Dark Souls 2 offers more bosses than any of the other Dark Souls games. As said by many people, it beats out the other Souls games with quantity but not quality. Many of the bosses have unfair advantages that one doesn't find in the other Dark Souls games. Some boss fights throw the player into a one versus three scenario that for many new players is overwhelming. Other bosses use typical one-hit-kill maneuvers that, if caught off guard, can end even an experienced players' perfect run.

When counted out, Dark Souls 2 has over 30 bosses that are ready to steal the Bearer of the Curse's souls time and time again. It's worth noting that some boss battles come with more than one boss, sometimes with a three against one scenario. These are some of the most difficult of the lot.

Updated: September 9th, 2021, By Aden Carter: Players are steadily making their way back to playing the Dark Souls trilogy thanks to the upcoming game, Elden Ring. The hype has brought new players to the series and now is a great time to try it out. The Demon's Souls remake was not released too long ago, and other games like Bloodborne are still worthwhile. All of these games are sure to prepare players for the future of the Souls series as it is taken to heights that it has never gone before. With players coming back to Dark Souls 2, it is time to take a look at how to defeat some bosses that players might struggle with.

15 Mytha, The Baneful Queen

headless snake woman boss in poison room

As there are often very few hints to the obscure mechanics that can be found in Dark Souls 2, players may come across challenges that they are woefully underprepared for. One such occurrence is while fighting Mytha, the Baneful Queen in the Earthen Peak.

If one does not burn the windmill in this area, the boss room will be filled with green slime that will not only poison the player, but heal Mytha as well. After setting the blades of the mill aflame, the player will also gain access to Jester Thomas as a summon, which can help out players struggling with this boss.

Tips For Defeating Mytha

Before the fight, make sure to travel to where the windmill blades are and burn them. This will make the fight easier by draining some of the poison in the boss arena. The arena is typically covered in poison, but when the windmill is burned, the poison will only be on the edge.

Mytha typically attacks with her spear two or three times in a row, before leaving an opening for attack. Wait for the opening and strike once or twice, then prepare for another attack. Listen for screams, which indicate the magic beam attack that fires from her severed head. Finally, try not to stand behind her for too long. This will typically cause her to use her tail attack to grab the player, dealing harsh damage.

14 The Ruin Sentinels

all 3 ruin sentinels from dark souls 2 in their golden armor

Players encounter the Ruin Sentinals rather early on in Dark Souls 2, depending on which route they take at the beginning of the game. It is possible to skip this trio of bosses, but not without first finding the Antique Key and a Pharros Lockstone.

When one first encounters them, it is a bit overwhelming because the game throws the player into that one versus three scenario. Most players run into this boss fight unprepared, and quickly get overtaken by the constant shield and hammer bashing. If the Bearer of the Curse missteps even once, these giants can quickly swarm the player before they can even mentally prepare.

Tips For Defeating The Ruin Sentinels

The easiest way to handle the Sentinels is to take advantage of the second-floor landing that players will drop onto when entering the boss fight. Stay here and don't jump down. This will typically cause only one Sentinel to jump up and attack, while the other two hang out on the ground for a while.

Fight the Sentinel one-on-one, and wait for the next one to jump up. Players can also use the help of the summon from the hallway before the boss room. This spirit is able to tank many of the Sentinels' attacks while the player chips away their health.

13 Belfry Gargoyles

gargoyles on roof at night in dark souls 2

The Belfry Gargoyles are another optional boss, and one that is probably best to skip. They are another with multiple enemies, which stacks the odds against the player. In total, there are six gargoyles that come into the fight one at a time. The spawn rate for them is rather short, however, and if they aren't finished off fast enough, players can easily get overwhelmed by their numbers.

If that wasn't bad enough, when a gargoyle's health is reduced to half, they start to breathe fire which can easily destroy the player when dealing with multiple gargoyles. Make sure to at least go into this fight with some gold pine resin for that much-needed lightning buff on the player's weapon.

