Even if you’ve never played a Dark Souls game, you probably know they’ve got a reputation for difficulty. These are difficult games, and the bosses in later games are legendary for how tough they are. That isn’t exactly the case in Demon’s Souls. In general, the battles are much slower and more deliberate. Bosses don’t take that many hits. Really, some of these bosses are downright easy.
That is, if you know the tricks. Demon’s Souls includes strange bosses with gimmicks and tricky weaknesses you can exploit for a much easier time. Some bosses can be stealthy, others can be defeated by attacking a hidden weak spot. Certain bosses seem impossible until you solve a mini-puzzle in the stage. Below, I’ll cover every boss to explain what it’s weak against, and what tricks you can use to crush them without breaking out into gamer sweats.
More Demon’s Souls guides:
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[1-1] Phalanx
Phalanx is a giant blob surrounded by shield-wielding enemies. You need to defeat the minions to attack the exposed core before they regenerate. Use the pillars in the room to give yourself a safe place to heal.
- Coat your melee weapon in Turpentine to do more damage.
- It is weak to fire damage. Use Fire Bombs to clear out hoplites and attack the core.
[1-2] Tower Knight
A massive knight armed with a gigantic shield and spear. You’ll have to attack his ankles and circle-strafe to get behind him. There are a few strategies you can use to win very early. Make sure to run upstairs and clear out the archers before taking on the Tower Knight 1-on-1.
- Circle-strafe and stay behind him with your shield up. Attack his ankles when there is an opening. Watch out for his jump / stomp attacks.
- Attack both ankles until the armor is shattered. When his armor is broken, a few attacks will cause him to fall. Attack his head to deal huge damage — knock him down about three times to win.
- Stand on the stairs and wait for him to approach. When he prepares a spear throw, sprint down and attack his ankles. You can get in one attack, then sprint back up. This is a very safe melee method.
- The Tower Knight is weak to Poison Cloud and Death Cloud. Poison cloud will poison and eventually kill the Tower Knight, and death cloud will paralyze him.
[2-1] Armor Spider
The Armor Spider battle is split into two phases — the approach and the arena. In the narrow cave, the spider shoots webs and fireballs. Use fire-resistant shields and armor to make this easier.
- Use the alcoves to hide during the approach.
- Apply Sticky White Stuff to your weapon to deal extra damage in close-range.
- Using the Thief’s Ring and Cloak spell, you can actually hide from the boss. You can use 80~ arrows to snipe it from afar. It takes a long time, but the ranged method is relatively safe.
- The Armor Spider takes more damage from spells.
[2-2] Flamelurker
One of the toughest bosses in the game, the Flamelurker is a hulking fire demon that’s faster than most of the enemies you’ve encountered so far. Naturally, the Flamelurker is immune to fire magic. He’s very fast, and leaps around the arena. All of his attacks have a fire element, so be prepared.
- The Purple Flame Shield is found in Boletarian Palace and will help you defend against fire attacks.
- Use White Sticky Stuff on your weapon to inflict extra damage on the Flame Lurker.
- The boss is weak to magic. Soul Arrow and Soul Ray can significantly damage him and make the fight much easier.
- The Ring of Magical Sharpness helps here. Find it in the Iron Maiden room in the Tower of Latria, 4th floor.
[2-3] Dragon God
This massive puzzle boss isn’t really a boss at all. You don’t need to fight him — just keep moving and avoiding its attacks. Your goal is to reach the spear launchers and fire. Use your weapons to smash the rubble blocking your path.
[3-1] Fool’s Idol
This is a trick boss. The Fool’s Idol will respawn endlessly unless you defeat the prisoner on the balcony above the church. Use the side-passage to reach the upper level (before entering the boss arena through the fog gate) and kill him to gain the Special Key.
- The Fool’s Idol will respawn constantly until you kill the prisoner on the balcony above the church. Access to this area is outside the boss arena.
- The boss is otherwise pretty simple. It is one of the easier bosses in the game — once you learn the secret of the prisoner.
[3-2] Maneater
A vicious gargoyle on a narrow ledge. A second gargoyle will appear mid-battle, making this one of the toughest fights in the game. Taking on both will be a challenge.
- Don’t dodge unless you’re absolutely sure of your footing. It’s very easy to fall to your death.
- Trade the Tower Knight’s Soul to Sage Freke to gain the Warding Spell. This spell negates 70% of physical damage. With this spell active, the gargoyle won’t damage you with your shield up.
- The second Maneater spawns when the first Maneater is at 20% health. When you’re close to 20%, use White Stuff or buff your sword, and attack with full stamina to kill it ASAP.
