Lords of the Fallen boss guide: How to defeat Holy Bulwark Otto

Lords of the Fallen features some really cool and challenging boss fights, which should not come as a surprise given the game's souls-like nature. Much like FromSoftware's "Souls-Borne" games, CI Games and Hexwork's latest title does not shy away from presenting some really challenging enemy encounters, even in the early stages.

And while Lords of the Fallen is quite difficult, it does give you plenty of time to get acclimated to its combat system as well as general moment-to-moment gameplay. As soon as you finish the tutorial section, and rift between both Axiom and Umbral, you come face to face with the very first boss of the game - Holy Bulwark Otto.

Similarly to bosses like Iudex Gundyr, Asylum Demon, and even the Soldier of Godrick, Holy Bulwark Otto isn't a particularly challenging boss fight. It is mostly meant as a test of understanding of the game's general combat and gameplay systems. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to easily defeat Holy Bulwark Otto in Lords of the Fallen.

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Tips to easily defeat Holy Bulwark Otto in Lords of the Fallen

You meet the first friendly NPC in Lords of the Fallen after defeating Holy Bulwark Otto (Image via CI Games, Sportskeeda)

Lords of the Fallen starts quite slow, giving players ample time to get comfortable with the rather intimidating combat and gameplay basics. The opening section is essentially a glorified tutorial dungeon. Here the game teaches you everything from dodging and parrying attacks to rifting between the two interconnected realms - Axiom and Umbral.

Once you do complete the tutorial arena, you get greeted with your first "vestige" point, i.e., Lords of the Fallen's version of bonfire. At the vestige point, you can rest (i.e., reset the area), level up the character's attributes, and even initiate multiplayer co-op/ invasions. And after interacting with the vestige point, you get to go against the first boss, Holy Bulwark Otto.

Here are a few strategies that will help you easily defeat Holy Bulwark Otto in Lords of the Fallen, using any starting class:

• Despite being an early-game boss, Holy Bulwark Otto can be quite challenging. This is especially true if you start with a class that does not have access to defensive weapons, i.e., shields.
• However, even with classes like Exiled Stalker, Pyric Cultist, and even the Condemned, there are ways to easily defeat the boss without taking an ounce of damage.
• Much like other humanoid enemies you faced in the tutorial area of the game, Holy Bulwark Otto can be easily staggered with either perfect blocks or charged heavy attacks.
• Staggering the boss is very easy with shields; however, if you don't have access to any defensive weapons, you can always rely on timed blocks or dodge and charged heavy attack combos to easily break Bulwark's posture.
• Make sure you avoid getting hit too many times by the boss as his weapon builds up "bleed" elemental status, which deals a ton of damage.

Once you defeat the Holy Bulwark, you will come face to face with The Lightreaper, one of the toughest bosses in the entire game. Fortunately, you don't have to kill The Lightreaper in this section, and dying it doesn't reset your progress.