The bosses in Dark Souls 3 are the reason why most fans of these games call it the best game in the Dark Souls series. Pretty much all the bosses in the game are a near perfect balance of difficulty, spectacle and just overall well-designed fun that people just all seem to love them.

With difficulty being such a major aspect of these games, it is only natural for us to look at the challenge that these bosses give to the players. So, let’s take a look at these bosses ranked from easiest to hardest!

25. Ancient Wyvern

The Ancient Wyvern of Dark Souls 3 is only really a boss because of the giant health bar that appears on the screen when he jumps into frame. He is also one that is not supposed to be tackled in the same way that a regular boss is, in the sense that whacking at his ankles isn’t a viable strategy due to the miniscule damage it does.

The entire point of the fight is to cover yourself from all of the wyverns' attacks and to slowly make your way up the ramparts to the left of the arena while avoiding or fighting all the snake men. Keep following the path that leads to a ledge overlooking the Wyvern's head. Then, jump off into a plunging attack right at his head and voila, you’ve just one shotted the boss.

24. Yhorm the Giant

Yhorm is a boss that is very dear to my heart. His lore and friendship with Siegward are some of the most compelling and heartbreaking things in any game I have ever played. Putting down this gigantic tank of a boss who devoted himself to protecting people that hated him really resonated with us as a community.

Beating Yhorm just requires you to dodge his attacks and make it to the opposite end of the room where you can pick up the Stormruler. This weapon requires you to charge it up and whack Yhorm with it for insane damage. The only real difficulty here would be finding time to charge up the weapon as it is fairly easy otherwise.

23. Iudex Gundyr

Gundyr is an interesting fight. The lore says that he was a champion chosen to link the fire but arrived too late. Since then, he acts as the final test for the mettle of the character, to see if they are worthy of linking the flame.

For his placement in the game, Iudex Gundyr is a decent fight but is also one that only gets easier the more you play the game through again and again. I mean, Dark Souls 3 was my very first Dark Souls game and even then, I beat Iudex Gundyr on my very first try.

22. Vordt of the Boreal Valley

Vordt is a damn loser. I’m sorry, that was always the thought racing through my mind whenever I see that giant ice dog appear out of thin air. He was one of the 2 powerful outrider knights sent from Irithyll by the notorious jerk, Pontiff Sulyvahn. Pontiff took the person who Vordt and the Dancer used to be and completely changed them into these massive, frosty beasts.

As for the fight itself, it’s just a waiting game that you need to play to tire the idiot out to get hits in. Most of these attacks are fairly easy to dodge and even predict so just strafe up behind him and whack for maximum damage.

21. Curse Rotted Greatwood

And the award for the most gnarly boss in the entire game goes to… this abomination. I’m not even sure what the lore is for this thing. I think it has something to do with a random tree being cursed with the hollow disease or something. This lack of interest really shows what I think of this boss.

Just run around, hit it in the boils and don’t pay much mind to the endless hollows that are summoned, just keep an eye on them and dodge their attacks if they get too close. Keep repeating this until the second phase where the ground breaks and the arm comes out. This moron probably thinks it’s being really strong or clever but it just spawned another weak point for us to target.

20. Deacons of the Deep

The Deacons are a covenant of Aldrich faithfuls that sacrifice pretty much everything so their fat lord can be sated. All they do is stand in congregation and pray or whatever, it’s stupid regardless of what it is. They’re a group of damage sponges that only really pose a threat if you play this fight with a blindfold on.

The only way that there can be even a morsel of difficulty in this fight is that it can be really difficult to escape if you ever get swarmed. However, if you stay clear of that hazard and just go for the one main, glowy Deacon, then this fight is just a cake walk.

19. High Lord Wolnir

How the mighty have fallen. Wolnir was a gargantuan king that brought pretty much every single kingdom to its knees and had a crown fashioned from all the crowns of his enemies that he ground up. His lore really sets him up to be an absolute badass butt kicker, but his fight just makes you think of him like a loser.

You can die pretty easily if you have poor spatial awareness or don’t pay attention to the area behind you. Other than that, you just have to run for his bling and break it, simple. If you start attacking the second he shows up and don’t stop, then he doesn’t really have a moment to answer. Stamina consumption can be tricky though, as you can often run out of it in the middle of attacking at this stage of the game.

18. Abyss Watchers

This is easily one of the best fights in the game, with the spectacle and music being among the best that Fromsoft has ever done. The lore is that the spirit of the legendary Artorias was broken up and divided amongst the souls of his devout followers who seek to destroy each and every trace of the Abyss, wherever they find it. The tragedy of it all is that each watcher is eventually overcome by the Abyss, locking them in a never ending fight with their own brothers.

