History AwesomeBosses / DarkSouls

** The Fume Knight, or Sir Raime the Rebel. Boasting hard-hitting DUAL-WIELDING swordplay with his straight sword and ultra greatsword, and resistances that would put even ''Manus'' to shame, this FallenHero is a likely candidate for the hardest boss in the game. Rising from his slumber to protect the Bride of Ash, he gives you a very thorough swordfight that forces players on the defensive constantly, striking you with long combos that will break down shields before tearing you apart, vary up his sword strikes to punish players that twitch-roll expecting one combo only to be hit with another right after rolling, counter-attacking if you try to press your attacks too much, and ''charging at you and smacking you down if you try to use your Estus Flask while he isn't recovering from an attack''. And just when you think you've weakened him, he ditches his smaller sword and goes full-on LightningBruiser with his {{BFS}}!

** The Fume Knight, or Sir Raime the Rebel. Boasting hard-hitting DUAL-WIELDING swordplay with his straight sword and ultra greatsword, and resistances that would put even ''Manus'' to shame, this FallenHero is a likely candidate for the hardest boss in the game. Rising from his slumber to protect the Bride of Ash, he gives you a very thorough swordfight, and just when you think you've weakened him, he ditches his smaller sword and goes full-on LightningBruiser with his {{BFS}}!

* The Twin Princes, Lothric and Lorian, a HandicappedBadass duo who will regardless stomp you into the dust. Lorian is crippled such that he can't use his legs properly, but Lorian is able to teleport him around the room, turning a MightyGlacier into a LightningBruiser. Even once you manage to fell Lorian, Lothric will teleport into the fray, revive his brother with an incredibly haunting line (''"Rise, if you would. ...For that is our curse."''), and climb onto his back as the two enter their Lord of Cinder form. Cue Lorian's LightningBruiser being added to with Lothric hurling sorceries from his back, making the battle even more desperate. Add in their haunting and beautiful [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFRaZs6ri7s theme]] and their incredibly sad and tragic lore, and you have one of the game's most memorable boss fights.

* The Nameless King is one of the most visually stunning battles in the games, in addition to being an awesome fight in its own right. There's a good reason for this: You're fighting the literal God Of War of the Souls series. Not a hollowed god, not a god of death who has been drained of power for untold ages, and not a cowardly god who spends the entire battle fleeing from you. This is a full-on battle against a real, living god, one at the height of his power, and who is not afraid to go toe-to-toe with you. With him being the last of the true gods, this battle is the LastDance for the deities of Dark Souls as a whole, and as he wrecks your face for perhaps the hundredth time, you'll begin to understand why guys like him reigned undisputed until the fire began to die.

* The Lost Sinner, a nameless undead warrior entombed in Sinner's Rise. Having her hands shackled together does nothing to stop her from cleaving you in half with her ultra-greatsword. Unlike some of ''Dark Souls II''[='=]s enemies The Lost Sinner has no gimmicks at all, simply being an ultra-agressive swordswoman yet still managing to be one of the most memorable bosses in the game.

* [[GiantSpider The Duke's Dear Freja]], apparently borne out of the Duke's fascination with arachnids and the like. While the boss itself is fairly straightforward, the ''really'' impressive part comes after beating it... no Great Soul drops. It's sitting in the open at the back of the arena, directly below a cocooned ''dragon'' - meaning the player had to kill something tougher to get it.

* The [[BonusBoss Darklurker]]. Just reaching it is a challenge (requires finding and joining and obscure covenant and fighting through several gauntlets of black phantoms). The actual boss fight pits you against an eerie angelic figure who is bar none the most powerful spell-caster in the game. The entire battle is a desperate race to whittle down its (thankfully relatively low) health any way you can while it hurls pyromancies, hexes, and sorceries at you. Then, just when you think you've got it on the ropes, it ''duplicates itself''.

** Elana, the Squalid Queen. Combining hexes, pyromancies, and the ability to summon minions, she's exactly what would happen if [[FinalBoss Queen Nashandra]] would be if the developers had put more thought into it than the AntiClimaxBoss we're presented with in the endgame. Boasting incredibly high health and a myriad of attacks (including the ability to summon a lesser version of Velstadt), Elana ranks high in terms of boss difficulty, which makes it all the more satisfying to take her down. Perhaps it is time for you to rely on [[TheLancer Benhart of Jugo]]...

