How to beat the Shadow of the Erdtree Blackgaol Knight

Jun. 20, 2024

The Blackgaol Knight boss drops some of the best armor in Elden Ring

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

How to beat the Blackgaol Knight in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree

The biggest tip I can give is fromthe second you cross through the fog, target lock on the Blackgaol Knight and sprint towards him. You’ll have a window of a few seconds to deal a heavy attack which will stagger him, and you’ll likely be able to follow this up with another few hits. Be wary of the Knight retaliating with a swift slash though, as it seems to be 50/50 whether he’ll back off further or try to hit back immediately.

There are a few key attacks to watch out for from the Blackgaol Knight, all of which are obviously telegraphed. The first is hiscrossbow, which is fully automatic and if you get hit by one bolt, you’ll be hit by the full barrage as it will likely break your poise. If you’re close enough to attack when he pulls out the crossbow you can interrupt before he’s fired a shot, or if you’re further away, get ready to sprint around in a circle. The second he stops firing, that’s your opportunity to attack.

Aside from standard swings, of which he has a few different ones, all of which finish with an opportunity to land a blow as he recovers,there are two other devastating attacks to watch out for.The first is his other ranged attack, where he will raise his sword into the air with both hands then thrust downwards and fire a gust of wind. This is easy to dodge with the right timing, but watch out for the follow up, where he’ll drag his sword along the floor, perform a pirouette, then swing 360 degrees towards your current location. Dodge away from this and you’ll have a window to land another hit or two.

Shadow of the Erdtree Furnace GolemsShadow of the Erdtree tipsHow long to beat Shadow of the ErdtreeShadow of the Erdtree level requirement

He has two attacks where he’ll jump into the air and slam down with his sword. One is used mainly as a way to dodgeyourattack and doesn’t hit quite as hard, while the other is much more damaging as he does a barrel roll in mid-air. For both of these, dodge at the very last second, otherwise he’ll hang in the air and change direction as you come out of the roll.

One thing to be aware of iswhen you get just past the halfway point, he will take a moment to heal.There is an incredibly tight window here to try and interrupt his heal, which if successful, makes this fight much easier, but it is such a small window you can’t rely on pulling it off every time.

For the most part,the Blackgaol Knight fight is all about patience.Hit once, twice if you’re sure, then roll away. The second you take damage, pop a flask because unless you’re using an especially tanky build or you’re an extremely high level, two hits will be enough to have you almost dead. I succeeded with a bleed dex build, using the Bloody Slash Ash of War to constantly deal heavy damage.

Defeating the Blackgaol Knight will reward you with theSolitude armor set, which is some of the best armor for heavy builds. You’ll also get the Greatsword of Solitude, which dishes out incredibly high damage per hit.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

Give me a game and I will write every “how to” I possibly can or die trying. When I’m not knee-deep in a game to write guides on, you’ll find me hurtling round the track in F1, flinging balls on my phone in Pokemon Go, pretending to know what I’m doing in Football Manager, or clicking on heads in Valorant.

Borderlands 4 reveal confirmed for The Game Awards as Gearbox teases the “first look at the most ambitious Borderlands yet”

How to beat the Path of Exile 2 Bloated Miller boss fight

Dune 2 director Denis Villeneuve has perfect response to Josh Brolin saying he will “quit acting” if the filmmaker isn’t nominated for an Oscar