The fight itself is quite easy as the watchers take a lot of damage from regular hits. Sure, it can become a little difficult when 2 of them team up against you but this is negated by one of the coolest twists ever which is when a third watcher spawns and sides with you.

17. Crystal Sage

Poor guy, he gets demoted to a miniboss at the latter half of the game in the Grand Archives. The boss itself is pretty light on the lore side, but is one that isn’t very fun to fight, as much of the fight is you running around trying to survive him and his clones. Getting to him consists of you whacking his clones only for him to disappear again.

One useful tip for fighting him is that of all the clones in the area, watch out for the one that is shooting blue crystals instead of purple as that is the real one you need to watch out for.

16. Halflight, Spear of the Church

Of all the boss fights in this game, this is the one that depends most on luck. If you are lucky, you will either fight the NPC or a weak online player. However, if you’re unlucky, you could literally go up against a PvP god who can decimate your entire health bar in 2 hits.

If you want to eliminate the risk, just do this fight offline. But if not, then be ready to either fight someone insanely weak or someone insanely strong.

15. Champion's Gravetender and Gravetender Greatwolf

This fight is more annoying and tedious than it is difficult, but still is one that can easily get you killed if you get careless. The first phase is fairly easy, with an NPC fight that can quite easily be taken care of as many of his attacks can be baited. The smaller wolves can be a hassle to deal with but they’re usually easily killed.

The real problem comes from the second phase, when the massive great wolf descends upon you and they both team up to make you wish you never installed the DLC. The wolf is crazy fast and hits like a truck, plus it also has a charge attack that always takes a while to finish so you have to be very mindful of that.

14. Old Demon King

Old Demon King is one of the most tragic boss fights in the entire game. He is the last of a dying species and one that just happens to be the king, as well as being the last surviving life form to witness the birth of the Chaos Flame. He is dying himself and is far from his prime when we fight him in the heart of the Catacombs of Carthus.

Despite his old age and fleeting power, however, he is still a force to be reckoned with as he summons remnants of the old Chaos Flame in order to bring you down with heavy hitting, wide-spreading attacks. This is one boss that isn’t really difficult but cannot be considered easy either as this old timer has quite a few tricks up his sleeve that he uses to bring you down.

13. Oceiros, the Consumed King

This may be a controversial pick for many people but I didn’t ever struggle with Oceiros at all. This former king has fallen from grace and has completely mutated himself in order to turn into a dragon. However, he scarcely resembles one and carries an invisible baby in his arms.

Oceiros is incredibly fast and extremely aggressive and some of his attacks can come out of seemingly nowhere. The key here is to always stay behind him and to always keep moving and to keep paying attention to the boss. His most annoying move is the charge which has no discernable tell so avoiding this attack is a real pain. Best way to deal with this is to keep a distance from him throughout so can see it coming from a distance.

12. Dragonslayer Armor

A whole set of armor belonging to an old dragon slayer that has been reanimated by the giant creepy butterflies in the area. This is as deep as the lore for the dragonslayer armor goes, but the fight itself is great fun as it is an homage to Ornstein, who was the leader of these fabled ranks of knights.

The fight itself is straightforward due to who you’re fighting, but the difficulty is added because the boss has delays on many of his attacks, as well as doing some of the highest damage numbers in the entire game. He also has a massive greatshield attached to his back which protects him from all damage so look out for that.

11. Aldrich, Devourer of Gods

Aldrich was a character that was way out of control, but was chosen to link the flame purely because of how powerful he was. No one could challenge him, making him the ideal candidate to be a Lord, despite his nasty habit of eating people.

The key to beating Aldrich is to hug his tail and keep attacking that while also keeping an eye out for his sweep attacks and dodging them correctly. The main problem with him comes from his arrow attack, which can actually be negated if you just sprint away the second he does it. Stamina consumption for this fight can be a problem so be sure it is at the appropriate level before you take him on.

10. Champion Gundyr

This is how it was like to fight Gundyr when he was at his strongest. It truly shows how much of a powerhouse he was when he wasn’t infected by the pus of man and shows all the damage he can wreak when he is in full control of himself.

This fight is almost completely different from the first Gundyr fight and this time, he is absolutely relentless and barely gives any time for the player to breathe. The best strategy is to stick close and be patient against him. He can also be parried like the first Gundyr fight but his moves are more delayed.

9. Pontiff Sulyvahn

The Pontiff is one of the most underrated boss fights in the entire series. He is the big bad at the end of one of the most breathtaking and best areas in the entire game and stands in the middle of a church, waiting to fight you. His lore speaks of him being an Aldrich faithful so powerful that he was given much control over lands and would conduct horrific experiments that would turn his faithful knights into vicious beasts i.e. Vordt and the Dancer.

