The Dancer of the Boreal Valley is a very mesmerizing yet deadly boss in Dark Souls 3. How to defeat the boss? What he is weak to? What strategies can you use to beat it? All will be answered in this ultimate guide to beating Dancer of the Boreal Valley in Dark Souls 3 in Dark Souls 3.
The Dancer’s movesets are twirly and bewitching but don’t be fooled by that. She uses her sword like a lethal ballerina, making quick work of you with her long combos. In her second phase, she’ll pull out her other sword and essentially becomes a blender looking to shred you alive. Knowing how to dodge her attacks is crucial.
Let’s take a detailed look at some of the best combat strategies and tips for defeating The Dancer of the Boreal Valley in Dark Souls 3.
Is Dancer of the Boreal Valley Optional?
The Dancer of the Boreal Valley is not an optional boss. She must be defeated to gain access to Lothric Castle.
Strategies for Defeating The Dancer of the Boreal Valley
Here are some strategies for defeating Dancer of the Boreal Valley you can use depending on the build you opted for in Dark Souls 3:
Melee Strategy
The Dancer of the Boreal Valley is somewhat similar to the Pontiff Sulyvahn fight. She uses erratic moves that must be constantly blocked or rolled through and leave small openings for attack. A good fire-resistant shield will be a major help in this fight.
As soon as the fight begins, hug the Dancer’s left leg and rotate around her to your right, striking a blow here and there when you can. Roll through any attacks she might do and get in one or two hits and repeat.
Look out for her grab attack. There is a sound that plays while she simultaneously dips her shoulders,
signaling that you need to roll backward out of the way or be grabbed and one shotted. It isn’t hard to spot; just listen for the sound.
Be wary of any attack she does where she plunges anything into the ground. These signal AoEs, and you will need to back away or take massive damage.
Once she reaches phase 2, she will pull a second sword from the ground and begin to whirlwind around the room. Back as far as you can away, and if you can get the timing down roll through the last spin and squeeze in a couple of attacks. If you aren’t so confident, simply wait for the whirlwind to end and then resume the strategy.
The main difference now is that she will have more combos and combos that last for many more hits, so you will have to roll and block more. If you get hit by the first or second swing in one of her combos you will be stun locked and killed.
Don’t get greedy with your attacks. Play defensively, and you should come out ok.
Magic/Pyromancy Strategy
Magic and Pyromancy builds will have a hard time with this boss because of her ability to quickly close distances. Quick firing ranged spells will work better here compared to hard-hitting longer-casting-time ones.
Spells like Great Soul Arrow or Soul Spear are preferred since they allow you to cast swiftly and get out of dodge. She is also weak to Dark Magic hence the Affinity spell will work wonders too.
Take refuge behind the pillars in the arena and fire Affinity at her, then move away and fire the Soul Spear for the best and quick results. Black Fire Orb is another spell you can add to your repertoire.
If you are able to find longer openings during the fight, using the Chaos Bed Remnants or Great Chaos Fire Orb spells will deal massive damage. However, their longer casting times will leave you vulnerable to attacks so be extra vigilant.
As a magic/pyromancy user, your main focus is to create some distance. Snappy dodging and running to the other end of the arena will make it easier to cast spells. We can not stress enough the advantages of the pillars so use them to your benefit.
What is Dancer of the Boreal Valley Weak To?
Dancer of the Boreal Valley is weak to the following damage types:
- Strike Damage
- Dark
- Lightning
What is Dancer of the Boreal Valley Resistant / Immune to?
Dancer of the Boreal Valley is resistant and immune to the following damage types:
Resistant to:
- Bleed
Immune to:
- Poison
- Toxic
- Frostbite
Can You Parry Dancer of the Boreal Valley?
You cannot parry Dancer of the Boreal Valley.
The boss can be poise-broken with enough attacks. Yet, you can only critical-strike her if you stagger her by hitting her head.
Can You Cheese Dancer of the Boreal Valley?
Exploiting the pillars in the arena will make things incredibly easy for you. However, this is not a very straightforward cheesing strategy as you will have to actively work towards staying out of range of her attacks and not letting her come near you.
There are 4 pillars in the room. Move to any one of them as soon as you enter the arena and let the Dancer come to you.
The simplest way of explaining this is, to keep circling around the pillar and watch her movements and act accordingly. Keep moving left or right, opposite to her motion.
Every now and then when you get an opening during her recovery, move out of the cover of the pillar and strike the boss and move back in. Keep repeating this process until she is dead.
The second phase is where you need to be extra vigilant when approaching her to attack. Some of her attacks will phase through the pillar so maintain necessary spread.
If you do things right, the second phase Blade Dance attack will see her spin in a locked place without any danger to you. Setting up a Pestilent Mist trap around the pillar will trickle away her health as well.
This strategy can work for both melee and magic users.
The Dancer of the Boreal Valley is a hard boss since her attacks are long-winded and hard-hitting. Melee builds will have a better time managing her compared to Magic wielders. Nevertheless, using the arena properly will give an extra edge in the fight.