Tips For Defeating The Belfry Gargoyles

Speed is the key to defeating this boss easily. When no help is available, players should try to take out one gargoyle at a time. Remember that the fight starts with two gargoyles, and the third won't spawn until the overall boss health is less than 90%. Focus on one gargoyle and use pine resin if possible. Also, remember that the physical attacks from the gargoyles can be parried. This is useful to know when dealing with a small number of them.

12 Sir Alonne

sir alonne ready to fight

Sir Alonne is one of the many bosses from the DLC, and the final boss at the end of the Memory of the Old Iron King. It is important to know that getting to this boss is a feat in itself due, as the player must plow through an army of Alonne Knights just to reach his fog wall.

Sir Alonne's difficulty comes from his awkward attack patterns with weird timings. He also has a high defense against all forms of magical damage, so physically damaging items are a must. There is a nice reward if one can manage to kill him flawlessly within a specific time. If done, he will actually commit seppuku, a form of ritual suicide committed by samurai.

Tips For Defeating Sir Alonne

One way for players to get more of a fighting chance against Sir Alonne is to use Havel's Greatshield, which tank quite a few hits and keep players sturdy on their feet. Wait for openings and attack. Always be sure to avoid the soul-piercing attack since shields cannot block it.

Dodging can be easy if a player has a fast dodge and they dodge to the right. Alonne typically swings his katana from his right and ends the attack on his left. Dodging to the right will allow players to more easily avoid damage.

11 Afflicted Graverobber, Ancient Soldier Varg, & Cerah The Old Explorer

Often referred to by many Dark Souls 2 fans as "The Gank Squad," these bosses are another example of a three versus one scenario. It is very obvious that these bosses were meant to be fought with summons, but it has been done solo as well.

Cerah really makes this fight difficult, staying back and firing great arrows. While that is going on, the Graverobber and Varg will fight head-on. Many players have fallen victim to this unfair trio. At least the player gets two summons before the boss fight if they choose to face this trio without other players or are playing offline.

Tips For Defeating The Afflicted Graverobber, Ancient Soldier Varg, & Cerah The Old Explorer

It is important to go after the Afflicted Graverobber first since he is the fastest of the trio. If possible, always summon some spirits to help in the fight. If that cannot be done, take time to practice parrying, since it will come in handy when dealing with the Graverobber. Deal with Varg last, since he has the highest health pool. His attacks are slower and he moves the slowest of all the bosses.

10 Looking Glass Knight

The Looking Glass Knight's difficulty comes from his massive defense and the fact that he can summon allies to help him . Taking this boss on solo is not recommended, because not only can he summon AI allies, but players as well. If a player places their invasion sign down in the right area, then they can get summoned into the boss fight, which is a major disadvantage.

This wouldn't be so bad if the NPC that the player can summon was good. Before the boss fight, the player can summon Benhart, but he is hardly useful because he never blocks and typically dies very fast. This leaves the player with a boss that has boosted stats, to deal with one on one.

Tips For Defeating The Looking Glass Knight

Players can use the NPC summon to their advantage and attack the Looking Glass Knight from behind while he focuses on Benhart. Keep aware of the boss' attacks, since they can become rather predictable. When the boss tries to summon an NPC, he will slam his shield onto the ground. This can be interrupted by breaking his poise. Make sure to use heavy attacks to help stagger the boss whenever he tries to summon an ally.

9 Throne Watcher & Throne Defender

The Throne Watcher and Throne Defender come late in the game. Typically, they are fought just before the final boss, but can be battled early to make things a little easier at the end. Summons are recommended, because the two of them together can be too much for a single player to handle.

This battle is made more difficult when they each have half health due to them enchanting their weapons. Make sure to keep an eye on the Throne Watcher because they have a ranged attack that they can use while one is preoccupied with the Throne Defender. The player can make the fight easier by luring one of them off the ledge on the side of the arena.

