Unleashing Chaos: Ranking the Most Insanely Challenging Bosses in Lords of the Fallen

Highlights

Lords of the Fallen is a challenging game with multiple endings, unique bosses, and rewards based on the player's chosen path.

Pieta is the initial boss and may pose a challenge for players who are new to this genre. However, her moveset remains consistent throughout the entire battle.

Kinrangr Guardian Folard exemplifies the game's design philosophy of testing players with a challenging boss fight that incorporates different obstacles and enemies.

Lords of the Fallen is an expansive game that offers players a diverse range of areas to explore, including icy landscapes and a treacherous tower. In addition to multiple endings, the game features distinctive bosses and rewards, which depend on the player's chosen path.

Within the game, there are over 30 bosses to encounter, some of which present formidable challenges even in cooperative play. To help players prepare, let's take a look at some of the most difficult bosses in Axiom (or the Umbral).

10 Pieta - She of Blessed Renewal

Beginning with the first real 'boss' of the game, Pieta serves as the perfect introduction to boss fights in Lords of the Fallen. Not only does Pieta play a crucial role as an NPC, assisting players by upgrading their Sanguinatrix, but she also presents a considerable challenge for newcomers to this genre of games. By utilizing the parrying mechanic, players can effectively Stagger Pieta multiple times before she enters her second phase. However, for those who struggle with parrying, the fight becomes more difficult. Fortunately, even in her second phase, Pieta's moveset remains relatively unchanged, with players simply needing to pursue her more frequently.

9 The Hushed Saint

The Hushed Saint exemplifies a group of bosses in Lords of the Fallen who, frustratingly, cannot be targeted by players for a significant portion of their boss fight. This occurrence becomes more bothersome as it happens repeatedly throughout the game. However, the Hushed Saint is relatively less offensive in this regard as he can only be targeted when he jumps on or off his horse (or out of the water).

Although the attack patterns of the Hushed Saint are generally not too challenging, the damage he inflicts at the level most players are at when reaching this area can be devastating. Additionally, many players overlook the mechanic of Soul Siphoning the Umbral Parasites (which populate the arena) when the Hushed Saint passes over them, as this causes him to fall off his horse.

8 Kinrangr Guardian Folard

There are numerous individuals drawing comparisons between this game and Dark Souls 2. Both games are known for their difficulty that often revolves around tricks and pranks rather than straightforward challenges. Whether it's elderly women pushing the Dark Crusader off cliffs, surprise attacks from dogs, or hordes of archers littered throughout every area, Lords of the Fallen can sometimes feel overwhelming.

A prime illustration of this design approach is seen in the fight against Kinrangr Guardian Folard. This boss battle appears to have been intentionally created to be as frustrating as conceivable, featuring:

An arena covered in ankle-high water that disrupts movement.

3 Kinrangr Hounds that also have some ice AoE to their attacks.

Folard himself has ice AoEs around most of his attackings,

making parrying a poor option

.

When players die and revive in Umbral, they'll be

met with a Mendacious Visage enemy

who was apparently just waiting for its moment to shine.

7 Harrower Dervla The Pledged Knight & The Unbroken Promise

Lords of the Fallen's storyline and mythology can be challenging at times due to its extensive religious worldbuilding, excessive religious references, and passages about sacred texts (similar to the Blasphemous games). However, there is a wealth of captivating lore to discover. The lore surrounding the Unbroken Promise and his loyal knight, Harrower Dervla, is especially intriguing.

The initial encounter with Dervla involves a fairly standard battle. She wields a crossbow and a sword, utilizing predictable attack patterns that can be easily anticipated or parried. However, during the midpoint of the fight, the young boy chained to the altar behind her intermittently launches projectiles that often obstruct the player. Once Dervla is defeated, the second phase commences, pitting the mutated amalgamation of these two tragic souls, also known as the Unbroken Promise. This phase presents more complexities compared to the first, but aside from the floating nails that target the player and the bolts that emerge from the ground before resurfacing beneath them, the majority of the attacks are relatively manageable.

6 Spurned Progeny

Developers in Soulslike games often attempt to create giant-sized bosses, but rarely succeed. While these bosses usually have a captivating atmosphere, they are rarely enjoyable to fight. However, the Spurned Progeny in Lords of the Fallen is an exception. It becomes an exhilarating encounter once players comprehend the gimmick behind its particular attack. The other attacks of this boss can be easily avoided or mastered, but its massive fireball in phase 2 is problematic as it seems to hit anywhere and instantly eliminate most players.

