Slave Knight Gael |
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| General Info | ||
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Location |
| 15,037 | 120,000 | Filianore's Rest |
| Drops | Soul of Slave Knight Gael Blood of the Dark Soul |
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| Defenses | ||
| Weak | Resistant | Immune |
 Strike Frostbite Poison/ToxicHollowslayer GS (2nd, 3rd phase) |
 Slash Dark (2nd, 3rd phase) Bleed |
N/A |
Slave Knight Gael is a Boss in Dark Souls 3. Gael is available with The Ringed City DLC, and is widely considered to be the final boss of the entire Dark Souls series. This Dark Souls 3 Slave Knight Gael Guide features locations, strategies and videos on how to defeat Gael easily, as well as tips, weaknesses, trivia and lore notes for the Slave Knight Gael boss.
Slave Knight Gael is an aberration created by consuming the Dark Soul. It is unknown which kingdom Gael fought for or in which wars he was active. At some point during his life he found the Painted World of Ariandel and a young woman who wished to paint a new world. He wears a noticeably bright red cape. When players encounter him, he first moves and fights like a beast on all fours, but then straightens up when brought down to a certain health threshold.
The fight against Gael starts out relatively simple, but grows in difficulty more damage he takes as he gets more aggressive, his combos gain extra attacks, and the arena becomes more precarious. As with all DLC bosses, this boss is optional to completing the game.
Bosses are unique and challenging Enemies that drop Boss Souls capable of being transformed into powerful Weapons, Spells, and Items for the player.
Dark Souls 3 Slave Knight Gael Location
Where to find Slave Knight Gael in Dark Souls 3?
- Slave Knight Gael is found after a short walk down from Filianore's Rest at the thrones of the pygmy lords. He will not attack the player until the cut scene is triggered for the first time. After this he will spawn at the thrones, and charge toward the player after they enter the fog gate.
- He can be first encountered as a non-hostile NPC in the Cleansing Chapel in The Cathedral of the Deep, serving as an entrance to the Painted World of Ariandel, should you own the DLC. See the Slave Knight Gael NPC page for full dialogue and information.
Gael Drops
What do you get from defeating Slave Knight Gael in Dark Souls 3?
- Souls: NG (120,000) | NG+ (240,000) | NG++ (255,000) | NG+3 (264,000) | NG+4 (270,000) | NG+5 (288,000) | NG+6 (294,000) | NG+7 (300,000) | NG+9 (306,000)
- Co-Op Souls: 30,000 in NG
- Soul of Slave Knight Gael
- Blood of the Dark Soul
Gael Notes & Tips
What should you know about fighting Slave Knight Gael in Dark Souls 3?
- Parriable: No
- No NPC summon available for this fight.
- Gael's attacks deals Standard, Strike (whole battle), Dark and Thrust (2nd and 3rd phase) damage.
- During the 2nd and 3rd phase, lightning will strike where Gael's soul projectiles land. There are also random lighting strikes on the edges of the arena. In phase 3 there are more soul projectiles, and therefore more lighting strikes. One attack in particular unleashes dozens of soul projectiles, and as such should be a time where the player looks at their feet lest they be smited. These lightning bolts deal Lightning damage and can hurt either the player or boss, however, the chances of being hit by one are incredibly low and they deal pitiful damage to Gael.
- Gael can be staggered, which breaks most of his attacks. Staggering the 1st phase is much easier to do than his 2nd/3rd phase.
- If during the 2nd or 3rd phase the player manages to stagger Gael by hitting his head, they can perform a riposte, but the time for performing this action is very short. 1st phase Gael can't be riposted, even if properly staggered.
- During the whole fight, Gael is weak to Strike Damage, Frostbite and Poison/Toxic.
- During the fight, Gael is resistant to Bleed and Slash Damage. Also, during the 2nd and 3rd phase he is resistant towards Dark Damage.
- At the the beginning of the second phase, Gael turns Hollow. This greatly increases his Dark defense, but makes him take 20% more damage from the Hollowslayer Greatsword. He is the only enemy in the game that can change its creature type mid-battle.
- Slave Knight Gael is not abyssal at any point in the fight.
Gael Stats
| Playthrough | NG | NG + | NG ++ | NG +3 | NG +4 | NG +5 | NG +6 | NG +7 |
| Health | 14,985 | 15,263 | 16,789 | 17,985 | 18,315 | 19,842 | 20,605 | 21,638 |
Dark Souls 3 Slave Knight Gael Boss Guide & Strategies
DS3 Gael Video Strategy
Below are video strategies from our YouTube Partners:
PHASE 1
- Gael is susceptible to stagger, the heavier the weapon, the easier it is for it to occur.
- Early on in the fight as Gael comes towards you, he is liable to jump into the air with a pink aura surrounding him. After a second, he will fly towards you very quickly. Should this attack connect, you will be impaled and take massive damage. Instead, dodge it and get 1 or 2 hits in. Dodging backward will put you closer to him during this move, giving you a bigger window to attack.
- Gael's attacks look faster than they are. This is due to Gael having fast movements, his feet are faster than his arms, making his attacks seem to have erratic timing. The best time to attack is after he ends his combos with a leaping attack as you can get a couple hits in. Be aware, some of the leaps are longer than the others. Time your dodge well or you'll take massive damage.
- When Gael does his plunging stab without any combo beforehand, he has more air time than a basketball player. Wait for the last moment to dodge and get an attack in. Should he attack first, THEN do the plunging stab, it will come down faster usually.
- Gael has a lunging stab that initiates an animation that does more damage to you if it hits. When dodged correctly, you can get 1-2 hits even with a heavy weapon. Do note, in order to get a successful dodge attack off, judge the distance between you and Gael and dodge accordingly, as you might end up being too far for your weapon to reach.
PHASE 2
- Gael's attacks are followed up by his cloak, with a range slightly longer than his blade. Also, most of his attacks come in pairs, do not think to attack him right after his first attack.
- When Gael casts Way of White Corona, if you are at mid-distance, it will not hit you initially as it spreads out but keep in mind it will come back to Gael. It is best to get behind his initial casting position. A good way to get behind him is to roll through the initial cast of the miracle, attack him once, dodge his follow-up, and skirt around behind him. This will usually take enough time for the Way of White Corona to be on its return.
- Gael's cloak usually acts as an extension of his blade, with the exception of his forward stab, where it will come slightly after.
- Vertical smashes and thrusts have poor horizontal tracking. So, if you are near Gael you can simply run or even walk right to avoid them.
- Gael has a similar attack to phase one where he will fly into the air and rocket towards you. Except in this phase, you will not be impaled, but it does have a small explosion from his cape. The timing of this dodge is delicate but it allows you to get in a free hit.
- Horizontal swings are difficult to dodge. When close to Gael, always roll towards the attack. If there is little room between you two, the safest thing to do is to roll away from him and wait to see if he finishes the two slashes with a highly punishable thrust.
- When Gael teleports to you, he is preparing for a spinning attack. This is difficult to roll out of as you have to dodge his blade AND his cloak. An easy way to evade this attack is to dash away from his position and he will spin nonetheless.
