Facing the towering Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is a fiery trial that tests your skill and strategy. These colossal, flame-wreathed minibosses roam the open plains, wielding devastating area attacks and nearly impenetrable defenses. But with the right preparation-breaking their posture by targeting their legs, exploiting their weakness to Hefty Fire Pots, and mastering horseback combat on Torrent-you can bring these blazing behemoths crashing down and claim their rare, powerful rewards. Ready your weapons and fire pots; the battle for the Shadow of the Erdtree’s secrets begins here.
Taking down a Furnace Golem requires some thought, so attacking it in the usual manner isn’t recommended – unless you want to be burnt to a crisp.
Our Elden Ring guide explains how to beat Furnace Golems, and the rewards for doing so.
Furnace Golem locations
Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree are colossal elite enemies found exclusively in the DLC’s Shadow Realm map. There are eight Furnace Golems scattered across various open areas, including Gravesite Plain, Charo’s Hidden Grave, Shadow Keep Army Campsite, Scorched Ruins, Ruins of Unte, near the Cathedral of Manus Metyr, Rauh Ancient Ruins, and Ellac River. Some require special tactics to awaken or defeat, such as using Hefty Furnace Pots to ignite or damage their armored legs from elevated positions. These locations offer players the opportunity to engage these challenging foes for valuable rewards like Crystal Tears and Furnace Visages.
There are eight Furnace Golems in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. You’ll find them in every region of the Shadow Realm except the Abyssal Woods.
How to prepare for Furnace Golems
To prepare for fighting Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, first ensure you have a full Flask of Crimson Tears for healing both yourself and Torrent, your mount. Understand that there are two types of Furnace Golems: those with armored legs and those without. For unarmored ones, focus on attacking their legs repeatedly to break their stance and topple them, allowing critical hits on their open faceplate. Use heavy, high-poise weapons and stay mounted on Torrent to dodge their powerful fire stomp attacks effectively. For armored Furnace Golems, ranged attacks using Hefty Fire Pots or Hefty Furnace Pots thrown into their burning basket on the head are essential, as melee damage to their legs will not work. Utilizing terrain to gain elevation can help you target their weak points from a safer distance. Additionally, ranged spells aimed at their face can deal significant damage. Overall, patience and strategic use of mounts, heavy weapons, and fire pots are key to overcoming these fiery titans.
Though most Furnace Golems can be taken down the aid of additional items, the long and short of it is getting Hefty Fire Pots or, preferably, Hefty Furnace Pots, will aid you most in defeating them.
We have a separate guide on how to get Hefty Fire Pots and Hefty Furnace Pots, and can be crafted once you have the required materials. It’s worth noting to get a Hefty Furnace Pot, in most cases you need to have defeated a Furnace Golem first to get the crafting material required. See the problem?
When you do have one however, throwing one into the enormous basket – essentially the main body of the Furnace Golem – will deal significant damage, while the Hefty Fire Pots will take off one fifth of its health.
Again, these are optional for most Furnace Golems, so let’s go through the strategy whether you’re equipped with them or not. Either way, it’s highly recommended you pick up a few Scadutree Fragments first to increase your chances of survival, especially if you are just starting out.
How to beat Furnace Golems in Elden Ring
To beat Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, focus on their weak spots-the legs and the head basket. If the golem’s legs are unarmored, stay close and attack them to break its stance, causing it to topple and expose the head for critical hits. Use heavy melee attacks and stay mounted on Torrent to dodge its powerful fire stomp and jump attacks. For armored leg golems, rely on Hefty Fire Pots or Hefty Furnace Pots, throwing them into the flaming basket on the golem’s head from a safe vantage point to deal massive damage. Patience is key, as it may take multiple staggers and pot throws to defeat them. Enhancing fire damage and using items like the Smithing Talisman can speed up the fight, and defeating these golems rewards valuable loot including Crystal Tears and Furnace Visages.
