Parry is a basic combat mechanic that allows you to escape enemy attacks in Dark Souls 3. Mastering this mechanic is not only essential for survival, but also for creating clear attack openings against your foe.
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How to Parry in Dark Souls 3
To parry in Dark Souls 3, press the L2 or LT button just before an enemy’s attack lands on you. Once you successfully perform a parry, your opponent will then be left wide open for a riposte. Press the light attack button immediately after performing a parry to do a riposte to deal massive damage.
That’s the fundamentals of it. However, if you really want to master the parry mechanic, there are more things you need to know.
Shields & Weapons for Parrying
Before you can perform a parry, you need to equip the right shield or weapon on your off-hand first. Listed below are the types of shields and weapons that can parry in the game.
- Small Shields (except for Warrior’s Round Shield, Eastern Iron Shield, Plank Shield, and Ghru Rotshield)
- Standard Shields
- Sunset Shield
- Kite Shield
- Crest Shield
- Grass Crest Shield
- Dragon Crest Shield
- East-West Shield
- Blue Wooden Shield
- Knight Shield
- Silver Knight Shield
- Spirit Tree Crest Shield
- Golden Wing Crest Shield
- Large Leather Shield
- Wooden Shield
- Lothric Knight Shield
- Sunlight Shield
- Carthus Shield
- Round Shield
Side Note: Out of all the shields and weapons in the game, only two of them are capable of Spell Parrying: Golden Wing Crest Shield and Sacred Bloom Shield. Spell Parrying deflects spell attacks but doesn’t necessarily send them back to the enemy.
- Katanas – Can be done by holding. The only two katanas that cannot parry are Darkdrift and Frayed Blade.
- Fist & Claw Weapons (except for Dark Hand)
- Rapier (The only Thrusting Sword in the game that can parry)
- Some Curved Swords
- Scimitar
- Sellsword Twinblades
- Pontiff Knight Curved Sword
- Painting Guardian’s Curved Sword
- Rotten Ghru Curved Sword
- Shotel
- Farron Greatsword (The only Greatsword in the game that can parry.)
- Parrying Dagger (The only Dagger in the game that can parry.)
Enemies You Can Parry
In Dark Souls 3, if an enemy is about your size, or just a tad bigger, and wields a sword or anything alike, you can parry them. Interestingly, there are also certain bosses in the game that you can parry as well. Here are the bosses in Dark Souls 3 that you can parry.
- Iudex Gundyr
- Abyss Watchers
- Crystal Sage
- Deacons of the Deep
- Pontiff Sulyvahn
- Champion Gundyr
- Dragonslayer Armour
- Lorian, Elder Prince
- Lothric, Younger Prince (only his spells)
- Champion’s Gravetender
- Sister Friede
- Halflight, Spear of the Church
Parrying isn’t the only basic combat mechanic you’ll want to master in Dark Souls 3. Kicking is equally as essential, and is another move you’ll want to add to your skillset.
