There are some seriously infuriating bosses in Elden Ring, and knowing how to beat the Godskin Apostle makes fighting one of them a bit better. More importantly, it lets you take on a late-game fight with more confidence, even if the fight is never easy.
Where to Find All Godskin Apostles in Elden Ring
You fight the Godskin Apostle several times over the course of an Elden Ring playthrough. Once in the Windmill Village in the northern Altus Plateau, another time at the bottom of the Caelid Divine Tower, and a third time in the aforementioned Godskin Duo fight.
The easiest of the three encounters is in the Altus Plateau, largely due to how simple the boss is to reach. The Divine Tower Apostle is something of a nightmare, as is the Duo version, but all three work exactly the same way. They all use the same attacks, change phases at the same points, and have the same resistances and weaknesses.
Godskin Apostle Tips: Weaknesses and Strategies
First and foremost, all Godskin Apostles are weak to Sleep, Bleed, Poison, and Scarlet Rot. The only thing that can’t affect them is Madness. Enter these fights armed with Sleep Arrows, Sleep Pots, and a Bleed weapon like Scavenger’s Curved Sword or a katana or claws. You just have to stay alive long enough to do the damage.
All Godskin Apostle Phase 1 Attacks
Each Godskin Apostle fight has two phases. Phase 1 features more complex attacks because the boss is more aggressive, and its attacks are generally trickier to avoid. Phase 2 has more powerful attacks, but if you know how to avoid or punish them, it’s the easier part of the encounter.
The phase transition happens at 60-70% health, depending on how much damage you can deal per attack. The boss rises into the air, covers itself in black flames, and generates a small AoE when it lands. While the Godskin Apostle technically maintains its full Phase 1 moveset in Phase 2, it’s much more likely to use new attacks over the ones you’ve already learned.
Poke and Pull
This attack is a quick stab with the curved part of the boss’ weapon, followed by the Apostle pulling the sharp edge back toward itself. If you get hit by the first poke, the pull is much harder to avoid. Roll backward and be far enough away that the second hit doesn’t land or roll to the side several times to avoid the tracking.
Double Poke
The Godskin Apostle uses the pointed end of its weapon to stab twice in quick succession. Like the poke and pull, avoid this attack by moving to the side, but beware of the tracking. If you get overconfident, you’ll get hit. Roll until the attack finishes or you step far enough away that the pokes can’t reach you.
Four Hit Spinning Combo
With a quick flourish, the Godskin Apostle twirls its weapon in its main hand, then swings twice across its body. It attacks a third time in the other direction before attacking one final time after bringing its weapon over its head for a large chop. Like the rest of the boss’ attacks, these track you no matter how much you try to dodge. Going backward takes advantage of the lack of momentum.
Jumping Slam
As the name suggests, the Apostle jumps high into the air and comes down in a powerful slam. There’s also a small AoE when the boss lands, but if you roll away before the Apostle hits the ground, you avoid any damage and have plenty of time to counterattack.
Propeller Spin
Probably the silliest attack in the Godsin Apostle’s repertoire, it pushes its weapon arm forward and spins the thing around like propeller blades. Each hit doesn’t damage much but stay in the blender, and you’ll be blended.
Three Hit Combo into Slam
This attack is a bit tricky because it looks like the Apostle is about to start up the propeller but instead swipes across its front three times before doing a twirl in the air and slamming down on you. The first two swings are particularly fast, and you’ll probably get hit by the second if the first connects. You can dodge away to avoid the third, but you’ll need to dodge a second time or run backward to avoid the slam.
Fireball
The Godskin Aposlte only uses its fireball attack for two reasons: you’re too far away or you’re using an item while being too far away. The attack triggers the frame your healing or item use animation starts, so it might as well be an input read. However, if you’re not right in the boss’s face, you can avoid the ball by dodging to the side.
Godskin Apostle Phase 2 Attacks
Black Flame Tornado
When the Apostle starts spinning its weapon over its head, start running. The Black Flame Tornado has a large radius, can confirm multiple hits, and the final explosion can easily one-shot you. You can either roll-spam your way out or start running the minute you see the attack start. Don’t try to tank it. I’ve done that for you. It doesn’t go well.
Torso Extension Swings
One of three snake-y attacks in the Godskin Apostle’s arsenal, it first lengthens its torso vertically, then takes two big swings around itself with its weapon. Its extended torso gives it a reach advantage, but you can actually roll into the attack to avoid it and be right up on the boss when the attack ends, and the recovery frames begin.
Torso Extensin Slam and Swing
After lengthening its torso again, the Godskin Apostle slams the pointy end of its weapon into the ground in front of itself, then uses the weapon as a pivot point to hurl its lower body forward, ending the whole motion with a 360-degree swing. Like the other extension attacks, rolling into the torso when it lands is free damage.
Torso Extension Propeller
This attack is the one you want in the second phase. The Godskin Apostle spins up the propeller after lengthening its body, then spins it toward you. Here’s the kicker, though: you can dodge through the propeller and wail away at the boss’s stationary waist and feet for a good four or five seconds, and there’s nothing it can do to stop you. It doesn’t even have a counterattack to queue up. It just eats the damage.
And with that, you know everything the Godskin Apostle can throw at you and its (many) weaknesses. Hopefully, you’ll have a better time taking on this sometimes frustrating boss. For more Elden Ring content, check out our guides hub.
