Elden Ring: How to Beat Golden Hippopotamus

How do you beat Golden Hippopotamus in Elden Ring? You'll face this Boss Fight at the very start of Shadow Keep in the Elden Ring DLC Shadow of the Erdtree. It's literally the first enemy you come across once inside. In this Elden Ring guide, we're going to reveal how to beat Golden Hippopotamus.

How Do You Beat Golden Hippopotamus in Elden Ring?

On this page, we're going to explain how to beat Golden Hippopotamus in Elden Ring. We will include an overview of the foe, Boss Fight strategies, their location, tips and tricks, and item drops.

Golden Hippopotamus: Overview

Name

Golden Hippopotamus

Location

Shadow Keep

Recommended Level

158

Runes Reward

200,000 Runes

Item Drops

Aspects of the Crucible: Thorns + Scadutree Fragment

Golden Hippopotamus Location: How to Find It

The Golden Hippopotamus is the very first enemy you come across inside Shadow Keep on the Scadu Altus, so finding the place and the boss are essentially one and the same. From the Site of Grace for Highroad Cross, follow the path north through the large enemy encampment and take the elevator inside its entrance to access Shadow Keep. Once you've activated the Site of Grace inside, the Golden Hippopotamus will be in the courtyard outside.

Golden Hippopotamus: Boss Fight Strategy

The Golden Hippopotamus is just a big hippo with a horn — what's so golden about it?! Anyway, for this encounter, you'll be facing off in a courtyard filled with shallow pools of water. The boss hits slowly, but it also hits hard. Luckily, a lot of its attacks are very clearly telegraphed ahead of time, so you can either get out of the way of them or roll through. One move it relies on throughout the whole fight is a charge attack, where it opens its mouth and lunges at you for a few seconds. You can either run away from this one or dodge out of the way. If you get caught in its mouth, though, it'll chew you up and drop you back to the floor, dealing heavy damage.

The boss will also constantly slam the ground around it, which can be handled by — once again — dodging and rolling when the impact lands. If you're in close range, the boss will swing its head back and forth, taking a second to charge the attack up between each swing. Again, a lot of these attacks are easy to memorise and dodge, so you're probably best dying across a few attempts first simply to learn its patterns. They're all pretty obvious and exploitable.

There are no gold summon signs to call upon this time, but as always, your Mimic Tear Ashes will be incredibly useful for this encounter — just as it is for every other one in the game. Always assume you'll be calling upon the Mimic Tear Ashes, basically. Also, building up Bleed damage and activating it deals a good amount of damage.

Once you've knocked off roughly one-third to a half of its HP bar, the Golden Hippopotamus will all of a sudden grow a hairy back, unlocking a new set of attacks. When it starts to glow golden — so that's where the name comes from — it'll reign down its hairs onto you like they're spears. They'll track you in a line heading down vertically, so either sprint away from them or utilise well-timed rolls.

When its attack patterns are memorised, allow the Mimic Tear Ashes to take the attention of the boss and get in behind it for some easy swipes. Retreat when it turns around to you, offering your companion the chance to take back aggro. You're able to stagger the Golden Hippopotamus if you deal enough damage, opening up the chance for a heavy blow to its face. Continue to play it safe by dodging and rolling through its attacks, and this boss, acting as an introduction to Shadow Keep, shouldn't pose too much of a problem after a short while.

Did you find our guide covering how to beat Golden Hippopotamus in Elden Ring helpful? Share any of your own strategies in the comments below and check out our Elden Ring guide for more guidance and information.