To evade this attack, simply take cover behind one of the walls on the upper level of the ramparts in the arena. By doing so, the fireball will miss its mark. Once players understand how to avoid this specific attack, facing the Spurned Progeny becomes a highly enjoyable experience.

5 Tancred - Master of Castigations & Reinhold The Immured

Many players in Lords of the Fallen have been struggling with getting lost and taking the wrong path throughout the game. For instance, some players mistakenly acquire the Pilgrim's Perch Key early on, committing themselves to following its path until the end. Additionally, there is a group of players who somehow find themselves at the bottom of the Tower of Penance before even reaching Fitzroy's Gorge. This game offers multiple branching paths, each with varying difficulty levels for enemies and bosses in terms of damage dealt and health. One area of concern is facing the Tancred, Master of Castigations boss battle without sufficient DPS, HP, or Defense, which can lead to significant challenges.

In terms of the bossfight itself, Tancred's first phase is relatively easy and predictable, especially for those who have already encountered similar 'Holy Knight' enemies in the game. It mainly consists of basic stabs, wide slashes, and overhead slams. However, the second phase, Reinhold the Immured, presents a much tougher challenge, particularly in co-op mode, as it has a significant amount of health. Nevertheless, after a few attempts, players will discover that Reinhold's attacks are easy to anticipate and if approached carefully, the second phase is not as difficult as initially thought.

4 Elianne The Starved

Players are unlikely to encounter this particular boss during their playthrough, as it requires a series of intricate steps (such as avoiding cleansing any beacons) that lead to the Umbral ending of the game.

However, for players following the Umbral path, Elianne the Starved is not so much found as "triggered." Essentially, once players have reached a specific point in the Umbral ending path, they will be given the option to Soulflay Pieta in Skyrest. This action automatically initiates the boss fight with Elianne. While Elianne technically serves as the secret final boss for the Umbral playthrough, she is not overly challenging and shares many moves with the previous boss battle against Pieta (which is logical considering the context). Although the two fights are not identical, they are similar enough that players will already be somewhat prepared. Players should be cautious of the onslaught of Umbral Orbs, ensure they have a sufficient amount of Wither Defense, and this fight should not last too long.

3 Judge Cleric - The Radiant Sentinel

Despite the predictable patterns of both phases, the Judge Cleric battle ranks high on this list due to its brutally powerful attacks, particularly in the second phase. Additionally, the wide area coverage of some of the Cleric's spells adds to the challenge, even when players are aware of the upcoming attack.

Nevertheless, this battle remains highly regarded in terms of its well-roundedness, beloved combat mechanics, appealing design, immersive atmosphere, and rewarding Remembrance. There isn't much more to add other than the need to study the melee patterns, respond swiftly to the wide AoE spells, and avoid excessive greed.

2 The Lampreaper

The tutorial boss in the game is known as the 'forced death'. While technically possible to defeat the Lampreaper in the tutorial, it requires an absurd amount of time and effort. Realistically, players will face this boss much later in Upper Calranth, where it still demands significant work.

This boss fight is unique as players will spend half the battle watching and dodging while the Lampreaper is attached to its 'dragon'. To access the Umbral Parasite beneath the center grate of the arena, players are advised to do some preparation before entering. Despite the constant movement of the Lampreaper during the battle, it remains an enjoyable and challenging boss fight that is anticipated throughout most of the game.

1 The Sundered Monarch

Let's now discuss the Sundered Monarch, one of the final bosses in Lords of the Fallen. Players have been drawing comparisons between this fight and others such as the Vendrick fight in Dark Souls 2 or certain boss battles in the Dark Souls 3 DLCs.

In general, it is widely agreed upon that the Sundered Monarch presents a challenging yet enjoyable boss battle. Unlike many other bosses, he showcases a broader range of moves and doesn't rely on unfair gimmicks. Additionally, his design and the lore surrounding him are remarkable. It's worth noting that when compared to the boss fight following the Monarch (for the Infernal and Radiant endings), which is exceptionally unenjoyable, the Sundered Monarch appears even more impressive.

Lords of the Fallen (2023)

Platform(s) PS5, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, PCReleased October 13, 2023Developer(s) HEXWORKSPublisher(s) CI Games See at Official Site See at Amazon