Pinwheel is arguably the easiest boss in all of Dark Souls Remastered. Although his lore is quite a morbidly sob story, killing him feels like bullying. At any rate, we need to speedrun through this nuisance and this guide will help you in achieving just that.
We will go over all of his attacks, his special trick, and the best and quickest way to dispose of Pinwheel.
Fighting Pinwheel in Dark Souls Remastered
You begin the boss fight by dropping down to the arena. This will cause some fall damage which you can swiftly recover with an Estus Flask.
Pinwheel seems like a hollow piece of clothing that came to life with the damned souls of a father, a mother, and a son. Each is depicted by the three masks visible on his face. He also has six literal pins for arms with lanterns at the end which he uses to lob a bunch of fire-based attacks at you.
All in all, the boss is fragile AF. Pinwheel has one of the lowest HP compared to all the bosses in DS Remastered.
He tries to make up for his frailty by constantly jumping around in the arena and spawning other Pinwheels to divert your attention.
He can spawn 2-8 clones at any given time and these things pose some threat. They have all of Pinwheel’s attacks however, they can be killed with just a single hit. They are mostly there to distract you from the real boss but shouldn’t be taken lightly since their surprise attacks can catch you off guard.
Here are some things to consider when facing Iron Golem in Dark Souls Remastered:
- Pinwheel is weak to Lightning damage. Weapons coated with Gold Pine Resin will deal more damage to the boss.
- You can call Paladin Leeroy to make this fight even easier.
- Equip fire-resistant armor and shield to counter Pinwheel’s many fire-based attacks.
- The Flash Sweat pyromancy will also reduce any damage from his fire attacks.
Boss Strategy
Beeline to the boss as soon as the battle commences and spam your attacks. Having an upgraded weapon and stats, the boss can be killed before he does anything meaningful.
If this speedrun tactic doesn’t work, you need to know these things about his clone spawning behavior:
- The boss immediately spawns two clones when the fight begins so prioritize them before engaging the boss.
- He will continually spawn groups of 2-8 clones throughout the fight. You can either take them out to iron out the fight or you can lock on to the real boss and kill him and the clones will dissipate automatically.
- At 30% HP, all remaining clones will vanish and he will always spawn eight clones afterward. At this point, it is best to just attack the real boss and leave the clones.
If you don’t want to dodge his attacks, shielding yourself with a good fire-resistant shield will require even less reaction from your side. Tank his hit with the shield and attack. Rinse and repeat and the boss faces defeat!
Of course, you can summon Paladin Leeroy and stand in the corner of the arena and watch as he carries out your dirty job with flying colors. He can end the fight in just 3 hits to the original Pinwheel!
There is nothing to this fight worth worrying about. You can easily kill the boss in mere seconds with the right speed, pressure, and damage. You only have to be a tad bit careful when he spawns a larger group of clones.
Moveset
Pinwheel in Dark Souls Remastered uses all these attacks and how you must react to each:
| Attack | Description | Reaction |
|---|---|---|
| Quick Fire Projectile | His arms will grow and send out a fast-moving fireball after some delay | Can be dodged to the side with right timing. |
| Big Fireball | Sends a huge yet slow fireball hurtling towards you. Takes longer to charge. He can use this attack while jumping as well. | Strafe to a side and you are golden. |
| Combustion | Just like the pyromancy with the same name, the boss comes closer, does his glowing charge up, and fires a close range melee fire burst | Back off out of range when he gets closer. |
| Fire Spew | Same as Combustion with a longer charge up, however this time he casts a medium-range flamethrower that goes on for a few seconds. | Immediately dodge to the side and stay away from his front side. Use the animation lock to put some damage in. |
| Clone Spawning | Raises in the air and emits a purple glow while spinning. Soon 2-8 clones will spawn in the arena. These clones have the same attack as the main boss. | The clones can be killed with just a single hit so take them out ASAP. Or you can stay focused on the real Pinwheel and kill him. The clones will evaporate when he is dead. |
| Disappearing Act | When you get near Pinwheel, he might leap up and vanish for some time. You will have to face the clones during this point until he reappears. | Just keep an eye out for his reappearance and move in to attack. |
Rewards for Defeating Pinwheel
Taking out Pinwheel will net these rewards in Dark Souls Remastered:
- 15,000 Souls
- Rite of Kindling
- 1x Humanity
Only one of the following masks will drop upon the boss’s death. You can buy the rest from Patches in Firelink Shrine:
- Mask of the Father
- Mask of the Mother
- Mask of the Child
Pinwheel is such a weak boss that he doesn’t even deserve a place in the pantheon of Dark Souls bosses. He might be a worthwhile opponent but his placement in the mid-stage of the game, where you are adequately leveled up with good gear, just completely stacks the odds against him. Feels nice to be on the other side of the difficulty coin in a FromSoft’s game.