Bosses With The Best Lore
Creating a captivating backstory for 238 bosses in Elder Ring is no small task. The game’s developers faced challenges, especially with recurring or twin bosses. However, some bosses managed to go beyond their design and add depth to their existence through their lore. Certain bosses have lore that is so memorable that they become legendary and inspire cosplayers. It is important to remember this when facing these challenging Elder Ring bosses repeatedly.
Updated on June 29, 2023, by Joe Grantham: Elden Ring, the Game of the Year winner, is widely regarded as a masterpiece, thanks in part to its incredible boss design and hauntingly beautiful lore. While some players view bosses as difficult challenges that test their skills, exploring the lore of Elden Ring’s Demigods and otherworldly beings is equally rewarding. The bosses with the most compelling lore have complex and twisted backstories that are intertwined with the fate of the Lands Between and its characters.
12 Godrick The Grafted: Godrick the Grafted, a Demigod, pushed the boundaries of evil and evokes pity for the pain he is clearly in. Despite being a descendant of Queen Marika and her first consort Godfrey, Godrick’s strength pales in comparison to his predecessors. This sense of inferiority led him to resort to the deplorable act of Grafting to compensate for his shortcomings.
11 Dragonlord Placidusax: Dragonlord Placidusax, an optional boss found later in the game, was the Elden Lord before the time of the Erdtree. Despite being past his prime, Placidusax remains incredibly powerful, hinting at the bygone era and raising questions about his downfall.
10 Gideon Feared: Gideon Ofnir, initially a spymaster, kept tabs on the power players in the Lands Between. When the unexpected rose to power, Gideon’s true intentions were revealed. His disregard for the Tarnished and creepy behavior towards Albinaurics made him an untrustworthy ally. Players who paid attention would have noticed the signs early on, making the confrontation with him all the more satisfying.
9 Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon: Rennala’s boss fight leaves players with more questions than answers. Her rich history is intertwined with Marika, revealing her power in the Lands Between. Digging deeper into her lore, players discover her role as a grieving single mother who lost most of her children and was betrayed by her husband. The boss fight with Rennala evokes a sense of guilt.
8 Elder Dragon Greyoll: Elder Dragon Greyoll’s tragic tale surpasses even that of Rennala. She is a large, stationary dragon in the Dragonbarrow region of Caelid, left defenseless except for summoning her children. Her predicament is rooted in the war between Malenia and Radahn in Caelid, which scarred the region and inflicted the Scarlet Rot on Greyoll. Additionally, Greyoll and her kin suffered a genocidal cleansing from Marika and her followers.
7 Lichdragon Fortissax: Elder Ring’s creators excel at portraying fallen heroes turned reluctant villains. In this case, Lichdragon Fortissax, once a proud ally of Godwyn the Golden, fought to preserve his friend’s dignity. However, Fortissax was corrupted by Death, leading to the boss encounter near Godwyn’s rotting corpse.
6 Godfrey/Hoarah Loux: Godfrey, also known as Hoarah Loux, is a significant figure in the power struggles of the Lands Between. His lore dates back to before Marika became a vessel of the gods and tamed Godfrey. The integration of his lore into the boss fight and gameplay is a testament to Elder Ring’s design.
5 Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy: Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy, stands out as a demigod who defies the oppressive nature of the Erdtree. Seeking power, he turns to an Outer God, the Dog-Devouring Serpent, losing his sanity and integrity in the process. The boss fight with Rykard is both creepy and intriguing, as he consumes his enemies under the guise of welcoming them into his “family.”
4 Radagon/Elden Beast: Radagon’s identity as the final boss may come as a surprise to some players. The game drops subtle hints about the union between Radagon and Marika, leading to the revelation of their true nature. Radagon’s defeat reveals the manifestation of the Greater Will, the Elden Beast, providing a satisfying conclusion to the lore.
3 Malenia, Blade of Miquella: Malenia, a character introduced in the trailer, leaves a lasting impression on players. Her presence is felt throughout Caelid, leading up to a challenging boss fight. The hints and buildup surrounding her existence make the encounter legendary.
