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Of all Nightlords inElden Ring Nightreign, Caligo might have a real contention for the most cinematic and aesthetic fights in the entire game. Beautiful, deadly, and oh-so-fun, this highly enjoyable fight will tug at the heartstrings of any Souls fan and remind us all of our weakness for amazing dragon fights.
While this is not our first time engaging with an ice-themed dragon in the Elden Ring franchise, it is certainly the first time an Ancient Dragon has had such abilities. Bringing the might of some of the original game’s hardest dragon fights with a beautiful twist, this is one fight you’ll want to experience and best.
Total HP
36,700~
Caligo is an Ancient Dragon reskin with similar concepts, attack patterns, and weak points. As expected, the ice dragon isweak to fire attacks, but he’sresistant to Physical Slashing damage.
Like most dragons,his weak point is his head.However, it is a tiny and mobile target. Non-ranged characters may struggle with consistent damage.
For your preparations, you’ll want tokeep all of this in mind:
Recommended Characters
Because of Caligo’s susceptibility to ranged attacks,characters that can deal Fire damage with ranged attacksare some of the best picks for Caligo.
However,a team of ranged characters isn’t recommended.Rather, an ideal team should have two ranged characters and one frontline tank unit. Therefore,a team consisting of the characters below is ideal:
Guardian might be a great choice for the tank required to best Caligo, but he really suffers in mobility at times and cannot guard against Caligo’s Ice Breath attacks.
Recluse is a great pick for Caligo with the ability to do great Fire damage at range even when FP is short. By having teammates that carry Fire affinity weapons,Recluse can use Magic Cocktailto whip up some devastating attacks.
Like Ironeye, her ranged support means that she can usually stay out of the line of frost.Her great drawbacks are lacking status conditions and her frail nature, leaving her vulnerable to one-hit knockouts.
Ironeye canprovide ranged supportand canconsistently stagger Caligowith his Ultimate Art. As far as character selections go, Ironeye may just be the absolute best pick for Caligo.
As a mobile unit that can often avoid his tricky attacks but also tank the ceiling crash for Fog Cover,there is very little Ironeye is bad at in this fight.
Raider and Wylder can perform the same taskin different ways. As a tank that can also deal great damage and has decent mobility, they can serve asgreat frontline units against Caligo.
WhileRaider is more tanky, Wylder is a bit fasterand can chase Caligo around the arena with his grapple claw.
Wind-Up Tells And Attack Description
Suggested Counters
Ice Breath - Forward
Caligo shakes his head then lowers it. From his maw, he unleashes a powerful cone of Frost that covers the ground. This can be done in a straight line or in an arc, the same as normal breath attacks from other dragons. It leaves lingering ice.
Roll dodge twiceto the left or right to whichever edge of the cone is closest if the cone is straight. If the cone is in an arc,sprint away from the breath and roll dodge forward and throughif the breath reaches you.
Ice Breath - Down
Raising up onto his back legs, the dragon gathers Frost around his head before expelling a fog of cold downward that hits the ground and then slowly spreads out. It leaves lingering ice.
As you see the dragon rearing up,begin to back offa distance. If you start to see the fog getting close to you, eithercontinue backing off or roll-dodge forward and through.
Claw Swipes
Raising up his right arm as he rears and braces himself, Caligo lets out a two-hit swiping combination with his right arm. He will swipe once from the right and then back again to the left with the same hand.
Roll dodge twice, forward both times.
Tail Swipe - Frost
Caligo curls up and gathers Frost energy with his tail. After a full second, he either swings that tail in an arc around himself (the tail is horizontal) or whips it like a lash (the tail is vertical) toward his target.
As you see the tail lifting, watch to see the position of the tail. If horizontal,dodge forwardor sprint left or right behind the dragon. If vertical,sidestep.
Tail Swipe - Strike Combo
Like a whip, Caligo strikes behind him with his tail and then bends it inward. Quickly, he releases his tail for a swiping strike that also gives him momentum to sidestep away and face the attacker head-on. It may chain into a spinning ice attack in Phase Two.
Watch the tail as it is lifted andsidestep. Then,dodge forward and begin sprintingto catch up with the dragon. However,beware of a possible combo.
Fog Cover
Gathering himself, Caligo launches himself up into the air in a spiral. As he leaves the ground, a fog is generated to help him disappear from view (this fog deals no damage). During this time, an ice ceiling will be formed and then, after the fog dissipates, crashes down on the arena.
After Caligo disappears, try tohead toward the center of the arena.There is a circle right above where Caligo is standing, so run to him andstand beneath him.If you cannot reach him, roll in any direction just as the ceiling part crashes on you and hope for the best.
Walls of Ice
Like the Fog Cover attack, Caligo spirals into the air and disappears into fog. This time, waves of black energy can be seen in the fog itself. These indicate walls of ice being formed. After several seconds, Caligo disperses the fog and lets out a brutal wave of Freezing mist.
Look for the black energyandfollow them to their sourceuntil you find an ice wall.Stand behind the ice walland wait for the attack to expire. Then, run around the pillar remains tocatch up with Caligo.
Phase Two Only
Phase Two Transition:
Caligo begins to gather a great amount of blue Frost energy that swirls around him. After several seconds, he swings his right wing forward to deal damage against nearby foes and unleash a wave of Frost ahead of his wings. Then, he roars and spreads his wings on either side.
As he gathers Frost around himself, you may wish tokeep your distance. Let the transition play out to prevent unnecessary damage.Sprint to the dragon’s side, dodging through his wing attacks.
Roaring Wave
Letting out a massive roar, the dragon rears onto his back legs and shoots forth a devastating wave of Frost forward with a flap of his wings. He then crashes back down onto the ground, letting forth a second wave with a lunge attack.
