Sister Friede is one of the toughest bosses in the Ashes of Ariandel DLC in Dark Souls 3. The boss has three phases, each incrementally more challenging than the previous one. How to defeat the boss? What is she weak to? What strategies can you use to beat it? All will be answered in this ultimate guide to beating Sister Friede in Dark Souls 3.
In phase one, Sister Friede fights you alone. In the second, Father Ariandel joins the fight while she has a similar moveset as phase one. The third phase is the most challenging one where she goes ballistic and turns into Blackflame Friede. The fight becomes much more manageable if you summon Slave Knight Gael.
Let’s take a detailed look at some of the best combat strategies and tips for defeating Sister Friede in Dark Souls 3.
Is Sister Friede Optional?
Sister Friede is not an optional boss. She needs to be terminated to complete the Ashes of Ariandel DLC.
Strategies for Defeating Sister Friede
Here are some strategies for defeating Sister Friede you can use depending on the build you opted for in Dark Souls 3:
Melee Strategy
Phase one is relatively easy compared to the other two phases. You want to provoke her into attacking so that you can block or dodge and counter with a couple of attacks before repeating this process.
You never want to be too far away because when she jumps backward and becomes invisible, you will need to reveal her position by getting close to her. When you see her disappear, run up to her and either attack her or she will leap directly over you and land somewhere behind you.
If you see her vanish, quickly spin around and watch for her to land and sprint over to her and attack. If you lose track of her, the best advice is to roll a lot until she tries to attack you.
Phase two is a bit more challenging and requires a lot of patience. You can stay alive forever in this phase, but the hard part is dealing damage. Sister Friede will do the same attack over and over spamming her Frost Trail at you.
Father Ariandel will do the same three attacks in a repeating cycle which are predictable and easy to dodge. The trick to this phase is to attack one or the other when they are separated to minimize the risk of getting hit.
Don’t be afraid to trade damage during this phase as you will more than likely need to if you want to speed this phase up.
One thing to note about this phase is that Friede will vanish occasionally when they get lower on health, and she will attempt to heal both of them. Look for the glowing orb and hit it to prevent the healing. This is also a great opportunity to deal tons of damage, especially light (R1) attacks.
Phase three is the toughest as Friede becomes extremely aggressive and while there are opportunities to attack your stamina bar wouldn’t have restored after all the dodging. When you can, you’ll have to pick and choose when to attack wisely, and you will most likely have to trade damage again in this phase so don’t be afraid to do so.
One thing to know, unlike the other phases keeping track of her when she goes invisible, is not so important here as her attacks are easily dodgeable and she does not heal. Make sure to roll out after her grab if you get caught in it.
Be extremely careful anytime you see her scythe glow blue as she may charge you and one-shot you. If she catches you with this unblockable attack since she has so many different attacks the best suggestion would be to just start rolling until you are safe and get positioned for her next attack.
Magic Strategy
The best build to go for while playing as a sorcerer is:
- Intelligence level as high as possible
- Crown of Dusk
- Northern Armor Set
- Court Sorcerer’s Staff (+10 preferably)
- Great Heavy Soul Arrow
- Magic Clutch Ring
- Bellowing Dragoncrest Ring
- Young Dragoncrest Ring
- Sage Ring +1/+2
- Scholar’s Candlestick on the other hand
- Straight Sword for when she turns invisible.
- 4 to 5 Blue Estus Flasks
The GHSA is great for this fight as it can be fired faster, does considerable damage, and even staggers the boss.
In the first phase, keep your distance and only shoot your spells when you have enough stamina as you will need it to constantly roll away from her attacks to maintain the distance. Do not let yourself get cornered or else you will face dire consequences.
When she becomes invisible, you can do two things; start running through the entire span of the room and her attacks won’t catch you or you could locate her quickly and run up to her and attack her using the straight sword. Keep this up and the second phase will soon follow.
You can largely ignore Sister Friede in the second phase and turn your attention to the lurking Father Ariandel. He is a much easier target for your spells to land upon. Be careful of the Frost Trials Friede fires at you and maintain your distance from her at all times.
Fire everything you have at the Father every chance you get. When he starts doing his bowl charge attack, take this opportunity to roll behind him and pepper his back with GHSA. This phase will be over more swiftly if you keep this up.
As soon as Friede begins to resurrect for the final phase, move away a bit and lock on to her to cast 2 to 3 GHSA for free damage. In this phase, it will be harder for you to cast as she is much more aggressive and has a plethora of ranged attacks of her own to keep you on your toes.
You need to perfect your dodges against her ranged attacks. Some of these attacks can be comfortably avoided if you just strafe to the sides. In her invisible form, avoid her icy trails and wait for her to reappear.
Although you can shoot your spells at her during combos, it is best advised to fire them once she has finished her combo and is in recovery. Many of her long combos will catch you off guard and you should avoid that by doing so. Just maintain some distance and look for these openings to counteract.
Pyromancy Strategy
Pyromancers should choose the following equipment:
- Fire damage boosting Rings
- Ring of Favor
- Brass Armor Set
- Pyromancy Flame +10
- Chaos Bed Vestiges
- Mail Breaker +10 with Chaos infusion (this is mainly for when you get the opportunity to backstab her and/or attack her while she goes invisible)
- 6 to 7 Ashen Extus Flasks
Chaos Bed Vestiges are the primary source of damage in this build. They move fast and deal a lot of damage to the Friede and even more to Father Ariandel.
This strategy is similar to the Magic Strategy mentioned above. Maintain distance in the first phase and cast the CBV spell when she has done attacking and preparing for the next attack. The CBV will take her out very quickly.
Father Ariandel is your primary target in phase two. Ignore Friede and watch out for her AOE attacks. Also, attack her when she tries to heal. She can be backstabbed while she is healing.
The Father will give you ample chances to fire your spell at him. Spam him to your heart’s content. His immobile Fire Breath attack is the best opening for this. Likewise, when he is charging at you, dodge his attack and fire away.
Phase three is identical to the Magic strategy so refer to that section, please.
What is Sister Friede Weak To?
Sister Friede and Father Ariandel are weak to the following damage types:
- Sister Friede
- Strike Damage
- Father Ariandel
- Frostbite
- Bleed
- Fire Damage
- All Status Effects
What is Sister Friede Resistant / Immune to?
Sister Friede is resistant and immune to the following damage types:
Resistant to:
- Magic
- All Status Effects
Immune to:
- Frostbite
Can You Parry Sister Friede?
Sister Friede is parryable in all three of her phases. She can also be backstabbed with relative ease as some of her attacks will leave her back open for you to perform the critical strike.
Father Ariandel can’t be parried though. He can be staggered with enough hits and riposted for notable damage.
Can You Cheese Sister Friede?
This boss has no cheese strategy. There is nothing you can exploit against this boss. The max you could do is use Poison Mist or Storyteller’s Staff’s weapon art to poison Father Arriandel in the second phase to make it easier.
You can also Summon Slave Knight Gael to capture the attention of the boss. Use pyromancies and/or sorceries to deal damage while Gael has the aggro.
Other than that there is no cheese-worthy stuff during this fight. You will have to man up and take her on by yourself.
Sister Friede and Father Ariandel are one of the most daunting fights in Dark Souls 3. You can not cheese this fight in any way so prepare for the challenge ahead. Luckily, Slave Knight Gael is there to help you out.