Published , by TJ Denzer
Published , by TJ Denzer
The Blackgaol Knight… If you’ve gotten even an hour into Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree expansion, you probably know of him. He’s the nightmare fuel of all starting warriors in the DLC, cutting players down or filling them full of crossbow bolts before they can even get close enough to start fighting him. He’s a nasty jerk, but as strong as he is, he can be beaten. If you want to know how, you’re going to want to read through this guide to prepare so you can get the Solitude armor set and Greatsword of Solitude
To even try to beat the Blackgaol Knight, you’re going to have to find him. That’s the easy part. He’s in the starting area, the Gravesite Plain, in an underground tomb known as the Western Nameless Mausoleum. Much as is implied by its name, you should travel along the west side of the plain, left from where you start, and go north. You will see Grave Birds on the way there, and eventually giant glowing worm creatures leading up to a stone structure with stairs leading downwards. Don’t worry about the lack of Grace here. The Statue of Marika outside the Mausoleum will let you respawn here as much as you need to. There’s a boss gate at the bottom of the steps and the Blackgaol Knight is inside.
Take note: you should probably level up your Scadutree Blessing to at least 1 or 2, because otherwise the Blackgaol Knight will be able to kill most players in just one to two hits regardless of level. Read up on our guide to survival guide for more Scadutree info. The other thing is don’t expect your summons to help. For whatever reason, you cannot summon Spirit Ashes against the Blackgaol Knight.
The Blackgaol Knight has a handful of attacks that it will likely try to destroy you with almost as soon as the battle starts. He will switch back and forth between dual-wielding a greatsword, and a crossbow, and two-handing the greatsword.
The most important thing you’re going to watch for is when he stops to cock his crossbow. That means he’s about to fire a volley of about 10 rapid-fire crossbow bolts at you. We would suggest not trying to block unless you have a strong shield and great Poise. They will likely break your guard and still damage you if not kill you. Also, he sometimes puts a fire effect on the bolts that will damage you even if you block. Instead, run sideways, circling around the Knight and getting closer as you do. This will be one of two opportunities for a reasonable counterattack.
Outside of this attack, the Blackgaol Knight has a collection of regular melee attacks, including an overhead slash and jumping slash that can be dodged by rolling to either side of the swing. He also has a three-piece combo that will lead into an overhead slash. When he double-hands the greatsword, be on the lookout for him to raise it above his head and gather energy. He will swing his weapon forward and fire a projectile of spirit energy at you. This can be side dodged, but he’ll also sometimes immediately follow up with a horizontal swing of the sword. Dodge away to get some distance. You may also try one attack after this sweeping slash following the Spirit Slash.
Again, the two windows you want to watch for are after he fires his crossbow, and after the follow-up sweep slash to his Spirit Slash. Lastly, if he staggers you, he will likely try for a stab to finish you off. Get away as fast as you can. Otherwise, it’s best to not block too many of his incoming attacks if you can and minimize your chance of being staggered.
Offense against the Blackgaol Knight is very difficult except in short windows. The biggest windows to do anything to him are when he fires his crossbow bolt volley and when he does the follow-up sweep on his Spirit Slash.
As a melee user, you should punish these attacks with one swing and maybe two if you’re fast and bold. Then get away immediately before he retaliates. To punish the crossbow barrage, simply get closer to him as you're running sideways to dodge the arrows and hit him as soon as it ends. On the sweep, dodge backwards to get away from the attack and immediately come in with a strong attack. Again, back away or block after to avoid retaliation.
Be careful about trying to stagger him. He can be staggered, but it takes a lot of sustained damage as his armor is one of the sturdiest sets in the game. It can be done though. If you have a heavy weapon and do heavy attacks, you can stagger him here and there. Blood Loss users will be especially happy to know that he’s susceptible to it. If you have blood loss weapons and the stats, skills, and gear to proc it regularly, you’ll be able to build blood loss on him by hitting one or two attacks against his openings and chipping away at him till it procs.
Mages will likely have an easier time here, minus the fact that he might be able to erase you in one swing. Simply wait for his crossbow volley or sweeping slash, fire off the best, fastest spell you can, and then get back to evading his attacks. The important thing is to not be greedy. He has a lot of armor and big damage behind his offense, but by playing it safe, you can whittle him down. Just be aware, as a humanoid fighter, he also has a Flask of Crimson Tears charge and will use it once if given the chance. He may use it a second time, but will not heal, so you can also hit him relatively safely on both heal attempts.
Be patient, wait for his biggest, dumbest attacks, make him pay little by little, and the Blackgaol Knigth will go down. If you’re still having trouble, don’t be afraid to come back with more Scadutree Blessings. For your efforts, you will earn his Greatsword of Solitude, and the Armor of Solitude set, which is one of the strongest armors in Elden Ring.
Now that you know how to beat the Blackgaol Knight, be sure to head to our Elden Ring topic for many more guides to help you along on your journeys in Shadow of the Erdtree.