Elden Ring: How To Cheese Malenia?

Don’t feel guilty if you resort to a cheese strategy to defeat Malenia in Elden Ring. She’s one of the toughest bosses FromSoftware has ever created, and learning how to cheese Malenia can save you from hours of frustration. This method works with most weapon types, but the Rivers of Blood katana is a standout for its powerful bleed effect. High stagger weapons also prove useful since Malenia has surprisingly low poise for a major boss encounter. Pair this approach with enough Elden Ring Runes—easily available from Gamer Choice—to make the entire experience smoother and faster.

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How to Cheese Malenia

The key to cheesing Malenia starts before you even draw your weapon. You’ll need to equip Shabriri’s Woe before entering the boss arena. Once the fight begins and Malenia starts sprinting toward you, quickly unequip it. This clever trick causes her AI to fixate on your Mimic Tear instead of you, giving you the perfect window to start unleashing attacks.

Using Rivers of Blood is highly effective in this strategy. Malenia is weak to bleed effects, making the Corpse Piler weapon art devastating. You’ll want to spam Corpse Piler from her side while keeping your distance when she targets you. If she turns her attention to you, dodge her long katana strikes and reposition yourself to resume the assault.

Getting through her first phase quickly is crucial. The faster you deplete her health, the more likely your Mimic survives into phase two, where things get tougher. Keep an eye out for her Waterfowl Dance—it’s her deadliest move in phase one. Burn her down quickly to give yourself the best chance of success in phase two.

Malenia Weakness

One of the main weaknesses Malenia has is bleed damage. She may inflict it herself, but she’s also highly vulnerable to it. This makes weapons like Rivers of Blood or anything with high bleed scaling incredibly valuable. Additionally, high stagger weapons like great hammers or colossal weapons can interrupt her combos, allowing you to reset the pace of the fight. The goal is to prevent her from healing, which she does every time she lands a hit on you or your Mimic.

Shabriri’s Woe becomes more useful here too, especially for challenging encounters like this one. It manipulates enemy aggro in a way that often gives you a huge advantage when your Mimic is active. Just remember to unequip it right as the fight starts for optimal effect.

Malenia Cheese Spot

There’s no true terrain-based cheese spot in the arena, but you can create a functional one by positioning yourself to Malenia’s side during each of her attacks. This is especially important during the second phase when she transforms into the Goddess of Rot. At the beginning of phase two, hang back and watch for her opening attack. The falling petals from her transition move deal heavy damage, so keep your distance until the animation ends.

Once it’s safe, move in and spam Corpse Piler again. Be careful of Scarlet Rot buildup—if you’re not prepared, it can end your run very quickly. Make sure to have boluses or Preserving Boluses ready just in case. FP management is also key: your weapon arts will carry you through, so keep your flasks balanced between health and FP recovery.

For those running a Strength build, don’t worry—Malenia can be beaten with brute force too. Heavy weapons can stagger her efficiently, though the timing is more punishing. Still, bleed builds, particularly with Rivers of Blood, remain one of the easiest ways to understand how to cheese Malenia.

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Conclusion

Mastering how to cheese Malenia comes down to exploiting her weaknesses: low poise, susceptibility to bleed, and her AI’s targeting logic. With Shabriri’s Woe, a strong Mimic Tear summon, and the right weapon art spam, even this fearsome boss can be taken down with ease. If you're lacking resources to pull this off, check out Gamer Choice for affordable Elden Ring Runes and gear to prep for battle.