Lords of the Fallen is very different from its 2014 counterpart, specifically because the Soulslike RPG layers two different game worlds on top of each other. When you die, your soul departs the living world of Axiom and plunges into the dead world of Umbral, and it’s here where I’ve encountered the most terrifyingly powerful enemy in the game thus far.
Developed by Hexworks, a subsidiary of the studio that co-created the 2014 game, Lords of the Fallen puts you in the greaves of a Dark Crusader, a hallowed warrior tasked with thwarting the evils that permeate the lands. These hardened soldiers are gifted an Umbral Lamp that can peer into the realm of the dead at will, which introduces new enemies to fight and areas to traverse. It’s a pretty ingenious mechanic, as it lets you do all kinds of cool shit: pull platforms to create bridges, rip enemy souls out to beat them up, and plant consumables items called Vestige Seeds to establish temporary Bonfires. Stay too long in Umbral, though, and you’re bound to get hunted.
Lords Of The Fallen’s apex predator, The Scarlet Shadow
You start in the world of Axiom and slip into Umbral domain every time you die. Think of it like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice’s Resurrection mechanic; you’re essentially given another shot to fight for your life and, should you find a bonfire to rest at, return to the living world. However, you don’t have to put your soul back in your body if you don’t want to. You can hang around Umbral for as long as you want. Sometimes, it’s actually better that you do. Not only will you find new enemies to fight and areas to traverse, you’ll also uncover loot that only exists in the dead world. But navigating the Umbral realm isn’t so easy when someone’s after your ass.
When you’re in Umbral, you’ll start filling up the dread gauge on the right-hand side of the screen just below your Vigor (or Souls) counter. While it’s nice that Vigor acquisition is multiplied while in the dead world, enemy aggressiveness and mob density also steadily ratchets up the longer you stay. Loiter in Umbral long enough and that dread gauge, indicated by a blinking white eyeball, will eventually turn red. This is when you should probably book it to the nearest Vestige (or bonfire), as The Scarlet Shadow is coming for you.
Umbral’s apex predator, the Scarlet Shadow is a red-cloaked grim reaper wielding two jagged, curved blades. It moves incredibly fast, has lots of health, hits stupidly hard, and dips into the ground to attack from below. This cheap attack mechanic is only worsened by the fact that this enemy also disables your healing items. It’s a mess of a fight, one that will leave you both frightened and frustrated.
At least, that’s what happened to me. I was roaming the realm of the dead, feeling like hot shit after bodying the first three main bosses with ease. So, I figured I’d explore Umbral to farm Vigor and level up before embarking on the next leg of the journey. I wasn’t paying attention to the dread gauge and, before I knew it, red splotches littered the ground in front of me. Suddenly, the Scarlet Shadow was in my face, swinging its swords in a circular motion like a Beyblade of death. I died. I was terrified by its abrupt appearance, and it wasn’t much of a fight, but I vowed for revenge. Once I respawned at the closest Vestige, I willingly dragged my soul into Umbral and waited to meet the Scarlet Shadow in the parking lot. But the moment it showed up, I was quivering in my greaves. I tried going toe-to-toe with it, blocking this attack and parrying that attack, but its massive health pool and substantial damage output was too much. I died, again and again. And now I’m convinced that no boss is nearly as formidable as the Scarlet Shadow.
Lords of the Fallen has been received generally well by critics and fans alike since it launched on October 13 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. Hexworks recently dropped a handful of updates for the game, with the latest one making some wide-ranging changes to enemy behavior. It also made the Scarlet Shadow impervious to fall damage and certain Umbral Lamp abilities, which is just awesome. I love it when cheap enemies get a major buff.
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