Dark Souls is a series known for its difficult gameplay, engaging boss fights, and bleak setting. While each game in the series has a similar format to each other, each entry in the series has a slightly different approach. Dark Souls 2, for example, added dark magic and a mechanic that reduced the player's maximum health with each death.

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Similarly, player and enemy stats do not operate on exactly the same scale from each Dark Souls title, making it somewhat difficult to compare them to each other. However, each game features bosses with high overall defenses, which make for difficult opponents with memorable battles.

9 Throne Defender

A Boss That Fights With A Partner That Can Revive Them

• Dark Souls 2

The Throne Watcher and Throne Defender are a duo that the player must fight together. While they are not the hardest Dark Souls 2 boss fight, they have higher defense than most others. When one of them dies, he falls to their knees and waits to be revived by their surviving partner. The only way to win is by defeating both of them within 20 seconds of each other.

The Throne Defender, as suggested by the name, has the higher defense stat of the two and should be dealt with first. Players need to carefully manage this, however, because getting their health bars too low will trigger the boss duo to start buffing themselves and become much more difficult.

8 Dragon Slayer Ornstein

A Dragon Slaying Knight With A Heavy Ally

• Dark Souls

Ornstein was a knight who fought in Gwyn's war against the dragons during the first Age of Fire. He was later held in such high esteem that he was given one of the four pieces of the Lord of Cinder's soul. After Gwyn's fall and the Age of Fire was in rapid decline, Ornstein joined with Executioner Smough to await the Chosen Undead who might follow in their lord's footsteps.

In both gameplay and lore, the fight against Ornstein and Smough serves as a test to make or break the player's will to continue on the path laid before them. Fighting the pair is fought with challenges, not the least of which is overcoming Ornstein's high defenses to whittle his health away.

7 Gwyn, Lord Of Cinder

Shows That Old Age Does Not Slow His Agility

• Dark Souls

Gwyn was one of the very first humans that appeared with the First Flame. He became the king of an underground civilization and eventually waged a successful war against the dragons who ruled the surface world. Gwyn ruled over the first Age of Flame and was worshiped as a god until he sacrificed himself in order to prolong this age and stall the inevitable Age of Darkness.

He is the final boss in the original Dark Souls, and defeating him grants the player the choice to follow in Gwyn's footsteps and keep the Age of Fire going or allow darkness to rise. Gwyn uses many fast attacks and does not leave the player much time for healing or using heavy weapons. His defenses are very high across the board as well, making him a fitting challenge for the end of the game.

6 Champion's Gravetender

This Warrior Guards His Master's Grave With A Pack Of Wolves

• Dark Souls 3: Ashes of Ariandel (DLC)

The Champion was an undead who decided to use his immortality to fight in an unending tournament in order to win glory and maintain his sanity. Eventually, however, he still went insane before he died for the last time and now one of the fighters he trained in life watches over his grave.

This boss fight begins with the player fighting the Gravetender and three wolves. Players should deal with the wolves quickly so that they can focus on the warrior who stands with them. The Gravetender summons a giant wolf once he is down to half health. The presence of the wolves makes the fight more complicated than other boss fights, and the Gravetender himself has more defense than most bosses in the game.

5 Fume Knight

Incredible Health Pool & Intense, Unpredictable Attacks

• Dark Souls 2: Crown of the Old Iron King (DLC)

Raime was a knight of Drangleic, Anor Londo's new name in the centuries after Dark Souls 1, who ventured to Brume Tower where he devoted himself to Nadalia, the Bride of Ash. The tower was consumed by a black fog that destroyed knights who resisted her while bewitching the willing ones to defend her. Raime became a loyal guardian who chose to live in this black fog to feel close to Nadalia.

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The Fume Knight must be defeated to finish the DLC, and this boss is extremely difficult. He has the highest defense of bosses in Dark Souls 2, and his attacks have unusual timing, which makes them difficult to dodge or block. Players must prepare themselves and destroy the four Ashen Idols in this arena prior to the fight, or they will have an uphill battle on their hands.

4 Burnt Ivory King

A Boss Fight Who's Power Increases With Loyal Guards

• Dark Souls 2: Crown of the Ivory King (DLC)

The Burnt Ivory King is the epic final boss of one of Dark Souls 2's DLC areas. He was once a powerful and revered king who eventually succumbed to Chaos as it spread across his realm. When players encounter him, the former king guards one of the Three Lost Crowns with his life.

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As a DLC boss, players expect this fight to be difficult and the Burnt Ivory King does not disappoint. He wields an ultra-great sword that can deal out great damage to the player, and his defense stat is higher than any other boss in the game.

3 Knight Artorias

An Agile Knight Corrupted By The Abyss

• Dark Souls 1: Artorias of the Abyss (DLC)

Artorias was once Lord Gwyn's right-hand man and his strongest knight. After the Lord of Light sacrificed himself to reignite the First Flame, Artorias went to stop the spread of the Abyss. Unfortunately, the great knight succumbed to the corruption of the Abyss and went mad. Players travel back in time to fight the corrupted Artorias and put him out of his misery, although they will later have to face his wolf companion Sif, who guards his grave.

Artorias is a challenging opponent, which fits his role in the lore and the fact that he is a DLC boss. With high defense and a range of powerful attacks, players need to be ready to face him.

2 Demon Prince

A Final Form That Combines Two Powerful Demons

• Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City (DLC)

In the Ringed City DLC for Dark Souls 3, the many iterations of the world across time and space have collapsed onto themselves, revealing secrets of the distant past since it is the end of the Age of Fire. Among the horrors that await the player in this convoluted space are the last two demons alive.

Any demon can become a champion that can reignite the Chaos Flame, serving as a parallel to the player character tasked with reigniting the First Flame. When only one demon remains, it will take on the power and visage of the legendary Demon Prince. This is why the player must start off fighting both of the last demons alive but then the encounter changes to fight the Demon Prince when one of them is slain. All three of the demons have incredibly high defense stats and are difficult to take down.

1 Black Dragon Kalameet

A Powerful Hide & Deadly Lightning Breath Makes For A Defensive Dragon

• Dark Souls 1: Knights of the Artorias (DLC)

Black Dragon Kalameet was so ferocious that even the dragon-slaying knights of Andor Londo considered him to be too strong to fight. The player can get the help of an NPC named Hawkeye Gough, who shoots him down so that he can be fought without the dragon flying around as much. While it is possible to defeat the fearsome dragon without the NPC's help, it is significantly more difficult.

Kalameet has a high defense all around and is immune to poison and toxic damage. He also resists lightning damage, even though most dragons are vulnerable to it. His fire breath is actually based on dark sorcery, and so it deals magic, physical, and stability damage. This fearsome dragon's combination of resistance, defense, and special attacks makes fighting him a memorable challenge.

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