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Predicting boss attacks in Elden Ring isn’t just about fast reflexes — it’s about pattern recognition, discipline, and learning to read the battlefield like a seasoned speedrunner. After hundreds of hours in the Lands Between, I’ve learned how to anticipate and dodge even the most unpredictable boss combos. If you’ve ever watched a speedrunner seemingly dance around Radagon or Malenia with ease, here’s how they do it — and how you can too.

Understanding Boss Patterns: The Core of Prediction

Every Elden Ring boss operates on a specific set of attack animations and triggers. These are not random. From my experience, even the most chaotic bosses, like Malenia or Mohg, follow learnable patterns. The key lies in spending time with them and analyzing their telegraphs — the subtle cues they give before an attack.

For example, Margit’s staff swing has a half-second pause that many new players misread, rolling too early. I used to fall for this constantly until I slowed down and started watching the wind-up instead of reacting to sound cues. Speedrunners rely on visual cues more than anything, and they train their reaction to those exact frames.

Frame Watching: Training Like a Speedrunner

Frame watching means focusing on animation frames, not just actions. A boss like Maliketh, whose movements are lightning-fast, still has tells. His black blade slash has a frame-perfect flicker before he dives in. By recording fights and reviewing footage, I learned to count the frames between his foot movement and the attack. It sounds extreme, but this level of attention is how speedrunners avoid damage entirely.

Try recording your own gameplay or watching it in slow motion. Look for three key things:

• Wind-up animations

• Attack delay patterns

• Post-attack recovery windows

Speedrunners use this data to plan their next move before the boss even finishes their current animation.

Positioning and Spacing: Where You Stand Matters

Another overlooked tactic is player positioning. When I first started doing no-hit runs, I noticed that bosses behave differently depending on where you stand. Standing slightly behind and to the side of a boss often triggers back-swipe attacks, which are easier to dodge than frontal combos. Elden Beast, for instance, rotates its body based on your angle of approach, allowing you to bait specific attacks.

Practice staying just outside melee range, observe how the boss reacts, then step in at the right moment. This method gave me a huge edge during my first speedrun attempts.

Practicing Efficiently with Rune Support

It’s no secret that speedrunners and challenge runners spend hundreds of hours refining their approach. If you don’t have that kind of time, there are ways to accelerate your learning curve. I personally used early rune boosts to experiment with different builds and upgrade timings. One service I tried that saved me a lot of grind time was buy elden ring runes from U4GM.

It let me skip the farming and focus purely on boss study and build optimization. If you’re serious about mastering bosses and want to practice different tactics without the grind, I also recommend their Elden Ring runes buy bot service. It’s fast, secure, and got me into late-game practice zones far quicker than a traditional playthrough.

The Importance of Repetition and Mindset

One thing every speedrunner emphasizes is repetition. When I first started learning boss timings, I would run the same fight 30 times in a row. It was exhausting — but it worked. The muscle memory you build from raw repetition is invaluable.

But don’t just grind mindlessly. Keep a journal or notes on each boss. What’s the timing on their first attack? Do they favor left or right swings? Are they prone to following up with a grab or an AOE? These little notes helped me improve more than anything else.

Learning to predict boss attacks like a speedrunner isn’t just about being fast — it’s about being smart. With the right focus, efficient practice, and a willingness to study each encounter like a puzzle, you’ll find yourself dodging attacks you once thought impossible. Pair that with rune support services like those from U4GM, and your learning curve shrinks dramatically.

Whether you’re aiming for your first no-death run or just trying to stop dying to Margit for the fifth time, take your time, study the tells, and keep practicing. The Lands Between reward those who pay attention.

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