- Run past them and snipe with spells / bows on the opposite end of the bridge. It takes them time to cross the length.
[3-3] Old Monk
Another weird gimmick boss. If you’re online, the boss will summon a player’s soul, forcing you into a PVP battle. There’s no way to prepare for this, but there is a simple trick you can use to make the fight a lot easier.
- Just enter the battle when you’re not connected online. If you aren’t, you’ll fight a default AI opponent that’s no more difficult than most tough enemies.
[4-1] Adjudicator
The bizarre Adjudicator is a fat monster that uses its tongue to shatter the floors you’re standing on. Fighting it up close can be difficult, but you’ll have to be nimble to avoid dropping down.
- Using a bow, aim for the bird crown on the Adjudicator’s head. Stay near the Fog Door to stay just out of range of the tongue, and snipe the head — retreating back when it prepares a tongue attack.
- Sticky White Stuff, again, increases the amount of damage you’ll do.
[4-2] Old Hero
A blind swordsman that stalks the dark hallways of his lair. Stay quiet, and you can surprise attack him — then retreat and sneak up on him again.
- Collect the Thief Ring in Boletarian Palace, behind Ostrava. When equipped, this makes you much harder to find.
- You can also equip lighter gear and the Old Hero won’t be able to find you as easily.
- Stand still and wait for the Old Hero to lose track of you. It attacks in random directions. Wait for a chance, walk close, and unleash attacks before running away. Rinse and repeat.
[4-3] Storm King
The massive Storm King is yet another gimmick boss. For this fight, collect the Storm Ruler sword and retreat to a safe area far away from the boss. The minions will only attack if you’re close enough to strike — just use the Storm Ruler by locking on and swinging your sword, blasting the boss with lightning. There’s no tricks here.
[5-1] Leechmonger
The Leechmonger is a squirming leech monster that regenerates health — and it’s also very weak to fire. Any fire weapons will instantly kill this thing. Magically enhanced weapons will help too.
- Use Turpentine to quickly rip this boss to shreds.
- Any bow weapon can be used to pick it off from the higher platforms outside its arena. The Lava Bow will destroy it very quickly.
- Blacksmith Ed can craft the Lava Bow with the Armor Spider’s Soul.
[5-2] Dirty Colossus
The dirty colossus is a huge behemoth made of junk. Again, he’s weak to fire so any magic (or magically-enhanced) weapon will quickly defeat him. Like all the bosses in this area, he’s a push-over.
- Use Turpentine, Black Turpentine, or fire magic to kill it quickly.
- Circle around to its back and strike from behind.
- He’s slow, so just stay behind and you shouldn’t have any problems.
[5-3] Maiden Astraea
The Maiden isn’t the problem in this fight. She’s guarded by a powerful knight named Garl Vinland. His killer weapon and massive shield make him difficult to break through.
- Vinland is vulnerable to fire magic. Use Fire Spray and dodge back to weaken him. If you can master parry timing, he isn’t a problem.
- For an easier method, stand on the ledge overlooking the Maiden’s alcove and shoot arrows down. She’ll heal herself, but if you’re strong enough you can deal enough damage to take her down without even fighting her.
[1-3] Penetrator
Back on the main path, the Penetrator is an infamous boss in the series. He has a massive sword that he uses for thrusting and swinging attacks.
- Any swinging attacks can be dodged through. Time your dodges to properly avoid them. Just watch out for his blue-glowing lunge attack.
- Stay slightly out his sweeping attack range, and be prepared to run in for an attack when he’s open. Use your shield to negate damage.
- I recommend using a heavy shield / spear for this fight for melee builds.
- Soul Arrow can be used to whittle away his health from afar. Just circle the arena and keep retreating, using Soul Arrow when you can.
- Fire Spray also works wonders in this fight.
[1-4] Old King Allant
The final boss of the game. Old King Allant is a faster, deadlier opponent compared to anything you’ve fought so far. He’s graceful and quick with his sword, making him a true rival. Bring lots of healing items.
- Unlike other bosses, he is resistant to fire and magic. Just go in with your standard spear and shield. You’ll need to be able to perform quick-rolls.
- Stay out of his sword range. When it glows, he’ll attempt to use a special Soulsuck ability that steals one of your Soul Levels. You won’t die, but you will permanently lose a level.
- Keep your shield up and back away. When he charges his AOE attack, sprint in close and attack to interrupt and get free hits.
- Wait to heal when Allant slowly walks. That’s your best chance.
