How to Beat Curse-Rotted Greatwood in Dark Souls 3
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How to Beat Curse-Rotted Greatwood in Dark Souls 3
Curse-Rotted Greatwood Tips
The Curse-Rotted Greatwood is one of Dark Souls 3’s most visually memorable early bosses — a massive cursed tree stuffed with suffering souls, its pustule-based damage mechanic teaching players to look beyond the obvious body hit for weakpoints. The fight itself is gentle by Souls standards, functioning almost as a tutorial for the mechanics of large enemy fights before harder challenges arrive. Its optional nature means many players skip it entirely on repeat playthroughs, but the Hollowslayer Greatsword soul transposition and the early souls reward make it worth the 5–10 minutes it takes. The Abyss Watchers provide a much more significant challenge immediately afterward in the main progression path.
FAQ
⚡ Quick Answer
How to Beat Curse-Rotted Greatwood
Destroy the white pustules on the Greatwood’s body — each one you break deals damage and eventually triggers Phase 2. Target the large sac on its left hand first for maximum damage. The fight is simple: run under his legs, slash the pustules, dodge his stomps. He is one of the easiest bosses in the game.
1
Understand the mechanic. The Curse-Rotted Greatwood is a massive cursed tree found in the Undead Settlement. You damage it by destroying the white glowing pustules scattered across its body — not by hitting its trunk. Each pustule destroyed contributes to a hidden damage threshold. Destroying the large sac on its left hand triggers Phase 2 and deals the most single-hit progress.
2
Stay under its body and attack the ankle pustules first. The Greatwood moves slowly and its most dangerous attacks are wide horizontal sweeps. Run under its body immediately and target the pustules on its ankles and lower legs — these are the easiest to reach consistently. Stay close to its feet and it cannot hit you with most of its arm swings.
3
Dodge its stomp attacks. The Greatwood occasionally raises one leg and stomps — the AoE is visible as a ground tremor animation. Roll away from the raised foot before impact. The stomp covers a moderate radius but is well-telegraphed — you have plenty of time to react from close range. After the stomp, sprint back underneath and resume attacking pustules.
4
Phase 2 — it falls into the pit. After enough pustules are destroyed the Greatwood crashes through the floor into a lower arena. Follow it down. In Phase 2 it gains a large hand slam attack and moves slightly more aggressively. A new large pustule appears on its groin area — this is the primary Phase 2 target. Destroy it and the surrounding pustules for a fast finish.
5
Avoid the hand slam and curse pools. In Phase 2 the Greatwood slams its corrupted hand into the ground, creating a curse buildup pool that lingers on the floor. Curse is deadly — it halves your maximum HP permanently until cured with a Purging Stone. Stay mobile and avoid standing in the purple mist areas while continuing to destroy pustules.
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This boss is optional: the Curse-Rotted Greatwood is not required for main story progression — you can bypass the Undead Settlement entirely or complete it without engaging this boss. However, its soul transposes into the Hollowslayer Greatsword or Arstor’s Spear — both solid weapons — making it worth fighting early.
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Recommended level 20–30: the Greatwood is an early game optional boss found in the Undead Settlement. Arrive at Soul Level 20+ with a +2 or higher weapon. His health pool is modest and the pustule mechanic means even a low-damage weapon ends the fight in 3–4 minutes maximum.
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Bring Purging Stones just in case: the Phase 2 curse pools are the main threat for inexperienced players. Carry 2–3 Purging Stones (purchased from the Shrine Handmaid at Firelink for 4,500g each or found in the Undead Settlement) to immediately cure curse if you accidentally stand in the purple mist too long.
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Hollowslayer Greatsword is excellent for Hollow builds: transposing the boss soul at Ludleth gives the Hollowslayer Greatsword — a weapon that deals 20% bonus damage to Hollow enemies, which makes up a large portion of late-game enemies. It scales with Strength and Dexterity and is a solid quality build choice.
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NPC prisoners in the arena attack the Greatwood: at the start of the fight several prisoner NPCs in cages around the arena begin attacking the Greatwood. They deal minimal damage but provide a brief distraction at the start of the fight. They are killed by the Greatwood’s area attacks in Phase 1 — do not rely on them for meaningful help.
Where is the Curse-Rotted Greatwood in Dark Souls 3?
The Curse-Rotted Greatwood is found in the Undead Settlement — the large area accessed after the High Wall of Lothric. Progress through the Undead Settlement until you reach a large courtyard with prisoners in cages and a massive tree at the center. Attacking the tree triggers the boss fight.
Is the Curse-Rotted Greatwood required in Dark Souls 3?
No — the Curse-Rotted Greatwood is an optional boss. You can complete the Undead Settlement and progress to the Road of Sacrifices without fighting it. However, its soul transposes into the Hollowslayer Greatsword or Arstor’s Spear at Ludleth, making it worth defeating for the weapon rewards.
How do you deal damage to the Curse-Rotted Greatwood?
Destroy the white glowing pustules on its body — hitting the trunk does almost no damage. Target pustules on its ankles and lower body in Phase 1, then focus on the large groin pustule in Phase 2. Destroying the large sac on its left hand deals the most progress and triggers the Phase 2 transition.
What does the Curse-Rotted Greatwood drop in Dark Souls 3?
The Curse-Rotted Greatwood drops the Transposing Kiln — give it to Ludleth at Firelink Shrine to unlock boss soul transposition. It also drops its own soul, the Soul of the Rotted Greatwood, which transposes into either the Hollowslayer Greatsword or Arstor’s Spear.