I deleted my 50-hour save file almost as soon as I filed my Elden Ring review. I wanted to play Elden Ring with the wider community, partly to experience the game with the full benefit of its multiplayer systems – it turns out that’s mostly hitting walls with prank player messages in front of them – but also because I wanted to help as many players as possible get past the game’s first big skill-check: Margit, the Fell Omen.
Laying down a summon sign and helping someone defeat a boss for the very first time is my favourite part of Souls games – summoning is one of the coolest multiplayer mechanics in gaming. It’s a chance to help someone through a moment of frustration, bask in their elation when you slay the boss together, and show off your build and skills.
In the first Dark Souls I helped roughly 40 players defeat the infamous Ornstein and Smough, and early into Elden Ring I decided I’d do the same with Stormveil Castle’s literal gatekeeper. Margit’s not the toughest fight in Elden Ring, but he’s a seriously challenging first major boss, and with the game achieving enviable concurrent player counts, he was bound to block progress for a ton of players. My hunch was spot on: it’s been nearly two weeks and just under 60% of the player base has earned the achievement for finishing this fight.
So far, I’ve helped 20 players kill Margit. Here are the highlights so far:
On my fifth unsuccessful attempt both I and the host roll off separate sides of the arena at the same time.
Unsuccessful attempt number six ends early for me after another summon pulls Margit’s aggro and I’m caught in the crossfire.
We get close on unsuccessful attempt number 14, but the host clearly hasn’t encountered Margit’s second phase yet and is obliterated by his hammer swing. The next attempt is remarkably similar, but this time the host is caught out by Margit’s extended combo attacks.
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Unsuccessful attempt 23 ends early for me after another summon pulls Margit’s aggro and I’m caught in the crossfire again. I make the same noise as Sideshow Bob when he steps on a rake.
My first win is a bit anticlimactic as I’m summoned by a co-op duo of min-maxers who clear Margit with a combination of bleed and frostbite procs. I don’t land a single hit.
Wins number two, three, and four follow shortly after and are all much more satisfying. In each one the host comes within a hair’s breadth of death before I manage to get Margit’s attention and finish the fight.
Another string of unsuccessful attempts is capped by a host who’s so satisfied with my performance that they decide to use the ‘rest’ emote in the middle of the arena and watch me take on Margit solo. At first I’m outraged, then the hubris kicks in and I start to enjoy performing, but it’s not long before tragedy strikes: I accidentally bait Margit’s devastating overhead hammer leap into landing directly on the host. Serves us both right.
I use a selection of crafted goodies to clinch win number five. Exalted Flesh, Pickled Turtle Neck, Bone Darts, and so, so much Blood Grease help me dish out damage while pulling aggro away from my spell-slinging host.
I go through a bit of a ‘rolling off the map’ phase before win number six, which comes by way of a host who’s two-handing a spiked greatshield. I assume they’re trolling, but it turns out they’re some kind of genius. I do plenty of damage myself, but this host clearly knows what they’re doing and procs a couple of hard-hitting bleed effects.
Wins seven through to twelve all happen in one sitting. There are a few close calls among them, but for the most part my hosts do a good job of trading aggro and staying out of danger.
These comfortable victories are followed by a long, horrible run of unsuccessful attempts in which my hosts summon the NPC Sorcerer Rogier. In case you didn’t know, the boss’s HP scales with each additional summon, so adding a glass cannon like Rogier to the fray leaves the host and their player-controlled summon with an insurmountable health bar to whittle away when Rogier inevitably bites the dust. I leave a message in front of Rogier’s summon sign, warning players not to summon him, like a flatmate who deals with their frustrations by leaving passive-aggressive notes all over the place. It doesn’t work.
I employ a new tactic to secure the next few wins: placing my summon sign just in front of the site of grace. NPC summon rates down, wins up.
The host behind win number 16 has done their homework and shows up with Margit’s Shackle, an item that pins the boss in place so you can get a few free hits in. We breeze through the first phase in no time, as a result I get pretty jaded during the second phase – I even try parrying without a shield. Taking no damage during the opening exchanges means we have a surplus of HP flasks, which we use to drag ourselves over the finish line.
It takes another gruelling couple of hours to notch up wins 17, 18, and 19. Win 18 miraculously includes a Rogier summon that survives the entire battle thanks to the 60 or so Bone Darts I keep in my pocket – throwing a few of these every time Rogier dishes out a big spell is enough to keep Margit focused on me. By this point I feel like I could dodge his attacks in my sleep. Another haul of unsuccessful attempts before win 19 dents my confidence.
Win 20 is a bit of a technicality. I don’t get the rewards of a successful run because I die just before Margit falls, but it is my spell that deals the killing blow – I cast Magic Glintblade just before getting caught out by a spinning attack, and as my character fades away the projectile connects with Margit. It counts for the host, and that’s what really matters.
20 down, 20 more to go. I’ve yet to beat Margit myself on this save file, so hopefully my ‘pay it forward’ approach has been worth it, and I’ll have dozens of accomplished Fell Omen-fellers when I’m ready to pass through the fog gate myself.
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