Malenia, Blade of Miquella
Malenia, Blade of Miquella waits among the roots of Miquella’s Haligtree, at the very bottom of Elphael, Brace of the Haligtree. She has never known defeat. She fought General Radahn to a standstill at the Battle of Aeonia, and the scarlet rot she unleashed there still poisons Caelid.
She is widely regarded as the hardest boss in the base game, and her first words to you have become one of the most famous lines in the series. She is fast, graceful and relentless, and every hit she lands heals her.
Drops
Malenia’s Great Rune
Remembrance of the Rot Goddess
Weaknesses
Frostbite and blood loss
She staggers easily, and attacks can interrupt her wind-ups
Needs three parries to be open for a critical hit
Resistances & immunities
Heals with every hit she lands, even blocked ones
Phase 2 inflicts scarlet rot
How to beat it
Phase 1. Malenia attacks in fast, flowing combos with her katana, and each hit restores her health. Do not trade blows. Wait for her to finish, punish with one or two hits and back off. Frostbite and bleed work very well on her.
Waterfowl Dance. This is the attack everyone talks about. When she leaps into the air and pulls her blade back, a flurry of three spinning attacks follows. The safest answer is to run away from the first flurry, then roll toward and through the second and third. Some players use Bloodhound’s Step or a well-timed shield instead. Practise it until it feels routine.
Phase 2: Goddess of Rot. At the start she blooms into a huge scarlet flower that covers the arena in rot. Run as far away as you can. After that, she adds rot to many of her attacks and summons butterflies. The same rules apply: never get greedy, and stay ready for the Waterfowl Dance.
Help. If you followed Millicent’s story to its end, you can summon her just outside the boss gate.
Lore
Malenia is the daughter of Marika and Radagon, and the twin sister of Miquella. She was born with the scarlet rot inside her, and her brother spent his life trying to cure her. The prosthetic arm and legs she wears replace limbs the rot has taken.
After the Battle of Aeonia, some of her butterflies found their way to Romina, Saint of the Bud in the Land of Shadow.
Notes & tips
- Her remembrance can be traded for the Hand of Malenia or Malenia’s Winged Sword.