When you are in combat with the Furnace Golem, there are a few attacks you’ll need to defend against. They’ll spot you from a mile away, at which point they’ll shoot fireballs out of both their hands and feet, along with flaming jets. When you get closer, they’ll also jump into the air and come crashing down, which causes a huge wave of explosions.
This can be dodged by jumping the second the feet hit the floor, and the same goes for the slightly smaller version of this where they only stomp with one foot. Note that if you are fighting a Furnace Golem from up above, it can swing at you with both hands, so don’t assume you’re safe.
On the ground, your best bet is to stay behind the Furnace Golem as much as you can, and make sure you summon a Spirit Ash – my recommendation is the Mimic Tear – to help take some of the aggro during the early stages of the fight. If you’re in front of the Golem, they will often try to pick you up with a sweeping hand, which results in you being thrown into their basket and insta-killed.
If you have a Hefty Pot, how do you get them into the basket? Well, you need to either be in an elevated position compared to where the Furnace Golem is, or you need to bring the Golem down to your level. Some Furnace Golems – the ones that don’t have armor on the legs – can be attacked from the ground, which will break their stance and bring them crashing down once you’ve dealt enough damage to both legs, not just one.
From here, you can either deal a critical hit to its face, or throw a Hefty Fire/Furnace Pot into the basket. Rinse and repeat this a few times and it’ll die, granting you some valuable rewards. If the Furnace Golem does have leg armor, you’ll need to try and get above it though, using the terrain around you. If you have ranged capabilities, you can also target its face from ground level with arrows and spells. This will deal more damage, but the fastest route to eliminate them is still via the Hefty Pots.
Furnace Golem rewards
Defeating Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree rewards players with valuable items and materials. Each Furnace Golem drops a Furnace Visage, an essential crafting material used to make powerful throwing pots like the Hefty Fire Pot and Hefty Furnace Pot, which are crucial for taking down armored variants. Additionally, players receive unique Crystal Tears that enhance their Flask of Wondrous Physick with new effects, such as improved weapon block or other beneficial buffs. Alongside these, players earn a substantial amount of Runes, typically around 10,000 or more, making these fights worthwhile despite the challenge. These rewards provide both practical combat advantages and crafting opportunities, incentivizing players to seek out and defeat these formidable foes.
Defeating Furnace Golems will reward you with DLC Crystal Tears for your Wondrous Physick flask, so they are worth taking on when you have the tools to do so.
Furnace Golems are also one of the primary sources of Furnace Visage, which is used to craft Hefty Furnace Pots, helping you take down even more Furnace Golems (and are particularly useful for those which are armored.)
What secret weaknesses do Furnace Golems hide in Elden Ring
Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree hide crucial weaknesses that can turn the tide of battle in your favor. Their primary vulnerability lies in their legs, which, if unarmored, can be targeted repeatedly to break their stance and topple them for a critical hit on their exposed furnace face. However, some golems have armored legs that are impervious to attacks, forcing you to exploit their second major weakness-their burning furnace head. From elevated positions, you can throw Hefty Fire Pots or Hefty Furnace Pots into the furnace to deal significant fire damage and quickly bring them down. Additionally, lightning damage, especially in rainy or watery environments, is highly effective against these fiery giants. Combining these tactics-targeting legs when possible, using fire pots from high ground, and leveraging elemental damage-will help you overcome these formidable foes.
Do Furnace Golems have hidden weak points besides their legs and face
Besides their legs and faceplate, Furnace Golems in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree have a hidden weak point on their upper back, which can be exploited especially on armored golems. While their legs may be armored and immune to damage, the upper back is often reachable from elevated positions, allowing players to target this vulnerable spot with ranged attacks or thrown Hefty Furnace Pots. This back weak point provides an alternative to the faceplate, particularly against the tougher armored variants that resist leg attacks. Thus, players should look for ledges or higher ground to strike these concealed weak spots effectively.
