Elden Ring Bosses in Order: Main and Optional Route

Elden Ring does not have one mandatory boss order. You need two qualifying progression rewards to enter Leyndell, Royal Capital, but several routes to those rewards and many major fights are optional. The sequence below is practical for a first playthrough. It does not imply that every listed encounter is required.

The map records 192 boss encounters in The Lands Between and 53 in the Realm of Shadow. The category includes field, dungeon, and major encounters, so its count is larger than the number of Remembrances.

Early game: Limgrave to Liurnia

Stormveil Castle is the clearest opening route. Margit, the Fell Omen guards the approach, and Godrick the Grafted is the major fight at the end. You can delay both while exploring the opening regions for levels, Flask Upgrades, Weapons, and Upgrade Materials.

After Stormveil Castle, move through Liurnia toward the Academy of Raya Lucaria. The Red Wolf of Radagon and Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon form the main academy sequence. The reward from the second fight unlocks rebirth, so this route remains useful even when it is not your only path toward the capital.

Open Bosses with Sites of Grace and search the boss name. Nearby graces show the correct approach better than a straight line across the map.

Major progression choices before Leyndell, Royal Capital

Starscourge Radahn in Caelid and Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy at Volcano Manor are major optional routes. You do not need to defeat every major opponent before entering the capital. Choose the route that matches your build and quest progress, then return for the others later.

That victory also changes access to part of the underground world. If that branch is your next goal, pan below the surface map to Nokron, Eternal City after the fight.

Capital, Mountaintops, and endgame

Once Leyndell, Royal Capital is available, the main sequence moves through the capital to Morgott, the Omen King. Mountaintops of the Giants then leads toward the Fire Giant and Forge of the Giants. Crumbling Farum Azula follows, with the Godskin Duo and Maliketh, the Black Blade on the route.

The final stretch in the changed capital proceeds through Sir Gideon Ofnir, the All-Knowing and Godfrey, First Elden Lord, including the second phase of that fight. It then reaches Radagon of the Golden Order and the Elden Beast. Some preceding encounters vary with access and exploration, but this is a useful backbone for checking story progress.

Use search for one exact name rather than keeping all 192 boss encounters visible at close zoom. Mark a fight found after completing it so optional dungeon Bosses do not mix with unfinished story milestones.

Optional major-fight routes

Malenia, Blade of Miquella, Mohg, Lord of Blood, Dragonlord Placidusax, the Regal Ancestor Spirit, Astel, Naturalborn of the Void, Lichdragon Fortissax, and other reward-bearing encounters sit on optional or quest-dependent routes. Their rewards can also appear under Key Items, so search the boss name when you want the arena rather than the item.

Treat each optional route as its own checklist:

• Pan below the surface map for Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum, Deeproot Depths, Nokron, Eternal City, and other cavern routes.
• Add Dungeons & Entrances when the boss is at the end of a cave, catacomb, or tunnel.
• Keep Sites of Grace visible to understand which side of a legacy dungeon the arena belongs to.
• Copy the selected marker link before leaving the map.

Realm of Shadow Bosses

The expansion has 53 boss encounters. Open the Realm of Shadow boss map and keep its progress separate from the base game. It has its own main route, optional interiors, field encounters, and late-game branches.

The expansion’s blessing system affects its difficulty curve, so add the progression-collectible layer when a fight feels ahead of your current exploration. The map shows placements. It does not prescribe a build or a mandatory order for optional fights.