Knight Artorias is one of the most challenging bosses in the Artorias of the Abyss DLC of Dark Souls Remastered. You finally get to face him after countless mentions in the base game and even fighting his trust pet, Great Grey Wolf Sif. This corrupted knight has insane speed and ferocity that is hard for any beginner to keep up with.
No point in dragging the introduction. We will dive straight into his attacks, the boss strategy, and a nasty cheese that will entirely skip this boss fight and do him dirty.
Fighting Knight Artorias in Dark Souls Remastered
Entering the arena will trigger a cutscene where Artorias stabs an enemy and turns his attention towards you. He’ll let out a scream while the abyss engulfs him. He’ll then throw the enemy at you, and the fight begins.
This once noble knight has lost his mind by the abyss corruption. He has lost his humanity, which can be seen in his constant howling, twitching, and bestial movement. He also possesses a greatsword that he wields with unmatched savagery.
Artorias has incredible speed and likes to move around the arena to keep you on your toes at all times. His attacks hit like a truck; you never know where they are coming from if you can’t spot the small telegraphs.
Although his attacks are relatively standard, his speed, constant repositioning, and unpredictable nature will cut your life short multiple times before you start figuring out his patterns.
As his HP dwindles away, he’ll channel the abyss to go berserk. In this mode, his attacks and damage go through the roof.
If you haven’t already, the game demands you to get good by now. This boss is the culmination of all the punishment you have faced up till now, and the only way through is standing toe to toe with him.
Here are some things to consider when facing Knight Artorias in Dark Souls Remastered:
- He doesn’t have any proper weaknesses. He is very slightly weak to Strike and Lightning damage.
- He is immune to Poison, Toxic, and Bleed.
- You can cancel his Abyss buff and not have to deal with the boosted aggression with the right timing. More on this later.
- Only the best 100% physical damage-resistant shield will be any use against this boss.
Boss Strategy
The fight against Knight Artorias in Dark Souls Remastered is all about reacting to his moves. Anytime you overextend your offense, get greedy, and rush him, it will send you to an early grave. You must learn his moves, counterattack once or twice in the short windows, reset, and wait for his next move.
The primary technique here is to limit your offense to only one or two attacks (depending on your weapon attack speed) and wait for his next move. There are only a few of his attacks that give you the opportunity to counterattack. MEMORIZE THEM!
When he unleashes his Spinning Slam attack, roll to the right as the camera shifts upward while focused on him. He can perform this move up to three times, so keep rolling right. Once he stops, deal one or two hits and then pause. However, if he uses the Crouching Lunge, refrain from attacking, as he recovers quickly. Use this moment to heal or create some space.
Avoid striking when he executes his Standard Sword Slashes or Overhead Slam, as he typically follows up with a 720-Degree Swipe. After these moves, retreat and wait for his next action.
If you time it correctly during the Charging Swipe, roll backward as he rushes forward, positioning yourself to land one or two hits. For the Dashing Thrust, dodge to the opposite side of his direction while he dashes. This attack has a lengthy recovery, allowing you a good opportunity to strike up to three times.
If you find yourself behind him when he performs his Rear Ooze Attack, roll into the attack toward the boss, land a single hit, and then stop.
Although it may seem risky, the charging animation of the Wrath of the Abyss offers a prime opportunity for free hits. Bring a weapon with high poise damage and strike continuously while he’s charging this buff.
This will not only prevent him from activating the buff but also stagger him momentarily, giving you a chance to land extra hits. You can also stagger him with ranged attacks (details below), but these will inflict less damage and only negate the buff.
For all his other attacks, simply respond appropriately.
If you want, you can wear the Havel Set and equip yourself with a fully upgraded Black Knight Halberd. Tank the boss’s attacks and continue to hit him. Heal when he retreats and repeat the process. With the boosted Poise, none of his attacks will stagger you while you hammer him down to a pulp.
