Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is finally released, and with it many new bosses to terrorize you. Director Hidetaka Miyazaki himself claims that some of Shadow of the Erdtree’s bosses were designed to push players to their limits, and after completing the DLC, we’re inclined to agree.
So of course, we decided to rank all the new bosses in Shadow of the Erdtree, from least difficult to most. One important caveat is that there are many more bosses than we’ve listed here in the DLC. However, we’ve decided to rank only the main bosses – those that drop Memories that you can then exchange for legendary gear and weapons.
And of course, this is one of the most spoiler-filled lists we have for Shadow of the Erdtree, so don’t read on if you haven’t completed the DLC.
So, with all that in mind, here are the toughest bosses in Shadow of the Erdtree!
10. Romina, Saint of the Bud
Although Romina is a bit of a boss later on, she doesn’t end up being too difficult. A play on Melania’s Scarlet Rot boss, Romina is a flowery spellcaster whose primary attacks inflict Scarlet Rot if you stay in her poisonous vapors for too long. By dodging them, she can also send explosive butterflies at you.
Luckily, it’s fairly easy to evade these harmful AoEs to get your hits in until she’s defeated. Whether you’re a melee player or a caster, Romina doesn’t put up much of a fight considering how late in the game you’ll be facing her.
9. Avatar Scadutree
One of Shadow of the Erdtree’s many big bosses, the Scadutree avatar may be big, but he’s also, oddly enough, easy to miss. Tucked away in a hidden part of Shadow Dungeon, Avatar Scadutree is a large sunflower monster that packs big punches and can cause massive bleed damage from a distance. You also have to fight him three times in a row.
Fortunately, like FromSoftware’s other big bosses, Avatar Scadutree’s attacks are easy to dodge, and the boss’s main difficulty comes from having to beat him three times more than any of his actual attacks.
8. Metyr, mother of fingers
Despite being at the bottom of the list, Metyr is still a very difficult boss thanks to his combination of big physical area attacks and his ability to fire lasers and other ranged abilities. Get too close and Metyr can crush you like a bug, while attacking from afar risks getting shot with a fairly powerful beam attack.
She also has the unpleasant ability to summon thugs to help her, which can quickly become tiresome. However, Metyr is quite weak to magic, so depending on your build, you can quickly melt his health bar.
7. Lion Dancing Divine Beast
Depending on how you follow the critical path, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion is likely the first boss you’ll encounter in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, and FromSoftware certainly likes to set the bar high.
The Divine Beast hits hard, moves quickly, and can switch between lighting up, blasting you with frost, or blowing you away with the wind. This is true FromSoftware combat, so be prepared to dodge, dodge, dive, dive, and get one, maybe two hits in before repeating. The only reason Divine Beast is so low on the list is because the other bosses are simply harder.
6. Rellana, Twin Knight of the Moon
Rellana follows a rich tradition of duel-style bosses where players feel like they’re facing another character, similar to Artorias and Lady Maria. Renalla’s sister, Rellana is a magic knight who combines vicious swordplay with a magic-focused second phase where she will use both fire and ice magic against you.
A mix of melee hits, long-range AoE, and a one-hit magic attack that took this writer several hours to figure out how to counter. Rellana was the first boss I got stuck on, meaning I spent literally days trying. to beat her, even with the help of an NPC summon.
5. Midra, Lord of Frenzied Flames
In a sense, Midra and Rellana are quite similar bosses that use the same attack style combining close-range sword attacks and long-range abilities. Only in Midra’s case, these long-range attacks are frenzied instead of magical. The main differences between the two bosses are that Midra is a bit faster, Frenzy is slightly more annoying to deal with, and he has greater AoE range than Rellana.
Additionally, true to the name Frenzied Flame, Midra’s attack patterns are significantly more chaotic, meaning that finding the patterns to dodge her attacks is just a bit trickier.
4. Putrescent Knight
The Putrescent Knight gave me major Bloodborne vibes, not only from his design as a slimy, skeletal knight riding a slimy horse, but also from his relentless attacks. The Rotting Knight tends to always hit a few more times than intended, meaning that when you think you’re in the clear and ready to take a swig from your flask, oops! He hit you again and now you’re dead.
More than that, the Putrescent Knight’s bad habit of being able to separate from his horse and temporarily become two enemies is also a headache to deal with.
3. Commander Gaius
While chatting with my fellow Shadow of the Erdtree Early Access users, Gaius came up several times in the “Hardest Bosses” conversation. Much like a remixed version of Radahn from the base game, Commander Gaius charges onto the battlefield on a mighty boar, to trample players. Survive this? Well, he’s armed to the teeth with gravitational magic that he can then use in the second phase to crush you.
The biggest problem with Commander Gaius is that you have to be perfect with your timing. If you fail to dodge it once, there’s a good chance it will crush you in one hit. But just like Radahn, if you face him head-on and perfect your timing, you should be well-positioned for an epic duel.
2. Messmer the Impaler
FromSoftware did a lot of publicity for Messmer the Impaler before the DLC’s release, and for good reason. The Messmer boss fight is one of the most difficult in the entire DLC, and perhaps the game. A two-part fight, Messmer begins his assault with his powerful spear, which has enormous reach. Not only is Messmer fast, but his fire damage and counters make his first phase alone difficult to deal with.
Unfortunately, it’s in the second phase where the real fight begins as he is able to add a giant snake to his arsenal. You’ll need to dodge Messmer and the snake, because if either grabs you, it’s probably game over. Whether you’re gripped by the snake’s jaws as it slams you into the ground, or you’re dealing with Messmer’s fiery grip that can practically pull you out in one fell swoop, Messmer is a tough boss to read, and an even harder boss to dodge.
1. The Promised Wife Radahn
In fact, the “Final Boss” of the DLC, I have a feeling Promised Consort Radahn is who director Hidetaka Miyzaki might be referring to when he talks about pushing the limits of boss difficulty for the DLC.
Simply put, Promised Consort Radahn is relentless. In his first phase, Radahn’s size betrays his absolute speed. Powerful and fast, you’ll be lucky to get through his first phase unscathed between his massive sword swings, gravitational attacks, and huge health bar.
The second phase, however, seems downright impossible. Adding Miquella’s holy attacks to Radahn’s moveset doesn’t make any place in the arena safe for the player. As holy rays continually rain down around the duo, Promised Consort Radahn is now also capable of moving at the speed of light, rushing at the player at an incredibly fast speed and almost never letting up even then. This has the effect of depriving players of their greatest skill: the dodge roll.
It’ll take perfect movement, cunning, and maybe more than a little luck to get through this two-part boss fight. But I promise the resulting feeling will be worth it.
This is how we rank the most difficult boss fights in the new Elden Ring DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree. Let us know in the comments which bosses are particularly challenging for you, and don’t forget to check out our Shadow of the Erdtree review if you haven’t already.
Matt TM Kim is IGN’s Senior Features Editor. You can contact him @lawoftd.