Elden Ring - How To Beat The Elden Beast

Taking down Radagon is no easy feat. Though his fight is one of the toughest encounters in Elden Ring on its own, it's actually just phase one of the final encounter you'll face in the game. Once he's down, you'll meet The Elden Beast, servant to the Greater Will and the true form of the Elden Ring itself.

Whereas Radagon tests your timing and reflexes, the Elden Beast is an endurance test. It sports one of the largest health bars in From Software history, so it can feel like there's no end in sight as you whittle it down, and knowing that you have to defeat Radagon all over again just to get back to the arena can lead to some downright demoralizing defeats. But don't worry! In this guide, we'll fill you in on the most dangerous attacks to look out for--and how to avoid them--so that you can come out victorious.

What to know before going in

Basically all the advice for preparing for the Radagon fight remains true for the Elden Beast. You'll want to be at a high level (somewhere in the 150 range to be safe), with at least 40 points invested into Vigor. Get your weapon leveled up as much as possible to maximize damage and shorten the duration of the encounter--the less time you spend fighting, the fewer chances there will be to get caught in one of its devastating attacks.

Just like Radagon, the Elden Beast has multiple attacks that deal Holy Damage. Stock up on Holyproof Dried Livers or equip Lord's Divine Fortification for some extra protection.

Don't forget to bring along your favorite Spirit Summon (Mimic Tear and Black Knife Tiche being the best of the bunch). Again, in a fight as long as this, anything you can do to make it go by faster is highly valuable. Doubling your damage output with a Summon is a great way to do just that. Remember, any damage taken by your Summon during the Radagon fight will carry over here, if it makes it out alive at all. If you're confident enough against Radagon, wait until the Elden Beast to ring your bell.

How to beat the Elden Beast

The Elden Beast is a massive, cosmic monstrosity with a full arsenal of attacks as epic as you'd expect from the final boss in Elden Ring. It's helpful to approach the fight similarly to the various dragons you've encountered throughout your journey. Get comfortable unlocking and locking on throughout the fight, be ready to close the gap when the Elden Beast flies away, and always be on the lookout for its many huge AOE attacks that can potentially one-shot you from full health.

Unfortunately, there is no real easy cheese method to this fight. The Elden Beast is immune to all status effects, and strong against all elemental damage (it even heals from Holy Damage, so avoid that at all costs). Its only real weakness is a glowing gold spot on its stomach, so always direct your hits there when possible (this is also where you can get off a Critical Attack if you manage to break its Stance). If you're running a melee-centric build, simply use whatever weapon can maximize your damage output and smack away for as long as it takes. For mages, Rock Sling is likely your best bet.

If you're going to use a shield, make sure it has as high of Holy Damage resistance as possible (the Haligtree Crest Greatshield being the best of the bunch in this regard). However, given the massive AOE and huge posture damage many of its attacks can dish out, blocking probably isn't your best bet. You'll be better served dodging through its sword swipes and projectiles, and learning where to position yourself to avoid taking damage from its AOE effects.

These are the most important attacks to look out for in phase one:

First Phase

• Yellow flame breath. It will always start the fight with this move. Run up to get in a hit or two on its glowing gold stomach, then quickly get behind it to avoid the flames it will spew over a large area in front of it. Swing away on its tail until the attack ends.
• Its sword will start to glow gold before slamming it in the ground, followed by a massive explosion when it pulls it out. Roll through first blast, then get behind it to avoid the bigger follow-up AOE. Get in some hits on its tail in the meantime.
• A grab attack. When a glowing gold orb appears around its hand, get some distance to avoid the incoming grab. It will bombard you with projectiles if it manages to get a hold of you.
• Purple cloud. Whenever a star-spotted purple mist appears, get away from it as fast as possible! It will explode seconds later. The Elden Beast can shoot this at you from a distance, or up close, which can be tougher to avoid.
• Rune Arc projectiles. Its sword will start to glow, then it will shoot four Rune Arc-shaped projectiles at you. The first two happen back to back, so roll, then roll again immediately after. The third and fourth come with a bit of a delay. Practice getting the timing down to roll through these as well.
• Homing stars. It will swim underwater, then fly back up with its wings spread and shoot a series of homing stars at you. To avoid them, simply run in straight ahead in one direction until the attack ends. Unlocking your camera can help here, but be on the lookout for a follow-up attack.
• Elden Ring blast. It will begin to glow, then fly up above the arena, forming the Elden Ring in the sky. You'll find yourself in the middle of a ring on the ground quickly closing in, along with another ring outside of it. Run away, jumping over the enclosing ring before it reaches the center and releases a massive AOE explosion. You'll avoid damage if you make it out of the outer ring's radius in time.

In addition to all of these attacks in phase one, the Elden Beast will bombard you with various slams and sword swipe combinations, all the while swimming away and reappearing on the other side of the arena. Its sword attacks are easy enough to dodge through once you get the timing down. Be on the lookout for its various ranged attacks when you're closing the distance after it retreats.

Phase two is essentially the same as phase one, but with a few deadly new attacks:

Second phase

• Wave of Gold. It will charge its sword back, then fire a large, cone-shaped AOE blast ahead. Try to get behind it before it has a chance to fire off the spell, as it can do massive damage if connects.
• The homing stars will be replaced with the Elden Stars incantation. In addition to smaller stars coming at you, there will be one large one slowly barreling your way as well. Again, run in a straight line away from the projectiles. You might take some damage from the smaller stars, but be sure to dodge out of the way of the big one to avoid getting hit.
• The Elden Ring blast will now have three rings closing in on you instead of just one. Jump over all three, and get outside the outer ring in time to avoid the blast. It also likes to follow up with a Rune Arc projectile right after the explosion in phase two, so be ready to dodge as soon as you make it out of the ring.

There's no way around it: This fight is a slog. But when you finally make it to the other side, you'll be rewarded with a whopping 500,000 runes. On top of that, it's finally time to choose your ending. You have officially beaten Elden Ring! Sit back, watch the credits roll, and bask in the glory of achieving what is sure to be one of the most monumental gaming accomplishments of your life.