Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's final boss, Promised Consort Radahn, was a significant upgrade from the base game bosses. Even renowned Elden Ring player Let Me Solo Her had a hard time trying to defeat the god. But like most games, if you give it long enough, players will find ways to make even the toughest bosses look like little babies.
One player decided to take that to the extreme and one-shot Radahn on NG+7, dealing 143,411 in one go and bringing the god to his knees in less than 30 seconds. The player uploaded the fight to r/EldenRing, casually declaring that they hit a one-shot record. By the looks of things, they didn't even use a weapon, instead opting for Ancient Dragons' Lightning Strike.
Given Radahn's size, this attack would be pretty lethal just by itself, as each lightning bolt counts as a separate hit and deals its own damage. It looks like there were initially five bolts, meaning each one had to deal 28,682 damage. The rest of the bolts fell after Radahn's health was depleted, meaning it could probably have taken out an even stronger target.
But this kind of damage can't just be achieved by using Ancient Dragons' Lightning Strike alone, as you'll probably have to use some pretty powerful Talismans and incantations beforehand. Someone in the comments even requests to see "the full two minutes buffing sequence next time."
Another player actually tries to theorise what was used to achieve such a strong hit, as no one knows for sure as of yet. "You can see neutralizing boluses and lulling branches in the hot bar, so it looks to be an Exultation thing," the player says. "My guess is St. Trina’s Smile, Lord of Blood’s Exultation, Kindred of Rot’s Exultation, and Aged One’s Exultation." They go on to suggest that frenzy flame incantation, Poison Perfume Bottle, Seppuku Ash, and the Lulling Branch are other likely candidates, which are also probably all stacked with the Black Dumpling (a helm that protects the player).
In terms of talismans, a combination of Godfrey Icon, Red-Feathered Branchsword, Lightning Scorpion, and Flock and Faithful's Canvases would help boost the Ancient Dragon's Lightning Strike. "The Physick is probably Lightning-Shrouding and Bloodsucking tears," the player continues. "Am I missing something? Probably." It may sound excessive, but honestly, if you're about to take on a god this is probably the kind of prep you'd need to go through.
It seems as if Shadow of the Erdtree DLC has reached the point where the difficulty has dropped off and streamers are now picking the meat off Radahn's bones as they compete to see who can defeat him in the most outrageous way possible—a spiritual successor to Melania. We've seen players defeat the final boss simultaneously with a dance pad and a controller, without dodging, blocking, or parrying, and by only parrying Radahn into the dirt. It's anyone's guess as to how this god will be beaten next.
