7 Elden Ring bosses to beat before Margit the Fell Omen

Margit the Fell Omen is hard as nails. Elden Ring's first serious boss has claimed many souls—or should that be runes?—but you don't need to add to his collection. There are loads of bosses you can tackle first instead of rushing straight towards this accomplished killer.

Elden Ring tries to aim you at Margit almost immediately. From the moment you step foot outside of your tutorial cave, there's a guy calling you maidenless (rude) and telling you that the place to be is Stormveil Castle. Sounds like a good party. With a little bit of fighting, and a lot of fleeing on Torrent, you can get to the gates of the castle without much resistance. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. 

But after strutting down the main hallway into the castle with a spring in your step, you'll come across the game's first main hurdle—Margit. And you'll probably get battered.

I was lucky enough to leave Margit alone for hours before getting to him. Although he was still hard, he was doable. But for others, he's proved to be a roadblock. You're probably thinking, "The game has told me to be here, why is there so much resistance?" But Elden Ring is all about exploration. You're not really supposed to fight Margit immediately—not unless you're a speedrunner. Instead, you're supposed to complete other adventures first. So here are seven bosses to beat before you get to Margit the Fell Omen. 

Beastman of Farum Azula

Beastman is the first boss outside of the tutorial you should face. If you've missed him, he's easy to find, so don't worry. Teleport to the Church of Elleh and head into the woods just north of the building. Going from there you'll see a few soldiers, and at the base of the cliff front, a cave. This is the Groveside Cave. Down this path you'll find a few wolves to deal with before coming to the boss room. 

He's aggressive and fast, but if you pay attention to learning his attacks this guy should only take you a handful of attempts. If he jumps, roll under him and attack him from behind. He has several flurry attacks you'll need to learn, so step back, keep your distance and wait to see how they all work. If you're an old hat with FromSoftware games, you'll also want to bear in mind that Elden Ring's enemy timing might not be what you're used to. 

Grave Warden Duelist 

In the Murkwater Catacombs, you'll find the Grave Warden Duelist. Armed with two hammers on a chain, this strongman isn't nearly as intimidating as he looks at first glance. Honestly, in the Lands Between, you're going to see some shit. You're going to witness body horror, freaky gross character models, and dialogue that makes your skin crawl. Duelist, in comparison, is just some guy with two hammers. 

If you make sure to roll under his attacks and watch out for his buff stage, you'll have this guy finished in no time. Oh, and my advice with any catacomb is to leg it through the place. Honestly, just sprint and find the lever, you'll be in much less pain, I promise. 

Patches

Ah, our old friend Patches. This guy isn't as much of a boss as he is a fun NPC and entertaining nuisance. If Elden Ring is your first FromSoftware adventure, then you may not know that Patches spans the developer's works in all sorts of forms. I won't spoil where he appears in other titles, but he's always up for a little mischief. In Elden Ring it's no different.

Head down to Murkwater Cave in the massive ravine splitting Limgrave in two. You'll know you're close when you have an NPC invasion, which you'll get a very nice dagger from. The cave will have some bandits to deal with and they're the hardest part of the entire dungeon. If you trigger them and run back towards the entrance, there is a jump they can't make and you can spam magic from afar, or pick them off one by one. Cheesy but it works.

Once you're through the bandits you can find a large chamber with a chest. Open the chest and take the items and Patches will appear. He has a shield and spear, but he's easy to evade and get behind for some hits. The best part of this fight is that you don't actually need to finish him off. The bandit will call for mercy once you've given him a good walloping. You'll then have the option to kill him for good or let him off and be 'friends'. Though he may cause you a little trouble down the line, it's worth keeping him around because he's not a half bad merchant when he's not trying to kill you. He actually stocks an item called Margit's Shackles, which becomes very useful in the difficult boss fight ahead, stunning the Fell Omen.

