Like all other Souls games, the Demon’s Souls bosses are renowned for their difficulty. While there aren’t as many bosses in Demon’s Souls when compared to the Dark Souls games or Sekiro, the Demon’s Souls bosses are still incredibly challenging and fun to beat, and provide you with a huge sense of accomplishment once beaten. If you want to learn more about the Demon’s Souls bosses, what the best order is to take them on, and which are mandatory and optional, keep on reading our guide below.
Demon’s Souls Bosses
Tutorial
Beginning Of Game: Vanguard
The tutorial of Demon’s Souls teaches you the basics of the game and will see you explore a relatively short area before coming face-to-face with your first, Vanguard, a demon with grey skin and spikes, a pair of small wings, and a giant axe. Most players will immediately die when facing the Vanguard, as the game intends, but you can face the boss again later on in the Shrine Of Storms area.
Archstone Of The Small King: Boletarian Palace
Gates Of Boletaria (1-1): Phalanx
Phalanx is the first boss you’ll face in Demon’s Souls and was an enemy that appeared in Dark Souls. The boss is accessed after unlocking the giant entrance gate of Boletarian Palace by pulling two levers. The boss is a strange blob that is surrounded by dozens of Hoplites enemies possessing shields and blocking you from attacking Phalanx. To access and defeat the boss, you’ll need to get through several Hoplites, all of which are weak to fire, including the boss to access Phalanx and defeat the boss.
The Lord’s Path (1-2): Tower Knight
The Tower Knight is the second boss of the Boletarian Palace world and, as suggested by its name, is a large knight. The boss wields a lance and heavy shield, and above it on the battlement, are several bowmen that fire arrows at you. It’s generally a good idea to take out the bowmen and then concentrate on defeating the Tower Knight. The boss can easily be defeated by attacking his shins or using magic if possible.
Inner Ward (1-3): Penetrator
Penetrator is the third boss of the Boletarian Palace world and likely a boss you’ll face later in the game. The boss is another knight, but possesses the Penetrating Sword that can unleash dangerous attacks. Fighting Penetrator can be difficult, but the pillars within the boss arena can be used as cover. If you’ve found and saved Biorr, he can help in taking out Penetrator quickly.
The King’s Tower (1-4): Old King Allant
Old King Allant is the final boss of the Boletarian Palace world. Old King Allant, known as the False King because the boss is a demon made in King Allant’s image, serves as the penultimate or ultimate boss of the game depending on your actions, and is arguably one of the most difficult bosses to defeat. Old King Allant possesses the Demonbrandt and can perform a series of devastating attacks, as well as a Soulsucking attack that drains an entire soul level from you. Once you’ve defeated Old King Allant, you’ll still have one small area to explore.
Archstone Of The Burrow King: Stonefang Tunnel
Smithing Grounds (2-1): Armour Spider
Armour Spider is the first boss of the Stonefang Tunnel area. As hinted at by its name, the Armour Spider is a gigantic spider covered in armour. The boss is resistant to fire, can shoot fireballs and lava, and it can shoot web that slows you down and leaves you susceptible to attacks. Many players have issues with Armour Spider due to the tight boss arena and dangerous, persistent attacks. The fight can be particularly difficult if you lack fire defence.
The Tunnel City (2-2): Flamelurker
Flamelurker is a fire demon located directly past Armour Spider and deep into a pit past several centipede-like enemies. The demon is resistant to fire and magic, meaning the fight heavily depends on melee attacks, which can prove difficult for anyone who’s working with alternative builds. However, there are several pillars that can be used for brief cover.
Underground Temple (2-3): Dragon God
The Dragon God boss is the final boss of the Stonefang Tunnel area and can be accessed immediately after defeating Flamelurker. Dragon God is the creature that appears in the opening cutscene of Demon’s Souls and can actually be encountered after defeating the Vanguard boss in the tutorial, although it always kills you. The Dragon God boss is less of a fight and more a puzzle, as it requires you to stealthily move around the boss arena, sneaking between pillars and destroying rubble to access two ballistae, which are used to injure the boss before you provide a final blow to the horn.
