Highlights

  • An astonishingly skilled Elden Ring player beat the final Shadow of the Erdtree boss without sustaining a single hit.
  • Their triumph was achieved by essentially parrying the final boss to death.

One incredibly tenacious player has managed to defeat the final boss in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree without taking a single hit. Their flawless hitless fight is one of the most astonishing achievements that the fandom has managed since the new Elden Ring expansion's launch.

Shadow of the Erdtree final boss spoilers ahead.

The critically acclaimed DLC released on June 21, meaning plenty of players have already managed to complete it over the past nine days. But even some of those who promptly overcame its challenges characterized Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree as too difficult, with the expansion's final boss being at the very center of those grievances. Not only does the revived Radahn that players face in the end hit like a truck, but he also has immense poise and a seemingly never-ending moveset. His attacks are all the more difficult to learn due to the sheer carnage that's constantly happening on the screen, making it challenging to see what's going on at times.

Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree red sky and mountains north of Grand Altar of Dragon Communion with game logo edit
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Naked Tarnished Parries Final SOTE Boss To Death

Be that as it may, some players have already mastered this prime version of the legendary general. Reddit user jaded-dreamer5 can attest to that fact, having recently managed to beat Shadow of the Erdtree's Radahn without sustaining any damage. Since a hitless fight was the goal from the beginning, the player made the sensible choice of having their character strip down to just their undergarments and a hood. This allowed the Tarnished to perform light rolls, which can cover a slightly greater distance than medium rolls that most players use.

Nevertheless, light rolls weren't exactly crucial to jaded-dreamer5's success, as their strategy revolved around using the Buckler to deflect everything that could be deflected while staying in the boss's face, Sekiro-style. Much like Malenia, Radahn requires three parries to stagger, which is problematic when one is still learning his moves and can't react to them consistently. But for someone who masters the boss's attack timings like jaded-dreamer5 did, Radahn's extreme aggression actually works in their favor, allowing them to stagger the general fairly quickly, then wear him down with critical hits.

Between those moments, the player was slashing Radahn with a dagger any chance they could get. That plan, paired with perfect execution, allowed their incredible hitless fight against the final Shadow of the Erdtree boss to clock in at under two minutes. It also required a tiny bit of luck, as there was a moment near the end of the encounter where Radahn's stomps and the camera worked against the player, completely obfuscating their view for a dangerous fraction of a second.

This astonishing achievement is just the latest in a string of feats that FromSoftware's fans have already managed to accomplish since the DLC's debut. Another similarly impressive fight took place on June 29, when one Twitch streamer beat the final Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree boss using a saxophone in place of a controller.