The Red Wolf of Radagon is a boss players will encounter several times throughout Elden Ring, but the first most come across is in the Schoolhouse Classroom of the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Later on, players learn more about who Radagon is and why he is so important to Raya Lucaria. For now, just know that this boss was once guardian to a renowned character.
The Red Wolf of Radagon is described by many players as a bit of a glass cannon. In Elden Ring many enemies have HP totals that far exceed the difficulty of the fight itself. This fight is the opposite – while the Red Wolf of Radagon has relatively low HP, its attacks are practically ceaseless and it can be hard to get even a single hit in.
Red Wolf Of Radagon Moveset And Weaknesses
The Red Wolf of Radagon is one of Elden Ring's fastest bosses, able to dart around the room as quickly as it can cast Sorceries (often at the same time). The Schoolhouse Classroom is a pretty small arena, too, filled with pews, sconces, and other obstacles that make getting around in the first place a bit of a challenge.
The Red Wolf of Radagon is resistant to Magic and weak to Bleeding, though it's tough to actually fill the Bleed meter fast enough to cause Hemorrhaging. Aside from this, though, the Red Wolf of Radagon's main weakness is its low health pool. A few hits from a Colossal weapon is enough to down it - the problem is making those hits connect in the first place.
Red Wolf's Moveset
- Jumping Spin Attack: Red Wolf of Radagon leaps up into the air and, after a delay, comes hurtling to the ground at the player's location. Huge damage, but can be avoided by dodging backwards at the last second.
- Bite and Slam Attacks: Red Wolf can bite its target quickly and use its body to shove right or left to bludgeon the player. Medium damage, can be blocked, but usually leads into another attack.
- Glintstone Greatsword: Red Wolf of Radagon rears back, summons a Glintstone Greatsword in its mouth (like Sif from Dark Souls) and cleaves a massive area in front of it. High damage, but well telegraphed and easy to avoid if far enough away.
- Moving Magic Glintblade: Perhaps its most frustrating move, the Red Wolf will dash to one side and rapidly cast three Magic Glintblades at the same time, often leading to a follow-up of the exact same thing for a total of six Magic Glintblades. They fire one by one on a delay, which causes low damage but being hit gives the Red Wolf an attack opportunity.
- Dash and Dash Attack: The Red Wolf of Radagon is an incredibly fast enemy, and will rapidly dash from one side of the room to the other, often as part of an attack leading into a bite, a Magic Glintblade, or other move. Dash Attack deals medium damage and is hard to avoid, but the Red Wolf's unparalleled speed makes it a tough fight for Ranged players.
Red Wolf's Weaknesses
The Red Wolf of Radagon is not particularly weak to anything except Bleed damage, but this weakness is hard to capitalize on because of the boss' incredible speed. Its low HP means the fight will be over very quickly if you can get a handful of powerful hits in, but success ultimately comes down to connecting those hits at all.
The Red Wolf of Radagon is resistant to Magic damage, so Sorcerers will have a harder time whittling down its HP than other builds. Its fast movement makes it a pain for both Ranged and Melee users, though Ranged players are almost forced to use Spirit Summons as the Red Wolf will dart around your spells and arrows if it doesn't have someone else to pay attention to.
Strategies For Beating The Red Wolf Of Radagon
The Red Wolf of Radagon is a fast glass cannon, but it's far from Elden Ring's toughest fight. You just have to anticipate that most of your attacks won't connect as it seems to be able to dodge whenever it likes. Because of its speed, it's highly recommended to summon a partner or use Spirit Ashes to distract this boss and create some wiggle room.
The best Ashes to use for this fight are high-HP or Magic resistant summons, like the Spirit Jellyfish, or Ashes that spawn more than one ally, like the Demi-Human Ashes. The Spirit Jellyfish is a tank and can poison the Red Wolf, while the Demi-Human Ashes spawn five allies that force the Red Wolf to turn its focus towards the group. It only has one major AoE attack, so multiple summons ought to survive just fine.
Spellcasting/Ranged
Spellcasters and Ranged players will have the hardest time in this fight, especially Sorcerers whose attacks are resisted by the Red Wolf of Radagon. The fight isn't impossible without summons, but it's extremely hard to get even a single spell cast when the Red Wolf is darting around, attacking, and constantly keeping you on your toes. If you want to go without summons, let the Red Wolf destroy a lot of the obstacles in the room, and be sure to only cast fast spells like Glintstone Pebble and the like. Ranged and Incantation-users should follow the same strategy, and only attack when the Red Wolf gives you a moment's breathing room from dodging.
Melee Strategies
Melee players will find this fight tough but not unbearable like Sorcerers. The Red Wolf has low HP, which ought to indicate that you should switch to a Heavy weapon for max damage with each swing. The wind-up on these Heavy weapons is often too long to hit the Elden Ring boss before it darts away, though. Opt for a fast weapon like a Flail, a Straight Sword, or something similar as you will more reliably connect hits, even if its just one or two Light attacks. Use a shield with 100% Physical Defense to block its fast melee attacks, but be sure to dodge out of the way of its Magic Glintblade as most shields will still let most Magic damage through.
Rewards For Beating The Red Wolf Of Radagon
The Red Wolf of Radagon in Raya Lucaria drops a good chunk of Runes - 14000 to be precise - alongside a Memory Stone. Memory Stones in Elden Ring increase the number of spells that can be memorized at once by one, which can be incredibly useful for most builds that use spells primarily.
Defeating the Red Wolf of Radagon opens up the next section of Raya Lucaria, but don't be too eager to continue just yet. After touching the Grace, head outside to the new area and take an immediate right. Over the railing, you will see a roof you can drop onto - fall here, climb the ladder upwards, and you'll find one of the game's most useful items in a chest hidden from the steps below.
Elden Ring is available now for PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X|S.