No, I didn’t throw the controller. Didn’t pull my hair. Didn’t scream at the T.V. I did none of that, but like a crazed gambler, I played until I win. During the battle, I called her the stinking scarlet rotten flower as a coping mechanism to relieve my frustration. The truth is she didn’t stink. She was like an alluring perfume scent that stunned me into a relationship for two whole days. She moved around with her blade elegantly with one swipe. I was obsessed. I kept thinking: “I am almost there if I keep trying,” but the result was the same. It was until I decided to re-strategize, reallocate my stats, level up, and went on a hunt for moon spells that I started to have a glimmer of hope. After all, I was facing a boss who claimed to “have never known defeat.”

For such an intimidating statement, I was beginning to lose hope despite my best effort to dodge and cast spells. Skills can only get us so far until we need luck on our side. If I can recall, medieval writers personify luck and called it Fortune. When things go wrong, we blame Fortune, but when things go right, we thank her. I felt the same way about this boss fight. I tried to beat the boss several times to the point I started daydreaming during the first phase of the battle because I knew her patterns quite well. In the second phase not so much because I was panicking. To defeat any boss in the soul-like games, it’s about natural reflex and timing! And unlike other games, if you die in the 2nd phase, you have to start all over again from phase 1 of the boss fight!  That’s why I said this boss fight was almost pure luck. When she consecutively bloomed twice in the 2nd phase, I knew it was my chance to blast her with a powerful spell (Thank you Fortune for being on my side).

There were two phases in this boss fight and what made it so difficult was that not only was she quick with her blade, but she also regenerated her health by attacking the player. In other words, she absorbed the player’s health. It was like one of those soul-sucking relationships where the person took more than give. Not a pleasant feeling. So, I had to really learn how to play this game. I ended up defeating her by using only two important spells: Stars of Ruin in the first phase because it auto-locks the target and Comet Azur in the second phase because of its high damage. The rest was up to me on how well I dodged and blocked her attacks! For talismans, I equipped Radagon Icon, Primal Glinstone Blade, Edtree’s Favor +1, and Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman. My armor didn’t really make a huge difference whether I had it on or not, although I did wear something light so that it was easier to move around and dodge. One hit took a lot of damage. Meanwhile, my summoned Ash War Mimic Tears (a spirit that cn assist you in battle) didn’t take as much damage. I wonder how that is possible when the Ash War Mimic Tears is a replicant of my character. I didn’t use her though–instead, I used Black Knife Tiche who has been upgraded to Plus 10. As for the shield, I equipped Carian Knight’s Shield upgraded to +23 (which I am pretty sure there are better shields but I don’t want to waste materials because upgrading items can be scarce) and my staff/weapon Carian Regal Scepter upgraded to its max.

When I see videos of people fighting Melania effortlessly, I am not fooled by the thought that they probably struggle a bit in their first few tries. It must have taken the player several tries until they got pretty good at it. No damage hit? Yeah, it requires skills, but also a lot of practice too. While that is fun and game to some people, I definitely don’t want to deal with her again in NG + ! I am just happy that I finally learned how to play the game, and that in itself is an achievement! On my next round, my journey with Elden Ring would be less rocky and more pleasant. I hope! Who am I kidding? The bosses would just get harder on NG+!!!