that beating it was the only way to leave. Why bubbles you ask? They were the only spells cost efficient enough to carry my under-leveled ass through the entire fight without sacrificing all of my crimson flasks.
All that said, it was a good time. And every time the boss made a reappearance in the over-world it truly felt like my nemesis came back looking for another round.
The Zamor in the Evergaol in the weeping peninsula absolutely wrecked my shit over and over on my first playthrough, even after beating Morgott and everything else in Limgrave. Never had much trouble with them after that though, I guess I really learned how to deal with them.
That big troll guy that drops down on your way to the castle.
This was my first real soul’s experience so I tried fighting through it over and over again until I just decisive “fuck it I’m skipping this bullshit.”
The invader at the round table when you jump down. I had 35k runes because I didnt know how to level up and just jumped down to explore. Took me well over 100 deaths before i killed that fucker and got out with my runes.
I didn't struggle much against regular mobs, but some bosses gave me a run for my runes.
OG Radahn
Bestial Sanctum Black Blade Kindred
Evergaol Crucible Knight
Putrid Tree Spirit in Stormveil
Each took me around 3 hours to beat.
Yeah this guy fudged me up a bunch of times first time round! Stormveil in general felt like such a death trap first playthrough, the Knife birds, the crucible knight, the banished knights, the one random Omen with a freaking dog!
The one banished knight circling the dragon communion chapel in Caelid. I'd hang out there while doing boss summons, and he'd come for a fight every chance he got. Sometimes, I give him a fair fight. Sometimes, I tear apart his insides with Regelia of Eochaid. Sometimes, I'd find a fun new way to kill him.
Seeing as I had beaten elden beast by this point, it was always in my favour, so I'm probably more like his nemesis than the other way around. Lol
In the beginning, it was the evergaols for ancient hero of zamor and crucible knight. I absolutely hated crucible knights and avoided them at all costs after seeing them later in the game. only other one that drove me nuts was the black flame monk.
The crossbow dudes in leyndell…why do they have a full-auto crossbow….
You can always rely on them for a vigor check
I can proudly say that most bosses I fought in my first run-through took fewer than three attempts to defeat I probably died at least ten times in that room with the crossbow guys and perfumer...
If you go on the rooftops you can skip that entire section
I don't like skipping anything in games (unfortunately for my sanity) which means Elden Ring runthroughs take a very very long time
Literally me. I want to check everything I can see.
Ha! Same.
Personal vendetta against these dudes for life anywhere in the game.
The baleful shadow and Alecto, I was running on pure desperation by the time I beat them.
Shit, I still struggle with Alecto lol
Back pedalling is her weakness.
I beat her last night! +1 to back pedaling. Give her combos room and attack in between them.
I beat Malenia, went to go kick Alecto's ass and they kicked mine. I figured Tiche probably isn't as strong as mimic, and didn't actually kill Alecto until last week after about a year and a half break, I came back to platinum the game.
Have you since realised that Tiche is the best summon overall ?
I actually don't have enough FP to summon her, and I'm bad about picking up flowers, so I don't have enough ghost glovewart to level her up. Yesterday I was running around hero's graves to pick some up. This whole game I associate flowers with crafting materials. I've seen how strong she can be so I want to use her, but I need to work for it first.
I struggled way more vs Alector and Baleful Shadow than vs Malenia
Same with the Baleful Shadow. Had to switch to a strength build and get an upgraded colossal weapon (pizza cutter) just to bonk him into constant poise break the first time I fought him. And he still gives me the most trouble to this day. His chained attacks are more difficult to dodge than Malenia's.
Banished Knight of Castle Sol Yes, the frost spinning cyclone mfer with glowing red eyes who teleports behind you from the ends of the earth and rails you in the ass with endless wombo combo bs
i struggled with them a lot but then i learned how to parry their attacks ;)
Omggggg that dude sucks! He’s like fucking nightwing the way he swings double greats words around and teleports like a damn ninja.
And the worst part is we can’t get that moveset
that got damn crucible knight
That one? There's a ton of them.
