As the curtain closes onElden Ringwith theShadow of the ErdtreeDLC most likely wrapping things up for this franchise, it allows us to look back on what FromSoft has accomplished and review everything as a complete package. We can nowdecide which boss was the toughest of allandwhich area of the game was the most hauntingly beautiful.But I want to take a little time today to think about all the mob enemies we killed along the way.
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Sure, they don’t have as much star power as the bosses that punctuate yourElden Ringadventure, nor do they have the inflated health bars. But, there are some truly irritating enemy types that are sure to have given you a hard time, and I want to take a moment to give them their moment in the sun. So here is our pick for the most annoying mob enemies inElden Ring.
10Chariots
Let’s kick things off with a bit of a rogue inclusion, as I imagine that a lot of players will have considered these to be environmental hazards rather than enemies. But believe it or not, these things can be destroyed and are listed as enemies within the game. Chariots are giant contraptions that tend to be found in Grave Sites dotted around The Lands Between, and generally speaking, the only way to deal with them is by watching their position, timing your run to get to the next little nook for a rest point, and then repeating the process until you’re out of its range.
What makes these particularly annoying is that, often,you’ll time this run poorly, and this thing will come steamrolling into you, zapping you of all health, forcing you to begin the process from the very beginning. Then, in the case of the Mt Gelmir Gravesite, for example, you’ll also have Lava underfoot, which will slow you down, making you a sitting duck. If you’re savvy, you’ll be able to get to higher ground and shoot down some hanging jars from above to kill these Chariots and get theErdtree Greatbow, but no matter whether you do or don’t, to explore these Gravesites properly, you’ll need to play this terrifying and dangerous game of Red Light, Green Light.
9Basilisks
Next, we haveElden Ring’sfollow-up to the Basilisks inDark Souls. Thankfully, they aren’t quite as obnoxious as those present inDS1, but even when toned down, these enemies are still more annoying than most of the enemies on theElden Ringroster. Thankfully, they don’t apply curse anymore and cut your health in half until you find a healer, but they do apply death, which is one of the most deadly status effects present in the game.
They aren’t necessarily all that tough, but they usually come in packs. They tend to constantly spew death gas as soon as they are aggro-ed, making it very hard to kill them when they spot you. Also, even if you do end up killing them, if your Death Status bar gets filled up during the encounter, you’ll need to sit around and wait for it to go back down, and death takes an eternity to drop back to zero again. These aren’t nearly as bad if you aren’t running a melee build, but if you are, you’ll learn to loathe these guys.
8Abductor Virgins
While there aren’t a ton of Abductor Virgins in the game, the few that you do end up fighting will cause you enough problems to warrant these guys appearing on this list. These enemies are huge metal abominations with huge blades that they can use in various annoying and frustrating ways.They can spin around like a Beyblade and hit you repeatedly, they can launch their blade across the room to get you from a distance, and if that wasn’t bad enough, they could also grab you when at close distance and put you in their belly to be eaten by the metal snakes that live within.
They can’t be inflicted with any status effects, they have massive physical damage everywhere except for their weak spot, which happens to be their exposed belly full of snakes, and they tend to come in pairs, meaning that you won’t be able to focus on one’s weak spot without another launching a blade at your head. They are a notoriously deadly early-game enemy inElden Ringand one that will undoubtedly slay you time and time again.
7Lesser Ulcerated Tree Spirits
It may be a little generous to throw the Lesser Ulcerated Tree Spirits inElden Ringon this list, because if we’re honest, they are bosses in all but name. But the important point to make is that they don’t get the billing as a boss fight, and considering there are quite a few of them within the game and the DLC, we reckon it’s fair to have them in here. These enemy types are annoying for two main reasons. Firstly,they have a ludicrously inflated HP bar that makes every encounter against one a mammoth fight.
Then secondly, these big brutes are actually incredibly mobile, but with the caveat of usually being stuffed into a tiny little room or environment, meaning that you’ll not only be fighting against one of these big grey blobs, but also against your own camera as it frantically tries to stay locked to this beast, often making the fight guesswork as your vision is compromised. So, unlike a lot of enemies on this list, these enemies aren’t annoying because they are tough; they are annoying because they are no fun to fight, and they take forever to go down.
6Blistered Strays
Dogs inSoulsgames are notoriously annoying enemies across the board. Not necessarily because they are tough, but because they tend to come in large groups that can overwhelm you, and they tend to be very aggressive when they spot you, giving you no time to heal during the encounter. However, within the annoying dog Souls enemy sub-genre, the Blistered Stray is a dog enemy that does more than most to aggravate the player.
