Elden Ring's Meanest Boss Is Now Practically Impossible

There is no shortage of difficult enemies in "Elden Ring", especially when it comes to the bosses. Each of the game's biggest baddies offer something different that makes them elite in their own right. Still, none seem to be as trying as Malenia, Blade of Miquella. The optional in-game foe has been the source of a lot of misery for "Elden Ring" players who have struggled to break her down and dodge her swift attacks. She's so punishing that even the "Malenia Master" himself, Let Me Solo Her, fell beneath her katana 242 times before finally becoming adept at defeating her and joining other players' games to lend them a hand.

FromSoftware just made Malenia that much tougher. As part of patch 1.04 — the same patch that recently removed the mythic illusory walls — the boss has only become more formidable. According to a user on Reddit, this is the result of the patch giving Malenia a self-healing glitch that constantly bumps up her HP, despite not registering a hit on the player. This unfortunate mishap has made the Demi-God next to impossible for most players to overcome.

In a video addressing the boss' self-healing bug, Let Me Solo Her shared 15 minutes of footage in which he battles Malenia. Unlike most of his recent exploits, LMSH (also known by his YouTube username Klein Tsuboi) struggles against the Empyrean this time around. In the description, the "Elden Ring" hero even described her as very unpleasant to battle due to the bug. Like all legends, LMSH somehow found a way forward, eventually dispatching Malenia, but not before throwing out a cheeky gesture.

Of course, not all "Elden Ring" players are as talented as Let Me Solo Her and others of his ilk. For the average gamer, defeating Malenia requires more patience and creativity than they might want to muster right now. For the time being, it's likely best to avoid the Blade of Miquella until FromSoftware fixes the issue. Melania is an optional boss after all and her defeat isn't required to progress through the game, though beating her is a mighty flex. As great as it would be to topple her right now, it probably isn't worth the anguish of dying repeatedly.