Ruin Sentinels

The Ruin Sentinels are a trio of bosses in Dark Souls II. They are also standard enemies in Drangleic Castle.

General Information
The Ruin Sentinels can be found in The Lost Bastille past a large group of Royal Swordsmen. The boss fight is a three on one, unless the player stays on the ledge upon entering. This way, the player can challenge one sentinel at the beginning. After its death or the player drops to the floor, the other two sentinels will join the fight.

The summon sign of Pilgrim Bellclaire, an NPC white phantom, can be found in a cell in the hallway before the fog gate.

The Ruin Sentinels reappear as standard enemies in Drangleic Castle behind several doors in a wide open area, with spear-wielding Stone Soldiers guarding each and every door. Within here, there are a total of five Ruin Sentinels.

Strategy
One solo strategy is to try to keep the first on the starting platform, blocking/dodging his attacks in between the player's own. He hits hard and can send the player flying if he connects. However, his attacks are fairly easy to read. If he falls off the platform before the player can kill him, he will leap back up with a powerful jumping attack. Alternatively, the player can perform a plunging attack for large damage, but the fall will cause a lot of damage if the player isn't using a fall suppressor, like Fall Control or the Silvercat Ring.

Once the first one is dead, or after jumping down from the ledge before he is dead, the other two will jump down to join the fight. They have the same moveset as the first. When outside of melee range, they can use a spinning attack that closes the distance very quickly and deals massive health/stamina damage. However, the move is telegraphed by the Sentinel winding up for his spin, which leaves them open to counterattack once they have finished. They can also throw their shields when outside of melee range. However, a Sentinel will not replace its shield once it has been thrown, which also prevents it from further blocking attacks.

Keeping them split up makes it easier to hit them between their slow attacks. All of their attacks deal physical damage, so a 100% physical blocking shield can be useful. Pilgrim Bellclaire is especially helpful with this fight, as she can solo all three of them with her powerful spells, so long as they are distracted from her.

Another effective tactic is to take two maces in Power Stance. The Power Stanced heavy attack of the maces will stagger the Sentinels with every combo, leaving the player to kill each sentinel in about 3-4 combos. If the maces are upgraded then the player will be able to stay on the platform and kill the second sentinel before the third one joins the fight.

Ruin Sentinels are very weak to both Strike and Lightning damage, so a good great hammer (like a fully upgraded Demon's Great Hammer) infused with Lightning will deal massive amounts of damage, capable of defeating each Sentinel in only 3~4 hits. It's also recommended to wear the Silvercat Ring before entering the fog gate, to avoid any possibility of sustaining fall damage while in battle.

The room where the five Ruin Sentinels appear at Drangleic Castle is one of the most profitable areas in the game (giving 4,000+ souls per kill), and, as there's a bonfire nearby, they can be respawned constantly. These Sentinels are less aggressive than their boss counterparts and very rarely they'll try to use their jump or spinning attacks. If the player has chosen their means of attack well, a Sentinel can be killed in just three hits, and the surrounding Stone Soldiers in just one.

Attacks

 * Note: All attacks from all three sentinels are the same.


 * Two hand swipe: Grips their weapon with 2 hands and performs one clean swipe.
 * Double Hit: Swings its weapon twice in a row.
 * Overhead Slam: Uses 2 hands and performs the classic overhead slam.
 * Throw: The sentinel throws its shield in a rolling fashion. Does not retrieve its shield afterwards, not allowing the Sentinel the block anymore.
 * Spin: Spins their weapon several times while heading towards the player.
 * Leap Slam: While the player has made some distance, will perform a leap towards the player while slamming their weapon on the ground, holding it with both hands.

Trivia

 * Their armor seems to be heavily inspired by the German Stechzeug Plate, which was designed for Jousting.
 * The weapons they carry seem to be inspired by the Swiss Lucerne Hammer.
 * If making a comparison to the player's height. The Ruin Sentinels are at least 14-16 feet tall.
 * Their names seem be based on a variety of real world names that have meanings in different languages. Interestingly, all names represent a characteristic.
 * Yahim is an Indian last name of unknown meaning. It may also be derived from the Hebrew male first name, Yamin, which translates to "Right Hand" or "Blessed". In Sanskrit, Yamin is a unisex first name which translates to "Darkness".
 * Ricce may derive from the Norse female first name, Ricci, which translates to "Forever Strong".
 * Alessia is an Italian female first name which translates to "Defender".