Elden Ringis packed full of fantastical creatures, horrible monsters, and fierce warriors of great renown. Throughout the Lands Between, you’ll do battle with nearly every person or creature you come across, but some areeasier to take down than others.
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Sure, plenty of enemies you come across in Elden Ring aretough the first few timesyou fight them, but which ones continue togive you troubleeven after facing them adozen times? This list will help break down themost difficult enemiesyou’ll encounter in Elden Ring. For the purposes of this list, only enemies that respawn are included (sorry,Lion Guardians).
Updated on June 18, 2025, by Jeff Brooks: Reformatted to be in line with new formatting guidelines, along with refreshing all the in-text and Related/Next links to be more relevant to the topic.
10Abductor Virgin
Creepy as they are dangerous, theAbductor Virginshave a bad habit of blending in with the environment. Theirswinging bladed armscan catch even the wariest Tarnished, but many of their attacks have along wind-up, giving youtime to back awayand let the Abductor Virgin’s attack play out.
Theirtrickiest moveis when their ‘stomach’ opens and a pair of gangly arms reach out for agrab attack. This attack is often so sudden that it can be difficult to avoid. If you haven’t been careful with your health during the fight, this signature grab attack might spell the end for you.
TheAbductor Virgin below Raya Lucaria Academywill actually transport you to an entirely new location.
9Giant Crayfish
Somewhat unassuming (and pretty much minding their own business), the Giant Crayfish can turn a lazy stroll across Liurnia of the Lakes into adesperate ride to surviveas these massive creatures erupt from the mud all around you. These monsters don’t give too enthusiastic of a chase, but they happen to beexpert snipers, able to blast you off Torrent at ashocking distance.
Once you recognize their partially submerged forms, they’reeasy enough to avoid, but later in the game, you’ll encounter them in much moreconfined spaces, and you’ll realize you never really figured out how to effectively defeat them.
8Ancestral Follower (Archer)
TheAncestral Followersfounddeep beneath the ground in the Siofra Rivercan be quite deadly. Many remaininvisibleorhide in bushesuntil you enter within theirrange(which ispretty expansive). Then, they draw back their bows and proceed toskewer you from afar, doing tremendous damage with laser-sharp accuracy.
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These enemies can be adeadly nuisanceeven at a high level, but if you happen to go exploring the Siofra Riverearly in the game, these Ancestral Followers will quickly become thebane of your existence.
7Lesser Wormface
These things are just ascreepyas they aredangerous. You’ll often hear them before seeing them, but there’s no mistaking their hunched-over form, wriggling tentacled mouth, and haunting sobbing that plays when you draw close. Most of their physical attacks aren’t too difficult to deal with, but it’s their attacks that inflict Death Blight that makes them truly afearsome opponent.
Even dealing with a single Lesser Wormface runs the risk of beinginstantly killedby their Death Blight, and these enemies are often found ingroups of two or three, greatly increasing the risk of taking them on. Oh, and they have perhaps the mosthorrifying grab attackwherein they swallow you whole.
6Lesser Runebear
The Lesser Runebear is amassive beastwith a robust move set thatseverely punishesany players with a habit ofrolling awayfrom attacks. They will often charge past your character, giving you a moment to breathe and heal, but if they catch you in aflurry of claws, it can quickly spell the end of your adventure.
Rolling into a Lesser Runebear’s attacks isparticularly effective, even more so than other enemies in Elden Ring. Due to theirmassive health pool, however, you must remain vigilant. Even a single mistake can result in the familiar ‘You Died’ splash screen.
5Lesser Burial Watchdog
Players can encounter theboss version of this constructfairly early in the game in various catacombs, and these lesser versions arejust as dangerouswhen you face them in late game areas likeMountaintops of the GiantsandConsecrated Snowfields. Theirerratic, unnatural movementsmake them a particularly tricky enemy to fight since so many of their attacks require veryspecific dodge timing.
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Despite their mechanical movements, they can bedeceptively quickandaggressive, pairing a slow ominous advance with sudden andbrutal slash attacks. Combine those with theirelemental breath attacks, and you have a distinctly challenging opponent.
4Giant Monstrous Crow
These horrific Giant Crows areexceedingly deadly. Their moves feel especiallydifficult to predictand counter, and theirunique grabattack involves them plucking up your character, flying high into the air, andslamming your character back to the ground.
Of particular note are thegrotesque variantsfound aroundMohgwyn Palacein the late game. Even though one of these Giant Monstrous Crows can easily befarmed for runes, actually fighting it up close is quite a different battle.
3Colossal Fingercreeper
You’ve tangled with the smaller and largeFingercreepersfound inCaria Manorand beyond. They’re creepy, sure, but they can usually be defeated fairly easily unless you’re dealing with a swarm. The Colossal Fingercreeper is a whole other challenge. You’ll only come across a couple of these in the game, bothhanging around(literally) inMountaintops of the Giants.
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These massive monstrositieshit hardandmoveasunnaturallyas their smaller brethren. They don’t have many attacks, but they alternate betweenlong wind-up moves—which can throw off any kind of dodging rhythm—and aquick-as-lightning chargewherein they barrel over your character. With a large health pool, you’d better come prepared with plenty of Crimson Flasks.
2Fire Prelate
Thisdeadly enemycan easily be identified by their enormous size, bowl-like helmet, and theirdistinctive fire hammer. The Fire Prelate is atank. It cantakeamassive amount of damage, and itdishes itout in equal measure. With a healthy mix of heavy hammer attacks andelemental fire attacks, this foe is athreat at any range.
They are often accompanied by other enemies, likeFlame GuardiansandFire Monks, which can make a fight next to impossible—but even on their own, the Fire Prelate is aserious threatthat takesfocus, time, and patienceto overcome.
If you’re interested in wielding this enemy’s enormous fiery hammer,seek out Fort Laieddand defeat the Fire Prelate within.
The Revenant is by far themost dangerous enemy in Elden Ring. At no point in the game should you feel comfortable when encountering thisabomination. The Revenant enemy isrelentless. It hits fast and hard, quickly repositioning before diving back in for aseries of lethal blows. With so many limbs and a deeplyerratic move set, the Revenant can be anightmareto fight, andsurvival is never guaranteedeven for the most seasoned warrior.
Revenants do have amajor weakness, however:healing incantationswith an area of effect do massive amounts of damage against Revenants. But, even with this critical weakness, Revenants still easily earn the number 1 spot on this list.
