After surviving the initial fun then frustrating cycle, I finally fought my way to the Lies of P Ending. Some of those later bosses really tested my patience. The final boss took me more tries and prep than most of those other bosses combined.
In the end, I’m glad I stuck with it. That satisfying revenge to finally defeat the final boss was quite the rush.
Bosses are all About Preparation
I was actually surprised at the spectrum of boss difficulties throughout the game. There are several that felt like they were impossible to beat, then others I defeated on the second try. Some of that difference came down to the Bastard build I chose, but the majority come down to preparation.
Fear Turns to Fun
I still remember the fear of facing the building sized, “Puppet of the Future”. The large wrecking balls appendages looked menacing. That’s where the preparation came into play. I stocked up on anything shock related to deal extra damage.
The variety of stepping and sweeping attacks decimated me the first two times. That’s when I realized it’s true weakness, it’s size. With such a huge frame, it was slow moving. After I stuck close to its legs, I did a ton of damage.
Another time or two it took to time dodges when it tried to stomp me, then I decimated it. That same strategy was so effective for my build. I actually destroyed 2 more, back to back, later in the game without dying. Equipment and strategy wins in this game every time.
Salamander Dagger Slashing to the Lies of P Ending
My key to victory for the second half of the game revolved around the Salamander Dagger. There were so many fleshy, non-puppet enemies that the dagger’s fire cooked quick. Using the Fable Arts powered up the flames even more.
Fallen Archbishop Andreus, for example, was a two phase boss monstrosity. Not knowing about the second phase, I gassed myself out in the first one. There just wasn’t enough health left for me to survive the second phase.
On the second try though, my flaming blade just burned through that first phase. It obviously helps that I summoned the Specter to distract the boss, so I could backstab. All that fire ensured I had plenty of resources and the Specter with decent health for phase 2.
I thought the second phase was going to kill me many times due to the two headed creature. There was no longer a back to stab, but I did fight a weakness. While one head fought the Specter, I could easily attack in between the two heads. Easy kill.
I Hate the Black Rabbit Brotherhood
The Black Rabbit Brotherhood was the bane of my Lies of P existence. I had more failed attempts to defeat them than all the previous bosses up to that point, combined. The big brother’s big swings dealt so much damage. I learned timing for most of them after all the failures.
I absolutely hated how he could lunge at me with a big overhead swing. Despite my dodge attempts, it’s like he could practically teleport to me. That would be hard enough, but then there were the other brothers. I had to knock each of their health down enough to get them out of the arena.
It’s like taking down 3 health bars before even touching the boss’s health. Lucky for me, the Specter distracted them and my key was backstabbing from the right spot. Once I did that, I’d deal fatal hits to do a ton of damage.
At some points, I even grabbed them with the Puppet Strings legion arm to separate them from the big brother. It took too many attempts for me to effectively knock off the 3 smaller brothers quick. Even after that, the big brother gave me issues.
If only I spent many of those early failed attempts practicing the Perfect Guard on the big brother. It took me several more attempts to string enough guards together to stagger and kill the big brother. That was a rush with a fist pump and then me throwing the middle finger in the air.
That rush definitely ended when a few chapters later, I had to fight them all again. That time it was practically all at the same time, but I survived, after a dozen failures.
Laxasia the Complete, so Close to the Lies of P Ending
There were other bosses that gave me trouble, like the King of Puppets (Romeo phase, specifically), but Laxasia was something else. Phase one I was able to clear the first time out, but phase two she’s just too fast. Her shock attacks decimated me.
The Specter could gain her attention when I dodged away enough, but he did not survive long. That when I learned to truly love the Friendship Cube Stone that allowed me to heal the Specter. That helped me get further, but still not enough.
I tried stocking up on a ton of throwables to keep my distance. That helped a lot more, but not enough to put me over the top. Buying and equipping the Perfection Grindstone was the final piece. With that activated, every block was a perfect one for a short time.
With that I activated it right at the start of phase 2. I did pretty well at keeping her attention, so I could perfectly block her balls of lighting. Redirecting those back to her did a ton of damage. I had to dodge a ton to get her to attack the Specter instead of me.
Once there though, I lobbed my throwables, then backstabbed her into a staggered state. Delivering the fatal blows finally put me over the top. To say I was happy is an understatement after so many failed attempts. It also hyped me up, knowing only one big boss left.