Knight Artorias’s Moveset
Knight Artorias has the following moveset and how you are supposed to react to each of his attacks in Dark Souls Remastered:
| Attack | Description | Reaction |
| Regular Sword Slash | When you are close to him, he’ll use standard sword attacks once or twice in a row. He likes to combo it with the Spinning Slam and other attacks. | It can be blocked with a shield. Or roll into the swing. |
| Standing Poke | While standing still near you, he’ll thrust his sword forward. | It can be blocked with a shield. Or roll to the side. |
| Crouching Lunge | He’ll squat, then leap towards you with a ground stab. The attack has some AoE. | Move or dodge towards the boss as he’s about to land; he’ll land behind you and miss if you time it right. |
| Spinning Slam | He quickly performs a somersault and slams his sword vertically into the ground. He can chain it thrice. | Avoid blocking, as you’ll get stuck in recovery animation. Roll to the side before his sword lands. Repeat for all three. |
| Overhead Slam | He’ll step towards you while dragging his sword on the ground, then quickly perform a vertical overhead sword slam. | Dodge to the side as the sword is about to hit. Then attack while he recovers. |
| Charging Swipe | He’ll dash toward you with his sword on his back, then perform a left-to-right 360-degree sword swipe. | Roll left into the swipe then use the recovery window to put in some damage. |
| Dashing Thrust | He’ll pull back his sword, then slide toward you and thrust his sword forward. This attack hits twice if it connects and knocks you down. | Avoid blocking if you don’t have a 100% physical shield since the second hit will catch you. Roll to the side before the sword thrust and quickly attack once. |
| 720-Degree Swipe | He’ll quickly rear his sword and then perform a 720-degree sword swipe. It will hit twice as he swings his sword twice in front. | Dodge back to avoid the second swipe. Or Block, but the second swipe might still get you if you aren’t using a sturdy shield. |
| Retreating Slash | He’ll slash his diagonally while jumping backward. | It can be blocked with a shield. Or roll to the left side as he slashes. |
| Rear Ooze Attack | When you are standing behind him, he’ll use his empty hand to fire a wide arc of black ooze. | Roll back or block with a shield. |
| Wrath of the Abyss (AoE & Buff) | This attack is activated whenever Artorias loses 20% of his HP. He’ll dash away and start channeling dark energy around him. Once fully charged, he’ll unleash a massive AoE explosion that deals Magic damage. Afterward, he’ll gain a minute-long buff that will enhance his overall quickness, attack speed, damage output, and AoE. If he buffs himself again, he can stack this effect and gain even more ferocity. | You can stagger him out of this buff. With a heavy weapon, spell, or any attack that deals significant Poise damage, you can quickly move in while he is charging and strike him (before the explosion). With enough damage, he’ll get canceled out of the buff and the explosion. He can be staggered with: 1)Single Sunlight Spear 2)Two shots from the Avelyn crossbow 3) Headshot from any bow. |
Rewards for Defeating Knight Artorias
Putting an end to Knight Artorias in Dark Souls Remastered will give you the following rewards:
- 50,000 Souls
- Unlocks the Armor Set of Artorias in Domhnall of Zena’s shop.
- Soul of Artorias – You can get different items depending on what you do with this soul:
- If you ascend any +10 Greatsword using this soul, you’ll receive the Abyss Greatsword.
- If you give the soul to Lord’s Blade Ciaran, you’ll receive the Dark Silver Tracer dagger and the Gold Tracer curved sword.
How to Cheese Knight Artorias in Dark Souls Remastered?
There is a way to cheese Knight Artorias by skipping the main entrance to the arena and sniping him from a different location. All you need for this cheese is a bow and as many arrows as you can carry. You’ll also need the Fall control Sorcery and equipment load of around 25% to 29% for the rolling animation.
First, enter the Artorias arena as you normally would. This will trigger the cutscene and spawn the boss in the arena. Quickly quit the game and spawn back right outside the fog gate.
Turn around from the gate, go straight ahead, and turn right towards the inactive elevator. Stand over the empty elevator shaft, cast the Fall Control spell (just in case), and roll into the shaft.
As you fall, continue rolling forward mid-air towards the shaft’s wall, and you’ll land safely on the bottom. If you die from the fall, quit out and retry. You’ll get it soon, so don’t worry.
Once you are at the bottom in Chasm of the Abyss, send the elevator up to unlock this shortcut. It might come in handy if you die in the next part.
From here, you must travel all the way up to where you originally had to enter this location. Light the Bonfire on the way so you can respawn here if things go sideways. The entire journey from the bottom to the top is riddled with enemies, so tread carefully.
Keep climbing until you reach the back entrance to Knight Artorias’s arena. Don’t enter the arena; instead, take the stairs to the right of the fog gate. While ascending, you’ll see an opening on the left, looking over the arena. Peeking from here, you’ll notice Artorias waiting for you.
Now, take out your bow and start pelting him with arrows. As indicated by a smaller health bar, he’ll take damage from each successful shot. He won’t move or anything and is a sitting duck for you to cheese away.
Keep firing until he is dead and gone. You’ll get the victory screen with your rewards soon after.
If it’s hard for you to follow or you need help in backtracking to the arena, you can follow the video below:
Knight Artorias claimed my life more than I would like to admit in Dark Souls Remastered. This boss fight demands you to match his unrelenting aggression with proper thought-out counters and quick legwork. Forget every other boss you have faced thus far; approach this fight as a student and learn his move. Only then will you stand a chance against this mighty, mindless knight.