Dark Souls 3: Ringed City - Slave Knight Gael, Church of Filianore, and Shira, Knight of Filianore boss fights
Our complete walkthrough and boss strategies to Dark Souls 3's final DLC.
The Slave Knight Gael boss, Church of Filianore, and Shira, Knight of Filianore boss fight follow on from the Shared Grave and Halflight, Spear of the Church boss fight section of the Ringed City DLC, with plenty of challenges, including both bosses and more, lying ahead.
This is the final part of the DLC, but if you need help with other parts of the Ringed City, then take a look at our Dark Souls 3: Ringed City guide and walkthrough hub for plenty more.
Slave Knight Gael and Church of Filianore
Just walk up the stairs, touch an egg, and watch a cutscene. Good times. Now you have a new bonfire… erm, and a new boss.
Head through the wastes, following the trail of destruction until you're face-to-face with Slave Knight Gael. He wants your dark soul, and you don't want to give it to him.
Treat the first phase of this fight as a dance. When he swings, dodge at the last moment and immediately swing back once. Don't get greedy, because he will catch you with his unpredictable swings if you do.
When he backs off, prepare for him to lunge at you - when he does, roll towards him and it should miss. If you mess it up, you'll be impaled and lose a good chunk of health. Same goes for his plunging attack. When you hear him scream, it means he's about to perform a flurry, but rhythmic rolls under each swing should see you right. Alternatively, rolling backwards works, so long as there's enough space behind you. When he does scream, you can get two or three extra hits in. If you need to use Estus, just do it when you'd normally swing, such as when he misses a lunge.
The second phase is much more difficult. His attacks now have a deadly energy wake, increasing his reach, and he also uses a crossbow and some energy projectiles.
For both of these, rolls to the left or the right will get you through. Be aware that the energy blasts act like boomerangs and will come back for a second go at you. When he's not using projectiles, get right up to him and match him blow-for-blow like in the first phase. You can use the thrones nearby for cover if you end up positioned as such.
One attack to watch is his downward swing, as it'll hit you again on the way up, so be sure to dodge twice for that. If you stay in close, the crossbow can be interrupted by attacks. Again, just swing once, then dodge. Don't be greedy. His second form is the easiest, once you nail his attack patterns.
Once you whittle him down to about a third health, he'll scream - get in a few hits, then roll back and away from a volley of death orbs. Oh, and there's lightning, and he's attacking you. There's a lot going on, but try not to panic. The principle is still the same: stay near him so you can stab him to death. Just be aware of the pyrotechnics. If there's a scorch on the floor, you're about to get zapped.
If he hunches up and starts muttering, get a couple of hits in, but back off after - he's about to do the same attack he did when he went into his third form. Get ready for the death orbs. He'll also lunge in for a powerful attack as the orbs begin to dissipate, so keep rolling until you're clear.
Shira, Knight of Filianore boss fight
Once you've beaten Gael, rest at the new bonfire, go spend your souls, then head back. Trek across the wastes parallel to where you came in and you'll enter a crumbled chapel.
Here you'll face Shira, a human enemy. Treat her as you would any dark spirit, and match her blow for blow. You might be tempted to stay at a distance because of her intimidating weapon, but you're better off staying in close, since her electric arrows are worse than being clobbered with her massive axe.
When you kill her, you'll be rewarded with a Titanite Slab and the Crucifix of the Mad King. If you now teleport back to the first DLC bonfire, the Dreg Heap, the old woman NPC should now be dead. Take the Old Woman's Ashes and you can give them to the shopkeeper at Firelink for more buying options.
You're all done with the single player part of the Ringed City, so now it's time to head into PvP with the spoils and show everyone what you're made of - or you can take a look at our page on all of the Ringed City's weapons, armor, and spell locations to make sure you haven't missed anything.