"Witless tarnished, why covet destined death? To kill what?" That slight quiver at the end as he realises what you're trying to do, and that he's failed in protecting Marika.

Just imagine how much more difficult the fight would have been if he had full HP bar in second phase

Maliketh is literally the embodiment of a character whose mere presence alone can paralyse people with fear.

Strongest boss, best theme, coolest armor, best phase 2 cutscene, best lore etc Maliketh is peak soulsborne

If Radahn is respected by all, then Maliketh is feared by all. For there is no being in the world that could defeat Death itself, none but the Black Blade of Marika. And in his victory, had become the new master and warden of Death.

“O death, Become my blade once more” never fails to give me chills.

I love the name Maliketh, just sounds really cool to me

The one all Demigods feared. Black Beast of Destined Death. Marika's Black Blade. The ''Death Of The Demigods''. The best boss, with the best theme.

“…there was not one demi-god who would not have feared him, the black-blade, maliketh…” Ranni and Rykard actually prepared themselves to engage him if things went south on the night of the plot, and even then they still were unsure of a chance of victory.

I think this 2nd phase music is monstrously underrated. It sounds like a terrifying danger that you want to avoid at all costs, but it's coming for you now, and it's growing fast.

I swear to God, we are getting closer to having actual anime battles in video games that move at real time. The way this boss dynamically leaps off of pillars and spins in the air to deliver ranged energy strikes before seamlessly returning for a final swipe… fucking perfection. It’s genuinely impressive, I can’t even begin to imagine how From managed to pull off the seamless mobility of bosses like Maliketh and Malenia.

"Forgive me Marika, the Golden Order....can not be restored..." I shed a few tears when I hears these words from him in this boss fight

"Cower before Maliketh, the Black Blade!"

That lone female vocal throughout the song that takes precedence in the vamp portion, and then lurks in the background for most of the rest of the track, is almost certainly a representation of Marika's importance to Maliketh. He not only carries around this tremendous burden in Destined Death, but this crushing guilt towards his queen, that somehow he had been negligent enough to let the tool of her firstborn's demise be stolen out from under him, and as we all know, this inadvertantly triggered the shattering. He thinks he deserves eternal hunger; the deprivation and listlessness that we see Gurranq endure the whole game is self-inflicted, for the good of (his half-sister?) Marika, who basically abandoned him regardless. He's a lot like (his nephew?) Morgott in a few ways. So fuckin sad dude!!!

Maliketh is one of Fromsoft most powerful warriors and the lore behind him is so fascinating.

The start kind of reminded me of the hunters dream or something from Bloodborne for a moment, also getting some Ludwig vibes. Such a good boss

Despite his terrifying appearance and role, Maliketh manages to be a surprisingly tragic figure. He was utterly devoted to his beloved half-sister, Marika, and had served her faithfully every waking moment without question or hesitation, no matter how grim or dangerous the task, all because he wanted to protect her and her empire. And how was he rewarded for his loyalty? Marika betrayed him by shattering the Elden Ring and then disappeared, Ranni (his step-niece) stole a portion of his Rune of Death (and made plans to kill him with it if necessary), Godwyn (his nephew) was murdered using said stolen Rune, and the empire he'd fought so hard for collapsed into civil war when the remainder of his family started making grabs for his sister's now-vacant throne. Blaming himself for everything that happened, he elected to seal the remaining portion of the Rune of Death inside his own body to keep it from being stolen again; this, likely coupled with his feelings of guilt, seems to have had an adverse effect on his mental state, inflicting him with an insatiable hunger for Deathroot which drove him to the verge of madness. It only gets worse if you complete his questline as Gurranq by finding and feeding him all nine Deathroots: despite consuming every last shred of the stuff in the land, it utterly fails to sate his hunger. At this revelation, he can only lament his condemnation to such a fate, humbly thank the Tarnished for their aid, and then leave to be alone with his torment. If given all nine Deathroots prior to confronting him at Crumbling Farum Azula, his dialogue before and after the battle is altered: he recognizes the Tarnished as they approach him and weakly questions why they've come so far to seek him out, before the realization hits him that they've come to take the remains of Destined Death from him, and that he's been betrayed by someone he trusted again. And even despite all of this betrayal, his last words are to beg Marika's forgiveness for his failures. Even worse, Marika may have had good reason not to let Maliketh in on her plans. As her Shadow, Maliketh was likely the Two Fingers' sleeper agent not unlike Blaidd, programmed to turn on Marika if she showed signs of defying the Greater Will.

Thank god I finally found the one that loops without the start up. Sure the beginning is chilling and epic, but I want the song to replay without it losing momentum. This is perfect, thank you for this video.

It's a shame we can't tell Maliketh/Gurranq about Ranni being the mastermind behind the night of black knives. He really died thinking it was all his fault the Lands Between fell into ruin.

