How to Beat Black Knife Assassin: Boss Fight Guide

This is a guide on how to beat Black Knife Assassin, an optional boss in Elden Ring. Read on to learn more about Black Knife Assassin's strengths, weaknesses, attack patterns, and lore!

Black Knife Assassin General Info

Stats and Rewards

Black Knife Assassin
Weakness	Resistance	Immune
━	Holy Thrust	Bleed Scarlet Rot Sleep Poison Madness
HP	1001 (NG)
Affected By	Frost
Spirit Ashes Available?	Yes
Rune Rewards	1600 (NG)
Summonable NPCs	・D, Hunter of the Dead
Location	・Black Knife Catacombs, Liurnia of the Lakes ・Deathtouched Catacombs, Limgrave
Item Drops	・Black Knife ・Assassin's Cerulean Dagger ・Assassin's Crimson Dagger ・Black Knifeprint

Black Knife Assassin Location

Where to Find

Black Knife Assassin can be found in Deathtouched Catacombs, in the northernmost part of Limgrave.

How to Beat Black Knife Assassin

Tips for Beating Black Knife Assassin
Summon Spirit Ashes
Use light attacks
Keep your shield up
For invisible enemies: Equip the Sentry's Torch

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Ranged Strategy

Black Knife Assassin Boss Tips
Summon Spirit Ashes Right Away
Keep Your Distance

Summon Spirit Ashes Right Away

Summoning Spirit Ashes when you enter the room can help keep you safe while casting spells. Summoning Lone Wolf Ashes can tank damage while you safely deal damage. Because Black Knife Assassin only has single-target attacks, the wolves will overwhelm the boss.

Keep Your Distance

As a Sorcerer, utilize the spells in your kit to keep a good distance while dealing damage. The room is fairly large, so use that to your advantage. Black Knife Assassin's strength is in its speed, so don't let it use the dark to sneek up on you.

Melee Strategy

Black Knife Assassin Boss Tips
Use Light Weapons
Keep Your Shield Up

Use Light Weapons

Black Knife Assassin has a very fast movement speed, so you will likely struggle to land your attacks using a heavy hammer or strong attack. You don't need to go in for hard attacks anyway, as Black Knife Assassin has fairly low defense and health.

You don't want to leave yourself open when Black Knife Assassin gets close, as it can be very aggressive once the gap is closed.

Keep Your Shield Up

Black Knife Assassin's dagger isn't very strong, so its stabs and slashes can mostly be deflected with a well-timed block. You should still parry when it lunges with its dagger, but Black Knife Assassin tends to dash away after a few swipes, allowing you to recover stamina.

Black Knife Assassin Attack Patterns

Knife Stab

Black Knife Assassin pulls back quickly, then dashes forward with a stab. Easily avoided by dodging back or to the side.

Double Slash

A medium speed attack, the Black Knife Assassin does this move with only a little range of motion. If you've been keeping your distance, this attack likely won't land a hit.

Low Sweeping Slash

Black Knife Assassin drags its blade on the ground, spinning around once, then sweeping low to high. This is the most aggressive move in its arsenal, so watch for the telltale sparks on the ground.

Dashing Stab

A move where Black Knife Assassin shoots forward with its blade. Although one of its fastest moves, it leaves Black Knife Assassin open to back strikes.

Retreat

This move occurs frequently in between other moves, as Black Knife Assassin's style is to go in for a few quick attacks, then dash back. This move is extremely quick, so don't leave yourself open by using strong attacks or heavy weapons.

Elden Ring Related Guides

List of All Bosses

DLC Bosses

Main Bosses

Optional Bosses

Mini-Bosses

Hostile NPCs and Invaders