Elden Ring Nightreign Brings Back One Underused Mechanic Everyone Should Be Exploiting

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Despite how different the gameplay loop is and how some gameplay mechanics have been significantly changed, the game’s essence still revolves around offering a challenging experience to its players, putting them against tough bosses. In fact, aside from traditional bosses from Elden Ring and new ones designed exclusively for the title, developer FromSoftware revisited several of its prior games to retrieve enemies. There are several returning bosses in Elden Ring Nightreign that players may have already faced in games from the Dark Souls series, for example. One of these bosses is the Gaping Dragon, from the original Dark Souls.

Severing Limbs Returns With Elden Ring Nightreign

The Gaping Dragon’s Tail Can Be Severed

The return of the Gaping Dragon has prompted the return of a classic souls mechanic that hasn’t been seen in a while: severing limbs. As seen in a clip from a livestream made by content creator boss in Elden Ring Nightreign, BioticNova focuses on attacking the creature’s tail, and after a series of strikes, the Gaping Dragon’s tail is severed from its body, much like it did in the game it comes from.

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In addition to the fact that the Gaping Dragon’s tail is severable, like in Dark Souls 1, it drops a weapon once this is accomplished. In the original game, this boss drops the Dragon King Greataxe once its tail is severed. However, in Elden Ring Nightreign, the Gaping Dragon seems to drop a weapon called Cold Rusted Anchor – at the time of writing, it’s uncertain if this drop is randomized or if it is fixed. Even so, this marks the return of a classic souls mechanic that has not been seen in years in FromSoftware’s games.

Not All Elden Ring Nightreign Bosses Have The Severing Limbs Mechanics

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While the Gaping Dragon has brought forth the return of this underused mechanic, it doesn’t represent a widespread return to the franchise. Gaping Dragon is one of the few bosses in the game that has this type of mechanic, so the majority of the other enemies you’ll face during your runs will not feature severing limbs. Another boss with the severing limbs mechanic that has returned is Dark Souls 1’s Centipede Demon, whose tail and arm can be severed during combat. The severing mechanics with the Centipede Demon in Elden Ring Nightreign, however, don’t seem to prompt weapon drops.

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So far, these are the only bosses in the new game that have these severing limbs mechanics. This mechanic may not always prompt a weapon drop, but the prospect of it, combined with the increased damage the severing of limbs causes against enemies and the short stagger period they sustain, is especially helpful in battles. This can open up extra opportunities for you and your team (if you’re using Elden Ring Nightreign’s matchmaking system) to strike and take out a considerable amount of health from their HP bar.

These opponents may not drop any legendary weapons in Elden Ring Nightreign, either, but the potential weapon drops are always useful as you progress through the cycles each day. The severing limbs mechanic is a rare one, but its return hints at a positive omen for the future of the souls series, which is likely to continue growing far beyond Elden Ring Nightreign and The Duskbloods.