Maliketh, The Black Blade |
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|---|---|
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| Location | Crumbling Farum Azula |
| Drops | |
 220,000Remembrance of the Black Blade |
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| HP | 10,620 |
| Stronger VS |
Weaker to |
StrikeBeast Clergyman and Maliketh, The Black Blade is a two-phase Legend Boss in Elden Ring. Gurranq, Beast Clergyman is found at the end of Crumbling Farum Azula and is revealed to be Maliketh, the Black Blade. Similar to how Blaidd is to Ranni, Maliketh is Queen Marika's shadow-bound beast. He was tasked to guard the Rune of Death, but his failure to do so led to the Night of the Black Knives. In order for this to never happen again, he imbued the rune into his very flesh.
This is not an optional boss, as players must defeat it to advance to Leyndell, Ashen Capital and finish the game.
Gurranq, Beast Clergyman is an NPC variant of the first phase of this boss.
See Maliketh, The Black Blade Lore
O, Death. Become my blade, once more.
Elden Ring Maliketh, The Black Blade Boss
- This is not an optional boss as Maliketh must be defeated to unlock Leyndell, Ashen Capital and advance the story.
- Closest Site of Grace: Beside the Great Bridge
- Multiplayer is allowed for this boss
- You can summon Spirit Ashes for this boss
Elden Ring Maliketh, The Black Blade Location
From the Beside the Great Bridge Site of Grace, head west and then south up the stairs, then up the ramp past the Draconic Tree Sentinel and into the door to Beast Clergyman's boss room. [Map link]
Maliketh, The Black Blade Combat information
- Health: 10,620 HP
- Defense: 120
- Stance: 80
- Parryable: Yes, with a well-timed use of Blasphemous Claw against 2 specific attacks
- Is vulnerable to a critical hit after being stance broken
- Damage:
Standard, 
Slash, 
Pierce, Magic (Clergyman), Standard, Pierce, 
Holy (Maliketh) - Drops 220,000, Remembrance of the Black Blade
Negations (or Absorptions)
Magic
Fire
LightningThe negation numbers are the % of your damage that gets blocked. For example, if a negation is 60, 40% of that damage by that type will go through and 60% will be negated. Bigger number = less damage. A negation of 100 means no damage goes through, and a negation of -100 mean the enemy takes 2x damage from that source. 0 means damage goes pretty much as is.
Resistances
Poison: 351 / 449 / 739 / 1196
Scarlet Rot: 351 / 449 / 739 / 1196
Hemorrhage: 574 / 864 / 1321
Frostbite: 574 / 864 / 1321
The resistance numbers are the buildup amount to trigger it. For example, if a resistance is 100 you must deal 100 points of the given buildup to trigger it. Note that these go down over time, and increase each time the effect procs. The values after the "/"s indicate the increased resistances after each successive proc.
NG+ and Beyond (click to reveal)
| NG | NG+ | NG+2 | NG+3 | NG+4 | NG+5 | NG+6 | NG+7 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HP | 10,620 | 10,631 | 11,694 | 12,225 | 12,757 | 13,820 | 14,351 | 14,883 |
| Defense | 120 | 120 | 123 | 126 | 132 | 138 | 144 | 156 |
| Runes |
220,000 | 440,000 | 484,000 | 495,000 | 528,000 | 539,000 | 550,000 | 561,000 |
Resistances |
||||||||
| Poison |
351 / 449 / 739 / 1196 | 375 / 473 / 763 / 1220 | 380 / 478 / 768 / 1225 | 386 / 484 / 774 / 1231 | 391 / 489 / 779 / 1236 | 397 / 495 / 785 / 1242 | 403 / 501 / 791 / 1248 | 408 / 506 / 796 / 1253 |
| Scarlet Rot |
351 / 449 / 739 / 1196 | 375 / 473 / 763 / 1220 | 380 / 478 / 768 / 1225 | 386 / 484 / 774 / 1231 | 391 / 489 / 779 / 1236 | 397 / 495 / 785 / 1242 | 403 / 501 / 791 / 1248 | 408 / 506 / 796 / 1253 |
| Hemorrhage |
574 / 864 / 1321 | 614 / 904 / 1361 | 623 / 913 / 1370 | 632 / 922 / 1379 | 641 / 931 / 1388 | 650 / 940 / 1397 | 660 / 950 / 1407 | 669 / 959 / 1416 |
| Frostbite |
574 / 864 / 1321 | 614 / 904 / 1361 | 623 / 913 / 1370 | 632 / 922 / 1379 | 641 / 931 / 1388 | 650 / 940 / 1397 | 660 / 950 / 1407 | 669 / 959 / 1416 |
 Sleep |
2277 / 2277 | 2436 / 2436 | 2472 / 2472 | 2509 / 2509 | 2545 / 2545 | 2582 / 2582 | 2618 / 2618 | 2655 / 2655 |
 Madness |
Immune | |||||||
Elden Ring Maliketh, The Black Blade Boss Guide
Maliketh, The Black Blade Boss Video Guide
[video coming soon]
Maliketh, the Black Blade fight strategy
Fight Overview
The encounter begins with the Beast Clergyman in a large round arena surrounded by an open pit. Upon entering through the fog gate, move forward immediately to avoid fighting on the short bridge. The Beast Clergyman uses low horizontal swings that can be jumped over for counterattacks, as well as rock sling and air burst ranged attacks, which can be dodged by rolling forward. When he plunges his dagger into the ground, boulders will rise and crash down — avoid the impact. Strong attacks can break his posture, allowing for a riposte. Posture break buildup carries over into the second phase, giving you an advantage when Maliketh, the Black Blade, appears.
