Dark Souls 3 is the third installment in the trilogy, set in a grim and unforgiving world filled with monstrous enemies and challenging bosses. In the usual FromSoftware fashion, the game pulls no punches when it comes to boss design, so expect a lot of retries before you fully polish your combat skills.
We’ll cover all Dark Souls 3 bosses from start to finish, and give you just a taste of what you can expect on your first playthrough.
All Dark Souls 3 Bosses in Order
19. ludex Gundyr
This is the first boss of the game and he’s found at the Cemetery of Ash. Despite being an introductory boss of sorts, Gundyr can still absolutely wreck new players and put their skill to the test.
18. Vordt of the Boreal Valley
Vordt is like something straight out of a horror game, a hulking beast clad in metal armor, wielding a gigantic mace capable of flattening anyone unfortunate enough to meet its end.
This boss is not particularly difficult once you figure out its attack patterns, most notably Vordt’s forward charge and his ice breath cone attack. Being stuck in an almost claustrophobic room won’t help either, and you’ll often find yourself with your back against the wall.
17. Curse-Rotted Greatwood
This giant tree of a boss is quite a challenge if you’re slow on your feet. It deals massive slam hits that leave puddles of liquid you should dodge if you value your life. Stamina management will be key in this fight in order to successfully avoid taking lethal damage, especially during phase two when the boss gains extra mechanics to overwhelm you with.
16. Crystal Sage
Crystal Sage will give players headaches, especially those enjoying melee classes. With an array of deadly spells along with a teleport ability, this elusive boss will have you chasing it around all the while dishing deadly damage to the player.
If that wasn’t enough, Crystal Sage will also summon a wave of enemies in the second phase, further complicating this already complex boss encounter.
15. Abyss Watchers
This boss fight is hectic, to say the least. You begin the encounter by fighting a single enemy, after which two more will join in and start pouncing from all sides. Good hand-eye coordination will be key to defeat this boss, and it will take a lot of practice and perhaps some luck, too.
Defeating the Abyss Watchers will grant you Cinders of a Lord, along with a Soul of the Blood of the Wolf.
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14. Deacons of the Deep
These ghoulish, undead clerics will present a tough challenge. You will focus down a single cleric that will be possessed by a red glow, but the rest of the clerics will continue to shield it and attack you. A lot of movement in this fight, so hope you put some points into stamina.
13. High Lord Wolnir
High Lord Wolnir is not a particularly hard fight, but the boss does have a lot of health. Aside from your regular sweep attacks and summoned skeletons, the boss is also chained down by shackles which can be destroyed to severely weaken it and make this fight a cakewalk.
12. Old Demon King
This fiery abomination will challenge the players with a large array of attacks, combining physical slams with fire spells. Dodging all the stuff thrown at you will be a tricky task, but the fight does become progressively easier as you go along.
11. Pontiff Sulyvahn
Another fight with multiple enemies, just what you want in a Dark Souls game. Pontiff alone will be challenging enough, but he will also summon a clone you’ll have to deal with throughout the encounter. This boss will really test your dodging skills.
10. Yhorm the Giant
This massive giant is a Lord of Cinder who will stomp the ground and swipe his gigantic weapon all throughout the fight. Slow and steady wins the race here. Just don’t get overzealous because Yhorm can easily punish simple mistakes.
9. Aldrich, Devourer of Gods
Aldrich might be one of the first true challenging bosses even for Dark Souls veterans. His versatile attacks coupled with the ability to leech life make him a truly terrifying foe. Be patient and strike when the timing is right.
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8. Dancer of the Boreal Valley
This boss has perfected the art of the sword and made it into a dance of death. Unlike other tall and sluggish bosses in Dark Souls 3, the Dancer is swift and deadly, employing precision strikes to quickly take you out.
You can’t brute force this fight, but instead, you should focus on learning the boss patterns and countering at the correct moment to have a chance at victory.
7. Dragonslayer Armour
This animated suit of armor is a force to be reckoned with. Dragonslayer Armor will employ both his weapon and his shield to directly attack you, often using combo strikes to one-shot unsuspecting players. Tread with caution.
6. Oceiros, the Consumed King
Oceiros will be a fun fight for a lot of reasons. Not only is he an incredibly cool looking boss who also talks quite a bit, but his attack patterns completely switch from phase to phase.
In the first phase he’ll employ a lot of AoE attacks that can be blocked or dodged, but his second phase is where things truly get out of control. Keep your wits about you if you want to survive this boss.
5. Champion Gundyr
Gundyr is back for a rematch, this time in a significantly more powerful form. He’s way faster than before, using quick slashes to throw players off balance. If dodging doesn’t work, try to land a parry stun for an easy counter.
4. Lothric, Younger Prince
This is a fight against two prince brothers – Lothric, the younger prince and Lorian, the elder prince. The key to beating this boss is to separate the two brothers to give yourself some breathing room and a chance to deal damage uninterrupted. This is easier said than done, so you’ll need plenty of practice before you can best these two.
3. Ancient Wyvern
The Ancient Wyvern is a solid boss fight. Like any dragon boss from any other game, the Wyvern breathes fire and swipes his tail throughout the fight. Not much else to it. Bring it down and attack its exposed head to wrap things up quickly.
2. Nameless King
The Nameless King is one hell of a fight. Like many other Dark Souls 3 bosses, he has multiple phases. In the first phase, he’ll fly around on his wyvern and attack from the sky, but once he lands, is when the true fight begins.
He’s lightning-fast and deadly, so you’ll have to act quickly if you don’t wish to be sliced in two. If you can manage to reliably stagger the Nameless King, you’ll have a far better chance of beating him.
1. Soul of Cinder
The final boss of Dark Souls 3 is against the Soul of Cinder, the final of all Lords of Cinder. At first it might seem almost impossible to beat him due to his self-heal in phase one, but if you’re persistent and you manage to lower his health fast enough, he transitions to phase two where you no longer have to deal with his healing ability but a whole host of other, more terrifying skills.
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