Lies of P Ending with Manus, the Hand of God
When I finally reached Simon Manus, I was excited to be so close to the end of my journey. What followed was hours of frustration and at least a thought of uninstalling the game. The whole Manus fight is the perfect example of how bad equipment and/or strategy can waste a ton of time.
The first attempt gave me a false sense of security. I cleared the first phase with resources left and the Specter alive. That phase 2, though, tested my patience more than any boss in any game I’ve played. That’s not hyperbole, but it’s also my fault.
Those phase 2 close up attacks dealt so much damage and added Disruption. I changed equipment to counteract that, but it was still not enough. After deciding on a long distance strategy, I stocked up on throwables. For my build, that was mostly a mistake
Monotonous Ergo Farming
After so many failed attempts with throwables, I burned through my Ergo to buy more. I had to resort to going to the Malum District Red Lobster to Ergo farm. After killing the creatures inside, I’d go activate the Stargazer to reset the enemies and do it all again.
That was the perfect location since the merchant I wanted was upstairs there. I went through this cycle an embarrassing amount of times. While the throwables kept failing, I started farming more Ergo to buy upgrades to my Vitality and Advance.
Those were expensive, so imagine doing this cycle dozens of time. Not exactly fun. It got worse because I ran out of the Friendship stones I use to heal the Specter. I unlocked the ability to use 2 stones, so it took twice as long to prep for the next run.
I found myself farming Ergo to buy booster shots for the Gold Coin Tree. Those would speed up the slow coin growth so I could buy more stones. That took a few more farming cycles, then I’d go back for my cycles to stock up on throwables.
Playing the Right Way to the Lies of P Ending
I was the definition of insanity by doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different result. After a days break from the viscous cycle, I finally resolved to try a different weapon. That’s when I finally went back to fetch the Acidic Spear and upgraded it almost to max.
Any experienced Lies of P player would laugh at how late in the game I started using it. I clung to my flaming sword for far too long. I did a test run with no prep or Specter use to see how the weapon faired. The amount of damage I did on my own convinced me this was it.
Around that same time, I also finally learned how to use the Aegis legion arm properly. Again, it’s sad to think how late I learned all this. With my fully upgraded Aegis arm, I could do damage on block and do a charged counter attack. Thanks to the Krat Hotel dummies for the help training for that.
With the new weapon and legion arm knowledge, I did another few cycles of preparation. My first attempt with all the new skills and equipment did not go well, but got so close. I could have sneezed on Manus and defeated him, but I could not escape his hand of god attack in time.
So Close, So Many Times
It still pains me all the attempts where I was only a hit or 2 away. When I finally succeeded, it was sort of a kitchen sink approach. The Acidic Spear kept the damage trickling down with almost ever hit. My Aegis arm blocked hits I couldn’t dodge and let me counter attack.
Those 2 things helped me fly through phase 1, which let me save both Friendship stones to heal the Specter. I still kept some throwables to toss while the Specter had his attention. After that, it was my tried and true backstabbing, while the Specter took damage.
I was lucky to inflict enough damage before the Specter died. It was then a few well placed Aegis counter attacks and I staggered him. Once I hit him with those staggered blows, I kept swinging. He was just a few hits away when he fell to the ground and I wasn’t chancing him getting up. I used all my stamina to deliver the final blows.
After all those agonizing hours, my revenge was complete. As frustrated I felt before the fight, it was such a great rush to finally defeat him. I’m not ashamed to admit I cursed at and taunted him through my screen. He’s not real, but it really made me feel better.
What’s Next After the Lies of P Ending
Based on choices I made, I skipped the final “secret” boss and I’m totally fine with it. I was completely fine doing my victory lap and moving on. What really peaked my interest was the very end where a certain set of ruby red shoes were teased. Not sure what that means for the future, but I look forward to finding out.
After all the cycles of fun followed by frustration, I’m glad I stuck with the game. It’s a beautifully dark game that is very hard, at least until I learned to properly use all the tools available. It gives me a ton of confidence that I will enjoy Elden Ring when I finally play.
Although I’m glad I finished, I can’t exactly recommend it to everyone. Patience is a must to actually enjoy the game. That goes hand in hand with adaptability. The faster I was able to adjust for the various weaknesses, the better time I had. It’s not for everyone. I’ll definitely play more games like this.
For now, I think I’ll move onto something a little brighter and definitely easier.