At half health, the second phase begins, revealing Maliketh. His sword attacks reduce your max health temporarily and cause DoT. Many of his attacks have a frontal cone AoE, which can be avoided by staying close, under, or behind him. Maliketh will leap into the air and use the pillars to move around, using the Black Blade at you, which can be dodged by rolling.
When Maliketh plunges his Black Blade into the ground, roll or move away to avoid the delayed explosion. Staying in melee range is recommended, as his regular sword attacks are easier to dodge. Avoid his frontal cone Destined Death attacks by staying at his feet or behind him. Strafing forward and to the right can cause some attacks to miss, leaving windows for counterattacks. Rolling into him can also avoid his 360-degree spinning attack, putting you in a position to counterattack. Maliketh is most dangerous at a distance, so close in as often as you can.
The Best Tips for Maliketh, The Black Blade:
- Use the pillars in the arena to block his projectiles if you need to heal.
- Practice posture breaking Beast Clergyman with heavy attacks to learn the requirements, then work on forcing phase 2 of the fight to start with the boss near a posture break. This will allow you to stun Maliketh early with only one or two heavy attacks.
- Blasphemous Claw lets you do a special kind of parry on Maliketh.
- There are only two parryable attacks: Black Blade attack (ending part, both slash and dive attack). This is indicated by white aura around his sword.
- Stun window is larger after parrying dive than slash.
- A parry may also be performed briefly during Maliketh's vertical double-spin attack, which often follows the moment he lands on his sword. This window is much smaller than the Black Blade attacks.
- A successful parry stuns Maliketh for few seconds and deals minor damage to him. Also makes his damage resistance lower for the duration of stun (around 20 percent).
- There is some risk that the player will receive damage despite a successful parry. This is because you are parrying too late. It depends on the distance where you parry which can effect the parry window. It is more likely to happen during cooperation, but can happen in solo playthrough too.
- There are only two parryable attacks: Black Blade attack (ending part, both slash and dive attack). This is indicated by white aura around his sword.
- The Crimsonburst Crystal Tear can offset the damage-over-time effect of Maliketh's attacks.
- 2nd phase: It's possible to put his AI in "pacing" mode if you unlock the camera and position a pillar between you. He will circle around trying to find sight, and if you change direction repeatedly it stalls the fight completely. Delaying allows time for his HP debuff which removes max HP% (lasting 10-15 seconds) to wear off, and gives you room to plan the next move. This mostly works if fighting without summons.
Melee Users
A shield can negate his dagger swipes but be aware that his incantations will still inflict some chip damage through a 100% physical negation shield. His forward dagger lunge can be dodged by rolling into him, but be aware that he will back up a little bit with a quick sideways dagger swipe or follow up with Bestial Sling. His dagger plunge is easiest to punish.
A lot of his incantations have very obvious tells, usually involving plunging his claw into the ground. His Bestial Sling has him hold his claw across his chest, and can be difficult to dodge given how fast it comes out. Stone of Gurranq uses a slow projectile that can be evaded easily. Both Beast Claw variations are slightly delayed after he plunges into the ground, sometimes dragging along the floor, but have a blind spot right in front of him and can be safely evaded by rolling forward.
He doesn't take too much to force to his second phase. Stagger him with a few good heavy attacks and he can easily fall to the phase change threshold.
Maliketh is a lot more mobile and is more of a test of patience. However, he retains some of the blind spots of his first phase and will whiff if you get up close or behind him. He'll frequently start with a jumping wide slash that can be rolled into. A lot of his attacks will inflict a max HP debuff and a damage over time which can be lethal if his sword combos left you near death.
Try to stick up close or behind him while he's on the ground. Wait for him to finish his airborne attacks before moving to strike.
You may notice his blade glow gold during some of these attacks; these show that it can be parried with the Blasphemous Claw. Catch him on the descent and he'll be stunned for a long time.
Magic and Ranged Users
Use high-speed, low-recovery spells like Lightning Spear or Night Comet as your main offense, because the punish windows at range are fairly short.
The Beast Clergyman's attacks all have relatively short range, so if you can outspace him you have plenty of room for long-reaching projectiles. Use the pillars to create space if you need it. Bestial Sling is the toughest to dodge due to the speed of the projectile, and any one clipping you can interrupt your casting animation.
The Clergyman begins the fight by moving towards you. If you notice he's not at full sprint, you have the room to set up and unleash a Comet Azur or Crystal Torrent to force him to phase two right away. Incantation users can use this opening behavior to inflict Scarlet Rot on him with Ekzykes's Decay. If the Clergyman starts with a full sprint, you may not have the time to pull this off.