Pontiff has a very diverse and aggressive move set that the player needs to be on guard for constantly throughout the entire fight. His second phase sees him grow wings and summon a clone of himself, doubling the amount of things that you need to worry about. Just keep in mind that he can be parried so work on your timings.

8. Dancer of the Boreal Valley

This is the one of the bosses that almost made me quit the game. I was stuck on her for the longest time and I died to her so many times that I lost count, but wow, what a fight! Her lore is ambiguous as all that we know about her for sure is that she was experimented on by Sulyvahn and then sent out as an outrider knight.

There are also theories connecting her to the royal family of the game but that isn’t totally confirmed. Her attacks are all in a really weird rhythm and have weird delays, making it imperative for you to learn her moveset. I’m telling you now, this one may take you a while so really take your time and learn the dodge timings with her. Be patient, that’s the key to fighting the Dancer. 

7. Twin Princes

Another one of the most underrated boss fights in the entire series, the Twin Princes are one hell of a fight!. Lothric was chosen to be the next Lord to link the flame but he completely renounced his duties, in turn causing the chain of events that led to the start of the game. His brother Lorian decided to share his affliction and guard him from all those who would seek to harm him.

The fight against Lorian is very challenging, with him being able to take you out in multiple ways. He has a nasty habit of teleporting to random places at any time which can really catch you off guard, so the best way of dealing with this is to just simply keep him locked on. Upon defeating Lorian, his brother will climb onto his back and now start peppering you with dangerous sorceries.

6. Soul of Cinder

What do you get when every single Lord of Cinder to ever link the flame combines their souls together? This guy. Soul of Cinder is one of the hardest and well-designed bosses in the entire game as he has a ton of different forms that reflect the different builds you can make in the game, so in a way he represents pretty much every single person who has ever completed a Dark Souls game.

His second phase gives him an entirely new health bar and new moves that he took from the OG Lord of the series, Gwyn himself. SOC channels the souls of the most powerful Lord of them all in order to put you down and continue the Age of Fire.

5. Demon Prince

Now this is what you call a battle of attrition. This is the first boss of the Ringed City DLC and sees the son of the previously mentioned Old Demon King fighting you at the end of the world. The Demon Prince had his soul split into 2, creating the Demon in Pain and the Demon from Below, who both come together to kill you.

Upon defeating them both, their souls reform into 1 and the Demon Prince comes out, effectively turning this fight into one with 3 bosses. Depending on which of the previous 2 demons you killed last, the Prince will have a different moveset and attacks so watch out!

4. Nameless King

The Nameless King has the points for being arguably the coolest boss fight in the whole game. His fight takes place on top of clouds, with the first phase requiring you to literally fight a giant, feathery dragon. Upon killing it, the King slays it and imbues his sword spear with its storm powers. 

Nameless King is the son of Gwyn, a god of war that led the armies of Gwyn against the dragons and was head and the greatest of the Dragonslayers. However, something changed in him and he found himself siding with the same dragon's his father set out to destroy, causing his name to be expunged from all of history.

3. Slave Knight Gael

This is probably the best boss fight in the entire game by almost all measures. It has the perfect atmosphere, music, tension, narrative, mechanics and arena. We fight our friend Gael, the one we made along our travels and one that has helped us on many occasions. He has now lost his mind and has consumed almost every fragment of the Dark Soul, so we must put an end to him. 

Gael’s fight is a never ending barrage of hits from all angles that you can imagine and the amount of moves he can do feels almost infinite. He never stops attacking with his sword or his crossbow in all 3 of his phases so he requires impeccable timing and skill and truly feels like the perfect send off to the series.

2. Sister Friede

Friede is a boss that doesn’t even seem all that difficult the very first time you fight her. She gets staggered easily and takes a ton of damage, especially if you use a heavy weapon. Upon your first death, you’ll probably say ‘hey that wasn’t too bad, I can definitely beat her next time’. Then you die again and again.

Friede’s a Bloodborne boss that they decided would work well in a Dark Souls game and while the entire fight is amazing, it is super difficult because of how fast she is. The painted world DLC doesn’t have many bosses so to compensate for this, they gave Friede 3 phases, each more challenging than the last.

1. Darkeater Midir

I mean, who else could it have been? This giant dragon was taken by the gods when he was little and was raised with one goal in mind; to defeat the abyss/dark wherever he saw it. He has spent eons following these orders, which ended up giving him abyssal powers that he has now mastered. 

Midir has the girthiest health bar in the entire game and possibly the highest damage output of any boss as well. It is entirely possible that you whittle his health bar down to 99% and he just 1 shots you out of nowhere. Midir is ferocious, powerful and an absolute tank, qualities which are all dialed up to 11 to bring you the most difficult boss in the entire game.

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