* Farron's Undead Legion of the Abyss Watchers are concentrated {{Badass}} given form, both in the lore and in the fight against them. They're basically a legion of undead designated with guarding against the horrors of the Abyss, and when the time came for them to Link the Fire they went down there [[BandOfBrothers together to burn as one]]. It also helps that [[spoiler: they are both a CallBack to and were ''founded'' by fan favorite character Artorias]], and it really shows in the fight against them; these bastards are [[LightningBruiser Lightning Bruisers]] to the core, able to cross yards of arena in the blink of an eye and incorporating a lot of scrambling movements and flips into their devestating move set. [[spoiler: It gets even better when you hit Phase 2 of the fight, as the combined power of all the fallen Watchers flows into their leader, activating his/her powers as a Lord of Cinder. You'll be in for the fight of your life as he/she practically [[FlashStep flash steps]] around you and strikes with his/her flaming greatsword.]] After the abysmal [[WolfPackBoss Wolf Pack Bosses]] from ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'', these guys show us how it's ''done''.
* Despite also being one of the most notorious cases of ThatOneBoss in the series (he's even representing the game in the pictures for the franchise's [[ThatOneBoss/DarkSouls That One Boss page]]), most still agree that the battle against Pontiff Sulyvahn is excellent despite its brutality. It's a fast-paced, exhilarating battle against an incredibly aggressive and nimble boss that will ''thoroughly'' test your dodge-roll timing, ability to quickly react to enemy tells and quickly punish openings. This, combined with his memorable design (basically the [[SinisterMinister Pope]] DualWielding {{BFS}}s), epic music and [[TheChessmaster excellent]] [[TheCorrupter lore]], made [[EvilIsCool Sulyvahn]] [[EnsembleDarkhorse extremely popular in the fandom.]]

* The FinalBoss fight is probably the single best boss battle in the history of the series, for no other reason than the fact that [[spoiler: you are basically fighting ''yourself!'' More specifically, the Soul of Cinder combines the power of every Chosen Undead and nameless entity that ever Linked the Fire, and as such it has access to, in no particular order; a straight sword, a greatsword, an curved greatsword, a staff, sorceries, miracles, pyromancies, and the backflip-dodge of the Dark Wood Grain Ring.]] The only thing that makes this fight even better is when you hit Phase 2, [[spoiler: and you hear the three lonesome piano notes of Gwyn's theme as the Soul takes on the move set of the first Lord of Cinder himself. It feels both like a do-over of Gwyn's fight from ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'' and an enhancement; no cheesing out parry attempts here folks, you're gonna have to do this legit! Hope you know your way around the combat or brought a couple phantoms in to help you.]] Suffice to say that [=FROM=] pulled out all the stops in making the FinalBoss of the Souls series worth all the effort to get to it.

[[caption-width-right:350:DragonridersOfPern? ''Pussies.'']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kingofthestorm1_tc.jpg]]

* Farron's Undead Legion of the Abyss Watchers are concentrated {{Badass}} given form, both in the lore and in the fight against them. They're basically a legion of undead designated with guarding against the horrors of the Abyss, and when the time came for them to Link the Fire they went down there [[BandOfBrothers together to burn as one]]. It also helps that [[spoiler: they are both a CallBack to and were ''founded'' by fan favorite character Artorias]], and it really shows in the fight against them; these bastards are [[LightningBruiser Lightning Bruisers]] to the core, able to cross yards of arena in the blink of an eye and incorporating a lot of scrambling movements and flips into their devestating move set. [[spoiler: It gets even better when you hit Phase 2 of the fight, as the combined power of all the fallen Watchers flows into their leader, activating his powers as a Lord of Cinder. You'll be in for the fight of your life as he practically [[FlashStep flash steps]] around you and strikes with his flaming greatsword.]] After the abysmal [[WolfPackBoss Wolf Pack Bosses]] from ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'', these guys show us how it's ''done''.

* [[RecurringBoss The Pursuer]], a massive levitating armoured knight who appears halfway through the first level...outside his boss arena. That's right, he doesn't wait for you to come to him, he comes to you instead!
** And he ''isn't done'' after his first death. He'll dog you across the entirety of the Lost Bastille, rematch after rematch, death after death. Every time he kills you, every time you kill him, there ''will'' be a rematch. And after you're through, and you've probably half-stopped wondering when the next time he'll show up is, he comes for one last go at Drangleic Castle, and there's ''two'' of him this time.