The second phase is a lot tougher due to Maliketh's greater reach and mobility. Refrain from casting while he's in the air and only do so right after you've dodged his attacks. Again, the pillars can block his Black Blade projectiles but don't hug them too closely as his slashes can clip through and get you.
Beast Clergyman Attacks & Counters
| Attack | Description | Counter |
| Side To Side Swipe | Swiftly swings his sword either side of him directly in front of him. | Either roll into or away from him |
| Forward Ground Stab | Lunges forward a short distance to stab the ground | Roll to either side (preferably right) |
| Bestial Sling | Collects rocks from the ground with his hand and throws them at the player | Expect either this or a boulder toss, dodge a second before they hit you due to the speed |
| Bestial Sling (Variant 2) | Swiftly circles the player and collects rocks while jumping and throws them as soon as he lands | Roll a second after he lands from his dash |
| Bestial Sling (Variant 3) | Executes a Forward Ground Stab but follows it up with a Bestial Sling directly afterwards |
Dodge directly into your left (his right) to avoid the rocks |
| Beast Claw | Raises his hand over his head and slams into the ground, once he withdraws his hand shockwaves travel towards the player | Avoid dodging to the side as it can catch you easily. Roll forward into his blind spot instead. |
| Lunge Swipe | Very similar to the Bestial Sling Variant however he doesn't throw rocks but swiftly slashes from his left to his right | Stay a mid-long distance from him or dodge into his belly |
| Ground Rupture | With both hands he reaches up and grabs the ground, bringing up huge chunks of earth which crash down after (similar to Fallingstar Beast), however he occasionally follows this attack with a Bestial Sling so be ready to dodge | Observe the ground as he hits the floor, there should be visual columns of dust, this is where the rocks will come from so try and stand somewhere with no dust and keep rolling away from him |
| Stone of Gurranq | With one hand he grabs a boulder and chucks it at you in a straight line | Easily dodged by rolling forward or to the side |
| Quick Slash | Much like Sif from Dark Souls 1, he quickly slashes in front of him and backflips away from the player | Try and block it with a good shield or simply roll into or away from it |
| Sword Drag | Stabs sword into the ground and drags it around him from right to left | Stick to his left hip and roll into his left buttock to avoid the blade |
| Gurranq's Beast Claw | Similarly erupts Beast Claws from the ground however, these travel in a circle around him, tends to occur more at close range | Roll forward into his blind spot or jump over the ground-based projectile |
| Slash and Stab | Quickly slashes in front of him followed by a forward stab | Either block with a good shield or simply dodge to the right |
Maliketh, the Black Blade Attacks And Counters
| Attack | Description | Counter |
| Flip And Slash | Often the opening move to the second phase, he flip towards the player with a low sweep of his sword, may often follow it up with another swipe/ overhead slam | Roll through the first slash and dodge the slam to punish. Maliketh appears to always start phase two with this attack. If you simply hold forward at the end of the cutscene, you can safely position yourself behind him to punish as the attack ends, no dodging necessary. |
| Piledriver | Very similar to Black Blade Kindred he jumps into the air and lands on his sword which is followed by an AOE explosion | Dodge the initial slam and roll away from the boss If you move about 2 rolls' distance from Maliketh while he is still on top of his sword, he will transition into 2 overhead sweeps followed by a flurry, rather than jumping away. By rolling toward Maliketh and through the flurry, you can punish this move. |
| Black Blade | Backflips into the air and slashes his sword at the player, blades will shoot from the blade towards the player at high speeds, can vary from 2-3 blades however, If it is 2 blades he will most likely follow with a Piledriver which has an AOE. If it is 3 blades he will charge towards player and perform the "Double Spin" attack while moving through the air. | Do not panic roll, wait for about half a second after the slash begins to start rolling and count the slashes. If it is 2, copy the advice from the previous row. If it is 3, roll towards Maliketh when "Double Spin" is about to hit you. Since he is moving during the attack, the second slash will not hit you. Be careful not to stand close to an edge, since Maliketh will simply stop moving forward making the second hit near impossible to dodge. You can parry this attack on the descent with the Blasphemous Claw. |
| Quick Black Blade | Quick flip with a single Black Blade projectile. | Simple to roll through or block |
| Roar | Roars at the player which knocks them back a few meters. | Keep your shield up to reduce the impact, no damage is taken though. Alternatively, time a roll to avoid the impact. |
| Destined Death | The most punishable attack, he slashes the floor in front of him and follows it with a overhead slam leaving his back exposed | For the swipe simply roll to your right and get a hit or two and for the slam roll into his rear to avoid it and punish carefully. It's best to wait a moment to punish in case he follows up with his deadly variant described below. |
| Destined Death (followup) | Same as previous row however, he follows with the blade circling himself twice and stabbing the ground in front of him, creating a cloud of slashes, rapidly cutting through anything in front of him. | If he begins to circle the blade around himself simply stay close to him and either block or dodge the swipes and dodge the stab and punish. If there is time, move behind him before the stab to avoid the slashes. |
| Double Spin | Spins around twice in place with the blade in hand | Roll twice. The timing of the second swing perfectly matches the timing of your second roll if you successfully rolled the first swing. |
| Blind Swings | After successful parry, Maliketh covers his eyes and performs a slow slash (Multiple slashes, if the player parried Piledriver attack). | Stay under him and attack before he recovers |
Maliketh, The Black Blade Notes & Other Trivia
- [!] Defeating Maliketh will automatically cause world-altering changes to the game environment including:
- The transformation of Leyndell into an ashen version. Several areas of Leyndell will become permanently inaccessible.