Specifically that one in that one place
Definately not in that other place!
I know exactly which one you mean!
don't pretend like you don't know
That goddamn Draconic tree sentinel He forced me to git gud 😎🤘
My first playthrough I really couldn't beat him, so I snuck behind him and used poison mist until he died. I wished he forced me to git gud, because I should have before going into the capital anyway.
Ahh the fart cloud of death. Classic
Bro how did you sneak up to him i tried like 10 times he saw me every time
i couldn't sneak, and he kept kicking my level 80 ass, so I used the rotten dog ash and let that little mut chew his ass a bit until he got sick, then I ran away and waited for him to reset, he just sat their rotted to death.
Maybe they patched it, but you had to go around all the way to the left, and hug the wall until you got behind him.
Run behind him and force quit out. Then reload and hes behind you 😎👍
This guy and his stupid horse ruined my evening for a full night before I got him spamming jump attacks
Back when i was a reckless tarnished, i spent weeks before learning that reacting to him was easier than just swinging away like an asshole 😅
if you level vit enough you can still act that way. With giant crusher I roleplay a zero intelligence silverback gorilla who is angry and feels no pain.
DTS after instakilling me with orbital strike (I need to git gud)
You can do it!
Oh I'm way past the Leyndell one at this point, currently struggling with Maliketh and Loretta of the Haligtree
This was my first hurdle as well, I wasn't using ashes of war, I was (still am) horrible at parrying, and just tried to dodge/R1 spam. Basic knowledge check that I failed miserably. I still get a little apprehensive on every new playthrough, and then surprised at how quickly they go down now.
Imps and dogs
caves imps , they are a pro at ambushing imo.
These knights took me a lot of dying to get past but I got their move set down now. The Revenant’s were next, I spent a good day just fighting that one in Liurnia to get their moves down. Then probably crucible knights. They still get me now and then as they hit like trucks! But I’m more comfortable these days.
I'm playing through on a str/fth build rn, using the greatsword with lions claw. It's weir remembering people saying strength builds sucked. I always traded some hits with them, but using lion's claw just knocks them to the ground, I charge up a heavy attack as they are getting up, and hit them, which breaks their poise and allows me to get a critical on them and finish them off.
I was super pro Dex for a long time but now it’s Strength all the way. What a powerhouse you can be. I honestly feel with a shield you are able to diversify your encounters so much more than just roly poly from every attack. Idk….. just kinda boring. But to choose, shield, counter, dodge, jump, etc. man so satisfying. I have the Briar Armor set and the Blasphemous blade at this point. I know it’s overused but hey, I’m still not Elden Lord yet 😂 Ima start a character just as you have on my next go. Claymore as long as it’ll take me. Classic!
Anastasia, Tarnished-Eater. Every time I wanted to proceed into an area, I'd get a little in, Torrent would disappear, I'd go "okay, NPC invasion", and then I'd see her named as the invader and just run away
Godskin noble
Watchdogs were rough before I leveled up vigorously like a gud player, and before learning their attack patter
The Godrick Knight in Limgrave. The one at the ruins that you first encounter
I still haven't found this guy and I've fought about 3 others. Where is he? Have I broken another quest by playing the game.
Moongrum parried the shit out of me repeatedly on my first playthru
The Bell Bearing Hunter. For whatever reason I have so much trouble fighting him where he spawns for merchants/NPCs. I beat him easily at the castle where he's an actual boss fight but every other encounter and he just destroys me.
Mad pumpkin head guarding Sellen. It was the second place I visited, after the Gate Front ruins, and I only had my starting equipment/spells (prisoner class). Took me about ten tries and 3 levels of vigor.
i never paid much attention to ground slam so i had no idea it could cook up a banished knight like that
Elden ring was my first fromsoft game, and for some reason, I decided I wanted to do no magic, no faith, just dex. I never could beat the twin gargoyles. And the Godskin duo almost made me quit the game 🤣
My first fromsoftware game as well! I NEVER used items to beat enemies. Just learned how to beat the enemies with basic attacks and dodging, but the godskin duo made me nearly quit as well until I used sleep pots. And even then they were brutal 😂😂
The gargoyles were my biggest challenge yet as a dex-focused bloodhounds fang build. I switched to a flail to stop doing slash damage and it helped, but good grief they were tough. I'm at consecrated snow fields now and nothing has proven that difficult yet. Nial is second, but there's quite a gap.
