Dark Souls 3 boss: how to beat Aldrich, Devourer of Souls
Take revenge - if you can.
Dark Souls 3 boss: how to beat Aldrich, Devourer of Souls
If you've been wondering where your old Anor Londo friends have got to, the answer may well be "in Aldrich's belly". This is not a nice young man.
Apart from a very rare melee, which is almost certainly going to mess you up no matter what you do, Aldrich attacks with pure magic. As such, none of that heavy knight armour is any use at all; drop it all for whatever you have with the best magic resist and the lightest weight. Un-equip your bow and your spare weapons and catalysts.
Swap your shield out for something light but strong against magic, such as the East-West shield – or, if you’re the nimble type who’s good at dodging, don’t carry a shield at all. Bring anything you've got to help your stamina regenerate.
Aldrich is weak against lightning and fire, but strong against magic and dark. Enchant your weapon and cast defensive spells and miracles before you hit the fog gate; once we go in, we're going in hard.
Thos boss is a real pain. His basic attack when you’re at long range is a devastating giant soul spear. It’s not impossible to dodge, but if you get it wrong it eats your health – and it goes straight through cover. You must get closer and stop him using it.
Close up, Aldrich has a sweep and a thrust melee attack, both of which are negligible and fairly easily dodged; stay to one side of him for best results. Never mind that: there are two magical attacks to watch for.
The more common attack sends a barrage of projectiles tracking you. If there’s a pillar nearby, duck in behind it to avoid them; otherwise, run towards them and then roll forward so most of them miss you. The other really nasty attack is when he summons arrows to fall in a constant barrage that snakes across the room after you. Aldrich telegraphs this by drawing his bow, so leg it immediately and get back in the fray when it’s over.
Ideally, you’ll only take one hit from one attack as you close in on Aldrich, and then you’ll be at his side, wailing away – two handed weapon. After taking a beating he will teleport away by burrowing into the ground; like the giant worm in Smouldering Lake, this causes a bit of damage. Take the chance to drop an Estus, and prepare to close with him immediately when he pops back up in one of the corners of the room.
In the second phase, Aldrich starts using fire in his attacks, which does add to his damage – but honestly, you survived this long. Just paddle him down. When the fight is over you’ll receive Cinders of a Lord and the Soul of Aldrich.
After Aldrich is dead, you can take the automatic lifts on either side of the throne end of his hall to reach an empty throne and collect the Ring of the Sun Princess (it’s a Dark Souls faithful thing). You can also return to the entrance to the Rotted Greatwood boss arena and continue Sirris's sidequest.
However, if this is your third Lord of Cinder, you’ll see a short cutscene and be automatically transported to the cathedral at High Wall of Lothric, so you’ll have to come back.
If you need to rest and recoup after the battle – and want to spend Aldrich's souls – do not speak to Emma after the cutscene ends; use a Homeward Bone and zip on out of there.
When you’re ready to proceed, head back to the cathedral via the Vordt of the Boreal Valley bonfire and speak with Emma. Take the Basin of Vows, then approach the altar behind her fallen chair to begin the next boss fight immediately.