This is a boss guide for Rugalea the Great Red Bear in Elden Ring DLC Shadow of the Erdtree. Learn about Rugalea's weakness, location, and cheese strategies, as well as the best build against Rugalea here.

Rugalea the Great Red Bear Location

Located West of Ravine North Site of Grace

World View	Map Location

Rugalea the Great Red Bear can be found in a clearing a short ride west of the Ravine North Site of Grace in the Rauh Base.

Rauh Base Can Be Reached from a Cave to the North of Moorth Ruins

World View	Map Location

For players who don't have access to the Ravine North site of grace, you'll be able to reach its general area by going through a cave to the north of the Moorth Ruins in Scadu Atlus (marked by a headless statue of Marika).

Rugalea the Great Red Bear Weakness

Weak to Fire Damage

Like most bear enemies in Elden Ring, Rugalea the Great Red Bear is weak to fire damage. Weapons with granted Fire Affinity will be strong against Ralva. Unique weapons like Rivers of Blood, Blasphemous Blade, and Eleonora's Poleblade would also be great options to consider to use against Ralva.

List of All Fire Weapons

Susceptible to Sleep and Eternal Sleep

Rugalea's main status ailment weakness is Sleep and Eternal Sleep. Using Sleep will cause Rugalea to be momentarily staggered before getting up.

Eternal Sleep functions the same way as Sleep but it gives you a longer window to hit Rugalea while he's falling to sleep (roughly 8 seconds) which gives you plenty of time to deal a significant amount of damage to Rugalea.

Best Builds Against Rugalea

Weapons With Fire Damage Are Recommended

Rivers of Blood

Backhand Blade (Fire affinity)

Rugalea's main weakness is Fire Damage so consider gearing up and use weapons that can deal fire damage such as the Rivers of Blood and Blasphemous Blade. Standard weapons like the Backhand Blades can also be infused with fire Affinity to grant them fire damage on their attacks.

Fire Damage Incantations Are Strong Options

Catch Flame

Giantsflame Take Thee

Incantations that deal fire damage are also recommended if you're a spell caster. Incantations that are fast to cast such as Catch Flame are great options to consider. Giantsflame Take Thee is also a strong option if you can cast it in melee range to deal a huge bulk of damage to Rugalea.

Eternal Sleep is Recommended

Velvet Sword of St. Trina

Eternal Sleep Pot

The best way to trivialize Rugalea's fight is to put him to Eternal Sleep. Rugalea's resistance to Sleep is low which allows you to repeatedly use Eternal Sleep on it. Additionally, every Eternal Sleep trigger on Rugalea gives you around 8 seconds of free time to hit Rugalea as well as a free critical hit.

Rugalea the Great Red Bear Rewards

Rugalea the Great Red Bear Details
Runes	210000
Drops	・Roar of Rugalea
Spirit Summons?	Spirit Ashes Allowed
Gold Summons?	None

Rugalea the Great Red Bear General Tips

Tips for Beating Rugalea the Great Red Bear
Use Frost, Bleed, or Fire Ride Torrent for Poke Tactics Watch for Bestial Attacks Avoid her Second Grab Phase 2 Uses Lingering Attacks

Use Frost, Bleed, Fire, or Poison

Rugalea is highly susceptible to status debuffs like Bleed, Poison, or elemental damage from Frostbite or Fire attacks. Choose from a variety of weapons, spells, and incantations to take advantage of her lack of resistances.

Ride Torrent for Poke Tactics

Since Rugalaea's battle is in the open map, you can use Torrent to use hit and run tactics. Attack Rugalea then sprint away with Torrent and repeat to whittle down Rugalea's HP.

Watch for Bestial Attacks

Dodge Into Her Fury Swipes

When Rugalea uses its fury swipes (a move that consists of consecutive slashes), be sure to dodge into it instead of dodging away. Since the swipes have Rugalea moving forward, dodging into it will allow you to get under and away from the attack.

Dodge Roll Into Her Ranged Slash

Rugalea can shove its claw into the ground before swiping at you to do a ranged rock sling attack. Make sure to dodge roll into Rugalea when it uses this move since the ranged attack may still hit you if you roll backward and into it.

Jump During Her Quake Move

When Rugalea uses its ground slam move, it causes a small earthquake AoE to appear. If timed right, you can use jump to dodge the aftershock that come out of her quake move.

Avoid Rugalea's Second Grab

Rugalea has a move where she stands up and attempts to grab the player. It has a delayed animation which makes it easy to dodge. However, unlike the regular Runebear grab attack, Rugalea can attempt a second grab after this move.

Whenever she does a grab attack, dodge the first one but hold off on counterattacking. Instead, wait to see if she starts another grab animation before you start hitting her again.

Phase 2 Uses Lingering Attacks

Move Away During her AoE Roar

Once Rugalea is ready to transition to phase 2, she'll use an AoE roar that has a long duration. Be sure to keep your distance during the roar to avoid taking unnecessary damage.

However, do note that while she uses this as her phase 2 transition, she can still use this move during the rest of the fight so be wary and prepare to sprint away when necessary.

Dodge Into Rugalea to Avoid Lingering Claw Attacks

Rugalea's attacks will start to have wind effects that will trail behind her claw attacks. During this phase, it is much more important to dodge into Rugalea as these lingering winds can deal its own damage and may easily hit you if you roll sideways or away from the boss.

Elden Ring Related Guides

List of All Bosses

DLC Bosses

Main Bosses

Optional Bosses

Mini-Bosses

Hostile NPCs and Invaders