How to cheese the final boss in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree

The final boss in Elden Ring's base game was hard, and so were some of the other end-game entities — like a la Godfrey, Maliketh, and, of course, Malenia, Blade of Miquella. However, let's be real, these don't hold a candle to the sheer difficulty and spectacle of the final boss in Shadow of the Erdtree.

The battle with Promised Consort Radahn, the entity in question, starts as a classic brawler fight with some gravity magic mixed into the fray. However, it quickly evolves into a frenzy of Incantation barrage, grab attacks, and endless combo strings that can easily kill you if you mistime your dodges or don't have enough vigor to tank incoming attacks.

Fortunately, if you play your cards right — and by that I mean take the time to tinker with your build — you can easily defeat Radahn, perhaps even with your eyes closed. Here's a guide on how to basically "cheese" Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree's final boss, with nothing more than a Greatshield and Bleed.

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Tips to easily defeat (cheese) the final boss, Promised Consort Radahn, in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree

Preparation is the key to defeating any boss in Elden Ring and its DLC, barring the optional overworld battles.

Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear is the best choice to "cheese" the final boss of Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree (Image via FromSoftware)

If you try to brute-force your way through Miquella's chosen emissary, you will find yourself getting pommeled to death more than a handful of times. Admittedly, the rematch against Radahn is easily the most challenging battle in any FromSoftware "Souls-borne" game to date, far surpassing the likes of Elden Ring's own, Malenia, or Bloodborne's Orphan of Kos.

While Malenia's Waterfowl Dance and Orphan's unchecked aggression do make them incredibly formidable, the battle against them can be approached methodically. Moreover, you have plenty of opportunities to back off and get a heal or two. That isn't true for Promised Consort Radahn, who has access to what seems like near-endless combos.

As such, regardless of whether you're a mage or a melee user, you will get very little scope to attack the boss, let alone get a breather to replenish your health or buff your defenses. However, there's one playstyle that completely negates all of Radahn's attacks and effectively trivializes this boss fight — the Greatshield and Spear combo.

Funnily enough, adopting this playstyle is as easy as pressing buttons. All you have to do is equip the mightiest Greatshield available to you, as well as a Bleed Spear, and you're ready to take on Radahn.

For the Shield, I recommend Verdigris Greatshield. For the Spear, I would suggest Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear or Bloodfiend's Sacred Spear.

Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear and the Verdigris Greatshield trivialize the final boss of Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree (Image via FromSoftware)

Here's a breakdown of the build:

Weapons:

• Mohgwyn's Sacred Spear +10
• Verdigris Greatshield +10

Talismans:

• Erdtree's Favor +2
• Two-Headed Turtle Talisman
• Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman
• Golden Braid

Armor:

• Crucible Axe set

Stat distribution (Level 200):

• Vigor: 60
• Mind: 20
• Endurance: 42
• Strength: 50
• Dexterity: 15
• Intelligence: 12
• Faith: 14
• Arcane: 64

The idea here is to hold the block button as soon as you enter the boss arena and, while you're doing that, tap the attack button until your stamina reaches roughly 15%. At this point, briefly let go of the block button and roll away from Radahn, and once your stamina is back to full, repeat the "block-and-poke" technique to well, decimate Radhan.

Yes, you will take some damage while doing so, but with the Opaline Hardtear, Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman, and Golden Braid equipped, none of Radahn's combos should be fatal. However, do make sure to back away from this boss when you see an opening and do a heal or two if necessary.

Additionally, there are two attacks that the Greatshield cannot mitigate. First is the Gravity Rock Sling, which you need to avoid by running sideways and jumping right before the Rocks come crashing towards you. The second attack is when Radahn takes off to space and comes crashing down into the arena with two massive AOE shockwaves.

The Golden Braid is an essential part of this build, since it helps you negate a ton of Holy damage Radahn does in the second phase (Image via FromSoftware)

If not dodged, the Meteor Crash attack can easily one-shot you, regardless of your Vigor stat, HP, or defense. However, if you run away to the extreme right of the arena, you can easily avoid any damage.

Do make sure to manually remove the lock on Radhan, since the camera can still stay locked onto him, which can make it difficult to avoid the Meteor Crash.