Elden Ring: How to beat Godrick the Grafted

While there are plenty of opponents waiting to destroy the Tarnished in Elden Ring, Godrick the Grafted, as the first of the demigod monsters, presents a unique challenge. Godrick the Grafted isn't impossible to defeat, but he does take patience, timing, and perhaps a little luck, as does much of Elden Ring.

Preparation

Players can choose to solo Godrick the Grafted, but I believe that they should always hedge their chances by properly preparing. To do so, head south of the Secluded Cell Site of Grace and down the route through a particularly ferocious creature and two of its pals to encounter an NPC named Nepheli Loux. Exhaust all communication with her: she'll mention Godrick as well, but just as a side note.

After that, either shop or level to get rid of runes. Godrick the Grafted, like other boss encounters, will slap explorers a few times, and losing all of your runes, on top of being slain a few times, may be a huge hit to morale.

When you've reached a state of peace, proceed to the fog gate, noting the golden runes on the right side just before it: they will allow you to summon Loux. She doesn't have a lot of DPS, but she can help divide Godrick's attention and stagger Rodrick for high damage opportunities with her big punches. Head through the fog gate towards Rodrick once Loux has been summoned and is standing.

The fight

Rodrick the Grafted is a powerful puncher who can combo opponents if he lands a good hit. Melee players should stand roughly five metres away and keep an eye out for attack patterns. Run up to Godrick and hit him with strong blows a couple of times, hoping to knock him out. When Godrick lets out a bellow and falls to his knees, you'll know he's stunned: get a couple heavy strikes in here, either with backstabbing or combinations, whatever delivers most damage to your character.

After entering the fog gate, magic users should employ whichever summons they wish and preserve a safe distance when casting spells. Godrick unleashes two powerful wind attacks: keep an eye out for them after his concentrated wind-AoE, as magic users are the most vulnerable to them.

Godrick's attacks have an odd delay: he will appear to start swinging, then halt for a brief moment, causing most players to miss their first roll and be hammered by the rest of the combination. While practice makes perfect in this case, being aware of the delayed assaults is usually enough to assure you can avoid them. If he grips the axe with both hands, he'll create wind in an AoE centred on himself, followed by a leaping smash or wind bursts. Before rushing back in, take a step back, tend to your health, and keep an eye on your stamina.

Rodrick will start screaming when he's about 60% healthy: go behind him at this moment and do as much damage as you can. A cutscene will play after he lurches forward with his axe, inflicting damage on everybody in his path.

This isn’t even my final form

Godrick the Grafted, like many other bosses in Elden Ring, has two phases. In his second level, he adds fire damage to several of his attacks, as well as a large cone-shaped AoE to assaults that must be dodged. The cutscene will stop after Rodrick has finished shouting, and Rodrick will be firing a flame into the air. To get behind the flame AoE, players should dash at him on the right side. If you can't get behind the arm because you're hesitant or trapped in the scenery, you'll take a lot of damage.

Players will be positioned behind Rodrick as he begins his attack, leaving him vulnerable to tremendous damage. You can stagger him at this point if you score enough big strikes, making the second half of the fight nearly unnecessary. When in doubt, however, it's best to play it safe. As long as you haven't been transformed into charcoal, you can return to do additional harm later.

Keep an eye on the animations: they're largely the same with the addition of fire, and playing at a distance will allow people to rush in towards the end of his combination and deal some retaliation damage. Keep your cool and playoff Loux's rage, and you'll be on your way to being an Elden Lord in no time.