How to Defeat Decaying Ekzykes in Elden Ring

Want to defeat Decaying Ekzykes in Elden Ring?

Elden Ring is the latest title offered by FromSoftware. Like their other masterpiece, Elden Ring packs grueling gameplay paired with difficult and challenging bosses. 

Despite the tiring gameplay, Soulsborne games have seen success over the years. 

In Elden Ring, players will come across different Dragon bosses, which can be defeated to acquire Dragon Hearts and other valuable items. Some of them are part of the main storyline, while others are just optional challenges. 

Dragon Hearts in Elden Ring are key items to unlock different Dragon Incantations at various Dragon Communions. 

Besides, some of these Dragon NPCs in the game have special Incantations that can only be unlocked after killing them. 

Decaying Ekzykes is one of these dragons, and it is located west of the Cathedral of Dragon Communion Site of Grace in Southern Caelid.  Ekzykes sits in the middle of an open area that is surrounded by bounders, long branches, and trees. 

In this guide, we’ll show you how to defeat Decaying Ekzykes in Elden Ring. 

Let’s jump right in!

Decaying Ekzykes Overview

Like other major bosses, Decaying Ekzykes can be difficult to defeat if you are going in blind. Due to this, it is crucial to observe and learn its attack patterns so you can anticipate and avoid them. 

Fortunately, Decaying Ekzykes doesn’t have confusing abilities and attack patterns, unlike other Dragon NPCs. 

Stomp

Decaying Ekzykes love stomping on the ground, crushing anything under its feet. It is best to stay clear of this area whenever he starts the animation to stomp. To avoid this, simply roll away from the landing point as soon as Ekzykes makes a move. 

Tail Swipe

Another attack that you should look out for is Tail Swipe. This inflicts heavy damage if you get hit, which can cheap away a huge chunk of your HP. We recommend fleeing or dodging this attack as soon as you see its tail drawing back. 

You can also counter Tail Swipe by following Decaying Ekzykes’ legs as he turns and try to stay under him. 

Charge 

For this attack, Decaying Ekzykes will charge towards your direction and ram its head. However, its mobility is fairly limited, which makes this attack easy to avoid. The best way to counter it is to roll away as soon as he launches towards your direction. 

Flying Fire

Since Decaying Ekzykes is a dragon, it can fly and spew fire. However, Ekzykes spews out Scarlet Rot instead of flames, which is way more fatal and could kill you within moments if you get caught. 

As soon as Ekzykes starts to fly, run beneath him to stop the attack. If you turn fast enough as he comes back to the ground, you can land a few hits. 

Ground Fire

Besides Flying Fire, Ekzykes can also spew circular clouds of rot while staying on the ground. To avoid this attack, stay as far from the dragon as you can when you notice him aiming at the ground. 

This circular fog of Scarlet Rot can drain your health quickly, so it is best to move immediately if you want to live. 

Defeating Decaying Ekzykes

There are a few strategies that you can use to defeat Decaying Ekzykes in Elden Ring. However, what we are about to show you should work even for under-leveled players and anyone just starting out. 

For this strategy, you’ll need a two-handed weapon that has at least a +5 upgrade. It is also recommended to take on this fight while riding Torrent for increased mobility. 

To start, run straight from under his head towards his legs and attack 2 to 3 times or until you run out of stamina. After that, immediately run and create as much distance as you can from the dragon. 

Before running back towards the beast, make sure that it is not going to perform any flying or ground attacks that involve Scarlet Rot. 

Repeat this sequence until Decaying Ekzykes falls. 

That ends our guide on how to defeat Decaying Ekzykes in Elden Ring. If you have questions, drop a comment below, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.