This is because you get all the annoyances of a standard Stray enemy, but with the added caveat thatyou’ll also gain blood loss build-up every time this enemy sinks its teeth into you, and considering there’s never just one Blistered Stray, but usually a pack, that blood loss can build up fast. Oh, and to top it all off, these Blistered Strays tend to come as a package deal with Blistered Giant Crows, which is an enemy type that is very unlucky not to make it on this list itself. So, if you see a pack of blistered doggos, just keep a safe distance if you know what’s good for you.
5Horned Warriors
There’s been no mention of any DLC enemies to this point, so let’s fix that right now with the Horned Warriors, a knight variant introduced inShadow of the Erdtree,which players will probably find first when exploring theBelurat Tower Settlement legacy dungeon. It goes without saying that pretty much all knight enemies are tough to deal with as they hit hard and usually have relentless melee attacks, and the Horned Warrior is no exception.
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This enemy will come at you with a vengeance and will hit insanely hard if you get caught in their flurry of melee attacks. However, aside from their brute strength, the reason why these enemies are so annoying is thatthey have such high poise that, realistically, you won’t be able to stagger them. They also give you little to no time to heal, and when you reach Enir Llim, you’ll encounter super-charged frost and lightning versions of these enemies that are an even sterner test of your skills.
4Revenants
When it comes to horrifying grafted enemies withinElden Ring, Revenants are by far the most grotesque and annoying of these enemies by a distance, and that includesGodrick the Graftedhimself. On a base level,these enemies are tough to fight due to their multitude of appendages, allowing them to stand before you and flail madly to deal huge damage and stagger you in seconds flat.However, if you think you’ll be able to escape them easily, or get a breather, think again, as these enemies can also use dimensional portals to disappear and reappear right on top of you.
They are also insanely fast, and they puke poison at you if you try to keep a safe distance from them. So, as far as irritating mechanics go, they offer the full package.
Weirdly, due to their weakness to holy incantations, the best way to take them down is actually to use healing spells, so there’s a little hint for anyone struggling with them, but even if you heed my advice, you’re still in for a tough time when fighting this hideous creature.
3Ancestral Followers
I love the Soifra River inElden Ring, and it’s easily one of the most beautiful gaming locations that I have ever had the pleasure of exploring. Nothing could have marred the experience of discovering this hidden underground area for the first time, but the Ancestral Followers came pretty close, let me tell you.
I want to be more specific, as the melee versions of these enemies are tanky, but not all that awful to deal with.
However, the bow-wielding versions of these enemies are pure evil in video game form.
What makes these enemies one of the most aggravating foes you’ll encounter inElden Ringis the fact thattheir ranged attacks simply never miss, meaning that unless you are behind some cover, it doesn’t matter if you’re running and zig-zagging around. They will always hit you, usually stagger you, and this will allow the melee Ancestral Followers to close in and bonk you into oblivion. It’s essentially battling against an enemy that has an aimbot turned on, and their projectile’s range is ridiculous, too. So, plan your route to them carefully, or their eagle eye will humble you.
Our runner-up is a new enemy introduced in theShadow of the ErdtreeDLC, and while there aren’t many places where you will actually have to contend with these new enemy variants,the limited time you spend in the Finger Ruins of the Shadow Realmwill be memorable for all the wrong reasons thanks to these guys. These enemies, much like the Ancestral Followers listed above, aren’t all that tough but have a ranged attack that makes them a nightmare to deal with.
These creatures have the ability to cast a long-range and annoyingly accurate spell at the player, which holds them in place, allowing the Lamprey to teleport to your location and perform a grab attack that will usually see you part ways with about half your health bar. Basically, these enemies work the same way as the notoriously annoying Mindflayer enemies fromDemon’s Souls;only these guys can trap you from miles away. It’s a blessing that these things are confined to the Finger Ruins, but even that’s enough to see them feature high on this list.
1Aged Untouchables/Winter Lanterns
Then, in our top spot for the most annoyingElden Ringmob enemy of all, we have the Aged Untouchables, the enemies that players will encounter as they are forced to engage in an awkward stealth section of the DLC that feels wildly out of place. It’s easily the most aggravating and slow-paced part of the whole DLC and game combined, and those at the heart of this irritating portion of the DLC are the Aged Untouchables, a brand of enemy that is billed by the game as impossible to kill.You won’t be able to escape from them if they see you, and it inflicts madness build-up rapidly.
They are essentially the gatekeepers that force you to engage in this unwanted and awkward stealth sectionif you want to reach Midra’s Manse, and if you choose to ignore the warnings and take them on, they will kill you in seconds flat. Skilled players may have figured out that they can be killed if you manage to parry them, but it requires perfect timing and a lot of nerve to pull off. These enemies are the poster boys for what stands as one of the worst-designed areas in FromSoft history, and that alone is more than enough reason to crown them the most annoying enemies inElden Ringby a landslide.
