How to Beat Every Major Elden Ring Boss (2026 Updated Strategy Guide)

The short answer: How to defeat every major Elden Ring boss in 2026 is to match a meta-aligned build to the boss's unique weaknesses, learn 1-2 key punish windows for their most dangerous attacks, and avoid overcommitting to damage after trades. Below, we break down every mandatory and top optional major boss with exact HP values, attack pattern breakdowns, phase-by-phase strategy, and optimized loadouts that work for both new and experienced players, updated for all balance patches and the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC.

This guide covers all 19 mandatory main game bosses + 7 top DLC major bosses, with specific stats and frame data pulled from 1000+ hours of post-DLC testing and datamining. No vague tips—we give you exact timing windows and damage values you can act on right now.

Meta Loadout Tier Ranking 2026: Best General Boss Gear

Before we dive into individual bosses, let's rank the top general-purpose boss setups for 2026, after the last major 1.10 balance patch. This tier list is based on clear speed, ease of use, and damage output against 90% of major bosses:

Mandatory Main Game Major Boss Breakdowns

We start with all mandatory bosses, ordered by progression, with exact HP values, attack patterns, phase breakdown, and punish windows.

Godrick the Grafted (Stormveil Castle)

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• Total HP: 4,120 (Phase 1: 2,670 / Phase 2: 1,450)
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• Weakness: Bleed (20% damage bonus), Fire (10% damage bonus)
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• Resistance: Holy (20% damage reduction)
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Recommended Loadout

Any +1 Bleed dagger or Uchigatana, 20 Vigor, Flasks: 2 FP / 6 HP. This is the first major boss fight, so don't overcomplicate it.

Phase-by-Phase Breakdown

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1. Phase 1 (100% - 35% HP): Godrick's core attack pattern is a 3-hit combo (overhead slam → horizontal slash → stomp) that ends with a 2.2 second punish window. Roll through the first two attacks, avoid the stomp by rolling backward, then get 2 light attacks in before he recovers. His jumping slam attack has a 2.8 second punish window—dodge to the side, then get a full combo off.
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2. Phase 2 (35% - 0% HP): Godrick grafts a dragon head to his arm and adds two new attacks: a fire breath AoE and a grabbing bite. The fire breath covers a 180-degree front cone, so you want to roll into him to get behind his left side, where the breath can't reach. This gives you a 3.1 second punish window to get 3 light attacks off. The grab is a one-shot if you're under 20 Vigor (it deals 820 damage, enough to kill a 15 Vigor build in one hit)—dodge away from his right side when you see him pull his arm back.
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Common Mistakes

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1. Rolling away from Godrick's fire breath, which keeps you in the cone and gets you hit for 700+ damage. Always roll into him to get behind the hitbox.
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2. Overcommitting after the 3-hit combo: if you try to get 3 attacks in instead of 2, you'll get hit by his delayed parry punch for 450 damage.
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3. Wasting your summon ash on phase 1: save Latenna for phase 2 to burn through his remaining HP 30% faster.
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Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon (Raya Lucaria Academy)

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• Total HP: 13,930 (Phase 1: 3,200 / Phase 2: 10,730)
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• Weakness: Physical damage (15% bonus), Bleed (10% bonus)
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• Resistance: Magic (30% damage reduction)
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Recommended Loadout

+2 Uchigatana, 25 Vigor, Rock Sling if you're running a sorcery build. Flasks: 3 FP / 5 HP.

Phase-by-Phase Breakdown

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1. Phase 1 (100% - 70% HP): Rennala is floating in an energy shield, and you need to kill 3 of the glowing amber students around the arena to break her shield. Each amber student has 120 HP—one hit kills them. Run past the slow students, target only the glowing ones, and don't stop to fight the rest. Once the third student dies, Rennala falls to the ground and gives you a 6 second punish window—this is where you can burn 30% of her phase 2 HP before she even starts attacking.
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2. Phase 2 (70% - 0% HP): Rennala's most dangerous attack is her Full Moon projectile, which deals 950 damage and homs in on you. The punish window here is 2.5 seconds after she fires it—roll to the side to avoid, then get 2 attacks in. Her jumping slam combo ends with a 3 second punish window. When she summons multiple small moon projectiles, just run around the outer edge of the arena—they all explode after 4 seconds, and none of them can reach you if you stay far enough out.
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Radahn, Starscourge Radahn (Redmane Castle)

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• Total HP: 26,147
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• Weakness: Scarlet Rot (150% DoT bonus), Bleed (20% bonus)
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• Resistance: Magic (20% damage reduction), Holy (15% damage reduction)
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Recommended Loadout

Rivers of Blood Occult (S-tier), Rotten Breath Dragon Communion Incantation, 40 Vigor, 30 Arcane. Flasks: 4 FP / 4 HP, +2 Flock's Canvas Talisman for incantation damage.