- Visible burning glowing red ember particles will cover the entire game world, and the Erdtree will become red with flame instead of the usual yellow. (Not to be confused with minor color changes to the Erdtree that occur after the player chooses a dialog choice with Melina at the Forge of the Giants site of grace after defeating Fire Giant.)
- Voice Actor: Jonathan Keeble
- Was originally called the Beast Pastor in the 1.00 version of the game.
- Maliketh was the half-brother and sworn Shadow of Queen Marika, to whom she entrusted the Rune of Death. Ranni the Witch stole a fragment of the Rune of Death to forge the daggers used during the Night of the Black Knives, causing a series of events that resulted in the Shattering. After which, she gave the Blasphemous Claw to her brother Rykard, to give him the power to challenge Maliketh.
- In order to ensure that the Rune of Death was never stolen (again), Maliketh bound the blade that contained it to his own flesh.
- Bug: If Tarnished dies during the second phase with the "debuff" on, they will not spawn with max HP. This applies to cooperators as well.
Dialogue
INTRODUCTION
Thou, who approacheth Destined Death. I will not have it stolen from me again.
INTRODUCTION
(if Gurranq is given all Deathroots)
Tarnished, why wouldst thou... Why... Tis no matter. I hereby vow, that Destined Death shall not be stolen again.
DURING FIGHT:
Defeating player in phase 1:
I shall not part with it again.
Defeating player in phase 1
(if Gurranq is given all Deathroots):
Stay away from Destined Death.
Defeating player in phase 2:
Cower. Before Maliketh, the Black Blade.
Defeating player in phase 2
(if Gurranq is given all Deathroots):
Cower. Before Maliketh, Marika's Black Blade.
PHASE TRANSITION:
O, Death. Become my blade, once more.
AFTER FIGHT:
Witless Tarnished... Why covet Destined Death?
To kill what?
(if Gurranq is given all Deathroots):
Forgive me, Marika... The Golden Order... cannot be restored.
Maliketh, the Black Blade Lore
Lore Items Related to Maliketh, the Black Blade
Remembrance of the Black Blade
Remembrance of Maliketh, the Black Blade, hewn into the Erdtree.
The power of its namesake can be unlocked by the Finger Reader.
Alternatively, it can be used to gain a great bounty of runes.
Maliketh was a shadowbound beast given to his Empyrean.
Marika's sole need of her shadow was a vessel to lock away Destined Death.
Even then, she betrayed him.
Maliketh's Helm
Beast's helm made of black iron and decorated with gold.
Worn by Maliketh the Black Blade.
Maliketh, Queen Marika's loyal half-brother,
bore a blade imbued with Destined Death,
and there was not one demigod who did not fear him.
Champions knew what was at stake.
Indeed, that is what made them champions
Scouring Black Flame
A black flame incantation of the Godskin Apostles.
Sweeps a wide area before the caster with black flame.
Charging enhances range.
The black flame could once slay gods. But when Maliketh sealed Destined Death, the true power of the black flame was lost.
Mending Rune of the Death-Prince
Rune gestated by Fia, the Deathbed Companion.
Used to restore the fractured Elden Ring when brandished by the Elden Lord.
Formed of the two hallowbrand half-wheels combined, it will embed the principle of life within Death into Order.
The Golden Order was created by confining Destined Death. Thus, this new Order will be one of Death restored.
Stone of Gurranq
Superior incantation taught by Gurranq, the Beast Clergyman.
Hurls a boulder before the caster.
This incantation can be cast repeatedly.
Long ago, Gurranq was a beast of such terrifying ferocity that his former name meant "Death of the Demigods."
Gargoyle's Black Halberd
Bronze halberd wielded by Valiant Gargoyles, mended with blackened corpse wax.
Deals holy damage.
Such is the mark of those who serve Maliketh, the Black Blade.
Black Knife
Dagger once belonging to one of the assassins who murdered Godwyn the Golden on the Night of the Black Knives.
A ritual performed on the oddly misshapen blade imbued it with the power of the stolen Rune of Death.
Deathroot
A source that gives rise to Those Who Live in Death.
The beast clergyman, found at Bestial Sanctum in the distant east, collects and devours these roots.
On the night of the dire plot the stolen Rune of Death enabled the first Death of a demigod. Later, the Rune of Death spread across the Lands Between through the underground roots of the Greattree, sprouting in the form of Deathroot.
Beast Eye
Claw-marked stone eye received from Gurranq, Beast Clergyman.
It is said to tremble when near Deathroot.
The murky violet iris writhes as if alive.
"I am not sated... Feed me more...Death..."
