Tree Sentinel
| Tree Sentinel | |
|---|---|
| Type | Field Boss |
| Region | Limgrave, Altus Plateau, Scaduview |
| Runes | 3,200 |
| Weak To | Lightning |
| Required | No |
Tree Sentinel is a field boss in Elden Ring.
The Tree Sentinel is a golden knight on an armored warhorse who guards the roads of the Erdtree. The first one patrols the road near the Church of Elleh, in plain view of the very first steps into Limgrave. Most new arrivals lose to it and return later with better gear. Pairs of sentinels also guard the gate to the Capital Outskirts and the Hinterland near Shaman Village.
Lore
The Tree Sentinel is a massive knight chained to the saddle of a great horse. Golden plate covered in vines and flowers wraps the rider, and a small tree grows from the crest of the helm. The rider swings a huge golden halberd and carries either a greatshield or a torch.
These mounted knights served Queen Marika with great strength and abundant grace. Few were ever allowed to join their ranks. Their shield is called the living rampart of the Erdtree, the standard that every defender of the tree aspires to.
After the Ancient Dragon Gransax struck Leyndell, some sentinels took on draconic traits to guard the Erdtree better. Others marched in Messmer's crusade and later guarded the road to Shaman Village, Marika's former home.
Morgott later gave the sentinels torches that reveal hidden foes, hoping to prevent a second Night of Black Knives.
Where to find Tree Sentinel Location?
- Limgrave, patrolling the road between the Church of Elleh and The First Step
- Altus Plateau, a shield and torch pair on the stairs to the Capital Outskirts gate, east of the Altus Highway Junction Site of Grace
- Hinterland in Scaduview, a shield and torch pair east of the Hinterland Site of Grace on the way to Shaman Village
Tree Sentinel map location:
Map credit by Map Genie.
Weaknesses
| Weak To | Lightning |
|---|---|
| Resists | Slash, Fire, Holy |
| Immune | Madness |
| Parry | Yes |
Phases
- Phase 1: The sentinel uses halberd swings, thrusts, rearing slams and charges.
- Phase 2: The shield sentinel starts leaping into the air and crashing down with its shield, sending out a wide shockwave.
Attacks
- Side Swings: halberd swings across its right flank; roll into the swing to end up near the front or rear of the horse.
- Halberd Thrust: a long forward stab; roll to the right to reach its weaker left flank.
- Charging Attack: it rides in from range and swings as it passes; roll into it at the last moment, then heal or reposition while it rides on.
- Leap Attack: it jumps forward with a clockwise swing; roll in the direction it travels.
- Rearing Slam and Hoof Stomp: the horse rears before the halberd or hooves come down; strike once during the rear, then roll aside.
- Hip Check: the horse throws itself sideways with almost no warning; avoid lingering on its right flank.
- Golden Retaliation: the shield glows and reflects incoming spell projectiles as a holy beam; hold spells until it commits to another attack.
- Shield Crush: it rears or leaps and slams the shield down with a huge shockwave; run and roll as the shield descends, since the blast reaches farther than it looks.
Tactics
- Explore Limgrave first and return with more levels and a stronger weapon.
- Fight on Torrent for speed, or use a shield that blocks all physical damage, such as the Heater Shield, with the Green Turtle Talisman for stamina.
- Stay close to its right rear leg with a shield raised, where many swings pass overhead, and poke with a thrusting weapon.
- Hit once or twice after each finished attack, then roll away before the next swing.
- Bait the Charging Attack or Leap Attack from range, since they are easy to parry and leave long openings.
- Keep stamina in reserve once the shield leaps begin, and run from the Shield Crush.
- Spirit Ashes help take its attention while it is hit from behind.
Best Builds
Thrusting weapon with a full guard shield
A short spear or rapier can poke while the shield stays up, and most of its swings drain stamina rather than health.
| Gear | Short Spear, Rapier, Heater Shield, Green Turtle Talisman |
|---|
Lightning damage
The sentinel takes extra damage from lightning, while fire and holy do little.
Short range sorcery and incantations
Close range spells that follow its attacks avoid Golden Retaliation.
| Gear | Carian Slicer, Catch Flame |
|---|
Spirit Ash support
A spirit keeps the knight busy so its flanks stay open.
