Elden Ring Commander Niall Boss: Use This Trick To Take Him Down Easily

Transform one of Elden Ring’s most demanding encounters from overwhelming to achievable with a single strategic adjustment.

Elden Ring consistently delivers brutal boss encounters, particularly in multi-enemy battles during the latter stages. Numerous formidable challenges await as you progress toward your final confrontation in the Lands Between, but Commander Niall stands out as exceptionally taxing. Stationed at Castle Sol’s peak, he protects a crucial Haligtree Medallion fragment required for accessing significant optional content, making him essential for completionists and players seeking ultimate skill tests.

Elden Ring: The Shadow of the Erdtree, the game’s sole expansion, has launched, offering extensive guidance resources. Consult our comprehensive Elden Ring and Shadow of the Erdtree guides hub for resources including the complete world map, top-tier weapon recommendations, comprehensive boss strategies, and additional essential content.

Bewitching Branch

Similar to Commander O’Neil in Caelid, Commander Niall calls spectral reinforcements during combat. However, his twin knight summons demonstrate heightened aggression and substantial durability. The confined battlefield severely restricts healing opportunities, compounded by Commander Niall’s tracking capabilities with expansive area-of-effect assaults.

While persistence, skilled evasion, and tactical placement can eventually overcome Commander Niall, the confrontation often feels unpredictably luck-dependent. To substantially improve your success probability, we present a technique that effectively makes the commander experience his own tactics.

The consumable Bewitching Branch enables charming Commander Niall’s spectral knights, compelling them to assault their summoner. This strategic reversal creates substantial maneuvering space while leveraging their offensive capabilities against the commander. Crucially, maintaining control of these converted allies doesn’t disable Spirit Ash summons—Mimic Tear proves particularly valuable in this scenario.

With spectral knights aligned to your cause and your selected Spirit Ash actively engaging, you can concentrate exclusively on maximizing damage output against Commander Niall. Given his sweeping assault patterns, maintaining distance while employing ranged options like sorceries, incantations, arrows, or projectile weapons effectively supports your allies in depleting his health pool. When employing this distancing strategy, remain vigilant for his leaping lightning kick, executing well-timed dodges before reestablishing safe positioning.

Timing proves critical when deploying Bewitching Branches. Wait until both spectral knights fully materialize and begin their approach. Target the dual sword-wielding knight first, as he poses the immediate threat. Execute the bewitching from medium distance—too close risks interruption, while excessive distance may cause misses. Successful conversion typically requires 2-3 seconds of uninterrupted casting, so ensure you have adequate space.

Multiple acquisition methods exist for Bewitching Branches. Initially, five branches become available for purchase at 1,600 runes each from the Nomadic Merchant positioned near Bellum Church within Liurnia of the Lakes. Should these prove insufficient or you desire stockpiling for future applications, crafting becomes necessary.

To manufacture Bewitching Branches, you must obtain Fevor’s Cookbook [3], provided by Gideon Ofnir at Roundtable Hold following your initial visit to Mohgwyn’s Dynasty Mausoleum. After securing the cookbook, each crafted Bewitching Branch demands Sacramental Bud x1 and Miquella’s Lily x1.

Sacramental Bud appears across various locations, with notable concentration surrounding the Church of the Plague in eastern Caelid. Unfortunately, unlike standard crafting components, it doesn’t regenerate through resting, preventing unlimited accumulation.

For optimal material farming, prioritize the Church of the Plague area where Sacramental Buds appear abundantly. Miquella’s Lilies primarily populate the Consecrated Snowfield and Haligtree regions. Consider combining branch acquisition methods—purchase the initial five while gathering materials for additional crafting. This approach ensures adequate supply for both practice attempts and the actual encounter.

Mastering the bewitching strategy requires understanding advanced combat synergies. When combining bewitched knights with Spirit Ashes, position yourself to create crossfire situations where Commander Niall must divide his attention. The Mimic Tear proves exceptionally effective because it mirrors your build and can apply additional status effects or spells.

Ranged attackers should prioritize spells like Rock Sling or incantations such as Lightning Spear that offer good tracking and damage. Melee specialists can capitalize on the distraction by employing jumping attacks or weapon skills that break posture. Blood loss builds work particularly well since both your attacks and the knights’ assaults can build up the effect simultaneously.

Avoid these common mistakes: attempting to bewitch knights too early before they fully spawn, positioning near walls that limit dodging options, or neglecting to monitor your Spirit Ash’s health. Many players underestimate Commander Niall’s second phase transition—when his health reaches approximately 50%, he gains lightning-infused attacks and increased aggression.

Preparation extends beyond just obtaining branches. Ensure your weapon is upgraded sufficiently, your Flask charges are maximized, and you have appropriate talismans equipped. The Greatshield Talisman helps mitigate his physical attacks, while the Arrow’s Reach Talisman benefits ranged strategies. Allocate at least 30-45 minutes for multiple attempt sessions, as mastering the timing requires practice.

No reproduction without permission：SeeYouSoon Game Club » Elden Ring Commander Niall Boss: Use This Trick To Take Him Down Easily Transform Commander Niall from impossible to manageable using Bewitching Branches and strategic positioning