This page details where to find and how to defeat Beat Erdtree Burial Watchdog in the Stormfoot Catacomb that is situated in Limgrave. Includes an overview of attacks and strategy to defeat the boss.

Erdtree Burial Watchdog Location in Limgrave¶

The Erdtree Burial Watchdog can be found at the end of the Stormfoot Catacombs dungeon. You can find the Catacombs northwest of the Church of Elleh site of grace.

Attacks¶

This’ll most likely be one of the first bosses you’ll encounter in Elden Ring. So it’s on the easy side and doesn’t have too many attacks, but it can still deal some damage to you, so don’t completely underestimate it. Because it’s of a mechanical nature, some of its animations can be tough to judge.

Pounce¶

This is the Watchdogs’ signature attack. It’ll Pounce in the air and slam down with its sword pointing to the ground. It can do this attack several times in a row, although it’s normally around 2-4 times. This is a great opportunity to get some damage in, as it slams down, you can quickly get an attack in before it jumps back in the air. The more times it does this, the more damage you can deal.

Pyro Spin¶

The Watchdog will tilt its head forward slightly, then unleash a stream of fire from its mouth in a circular motion. This is another great time to deal some damage to the boss. Stand to the right of its head, attack it, and as the fire gets close to you, sprint away from it in a circle whilst throwing in the odd attack. You should be able to get at least two hits during this attack.

Thrust¶

As the name implies, the watchdog will do a singular thrust towards you. You can pretty much do anything to avoid this attack. Block, roll either side of the attack, counter, even jump! You can get a couple of free hits in whilst it does this attack.

Sword Spin¶

If you’re going to be losing any damage to this boss, it’s this attack that’ll most likely cause it. The boss will drop its sword hand down by its side with the sword tip at feet level, before spinning 180°. The problem with this attack is it comes quick, so you have to really keep your eyes open for when it drops its sword hand down. If you’re in melee range, jumping over or blocking it is your best bet to avoid the attack, if you’re further out, you can just roll backwards.

Standing Chop¶

The Watchdog will stand on its hind legs, walk over to you, and slash down in a chopping motion. This is a really easy attack to avoid, you can block it if you have a shield, move to either side if you don’t. Running away is also an option to avoid the attack. This move is a great time to heal up, get some distance and sip on the lovely crimson nectar that your flask provides.

Swipe¶

Simple horizontal swipe attack. The boss will pull its weapon back slightly before swiping towards you. A short roll towards him will suffice to avoid taking any damage. It can also be blocked.

Sword Slam¶

It feels like every boss has a variation of this attack. They’ll grab their weapon with two hands, dealing significant stamina damage if you’re blocking, or health if you’re not. Thankfully, it’ll only do this attack if you’re spending a lot of time directly in front of it. To avoid it, get out of melee range.

Tail Slam¶

Similar to the Sword Slam attack, but with its tail instead. This attack only occurs if you are attacking the boss from behind. If it does do this, it’s probably too late to avoid it. To avoid the attack, avoid attacking from behind for more than one attack. If you have quick reflexes, you can block it.

Vertical Slash Combo¶

You don’t see this attack too often, but it is in its arsenal. It seems to happen more frequently when the boss has low HP. The Watchdog will perform a three-hit combo, this’ll be two vertical slam attacks before finishing with a thrust. Although it is a combo, it’s slow enough that they could look like separate attacks. It’s best to just roll away from the boss, as the attacks can track you.

Strategy¶

This boss for the most part is quite easy, the hardest part is coping with its weird animations that is quite hard to describe, but you’ll understand when you’re fighting it. Janky animations aside, the main attacks you’ll see are Pounce, Pyro Spin, and the Thrust attack, with the rest being mixed in throughout the fight.

Except Pounce, most of these attacks can be blocked or rolled away from with relative ease. For Pounce, either run/roll away from it. The harder part of the battle is finding an opportunity to get some damage in. It appears that the best time is when it’s either doing Pounce or Pyro Spin, as you can hit the boss whilst it’s doing the animation for its attack.

To do this, during Pounce. Keep near enough to the boss when it lands where you won’t get hit, but you’re not too far away either, this’ll allow you to get a singular attack for each Pounce it does. With Pyro Spin, keep walking to its right in a circular motion attacking away, and when the fire starts getting close to you, start sprinting to get some distance. You can get a minimum of two hits on the boss here. Finally, if you need to heal, try to keep a bit of space from the boss, as it’ll try to interrupt you with its Thrust attack.