Elden Ring: Shadow of Maliketh

In Elden Ring: Shadow of Maliketh, players return to the Lands Between under the looming threat of Maliketh’s lingering essence. This expansion-style content reawakens the power of Destined Death, and with it, a new host of brutal challenges, twisted environments, and Elden Ring Runes refined combat mechanics. This guide walks you through how to survive the shadowy domain, defeat its guardians, and ultimately confront the spectral echo of Maliketh.

1. Preparing for the Journey: Recommended Build Types

Before setting foot into Maliketh’s domain, known as Throne of the Eclipse, you’ll want to optimize your character for high agility, damage resistance, and holy/black flame defense. The enemies in this expansion favor quick, aggressive strikes and status ailments like Black Flame Burn, Bleed, and Destined Death affliction.

Recommended Builds:

Blackflame Resistor (Faith/Tank Hybrid): Focus on high Vigor and Faith with gear that resists Holy and Fire. The Eclipse Ward Set offers strong elemental defense. Use Blessing of the Erdtree and Flame, Cleanse Me to mitigate damage-over-time effects.

Destined Slayer (Dex/Arcane): Fast bleed weapons like Rivers of Blood or Reduvia, paired with Swarm of Flies and high mobility. This build exploits the shadow enemies’ relative weakness to Hemorrhage.

Maliketh’s Echo (Strength/Faith): Mimic the Black Blade himself using Maliketh’s Black Blade and the Beast Clergyman Incantations. These deal %HP damage and stagger well against new bosses.

2. Navigating the Throne of the Eclipse

This new region becomes accessible after defeating Mohg, Lord of Blood, and interacting with the Shrine of Broken Vows in Crumbling Farum Azula. Upon activation, you’re transported to a decayed version of Farum, steeped in night and ash — the Throne of the Eclipse.

Key Areas:

Ashen Sanctum: An entry point crawling with corrupted Beastmen. Keep your shield raised or use AoE Incantations like Pest Threads.

Echoing Pillars: A vertical tower gauntlet with puzzle-platforming and snipers. Use the Longtail Cat Talisman to reduce fall damage and progress through spiraling ledges.

Sanctum of Fractured Flame: Features traps and Black Flame Sentinels. Fire resistance and anti-flinch gear like Bull-Goat Set help mitigate risk.

Umbral Gate: A mini-dungeon before the final boss fight. Here, you’ll face spirit versions of Maliketh’s disciples, requiring patience and parry skills.

3. Mini-Bosses and Elite Enemies

Throughout the DLC, you'll encounter new enemy variants and formidable mini-bosses. Here are a few notable encounters:

Abyssal Beastknight: A dual-wielding shadow infused with Maliketh’s rage. Dodge aggressively and punish its recovery frames. Bleed works well.

Blackflame Disciple Pair: Twin foes with mirrored flame blades. Focus on separating them with ranged magic or Spirit Ashes like Lhutel the Headless.

Shadow Serpent: A gigantic death-infused wyrm. Use Torrent to stay mobile and aim for its exposed ribcage. Ice-based weapons slow it effectively.

4. Confronting Maliketh’s Echo

The final boss of Shadow of Maliketh is Maliketh, Echo of Destined Death, a spectral remnant fueled by unbound fragments of the Rune of Death. This version is faster, more aggressive, and imbued with new attacks.

Phase 1: Cloaked Remnant

Uses swift slashes and shadowstep dashes. Heavily resistant to Holy.

Avoid his leaping spin combo by rolling toward the direction of his slash.

Use high-stagger weapons or interrupting Incantations like Beast Claw.

Phase 2: Unbound Death

At 50%, Maliketh’s form fractures into golden and black flame energy.

Gains Death Spiral, a full arena AoE that must be dodged using precise iframe rolls or blocked with 100% Physical shields + Barrier of Gold.

He now applies a stacking “Deathbrand” debuff that reduces max HP with each hit. Use Order Healing to reverse the effect.

Tips for Victory:

Equip Mottled Necklace +2 for Vitality and resistance boosts.

Summon Black Knife Tiche – she’s fast and immune to Deathbrand.

Consider using Flask of Wondrous Physick with Opaline Bubbletear to absorb first-hit damage and Greenburst Crystal Tear for stamina regen.

5. Rewards and Endgame Content

Defeating Maliketh’s Echo rewards:

Remembrance of the Echo – Can be exchanged for:

Echo Blade of Maliketh (curved greatsword with blackflame trails)

Destined Reaver Incantation (unleashes chained death explosions)

Ashes of the Prime Beast – Summon a spectral beast that strikes enemies with blackflame bites.

Talisman: Mark of the Beast God – Boosts Beast Incantations and physical resistance by 15%.

Completing the DLC also unlocks New Game++ modifiers, including the Shadow Realms difficulty where Maliketh’s powers seep into the entire Lands Between, strengthening all Blackflame and buy Elden Ring Runes beast-type enemies.

Conclusion

Elden Ring: Shadow of Maliketh is a punishing but rewarding journey into one of the game’s darkest legacies. Mastering its trials requires not only mechanical skill but thoughtful preparation and understanding of Maliketh’s history and power. Whether you're a lore seeker, build optimizer, or hardcore challenger, this shadowy expansion delivers a fitting tribute to the legacy of the Black Blade. Prepare well, Tarnished – for Destined Death awaits once more.