PHASE 3
- Gael will release several soul-like projectiles upon this phase starting but it should not be a problem if you are constantly evading his attacks. Lightning will have markers on the ground and the souls are easy to dodge. The souls will poorly track towards you and make their way into the ground which is what causes the lightning. Getting hit by the souls doesn't do much damage, but the lightning strikes incredibly hard and will floor you and leave you open to Gael's assault. A good way to just avoid this attack all together is just to run in the complete opposite direction as he pauses and stays in place while the souls explode from him.
- His attack from phase two where he rockets towards you in mid-air now gets 2 follow-up attacks so wait for the third one before countering. Should you fail the dodge on the initial strike and just decide to block, you may die from the second and third attacks if you get your guard broken. The second attack will also release skulls which go straight for the ground and cause lightning so do not linger after you counter his third attack.
- STAY CLOSE TO MID RANGE. He usually does three attack combos. Thrust openings are still the best.
- A good opening is also when he jump smashes Abyss Watcher style and without homing skulls (04:16). This has a very obvious tell of him running at you, then slamming the sword down. He will do an air spin follow-up with a sword slam. Counter this and bait this as much as you can as it's the easiest to counter and avoid.
- There is a variant of the attack in the previous point where he won't do a running slam, but a straight up slam. He will still do an air spin, but he will delay the slam to shoot you with the crossbow, then come smashing down, and THEN go for a third quick Abyss Watchers air slam. This final attack you can counter safely.
- While staying in the arena-like part of the map with the ruins seems like a good idea (and is) for all phases, do not forget how massive this map is. Should one area get too hot with lightning, just relocate. He may teleport behind you so be ready for that.
DS3 Gael Attacks
Slave Knight Gael has 3 attack phases. In his first and arguably easiest phase, he will only use his greatsword in combat. Upon entering the deserted land, he will confront you with an aerial attack from a distance. In his first phase, he has a bunch of combos, some being more deadly than others. His attacks vary from just a single strike to multiple strikes with an aerial attack. Every time he attacks, he will leave a window of opportunity for you to land your blow. It is advised you only hit him once in this window since he recovers quickly. In the first phase, he can be staggered by a Fully Charged Ultra GreatSword Attack and randomly staggered by other weapons. When you diminish about a third of his health bar (around 5,000 damage, leaving him with around 10,000 health), a cutscene will occur and you will enter stage 2 of the fight. This stage is much more difficult than the previous one as he has some new moves up his sleeve. Gael can now become invisible and teleport next to you, use a repeating crossbow, throw magic discs, and use new combos. These new combos are way deadlier than the previous ones since his cloak is powered up and will strike you after every swing he takes. Then, once his health is at around 6,500 (after taking around 8,500 damage), he will stay still, create a red shockwave, and enter phase 3. This phase is undoubtedly one of the hardest in the entire game. Now, Gael will use lightning as well as some extremely strong aerial/crossbow combos to take you down. The lightning is fairly easy to dodge since a marker will appear on the ground before it strikes. One of his combos is an aerial attack where he does multiple flips in the air whilst shooting from his crossbow. Keep in mind, throughout the fight, he will continually use AoE attacks or shockwaves.
| First Phase | |
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| Critical Strike | When Gael's sword is covered in red souls, he jumps and performs a critical strike. If the player fails to avoid it, Gael raises up his sword, shouts, and then throws the player a long distance. |
| Plunging Attack | Gael jumps, then swiftly plunges his sword into the ground dealing medium physical damage. |
| Rage | Gael shouts, then attacks with his sword: 4 times horizontally, then performs a plunging attack. Gael can be staggered out of this attack. |
| Sword Combo attack | Gael performs various sword attack combinations dealing physical damage. Attacks from the ground may launch the player into the air. |
| Second/Third Phase | |
| Repeating Crossbow WA | Gael uses Repeating Crossbow's weapon art - Repeat fire, which deals very high physical damage. In contrast to any other of Gael's moves from 2nd phase, this one can be interrupted with 1 weak hit. Does not appear in 3rd phase. |
| Way of White Corona | Gael uses an upgraded version of Way of White Corona - instead of one circle, five appear. Very rarely, he will use a fast version with three circles. Both versions deal physical damage. Does not appear in 3rd phase. |
| Weak Blade of Peril | Gael uses a weaker variant of the second part of Gael's Greatsword weapon art - swinging himself around with the support of his coat. Deals physical and dark damage. Cloak also deals damage, requires proper roll timing. |
| Coat rush | Gael attacks with his sword 2 times with the support of his coat. Deals physical and dark damage. |
| Coat strike | Gael attacks with his sword similar to how the player would with a two-handed Ultra Greatsword, with the support of his coat. Deals physical and dark damage. May launch the player into the air. |
| Attack from above | Gael shouts, then attacks from above and covers himself using his new weapon - coat. During the third phase, this move has an additional 2 attacks from above and releases a huge amount of soul projectiles dealing dark damage, which - when fallen on the ground - will attract lightning. Deals physical, dark, and lightning (3rd phase) damage. |
| Combo sword + coat attack | Gael attacks horizontally with his sword (with the support of his coat), then performs a strike attack. Deals physical and dark damage |
| Tactical retreat | Gael retreats on a medium distance, covering his "escape" by Repeating Crossbow weapon art. Does not appear in 3rd phase. |
| Surprise Attack | Gael disappears, and then behind the player, a white summoning sign appears. A few seconds later he appears and performs one of the attacks listed above from the 2nd/3rd phase (excluding those with Repeating Crossbow, Way of White Corona, and Soul Rage). Note: Rarely, he will appear in a different place than the summoning sign location. |
| Jumping attack | Gael attacks 2/3 times from above using his sword and coat dealing physical and dark damage. During 3rd phase, while in the air, he will use Repeating Crossbow and release a huge amount of soul projectiles, which after landing on the ground will attract lightning. |
| Soul Explosion + Lightning Rain (3rd phase, less than 1/3 hp bar left) | Gael stands for a few seconds, then releases a large amount of souls and an explosion with medium AoE. Deals high damage, as this attack can't be broken, simply walk away. A few seconds later, in the places where soul projectiles have fallen, there will be lightning strikes. Announces the beginning of the third phase, but Gael may use that move later during the third phase. |
| Soul Rage + Strong Blade of Peril + Lightning (3rd phase, less than 1/3 hp bar left) | Gael attacks from above two times, then performs a strong attack from Gael Greatsword Weapon Art. During this rage, there is a large amount of soul projectiles that deal dark damage. If a projectile falls on the ground, it will darken the ground and attract powerful lightning dealing 1 damage to Gael and serious damage to player. |
How to fight and beat Slave Knight Gael
Strategy 1 (Melee)
Using an Ultra Greatsword/Greatsword will easily stagger Gael however, make sure you have enough stamina to dodge afterwards, as most of his combos have 3-4 attacks. If you use any other melee weapons, be sure that they have a good attack range, otherwise you have to stick very closely to him. I'm talking to you curved sword users out there. Do not be afraid of charging a heavy attack right after he does a plunging stab. When Gael's right shoulder is facing you and he looks like he finished a combo, be wary as he may execute a sweeping attack out of nowhere. In phase 2/3, it is recommended to dodge towards him as his range is extended by his cloak, also to get into range for an attack. The cloak usually acts as an extension with the exception of his forward stab, where the cloak comes slightly after. Recommended to sprint away when he teleports to you, you can easily evade it that way. As for the repeating crossbow shots, it is better to sprint away instead of rolling, as some of the bolts may catch you when you get out of your roll.