As he rears and roars, begin sprinting either left or right. Sidestep through any missing distance as he shoots the Frost wave. If close enough to fear his second wave, dodge roll to the side again.
Spinning Ice
Sliding away from attackers, Caligo gathers Frost in his maw and then unleashes it in a spinning attack that coats the whole battlefield. It leaves nodules of ice crystals that, after a time, explode.
Side step through if you’re in range to be hit by his body during his spin. After, back away from his spinning frost.Dodge roll through the mistif you have to.Keep your distancefrom any ice crystalson the ground.
Frozen Flight Assault
Charging forward, Caligo lets out a long roar before launching himself forward and up into the air. He begins to circle the arena, gathering stars and Frost into his wings. He then targets a single player and flies toward them, unleashing a barrage of ice crystals down onto them. He does this twice, crash landing and sliding on the final attack. Once stopped, he unleashes a third and final barrage of ice forward from his wings which last several seconds.
Keep locked onto Caligoduring this flight to watch his patterns. If he is targeting you,prepare to dodge roll to the sideas he comes in both times. During his final assault, everyone shouldbe prepared to doge into a safe area. The final barrage is not randomized, meaningthere are consistent safe areasonce you see the pathing for the barrage.
All of Caligo’s attacks are some mix of Frost and Physical damage. Although his moves are fairly uncomplicated and don’t have chains longer than three attacks,they can deal significant damage.
Even a single hit from Caligo can spell the premature end of a hunt for the unprepared.Characters like Ironeye and Recluse can be one-shotby certain moves.
To make the most of your preparations, we recommend youread the table above firstand then see their breakdowns in the sections below.
Attacks In Phase One
Phase One appears to always begin with the same attack: a frontal Ice Breath. To prevent getting stuck in Caligo’s first attack, most opening approaches should be spentsprinting diagonally to one sideso that a dodge out of the attack is easier.
Once you get close to Caligo,it’s time to start dealing damageand paying close attention to his attacks.
Caligo’s second Ice Breath version is noteworthy as one of the biggest risks to melee fighters against Caligo. When he begins to rear up, you shouldleave his melee entirely and sprint away.
Do not stick around to take unnecessary Frost damage early on in the fight. Likewise,reviving someone this close to Caligo can be a huge riskfor other teammates.
The biggest threat during Phase One for damage is Fog Cover. This attack will obscure Caligo on the map. While he is in the center, andyour goal should be to reach the circle in the centerto avoid damage, it is far more likely you will never reach it in time (unless you’re based like Wylder, maybe).
Your best hope is tomake sure that you have full healthand tododge roll as soon as the ice ceiling begins to collapse on you. It’s extremely tricky timing.
The second of Caligo’s fog attacks is thankfully much easier to deal with than the first. You simply have tohide behind the ice pillars.
To find those pillars, simplylook around for signs of black energy.They should look like they’re being pulled in one direction, sofollow themuntil you can see a pillar. Once the pillars are destroyed by Caligo’s attack, you should be safe to move again.
Attacks In Phase Two
In Phase Two,Caligo can perform any attack found in Phase Oneexcept his fog attacks, Fog Cover and Walls of Ice. However, he has a few new additions to his toolkit now.
His transition is frightening enough in its own right. Like many other Nightlord bosses,his transition is best handled at a distancerather than in the center of a frosty storm. After all, fights are best enjoyed when one is not a living popsicle.
It is more accurate to say that Caligo’s fog attacks can only be performed once. He likes to use his fog attacks early, so Fog Cover will always come first and in Phase One. However, there is a chance Walls of Ice can appear during Phase Two if his health is so rapidly reduced that he does not have time to perform it in Phase One.
Spinning Ice is an interesting mechanic that does even more zoning for the hazard-happy lizard. While you have tododge the freezing mist, you also have to beware of the several ice stones on the field.
Avoid the stones, keeping your distance until after they have burst.
Roaring Wave is a dangerous combination for this section of the fight because of its second attack. If you’re in front of Caligo,that second attack can be a forward lunge.
However, if you’re on the side of Caligo (especially if you’ve been hitting him during the first half and now have aggro),he can also perform his second attack to the side. When he performs this attack, you mustremain on your toesat all times.
And the final, most devastating attack in Caligo’s arsenal is his Frozen Flight Assault. It is never clear who exactly Caligo is targeting and it has a huge range, making sure thatthis move is a huge risk for the entire team.
To avoid it, you’ll have to keep your eyes on the sky.Keep lock-on engagedon Caligo and follow his movements. When he descends toward you,attempt to dodge to the side- mashing if you must.
When at last crashes to the ground, he’ll start unleashing a barrage of ice crystals on you and your team. Thankfully, these crystals are not random and fire at the same locations.Once you find a safe spot to dodge into, stay put!
Most Guardian builds cannot use their shield to block against Caligo’s crashing attack in Frozen Flight Assault. Do not attempt.
Tips For Defeating Caligo, Fissure In The Fog
The greatest risks during Caligo’s fight are Frostbite and arena hazards. To progress more easily in this fight,one of your priorities should be in minimizing Frostbite build-up.
Beyond avoiding the attacks explained above, there is also another great risk to consider:all of Caligo’s attacks leave traces of Frostbiteon the ground.
Incantations like Flame, Grant Me Strength can actually remove Frostbite effects. Likewise, hitting downed teammates with Fire affinity attacks can remove the effects as well.
Rather than bombard you with paragraphs of tips,we’ve taken the top five tipswe have and arranged them for you below:
With enough studying and tenacity, you will eventually melt the Fissure in the Fog. Your reward will be the best dragon experience of the game anda new Relic item: Night of the Miasma.