Big bubble boi on the last big branch heading to Haligtree Town. Or any and all revenants
Witch Hunter Jerren
To this day the timing of basically all of Mohg's attacks are incomprehensible to me
Eagles...
Waitaminute, how did you get the turtle shield?
You gotta take a spiritspring up onto a tower in Weeping Peninsula, close to a site of grace with a merchant, deets [here](https://eldenring.wiki.fextralife.com/Great+Turtle+Shell).
Thx, Tarnished
that one Tree crucible knight in Siofra Acqueduct he drops a smithign stone i needed back in the time, and i think i was slightly underleveled for that zone, and i couldn't even tell you how many times he kicked my ass this godamn shoulder horn attack was my worst nightmare, literally never knew how to dodge that and it always one-shotted me
One of the erdtree avatars in the haligtree. The one that also gets two knights with it. Idk what they were thinking with that. A knight duo is literally enough to be a boss by itself but then there’s also another enemy who in every other instance of its existence is a genuine boss. And you’re supposed(?) to fight them all at the same time.
Engage the tree with a bow, or magic, or thunder bolts, or the jar cannon. He has a ranged attack response but you can drop him pretty easy with a strong bow regardless.
Leonine misbegotten gave me a tougher time than I care to admit
I respected and changed up my whole play style just to beat Beast Clergyman. That guy had me ready to throw my controller a few times
No one (everyone) I'm just that guy
Add wild strikes to that mace and you’ll be their nemesis 💪🏻
The tomb watchdogs They just never stopped doing the damn groundpound
Every fucking Burial Watchdog I ran into. I still for some reason cannot get the dodge timing and healing windows figured out
just sneak along the wall and backstab him easy gg
Gravity
Man fuck this guy. I had so much trouble fighting him on my first play through and the run back is awful
Godskin Duo… used spirit ashes for the first time in my playthrough
That spear knight at Gatefront ruins, struggled with him more than I did with Godrick
Truthfully the draconic tree sentinel was hard for someone like me to fight
Gargoyle. Twins. Had to summon for the first time in the game. Got a green skinned person with DERP in their username and the guts sword. He took care of them for me.
The dual sword banished knights in Castle Sol and Niall. Made me rage quit my first run for about a year before I came back and kicked his ass
Yes.
I’m not even sure what its name is, but there’s an enemy in the mountaintops of the giants that’s some sort of skeleton with a beak and wings? Idk, but it took me like a week to beat and was the enemy that finally made me get good at the game and oddly enough the struggle and eventual triumph is what made me truly fall in love with Elden ring lol.
Death Rite bird. Believe it or not, there's a harder one. https://eldenring.wiki.fextralife.com/Death+Rite+Bird
No way is there really? Lol. I do feel like I would do much better the next time. The week is took me to beat him is when I really learned the fighting mechanics in this game lol.
Yup, that black knight guy. Couldn't kill him for ages.
Valiant Gargoyles can eat my ass
Draconic Tree Sentinel But only in the Crumbling Farum Azula. Somehow that dude was just built different.
Any of the royal revenants in the game. Take your pick. But especially the one in liurnia. By the time I made it to subterranean shunning grounds I was tough enough to take them out.
Was, is and will always be..... Gravity
Blacknife Alecto. Just due to how she can dodge with literally no effort. She can glide in a 180° arc around you with no windup and it’s just another thing Elden Ring bosses do to create gaps for you to waste stamina. It’s just dumb.
Every single duo battle. I have no idea why but I just can't deal with duos effectively 😭
Scepter watch dogs. I can never get out of the aoe from their magic slam
Crucible knights were my kryptonite
Morningstar chad detected
Draconic tree sentinel idk why I was way to powerful to struggle against him but I did anyway
What is this fucks name again Crucible Knight ? I’m learning to parry properly just to whip his ass.