Below is a playbook on how to beat him.
- Gael kicks off the fight by galloping towards you on all fours. Don't be fooled by his terrible motor skills. He is a one-shot tank build with great speed, and if he doesn't one-shot you, he will require you to drink one Estus to keep from being one-shotted, and that happens very easily.
- Gael's moments where he throws his bigger melee attacks, like his jumping attacks, are moments to use Estus, but you only have 1-3 seconds to get in damage, so you would have to use your Estus immediately.
- Gael has a combo where he yells in frustration. Trying to dodge through this combo will compromise your stamina, so it is recommended to prepare for this eventuality by already being spaced out enough. The player wants about 30 feet, since the player is waiting for Gael to throw heavy anyway.
- A large potion of this whole fight can be solved by focusing on the heavy aerial attacks thrown by Gael. When Gael is in his base form, before the first cutscene, he does a jumping attack, and a lunging attack where his sword glows red, and this is a good time to hit him. However, expect a counter-attack, so give yourself about two seconds to hit him during these punishments. The rest of it is being able to counter-attack at the right time after these heavy aerial attacks, while making sure you have ~80 points of stamina for dodging and sprinting.
- A large portion of the post-cutscene part of the fight takes place in an area with a large brick wall. This wall can be used to space out Gael from the player, so the player may heal.
- Gael has an attack where he shoots out golden discs of faith magic. You want to double-dodge roll to the left to get in-between these, and be circling so they avoid you completely and you don't use too much stamina.
- Gael will use attacks of varying speed, Gael is going to power up after the second cutscene, which happens during the fight. Keep at his lunging distance from him, and avoid the invisible walls and other wall-like objects. This whole sub-phase is about waiting for Gael to do his lunging attack, which may be followed up with a heavy counter attack. When he is not lunging, he will most likely just shoot arrows, or his way of white corona.
- From now on, Gael may do a jumping or lunging attack. The player has to look and see if he is queueing up to swing after such an attack, so do not hit him unless he has thrown an attack where he seems to struggle to heave himself to attack. So the player's queue is to wait for Gael to get tired while doing these follow-up attacks, and then attack, but expect a counter!
- In the end phases of the fight, it is important to watch Gael's weapons, and hands. He will summon red orbs and lightning, but the red orbs can be spaced out with sprint, and there will be bright spots on the ground where the lightning will hit. These may hit Gael, but they only do extremely minor damage.
- When he is open for being hit in his third phase, his red mist disappears, and he will either be tired, or he will assume his walking animation. This is confirmed for NG+7 and this is definitely a way to avoid getting hit in that phase.
- Irithyll Straight Sword is a reliable weapon in this fight, even in NG+7. The Black Knight Sword, Wolf Knight GS, and Vordt's Great Hammer are good, too. Definitely stock up on repair powders for this fight, too.
Strategy 2 (Melee/Faith)
DO NOT USE DARK DAMAGE/DARK WEAPONS/DARK BLADE. This boss will most certainly punish the greedy and overly aggressive. Tears of Denial, 60 faith, fast weapons like a longsword or curved sword. (Rapiers work well also) with lightning blade and Yorshka's chime should make this fight go well. With Gael, it is a battle of attrition. Due to his high health pool and high damage, quick but sustained damage is key. If he gets away from you a sunlight spear or lightning arrow miracle is good poke damage. First phase a shield will work also, just watch for his forward leaping attack as it's a grab that you cannot block. When he screams roll away, as he will either do a three hit flurry or a four hit flurry, ending in a leaping attack. This leap attack gives you ample amounts of time to do some damage. Phase two and three I DO NOT recommend blocking attacks, but roll dodge away from them, as the added dark damage follow up to his attacks will shred your stamina very fast, and a counter hit from him due to a guard broken state is almost certain death. Roll at the last possible second toward and behind him, as an early roll can still catch you with his dark damage follow up on his attacks in the final two phases. When your lightning blade runs out, try to wait for one of his longer combos or leaping grab, as they have longer recovery times allowing you to rebuff your weapon.
Strategy 3 (Pyromancy)
Recommended that Pyromancers bring Chaos Bed Vestiges instead of Great Chaos Fire Orb, as CBV has slightly faster travel speed and is a straight projectile, whereas GCFO acts like it's thrown as a ball, plus has less base damage than CBV unless Gael enters the lava pool. Gael moves quickly and sometimes GCFO might fly right over Gael as his posture is low and hunched. Don't use dark pyromancies.
Whichever you choose to use, try to cast ONLY after Gael shows an opening after a series of attacks, as his movements will cause your pyromancies to miss unless he is either moving towards you or very close to you. Sometimes Gael has a large delay before his next series of attacks, it is important to recognize these moments and get a few shots off.
In Phase 2, keep your distance and try not to stay close to Gael, his movements will be less beastly and he will usually attack twice in succession. If you are too close when he does a downward slash, he might flick his blade upwards. Observe and keep the cloak's range in mind, it usually travels along with Gael's attacks, with the exception of his forward stab, where his cloak will come slightly after.
Strategy 4 (Sorcery)
Sorcery can be pretty tricky against this one. May even be the hardest method of taking him down. Due to his very high health pool, sitting back and shooting spells at him will leave you out of FP before the fight is over. Pure sorcery, only thing I can recommend is putting a few more ashen estus uses, plus ashen estus ring, and deeply learn his attack patterns from purely fighting him, or from the other good guys and gals that have put edits on this wiki page. Now, for an example on fighting him as a mage. No Moonlight Greatsword sadly. The slower but slightly more damaging attacks (on this boss at least) is not worth the trade-off. DPS and low recovery times over chunk damage in this boss fight is ideal. Raw Lothric Knight Longsword, Crystal Magic Weapon, and offensive spells of your choice will work. Please keep in mind that dark damage is a no go for this boss fight. Might as well be punching him to death. Pure sorcery, just stay away from him and pelt him with great heavy soul arrow and crystal soul arrow. Try not to spam the crystal soul arrow though, as mentioned at the start of this strat. Sorcery with a weapon buff is the best way to go.
Easiest way to beat him as a Sorcerer is simple usage of Great Heavy Soul Arrow. Crystal Soul spear if you have excess FP. Went in with 7 healing estus, 7 ashen (Used one after the Ring Knight) and still ended with 2 extra Ashen on my first try on NG+ knowing nothing about him. Gear/stats setup was Sprint is your friend here. Play keep away, wait for him to start a combo, then hit him with CSS or GHSA. If he does the discus attack into crossbow, as long as you're at medium to long range it's a simple matter of rolling to the left/right once you've gotten into a safe spot between the discus, then roll back into place to avoid their return. It's also a good time to hit him with a spell. When he does the side leap at long range, roll through him and then once more away to avoid his second swing. Again, a good time to hit him with a spell. Do not get greedy, cannot emphasize this enough, sprint is your friend, bait out his combos then sprint away like the prissy mage you are until you have the space to cast. He doesn't seem to cancel his combos, so you should always have time for a spell or two. If you space correctly, you should only need to roll to dodge his leaping attacks.