Tips For Defeating The Throne Watcher & Throne Defender

This duo is relatively tricky, but players can cheese them by leading them over to the edge of the arena. Dodging at the right time here can cause whichever boss is attacking to fall off the ledge. When dealing with the bosses, remember that they need to be killed within 20 seconds of each other. It is important to attack both of them and keep their health at about the same amount throughout the fight. If one boss is killed and their body remains in the arena, the other boss will revive their fallen ally.

8 The Duke's Dear Freja

giant spider boss dark souls 2

Not only is the journey to this boss from the nearest bonfire a huge pain, but the boss room itself gets literally swarmed by foes. As if one big two-headed spider that shoots lasers isn't bad enough, the player must also contend with the hordes of much smaller, yet still quite large, arachnids hellbent on nipping at the Bearer of the Curse's heels.

Thankfully, there is a way to subdue the more minor threats by lighting a torch, which causes them to flee from the player. It's also worth noting that fire damage is very effective on Freja, though does not scare her quite as much as it does her children.

Tips For Defeating Freja

The best way to deal with Freja is to bait out her beam attack. After it ends, run in and attack her head, then get out of the way of her legs or lunging attack. And as mentioned above, make sure to carry a torch into the boss room.

7 Darklurker

The Darklurker is one of the optional bosses, and takes quite a bit of time to reach if one decides to fight it. First, the player must find Darkdiver Grandahl, go into each of the three Dark Zones, and light the fires. Once that is done, one can fight this monster — which is easier said than done.

The boss fight is pretty straightforward until it reaches half health. Then the Darklurker splits into two bosses that each need to be killed. One of the worst parts about this fight is that it must be done alone, because no summons are allowed in the Dark Chasm of Old.

Tips For Fighting The Dark Lurker

The Darklurker is extremely weak to both lightning and fire attacks, making fight is easier for players who have access to these spells. Spamming these attacks can easily deplete the Darklurker's health pool. Players who are using melee weapons may want to switch out their weapon for one that has lightning or fire damage on it.

6 Smelter Demons

red smelter demon on left and blue smelter demon on right

That's right, there are two. Luckily each one is a separate boss fight, but each is a challenge to defeat. The Smelter Demon deals significant physical damage and, at about 70 percent health, will stab himself with his sword ,causing it to catch fire. This makes all of his attacks change and deal fire damage.

His stab attack will send out a jetstream of fire and his leaping attack has the potential to become an AOE attack that deals significant fire damage as well. Lucatiel of Mirrah can be summoned for this fight, but it is more recommended to summon a player because she can die rather quickly.

Tips For Defeating The Smelter Demons

Make sure to enter the boss fight wearing armor that has good fire resistance. Once the boss loses about a third of its health, it will scream. This will initiate a damaging fire AOE around it at all times.

Equipping the Ring of Restoration will help deal with the fire AOE damage. Pay attention to the boss' attacks and dodge mainly to the left. Be careful to stay away from the wall since the boss' large frame can get a player stuck against the wall.

5 Ancient Dragon

The Ancient Dragon is regarded as one of the toughest bosses in the game — not because of powerful attacks that aren't telegraphed, but rather the overly large amount of health that it possesses. It is recommended to have a few summons for this fight, otherwise it can last an extremely long time.

The boss mainly deals fire damage ,but will also attack with its claws and tail if players linger around it for too long. It also has the potential to fly up into the air and cast a very large AOE attack that reaches almost the entire arena. It is highly recommended to wear armor with good fire resistance before attempting to take on this behemoth.

Tips For Defeating The Ancient Dragon

The best way to make this boss fight easy is to get as much fire resistance as possible. This can be done by equipping the Flame Quartz Ring +2 (100 fire resistance), Dispelling Ring (60 fire resistance), Dragon's Tooth (50 fire resistance), and high fire-resistant armor. Players will also want spells like Flash Sweat to further increase their resistance. After all this, the boss fight should be rather trivial, since the fire damage will be taken out of the equation.

4 Sinh, The Slumbering Dragon

green and white dragon boss in cavern area

Despite having a spear through their chest, Sinh is one of the mightiest bosses in the entire game. The only true dragon in Dark Souls 2, they represent their deadly kin very well.