The part at 0:34 where he slowly looks up at the player and those ominous strings play. Chills every single time. From has never made a boss cutscene that gets such a visceral reaction out of me before.

The iconic dancing violins greatly reflect how his fighting style, encompassing his black blade as he leaps toward you. Such amazing ost for a great boss

The part at 2:12 is absolutely godly, theres alot of emotion behind it personally after doing his quest and getting the secret dialogue when beating him

Malekith is one of my favorite characters in the game. If you dive into his lore, you really feel the spectacle and tragedy from his music. Thank you for uploading this.

I've heard the first 2 seconds of this theme countless times

This soundtrack reflects Maliketh perfectly - his tragedy, his guilt and his utter determination to not let Destined Death be stolen again. I like to think that it does not represent what the fight is supposed to feel like to us, but what Maliketh feels while fighting us. After getting to know the lore, this hits so much harder.

that art is incredible wow

2:21. Best piece of music in FromSoft history.

Phase 2 literally feels like youre fighting a force of nature, death itself, because of this ost, its amazing

Solemn and dutiful, yet inspiring a regal dread that fits a magnificent yet terrifying champion like Maliketh perfectly. Reminds me of Gael's track in a lot of ways, love it

Everyone whom I've seen talk about Maliketh: "Yeah he has pretty low health!" Me pulling out my mimic tear for the first time: "not sure what kind of nonsense they're spewing, this bastard won't die"

Phase 2 deserve a full hp bar, just to turn this more epic

Crumbling Farum Azula is the combination of Archdragon Peak and Dragon Shrine.

"Oh death...become my blade once more" great line.

This is the most fearsome boss in Elden Ring. Sure, Malenia is more difficult, but this monster leaping about with the physical manifestation of death in the form of a sword… goddamn. This is my first Souls game and it’s already changed my tastes in gaming a great deal.

Maliketh phase 2 is Gael tier. It's just over way too fast

Maliketh is so strong, that they had to give him half a health bar

Friendly reminder that you are fighting Death itself in this fight.

0:23 i can hear him smash the tip of his sword to the ground... and that dark glowing of the Sword and him Breathing

Arguably the coolest boss in the game and they give him a paltry 5K HP.

This theme is top tier like the abysswatchers theme in DS3

I absolutely adore Maliketh. He embodies majesty, tragedy, and beauty. The unveiling of his true presence, hidden beneath a cloak, struck me with a potent mix of fear and awe. It is truly a masterpiece. The music reveals just how biblical he is.

*Phase 1* Huh? I thought I’d get to fight that black armored dude in the trailer. What the heck is this? *Phase 2* HOLYSH- *dies* Best video game moment of the year.

That rapid violin or whatever at 0:51 reminds me so fucking much about a Berserk song, don't know which one I think it's called Aria but damn that shit slaps hard

this song is unbelievable. easily top 3 in the ost

Holy fucking shit I love this comments section. I just keep going from comment to comment and I'm like "yup, they get it, yup this one gets it too oh my god." Fromsoft lore nerds are truly a blessed bunch ♥

The music of me dying to a 30 hit black blade wombo combo.

give Gurranq all 10 deathroot before this fight. Spoilers: He sounds genuinely confused when you enter. Maybe even kind of sad.

Yo that's berserker armor dog

"Cower before maliketh the black blade!!!"

this is the best music, any soulsborne boss has gotten

Bruh hearing that first note a chill went down my spine

Shoi Miyazawa is probably my favorite composer for Elden Ring. On top of Maliketh he also did the songs for Mohg, Radahn and Godrick.

this sound is legendary

The Bloodborne boss has a Dark Souls 3 ost

I didn't realize his soundtrack is so banger because I was just so desparate to dodge the attack…

This song is a majestic piece of video game art, people behind From are top level artists

This dude legit scares me. Like, when I enter his second phase and he slowly turns towards me im filled with anxiety. Every time, and Im on ng+5. I may hate fighting him but I really appreciate how threatning his design and theme is, and also how his character goes deeper than "scary wolf-knight".

this boss gave me nightmares, more than 50 attempts the bastard

Best boss music of all.

1:20 and 2:42 are my favorite parts of the theme

i saw Moist Critical’s 30 clip of him fighting Maliketh and decided to buy Elden ring… best purchase I have ever made..

This chad always beats my ass, took me an hour to beat him without summons

Beautifully done, the design, music, the ambient, everything..

It's so criminal that the best boss in the game doesn't have a full healthbar. Like, fromsoft made the best moveset in all souls history and it ends too fast maaan WHY ??

That art is insane

This is definitely one of my favourite bosses in all of video game history, I wish he had some sort of quest or more lore

Maliketh the black blade makes me think of Entei, Raikou, and Suicine the Johto beasts from Pokemon. Maliketh is so huge and intimidating, and is an incredibly fast boss, one of Elden Ring's most fearsome bosses.