Strategy 5 (Aux effects, cheesy one, ANY CLASS)
Did it 1st attempt with 30INT/30FTH/~15STR|DEX build. Basically, get yourself a Storyteller's Staff and Bleed Bandit's Knife, both +9-10. In the beginning of the first and second phases activate the staff's poison(it burns him real fast, 35 per tick 1st phase, about 70 per tick 2nd phase, and requires 4-5 casts to put it on him), then proceed to quickstep/hit until he's dead. The biggest advantage of this strategy is that you don't really need any specific build for it - get a full 60 INT sorcerer, and he's able to equip that dagger(and you don't need scaling from it - bleed trigger damage doesn't scale aside from HP percentage afaik). The only downside is that 12 INT is required. Keep in mind that he will cleanse himself of any effects at the beginning of the second phase. You don't even need to care about enchanting two more useless weapons - you should have collected plenty of chunks on the way to this boss.
Strategy 6 (Ringed Knight Paired Greatswords)
Get the Ringed Knight Paired Greatswords from the Ringed Knights and reinforce it to +5 (May work on lower reinforcements, needs confirmation). Now fight Gael with the two handed L1 Attack. You may take some damage when dealing the first 1 or 2 hits, but then he will be permanently staggered for the whole combo and take massive damage. Just be careful not to lose too much health while doing the first hits in his 2nd and 3rd phase. Try starting the combo when you are at full hp and you should be fine. After I discovered this strategy I beat him 1st attempt.
Strategy 7 (Frost/Fire Setup)
Gael is weak to both frost and fire, making this setup ideal. Essentially, any attack that can efficiently proc the frostbite status effect, paired with any attack that can deal fire damage can accomplish this. The most efficient method is with a pure strength build, using Vordt's Great Hammer and an Arbalest loaded with explosive bolts. When frostbite is triggered, the enemy loses 11% max health, and a 30 second cooldown begins, where the afflicted enemy loses stamina recovery. Any fire based attack can immediately nullify this effect, however, allowing a skilled player to continually stack frostbite on-hit effects in perpetuity. On a "quality" build, players can accomplish a similar effect using the weapon art of the Pontiff Knight Curved Sword at close range. Casters can use Snap Freeze or Frozen Weapon in conjunction with Fire Surge or any other pyromancy. Firebombs and black firebombs also scale with strength, making them useful with Vordt's Hammer as well.
Strategy 8 (Full cheese)
This strategy can be used for any soul level (Requires a minimum of 15 faith/12 int, the required Attunement slots(Recommended:2 slots), and enough FP or enough Ashen Estus Flasks(around 5 or more +7's). This strategy works by using an exploit in Gael's AI and the geography of the area, similar to the Flamelurker cheese(https://demonssouls.wiki.fextralife.com/Flamelurker)
Slave Knight Gael Lore Theories
He is the same missionary sent out by the Painting Woman to bring her the blood of the dark soul for her canvas. He originally helped the player begin the questline in the Cathedral of the Deep but does not seem to recall the player when met. He is seen feasting on the pygmies in the hopes of obtaining the Dark Soul. However, due to this, he is seen to have lost his sanity and part of his humanity. When damaged enough, he bleeds the is "blood of the dark soul." This is all in part of his quest for the Painted Woman that led him to ruin and the consuming of blood that destroyed him. When defeated, he drops the Blood of the Dark Soul which can be brought to the Painted Woman in order to paint a new world.
Slave Knight Gael Trivia
- In the lore of Dark Souls III, bright red cloth is said to represent the blessing of fire in the lore of the Deacon Robe and the desire for blood in the lore of the Drakeblood Armor, fitting facts given the nature of Gael, both in his past, desire for flame, and quest for blood.
- Wolf Knight's Greatsword +5 is capable of staggering Gael during the 1st phase in 1 fully-charged strong hit (up to NG+2) and in 3 light hits in any phase of the battle (NG and NG+). (Needs testing, if this applies to Farron Greatsword)
- The lightning in Phase III casts a blue aura around where it strikes, in contrast to the gold aura caused by weapons/miracles dealing lightning damage. Lightning weapons with identical aura appear in Dark Souls II (e.g. Syan Knight), which may give a clue about it's true nature.
- The manner in which Gael fights and runs in his first phase is very similar to how Guts from Berserk fights in the Berserker Armor. Gael's second phase also shows parallels to Gut's fighting style in his use of the Repeating Crossbow, akin to Gut's Repeater Crossbow, and the way he hides and follows his attacks with his cape.
- During the 2nd and 3rd phase, Gael has the same skin as hollows in Dark Souls II. This can be easily seen in his introduction cutscene, when the camera is behind Gael. True to this concept, in these two phases Gael takes extra damage to the hollowslayer sword, indicating that after the second cutscene Gael goes hollow.
- Gael is the only enemy in the game whose creature type changes mid-battle
- Gael's transformation in the second phase from a monsterous four-legged fighting style to a less bestial, more noble swordstyle following the occurance of a profound realization bears some similarities to what occurs in the bossfight the Bloodborne player may see against Ludwig, the Accursed in his transformation to Ludwig, The Holy Blade. Likewise, a greatly wounded figure attempting to escape heralds the arrival of both of these bosses, offering a warning about them.
- Several of the Gael abilities mirror Artorias, the Abysswalker (Dark Souls I), Lost Sinner (Dark Souls II) and Orphan of Kos (Bloodborne).
- The introduction cutscene bears some similarities to the introduction cutscene to the Artorias, the Abysswalker boss fight from the Artorias of the Abyss DLC in Dark Souls I, including the posture of Gael and him beginning the fight by throwing a corpse at you.
- Gael's appearance, wearing a face concealing hood and a bulky upper cloak, and wielding a broken sword, makes his appearance an interesting mixture between the extremely low states the player starts the game in at the start of Dark Souls I and Dark Souls II, interesting given that he is the final boss of the series.
Slave Knight Gael Trivia Contd.
- The Arena with Gael's boss fight is the largest arena of that type in the entire Dark Souls series, encompassing the entire level except for the bonfire at Fillianore's Rest. This area appears to be the one seen in Dark Souls III's intro cutscene and from it the player can see remains of several locations from the main game, primarily Lothric Castle and Anor Londo. The only boss arenas that are larger are those where the arena itself is part of the boss fight, such as against Saint Astrea in Demon's Souls, against The Ancient Wyvern in Dark Souls III, and against Micolash, Host of The Nightmare in Bloodborne. Even so, Gael's boss arena is sufficently massive that only Micolash's is definitively bigger.