Black Knife Assassin 

Black Knife Assassin is yet another, 'just some lad with a weapon' boss. Head to the Deathtouched Catacombs and you'll find this elusive warrior. He's slinky, which can make him a little hard to hit, but keep up your aggression and you should be able to catch him out for one or two solid hits. It helps that he's already hurt when you enter the fight.  Watch your stamina while you're attacking, though, as he can quickly retaliate, forcing you to dodge. He's pretty easy to backstab if you can distract him with a summon. Finish him off and you'll be rewarded with the Assassin's Crimson Dagger Talisman, which will give you the ability to restore health when critically hitting your enemies. 

Erdtree Burial Watchdog 

West of the Church of Elleh, you should spot your first guiding statue. These stooped stone sculptures are speckled across the Lands Between and will literally point you in the right direction, or at least a direction where there's something worth doing. When interacting with them they'll direct you towards the beginning of a catacomb or dungeon. In this case, it will point you towards Stormfoot Catacombs, where the watchdog lurks at the end. 

Though the Burial Watchdog is very close to the beginning of the game, he is a little tougher than the Beastman, so you may want to come back to it. This sentient chess piece is far freakier in movement than most other bosses. The unnatural levitation and jerky, animatronic moves are really unnerving. Fair play to FromSoftware on the design of this guy. Learn to keep your distance from his flurry attacks and run from his levitation moves to avoid devastating damage. Then be as aggressive as you can afford. As with many bosses, being cocky will be your downfall if you're not careful.

Tibia Mariner

If you've played Bloodborne, this fight may remind you of the Witch of Hemwick. To be honest, I couldn't stop giggling at the absurdity of the Tibia Mariner when I first met him. It's a skeleton in an ancient speed boat, what's not to like? Head to Summonwater Village, in northeast Limgrave. You'll find him hanging out in the middle of the flooded settlement and the fight will begin. He's a skeleton in a really shallow pond, throwing a few spells and summoning some skeleton buddies. Fight him on Torrent-back and he won't prove much of a challenge. 

There are some moves, like when the boat rises out of the water and comes down hard, which do quite a bit of damage, but these attacks can also kill the skeletons around him and offer you a gap to get in and do some more damage. He'll also teleport away after he's taken a beating, but he won't ever be too far away. Thankfully, Summonwater's Tibia Mariner is a pushover. But don't expect him to be so easy when you meet him next.

Leonine Misbegotten 

Although Stormveil is the first castle you come across, it may not be the first you should complete, or even attempt. If you've got all these other bosses on the list then you should be ready to take on Leonine Misbegotten in Castle Morne.

Head south and find the Bridge of Sacrifice. Gallop across it on Torrent and find the blind lady sitting next to the road. She's the beginning of the Castle Morne questline. Head south yet again and you can't miss the castle, which is undergoing a brutal revolution. Getting through the castle is a challenge in itself, but once you've explored it thoroughly, you'll find yourself at the back of the castle on the beach. A large unmissable golden mist gate will stand between you and Leonine Misbegotten. 

I won't lie, this guy can be a little tough if you're not prepared for him. I originally tried to best this beast without the help of the spirit summoning bell, which was a mistake. He's the most aggressive of the bosses on this list and will stalk you no matter how much you try and build distance. Use the spirit summoning bell to give yourself a break to heal or restock your FP. You can also block most of his physical damage with a shield but I'd recommend learning his movements and rolling to avoid being staggered. 

Once defeated you get the Grafted Blade Greatsword, which looks a lot like the Iron Throne from Game of Thrones. It's a sword made out of swords. It requires a hefty 40 Strength to wield effectively, though, so it may be a while before you're able to put it to good use. 

With seven bosses defeated, plenty of runes, a bunch of new items and one castle behind you, Margit shouldn't pose much of a problem. And if he is still causing you bother, don't forget to spend some runes in Patches' shop, and remember to bring an NPC ally and one of your Ashes summons with you.