Elden Ring guide: Stormfoot Catacombs walkthrough

Elden Ring’s Stormfoot Catacombs is an optional, lucrative, and deadly dungeon in western West Limgrave. In this Elden Ring Stormfoot Catacombs walkthrough, we’ll show you how to get through, how to defeat the boss, and where to collect every item.

Stormfoot Catacombs maps

Graphic: Jeffrey Parkin | Sources: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

Graphic: Jeffrey Parkin | Sources: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

1F

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

From the Stormfoot Catacombs site of grace, head straight down the stairs toward the body in the distance, but don’t rush in. Look to your left for an Imp who causes bleed damage. There’s another Imp behind the corpse, too. Keep your shield raised, and heal often. Pillage the body in the room for Root Resin.

2F

Take the staircase down, and collect the Grave Glovewart [1] growing next to the coffin. Activate the effigy if you want some multiplayer help.

You can’t open the Stormfoot Catacombs door yet, so it’s time to head north.

3F

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

Take the stairs down, holding your shield up, and watch for two Imps on the mezzanine overlooking the room ahead. If you walk in, the one directly is likely to jump down. The other will toss projectiles down at you from the west.

If you have ranged weapons, you can pick off the one in front of you. Either way, back into the staircase to defeat the one who hops down and shield yourself from the projectiles.

Otherwise, head to the western wall to collect the purple Grave Violet x1. On your way out of the door leading north, collect another Grave Glovewart [1].

3F – Fire!

The next hallways are filled with fire, but they’re more intimidating than difficult. (You can also preemptively shut them down with a shot from a ranged weapon.)

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

In the first hallway, wait for the fire to retreat, and then run toward it, turning right and resting in another hallway. Wait for the fire to return again, and then run toward and then behind the mechanism breathing fire. Attack it to stop the fire. Examine the corpse behind for the Prattling Pate “Hello” item.

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

Use the same trick that you did before in the next tunnel, running and ducking into a hallway on the right. Run back to the fire machine, but don’t get greedy. There are three five Imps — three hanging on the wall, one on the ground posing as a statue on the left, and another to the right. With ranged weapons, you can pick them off more or less one by one with ranged weapons. The Imps are susceptible to fire damage, but so are you, so kiting them into the path of the fire is a dangerous strategy.

Pillage the remains where the Imps were for a Smoldering Butterfly and collect a Ghost Glovewart [1].

Attack the fire machine to deactivate it, and double back, taking the ladder in the alcove up.

2F – Ladder

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

At the top of the ladder, there are two Imps. Turn left immediately, and kill the Imp there. Then kill the other in the distance. Collect the Grave Glovewart [1] near where you took the ladder up.

Go through the door heading southwest. Imps are waiting. Take the one straight ahead out at range if you can. One is hiding to the right of the entrance. Inside the room, collect the Grave Glovewart [1] and pillage the body for Wandering Noble Ashes.

Mezzanine

Backtrack, and turn right immediately when you enter the area before the ladder.

Hop down over the ledge. You’ll wind up on the mezzanine overlooking the room that connects directly to the doors you can’t open on 2F.

Image: FromSoftware/Bandai Namco via Polygon

There’s a lever that’ll unlock the door here, but pull it, kill the Imp in the distance, past the lever. Collect the Grave Glovewart [1], too. Now pull the lever to unlock the door that leads to the boss fight.

Erdtree Burial Watchdog Stormfoot Catacombs boss fight

The Stormfoot Catacombs boss fight with Erdtree Burial Watchdog is straightforward. And so is the strategy: Block her physical attacks, while chipping away at her health.

A shield with 100% Physical damage reduction allows you to absorb her hits (until you run out of stamina, at which point you just need to run away, regain it, and return). If you don’t have one, our guide to finding the Beast Crest Heater Shield will help. It shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes to acquire Elden Ring’s best early-game shield.

Keep blocking. With a shield like that, you can even absorb her attacks that turn the ground around her into rubble.

Also, just roll away from her fire-based attacks. There’s no advantage to being near here when she turns the ground to lava.

Finally, bosses are always easier when you have someone to distract them. Summon helpers to make it easier.