2 Margaret/Grunted: Margit/Morgott…
Making up lore for a mind-blowing 238 bosses in Elder Ring is no easy feat. At times, the game’s creators did falter a bit, especially with the repeat bosses or twin bosses; but several of the bosses managed to add more than just context to their design and existence. Some of the lore surrounding certain bosses made them way too memorable.
Certain explanations as to why that boss was dying or why some giant was riding a skinny, normal-sized horse definitely added character to these bosses. The more players know about them, the more they become legendary and worthy enough to cosplay. That’s something to keep in mind when dying to these Elder Ring bosses over and over again.
Updated June 29, 2023 by Joe Grantham: Game of the Year winner Elden Ring is widely considered to be an overall masterpiece and this is no less thanks to its incredible boss design and eerily beautiful lore.
While some players simply see bosses as challenges and learning experiences that push their mechanics to the brim, exploring the lore of Elden Ring’s Demigods and otherworldly beings is just as rewarding. The Elden Ring bosses with the best lore have deep, twisted backstories fraught with both pain and love that somehow are intertwined with the fate of the Lands Between or other characters.
12 Godrick The Grafted
Sometimes when a being, or in this case a Demigod, has gone beyond the bounds of evil, it is easier to pity the pain they are so clearly in. This is the case with Godrick the Grafted, one of the first main bosses in Elder Ringwhose desperation for power pushed him to commit unthinkable acts.
What makes his lore so interesting is the fact that he is a descendant of Queen Marika and her first consort Godfreybut unlike others who inherited greater powers, his strength pales in comparison with those who came before. The sense of inferiority this left him with seemingly pushed Godrick to make up for his shortcomings with the deplorable Grafting for which he is known.
11 Dragonlord Placidusax
Dragonlord Placidusax is a boss that many players might not know about seeing as he is an optional boss found later in the game in Crumbling Farum Azula. Interestingly though, despite having two heads in-game, the Dragonlord once had more, and he was the Elden Lord before the time of the Erdtree.
The fact that Placidusax is far past his prime and yet is still so powerful, speaks a thousand words about the bygone era, and leaves players wondering what could have caused his downfall.
10 Gideon Feared
Well, anyone who dies to Gideon Ofnir deserves to stay “maidenless,” because he’s the easiest boss in the game. And he wasn’t even a boss initially. Gideon was a spymaster who kept tabs on the power players in the Lands Between. And when the one who rose to the top wasn’t the person he expected, Gideon simply had to break his cover.
His low regard for the Tarnished and his rather creepy behavior toward Albinaurics made him a shady ally (which, it turns out, he wasn’t). Keen-eyed players will likely have noticed early on that Gideon wasn’t to be trusted. This made the unprecedented confrontation with him all the more satisfying.
9 Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon
Rennala’s boss fight left so many more questions than answers compared to something more straightforward like Godrick, the Grafted. As it turns out, she has a rich history with ties to Marika. If players diver deeper into her lore, they’ll discover how much of a powerhouse Liurnia was in the Lands Between.
Rennala’s lore then branches out to Ranni’swhich is her daughter; players eventually find out that Rennala is a grieving and depressed single mother who had lost most of her children and was betrayed by her husband. One simply can help but retroactively feel guilt after the boss fight with her.
8 Elder Dragon Greyoll
Speaking of single parents in the Land Between, an even more tragic tale than Rennala was Elder Dragon Greyoll. She’s the large, stationary dragon in the Dragonbarrow region of Caelid who has no way of fighting back other than summoning her children to protect her.
Her current state alone was worthy enough of an investigation. Sure enough, her predicament is rooted in Malenia and Radahn’s war in Caelidwhich permanently scarred the region and gave Greyoll the Scarlet Rot. Prior to that, Greyoll and her kin also suffered a genocidal cleansing from Marika and her ilk. There’s no end to the dragon’s suffering, it seems.