Dialogue Related to Maliketh, the Black Blade
Finger Reader Enia
Queen Marika is the vessel of the Elden Ring, carrier of its vision.
Finger Reader Enia
The Rune of Death goes by two names; the other is Destined Death. The forbidden shadow, plucked from the Golden Order upon its creation…
Brother Corhyn
The Golden Order is founded on the principle that Marika is the one true god.
Hidetaka Miyazaki
But the Demigods' immortality stems from having their fated deaths removed from the Elden Ring. I don't expect that to make much sense right now, but as you play the game, I think you'll gradually come to understand.
Sorcerer Rogier
It happened during the Golden Age of the Erdtree, long before the shattering of the Elden Ring. Someone stole a fragment of the Rune of Death from Maliketh, the Black Blade.
Ranni the Witch
Indeed, I am the witch Ranni. I stole a fragment of the Rune of Death, and used it to forge the godslaying black knives through fearsome rite.
Gurranq, Beast Clergyman
It is... It is all...consumed. Still, I am not sated... Not nearly sated...
D, Hunter of the Dead
If you're inclined to hunt more of Those Who Live in Death, and weed their Deathroot, then I'll introduce you to Gurranq, the beast clergyman. I have a matter of my own to attend to. And the beast himself wishes for someone to take my place.
D, Hunter of the Dead
Very well. Show me your map. ... I've marked the location for you. Of a hidden gateway. It will lead you to Gurranq, the beast clergyman.
Gurranq, Beast Clergyman
Tarnished...bring more...Death... I shall grant thee... eye...and claw. Feed me...more.
Gurranq, Beast Clergyman
It is... It is all...consumed. Still, I am not sated... Not nearly sated... Rrarrgh! Marika... Is this...what it is...to sin? Will things...never be the same...again? ... Tarnished...my thanks...for thy long...labour. But I have done...all I can...in this land... Henceforth, mine appetite shall be my sole companion. Farewell.
Melina
O Erdtree, you shall burn. Burn, for the sake of the new Lord. Thank you. For guiding me here. The one who walks alongside flame, Shall one day meet the road of Destined Death. Good-bye.
Finger Reader Enia
The burning of the Erdtree is the first cardinal sin. And you say you seek the power of the Rune of Death, too?
Maliketh, the Black Blade
Tarnished, why wouldst thou... Why... Tis no matter. I hereby vow, that Destined Death shall not be stolen again.
Maliketh, the Black Blade
O, Death. Become my blade, once more.
Finger Reader Enia
The Rune of Death is unbound. and the Lands Between are shrouded by Death's dark fate. But the flames will also burn the impenetrable thorns. Farewell it is, then. You'll be Elden Lord, yet.
Maliketh, The Black Blade Image Gallery
AnonymousConceptually it's a pretty cool bossfight but it's dragged down unfortunately. Beast clergyman was just so slow for me, he's not difficult in comparison but he fights so passively. Hug him? He'll backstep whilst doing a double swipe. Some of his attacks are quite hard to safely punish too. I get he doesn't have much hp and he does have like 2 super punishable attacks but having to show patience for such a boss when I just want to get to the maliketh fight is annoying.
Maliketh himself is pretty cool, but he was hitting quite hard and he's aggressive compared to beast clergyman and he has that nasty aoe attack and damage over time. When you learn the movesets he is pretty fun and cool, but dying in two seconds and then having to do the beast clergyman again was not. Also took some attempts before I realised how the parrying works. In hindsight it is super obvious when you know what to look out for but idk the description of the item just said it could deflect the blade so I didn't think there was some condition needed to be met so I was trying to parry a lot of attacks that couldn't be parried and then dying very quickly and it was only seeing some of the eventual glowing attacks after surviving longer that it makes sense. None of that would be a problem if it wasn't for the fact you have to run back and fight beast clergyman just to experiment with it again.
Then by the time you DO get good at parrying and learning his moveset and it feels badass, the guy only has half a healthbar at the end of the day so it's not as long of a fight as it should have been.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
its actually confirmed that he's a misbegotten, because he has a similar double spin attack that leonine misbegotten has
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
So here's a real question: since his sword is embued with Destined Death - shouldn't him killing us in 2nd phase be final?
This boss is one of major reasons why it seems that constant deaths of our character are just not canon anymore. Granted FromSoft were losing their grasp on deaths being a canonical experience starting from about Dark Souls 3 maybe, but now its especially questionable. Not one person comments on our returnal and this guy has a canonical tool to end us for good.
Which means that our Tarsnished is canonically an absolute beast, if he managed to 1st try everything Lands Between throws at him.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Highly recommend using the Blasphemous Claw to parry. I don't think it made the fight easier for me, but I have to say it's one of the more satisfying parries I've ever done in this game.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Mimic Tear w/ Shabriri's woe, Rock Sling. That's all you need.
- Anonymous
Directions: “… go past the Draconic Tree Sentinal…” lol. Dude was tougher than the boss for me.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Would be more fun if there was no first phase
if he had more health but deals less damage he would be the best boss in the game imo
- Anonymous
I summoned a guy to help me with this. He carried me like a little baby. I'm not proud of it.