** And he ''isn't done'' after his first death. He'll dog you across the entirety of the Lost Bastille, rematch after rematch, death after death. Every time he kills you, every time you kill him, there ''will'' be a rematch.

* The Skeleton Lords themselves are somewhat disappointing, but beat them and you have the closest thing to a full-on WarSequence as ''Dark Souls'' has on your hands, a solid ''mass'' of skeletons bearing down on you, and any phantoms you summoned for help. Just powering through the swarm with a greatsword or blasting it apart with magic simply ''feels'' satisfying.

* Iudex Gundyr is a perfect introduction to the game. Remember when the Asylum Demon taught you how to dodge and attack during openings? Well, this guy also does that... but he also teaches you that bosses in this game are fast, will change up their attack patterns, force you to stay in close and be constantly vigilant, and then start a second phase that's even more frantic. This guy is more intense than most bosses in Dark Souls II, and he's found in the ''tutorial''. Want to access Dark Souls III? Beat this guy first.

* [[RecurringBoss The Pursuer]], a massive levitating armored knight who appears halfway through the first level...outside his boss arena. That's right, he doesn't wait for you to come to him, he comes to you instead!

* The Looking Glass Knight, where the game drops all pretenses of subtlety and INDULGES in a gorgeous display of graphic prowess with an unforgettable BattleInTheRain. From the boss' intimidating presence to the bolts of lightning he unleashes, there's nothing quite as fun as taking him down in the middle of a storm. Oh, and his mirror shield can summon [=NPC=]s or even other players, akin to the [[Videogame/DemonsSouls Old Monk]].

* [[RecurringBoss The Pursuer]], a massive levitating armoured knight who appears halfway through the first level...outside his boss arena. That's right, he doesn't wait for you to come to him, he comes to you instead!

* The Looking Glass Knight, where the game drops all pretences of subtlety and INDULGES in a gorgeous display of graphic prowess with an unforgettable BattleInTheRain. From the boss' intimidating presence to the bolts of lightning he unleashes, there's nothing quite as fun as taking him down in the middle of a storm. Oh, and his mirror shield can summon [=NPC=]s or even other players, akin to the [[Videogame/DemonsSouls Old Monk]].

** The Burnt Ivory King: After dropping down a massive pit into a small arena surrounded by an ocean of lava, you're attacked not by a boss, but by wave after wave of Charred Loyce Knights who pop out of 3 portals. Kill a certain number of them, and then a huge portal rises up from which the Burnt Ivory King emerges in epic slow-mo fashion. However, unless you took the time to find the three other Loyce Knights scattered throughout the DLC, the Charred Loyce Knights will just keep on coming. What the Loyce Knights will do is sacrifice themselves to freeze the portals so that the Charred Loyce Knights would stop coming out, making your fight with the Ivory King easier. The Ivory King also has his fair share of awesome animations, such as backflips and a jumping attack that make him go slow-mo in mid-air and then suddenly dashes towards the ground.

** The Burnt Ivory King: After dropping down a massive pit into a small arena surrounded by an ocean of lava, you're attacked not by a boss, but by wave after wave of Charred Loyce Knights who pop out of 3 portals. Kill a certain number of them, and then a huge portal rises up from which the Burnt Ivory King emerges in epic slow-mo fashion. However, unless you took the time to find the three other Loyce Knights scattered throughout the DLC, the Charred Loyce Knights will just keep on coming. What the Loyce Knights will do is sacrifice themselves to freeze the portals so that the Charred Loyce Knights would stop coming out, making your fight with the Ivory King easier. The Ivory King also has his fair share of awesome animations, such as backflips and a jumping attack that make him go slow-mo in mid-air and then suddenly dashes towards the ground.

!!!''Dark Souls III''

** The Burnt Ivory King: After dropping down a massive pit into a small arena surrounded by an ocean of lava, you're attacked not by a boss, but by wave after wave of Charred Loyce Knights who pop out of 3 portals. Kill a certain number of them, and then a huge portal rises up from which the Burnt Ivory King emerges in epic slow-mo fashion. However, unless you took the time to find the three other Loyce Knights scattered throughout the DLC, the Charred Loyce Knights will just keep on coming. What the Loyce Knights will do is sacrifice themselves to freeze the portals so that the Charred Loyce Knights would stop coming out, making your fight with the Ivory King easier. The Ivory King also has his fair share of awesome animations, such as backflips and a jumping attack that make him go slow-mo in mid-air and then suddenly dashes towards the ground.

