- Rewards:
- Summons Available: Yes
Found at the end of Altus Tunnel on the Altus Plateau, this is very similar to the other duo Crystalian boss, only easier (since there’s no mage). Despite it seeming like you’re doing no damage to the boss at first, this fight can be ended rather quickly — read on for general tips and specific strategies for beating these bosses with ease.
General Tips
- Strike weapons do significantly more damage to these bosses than any other weapon type. While they aren’t a necessity, they can make the fight go much faster.
- Don’t worry that your attacks do so little damage at the start of the fight; you need to break the poise of each boss, then critically strike it from the front while it’s staggered. They’ll then start taking lots of damage from each attack — their attacks also become easy to interrupt.
- Both Crystalians can be backstabbed.
- Target the spear-wielding Crystalian first, as its attacks are easier to dodge.
- Because this is a duo boss, summoning a player for help (or at least using Spirit Ashes) helps a lot. Spirit summons with multiple creatures (like the Demi-Humans or the Lone Wolf Ashes) are best, since they’ll attack more frequently, and therefore do a better job of maintaining aggro of the boss you aren’t targeting.
Bestial Sling can quickly stagger one of the bosses, especially if your summons are also attacking it.- Keep an eye on the Crystalian you aren’t fighting to make sure it isn’t coming your way.
Strategy
Summon your spirit(s) as soon as you enter the boss chamber, then target the spear-wielding boss and move to the side of the room. Wait for your summons to engage the Ringblade boss, then move in on the spear boss.
The boss is very predictable, as it only has a couple of attacks: repeated Jumping Thrusts with its spear, or the Stab/Slash. Roll past the boss’s spear thrusts and try to maneuver so you’re behind the boss, then backstab it. You’ll lose your lock-on when the backstab animation finishes, so lock on again and immediately start charging a heavy attack. It will land right as the boss becomes vulnerable again, and you can then repeat the process.
Eventually, your charged attack will stagger the boss, and it will go down on one knee — at this point, run to the front of the boss and use a light attack to critically strike it, removing its crystal armor and allowing you to do lots of damage with subsequent attacks.
You can be very aggressive against this boss now, as your attacks will generally interrupt the boss’s own attacks. If the other boss starts to target you, back away and wait for your summons to grab aggro again before going on the offensive. If your summons die before you finish the first Crystalian off, stay calm — roll out of range of their attacks and look for an opportunity to backstab one (you’re invulnerable while in both the backstab and the critical strike animations).
Magic-users and ranged characters may struggle with this strategy if they haven’t specced into melee weaponry at all, but there is another option: At this point in the game, you should have collected at least two 
Deathroots — turn them in to the Beast Clergyman (see here for details) and you’ll get both a seal for casting incantations as well as the Bestial Sling spell, which excels at staggering the Crystalians.
Moveset
Spear
- Jumping Thrusts – The boss hops forward slightly and thrusts its spear — this will either occur twice, or five times followed by a bigger jump and thrust. You can often strafe around the boss and cause these attacks to miss, but the safer option is to always roll towards/past the boss.
- Stab/Slash – A thrusting attack, followed slowly by a horizontal slashing attack. Unlike the thrusts, you must always roll through the second part of this attack.
Ringblade
- Slash + Ring Roll – The boss holds its larger ringblade high over its left shoulder, then slashes downwards, and then does a second slash from the opposite side, and then the boss rolls its large ringblade towards its target — the blade continues through its target and then returns to the Crystalian. Roll behind the boss during both swipes to avoid damage — when it rolls its ring, you can get a backstab off.
- Jump ‘n Spin – The boss crosses its arms in front of itself, then hops three times in the air while spinning, damaging nearby enemies. Roll away when you see the boss cross its arms, and continue rolling away if you’re its target.
- Ring Toss – The boss throws smaller ringblades at its target — roll forward towards the boss to dodge and run around its back for a backstab.
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