- The lone Ringed Knight tucked away in the deep corner of the boss arena (to the left of the Filianore's Rest tower) will never target Gael, even when Gael hits him.
- During the 2nd, 3rd etc. attempt to kill Gael, Shira will not invade. She will attack only either before starting first attempt to defeat Gael or after he is dead. Being the Host of Embers is not required.
- If the player looks very closely when Gael teleports, he has a summon sign under him, and has the same visual effect when a white phantom gets summoned, implying that he is forcibly teleporting to near you using the mechanism used to summon other players.
- Gael is the only boss that can die without goading from the player as the lightning rain from the 3rd phase damages him and spawns semirandomly, but due to very low damage it is very difficult to achieve. Unfortunately, this does not grant a unique death animation.
- During 2nd and 3rd phase, around Gael's coat there are numerous red skulls. Identical skulls are at messages created by Slave Knight Gael (NPC), which players will see at The Dreg Heap, as are tatters of his red cloak. Similar skulls can also be seen in with the Executioner's Gloves in Bloodborne, hinting that there is a connection between the two. Much as the Executioner Gloves are the main tool in Bloodborne to rely on the power of Souls, Gael's abilities are among the few in Dark Souls that rely on the power of Blood, making the overlap between the two interesting, effectively serving as a thematic midpoint between the two games.
- Gael, unlike other bosses that can be riposted, has one death animation.
- If the player looks very closely at the gaping wound in Gael's chest, they can see a tiny hole that looks identical to the Dark Sigil.
- In one of the closed towers in the boss arena there is a model of standing Gael. This model is used during the animation in his introduction cutscene instead of the 1st phase version of Gael the player actually fights, likely due to the differences in rigging needed to achieve the respective motions of each character.
- Gael, like many characters in the Souls series, bears some resemblance to knights from the King Arthur myth.
- Gael bears some similarities to Sir Kay, a powerful knight from Arthurian legend that is Arthur's foster brother and most trusted knight, who swore himself to servitude as Arthur's seneschal. In early myth, Kay is attributed with the abilities to go for nine days and nights without the need to breath or sleep, to radiate supernatural heat from his hands, and grow as tall as he wanted. In later myth, it is Kay breaking his sword that causes Arthur to seek a replacement, accidentally pulling Excalibur from its stone. Kay is often depicted as crude in speech and bestial on the battlefield, yet immeasurably loyal.
- Gael also bears considerable resemblance to Galahad the unassuming knight notable for his absolute faith and unwavering determination in searching for the Holy Grail. Among other details, Galahad is often depicted in myth as presenting himself to court wearing a ragged red robe, and is referred to as The Red Knight in the Lancelot-Grail Cycle. He is depicted as being meek and unassuming when encountered, yet distinguished as the greatest knight in the land due to his faithfulness and determination. His search and constant sacrifices for the grail, used as a vessel for the blood of Christ, is well documented, as is his relationship to the Fisher King, the lame wounded king ruling over naught but a wasteland, quite similar to the role played by the Pygmy Lords, although far less brutal in its conclusion.
- His Birthday is March 3rd as stated by Miyazaki himself.
Slave Knight Gallery
Anonymousdark souls 1 was about humanity
dark souls 2 was about the curse
and dark souls 3 was about the cycle.
- Anonymous
Someone I once saw pointed out that you start the first dark souls game as a pitiful hollow wielding a broken sword, and the most powerful being at the end of time itself - at the end of the final game - is a hollow wielding a broken sword. I cherish and adore Gael for everything he represents.
Dark souls is not just about the futility, frustration, and deterioration that follows attempting the same thing over and over again, following the same ideals and singular focus, but also the potential for those of even the most meek, pitiable, and downtrodden origins to accomplish great feats.
It's about how one's origin and perceived worth has no bearing on their ability to accomplish their goals, and how staying true to those goals and purpose can carry us through even the most terrible and hopeless circumstances, even if those goals are in spite of those circumstances, and even if those circumstances are inescapable.
Dark souls tells you to let go of things you can't control, and to pursue your purpose with unbreaking resolve.
- Anonymous
I beat him 1st try, in my 8th playthrough of Ds3. After dying 30 times first playthrough.
- Anonymous
Got him to like 10% the second try.
Then spent nearly 2 more hours to actually win the battle.
I love this fight, the most epic battle area I've ever known.
- Anonymous
Best boss in gaming history. If you dont agree with me, f*** u.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Today is my day. SKG os history. The strategy with the RKGS +5 worked fine for me. Stamina is everything in this fight. 1st time used the Estus Ring and the Divine Blessing (that i didn't use). I tried two times poison and two times frostbite. Did not work that well. So in my fourth run using the RKGS SKG was defeated. This boss was not as hard as expected but overall a joy to fight. So, my friends, git gud. It is worth to do so.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Came here to type “first tried him” even though I didn’t, but it seems you’re supposed to here.
- Anonymous
In my opinion, he still remains as the best boss FromSoftware has made. Maybe that will change with the upcoming Elden Ring DLC... who knows.
- Anonymous
Kinda stupid how high his defenses are. Because nothing screams From without taking a good boss and making it worse.
- Anonymous
Kinda stupid how high his defenses are. Because nothing screams From without taking a good boss and making it worse.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Gael didn't cause me much trouble like Midir. Slew him at the very first attempt
- Anonymous
Beat him 1st try. I got gud maybe? or maybe I'm just overleveled at 125 tho.
- Anonymous
yk ive found it a little odd that his sword gets less damaged and how he finds the time take a shower when he gets to phase 2
- Anonymous
I fought him first time ever and first tried him. But holy is he fun, his attacks aren't too delayed to be annoying, and phase three just spices things up perfectly. Probably my most fav boss ever. 10/10, would fight again.
- Anonymous
this guy is one of the best fights in any video game i have played. I just love him. Lots of health for a longer and more intense fight, has many projectile attacks but doesn't spam unless you stay super far away, hard but can be countered. I put him in #1 for most fun fight of any game i've played lol. sorry for the rant about how f*cking awesome he is (if you disagree please be respectful and dont be like b*tch u suck or smth)
- Anonymous
why does he laugh like a maniac when he sends us to ariandel? i thought he was evil when that first happened to me
- Anonymous
very cool fight. the only bs is his HP, literally gundyr x3. just unbalanced, third phase hard as it is
- Anonymous
we went from this and orphan of kos to elden beast, just fyi
- Anonymous
This was a really fun fight but it was honestly too easy. At lcl 84 i 3rd tried him, he deserved a second health bar which was entirely a fourth phase
- Anonymous
Never really thought about it, but I think the ash-like desert is the many (like hundreds of thousands of) kingdoms burned away from linking the first flame so many times, with prominent kingdoms, like Anor Londo and Lothric withstanding the flames. Proof that Gwyn "resisted the course of nature" (Kaathe was right). This would make your fight for the Dark Soul literally on top of all the history of the world.
- Anonymous
After having played DS1, Elden Ring (a few times past NG) and now DS3 i can say, that Gael is undoubtedly the absolute best boss fight i have ever seen. Damn, even though i somehow managed to first try him, my heart kept racing after finishing the fight basically dead. Man, it felt like a dance, with him and me taking the lead every now and then.