So here I am fumbling through the gestures trying to say bravo before he leaves and I accidentally hit point forward. Pointing towards the dropoff in the arena so 30 meters away. Which he immediately sprints for and jumps off of never to be seem again.
I feel so bad. I just wanted to say good job, man.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
If this mf is gonna fly then he should at least be weak to lightning and ice type
- Anonymous
Utter BS fight. Not difficult and the first phase lasts all of 10 seconds usually, but in the second phase he is so fast in his flying attacks and so random in his targeting that effectively he is one big AoE attack across the entire arena for all practical purposes. Worst part is you can't see him most of the time because of the entirely artificial camera restrictions. Yet another example of FS fake difficulty. I don't know why they just don't go all out and make the screen go blank for the fight ("battle fog" or some such excuse) so that players are REALLY hampered.
- Anonymous
Oh, plus then you have the final ultimate BS of the fight. Maliketh: "What? I'm about to lose? Okay then." *knocks you off the side of the platform*. Happened three times in a row to me; clearly scripted and deliberate choice to have an arena that allows that.
- Anonymous
I feel like I'm one of the only people who thinks this fight is kinda bullshit. First phase is annoying, second phase is kind of a pain in the ass because he keeps jumping around and the camera doesnt like that sometimes. Cinematically this fight is 10/10, but what in the **** is the gameplay
- Anonymous
This dude is way harder than Melania. At least you can hit her. This guy is the perfect example of why I have zero issues using summons, even mimic. It's not skill that wins, but luck, RNG luck with AI behavior. Going 1v1 if he stays on the ground in his second phase and mostly uses basic attacks, you have a chance, but if he spams his destined death move and is jumping doing his spinning air attacks over and over, you've got no chance.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Why he only have 1410 more HP than Commander O'Neil in Caelid??
- Anonymous
Alternate names for this boss:
The Goodest boy
Maliketh, the Beyblade
Maliketh, the Glass Cannon
Destined Death Doggo
The Lands Between’s deadliest guard dog
- Anonymous
Don't know if it's just me, but I think that the first phase is actually more difficult than the second one, because Gurranq hitboxes seem broken and weapons very often phase through him without doing any damage. Maliketh form doesn't have this issue
- Anonymous
Haha sword and board banished knight cosplay with sacred blade go brrr… what do you mean I was doing 40% damage?
- Anonymous
Greatsword and LC stomps this fella right into the ground. His windows are long so you can easily get in two LCs and even three if your greedy which is enough to stance break him. Makes me realize how much speccing into specific builds and talismans just makes you melt bosses.
- Anonymous
in phase 2, hes always after my @ss lol. *hero gundyr flashback*
took lots of patience to have a flask sip
- Anonymous
Maliketh is so much fun, he deals a lot of damage and is quite nimble, however this is made irrelevant from his long punish windows, I genuinely believe that for someone to think "This is a bs and badly designed boss" You'd have to not be looking at your screen. Most openings he has allows charged spells, charged heavies etc. He's fast, but his telegraphs are reasonable, and the big delayed attack he has (his overhead slam) literally allows you to get rid of a quarter of his health if your build is even semi-good. Beast clergyman is definitely a bit annoying for a first fight, however a lot of his attacks are very predictable, because most of his attacks end up being some variant of (slash > double slash > rock throw)
- Anonymous
For those of you getting frustrated, think how he feels. He has to put on his robes and become Gurranq again every time.
- Anonymous
I think hed be slightly better if he just didnt jump around more often
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Screw Malenia, this beast is the hardest boss for me so far, also the coolest.
- Anonymous
Honestly I have really mixed feelings about this boss. I had a great time fighting him on my RL1 playthrough, and even though it took like three days for me to beat him, I enjoyed it the whole time. And then, fresh off that, I go to fight him with my Death Knight build on NG+ 7, and for some reason the fight seemed extremely frustrating and it takes me 2 days to beat him. I guess it must be the build difference because on RL1 I used a cold Uchigatana and obviously my Death Knight build uses the Longhaft Axe, but still, my enjoyment of the fight varied vastly between these two playthroughs. On an somewhat unrelated note, this is why I wish that there was a way to consistenly replay like NG +5 or something, because everytime I want to try a new build without starting a completely new save file, I have to do it on my NG +7 file, and I feel like it's too hard to really be enjoyable. But yeah, I guess I'm kinda ambivalent on this guy because he feels really fun on some builds and not so fun on others.
- Anonymous
Say what you want about him but no other boss’s name rolls off the tongue better than “Maliketh the Black Blade”
- Anonymous
No boss will ever reach Maliketh's levels of coolness. Best fight ever
- Anonymous
"Ah, ah, ah, your moves and combos are too slow after the DLC maliketh, you lack finesse and speed-"
*gets hit once and gets one shot*
"What just happened? Fffff-"
- Anonymous
After being killed upwards of 50 times in a row and trying different things, what got me the win was carian phalanx and just blocking while moving behind pillars. Pretty much the easiest way to kill most bosses is anything that doesn't require active attacks. It's the same with Consort. Block+rot then you wait.
- Anonymous
Wondering why the part of taking the Rune of Death from the Gloam Eyed Queen is not included on this page.