| Gear | Lone Wolf Ashes |
|---|
Spellblade Build
| Class | Prisoner |
|---|---|
| Focus | Intelligence |
| Main Stats | Intelligence & Vigor |
| Other Stats | Dexterity & Mind |
| Requires | 14 Intelligence, 13 Dexterity, 11 Strength |
| Weapon | Demi-Human Queen's Staff and Estoc or Rapier (Can be any Dex one-handed weapon) |
| Shield | Any 100% Physical (optional) |
| Armor | Any, but get pieces that increase Intelligence when possible |
| Skills | Ash of War: Impaling Thrust |
| Spells | Scholar's Armament, Glintstone Pebble and Carian Slicer |
| Flasks | Split evenly between HP and FP |
Battlemage Build
| Class | Any |
|---|---|
| Level | 100 |
| Focus | Intelligence |
| Main Stats | Intelligence |
| Other Stats | Mind, Vigor & Strength |
| Requires | 27 Intelligence, 20 Strength, 14 Dexterity |
| Weapon | Carian Glintstone Staff |
| Shield | Jellyfish Shield |
| Armor | Any that can med roll |
| Skills | Contagious Fury |
| Spells | Carian Slicer, Carian Greatsword, Carian Piercer, Glintstone Pebble, Loretta's Greatbow |
| Flasks | Mostly FP, some HP |
Blackflame Apostle Build
| Class | Prophet, Confessor or Samurai |
|---|---|
| Level | 50 |
| Focus | Faith |
| Main Stats | Faith & Mind |
| Other Stats | Vigor & Dexterity |
| Requires | 27 Faith, 24 Dexterity, 18 Strength, 10 Arcane |
| Weapon | Any Weapon that has Bleed on it by default such as the Uchigatana, Nightrider Flail or Bloodhound's Fang & Godslayer's Seal |
| Armor | Any |
| Skills | Bloody Slash or Unsheathe work well |
| Spells | Black Flame, Black Flame Blade, Catch Flame and Bloodflame Blade |
| Flasks | Split between HP and FP |
Champion of Rot Build
| Class | Any (Wretch Example) |
|---|---|
| Level | 150 |
| Main Stats | Dexterity, Vigor, Arcane, Faith |
| Other Stats | Strength, Mind, Endurance |
| Requires | 35 Faith, 22 Dexterity, 20 Arcane, 15 Intelligence, 14 Strength |
| Weapon | Poleblade of the Bud, Antspur Rapier (Keen) |
| Shield | Carian Knight Shield |
| Armor | Malenia’s Winged Helm |
| Talismans | Shard of Alexander, Kindred of Rot’s Exultation |
| Swap In | Carian Filigreed Crest |
| Skills | Romina’s Purification, The Poison Flower Blooms Twice |
| Spells | Scarlet Aeonia, Rotten Butterflies, Pest-Thread Spears, Ekzykes’s Decay, Heal from Afar, Golden Vow |
| Flasks | 11 Crimson, 3 Cerulean |
| Crystal Tear | Opaline Hardtear, Cerulean-Sapping Cracked Tear |
| Great Rune | Morgott’s Great Rune |
Cipher Prophet Build
| Class | Prophet |
|---|---|
| Other Stats | 40 Vigor (60 by endgame) 15+ Mind as needed for FP 10+ Endurance as needed for the armor set. 12 Strength 10 Dexterity (Prophet Initial) 7 Intelligence (Prophet Initial) 30+ Faith (minimum) 10 Arcane (Prophet Initial) |
| Requires | 10 Strength |
| Shield | Beast Crest Heater Shield initially, any other low strength shield, based on boss/area progression. |
| Armor | Whatever's in fashion or has the resistances. |
| Talismans | Two Fingers Heirloom, any other useful talisman. The Green Turtle Talisman is always nice. |
| Flasks | Adjustable. Take more crimson flasks when. |
Crimson Duelist Build
| Class | Any |
|---|---|
| Level | 150-200 |
| Focus | Arcane |
| Main Stats | Arcane & Vigor |
| Other Stats | Endurance |
| Weapon | Rogier's Rapier |
| Shield | Any Small Shield |
| Armor | White Mask and light armor for Light Equip Load setup. |
| Talismans | Rotten Winged Sword Insignia (or Winged Sword Insignia ), Millicent's Prosthesis, Lord of Blood's Exultation and Spear Talisman (or Dagger Talisman ) |
| Skills | Seppuku and Carian Retaliation |
| Flasks | Mostly HP |
Summons
- Spirit Ashes allowed
- NPC: Swordhand of Night Jolán (Hinterland)
Drops
Defeating it grants 3,200 runes.
| Name | Image |
|---|---|
| Golden Halberd | 
|
| Erdtree Greatshield | 
|
| Hero's Rune [1] | 
|
| Blessing of Marika | 
|
Notes
- The Limgrave sentinel drops the Golden Halberd.
- The Altus Plateau pair gives 20,000 runes, the Erdtree Greatshield and a Hero's Rune [1], and both knights must fall to clear the fight.
- Each Hinterland sentinel drops a Blessing of Marika, and the two can be fought apart.
- A broken stance or a parry only staggers it briefly, since it is immune to critical hits.
All Bosses
