Much of what you’re meant to know about boss combat you learn from Margit. His attacks are slow, their windups long, and his damage, while significant at the beginning, is nothing compared to what’s waiting deeper into the game.
The inexperienced or unprepared are unlikely to have an easy time with Margit either way, so we put together this Elden Ring boss guide on approaching a tough introductory fight against Margit, The Fell Omen so you can get past him to the real meat of Miyazaki’s latest.
How to Beat Margit The Fell Omen in Elden Ring
The first question when fighting Margit is: “How much exploring have you done?” Those who beeline it straight to his boss arena in Stormveil Castle, especially on a first playthrough, are liable to have their Tarnished pounded into the dirt. Use our where to go first guide for plenty of tips about the path you should take before facing the Margit, The Fell Omen.
Margit will need to die at some point, so when the time comes, here are his attacks, divided by phase. Remember that all his staff attacks can be parried with the right timing.
Margit The Fell Omen Phase One Attacks
Phase one of this Elden Ring boss fight is slow, offering ample ability to learn and experiment with different attack patterns, strategies, and loadouts. Margit will still punish missed attacks and healing, but not nearly as much as he does in his second phase.
Attack 1: Lunge with Windup
Margit will bring his staff behind his head in preparation for a big swing. He’ll hold it there for about three seconds or so, then lunge forward. He’s able to cover about half of the arena with this attack, so spacing is less important than being able to dodge, block, or parry at the right time.
The actual swing of this attack happens when Margit has almost closed the distance entirely and is right up against you, so deal with the attack in the split second before it strikes.
Attack 2: Dagger Slash and Throw
Margit pulls out golden energy daggers and throws two in quick succession. He will sometimes pull out the dagger for a quick slash, followed by jumping backward and throwing a single dagger.
He uses either version as a heal punish, so backing up and using a Crimson Flask is liable to see Margit throw daggers to either interrupt the heal or make it essentially worthless.
The up-close slash is particularly fast, so responding to it is all about predicting it’s coming as opposed to reacting to it. Being directly in Margit’s face is an excellent way to have this attack come out, so expect it should the fight be face to face.
Attack 3: Jumping Slam
The easiest attack in Margit’s arsenal to avoid, he’ll jump high into the sky and slam down after about a second and a half of hang time. The invincibility frames on a medium or fast roll are more than generous enough to avoid this attack, so dodge right when Margit is about halfway to the ground.
Attack 4: Tail Swipe
Margit will spin around quickly and swipe his tail behind him to smack anything back there away. This attack has about a half-second windup, then completes quickly. The damage here isn’t severe, but don’t be at Margit’s back for too long, or he’s liable to swipe away.
Attack 5: Two-Three Hit Combo
This set of attacks varies between a two- and three-swipe combo with the staff. There’s no telling which it will be until after the second attack. Margit’s swings are standard affairs, left to right, so wait until the second completes before continuing to dodge or block or choose to attack.
Attack 6: Standing Slam
Margit reaches out with his staff and slams the ground a great distance in front of him. This attack has a small AoE but deals significant damage and knockback and could send unsuspecting victims off the edge of the arena. Rolling back is dicey, as bad timing fails to avoid the shockwave — dodge to the side and toward Margit or block as necessary.
Attack 7: Wide Swing
Used on its own or as a combo-ender, this attack covers a full 180 degrees in front of Margit. It’s got unexpected reach, so don’t try to avoid it without blocking or rolling. Like all his other staff swings, it can be parried.
Margit The Fell Omen Phase Two Attacks
Beyond the additional attacks in Phase 2, the biggest change is Margit’s aggression. Where before he was content to attack every few seconds with time in between, now it’s a constant onslaught. Openings to heal are brief and will take time to learn, as he now has two new weapons at play: a hammer and a sword.
Margit, The Fell Omen’s second phase makes use of all the Phase 1 attacks with much less recovery and downtime, adding the new ones liberally and without warning.
Attack 1: Huge Hammer Slam
Margit opens the second phase with this attack, summoning a huge golden hammer and going even higher in the air than his first phase slam before crashing down in a massive AoE. This attack has significant hangtime and offers plenty of opportunities to dodge just as he’s about to land.
The kicker here is Margit sometimes adds this move to the end of combos, so the swing where he draws the golden hammer could be enough to finish off low-health players.
Attack 2: Sword swings
Exactly as noted, Margit will sometimes simply swing his sword and follow it up with a staff attack, sometimes not. The attack is quick but has a notable, if short, windup, giving time to avoid it. If he adds anything to it, rolling backward or directly to the side might cause the attack to hit anyway as the hitbox lingers, so be mindful of your spacing.
Attack 3: Three-hit Sword and Staff Combo
Margit has two variations of this combo. One opens left to right with the staff, and one opens right to left with the sword. Both are easy enough to dodge or block, and the staff attack is slow enough that it’s possible to sight parry with a bit of practice. It’s the five-hit combo you need to watch out for.
Attack 4: Five-Hit Sword and Staff Combo
The hardest combo in Margit’s arsenal to deal with begins with a slowly-wound staff swing that quickly evolves into a flurry of sword and staff attacks. It’s an easy combo to see coming, as the windup is very specific. The hard part is dodging the final two swings.
Avoiding the first will allow the second to connect and vice versa. The best way to avoid this combo from Margit is to not be in range at all. When it starts, back away quickly by any means or pull up a shield and don’t put it down.
Attack 5: Staff-Hammer One-Two
This attack sees Margit wind up his hammer and staff for a second and a half or so, then quickly swing with both in succession. The staff portion is deviously fast, and dodging it requires a particular timing; if the first attack hits, the second will as well. Incorrectly rolling the first swing might avoid initial damage, but the hammer could come back at the wrong time for a much larger chunk of it.
Attack 6: Single Hammer Swing
Margit makes a single overhead swing with his hammer. It’s fast but not nearly like some of his other attacks. The issue is it can come out at any time if he’s at close or mid-range, so be mindful of it. The attack’s windup is different from the dagger slash, but the speeds are pretty similar.
Those are all of Margit’s attacks in detail. Armed with this knowledge, hopefully, this becomes a more manageable boss fight. There’s no way to teach roll timing’s through text, and there will be death and frustration learning every little detail about this fight. Patience and perseverance are key, as they are for the rest of Elden Ring and any Souls-like.
Being able to power stance your weapons could give you an edge against Margit, The Fell Omen. Check out our guide on how to do it. Ensuring you’ve explored enough is important, too, so read our fast travel guide to learn how to get around the Lands Between efficiently. For more tips, head over to our official guides page.
