Elden Ring Boss Guide: Godfrey to Placidusax Strategies

The Lands Between teems with legendary warriors, ancient dragons, and fallen gods. From the golden halls of Leyndell to the crumbling heights of Farum Azula, each boss encounter weaves combat mastery with rich lore. This guide illuminates the path through Elden Ring's most formidable challenges, revealing the strategies and stories behind the realm's greatest warriors.

Understanding the Golden Lineage Hierarchy

The Golden Lineage stands as the cornerstone of Elden Ring's royal dynasty, born from the union of the First Elden Lord, Godfrey, and Queen Marika the Eternal. This foundational marriage established the ruling power of the Lands Between, producing the first generation of demigods who would shape its history. Their family emblem—a two-headed war axe and golden lion—symbolizes their might and legacy.

From this divine union came three powerful first-generation demigods:

• Godwyn the Golden, the celebrated hero who battled Ancient Dragons.
• Morgott the Omen King, who secretly ruled Leyndell despite his cursed nature.
• His twin, Mohg, Lord of Blood, who forged his own dark dynasty.

However, the Golden Lineage's power eroded over generations. The tragic death of Godwyn the Golden during the Night of Black Knives marked a turning point, leaving descendants like Godrick the Grafted as diminished remnants of their ancestors' glory. Unlike the divine founders or heroic first-generation demigods, later descendants resorted to artificial means like grafting to cling to relevance, embodying the lineage's tragic decline from true greatness to desperate emulation.

Essential Main Boss Battle Strategies

Godrick the Grafted

Conquering Elden Ring's main bosses requires understanding their unique weaknesses and attack patterns. For Godrick the Grafted, exploit his vulnerability to bleed damage using weapons like katanas. During his second phase with the dragon arm, focus on his sides when he unleashes fire attacks, as these moments leave him exposed.

Godfrey and Hoarah Loux

The Godfrey and Hoarah Loux encounter demands exceptional timing. Godfrey's aggressive attacks require careful pattern recognition, with few counter-attack opportunities. At 50% health, he transforms into Hoarah Loux, where the fight intensifies and demands cat-like reflexes to survive his onslaught.

Elden Beast

Against the final Elden Beast, prioritize physical damage as it's extremely resistant to holy damage. The Black Flame Tornado Ash of War proves effective against its massive HP pool. Use Lord's Divine Fortification for holy damage reduction and equip defensive gear like the Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman.

Avoid lock-on when the beast is close, jump over its ring attacks rather than rolling, and target its body for optimal damage. Success against these legendary foes hinges on exploiting specific weaknesses, proper equipment selection, and mastering the art of patience during combat.

Secret Boss: Dragonlord Placidusax Revelation

Deep within the Crumbling Farum Azula lies one of Elden Ring's most cryptic challenges: the ancient Dragonlord Placidusax. This secret boss isn't found through conventional exploration but by manipulating time itself. Starting from the Beside the Great Bridge Site of Grace, players must descend hidden platforms to find a distinctive archway.

Here, a mysterious prompt appears—when you choose to "lie down," you trigger a temporal shift. This act doesn't just transport you; it catapults you into "the heart of the storm beyond time," a pocket dimension where Placidusax awaits his fled god's return.

The Original Elden Lord

As revealed in the lore, this multi-headed dragon was the original Elden Lord, ruling long before the Erdtree's rise. Betrayed by Bayle the Dread and left with only two of his five heads, his temporal exile underscores the tragic history of the dragon civilization. Defeating him grants 280,000 Runes and the Remembrance of the Dragonlord, a testament to his god-slaying power.

NPC Connections & Lore Implications

The Night of Black Knives

The Night of Black Knives stands as the pivotal event that reshaped the Lands Between, weaving a complex web of betrayal and consequence. Orchestrated by Ranni the Witch, this conspiracy aimed to free her from the Two Fingers' control by shedding her empyrean flesh.

Her brother, Rykard, played a crucial role by stealing the Rune of Death from Maliketh. The Black Knife Assassins—Numen women close to Marika—carried out the assassination of Godwyn the Golden.

The mechanics of the plot were chillingly precise. Ranni had half of the hallowbrand carved into herself simultaneously with Godwyn’s death, creating a broken cursemark. This dual death allowed her to separate her soul from her empyrean body, but the fallout was catastrophic.

Theories suggest Godwyn was targeted for personal significance, as a political purge, or to force Marika into shattering the Elden Ring. The aftermath reverberated across the realm, with Marika’s response leading to the Shattering, Maliketh’s betrayal mirroring Blaidd’s conflict, and the Black Knives later turning against Ranni. This intricate tapestry of betrayal underscores Elden Ring’s masterful storytelling, where NPC relationships drive both narrative and gameplay.

Blaidd the Half-Wolf's Tragic Path

Blaidd the Half-Wolf's story is deeply intertwined with Ranni the Witch's questline, creating one of Elden Ring's most emotionally resonant NPC narratives. The journey begins in Mistwood Ruins where players must first encounter Blaidd by listening for his distinctive howling and using the "Snap" gesture obtained from Merchant Kalé.

This initial meeting sets the stage for a complex relationship that evolves through key moments, including:

• His assistance against Bloodhound Knight Darriwil in the Forlorn Hound Evergaol.
• His participation in the Radahn Festival.

The narrative's tragic arc becomes apparent when Blaidd becomes imprisoned in the Forlorn Hound Evergaol after the Radahn battle. He later turns hostile at Ranni's Rise upon completing her entire questline. This heartbreaking confrontation serves as the conclusion to both characters' intertwined stories, highlighting the cost of ambition and loyalty in the Lands Between.

The quest's emotional weight is amplified by the fact that players only face Blaidd as a boss after completing Ranni's entire journey, including defeating Astel, Naturalborn of the Void and obtaining the Dark Moon Greatsword, ensuring they've fully invested in this narrative before its devastating conclusion.

Ultimate Elden Ring Boss Mastery Conclusion

Phase 1: Conquering Radagon

Mastering Elden Ring's final boss encounter requires a dual-phase approach tailored to Radagon and the Elden Beast's distinct weaknesses. For Radagon, prioritize holy resistance with the Haligdrake Talisman +2 and Lord's Divine Fortification.

Exploit his vulnerability to physical strikes. Learning his delayed attack patterns is crucial—precision dodging outperforms panic rolling, as noted in Game8's Radagon guide.

Phase 2: Defeating the Elden Beast

Transitioning to the Elden Beast, abandon holy attacks entirely. The beast's massive HP pool demands percentage-based damage, making Black Flame Tornado exceptionally effective.

Positioning near its tail or underbelly slows its turning, creating openings for high-poise weapons to stagger it. Reddit community strategies also highlight Pest Threads and Radahn's Rain as viable alternatives.

Essential Gear and Final Tactics

Essential gear includes the Brass Shield for holy mitigation and the Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman for physical defense. Stamina management and manual positioning are paramount—patience over aggression wins the day. With these tactics, sourced from the Fextralife Wiki and player-tested guides, victory is within reach.