Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty boss guide - How to easily defeat Zhang Bao, General of Earth

Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo's latest action role-playing game Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is easily one of the most mechanically complex games in the souls-like genre. Being a spiritual successor to Team Ninja's prior souls-like titles, i.e., Nioh and Nioh 2, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty features some challenging boss fights to test players' skills and control over the game's combat system.

One such early game main story boss that you will face in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is Zhang Bao, General of Earth, a powerful and evil sorcerer capable of using some really powerful pyromancy spells.

Zhang Bao mostly uses fire-based area-of-effect (AOE) attacks that can deal massive damage. In addition to his spells, the boss also has access to quite a few close-ranged movesets that it can use in conjunction with his spells to overwhelm you.

Although Zhang Bao can be a very tough boss encounter, especially given he's one of the early-game bosses in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, there are quite a few ways to trivialize the boss fight. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to beat Zhang Bao, General of Earth in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.

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How to easily win the Zhang Bao, General of Earth boss fight in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty?

You will encounter Zhang Bao, General of Earth in the main story mission - The Valley of Crying Wraiths, where he serves as the final boss you must defeat to progress the main story. Being a sorcerer, much like another main story boss, Zhang Rang, Zhang Bao primarily uses his elemental wizardry spells (fire element) to attack.

Although the boss isn't particularly tough, compared to some of the previous bosses that you have faced in the game so far, such as Zhang Liang, Zhuyan, and even Fengxi, Zhang Bao can be quite a challenge unless you know exactly how to deal with each of his elemental attacks.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty features a unique deflection-based combat system, which even the hardcore fans of Team Ninja's previous games will find somewhat difficult to adjust to; however, once you do get to grips with the deflection mechanic, the combat becomes significantly more satisfying. Deflecting attacks is also one of the best ways to defeat Zhang Bao easily.

Zhang Bao, despite having a massive health pool, is quite vulnerable to stagger damage, as such, high DPS weapons, i.e., Poleaxes, Glaives, and Hammers or those that can deal damage rapidly, i.e., Dual Swords, Dual Halberds, and Sabers are your best bet to use against the boss. You should not spam attacks or martial arts against the boss, as it can teleport out of your attack and hit you with his elemental attacks.

Using companions is also helpful but not necessary, as you can easily whittle down the boss' health bar by timing your attacks and deflecting its projectiles as well as melee strikes. Another helpful tip to make the boss fight a bit manageable is to use "Water Phase" wizardry spells, since water is very effective in countering fire elemental spells.

You should also keep an eye on your Divine Beast summon gage and summon it during the final half of the battle to deplete the boss' spirit gauge easily. If you manage your spirit consumption, time your deflects properly, and make intelligent use of the water elemental spells, you can easily defeat Zhang Bao, General of Earth in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.