Published , by TJ Denzer
Published , by TJ Denzer
If you happened to travel south from the gates of Castle Ensis in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, and you took the low road, then you may have discovered the Dragon Pit dungeon. It’s the opening portal to some optional and difficult content, but the rewards that lay in defeating the challenges in and beyond it are excellent. That said, you may have noticed that the Dragon Pit doesn’t exactly have a normal avenue to finish it. For that reason, here’s what you need to know about how to complete this dungeon and start your journey to the deadliest of Ancient Dragons, Bayle, the Dread.
First thing’s first, you’ll want to track down the Dragon Pit so you can complete it in the first place. To find the place, you’ll want to start at the Grace in front of Castle Ensis’ gates. If you’ve played the main path at all in Shadow of the Erdtree, you’ll get to Castle Ensis by default as it’s required to progress through the DLC.
From in front of Castle Ensis, travel south. Don’t take the beaten path. Instead, take the rough, lower path. Eventually, you will find Igon moaning in pain. That’s because a dragon named Bayle wrecked his legs. You’ll also likely fight a dragon-man warrior on the way there. They’re not horribly hard to defeat and there’s even a Grace close by if it takes you a try or two. Get past them and you’ll get to the Dragon Pit dungeon.
Inside the Dragon Pit, you’ll find a relatively simple layout. Skeletal drake warriors await and can be fairly easily dispatched. They’re very susceptible to guard counters, strong attacks, and Holy elements. You can also strafe the big ones and backstab them with relative ease. The most threatening thing here is probably a non-boss Magma Wyrm that waits in an area at the top of some steep steps. You can choose whether or not to kill it for the runes and item in its chamber, but it’s optional. More importantly, descend downward and you’ll find a giant bowl of what looks like blood sitting across a wide pit into darkness. Common sense would tell you to turn back or find a mechanism to help you cross, but it’s actually simpler than that. You want to jump into the pit in front of the giant bowl.
The fall is steep, but you will survive it, and be right in front of a boss gate at that. Inside is the Ancient Dragon-Man wielding the Dragon-Hunter’s Great Katana. It’s a nasty weapon, but outside of a jumping slash that can throw a projectile, he’s not much harder than the dragon-man you fought outside the dungeon. Take him down and his Dragon-Hunter’s Great Katana is yours, but don’t use the portal back to the dungeon entrance. Instead, move forward through the back of the arena to come out the other side in front of a massive mountain under stormy red skies, as well as the Dragon Pit Terminus Grace.
With that, you have completed the Dragon Pit dungeon and are on your way to Bayle, the Dread, which might be one of the most fearsome foes in the Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. Stay tuned to our Elden Ring topic for more guides to help you in your Tarnished journeys.