Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy is one of the Shardbearers in Elden Lord. He is a gimmick boss in the game. How to defeat the boss? What is the boss weak to? What strategies can you use to beat it? Are there ways to cheese the boss? All will be answered in this ultimate boss guide to beating Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy in Elden Ring.
The fight against Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy is relatively simple if you take advantage of the gimmick weapon, the Serpent-Hunter. The weapon is found on a corpse right when you enter the arena. This weapon has a special effect only during this fight where it manifests a blade of light/wind that has an insane range and deals quite a lot of damage to the boss.
Let’s take a look at the best strategies and builds in this boss guide that can help us easily defeat Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy in Elden Ring.
Is Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy Optional?
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy is an optional boss. However, he is a Shardbearer, and two of the four Shardbearers are required to progress the main quest in Elden Ring.
Strategies for Defeating Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy
Below is the single most potent strategy for defeating Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy boss in Elden Ring. Although you can fight this boss using any build or setup you want, the weapon provided for the fight makes things much easier.
Every other strategy plan in comparison to the Serpent-Hunter Great Spear. You can opt to fight him any other way but we will focus on the intended way of fighting Rykard.
Serpent-Hunter Strategy
As soon as you enter the arena to fight Rykard, there will be a corpse holding the Serpent-Hunter Great Spear. This weapon has no stat requirements, so any build can equip it. This weapon has a special function during this fight.
With every swing of the weapon, a huge light blade extends the range of the weapon. The weapon’s combo has escalating damage so tapping the attack buttons will yield better damage output. The weapon skill has a long wind-up and costs FP, but the damage it deals is excellent.
This is extremely beneficial since the area around Rykard is covered in lava and you can’t fight him up close without the risk of getting damaged.
The boss moves very slowly toward you giving you ample time to fire off your attacks. But do not get greedy as his attacks are extremely long-ranged and hard-hitting and can make quick work of you. He has a plethora of AOE attacks as well that you need to be aware of.
Learn his patterns asap so you can identify openings to use the Serpent-Hunter. His recovery time after each attack is significant enough to poke him with the Great Spear.
Every hit from the Serpent-Hunter to the boss’s head will cause him to go down. Use this time to unleash a charged special attack for more damage.
During his second phase, he will take out his sword. The attacks of this sword are far-reaching, and you should be rolling into the swings to dodge them with your i-frames.
He will also start casting a spell where the whole sky will turn red, and a bunch of homing skulls will attempt to explode on you.
Keep dodging these skulls and if you get the chance then start striking the boss while he is casting as it can interrupt this attack, and he will stop.
Watch for his attacks and exploit the windows with the Serpent-Hunter and the boss will go down sooner than you think.
What is Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy Weak To?
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy is weak to the following damage types:
- Standard Damage
- Slash Damage
- Pierce Damage
- Frostbite
- Serpent-Hunter Weapon
- Weak Spot – Head
What is Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy Strong Against?
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy is strong or resistant to the following damage types:
- Strong
- Fire
- Magic
- Holy
- Immune
- Madness
Can You Parry Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy?
Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy can not be parried. You can not perform a critical strike on him even after breaking his poise.
Can You Cheese Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy?
There are two ways to cheese Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy:
Mimic Tear with Serpent-Hunter
As soon as you get your hands on the Serpent-Hunter, go into your inventory equip the Great Spear and unequip any other weapons or items from your hands. Then spawn the Mimic Tear to aid you. Removing the weapons will ensure that the Mimic only uses the Great Spear to fight the boss.
Now walk up to the boss to initiate the fight. With both of you tag-teaming him with your Serpent-Hunter, the fight will be much more comfortable. It won’t take long before the fight will be over.
Try to keep the attention of the boss on you as the Mimic might act stupid and try to get close to the boss burning his health away in the process.
High Ground Cheese
When you enter the arena, go to the boss to trigger the fight. After that, run to the right side of the arena and look for the rock in the picture above. You need to have any of the Dragon Breath spells like Rotten Breath or Agheel’s Flame.
Place yourself in the middle of the rock and jump towards it. While jumping, use the Dragon breath to float in the air. As soon as you land on the rock, jump again and you will reach the top of the rock wall circling the arena.
When you are here, let the boss come to you and start whaling on him with the Serpent-Hunter. Most of Rykard’s attacks won’t reach you, and you can use the spear’s long reach to annihilate the blasphemous fool.
You will restart on the ground when the second phase begins so you will have to scale the rock again. There is one more rock face you can climb on the right of the boss door although is much harder to climb.
Be careful of the few attacks that do get to you, and you will be good to go. Use the other rocks on top to shield yourself from his projectiles.
Rykard is a difficult boss in his own right if you are approaching him without the Serpent-Hunter. Even with the great spear, he is no slouch and will give you a run for your money. However, it is best to use the spear as it was literally designed to fight this particular boss.