Their flight-based attacks are tricky to dodge as Sinh locks onto the player with an unexpected delay for very awkward timing. Meanwhile, their aerial flamethrower dive can scorch the player if even a split-second off while combat rolling. On top of all this, Sinh is strong enough to stun or stagger the player long enough to prevent them from dodging their subsequent wide-ranging attacks.

Tips For Defeating Sinh

One of the most helpful things a player can do is increase their poison and fire resistance. When dealing with Sinh, it is easiest to bait him into using his flamethrower attack. This attack is easier to dodge than others, and leaves him open to attacks afterward.

3 Lud And Zallen, The King's Pets

black tiger boss from frozen area in dark souls 2

This boss fight has undeniably the worst lead-up in Dark Souls 2, and possibly the entire trilogy. The numerous enemies that assault the player while they are traversing through a blizzard are tedious enough without having to trek through a ton of snow and ice. Low visibility, no bonfires, and a very boring area make the path to Lud and Zallen downright awful.

When the player finally reaches the boss room they are greeted by an unfair fight with two bosses nearly identical in moveset to one previously defeated by the Bearer of the Curse. The only real counter to the tiresome lead-up and boss battle is to summon a bunch of allies at the very start of the Frigid Outskirts.

Tips For Defeating Lud And Zallen

Deal with Lud first, as this will help later in the fight. Avoid Zallen and keep attacking Lud once Zallen joins the fight. This will help limit how long the player will be fighting two bosses.

When Zallen gets low on health, they will enter an enraged mode, where they deal more damage and attack relentlessly. Keep dodging for about 30 seconds. Zallen will replenish some health during this time, but attacking won't really help prevent that. Once they are no longer enraged, go in for the kill.

2 Elana, Squalid Queen

sinister lady boss with long axe in dark room

Guarding the way to Sinh's boss room is another boss, though many consider her much harder than the aforementioned dragon. Elana, Squalid Queen casts a variety of dark and fire spells at the player, in addition to cleaving at them with her massive axe. However, her most hated tactics are when she summons allies.

Her three skeletal minions are quite the nuisance, but the biggest threat is that she summons another boss to aid her. This is the only situation where such a thing happens in the whole game. In her time of need, Elana will summon a filthy mud-clone of Velstadt, which in combination with her attacks and possibly a trio of skeletons, can make this a tremendously lopsided five-on-one battle.

Tips For Defeating Elana

When entering the boss fight, attack Elana as much as possible. It takes her a while to spawn her weapon in and for the fight to officially begin, so this is the best time to deal some heavy damage to her.

After this, the fight will become much easier, since it tends to be a one on one if the player attacks fast enough. If she manages to summon her allies, attack them first while keeping an eye on Elana. She will mainly move around while her summons are out, but will occasionally go after the player from behind.

1 Fume Knight

fume knight from dark souls 2

The Fume Knight is known by many as the hardest boss in all of Dark Souls 2. He doesn't use many attacks that are telegraphed, and prefers to use those that are slightly delayed to throw players off. He has a strong resistance to all types of magic, so physical damage is preferred when taking him on.

He is one of the few enemies that use dark and fire magic that is potent enough to damage the player, even when using shields that resist 100 percent fire damage. All of this, combined with a smaller boss arena that can throw off the camera, make this boss extremely difficult to deal with.

Tips For Defeating The Fume Knight

During the first stage of the fight, run up on the boss and get in some free hits while he is appearing. In phase one, it is easier to dodge the Fume Knight while hugging his left knee. Watch out for the small indications of attacks from his greatsword. During each of the phases of the boss fight, the player can get a few free hits on the boss when he transitions.

In phase two, watch out for the greatsword attacks, since that will be his only weapon. It is now infused with dark fire and deals more damage. Make sure to come into the fight with good dark and fire resistance, which will help negate some damage from his attacks.

NEXT: The Most Memorable Bosses From Dark Souls 2