Archstone Of The Tower Queen: Tower Of Latria
Prison Of Hope (3-1): Fool’s Idol
The Fool’s Idol is the first main boss of the Tower Of Latria world and, similarly to the Dragon God, is more of a puzzle. The Fool’s Idol is a witch-like boss that shoots spells, leaves symbols that stun you on the ground, and creates clones of herself. The boss can be defeated pretty easily, but cannot be killed until you’ve killed the Prisoner that continually revives her. Once you’ve killed him, you’ll need to defeat the Fool’s Idol to complete the boss and move onto the next level.
Upper Latria (3-2): Maneater
Maneater is the second boss of the Tower Of Latria world, found at the top of a spiral staircase. The Maneater boss fight requires you to take on two human-animal hybrid beasts, with the second appearing once you’ve chipped away enough of the first creature’s health. This boss fight is notable for its difficulty, mostly due to the small boss arena that you can easily fall from when trying to dodge Maneaters’ attacks.
The Ivory Tower (3-3): Old Monk
The Old Monk is the final boss of the Tower Of Latria world, and the fight is an unusual one. To access the fight, you’ll need to climb a series of stairs beside the Ivory Tower archstone. Once you reach the top, a cutscene will play in which the Old Monk summons either another player if playing online or an AI-generated enemy. The fight simply requires you to take out the phantom and once defeated, the Old Monk will automatically be killed.
Archstone Of The Shadowmen: Shrine Of Storms
Island’s Edge (4-1): Adjudicator
The Adjudicator is the first main boss of the Shrine Of Storms world. The Adjudicator is an obese demon with a long tongue with a bird perched atop his head. The only way to damage the Adjudicator is by attacking the bird, which is great for ranged players. For melee players, patience is required to attack the Adjudicator at precise moments.
The Ritual Path (4-2): Old Hero
The Old Hero boss can be found past several dangerous Storm Beasts, Skeletons, Reapers, and reviving Shadowlurkers. Like a majority of the other Demon’s Souls bosses, the Old Hero boss fight incorporates puzzle elements. Old Hero is a legendary hero that has been brought to life but is now blind, which means he struggles to find you. There are several ways to make the fight easier for you; using silencing spells, miracles, and rings or simply taking off your characters’ shoes to silence their movement.
Altar Of Storms (4-3): Storm King
Storm King is the final boss of the Shrine Of Storms world. Accessible immediately from the Old Hero boss archstone, the Storm King boss fight requires you to find and use a unique weapon found only within the arena. You’ll need to dodge deadly attacks to reach the weapon – thankfully you’ll only have to do this once – and will have to work out how to use it to defeat the Storm King and all Storm Beasts. The Storm Beasts all respawn whenever you return to the area after defeating the Storm King, and the boss arena is one of Demon’s Souls’ best farming spots.
Archstone Of The Chieftain: Valley Of Defilement
Depraved Chasm (5-1): Leechmonger
Leechmonger is the nauseating first boss of the dreaded Valley Of Defilement world. The fight begins once you’ve made your way through the Depraved Chasm and its rickety wooden platforms. The fight takes place in a basin filled with poisoned water. Leechmonger attacks with leeches, slamming them into you when close and shooting balls of leeches when you’re far or above him in the ramparts.
Swamp Of Sorrow (5-2): Dirty Colossus
Dirty Colossus is the second boss of the Valley of Defilement and is accessed by making your way through the Swamp Of Sorrow, which is filled with tough Depraved enemies and knee-high poisoned water. A demon comprised of filth, Dirty Colossus can quickly be defeated with magic, fire or melee attacks, as long as you’re able to avoid his attacks and flies, which continually chip away at your health and do a lot of damage.
Rotting Haven (5-3): Maiden Astraea
Maiden Astraea is the final boss of the Valley Of Defilement. Maiden Astraea helps the sickened inhabitants of the Valley and is guarded by Garl Vinland. Defeating Maiden Astraea requires you to either kill her via ranged attacks or by defeating her bodyguard first, easily done with magic or by baiting his attacks and striking whenever there are openings. Once Garl Vinland has been defeated (Drops 16,750 Souls, the Crest of Vinland, and Bramd), you’re free to take on Maiden Astraea, just be aware of her God’s Wrath miracle attack and the poisonous water you’ll need to wade through to get to her.
