Nameless King (Optional)
You already fought a beast atop Archdragon Peak, but there’s one more big boss to take down up here – and he just might be the hardest boss in the entire game. Once you’ve rung the bell and crossed the clouds, you’ll be able to face the Nameless King.
The Nameless King starts the fight atop his mount, the Storm Rider. This dragon breathes deadly fire both on the ground and while flying. When he does it from the air, you have to sprint away to escape the high-damaging flames. When the Rider is preparing to breathe on the ground, the Nameless King will lean forward, and the Rider will hop away from you a short distance. The fire is easy to dodge if you sprint in the same direction, but you should take the opportunity to dash in from the side and smash the back of his head a few times. You can attack his legs throughout the fight, but this will do minimal damage – aim for the head. Regardless, staying under the dragon’s neck is usually a safe spot, but be prepared for some camera issues.
The Nameless King will also attack from the back of his mount during this phase. As the Rider flies around, the King will charge up a Lightning Spear. To dodge it, roll aside as soon as it leaves the King’s hand. He will then follow up with a spear crash, which you can dodge by rolling under the Storm Rider. When the dragon is on the ground, the King will attack with his spear. This may be a two-sweep manoeuvre, which you can dodge by rolling. If he charges up his weapon with lighting, be ready to roll to the side.
Once the Storm Rider is defeated, you’ll face the Nameless King himself. Throughout this stage, you want to stay near the King – it’s easier to roll under his attacks when you’re close – backing away to regain stamina when necessary. Up close, he’ll attack with two- or four-hit combos, which you can roll under, although the timing is a little tricky. Once you’re clear, you should only attack twice at most so you’re not caught by another attack; the King deals very high damage. He may also leap around you and do two stabbing attacks. These can be dodged, but watch out for the cloud of damaging wind the attacks kick up.
At a distance, the King may do a stabbing or dashing attack, both of which you can avoid by rolling to the side. If he leaps into the air, roll forward a bit to let him crash behind you, then turn around and get in a few this – this is probably his most easily avoided attack. His trickiest also comes at a distance: he’ll sweep his sword twice, sending two shockwaves at you. The horizontal one can be rolled through, and the vertical one can be avoided with a side roll.
Once he hits 50% HP, the Nameless King will buff himself with lightning; his standard attacks will deal more damage in this phase. He also gains several new moves. The first of these is a stab into the ground that causes lightning to fizzle out into the surrounding area; keep your distance to avoid damage. He can also slam his sword down and create the same area-of-effect with lightning. Finally, he may charge his blade and shoot a lightning bolt into the air. The timing on this is very difficult, as you need to roll to the side just a beat after the bolt leaves his sword to avoid it crashing down on you.
The Nameless King is a very, very difficult boss, and you’ll have to defeat his Storm Rider before you can even face him one on one. Look for your moment of attack in the first fight, then be very smart with your stamina in the second half. With a little luck – and a lot of patience – you’ll slay the son of Gwyn (yeah, that’s who this is, by the way).
Jump to Boss:
Iudex Gundyr
Vordt of the Boreal Valley
Curse-Rotted Greatwood (Optional)
Crystal Sage
Abyss Watchers
Deacons of the Deep
High Lord Wolnir
Old Demon King (Optional)
Pontiff Sulyvahn
Yhorm the Giant
Aldrich, Devourer of Gods
Dancer of the Boreal Valley
Oceiros, the Consumed King (Optional)
Champion Gundyr (Optional)
Dragonslayer Armour
Lothric, Younger Prince
Ancient Wyvern (Optional)
Nameless King (Optional)
Soul of Cinder
