Godrick the Grafted is the Lord of Stormveil Castle, a demi-god relative of Queen Marika, and probably the first Great Rune bearer you will come across in Elden Ring. Godrick the Grafted is a really tough boss, especially for players new to FromSoftware games, and is thought by some to remind players that you don't have to fight every boss in Elden Ring immediately.
Godrick the Grafted has two phases, though his second phase is more of an improvement on his first rather than an entirely different moveset. When it comes to strategies for beating Godrick in Elden Ring, melee and ranged players have plenty of options available to them. Despite his grotesque, horrifying appearance, Godrick is not too scary an opponent if you know what you're doing.
Updated January 2nd, 2024 by Russ Boswell: Players that find themselves up against Godrick the Grafted in Elden Ring will likely find themselves struggling a bit to get a grip on the boss' fast and hard-hitting attacks. Although players can skip the fight entirely, defeating Godrick the Grafted in Elden Ring can open up a powerful Great Rune, as well as some strong weapons. To better help players with how to beat Godrick the Grafted in Elden Ring, the following guide has been updated with a video.
Where To Find Godrick The Grafted
Godrick the Grafted is the final boss of the Stormveil Castle Legacy Dungeon. The Castle is found in the northwest corner of Limgrave in the Stormhill sub-area, and can be seen towering over Limgrave from almost every vantage point. After defeating Margit the Fell you will arrive at the gate of Stormveil Castle where a gatekeeper tells you about a hidden path.
If you choose not to take the secret path you can get to Godrick much sooner, though you will have to deal with (or dodge past) a veritable army of soldiers and countless ballistae. Godrick's boss room is found at the northernmost point of the Castle, which players can simply run to if they take the main gate. If you choose the side road, progress until you find a room full of Warrior Pots and a ruined ledge leading downwards. Outside this room you should see the Fog Wall to the left and a Site of Lost Grace in front.
Godrick's Moveset, Weaknesses, And Phases
Godrick the Grafted is a tough boss, but one whose moveset is more predictable than Margit the Fell, who is infamous amongst the Elden Ring community for seemingly random attack patterns. Having said that, though, Godrick has a few tricks up his sleeve that can take a player out if they aren't precise with their dodges and movement.
He has two phases - a first phase where he wields his gigantic axe, and a second where he cuts off his own arm and grafts a Dragon's head to himself. His first phase is over pretty quick, at about 2/3 of his health bar remaining, and his increased speed and strength in phase two makes it a much tougher battle.
Godrick's Moveset - Phase One
- Short-Range Wind AoE: Godrick summons a huge tunnel of wind around himself after swinging his axe in a circle. High damage.
- Long-Range Gusts of Wind: Godrick shoots gusts of wind towards the player, two at a time, typically after his Wind AoE attack. Low damage, but can be surprising.
- Cleaving Lunge Attack: Godrick takes a second to charge an attack and launches towards the player, sometimes follows up with a second attack. Very high damage.
- Jumping Axe Attack: Godrick jumps into the air, raises his axe, and crashes to the ground. Very high damage, can one-shot players with low Vigor.
- Smashing Axe Attack Combo: Godrick smashes his axe into the ground beneath his feet repeatedly. Medium damage, and easy to avoid.
- Regular Axe Swings: Godrick simply swings his axe at the player, but like Margit the hits take a moment longer than expected to land. Medium damage.
Godrick's Moveset - Phase Two Additions
- Walking Fire Breath AoE: Godrick holds his Dragon-grafted arm in front and shoots fire across the battlefield, walking forward to cover more area. Huge AoE and high damage.
- Short/Long Range Fire Wind Attacks: Godrick's wind AoE and gusts of wind are imbued with flame, increasing damage of both short-range and long-range wind attacks.
- Smashing Axe Attack Combo Plus: Godrick smashes his axe into the ground like before, but will finish the three-hit combo with a massive AoE smash. Very high damage.
Godrick's Weaknesses
Godrick the Grafted is pretty resistant to most types of attacks, but the damage he takes doesn't change between phase one and phase two. He is particularly weak to Bleed damage, which is typically best used on fast weapons to build up the hidden Bleed meter much faster. He is also weak to Poison damage, and can be poisoned for consistent damage in this already-lengthy fight.
Godrick appears to be resistant to Fire damage in phase two, so if you are primarily using Incantations Fire Sling and Catch Flame won't be as useful (though the difference is only slight).
Strategies For Beating Godrick
Beating Godrick can seem like a massive challenge at first - he's the first major story boss (aside from Margit) that most players will come across, so it's intended to be more challenging than other bosses. As with most bosses in Elden Ring, you can summon other players with a Furlcalling Finger Remedy if you're having a hard time downing him.
Spirit Summons go a long way in solo play, too. The best Spirit Ash to use on Godrick this early in Elden Ring is the Spirit Jellyfish Ashes. You can upgrade this Spirit Summon a few times with Roderika if you complete her questline before taking on Godrick, and its high HP pool and Poison-based abilities make it a very useful ally indeed. Plus, it costs very little FP.
Spellcasting/Ranged
Ranged players using primarily Sorceries, or Incantations will find Godrick to be an easier boss than melee players as his long-range moves are telegraphed very well and are easy to avoid from a safe distance. Of the three ranged strategies, Sorceries make the fight the easiest. Bow players will have the hardest time here, especially early in the game when few craftable Arrows are unlocked.
In phase one, try to maintain distance and get off as many attacks from range as possible before he comes in melee range. His strong attacks are slow, and some even give you enough time to cast a spell or fire off an arrow in between combos. In phase two, stay behind Godrick during his Fire Breath attack for a good few seconds of attacks while he walks forward.
Melee Strategies
The best melee strategies for fighting Godrick are to break his posture in phase one as fast as possible or deal Bleed damage. Use a Jumping Attack when you have the opportunity for a strike, and keep your Stamina as full as possible to block his fast attacks and respond with a Guard Counter. In general, it's best to dodge the slow strong attacks and block fast ones.
In phase one watch for Godrick to raise his axe, which signals the start of his short-range Wind AoE attack, and move backwards. In general staying behind Godrick is the best way to avoid his melee attacks, but he will sometimes roll away and make distance for a lunge or a Gust of Wind attack. In phase two, stay in front of Godrick as he gets ready to breathe fire everywhere, then dodge behind him at the last second. He will continue to walk forward for a few seconds, giving you valuable seconds for Jumping Attacks or Strong Attacks.
Elden Ring is available now for PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X|S.