- Anonymous
Always, forever and ever, a garbage boss.
Signed: an ex fromsoftware customer.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
faith builds when they forget that flame art weapons are an option:
- Anonymous
My strat:
Phase 1:
Land 2 Lion claws with Zweihander to stance break
Crit with Misericode
Land another Lion claw to end phase 1
Phase 2:
Land one Lion claw to stance break.
Misericode crit with Roya knight resolve.
Land one more Lion Claw when the boss is standing up.
Wrap the fight up with one final light attack.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Literally just a reflex test. No amount of buffing, levelling or any other forward planning will let you survive more than 3 hits in a row, and even if it could, he spams them endlessly. Your only hope of winning (outside of blind luck) is to memorise the exact split-second in which you need to push the dodge button for every one of his attacks, which turns this into hours of trial and error and running back to the boss area every time you get it wrong.
"Just use the Blasphemous Claw! You get a 5-second punish window!" - all that does is swap hitting the 'dodge' button at exactly the right moment for hitting the 'use item' button instead. You still have to trial-and-error your way into knowing exactly when that split-second is for this tactic too, so it's just a tedious muscle-memory exercise either way, "helpful" item or not.
- Anonymous
One of the worst bosses in ER. Farum azula has the carbage. The first phase is such bs with the hitboxes and spam with a hard to read moveset and the 2nd phase has nothing in common with the first. In the 2nd phase the gliches and spam get on another level. I don't want to fight a boss that jumps around with no chance to hit them. I get that to sell you have the tendency in boss design to prefer flashiness to a good and solid well designed moveset but in ER this kind of pursue for a spectacle has gone too far.
- Anonymous
Maliketh deals high damage, and he does look fast. Some people still complain about no openings after the DLC released, however even with a Colossal Greatsword, there are so many openings where you can land a charged R2. A lot of complaints probably come from people not realising that being full aggro is the best counter measure for his attacks, his overhead can completely whiff if you get in close, which is 1 charged R2 + 1 normal R2. His judgement cut esc attacks both miss if you are in close and have considerable endlag, and his normal attacks are extremely unthreatening. For me this boss is Very similar to Artorias, because people complain he's too fast for the game, when they both have very easy movesets when you don't just bumrush them.
- Anonymous
As a melee player sometimes i beat him first or second try without an issue and then of course sometimes i get stuck on him for days no matter what or who in the galaxy i summon to help me because he wont stop f#cking jumping and flying around while simultaneously spamming attacks that eat half of my health while im healing, i cant even blame the camera when he flies around like a grasshopper on drugs, what kind of camera is supposed to keep up with this? No camera, no camera at all. It brings me dismay whenever i get stuck on this dude cuz i know i aint getting past him for the next week at the very least.
- Anonymous
Probably case of RNG but 1st phase done in seconds with Comet Azur then Tiche and plain old Comet. Three tries. I feel off the arena during first, did a classic ****up with spells and got stuck in the corridor during second, third went way too easy.
- Anonymous
I really wanna know how people consider this a good boss fight
>phase 1 takes far too long and is pretty much just chasing him down
>phase 1 has almost no similar looking attacks to phase 2, so you aren't getting better at fighting maliketh, you're getting better at fighting phase 1 maliketh.
>phase 2 is anime bullshit, with him pausing midair only to regain momentum and swap directions multiple times
>fromsoft has nerfed him into oblivion due to his bs, along with already having an item that counters him
placidusax or mohg are way better designed
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
This was the first thing I saw randomly about elden ring. That giant black wolf just looked so cool. And to this day, he's still my favorite boss. I'm in my last playthrough now, pure holy only. I'm nearing this fight, wish me luck LOL
- Anonymous
"Miyazaki-san, this dreaded creature in dark plate armor shall be known as Malekith. It is a very badass name."
"Martina-san, you are right, but that name is already used by two dreaded creatures in dark armor from Marvel Comics and from Warhammer Fantasy. We are already on thin ice with your "Middle Earth", erm, expy."
"Fiiiiine, I'll swap two letters around."
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
just fought him again (i use boss resurrection mod to fight bosses again trying Messmer spear)
phase 1 his poise didnt break but when phase 2 just began, just 2 hits and his stance broke (same thing with Godfrey), those were the first times i saw stuff like that, i didnt know certain bosses can carry their status from phase 1 to phase 2 even with cutscene
and both of them, i finished them off right after the critical hit with the devastating weapon skill, so consistently and moderately hitting them, you can end the entire phase 2 in just few seconds
- Anonymous
kind of like sister friede, wish I could skip their first phase, it's like 4x the length of the second one and it kind of sucks having to slog through it just to die in one or two hits from the second phase
- Anonymous
fth users - if you cant use dragon spells, rotten butterflies inflicts rot ez
- Anonymous
Honestly just wish that his 1st phase didn't exist and they gave that health to his 2nd phase. His first phase is just boring and that's such a shame
- Anonymous
i love 1 shot attacks with 40 vigor i love when he uses an attack that if i miss 1 dodge im instantally dead its just good boss design i love the beast clergymen this single fight has cause 2 controllers broken
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
he is helping me understand what a mistake doing a caster build was
- Anonymous
They need to give him his unused moves and a full healthbar for his second phase
- Anonymous
After DLC Radahn, finally decided to actually finish the game and killed this first try after dying 30 times to the Draconic Knight outside. I don't even.