- Anonymous
If the Elden Ring DLC doesn't have this guy, I don't want it
- Anonymous
to quote a random yt comment: "the first enemy and final boss of dark souls are mad hollows wielding broken swords"
i still miss this series y'all...
- Anonymous
“I turned myself into the Dark Soul, Ashen One! I’m Dark Soul Gael!”
This and isshin are easily the top best fights that FS ever made, I hope in the ER DLC they make a boss even better then these Two
- Anonymous
When he said "Hand it over. That thing, your Dark Souls III: The Ringed City DLC" I stood up and clapped.
Thank you Mike Wazowski for a beautiful ending to the franchise
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
The whole lead up to his fight, him using the same sword and wotw corona as a summon and even dropping summon signs to teleport, and the mini slave knight enemies throughout the ringed city as a precursor (lightning and cursed backs) make for an amazing boss, not to mention how good / fair the actual fight is, if a bit of a damage sponge.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
I managed to recently beat him on my SL1 run, being easily the hardest boss I've ever faced, well over 100 attempts more than double if not triple than 2nd place (Sister Friede with around 50) and the first thing I did after beating him was load another save and beat him again, 1st try this time, and I'm still tempted to go at him again. It can not be overstated how amazing this boss is
- Anonymous
I think the boss is fine but that lightning rain at the end is BS ! It's not even in the theme of the boss.
- Anonymous
Vordt's Hammer and the Storyteller's Staff's WA did it for me. The Toxic needed only 1 cast to apply to him in phase 2 (not 4-5 as being stated somewhere).
- Anonymous
today was my first time killing him. it took exactly 50 attempts. i could easily beat him 2-3 try, but I wanted to do it in style, lightroll + 1H dragonslayer spear. what a masterpiece of a boss, the most fair i've ever fought.
- Anonymous
Vordt hammer, lorian set (dark absorb), str build = super easy fight... For me Midir is only true boss of this dlc
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
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- Anonymous
This boss is easy as a Sorcerer, what do they mean? Use Heavy and Great Soul Arrow. They don't cost a lot and do fairly good damage. Just dodge and punish him at the end of his combos. You can even stunlock in his "crossbow" animation using Heavy Soul Arrow if you are lucky.
- Anonymous
If you think about it, he was actually just offline farming this whole time... no wonder he went so crazy. Imagine THAT covenant;
"To reach Rank 3 in the Painter's Covenant you will need 135,000 Fragments of the Dark Soul"
- Anonymous
Finished this fight about an hour ago, and I somehow managed to do it in one go. Such a grand finale of a fight. Loved every second of it.
On to Midir!
- Anonymous
A note on the name Gael:
"Gael" is read in the same way as "gale", which means a very strong wind.
In the 9th century polemical treatise "On Hail and Thunder" by Agobard of Lyons, it is stated that in Spain, something people would say during hail and thunderstorms would be that "a gale has been raised," as they believed that the storm was created by other people whom they called "storm-makers" and it was called a "raised gale".
This could suggest a connection between the name Gael and his power to use lightning during battle, though this might be a stretch. Just thought it was interesting.
- Anonymous
Finished the fight a few hours ago (took me about 2 hours to do it). The anticipation for me and this fight in particular was extremely high. I had seen a video of the fight years ago accidently on a youtube, and it left me with my jaw on the floor. It was without a doubt one of the most impressive Dark Souls bosses to be created (at least gameplay wise). I dreamed and (and actually didn't hold much hope), that one day I'd end up facing and experience this masterpiece. Well I did so and he does hold out great!
Roots of his battle design patterns, how the overall boss fight and cinematic feel it brings to the table in general can be tracked from Bloodborne's Orphan of Kos. That one had a lot of the DNA of what one day Gael will be become. Dare I say most likely an improved version. For me Kos was much tougher. I was playing very melee in his face throughout the fight and that made it very challenging to finish. Kos is also very crazed and often chaotic of with his attacks. Gael on the other hand have moves that are sensible, or at least they have purposeful meaning behind them (hah) even with the ones that aren't obvious right away. It's much more enjoyable to fight and even when you get beaten, you don't get discouraged. You can also fight him more slow - wait out the attacks, or be constantly aggressive - attacking and dogging at the right time - which leads to freedom of choice - how you would approach it and it's awesome.
The whole stage/set up where this grand fiasco/finale takes place is also so fitting - the crumbling of the world with everything turning to ash and enveloped by sand. Bravo! I liked that there was phases. I liked that hey felt seamless with gradual development of the boss and arena - and no cheat outs with full hp on new phase. Music was fitting and also evolving adding to the atmosphere. There is a sweet cut-scene from the 1st to the 2nd phase and I almost - greedily wished for more, or at least one after you defeat him. One of the few things I missed is actually more out of the character - not that there is much at all. A little more upfront out of Gael, maybe speak to him as character you could converse a little in the world before everything unfolds.
Most of the DLC bosses are for a reason so popular and in my case helped alleviate the mostly sour taste from the base game (not counting Archdragon Peak, which I missed initially and is among the very best areas in the game and the series). Slave Knight Gael is really fitting "last boss" (release wise) for the series. I'd love to fight him again!
- Anonymous
Finished the fight a few hours ago (took me about 2 hours to do it). The anticipation for me and this fight in particular was extremely high. I had seen a video of the fight years ago accidently on a youtube, and it left me with my jaw on the floor. It was without a doubt one of the most impressive Dark Souls bosses to be created (at least gameplay wise). I dreamed and (and actually didn't hold much hope), that one day I'd end up facing and experience this masterpiece. Well I did so and he does hold out great!
Roots of his battle design patterns, how the overall boss fight and cinematic feel it brings to the table in general can be tracked from Bloodborne's Orphan of Kos. That one had a lot of the DNA of what one day Gael will be become. Dare I say most likely an improven version. For me Kos was much tougher. I was playing very melee in his face throughout the fight and that made it very challenging to finish. Kos is also very crazed and often chaotic of with his attacks. Gael on the other hand have moves that are sensible, or at least they have purposeful meaning behind them (hah) even with the ones that aren't obvious right away. It's much more enjoyable to fight and even when you get beaten, you don't get discouraged. You can also fight him more slow - wait out the attacks, or be constantly aggressive - attacking and dogging at the right time - which leads to freedom of choice - how you would approach it and it's awesome
The whole stage/set up where this grand fiasco/finale takes place is also so fitting - the crumbling of the world with everything turning to ash and enveloped by sand. Bravo! I liked that there was phases. I liked that hey felt seamless with gradual development of the boss and arena - and no cheat outs with full hp on new phase. Music was fitting and also evolving adding to the atmosphere. There is a sweet cut-scene from the 1st to the 2nd phase and I almost - greedily wished for more, or at least one after you defeat him. One of the few things I missed is actually more out of the character - not that there is much at all. A little more upfront out of Gael, maybe speak to him as character you could converse a little in the world before everthing unfolds.