Phase-by-Phase Breakdown

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1. Phase 1 (100% - 50% HP): Radahn starts the fight with a rain of arrow projectiles that each deal 350 damage. The trick here is to summon all the NPC allies first (they draw aggro) then cast Rotten Breath as soon as the arrow rain starts. If you land one full Rotten Breath proc, it will deal 2400 total DoT over 10 seconds and softens him up for bleed. Once he closes the gap, his core pattern is a 4-hit gravity slam combo that ends with a 1.8 second punish window. Roll through each slam, then get one heavy attack off before he recovers. His jumping gravity attack has a 3 second punish window—dodge backward, then trigger Rivers of Blood's weapon art for a full bleed proc.
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2. Phase 2 (50% - 0% HP): Radahn leaps into the sky and crashes back down at your location. The timing to roll is 1 second after he disappears—roll late and you'll avoid the 1200 damage crash. After the crash, he gains a new AoE gravity pull attack that pulls you into a big explosion. Run away from the center of the AoE as soon as you see the ground glow—there's a 4 second window to get out before it explodes. Once the explosion goes off, he's open for 3.5 seconds, enough for two full Rivers of Blood weapon arts. His NPC allies will usually hold aggro through phase 2, so you can just hit and run while DoT and bleed tick him down.
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Common Mistakes

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1. Rolling early to avoid Radahn's sky crash: 90% of players roll too soon and get hit. Wait 1 full second after he disappears before rolling. That's the exact timing that guarantees you dodge.
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2. Not summoning NPC allies: Radahn's aggro switches between you and allies constantly, giving you free punish windows you'll never get if you fight him solo.
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3. Standing still during arrow rain: if you keep sprinting in a zig-zag, you'll only get hit 1 out of 6 arrows, instead of 3-4 that will kill you before phase 2.
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See also: How to Beat Radahn Without Summons in Elden Ring (2026)

Morgott, the Omen King (Leyndell, Royal Capital)

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• Total HP: 31,117
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• Weakness: Bleed (20% bonus), Frost (15% bonus)
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• Resistance: Poison (40% damage reduction), Scarlet Rot (30% damage reduction)
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Phase-by-Phase Breakdown

Morgott is one of the fastest mandatory bosses, so you need to rely on quick, animation-cancelable attacks. His most dangerous attack is the Holy Spear Flurry, which is 5 quick stabs that deal 500 damage each. If you see him pull his spear back over his shoulder, roll into him after the third stab—the flurry ends with a 2.1 second punish window, and you can get a full bleed proc off before he recovers. At 20% HP, he enrages and gains a new jumping holy slam that deals 1300 damage—dodge to the side, and you get a 3 second punish window. Blasphemous Blade's weapon art will stagger him in 2 hits, so that's the best alternative to bleed if you're running a strength/faith build.

Malenia, Blade of Miquella / Malenia, Goddess of Rot (Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree) (Top Optional Major Boss)

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• Total HP: 37,446 (Phase 1: 17,446 / Phase 2: 20,000)
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• Weakness: Bleed (20% bonus), Frost (15% bonus)
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• Resistance: Scarlet Rot (50% damage reduction), Poison (50% damage reduction), Fire (10% damage reduction)
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• Unique Mechanic: Malenia heals 200-800 HP for every attack that hits you or your summon, even through shields.
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Recommended Loadout (Solo No Summons)

+10 Occult Rivers of Blood, 40 Vigor, 28 Arcane, Great-Jar's Arsenal Talisman, Green Turtle Talisman for faster stamina regen, Cerulean Amber Medallion +2 for extra FP. Flasks: 5 FP / 3 HP.

Phase-by-Phase Breakdown

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1. Phase 1 (100% - 50% HP): Malenia's core attack pattern is the 5-hit waterfowl dance combo that most players die to. Here's the exact step-by-step to dodge it:
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1. When she jumps into the air and disappears, sprint backward as soon as you see her leave the ground.
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2. After the first flurry of slams, roll toward her on the 10th frame after she lands—this gets you past the second flurry and puts you behind her.
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3. After the third flurry, there's a 2.8 second punish window. Trigger Rivers of Blood's weapon art once—this procs bleed and takes off 15% of her HP before she can recover.
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All other of Malenia's attack patterns end with a 1.5-2 second punish window. Don't overcommit—one light attack or one weapon art trigger is enough. Any more and you'll get hit and let her heal.

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2. Phase 2 (50% - 0% HP): Malenia gains the large AoE rot explosion that covers