The Untold Secrets of the Stray Demon: Unveiling Dark Souls' Greatest Chekhov's Gun
The Stray Demon in Dark Souls leaves players intrigued long before the boss fight Its presence acts as a tantalizing hint, creating anticipation and adding depth to the game's overall experience
Highlights
The Northern Undead Asylum in Dark Souls serves as both a tutorial location and a secret dungeon later in the game, setting a trend for the series.
Introduced early on, the Stray Demon in the Undead Asylum bears a striking resemblance to the Asylum Demon. However, players can only engage in battle with it upon revisiting the area further into the game. Despite its similarities, the Stray Demon incorporates fresh maneuvers into its repertoire, giving players the sensation of facing a completely different boss. Those who manage to defeat it will be generously rewarded with a valuable upgrade material.
The Dark Souls series has gained popularity for the unique approach taken by FromSoftware, where tutorial locations serve multiple purposes within a single playthrough. The Northern Undead Asylum, the initial setting in the first Dark Souls game, exemplifies this trend by later transforming into a secretive dungeon that players can revisit.
In addition to its dual functionality in Dark Souls, the Undead Asylum features an early encounter with a second boss before players have the opportunity to return and face it. This boss is known as the Stray Demon, whose resemblance in appearance and behavior to the initial obstacle, the Asylum Demon, may have caused some players to mistakenly assume victory in their first encounter.
Hanging the Stray Demon Chekhov's Gun
The Stray Demon's introduction is different compared to the other hidden bosses in Dark Souls. In fact, it is the first enemy that some players will encounter, depending on which direction they initially look upon entering the Undead Asylum's initial cell. The boss can be seen immediately to the right of the starting area, but the player cannot jump into the arena to challenge the Stray Demon due to walls and gates blocking the way.
Instead, the player must progress through the higher levels of the Undead Asylum, where they will encounter the Asylum Demon. At first glance, the Asylum Demon may appear to be the same as the Stray Demon. Both are enormous demons with oversized weapons that roam the Undead Asylum, making it easy to mistake them for the same boss. However, this misconception is cleared up when players sit in the giant crow's nest, which transports them back to the Northern Undead Asylum, revealing it to be a separate area and confirming that the Stray Demon awaits there.
Firing the Chekhov's Gun with Stray Demon's Boss Fight
Returning to the Northern Undead Asylum, players can encounter a group of hollows and an empty boss room. However, upon stepping into the center of the arena where the Asylum Demon was previously defeated, the floor collapses to reveal a secondary boss arena. Here, players face the Stray Demon, engaging in a challenging battle due to the unfair design of the arena that causes significant fall damage upon entry.
Despite appearing as a variation of the Asylum Demon with increased health and damage, the original Dark Souls game understood the importance of enhancing repeated boss fights. Thus, the Stray Demon incorporates some of the Asylum Demon's attacks, such as its powerful slam, while introducing new moves like a series of magical blasts that cover a significant portion of the arena. These additions to the more basic moveset provide a fresh experience when tackling the Stray Demon, even though it may share similarities in appearance and behavior with its predecessor.
It is challenging to determine the exact timing for players to fight the Stray Demon due to the delicate balance between its damage and the reward for defeating it. The boss possesses considerable health and damage, making it too difficult to confront upon the first visit to the Undead Asylum. However, it can be challenged with a weapon ranked around +6 or +7. The enticing prize for victory is the Titanite Slab, the most potent upgrade material in the Dark Souls series. This suggests that it is advisable to postpone the encounter with the Stray Demon until after exploring New Londo Ruins. Dark Souls is currently available for PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
