Elden Ring Ancestor Spirit Boss Guide

This guide explains how to reach, unlock and defeat the Ancestor Spirit boss in Elden Ring – attack types, mechanics and strategy!

How to unlock and get to the Ancestor Spirit

The Ancestor Spirit is located about halfway through the final section of the Siofra River by interacting with the corpse of the Hallowed Spirit after igniting all 8 fire obelisks throughout the area.

Ancestor Spirit boss Elden Ring - Fire Pillars

Each time you ignite a fire obelisk, one of the pillars on the staircase leading to the boss arena will also ignite.

Here is a map showing the locations of all 8 fire obelisks:

Ancestor Spirit boss Elden Ring - Pillar Locations

The green markers on the map show the locations of the 8 fire obelisks you have to light. Once they are all ignited, the horned remains will begin glowing and touching them will transport you to the boss arena.

Ancestor Spirit boss Elden Ring - how to spawn and wake the boss

Ancestor Spirit Boss Mechanics and Attacks Explained

This segment of the guide will explain all of the special attacks and moves of the boss and give you tips and recommendations on how to deal with them. If you like to, you can also check out the video walkthrough featured below. It’s from the perspective of a Spell Caster class archetype (Astrologer).

Antler Drag

The spirit will drag its antlers across the ground from side to side 3 times. The attack deals a fair bit of damage, but it doesn’t track you after the first hit. As a ranged, you can just roll back and start attacking. As a melee, you can try to get behind it by rolling forward in the direction the antlers are coming from. If you’re close enough already, you should be able to get a few attacks in before it does something else.

Ancestor Spirit boss Elden Ring - Anter Drag

Once the boss drops below half health, it may only do 2 swings and then get up on its hind legs to stamp down. I didn’t get hit by that attack, but it seems like it would do a lot of damage, so you probably want to dodge diagonally back and away so you don’t get hit by it stamping down. The Ancestor Spirit seems to only stand up on its hind legs if you’re still close by after the 2 swings are done.

Spiritfire Breath

The boss will periodically breathe blue flames onto the ground around it. Sometimes they’re directly beneath it, sometimes they’re to the side. As soon as you see that blue flame in its mouth, start backing away if you’re near it. As a melee build, I don’t think it’s wise to try and attack it during this unless you are already away from the flames and can tell where they’re going. You’re probably safer just waiting and guiding it out of the flames so you don’t have to worry about positioning.

Ancestor Spirit boss Elden Ring - Spitfire Breath

Sky Hopping

The Ancestor Spirit will periodically jump into the sky and hop around a little. If it has blue fire coming out of its mouth when it jumps, it will spew that fire onto the ground as it gallops through the air. You should be able to avoid it fairly easily, but make sure you’re positioned away from it when the boss lands so you don’t have to worry about it later. The boss always lands gracefully, not offensively, after breathing fire in the air.

If the Ancestor Spirit does not have fire in its mouth when it jumps, it will pounce on you when it lands. It’s pretty fast and difficult to dodge, though it doesn’t do a ridiculous amount of damage, so it isn’t a huge deal if you miss it. The boss always does 2 hops in the air before landing, so be prepared to dodge back as it comes down.

Charge Attack

Once the boss drops below half health, it will also charge you. This attack is similar to the antler drags, but it only swings the antlers once, it’s pretty fast, though it still doesn’t deal too much damage so it isn’t too big of an issue if you get hit. Dodging this attack is more about proper timing than direction.

Other Notes

The fight really feels like you’re shepherding a large animal around. You have to keep moving to stay away from the fire, especially as a melee, but the boss doesn’t stay far away from you. Furthermore, most of its attacks don’t track you very heavily, so as long as you keep your distance, you’ll be fine.

As an astrologer, I found that the boss frequently went out of range of my Great Glintstone Shard, so I often had to use Glintstone Pebble instead.

What Rewards you get for defeating the Ancestor Spirit

Defeating the Ancestor Spirit gives you 13,000 Runes and the Ancestral Follower Ashes. You also unlock the secret achievement for beating that boss.

How to get Ancestral Follower Ashes in Elden Ring

I hope you found my Ancestor Spirit Boss Fight Guide helpful. If you have a question about any of the boss mechanics or viable strategies to beat it, leave a comment below.

Check out the Elden Ring Guides collection we have here on VULKK.com. It’s continuously growing and ranges from Beginner Guides to Boss Guides to Tips and Tricks and more.

You can also take a look at this one: How to defeat Bosses in Elden Ring: a beginner’s guide. This is a comprehensive collection of tips to help you beat any boss in the game.