Darak is one of the first proper boss fights that you’ll encounter in No Rest for the Wicked, and he’s a step up in difficulty from Warrick, who you can’t avoid as you make your way to Sacrament. You’ll fight Darak as part of the Of Rats and Raiders quest, which you can get by speaking with Winnick in Sacrament after completing the first main quest and waking up in the Rookery Lodgings. On this page, we’ll show you where to find Darak and how to defeat him.

Darak’s Location¶

As soon as you get the Of Rats and Raiders quest, it’s a good idea to take some time and level up by killing various enemies around Sacrament. You’ll find plenty of these just to the west of the settlement. Along the way, you can find new gear and the necessary materials to upgrade it, which will be invaluable in giving you an edge in the fight against Darak.

Once you feel like you’ve properly leveled up (we recommend at least level 5, but we managed it at level 4), you can make your way to the exclamation marker on the map, just to the southwest of Sacrament, as shown in the image below. Note that once you’re there, the fight will begin as soon as you pass through the fiery gates.

Darak Boss Strategy¶

The first phase of the fight with Darak will be chaotic, not least because you’ll be unfamiliar with his attacks. There are 4-6 weaker enemies alongside him, most of which will be rushing at you constantly, while some may be dealt with by one of the soldiers from Sacrament. You shouldn’t expect the soldiers to last long, so you can focus on killing the weaker enemies before you try to confront Darak properly.

Now that all the weaker enemies are dead, it should just be you and Darak on the battlefield. You should take this time to observe his attack patterns and figure out how you’re going to avoid them. The easiest way to do this is by rolling away from Darak, preferably to his side, each time that he takes a swing. However, you’ll need to keep in mind that the rate and speed of each swing will be different, which is why you need to get a good feel for his attack patterns before you take any risks.

A lot of the time, Darak will swing his weapon just twice, once in each direction, in the hopes of hitting you. If you avoid these initial attacks, you can counter with some of your own before stepping away from him again. Alternatively, you can stay close to him and keep dodging/rolling with each attack, but you’ll quickly run out of stamina doing this and the closer you are to Darak, the more attacks he’ll execute in a row.

In general, you should avoid the series of attacks that Darak engages in, go in for a few of your own, then move back to regenerate some stamina. If you have any Vials of Stamina, which increase your stamina pool by 10+ for 60 seconds, it’s a good time to use them to get the most out of your attacks and dodges/rolls.

Aside from the two sweeping attacks that Darak performs in an arc, if you’re within range he’ll follow them up with an additional attack that he takes longer to charge up. You’ll need to be ready to dodge/roll at just the right time (just as the attack is executed) to avoid this, and try to avoid spamming dodge or roll. It’ll only needlessly deplete your stamina and make you vulnerable.

As the fight progresses, Darak will begin using more devastating attacks, such as smashing his shield on the ground repeatedly. There isn’t much you can do to avoid this other than get out of the way, but try not to go too far; you want to be close enough so that you can respond with an attack of your own before he recovers.

Another devastating attack that Darak uses involves smashing his sword on the ground four times in quick succession. If you try to dodge or roll away from this, he’ll follow your movements. You need to get the timing right here to dodge/roll at the precise time when his sword is about to land on the ground. This is easier than it sounds, but it may take some practice.

Each time that Darak uses one of his more devastating attacks, such as the shield or sword slam, there will be a couple of seconds during which he remains incapacitated while he recovers. This is your best opportunity to attack without worrying about retaliation, so make the most of these moments throughout the fight.

Aside from the generic sword swings and devastating smash attacks, the only other attack that you need to worry about is a kick. Darak will perform this whenever you get too close, and it will knock you to the ground instantly. This is actually one of the most difficult attacks to avoid, and it can make you vulnerable to his higher-damage attacks if you don’t roll out of the way as soon as you get back up. Be on the lookout for this, and try to avoid it altogether by never being too close to Darak for too long.

If you’re at a relatively low level when you come to fight Darak, the most important thing to remember is to remain patient. You won’t be able to spam attacks in the same way that Darak can, mostly because you need to regulate stamina usage, and each attack that lands won’t be anywhere near as devastating as his. The aim of the game here is to chip away at his health while consistently avoiding his attacks, and being ready to use consumables to boost health, damage, and stamina throughout.

If you want to see some of Darak’s attacks in action and get a feel for the timing to avoid them, be sure to check the video below.

Once you get Darak to 25% of his maximum health, the fight will end and he’ll flee, so you don’t actually need to take all his health to win the fight.