7 Lichdragon Fortissax
The creators of Elder Ring are no strangers to painting fallen heroes who were transformed into reluctant villains. In Dark Soulsthere was Artorias, who fell to the abyss, and in Elder RingLichdragon Fortissax is his equivalent. Fortissax was once a proud ally of Godwyn the Golden.
But after Godwyn was murdered and, in turn, was corrupted by Death, Fortissax did everything in his power to preserve his friend’s dignity. Sadly, Fortissax was also corrupted by Deathhence the boss’s name. That’s also why he appears near Godwyn’s rotting corpse as a boss encounter.
6 Godfrey/Hoarah Loux
From the intro alone, the game was already setting up Godfrey to be a significant and imposing figure in the Lands Between’s power struggles. There is a rich and extensive lore behind him, dating back to before Marika even became a god’s vessel and tamed Godfrey.
Godfrey later revealed that his original name was that of the barbarianHoarah Loux, who was only held back by his lion spirit, Serosh. Such a beautiful integration of his lore into the boss fight and gameplay was the peak of Elder Ring‘s boss design.
5 Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy, was one of the most interesting demigod figures in Elder Ring. Because, like Ranni, he didn’t care much about the Erdtree and its oppressive and sanctimonious nature. Rykard sought his own way of obtaining power, which meant turning to an Outer God like the Dog-Devouring Serpent.
Sadly, this cost him his sanity and his integrity. In his determination to defy the Erdtree and the Greater Will, he lost himself in the process and succumbed to the Serpent. This made him no less interesting, of course. He’s one of the creepiest bosses in the game, preferring to consume his enemies under the pretense of welcoming them to his “family.”
4 Radagon/Elden Beast
Those who didn’t see the plot twist coming were likely perplexed at Radagon being the final boss or amazed at the notion once they got it. Radagon is Marikaand vice versa. The game just kept dropping some subtle hints about their rather odd union and personality.
And once Radagon dies, out comes the very manifestation of the Greater Will, the Elden Beast. The whole final boss fight was a huge lore dump and rewarded the players well enough, considering the game’s length and how clueless the players will be even at that stage.
3 Malenia, Blade of Miquella
Before the game even became available to the public, Malenia was already making waves in the Elder Ring community as one of the characters in the trailer. It wasn’t until late in the game that players would encounter her, and the payoff was worth it.
Malenia was not only one of themost beautiful boss fights in a Souls game, but she had also left her mark in the Lands Between long before the players met her. Her trace and essence are all over Caelidand all the hints of her existence leading up to the toughest boss fight in Elder Ring make the encounter more legendary.
2 Margaret/Grunted
A lot of players will likely see Margit/Morgott as a grumpy geriatric who wants Tarnished punks off his mother’s lawn. But he’s a lot more than his abrasive and condescending behavior. Because out of all the living demigods in the game, Morgott was the only one who had neither an ulterior motive nor a selfish ambition for the Erdtree.
He merely acted as its protector without expecting anything in return, apart from the Erdtree’s favor. At the same time, the Erdtree still shunned him for being a cursed Omen. So at his core, Morgott was a genuinely noble soul marred by his outward physical appearance. Also, he defeated General Radahn; even Malenia couldn’t do that.
1 Starscourge Radahn
Speaking of the myth himself, General Radahn was also unveiled at the same time as Malenia. The two had a colorful and divisive lore between them regarding who won in Caelid. Radahn’s transformation into a mindless rot zombie was also a tragic affair, but his soldiers kept on honoring him and holding him in high regard, even continuing their duty to stave off the Scarlet Rot.
But the real interesting piece of lore about Radahn was his tiny horse. Radahn apparently had his horse, Leonard, at a young age. Since he had the giant’s curse, Radahn kept growing, eventually becoming too big for Leonard. But Radahn loved his horse so much that he was compelled to learn Gravity Magic so that he could still ride his favorite horse. That kind of wholesome feat from a bloodthirsty and war-mongering general is unexpected, to say the least.
Elder Ring is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
