'Elden Ring': How To Beat Malenia, Blade Of Miquella

Past a long, secret path to a large, hidden area in “Elden Ring” is one of the most frustrating bosses in all of the Soulsborne games.

Malenia, otherwise known as the one-armed Valkyrie from the trailers, lies tucked away at the very bottom of the secret Haligtree where she awaits anyone who’s brave enough to challenge her. Immediately, she introduces herself as an undefeated swordswoman, a fact that many players will come to experience first-hand.

Although she might feel unbeatable at the start, Malenia can be surprisingly easy to overwhelm with the right build, strategy and mindset because, despite her clear strengths, she also has a few glaring weaknesses. Here are a few tips and suggestions on how to easily beat Malenia in “Elden Ring.”

Malenia’s Strengths and Weaknesses

One of the biggest problems players have with Malenia is her ability to regenerate health with every hit regardless of whether she gets blocked or not. This mechanic not only demands absolute perfection from players, but it also discourages the use of spirit ashes or coop summons.

Second, her speed and reach are both very high. She’s best considered as a mid-ranged fighter due to how long her sword is and how quickly she can close gaps.

On the other hand, Malenia has very low poise and bleed resistance. She can be easily stunlocked if she backs herself up against a wall, and fully-upgraded weapons can chew through her health in no time regardless of her phase.

Recommended Strategy and Loadouts

Due to her low bleed and stagger resistance, players need to be extremely aggressive when fighting Malenia.

Fully-upgraded heavy weapons like greatswords and greataxes can guarantee safe hits on Malenia, while bleed weapons like dual Blood Uchigatanas can trigger enough Blood Loss procs to quickly drain her health bar. Ghiza’s Wheel mixes the best of both worlds thanks to its multi-hit heavy attacks and bleed capabilities.

The Blasphemous Blade’s special skill also deals absurd amounts of damage while constantly knocking Malenia down.

Even though summons are discouraged by Malenia’s healing ability, a +10 Mimic Tear or +10 Black Knife Tiche can be extremely helpful in this fight. Both summons can tank through Malenia’s attacks while dealing amazing damage on their own. A Mimic with Ghiza’s Wheel or dual katanas can make this boss a cakewalk.