Maliketh is the hardest strongest and greatest boss in Elden ring

Maliketh deserved a better fate.

Maliketh, OH Maliketh! Best boss in entire series. Second best soundtrack. Second to Gael's. Shame he has low HP, but that's because he is a mandatory boss. But excellent boss indeed.

Imagine if they made a DLC where you are sucked back to the time of the godskin apostasy and the gloam eyed queen has maliketh as a summonable

Slow drums + fast low volume drums + long , volume increasing/decreasing vocal sounds + bells + violin and cello = perfect way of depicting a dreadful, unpredictable, impending death that is almost inevitable. It's what I imagine the old flameluerker OST to be if they had more funds. Wonderful soundtrack!

i had chills when i heard the intro of this theme

I love this OST. Unfortunately, there was a bug that turned off Maliketh's theme at the beginning of the second phase in multiplayer

Maliketh should have been given more of a second phase since he is Destined Death's wielder. Every demi-god feared him. And should have felt it

Pretty much a requiem of fighting against fate and inevitability

Ended up taking the Ranni path just by chance, despite not having anything spoiled. Seeing what became of Blaidd, a fate that Maliketh avoided by only the most tragic means, that had an impact. This battle is my favourite of the whole game. The music and Maliketh's fighting style, you can feel the ferocity and desperate loyalty that's driven him to be one of the most feared warriors in the whole setting and drives him further to stop you from getting to his half-sister Marika. It's like fighting Artorias on steroids and I'm so here for it.

I'm writing a book and I just finished writing a scene that I feel encapsulates the feel of the boss. In my book, it's the main character fighting two of his best friends. They are being mind controlled by the real enemy, and he is trying to save them, the problem, however, is that all 3 of them have super powers. The main character is the "Alpha" and has all the powers of everyone else, but can't control them well. Vs his best friends who only have their one power and have been training to use their powers since the begining. On top of that, the MC is holding back to not hurt his friends, something that is being exploited. The villain enjoys the sadistic side to making these friends fight to the death, and it's very clear the MC is outmatched, their synergy is just too good but he refuses to give up on his friends. Tears roll from all three as they essentially take turns beating him to a bloody pulp. He is knocked down again and again and again and again. But he rises again and again and again. The feeling isn't about the fight itself, perse, it's about what is at stake for failing. No matter the cost, you MUST prevail. That is what I feel. I just wanted to share that. I love the boss music in this game it's so good to write to.

You know, I'm realizing that you could put this guy in Bloodborne, and he'd fit right in as a boss.

I find it quite funny that as soon as you watch a speedrunner or someone really good at the game fighting this boss its eternally solved in your head, but damn is it tough to do blind. Cool ass boss.

The beast of darkness but is actually an ally for Guts

This artwork is flawless. Great job!

Me. Could clap Malenia in two goes. But died 47 times to Maliketh. The music definitely owns up to that.

this sounds like a final battle, just like it should if you know malikeths lore, it's so sad

My favorite ost in souls to this day, such an incredible theme (Laurence the first vicar is second and fortissax’s theme is 3rd)

Game deserves its own movie

This song always sounds like a duel of knights.

I swear this man was flipping in THE AIR this guy radiates black Air Force energy

I really commend from soft for distinguishing stuff like death blight from destined death. When he hits you and you see that a chunk of your healthbar isn't just empty, but it's missing, as though your tarnished warrior is ceasing to exist ... You realize that *this* is true death in The Lands Between.

ah Maliketh, the only boss who can kill Mimic Tear

1:00

"It's not a purple blade, is not an orange blade, no! no!"

I feel like a lot of people kind of misinterpret Maliketh's boss fight when they talk about his low health in phase 2 but I have a different opinion on this matter While yes I also would have loved to fight him with a full hp bar I feel like you are not supposed to actually battle him one on one, no you've already done that in phase 1 The way the second phase begins and the way he attacks is clearly an indication that Maliketh knows it's now or never, he HAS to kill you there for good otherwise that would have been the official end of the age of the golden order And that's why he's at half health: you've beaten him hard enough to realise this is it... Now you have to survive through it The entire world doesn't expect you to make it Maliketh PRAYS you won't

"O, Death. Become my blade, once more."

The only boss to put fear in my heart i was legit scared fighting him 💀❤️

This is such a great song I need more music like this in shadow of the erdtree

My favorite boss in all of FromSoft's games. If the Black Blade phase had a full health bar it would legit be perfect.

Idk if anyone here has read Berserk but this is what I imagine Guts looking like if he ever became an apostle

Parrying this boss was a mistake. I missed a great fight......... Parry just makes him very simple

If pure terror and intensity were a song....