As per Hexworks’ promise, yet another weekly Lords of the Fallen patch is here – and, just like the one before it, there’s a lot to unpack. With an abundance of both performance and stability improvements implemented, Lords of the Fallen is going to be better than ever before. However, it’s also going to be harder than ever before; Hexworks’ latest update is buffing quite a few of the game’s bosses.
When we look at all the new PS5 games and all the new Xbox games from 2023, Lords of the Fallen is one of the best soulslike games out there; you could even make a case for it being one of the best RPG games of the year considering the competition. It’s not the perfect game just yet, but Hexworks’ commitment to new content – with the busy Lords of the Fallen roadmap detailing its plans – and the developer’s promise of weekly updates for the foreseeable future should mean it’s well on the way to that lofty goal. One thing soulslike games are known for, however, is being quite difficult – and Lords of the Fallen players seem to think it just isn’t as hard as it could be. So, in an effort to meet those expectations, Hexworks is making a number of the Lords of the Fallen bosses harder – with health increases and damage output boosts.
As the patch notes for Lords of the Fallen update v1.1.326 detail and explain, “by popular demand”, Hexworks is introducing “a complete overhaul to all bosses in the game” – which, to summarize, basically makes almost all of them harder to kill.
Moving forward, all non-main bosses are getting a 10% to 20% health boost with the specifics depending on player progression, to provide more of a challenge to those of you in the late-game. In addition to this, all the non-main bosses are also getting a 10% damage output boost, with some adjustments made on a case-by-case basis “to ensure they provide the appropriate level of challenge”. If you didn’t think making sure you’re using one of the best Lords of the Fallen builds at all times was important, think again. These changes might not seem too major at a glance, but they’re going to make each encounter much more dangerous and the 20% health boost for players later in the game is quite significant.
On top of all this, if that wasn’t enough, Hexworks is also introducing several specific improvements to several main bosses. If you don’t have your hands on some of the best Lords of the Fallen weapons yet, you should look to getting your hands on them before you tackle any one of those altered.
Following the behavioral changes introduced a couple of updates ago, The Unbroken Promise will now also have 18% more health and deal 15% more damage. The Lightreaper also has 10% more health moving forward, something Hexworks hopes will extend the encounter without necessarily making it that much harder to overcome. The Sunless Monarch boss will now also have 8% more health and deal 10% more damage to players – another encounter that Hexworks felt wasn’t quite challenging enough. Also, those of you frustrated with how The Sacred Resonance moves around will be pleased to know that it will now use the stairs unless it can strike you through the hole in the floor. So, if you’re quick enough and you stay away from the hole, it should be a lot easier for you to create some space between you and this particular boss.
If you’re hoping to take advantage of the wither to take down these bosses, you should know that the Lords of the Fallen v1.1.310 update nerfs the Umbral Eye of Loash and Umbral Eye of Lydia the Numb Witch – both useful in improving this method of healing. So, you’re probably better off keeping your Sanguinarix Crosses stocked up. Having consumables like Unripe Berries (increases maximum stamina and stamina regen) and a good selection of Wards to hand is also a must. You’ll need to make sure you’re prepared for the increased duration of these boss battles as well as the increased incoming damage.
If you’re just starting out, though, and this has you rethinking the Lords of the Fallen class you’ve chosen to play around with, you can find the current crop of the best Lords of the Fallen classes right here – which might help you settle on one before pressing onwards. Anyone thinking of picking this up while checking out some of the best Black Friday PlayStation deals and best Black Friday Xbox deals, however, should also look at picking up one of the best Xbox expansion cards and best PS5 SSDs if they can. It’s already a decent-sized game and there’s only more updates on the way.