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The Dancer of the Boreal Valley is a boss in Dark Souls III.

In-Game Description

The Pontiff Sulyvahn bestowed a double-slashing sword upon a distant daughter of the formal royal family, ordering her to serve first as a dancer, and then as an outrider knight, the equivalent to exile.[1]

Description[]

The Dancer is a towering, lanky being that closely resembles the other beastly armored knights from Irithyll like the Boreal Outrider Knights with their silver and slim armor. She also wears a crown with a long mirage-like veil, an article that proves her direct lineage from the old royal family of the gods. Instead of crawling on all fours like the other boreal knights she stands with her torso bent forward and her back curved, fighting and moving like she's dancing with deceivingly slow steps.

Location[]

Found in the High Wall of Lothric, in the cathedral where Emma, High Priestess of Lothric Castle resides. Under normal circumstances, she will reveal herself after the player has defeated the first three Lords of Cinder: the Abyss Watchers, Aldrich, Saint of the Deep and Yhorm the Giant.

After the third Lord of Cinder has been defeated, a cutscene will play with Emma summoning the Ashen One to the cathedral. Once there, she will bestow them the Basin of Vows. Walking up to the statue of the beheading knight behind her with it in possession will trigger the boss fight.

Alternatively, the player may kill Emma at any time during the game, loot the basin from her body and approach the statue to commence the battle. This allows for early access to Lothric Castle, the Consumed King's Garden and Untended Graves.

Lore[]

Dancer's Crown

The crown of the Dancer, proof of her direct descent from the royal family of the gods

The Dancer is a direct descendant of Gwynevere, Princess of Sunlight[2] and as such she was among the Irithyllians, hybrids between the race of the gods of Anor Londo and humans, who inhabit Irithyll of the Boreal Valley, the city built for them on the ruins of Anor Londo[3]

After Sulyvahn imprisoned Dark Sun Gwyndolin, proclaimed himself pontiff and assumed control of the city[4], he bestowed a set of paired enchanted swords to the Dancer, as a symbol of her new subjection to the tyrant, as they were enchanted with dark magic in the right-hand, and fire in the left, mirroring those of the Pontiff[5]. After that he ordered her to serve as a "dancer" in his service[6].

Dancer's Enchanted Swords

The blades symbolizing the Dancer's vows to Pontiff Sulyvahn.

After Prince Lothric refused to link the First Flame and his kingdom fell into ruin due to various internal problems[7], Sulyvahn would order the Dancer to serve as a Boreal Outrider Knight, which was the equivalent to being exiled[8]. These knights, before being dispatched to foreign lands, were given the eye rings of the Pontiff, with the power to transform them into savage, raving warriors who only knew how to serve as mindless guards. thus ensuring Sulyvahn total control over them and preventing them from betraying him[9].

The Dancer was thus sent to Lothric together with a division of Boreal Outrider Knights and under the watchful eye of Vordt of the Boreal Valley[10]. Here she positioned herself to guard the Cathedral and High Priestess Emma[11]. Like other Outrider Knights, she would end up transformed into a frenzied beast by the rings of the Pontiff[12], causing her armor to be fused with her hide.[13]

Theories[]

  • It is possible to theorize that the Dancer, in particular, was sent to Lothric in response to the priestess' request for help[14] as she was a direct descendant of Gwynevere[15], former queen of Lothric. In the event or upon the death of Lorian, Elder Prince and Lothric, Younger Prince, Sulyvahn would thus have in place a figure with legitimacy to inherit the throne as the step-sibling to the heirs. In fact King Oceiros was mad and the Queen had fled[16], leaving no other pretender with royal blood. By officially marrying the "dancer" at his service[17], Sulyvahn would thus effectively become king consort of Lothric.

Fight overview[]

Strategy[]

The arena in which the Dancer is fought is not very large, and gives limited room for avoiding her attacks. As well, the furniture at the sides can obstruct movement, so rolling through them early in the fight can provide more maneuvering space later. The pillars at the sides can also be used as a limited form of cover to shield oneself from her attacks. These pillars as well as the walls can be set on fire by hitting them with a Fire source like the torch, or by the Dancer's attacks with her right-hand weapon.

For the first phase of the fight, the Dancer performs limited combos with her weapon, with a few attacks that can reach her sides or behind her. It is best to stay near the Dancer's right leg so that her grab is easier to see (although it doesn't reach far, it can reach far around her left side, making it a bad idea to side roll). Boosting fire resistance with the Flame Stoneplate Ring or Red Bug Pellet may be a good idea but not required as it is in your best interest to avoid her attacks altogether. Using stamina reinforcers like the Grass Crest Shield, Chloranthy Ring, or Green Blossoms are a good idea, as it will provide more stamina to be ready to evade her attacks.