* The Skeleton Lords themselves are somewhat disapointing, but beat them and you have the closest thing to a full-on WarSequence as Dark souls has on your hands, a solid ''mass'' of skeletons bearing down on you, and any phantoms you summoned for help. Just powering through the swarm with a greatsword or blasting it apart with magic simply ''feels'' satisfying.

** Elana, the Squalid Queen. Combining hexes, pyromancies, and the ability to summon minions, she's exactly what would happen if [[FinalBoss Queen Nashandra]] would be if the developers had put more thought into it than the AntiClimaxBoss we're presented with in the endgame. Boasting incredibly high health and a myriad of attacks, Elana ranks high in terms of boss difficulty, which makes it all the more satisfying to take her down. Perhaps it is time for you to rely on [[TheLancer Benhart of Jugo]]...

* [[OurGargoylesRock The Bell Gargoyles]]. After the trek through the Undead Burg has tempered you into expecting what ''Dark Souls'' has to offer, you find yourself in the Undead Parish, where the first of two Bells of Awakening await you. The final obstacle is a towering gargoyle swinging both its tail axe and its halberd to smash you into the roof you fight upon. And then, when you've whittled down its health to half, [[DualBoss another one joins the fray]], blasting fire at you as you now deal with two opponents. Bonus points for this being the first point you can summon Solaire in the game.
** This boss was so popular that it was brought back for ''VideoGame/DarkSouls2'' [[spoiler: and they brought their whole family this time!]]

** [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Black Dragon Kalameet]]. The BonusBoss to end all [[UpToEleven bonus bosses]], this feared dragon is more than eager to crush you with all his might when you descend down the valley for his proper boss fight. Between his [[EvilIsCool awesome design]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UXX-TL1bxc brillant soundtrack]], there's little getting in the way for you to enjoy this hidden battle.

** The Fume Knight, or Sir Raime the Rebel. Boasting hard-hitting swordplay and resistances that would put even ''Manus'' to shame, this FallenHero is a likely candidate for the hardest boss in the game. Rising from his slumber to protect the Bride of Ash, he gives you a very thorough swordfight, and just when you think you've weakened him, he ditches his smaller sword and goes full-on LightningBruiser with his {{BFS}}!

** Avaa, The King's Pet: After making your way through the level a bit, you encounter a fog door with a side path. Ignore the mysterious voice's warning and you're faced with... nothing. Nothing you can see, even as your health bar gets blasted down to zero. Take the side path first and make your way through half the level, and you'll find an item that reveals Avaa as an icy tiger almost as big as Sif.
** The Burnt Ivory King: After dropping down a massive pit into a small arena surrounded by an ocean of lava, you're attacked not by a boss, but by wave after wave of Charred Loyce Knights who pop out of 3 portals. Kill a certain number of them, and then a huge portal rises up from which the Burnt Ivory King emerges in epic slow-mo fashion. However, unless you took the time to find the three other Loyce Knights scattered throughout the DLC, the Charred Loyce Knights will just keep on coming. What the Loyce Knights will do is sacrifice themselves to freeze the portals so that the Charred Loyce Knights would stop coming out, making your fight with the Ivory King easier. This is somewhat of a TearJerker as well, because the remaining fourth Loyce Knight gets to fight the Ivory King, the person he swore loyalty to in the past, whom he understands has been corrupted and driven mad by the Old Chaos and so must be struck down in order for his soul to rest in peace.

** The Burnt Ivory King: After dropping down a massive pit into a small arena surrounded by an ocean of lava, you're attacked, not by a boss, but by wave after wave of charred knights who pop out of lava portals. Kill a certain number of them, and the Burnt Ivory King will emerge from the lava. However, unless you took the time to find the Eleum Loyce Knights scattered throughout the DLC, the Charred Loyce Knights will just keep on coming. And if you ''did'' find all the Loyce Knights, you are treated to perhaps the only battle in the game where you are not fighting alone, and have a squad to back you up. Include a few summoned players and you've got up to ''seven'' friendlies helping you out!