Elden Ring Nightreign: Best Duchess Build for Everdark Fissure in the Fog

Everything you need to know about the best Duchess build for Everdark Fissure in the Fog in Elden Ring Nightreign, including Relics and more.

Elden Ring Nightreign (Image via FromSoftware)

Duchess, like Ironeye, Recluse, and even Revenant, is one of the squishiest Nightfarers in Elden Ring Nightreign. While she is capable of dishing out good DPS, she is one of the few Nightfarers who rely heavily on Relics to do so. And given the amount of damage (physical and affinity) the Everdark Fissure in the Fog is capable of dishing out, you would think Duchess to be a less viable option against the new Nightlord.

However, that’s certainly not the case. In fact, Duchess is among the few Nightfarers, like Wylder and Raider, who are a perfect fit for the Everdark Caligo, Miasma of Night. However, to make Duchess work against the new Nightlord, you will need a good Relic loadout. Here’s a comprehensive guide on the best Duchess build for Everdark Fissure in the Fog in Elden Ring Nightreign, including tips on how to defeat the boss easily.

Overview of the Best Duchess Build for Everdark Fissure in the Fog in Elden Ring Nightreign

Overview of the Duchess in Elden Ring Nightreign (Image via Bandai Namco Entertainment) — Skills and Passives of the Duchess (Image via Bandai Namco Entertainment)

For the Duchess build, we’ve focused on two primary aspects: survivability and elemental damage. Ideally, with Duchess, you don’t have to focus on survivability, since she’s meant to be a “glass cannon.” However, when faced against Everdark Nightlords, having a little bit of extra Vigor goes a long way. Furthermore, unlike Ironeye or Recluse, Duchess usually stays at melee range, which does put her in the way of AOE attacks. As such, for this Duchess build, we have used Augur’s Relic, which grants Vigor +5 and also passive healing for allies. You can swap Augur’s Relic with the Dark version (obtained by defeating Everdark Augur).

Additionally, since Duchess’s strength lies in elemental (affinity) damage, you want to bring a Fire (imbue) Relic for Everdark Caligo. If you don’t have a good Large Relic with the “Fire on starting armament” perk, you can use Gladius’s Relic as well. It’s a Medium Relic but offers Fire damage as well as passive stamina regeneration.

Best Relics for the Duchess Build

Night of the Fathom

Increased maximum HP.
Flask also heals allies.
Items confer effects to all nearby allies.

Grand Tranquil Scene

Partial HP restoration upon post-damage attacks.
Vigor +2.
Poise +2.

Tips To Use the Duchess Build Against Everdark Fissure in the Fog

Here are some tips to help you use the Duchess build efficiently against Everdark Fissure in the Fog:

When playing as Duchess, you never want to face the boss head-on. Instead, you want to stay behind them, dealing constant affinity damage via Daggers and Spells. Thankfully, Caligo’s hitbox is quite generous for Duchess’s playstyle, and you can easily stay behind the boss’s legs to break its armor.

Make sure to use Restage wisely. If you have multiple Duchesses in a party, remember that Restage can help stack affinity damage. Furthermore, make sure to always have Restage ready for critical hits.

Duchess is the only Nightfarer in Elden Ring Nightreign whose Ultimate Art doesn’t deal any damage to enemies. Instead, use your Ultimate only if your allies have fallen. Furthermore, you can also use Duchess’s Ultimate to sneak a few extra attacks on the boss.

While this build does offer superior survivability, Duchess is still a very squishy character. As such, make sure to keep an eye on Caligo’s moveset. Do note that all of Caligo’s AOE attacks can be dodged by simply sprinting away from the boss.

Additional Notes

If you’re experienced with Duchess and her moveset, we recommend swapping Night of Fathom with Dark Fulghor’s Relic. It increases the added affinity damage of weapons and also grants additional stamina.