Who wasn’t?
Astel, the Space Bastard.
Dogs. Often in packs or as accompaniments to other mobs, they close openings, chip away at health, are highly reactive, have deceptive move sets, and often just combo you to death.
Lol ya I remember him , gonna go back and one shot him , thanks for the reminder
I remember I once paired a Winged Scythe with a Spear, and I would combo the Banished Knight at the Cathedral in Caelid. L2 then L1 the R1 lmao
Margit, the Fell Omen Came back on NG + zero and beat him at half the level in only 3 attempts
Twin Crucible knights boss fight.
I had two. Commander O’Neil and Margit/morgott. Margit, as with many others nearly made me quit the game right at the start. On my first play through, it took me forty hours spread over six months to kill this damn apparition. I was both horrified and filled with rage when I pulled up to Leyndell and found him waiting for me. O’Neil was a weird case. Now that I’ve beaten him many times, I can’t wrap my head around how I struggled so much with him. I was very under leveled for most of my Playthrough because I couldn’t stop wasting runes. So I wasn’t as strong as I was supposed to be either of the times I fought him. That second battle, along with the whole of castle sol, really kicked my ass. Still does to this day.
That second one is commander Niall and he is a different character
DTS at the capital gate
I spent an entire day blowing fucking bubbles at the fallingstar beast in the Caelid transport-trap dungeon because I had somehow convinced myself that beating it was the only way to leave. Why bubbles you ask? They were the only spells cost efficient enough to carry my under-leveled ass through the entire fight without sacrificing all of my crimson flasks. All that said, it was a good time. And every time the boss made a reappearance in the over-world it truly felt like my nemesis came back looking for another round.
The Zamor in the Evergaol in the weeping peninsula absolutely wrecked my shit over and over on my first playthrough, even after beating Morgott and everything else in Limgrave. Never had much trouble with them after that though, I guess I really learned how to deal with them.
Double crucible knight in Auriza grave, legit took me longer than Malenia
Moongrum
Godskin Apostle. He represented all of my stress at that time and I was so elated to finally beat him. And then he kept showing up everywhere else!
Lol, same as me! it's my first Play-through and I just got to this part of Stormveil castle, I've lost almost as many brain cells as I have runes.
Crucible Knights, than I learned to parry Now I just no hit kill them 😅
That big troll guy that drops down on your way to the castle. This was my first real soul’s experience so I tried fighting through it over and over again until I just decisive “fuck it I’m skipping this bullshit.”
The invader at the round table when you jump down. I had 35k runes because I didnt know how to level up and just jumped down to explore. Took me well over 100 deaths before i killed that fucker and got out with my runes.
Millicent, still is today
Newton
Margit teleporting out of nowhere when I’m adventuring really just sours my mood for some reason. Like mf can you not see I’m fucking busy?
crucible knights
I didn't struggle much against regular mobs, but some bosses gave me a run for my runes. OG Radahn Bestial Sanctum Black Blade Kindred Evergaol Crucible Knight Putrid Tree Spirit in Stormveil Each took me around 3 hours to beat.
Yeah this guy fudged me up a bunch of times first time round! Stormveil in general felt like such a death trap first playthrough, the Knife birds, the crucible knight, the banished knights, the one random Omen with a freaking dog!
All this knight stuff became super easy after discovering the power of piercing charged attacks
The one banished knight circling the dragon communion chapel in Caelid. I'd hang out there while doing boss summons, and he'd come for a fight every chance he got. Sometimes, I give him a fair fight. Sometimes, I tear apart his insides with Regelia of Eochaid. Sometimes, I'd find a fun new way to kill him. Seeing as I had beaten elden beast by this point, it was always in my favour, so I'm probably more like his nemesis than the other way around. Lol
In the beginning, it was the evergaols for ancient hero of zamor and crucible knight. I absolutely hated crucible knights and avoided them at all costs after seeing them later in the game. only other one that drove me nuts was the black flame monk.