- Anonymous
Fantastic boss, its a shame they nerfed him so much. A test of skill and patience.
- Anonymous
stayed in his legs the whole time, all his attacks miss except for the one were he stabs the sword on the floor and makes an explotion, make it super easy.
- Anonymous
Wish the two phases were like Malenia where you deplete Beast Clergyman to 0 health and then Maliketh to 0 health instead of a halfway thing. Too little health for the most well designed boss in the game
- Anonymous
The one little thing I have against this otherwise absolutely amazing fight is the timing for his double slash in phase 1 sometimes feels a bit annoying, but other than that this fight is so good. To the ppl that don’t like him, I understand where you’re coming from, as some of his attacks can feel way too fast or deal too much damage, especially in phase 2. However, I know that with enough practice this boss is more than doable, as even I have managed to defeat the good dog. Good luck, fellow Tarnished. You guys can do this
- Anonymous
has anyone made a role accurate maliketh mod. so if he kills you ur savefile is done and u have to start again
- Anonymous
I wish you had the option to spare him if you feed gurranq all of the death root
- Anonymous
Do you know what true anger is? Casting Sorcery of the Crozier knowing that one cast should kill it, only for the projectiles to glitch and pass through him harmlessly, as he then turns to instantly kill you with his blade beams. Downvote all you want, it glitched. Maybe someone else had a similar problem, but I know it just killed my mood
- Anonymous
I hate this stupid fight, I gave the kill to Tiche. Maximum disrespect.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
I like beast clergyman, I think it’s fair, fun and well balanced. I even think it’s as good as Maliketh. There is said it, crucify me
- Anonymous
Awesome bossfight almost wish he had more health but I understand I won't always be running dual colossal greatswords, I deem Maliketh a good boy will enjoy fighting him again
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Don’t think I woulda been able to get this one done without throwing myself at it 1,000 times without the panic button Tiche +10. Thank you based black knife
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Still the best boss fight in the game. Lore, ost, aesthetics and effects. Haven't truly listened to the whole ost until now helping in coop (usually he didn't last very long in my runs since he has low hp) but man, it's just epic. 10/10
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
feel bad killing this dog, hes trying his best to defend destined death from being used
- Anonymous
Tight spacing and strafing can be pretty janky for this fight as you can be caught on his model. Super unreliable strategy. That, coupled with his animation cancels and input reads makes the fight feel like more of a game of slots than a dance to be mastered. :(
- Anonymous
You should be able to parry Gurranq, he's only using a dagger.
- Anonymous
Black knife tiche summon with her special red blade attack absolutely melts maliketh. Also try to put scarlet rot on him it helps a lot with the fight.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
He deserved better. Tragic this dog has to die to finish the game.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
the (almost) worst part is how different the second phase is. i have to fight through the first phase for like 5 minutes and then dont get to learn any of his attacks, cause i have no clue what i’m doing and he just kills me instantly
- Anonymous
Esteemed Miyazaki-Sama,
I have recently partaken of your most recent game, Elden Ring. The honor of celebrating your greatest achievement is one which I am wholly undeserving, so in much humility I would like to begin by saying, thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing your vision with the common man. In that same spirit of humility, I wish to confess something to you. Something I am greatly ashamed of and seek atonement for. My pride has become a fount. Perhaps by basking in the grandeur of your work I have forgotten my place and thought myself great. During one of the many wondrous encounters you have laid put before me so that you may test my might and fortitude, I forgot my place. After Maliketh's 20th attack in a row I - in my ignorance - believed it to be my prerogative to strike back against my foe. In doing so I have been punished in a manner according to your design. Nevertheless, my ignorance brought me to defile your work. Though it is perhaps presumptuous to believe that you would even speak to one so low as me, I still must ask that you forgive my wretched soul. So that I shall not dishonor your spirit of love, I see only one path forward. I must take my life. Esteemed Miyazaki-Sama, forgive me.
- Anonymous
The first time I fought him I was using the mimic tear and an absolutely busted bleed build. The fight seriously ended in less than two minutes, and I felt a tinge of regret at not experiencing the boss in its full glory. Now, fighting him once more and with a more balanced build… I have absolutely no regrets about ganking him the first time and blowing through his fight. This boss absolutely sucks, my god.
- Anonymous
digimon ass phase change.
"clergymon digivolve to...black blademon!"
- Anonymous
I really like this fight, but the 1st phase being so different from the 2nd makes it feel so much more tedious. At least his health pool is small
- Anonymous
Just beat this guy on Ng+5 with powerstanced zweihanders, why are so many people so mald over him? He is big doggo
- Anonymous
Hot take (maybe?). Most overrated boss difficulty wise. His phase 2 does a lot of damage but most his attacks are very telegraphed and he has a good chunk of punishes. If anything I struggle more with phase 1 and the double swipe. Still a fantastic boss tho
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