Most of the DLC bosses are for a reason so popular and in my case helped alleviate the mostly sour taste from the base game (not counting Archdragon Peak, which I missed initially and is among the very best areas in the game and the series). Slave Knight Gael is really fitting "last boss" (release wise) for the series. I'd love to fight him again!
- Anonymous
Finished the fight a few hours ago (took me about 2 hours to do it). The anticipation for me and this fight in particular was extremely high. I had seen a video of the fight years ago accidently on a youtube, and it left me with my jaw on the floor. It was without a doubt one of the most impressive Dark Souls bosses to be created (at least gameplay wise). I dreamed and (and actually didn't hold much hope), that one day I'd end up facing and experience this masterpiece. Well I did so and he does hold out great!
Roots of his battle design patterns, how the overall boss fight and cinematic feel it brings to the table in general can be tracked from Bloodborne's Orphan of Kos. That one had a lot of the DNA of what one day Gael will be become. Dare I say most likely an improven version. For me Kos was much tougher. I was playing very melee in his face throughout the fight and that made it very challenging to finish. Kos is also very crazed and often chaotic of with his attacks. Gael on the other hand have moves that are sensible, or at least they have purposeful meaning behind them (hah) even with the ones that aren't obvious right away. It's much more enjoyable to fight and even when you get beaten, you don't get discouraged. You can also fight him more slow - wait out the attacks, or be constantly aggressive - attacking and dogging at the right time - which leads to freedom of choice - how you would approach it and it's awesome
The whole stage/set up where this grand fiasco/finale takes place is also so fitting - the crumbling of the world with everything turning to ash and enveloped by sand. Bravo! I liked that there was phases. I liked that hey felt seamless with gradual development of the boss and arena - and no cheat outs with full hp on new phase. Music was fitting and also evolving adding to the atmosphere. There is a sweet cut-scene from the 1st to the 2nd phase and I almost - greedily wished for more, or at least one after you defeat him. One of the few things I missed is actually more out of the character - not that there is much at all. A little more upfront out of Gael, maybe speak to him as character you could converse a little in the world before everthing unfolds.
Most of the DLC bosses are for a reason so popular and in my case helped alleviate the mostly sour taste from the base game (not counting Archdragon Peak, which I missed initially and is among the very best areas in the game and the series). Slave Knight Gael is really fitting "last boss" (release wise) for the series. I'd love to fight him again!
- Anonymous
Everything about this fight is totally top notch honestly, he's one of the tankiest bosses in the entire game besides absolute damage sponges like Yhorm without the Stormruler or Darkeater Midir yet it's never to the point where it feels like a slog to fight him, he has very hard hitting and flashy but well telegraphed attacks with not a single cheap attack in his moveset, he's very challenging to fight without feeling unfair at all really feeling like much more of an epic back and forth rather than a totally one-sided fight since he's aggressive and unrelenting but it's never to an unfair and absurd degree like let's say certain Elden Ring bosses and you can consistently stagger him if you land your hits well which in of itself makes him more satisfying to fight since he actually reacts to your blows unlike a lot of other bosses who tend to facetank several hits from you without even flinching, the spectacle is absolutely god tier especially in his phase 3 when bolts of lightning start striking the arena and in general he just has one of the most badass boss designs and movesets in the series (that damn flip he does while shooting his repeating crossbow at you is just so sick), and THE DAMN MUSIC MAN it's legit one of the best and most climactic boss themes I've heard in any videogame
Easily one of the best bosses of the Souls trilogy if not THE best boss in the Souls trilogy
- Anonymous
Finished the fight a few hours ago (took me about 2 hours to do it). The anticipation for me and this fight in particular was extremely high. I had seen a video of the fight years ago accidently on a youtube, and it left me with my jaw on the floor. It was without a doubt one of the most impressive Dark Souls bosses to be created (at least gameplay wise). I dreamed and (and actually didn't hold much hope), that one day I'd end up facing and experience this masterpiece. Well I did so and he does hold out great!
Roots of his battle design patterns, how the overall boss fight and cinematic feel it brings to the table in general can be tracked from Bloodborne's Orphan of Kos. That one had a lot of the DNA of what one day Gael will be become. Dare I say most likely an improven version. For me Kos was much tougher. I was playing very melee in his face throughout the fight and that made it very challenging to finish. Kos is also very crazed and often chaotic of with his attacks. Gael on the other hand have moves that are sensible, or at least they have purposeful meaning behind them (hah) even with the ones that aren't obvious right away. It's much more enjoyable to fight and even when you get beaten, you don't get discouraged. You can also fight him more slow - wait out the attacks, or be constantly aggressive - attacking and dogging at the right timings - which leads to freedom of choice how you would approach it and it's awesome
The whole stage/set up where this grand fiasco/finale takes place is also so fitting - the crumbling of the world with everything turning to ash and enveloped by sand. Bravo! I liked that there was phases. I liked that hey felt seamless with gradual development of the boss and arena - and no cheat outs with full hp on new phase. There is a sweet cut-scene from the 1st to the 2nd and I almost - greedily wished for more, or at least one after you defeat him. One of the few things I missed is actually more out of the character - not that there is much at all. A little more upfront out of Gael, maybe speak to him as character you could converse a little in the world before all unfolds.
Most of the DLC bosses are for a reason so popular and in my case helped alleviate the mostly sour taste from the base game (not counting Archdragon Peak, which I missed initially and is among the very best areas in the game and the series). Slave Knight Gael is really fitting "last boss" (release wise) for the series. I'd love to fight him again!
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Wow, I understand why people hyped him up, a genuinely great bossfight!
Phase 1 was really interesting with him being more beat like with his swings, and felt the most rewarding to learn every little bit of it. Unlike most beast like fights, his movements felt precise, and wasn't overtly jank or anything.
That cutscene while cool in lore or whatever, was to me the equivalent of him pretty much siting up in his chair ready to fight for real, which threw me for a loop the first time.
Now his cape attacks at first we a little bit annoying, but once you just roll in the direction of it, its fine. Him almost just kinda whipping out the crossbow and shooting 10 bolts at me was both hilarious and frightening.
Phase 3 then comes along and adds one extra bit of depth to it now that he can spawn skulls to hit you, and then there's also the lightning adding more hazard to the fight. The skulls kinda felt meaningless, but it's not a bad addition, and him sometimes firing his crossbow when he does his flip attacks is so badass.
Legitmetely one of the best boss fights I've done, period, including all different kinds of games. It's not overtly punishing with simply one shotting me (I was lvl 95 at the time of fighting him), no extra health bars (cough cough Friede), no bad phase anywhere between it (cough cough Nameless), and no horrible camera or one particular spot you can hit (cough cough Midir, and oh boy that fight is something else).
My only gripes is that he just... doesn't really have the personality, or the immediate backstory that some of my other favorite fights of all time have. I know that the lore can be found all over and what not, but from my perspective of just playing the game, not reading every item description, and not watching every lore video, he was just a guy at first leading you in the right direction, only to then fight you to get the darksoul, only to realize he had it within him the whole time. It's cool, if not tragic, but then I think about bosses like Lingering Will from KH2, which is a man who's soul was so strong that it took up a suit of armor ready to fight the man who ruined it all, and waited in the badlands for over 10 years, looking for the day he can set things right; or even someone like Vergil, who doesn't need much explanation at all if you played or even seen stuff about DMC.
