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Dark Souls 3 player defeats one of its hardest bosses in one hit

Here's how.

Dark Souls 3 players who have reached the game's second half will no doubt remember Pontiff Sulyvahn, the dual-wielding cleric with an obnoxious habit of duplicating himself. But there's a way to slaughter this sadistic boss in only one hit, though it requires a witch's brew of buffs.

As seen in the video below, YouTuber neptunusequester managed to stack enough effects together to topple Sulyvahn in one fell swoop.

Cover image for YouTube videoDkS3: 1HKO Challenge - Pontiff Sulyvahn
Some critical attacks combine multiple strikes in one animation. This may look like two hits, but it's all part of the same attack.

So what's going on here? The details are still a little murky, but Reditter HolidayForHire has comprised a pretty good summation of what this pro player is doing.

First off, they're equipping the Red Tear Stone Ring, which adds 20 per cent damage when your HP is low. That's why neptunusequester intentionally gets hurt prior to the fight. Secondly, they're using the Dragon Torso Stone, a magic item that turns them into a dragon, granting a 10 per cent damage boost for five seconds.

Next up, they're using the Sunlight Straight Sword, which offers an 11.5 per cent physical damage buff, while the Deep Protection spell offers a five per cent boost to your damage output.

They've also equipped Yhorm's Great Machete, a bulky weapon with a weapon art Warcry that pushes enemies back. After parrying Sulyvahn they switch back to the Morion Blade, which offers an additional 20 per cent damage output when your HP is under 20 per cent. It's worth noting that they don't have the stats to actually use the Morion Blade in combat, but merely having it equipped still offers the perk.

Finally, they've ostensibly equipped the Hornet Ring, which boosts critical attacks (i.e. parries) by 30 per cent.

Neptunusequester further confirmed on Reddit that they were at Soul Level 70 when this video was recorded, though their build stats aren't clear.

There's also a couple of ring slots unaccounted for, so it's unclear exactly what concoction of buffs neptunusequester has mixed, but HolidayForHire estimated that it could offer them roughly three times the regular damage one would typically inflict. Combined with the fact that they're performing a critical attack, that sure brings a lot of pain!