The Souls series is a challenging series, with Dark Souls 3 less than a month out of release there are likely many newer players who are finding the games to be utter hell (I've been there, done that), well no longer! I've decided to throw together some short (I hope) guides that will help all players to get past the bosses and hopefully enjoy their experience in Lothric despite all of it's challenges.
Gundyr is the first boss that all players will fight in Dark Souls III, despite this for players new to the Souls series he will likely feel like one hell of a bite in the ass for a first boss, at least compared to other games.
Combat (Melee)
To begin the fight the player must approach Gundyr in his invincible crouching state and remove the Coiled Sword from his chest, this will cause Iudex to stand up and begin attacking, as he gets up it is wise to get several hits on him, but remember to spare yourself enough stamina to get yourself out of the fray.
Dodging is the key here, at the start of the game you will not have enough stamina to continuously block his attacks, so you will have to learn to roll. Whilst he attacks roll to the side, but be careful as one of his attacks will swipe into the ground behind him, so watch out for this and hit him a couple times. Do not get greedy with this boss, as he will punish you for it with a shoulder jab.
If you are good at parrying then you may attempt that as well, but it is not recommended unless you are very skilled at it, as Iudex will stun you when he hits you, making it nearly impossible to avoid his combos.
If you're having trouble with dodging I recommend keeping far away from him, this will often cause him to use a flying strike attack, giving you a chance to roll/run behind him and damage him.
Combat (Magic)
Dodging is still the key here, you will want to avoid his damage much more as a Sorcerer or Pyromancer since you won't have as much defense as a melee combatant.
As a Sorcerer you will want to remain far away from him and charge up your magic to hit him from afar, take the time that he is recovering from his attacks to charge more spells. (I personally don't use magic very often, so I'm not a pro at beating Gundyr with it). Remember to be on your guard, Gundyr can close distance like a beast.
As a Pyromancer your job is the same as the Sorcerers, only, Gundyr has a weakness to fire, so you will have more of an advantage against him. If you have the balls to do so you may also attack with your Hand-Axe or Mail Breaker at the cost of needing to back away and having less time to charge up your spells.
Phase 2
Once you get past the initial shock factor of Gundyr's transformation it makes him less challenging, but still one hell of a kick in the balls. As he transforms, he will start to spasm slightly, take this opportunity to hit him a few times before dashing away, you DO NOT want to be in his immediate vicinity when he transforms. He gets a huge damage increase and behaves much more aggressively than before, on the other hand, however, he gains a greater weakness to fire. For Pyromancers or those that chose Black Firebombs (Or picked up the Firebombs in the tutorial level) this should not be too difficult so long as you dodge when appropriate and keep your distance when necessary.
As for Melee characters, you are going to have to keep your three starter Estus close as you go toe to toe with this Pus of Man. Mind his tail-swiping attack and his leaping attack (Which does a devastating amount of damage, it is telegraphed by him slamming his mutant arm into the ground and hauling himself up) and you will be A-OK, attack once or twice and keep your shield up. Only pop an Estus when absolutely necessary, you have to conserve them for this boss and even then, make sure he is not too close or about to attack.
If you followed everything mentioned above and mixed in your own developing/developed skill then Iudex should be dead! Claim your 3000 souls and Coiled Sword and you're off to Firelink Shrine.
So this was my first boss guide ever, if I missed/slipped up on anything let me know and if you want me to make more of these then please tell me so.
The Souls series is a challenging series, with Dark Souls 3 less than a month out of release there are likely many newer players who are finding the games to be utter hell (I've been there, done that), well no longer! I've decided to throw together some short (I hope) guides that will help all players to get past the bosses and hopefully enjoy their experience in Lothric despite all of it's challenges.
Gundyr is the first boss that all players will fight in Dark Souls III, despite this for players new to the Souls series he will likely feel like one hell of a bite in the ass for a first boss, at least compared to other games.
Combat (Melee)
To begin the fight the player must approach Gundyr in his invincible crouching state and remove the Coiled Sword from his chest, this will cause Iudex to stand up and begin attacking, as he gets up it is wise to get several hits on him, but remember to spare yourself enough stamina to get yourself out of the fray.
Dodging is the key here, at the start of the game you will not have enough stamina to continuously block his attacks, so you will have to learn to roll. Whilst he attacks roll to the side, but be careful as one of his attacks will swipe into the ground behind him, so watch out for this and hit him a couple times. Do not get greedy with this boss, as he will punish you for it with a shoulder jab.
If you are good at parrying then you may attempt that as well, but it is not recommended unless you are very skilled at it, as Iudex will stun you when he hits you, making it nearly impossible to avoid his combos.
If you're having trouble with dodging I recommend keeping far away from him, this will often cause him to use a flying strike attack, giving you a chance to roll/run behind him and damage him.
Combat (Magic)
Dodging is still the key here, you will want to avoid his damage much more as a Sorcerer or Pyromancer since you won't have as much defense as a melee combatant.
As a Sorcerer you will want to remain far away from him and charge up your magic to hit him from afar, take the time that he is recovering from his attacks to charge more spells. (I personally don't use magic very often, so I'm not a pro at beating Gundyr with it). Remember to be on your guard, Gundyr can close distance like a beast.
As a Pyromancer your job is the same as the Sorcerers, only, Gundyr has a weakness to fire, so you will have more of an advantage against him. If you have the balls to do so you may also attack with your Hand-Axe or Mail Breaker at the cost of needing to back away and having less time to charge up your spells.
Phase 2
Once you get past the initial shock factor of Gundyr's transformation it makes him less challenging, but still one hell of a kick in the balls. As he transforms, he will start to spasm slightly, take this opportunity to hit him a few times before dashing away, you DO NOT want to be in his immediate vicinity when he transforms. He gets a huge damage increase and behaves much more aggressively than before, on the other hand, however, he gains a greater weakness to fire. For Pyromancers or those that chose Black Firebombs (Or picked up the Firebombs in the tutorial level) this should not be too difficult so long as you dodge when appropriate and keep your distance when necessary.
As for Melee characters, you are going to have to keep your three starter Estus close as you go toe to toe with this Pus of Man. Mind his tail-swiping attack and his leaping attack (Which does a devastating amount of damage, it is telegraphed by him slamming his mutant arm into the ground and hauling himself up) and you will be A-OK, attack once or twice and keep your shield up. Only pop an Estus when absolutely necessary, you have to conserve them for this boss and even then, make sure he is not too close or about to attack.
If you followed everything mentioned above and mixed in your own developing/developed skill then Iudex should be dead! Claim your 3000 souls and Coiled Sword and you're off to Firelink Shrine.
So this was my first boss guide ever, if I missed/slipped up on anything let me know and if you want me to make more of these then please tell me so.
