# Dragonrider

### Lore

---

<table id="bkmrk-soul-of-a-dragonride"><tr><td>*Soul of a Dragonrider,  
who faithfully served King Vendrick.*

*Long ago, the dragonriders mounted wyrms,  
and were feared on the battlefield for their  
unparalleled strength.*

— Description of the Dragonrider Soul

</td><td>*Greatshield of the Dragonriders,  
King Vendrick's royal guard.*

*The rank of Dragonrider was reserved for  
honorable warriors who helped found Drangleic.  
Together with the king, they crushed its former  
inhabitants and erected a magnificent kingdom  
upon their graves.*

— Description of the Dragonrider Greatshield

</td><td>*Aspiring Dragonriders who had not the mettle  
to handle their training were torn apart by  
their wyrms, and those who survived emerged  
with deific strength.*

— Description of the Dragonrider Set

</td></tr></table>

### Location

---

**Heide's Tower of Flame:**  
Guarding the path to No Man's Wharf.  
<table id="bkmrk-bonfire-intensity-he"><tr><th>Bonfire Intensity</th><th>Health</th><th>Souls</th></tr><tr><td>1 (NG)</td><td>3,050</td><td>12,000</td></tr><tr><td>2 (NG+)</td><td>6,405</td><td>24,000</td></tr><tr><td>8 (NG+7)</td><td>12,170</td><td>48,000</td></tr></table>

Bonfire Ascetic respawn: Heide's Ruin bonfire.

**Drangleic Castle:**  
Guarding the path to King's Passage in the middle of the castle. (Halberd)  
<table id="bkmrk-bonfire-intensity-he-1"><tr><th>Bonfire Intensity</th><th>Health</th><th>Souls</th></tr><tr><td>1 (NG)</td><td>3,670</td><td>-</td></tr><tr><td>2 (NG+)</td><td>5,872</td><td>-</td></tr><tr><td>8 (NG+7)</td><td>11,157</td><td>-</td></tr></table>

Bonfire Ascetic respawn: Forgotten Chamber bonfire.

**Drangleic Castle:**  
Guarding the path to King's Passage in the middle of the castle. (Greatbow)  
<table id="bkmrk-bonfire-intensity-he-2"><tr><th>Bonfire Intensity</th><th>Health</th><th>Souls</th></tr><tr><td>1 (NG)</td><td>1,470</td><td>26,000</td></tr><tr><td>2 (NG+)</td><td>2,352</td><td>54,000</td></tr><tr><td>8 (NG+7)</td><td>4,463</td><td>108,000</td></tr></table>

Bonfire Ascetic respawn: Forgotten Chamber bonfire.

**Shrine of Amana:**  
Loyally guarding the wooden door that leads to the King's Set after the Crumbling Ruins bonfire. *Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin only.*  
<table id="bkmrk-bonfire-intensity-he-3"><tr><th>Bonfire Intensity</th><th>Health</th><th>Souls</th></tr><tr><td>1 (NG)</td><td>5,730</td><td>2,700</td></tr><tr><td>2 (NG+)</td><td>12,033</td><td>5,400</td></tr><tr><td>8 (NG+7)</td><td>22,863</td><td>10,800</td></tr></table>

**Undead Crypt:**  
Guarding the fog gate to Velstadt, the Royal Aegis. *Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin only.*  
<table id="bkmrk-bonfire-intensity-he-4"><tr><th>Bonfire Intensity</th><th>Health</th><th>Souls</th></tr><tr><td>1 (NG)</td><td>???</td><td>???</td></tr><tr><td>2 (NG+)</td><td>???</td><td>???</td></tr><tr><td>8 (NG+7)</td><td>???</td><td>???</td></tr></table>

### Summons

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- Masterless Glencour 
    - Found by the fog gate in Heide's Tower of Flame.

- Pilgrim Bellclaire 
    - Found by the fog gate in Drangleic Castle. *Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin only.*

- Bashful Ray 
    - Found by one of the Golem statues in the Stone Soldier room of Drangleic Castle. *Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin only.*

### Drops

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**Heide's Tower of Flame:**

- Dragonrider Soul

**Drangleic Castle:**

- Dragonrider Soul

**Shrine of Amana:**

- Titanite Slab

### Moveset

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**Halberd Swipe:**  
Swipes from side to side with his halberd. Parriable and blockable.

### Strategies

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### Heide's Tower of Flame

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There are two levers that can be found in Heide's Tower of Flame before the boss area, which appear after defeating certain enemies. They can be used to expand the boss arena, eliminating the circular pitfall entirely if both levers are pulled.

The first is by the second sword-wielding Knight, the second is by the Knight immediately after amongst the group of three, on the right hand side.

**Cheese 1:**  
However, it may be beneficial to leave the pitfall, since it is possible to bait the Dragonrider into falling off.

As soon as you walk in look at his feet and count 6 steps. On the 6th step, run between him and the pitfall, then circle around him.

This will cause him use his thrust attack follow by turning to face you while on the edge, moving him slightly and he'll simply slide off into the pit.

**Cheese 2:**  
You can also kill the Dragonrider without ever stepping into the ring (or at least damage him).

On the walkway between the first switch and the circular room with three enemies, you can see him in the boss room through the arches. Shoot at him with a bow, and carry a stockpile of arrows.

If you land all headshots, it should be around 50 arrows before his health is depleted. Note that you can not kill him this way; after a while he will turn towards you and raise his shield. When he does this, enter the boss fight and he will have only 1 HP left.

**Melee:**  
Try to walk close in circles around him, and hit him when he does his slow overhead swing and misses.

**Ranged:**  
For a player using ranged attacks, it is suggested to pull both levers to expand the arena. This will allow the player more safe room to back up and attack.

### Drangleic Castle

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**Melee:**  
While you're fighting the first Dragonrider, keep your eye on the second one up top. Try your best to avoid his arrows, which shouldn't be too difficult as long as you either listen for his bow being readied or looking up once in a while to see if he's aiming at you.

You may use a shield if you want, but rolling towards the enemy to the left or right should dodge his attacks.

Try to finish off the first Dragonrider as fast as you can so that you can focus on the second one. The archer is slightly weaker so he'll be much easier to take down once the first one is out of the way.

**Caster:**  
Cast Toxic Mist or any of the variants on the archer. One cast is almost enough to kill him in NG.

**Pyromancer:**  
If you have an adequately upgraded Pyromancy Flame (+6 or higher), and both Great Fireball and Fire Orb, you can make this fight fairly easy without summoning help. Simply dash toward the Dragonrider Archer until you are within range, then pelt him with Great Fireball as many times as you can before the Halberd-wielding 'rider reacts and begins to attack you.

With enough casting speed, you can hit him at least twice easily, which should be enough to make him fall from the platform. Once he falls, simply finish him off with the remainder of your casts.

This makes the fight with the stronger Halberd-wielding 'rider much more comfortable. Note that items that boost casting speed are essential if you have low casting speed.

This strategy is great for Level-1 or low-level builds.

### Notes

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- The Greatbow wielding Dragonrider in Drangleic Castle will shoot down into the boss arena until you have taken the Halberd wielding Dragonrider down to 50% health.

### Comments

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