Someone's already completed a solo Elden Ring Nightreign run at level 1 and, as is tradition, the power of status effects pulled through

The Elden Ring Nightreign is exceptionally challenging, even when played with a few friends against the Nightlords. To put it mildly, the overwhelming difficulty one encounters when playing alone – without teammates to resurrect you – adds an extra layer of challenge. After investing nearly two dozen hours into this game, I can attest that the steep wall of difficulty faced by a solo player is a testament to its toughness.

Indeed, it seems a remarkably skilled player has graced our presence, effortlessly conquering the formidable Nightlord boss Fulghor in a solo run without gaining any additional levels. This impressive, almost unheard-of feat serves as a gentle reminder for us all to take a step back from complaining and instead work on improving our own skills.

Watching YouTuber and Twitch streamer Youwy’s challenge is quite a spectacle – and all the more astonishing when you take into account Nightreign’s unique mechanics. Typically, in Souls games, a level 1 run can be achieved by quickly heading for top-tier low-level equipment and assembling something that functions regardless of stats.

In this case, however, Nightreign operates differently.

In Nightreign, every run is unpredictable, so you won’t have the luxury of choice. Similar to the ‘onebro’ runs in Elden Ring, status effects play a crucial role, and certain initial items allow you to maintain that trend in Nightreign.

Instead of depending solely on luck with random drops, Youwy strategically equips the Executor – boasting a strong Arcane base stat and default katana – along with the Night of Miasma and Night of the Wise relics to arm himself with a starting weapon that inflicts poison, bleeding, and frost buildup. It’s discovered that acquiring smithing stones is an efficient alternative for upgrading weapons, bypassing the need for random loot.

It’s discovered that you can significantly enhance your primary weapon more swiftly if you’re not using souls for leveling. In a heart-stopping instance, after a perilous journey through the mines, Youwy is forced to dash towards a merchant in the harsh rain. He soars into the sky, lands with mere health left, utilizes the Executor ultimate’s complete healing, and barely manages to buy enough smithing stones to upgrade his weapon before collapsing.

During the course of the game, User_Ywy acknowledges that the Executor’s knack for stacking three status effects on his initial weapon comes in handy, particularly in such situations. However, he finds the rest of the Executor’s abilities to be useful only in certain scenarios—drawing out the deflection sword against bosses and challenging opponents he can’t stagger, and employing his ultimate ability for crowd control. The Tenacity passive, on the other hand, seems almost pointless to him, though I can’t help but feel protective of my cursed character when he speaks like that. Nevertheless, his observation holds true, especially in a run where a single hit could be lethal.

Indeed, it’s quite an impressive accomplishment – more so given that Youwy managed to pull it off just before the upcoming changes to solo mode, making the task significantly less challenging. One could say it takes a certain level of determination bordering on self-punishment to achieve this.

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2025-06-02 14:03

Someone’s already completed a solo Elden Ring Nightreign run at level 1 and, as is tradition, the power of status effects pulled through

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