Look, let’s be real for a second. If you’re here, you’ve probably already had your face smashed into the dirt by a certain golden-armored lion or a guy riding a hog. All bosses Shadow of the Erdtree throws at you aren't just harder versions of what we saw in Limgrave. They are faster. They are more aggressive. They're basically FromSoftware’s way of asking, "Did you actually learn how to play this game, or did you just Mimic Tear your way to Elden Beast?"
It’s brutal.
Hidetaka Miyazaki and the team at FromSoftware didn't just add more health bars; they fundamentally changed the rhythm of combat. The DLC feels like a response to the community's mastery of the base game. If you go into the Land of Shadow expecting to steamroll everything with your Level 150 Rivers of Blood build, you’re going to have a very bad time. You need Scadutree Fragments. You need patience. And honestly, you probably need a drink.
The Remembrance Hierarchy: Who Really Rules the Land of Shadow?
The meat of the expansion lies in the Remembrance bosses. These are the big ones. The ones with the cutscenes. There are 10 of them total, plus the final encounter that everyone is still arguing about on Reddit.
Divine Beast Dancing Lion is usually the first "Welcome to the DLC" moment for most players. It’s a mess of fur, lightning, and camera-shaking movements that feels like fighting a caffeinated hurricane. It’s a technical marvel, but it’s also a nightmare for anyone who relies on locking on. The fight isn't just about dodging; it's about spatial awareness. You have to know when the lion is winding up for a frost breath versus a lightning strike, even when the camera is buried in its left ear.
Then there’s Rellana, Twin Moon Knight. Honestly? She’s a wall. A lot of people call her the "Malenia of the DLC," which isn't quite right. She doesn't have the Life Steal, but she has a relentless combo string that makes Pontiff Sulyvahn look like he’s moving in slow motion. She’s a dance. If you don't find the beat, you're dead.
Messmer the Impaler is the face of the marketing for a reason. He’s arguably the most "fair" of the high-difficulty fights. His hitboxes are crisp. His second phase—turning into a literal serpent—is terrifying, but it follows a logic. He’s the peak of FromSoftware’s boss design: high spectacle, high stakes, but manageable once you stop panicking.
The Weird Ones and the Gimmicks
Not every fight is a duel. Romina, Saint of the Bud, is this tragic, beautiful, and disgusting centipede-scorpion-woman thing. She’s surprisingly squishy if you have high physical damage, but her Scarlet Rot buildup is a constant threat.
Then we have Midra, Lord of Frenzied Flame. The buildup to this fight in the Abyssal Woods is better than the fight itself, and that’s saying a lot because the fight is incredible. It’s haunting. The way he pulls his own head off? Pure FromSoftware. He’s a glass cannon; he hits like a nuclear freight train, but he can’t take a punch.
And then there's the Scadutree Avatar. A giant sunflower. Sounds cute? It isn't. It has three phases. Three. You kill it, it comes back. You kill it again, it comes back angrier. It’s a battle of attrition that tests your soul more than your reflexes.
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Why the Final Boss is Polarizing Fans
We have to talk about Promised Consort Radahn.
People are divided. Some think it’s the ultimate challenge—a fitting end to the saga. Others think the visual clutter in the second phase is a design flaw. When Miquella hops on Radahn’s back and starts raining down literal pillars of light every time Radahn swings his swords, the frame rate drops and so does your morale.
It’s a fight that demands perfection. Or a Greatshield. Seriously, the meta for this boss shifted almost overnight to "Poke him from behind a giant slab of iron." It’s a bit of a shame that such a grand finale can feel so restrictive, but there’s no denying the rush when that "God Slain" text finally appears.
The Field Bosses: More Than Just Filler
While the Remembrances get the glory, the "lesser" bosses define the landscape. The Ghostflame Dragons are scattered everywhere, and while they're mostly standard dragon fights, the addition of Ghostflame adds a layer of "don't stand there" that keeps you on your toes.
Blackgaol Knight is the first guy most people meet in the Western Nameless Mausoleum. He’s a human-sized NPC boss with an automatic crossbow and a Greatsword. He’s a lesson in humility. He will one-shot you. He will heal. He will make you realize that your Scadutree Blessing level is currently 0 and you need to go explore.
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Bayle the Dread is technically an optional boss, but skipping him is a crime. The climb up Jagged Peak is legendary. The NPC summon, Igon, has some of the best voice acting in the entire history of the franchise. "CURSE YOU BAYLE!" is a meme for a reason. It’s the best dragon fight FromSoftware has ever made, surpassing Midir from Dark Souls 3 by a wide margin.
Strategy: Surviving All Bosses Shadow of the Erdtree
If you're struggling, stop trying to play it like the base game. The math is different here. In the base game, your stats mattered most. In the DLC, your Scadutree Fragments are everything. Each level of blessing increases your damage dealt and decreases your damage taken by a significant percentage. If a boss is one-shotting you, you aren't "bad," you just haven't explored enough.
- Scadutree Fragment Level 10+: This is the baseline for the mid-game bosses like Messmer or Romina.
- Deflecting Hardtear: This new Physick tear turns the game into Sekiro. If you time your blocks, you take zero damage and can follow up with a massive guard counter. It’s a game-changer for aggressive bosses like Rellana.
- Status Effects: Bleed and Frost are still king, but don't sleep on Fire damage for the tree-based enemies or Holy resistance for the final encounter.
The Land of Shadow is a place of verticality and secrets. Many bosses are hidden behind illusory walls or complex platforming sections. Putrescence Knight, for instance, requires you to literally jump into a massive hole in the ground at the very bottom of the map.
Final Practical Checklist for the Tarnished
To truly conquer every encounter, you need a plan that goes beyond "hit it until it dies."
- Collect all 50 Scadutree Fragments. Don't even think about the final boss without being at Blessing Level 18 or 20.
- Re-spec if you have to. Rennala is still there in the base game. If your build isn't working for a specific boss, change it. The DLC gives you plenty of Larval Tears.
- Use the new weapon types. Backhand Blades and Great Katanas have some of the best move sets in the game and can outpace the older weapons in terms of DPS and utility.
- Don't ignore the NPCs. Completing the questlines for Moore, Ansbach, and Thiollier doesn't just give you lore; it changes who you can summon for the final brutal gauntlet.
The challenge is the point. Miyazaki famously said he's not a great gamer himself, but he wants players to feel that sense of accomplishment that only comes from overcoming something seemingly impossible. Every boss in this DLC is a puzzle. Sometimes the solution is a different spell, sometimes it's a different shield, and sometimes it's just getting some sleep and trying again in the morning.
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Actionable Next Steps:
- Locate the Map Fragments: You can't find bosses if you're wandering in the grey fog. Prioritize the Map Stele in Gravesite Plain, Scadu Altus, and Rauh Ruins.
- Check your Talismans: The "Golden Braid" found in the Shaman Village provides the highest Holy damage negation in the game—you'll need it for the end.
- Visit the Nameless Mausoleums: There are four of them. Each contains a unique boss and a set of high-tier armor or weapons that are specifically tuned for the DLC's difficulty curve.