Demon's Souls Penetrator.PNG

The Demon bosses in Demon's Souls are the hardest and most stressful part of the whole affair. Filling up on souls in the stage prior only to have to prove yourself against a giant enemy with a massive health bar to match is almost always a daunting task.

But don't worry, in this Demon's Souls guide we'll have you covered by breaking down each of the game's bosses and the best way to approach them. Take a deep breath, have a look at the tips below, and try your best to enjoy yourself and the challenge that the bosses pose.

How to Beat the Penetrator in Demon's Souls

Penetrator is the closest thing to a quintessential Souls boss that you'll find in Demon's Souls. Unlike most of its Demon brethren, he doesn't have any real singular weakness or gimmick. It's just a straight up no frills fight against a sword-wielding knight.

You are able to enlist the help of an NPC named Biorr for this encounter, and he actually does a pretty great job at drawing Penetrator's attention for some free hits. As an added bonus, freeing Biorr for his help with this fight and defeating the Penetrator will get you the Brothers-in-Arms trophy. Follow our Demon's Souls: Where to Find Biorr guide to find out how. Regardless of Biorr's help, you won't have much success against penetrator without learning its moveset.

Most of its moves will be clearly telegraphed, so keep your dodge rolls at the ready. After blowing through a few of its attacks, you should get a cadence down for when to dodge once Penetrator begins winding up. Be especially careful and cautious of when it begins pulling back and its sword glows a bright blue – this is an attack that's almost guaranteed to be fatal. Dodge rolling out of the way is highly advised.

The Melee Method

Unfortunately, there aren't many tricks you can utilize if you're going to take on the Penetrator in a direct one-on-one swordfight. Learn its moves, get your dodges down, and get in a hit or two in the brief pause he'll take between attacks before getting ready to dodge again.

Stamina management is key. It'll be extremely tempting to squeeze in just one more sword swipe on him while he's still recovering from the previous attack, but you'll always want some stamina left for a dodge roll. Don't get too greedy and practice patience, otherwise you might find yourself without stamina and directly in the crosshairs of a powerful sword stab. Gradually chipping away at his health bar and keeping yourself in a strong dodging position are your best bets.

The Magic Method

Penetrator becomes slightly easier to eliminate if you've got magic on your side. All it has is a sword, meaning it has to get close to deal any damage. That makes things all the better for you if you've got access to Soul Arrow and a few points into Magic to deal notable amounts of damage with said Soul Arrows. You won't have to put yourself within its reach to do damage of your own.

That makes the magic approach pretty straightforward – stay away from Penetrator and fire off a spell whenever there's an opening. You'll likely need some spices to refill your MP given how many magic attacks it'll take to chip away his large health pool, but it's a surprisingly manageable fight if you do.

Penetrator Rewards

Pulverizing Penetrator rewards you with:

  • 35,850 souls
  • Silver Demon Soul

Does the Penetrator have the coolest introduction of any boss ever? Tell us which boss intro is your favorite in the comments section below. Check out the rest of our Demon's Souls guide to help take the edge off how intimidating the rest of those badass boss intros are.