Overall: 10/10. One of my favorite fights of all time, however it just lacks the personality some of my other favorite fights have, and despite thinking of my own story while fighting him, it just doesnt give him a edge compared to my other favs. But despite all that, a truly magnificant boss fight.
And now only Soul of Cinder remains.
- Anonymous
Some players are replaying this boss fight every day until Elden RIng's dlc comes out. I think FromSoftware devs should do the same, cause they lost the idea of how a boss fight should look like over the years.
- Anonymous
How do I leave a summon sign to help others with this fight? For some reason I can't leave a summon sign in Filianore's little room - even though other people say that's where you're supposed to leave it.
- Anonymous
If you’re looking to prolong the fight to learn his moveset, daggers on a low SL will do chip damage but they won’t drain your stamina bar or stagger him that often.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
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Damn I want bonfire ascetics or even reflections of strength for this one
- Anonymous
Overrated boss fight. He comes off as creepy, has no build-up in Ds3 and feels fan-service. Oh and an obvious rip-off of Artorias. He's not a bad boss fight mechanically but the character it's self is seriously lacking charisma.
- Anonymous
Ngl I was deffo over levelled and basically traded with Gael with the guts greatsword so beat him in only 4 attempts (I don’t have the patience for 10s of attempts) so the fight deffo wasn’t as impactful or meaningful as someone else who had lengthy battle but I was left pretty ‘hollow’ after there was no end cut scene with some extra lore or anything. A great boss from what I experienced just a shame that it ends of suddenly
- Anonymous
this would me my favorite boss without the terrible last phase were i cant see anything when he does that stupid flying attack other than that awesome fight 9.5/10
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Beat him first try somehow using all 15 estus, definitely an insanely fun fight and cements ds3 as my 2nd favorite souls game under Bloodborne :3 thanks for the awesome time Gael, i'll be back <3
- Anonymous
I'm gonna downvote every comment that mentions Elden Ring. Even mine, cuz I just did it
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
3rd try baby using the Frayed Blade :) had more problems with Abyss Watchers, Sulyvahn, Dancer, Nameless King and Soul of Cinder. I think Geal is surprisingly easy, because you get so used to this kind of human fighting style. Every skill he does is somewhat telegraphed so you can time your rolls very well, the only "hard" thing is reacting to the faster attacks (charges), was very fun to fight tho, similar to Malenia and the former named Bosses. I love some fight thats fair and square. Midir on the other hand... not fun imo.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
God, nothing makes me wish DS3 had bonfire ascetics more than this fight, this fight is literally my favorite it's so damn fun!
- Anonymous
was he supposed to be that easy? him and SoC. both was fun tho
- Anonymous
I really didnt though that nameless king would be a tougher opponent than gael to me
- Anonymous
You can kind of cheese him if you use the composite bow dodge attack. It's slow, but it works for the 2nd and 3rd phases.
guys gaels birthday is 3rd March believe me this is lore as it is said by Michael Zaki
- Anonymous
THIS IS THE BEST BOSS FIGHT EVER! after you memorize the attack patterns and learn to dodge properly, it feels as if you're dancing. it's ****ing ecstatic.
- Anonymous
During phase 3, I found the best thing to do was just dodge all his attacks and attack yourself in only one situation— after he kneels and does three jumping attacks in a row. No unexpected additional attacks and he pauses long enough to get in three smacks of my Exile Greatsword.
- Anonymous
His healthbar is too low, I want the fight to be very long, I can't have enough of this.
- Anonymous
Best fight on the franchise, fair and well designed as well. Artorias and Nameless King are top notch as well. What a way to end the franchise. Thanks, From.
- Anonymous
Slave Knight Gael... What a man... A boy with a dream... To eat!
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Playing this boss has made me realize how much crazy bullshit elden ring bosses are. Gael's LAST phase feels like the first phase of an Elden ring boss. I'm surprised I was able to beat him on my first try. Amazing boss all around though. I kind of wish I died just so I could hear the phase transition music again.
- Anonymous
Beautifully fought my dearest slave knight, may thy blood paint the new world.
- Anonymous
If this boss was so good and people love fighting him, why aren't there summon signs up for him all the time?
Because the fight sucks is why.
- Anonymous
You know a boss fight is absolutely fantastic if you let them kill you just so you can fight them more
- Anonymous
No one should ever cheese this boss because how good it is it is the best ds3 boss
- Anonymous
Why is it that on the page of a ds3 boss almost every newer comment is either:
Elden ring bosses are better,this is sh*t.
Or:
This is way better than everything elden ring has.
Could you please leave those comments just in your mind.
- Anonymous
Take your bow, keep your distant and pew pew pew him to his end
- Anonymous
This boss is the highlight of everything fromsoft has learnt in soulsborne until this point, and is still trying to be replicated in ER. I see alot of ER boss hate, but i think they are just trying to adapt this to the open world aspects. No doubt they will deliver in DLC
- Anonymous
Just bit him using, like some proposed, the executioner greatsword. I had previously tried with the splitleaf greatsword (and was considering other halberds), as well as the Astora and Lothric greatswords, but while those have great range, they are just too darn slow against a beast like Gael, especially in the second and third phase. I am sure that other simple greatswords like the claymore or zweihandler would do just as great, or even straight swords.
One thing that was amazing with the executioner's greatsword though was how easy it was to stagger the poor bastard ! You can be almost sure to stop him in his track with 2 hits, and then you can easy get 1-3 more hits afterwards ! My weapon was just +9, no buff, only 30 strength/dex and I did 245 per hit, and when I was quick enough and had lots of stamina, a 4-5 hit combo made 900-1400 damages ! True, you likely will get hit afterwards, but not always, because if you hit a lot like that, you might stun him twice in a row !
To do that, though, you need to become a tank. I had the lapp set + steel protection ring +3 (44/46 absorption) and only ever got stunned or taken down during Gael¨s jump attacks. Staying close by for the first two phases and going berzerk on the guy you can get him to phase three in like, 2 minutes. You will need to chug estus though, and I only had 8 left at the start of phase three. When this happened, I followed the advice written here about staying mid range. It is hard at first, but soon you can figure out his patterns and you only need to close in a few times, do a few combos, survive his riposte, roll back a few times, chug more estus, and you will manage just fine !
All in all, not nearly as frustrating a boss as Friede or Midir, just a god damned great encounter !
Compared to when I fought him in melee he died so fast with pyromancies. It's probably cause he isn't that aggressive at a moderate distance so there's a lot more opportunities to attack.
- Anonymous
Wow, so many talking **** about Elden Ring bosses, no substance etc.... This was the 3rd Souls game, second expansion and the final boss of the series? The story didn't even begin to unfold in ER. I cannot even count how many times people summoned me to fight the Flubber beast. Every game has its own challenges depending on the build.
- Anonymous
he beat me first try
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