End Game
Game Ending: King Allant
King Allant is the Demon’s Souls final boss. Once you’ve been transported to the Nexus and have entered the Old One, you’ll be required to kill a deformed King Allant, which can be done quickly with a few quick spells or melee attacks. Once done, you’ll have the option to trigger the game’s good or bad ending, done by either exiting the Nexus or killing the Maiden in Black.
Are There Any Demon’s Souls Optional Bosses?
Like with most other Souls-like games, Demon’s Souls has several optional bosses. You can take these Demon’s Souls optional bosses on to earn additional rewards, but don’t expect to immediately be able to defeat them, particularly early on in the game. If you encounter them, it may be better to level your character up and return later on when you’re stronger. Some of the Demon’s Souls optional bosses and where you can find them include:
- Red Dragon, The Lord’s Path (1-2): Small Scaled Flame Demon Soul
- Primeval Demon, Inner Ward (1-3): Colourless Demon Soul
- Blue Dragon, The King’s Tower (1-4): Large Scaled Flame Demon Soul
- Primeval Demon, Smithing Grounds (2-1): Colourless Demon Soul
- Primeval Demon, Upper Latria (3-2): Colourless Demon Soul
- Vanguard, Island’s Edge (4-1): Grey Demon Soul
- Primeval Demon, The Ritual Path (4-2): Colourless Demon Soul
- Primeval Demon, Swamp Of Sorrow (5-2): Colourless Demon Soul
The Colourless Demon Soul can be used to purchase the Recovery miracle, to obtain 5,000 Souls or to upgrade several weapons and shields once you’ve given Blacksmith Ed Flamelurker’s Red Hot Demon Soul. The Small Scaled Flame Demon Soul, meanwhile, can be consumed for 10,000 Souls and the Large Scaled Flame Demon Soul can be consumed for 30,000 Souls.
What Is The Best Suggested Demon’s Souls Bosses Order?
The Demon’s Souls bosses order will greatly depend on your skills and build, and which attributes you’ve levelled. Below, you’ll find a list of our suggested Demon’s Souls bosses order.
- Gates Of Boletaria (1-1): Phalanx
- The Lord’s Path (1-2): Tower Knight
- Smithing Grounds (2-1): Armour Spider
- Prison Of Hope (3-1): Fool’s Idol
- Island’s Edge (4-1): Adjudicator, Vanguard
- The Ritual Path (4-2): Old Hero
- Upper Latria (3-2): Maneater
- The Tunnel City (2-2): Flamelurker
- Underground Temple (2-3): Dragon God
- Altar Of Storms (4-3): Storm King
- Depraved Chasm (5-1): Leechmonger
- Swamp Of Sorrow (5-2): Dirty Colossus
- The Ivory Tower (3-3): Old Monk
- Inner Ward (1-3): Penetrator
- Rotting Haven (5-3): Maiden Astraea, Garl Vinland
- The King’s Tower (1-4): Old King Allant
- End Game
We took on the Demon’s Souls bosses in the above order, which is what we found easiest. There is no definitive order of bosses, but we suggest trying to follow the guide we’ve listed above and discovering which bosses you can take on.
If you enjoyed the challenges of Demon’s Souls and want to check out other FromSoftware titles, take a look at our boss order guides for Dark Souls 3, Bloodborne, and Limgrave in Elden Ring.
Can I skip bosses in Demon’s Souls?
You can only skip the Demon’s Souls optional bosses. You cannot skip the game’s main bosses, no matter how hard they are or how much you’re struggling. If you are struggling with a Demon’s Souls boss, it may be a good idea to try and take on a different boss, explore a new area or farm an existing area to level your character up.
What do I do with the Demon’s Souls bosses souls?
If you’re stuck on what to do with the Demon’s Souls bosses souls, we suggest you research what each boss soul offers and work out whether you want the purchasable spells or miracles, the improved weapons or just the souls.
What is the Demon’s Souls final boss?
The Demon’s Souls final boss is the deformed version of King Allant, located within the Old One underneath the Nexus. By the end of the game, the King Allant Demon’s Souls final boss fight shouldn’t prove to be a challenge and can be defeated quickly.
What is the hardest Demon’s Souls boss?
The hardest Demon’s Souls boss will depend on your character build and your skills as a player. Some players will have trouble with some Demon’s Souls bosses while other players will have trouble with others. Whichever boss you’re facing, take your time, learn their movesets, and figure out their weaknesses.