Around half health, the Dancer will bring out her second blade which does Magic damage, losing her ability to perform her grab attack. Her combos become much more dangerous and lengthy at this point, with several of them having unpredictable stopping points (particularly her twirl) or retaliatory follow-ups to punish attempts to attack at the end of a combo. During this phase, it is generally better to stay in front of her rather than behind, in order to more easily read her attacks and dodge. Be mindful that her twirling attacks coincide precisely with chained rolls, so performing repeated rolls at the right moment will dodge all of them including the finishing spin. The few chains that she does throw however can leave behind a dragging trail of fire, or dark. That tracks through the attacks path.

The Dancer is not a particularly fast boss, but her movements are deliberate and she has very long and powerful combos, so fast weapons that do not have long windup or recovery times can work better than slow and powerful weapons. She also does not have a lot of health for a boss at this stage of the game, reducing her difficulty for experienced players attempting to kill her early. She will eventually stagger after taking enough Poise damage, and enough hits targeted on her head will open her up for a critical attack. A relatively heavy armor set and strong enough two handed weapon can stagger her in about 2 to 3 strikes. Though the stagger state only last for around 2.5 seconds and will only offer the enhance damage effect for around half as much time.

The Dancer is weak to Strike and Dark damage, as well as being susceptible to Bleed buildup. This makes Human Pine Resin and Carthus Rouge powerful tools to use for this fight, as well as weapons such as the Dark Hand. Casters will have the option to use spells such as Dorhys' Gnawing and Great Deep Soul, which will allow them to eviscerate her from a distance.

Keep in mind that the Dancer's attacks are often lanky and very difficult to telegraph. So the player should take caution when choosing a time to attack.

Drops[]

Item Soul of the Dancer
Soul of the Dancer
Drop Rate Guaranteed

Notes[]

Trivia[]

  • In Irithyll of the Boreal Valley, several ghosts of long dead knights can be seen wandering along the city streets. Two unique ghosts in particular, one male and the other female, can be seen departing from the cathedral at the end of the main street. They heavily resemble Vordt and the Dancer, both of whom served together under Pontiff Sulyvahn's command.
  • In the network test and early demos, the Dancer's name appeared as the "Dancer of the Frigid Valley".
  • An unused set of audio files can be found that depict the Dancer laughing and shrilling as she enters the fight, as well as giving a haunting chuckle when she stares at the player. This laughter and shrill is of a multi-voiced female source.

Gallery[]

Videos[]

Dancer_of_the_Boreal_Valley_Boss_Fight_-_Dark_Souls_3

Dancer of the Boreal Valley Boss Fight - Dark Souls 3

Music[]

Yuka_Kitamura_-_Dancer_Of_The_Boreal_Valley_(Extended)_(Dark_Souls_III_Extended_Original_Soundtrack)

Yuka Kitamura - Dancer Of The Boreal Valley (Extended) (Dark Souls III Extended Original Soundtrack)

References[]

  1. Soul of the Dancer description.
  2. Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls III)#Availability and Dancer's Crown description.
  3. "Irithyllian" Character Creation: "The features of the old gods, as if from legend. They say children born like this are fated to be taken to the Boreal Valley"
  4. Company Captain Yorshka dialogue.
  5. Soul of the Dancer and Dancer's Enchanted Swords description.
  6. Soul of the Dancer description.
  7. Grand Archives Key description and Emma, High Priestess of Lothric Castle dialogue and Opening (Dark Souls III)
  8. Soul of the Dancer description.
  9. Pontiff's Left Eye and Outrider Knight Set description.
  10. Soul of Boreal Valley Vordt description.
  11. Dancer of the Boreal Valley#Location
  12. Pontiff's Left Eye descriptions.
  13. Dancer's Set description.
  14. Small Lothric Banner and description.
  15. Soothing Sunlight (Dark Souls III)#Availability and Dancer's Crown description.
  16. Divine Blessing (Dark Souls III) description.
  17. Dancer's Enchanted Swords description.
Bosses
Iudex GundyrVordt of the Boreal ValleyCurse-rotted GreatwoodCrystal Sage
Deacons of the DeepAbyss WatchersHigh Lord WolnirOld Demon King
Pontiff SulyvahnAldrich, Devourer of GodsYhorm the Giant
Dancer of the Boreal ValleyOceiros, the Consumed KingChampion Gundyr
Dragonslayer ArmourLorian, Elder Prince and Lothric, Younger Prince
Ancient WyvernThe Nameless KingSoul of Cinder
Ashes of Ariandel
Champion's Gravetender and Gravetender GreatwolfSister FriedeFather Ariandel
The Ringed City
Demon PrinceHalflight, Spear of the ChurchDarkeater MidirSlave Knight Gael
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