In true soulslike fashion, the first boss of Enotria: The Last Song, the Price of Laughter, seemed impossibly tough. With a background in Dark Souls and Lies of P, I somehow began to question whether I was truly worthy to tackle Enotria, or if I’d be trapped in that Chapel of Maja forever.
Here’s our guide on how to defeat Curtis, the Price of Laughter in Enotria: The Last Song.
Best loadout to defeat Curtis in Enotria: The Last Song
We recommend either the Stage Longsword or Stage Greatsword to defeat Curtis. It takes far too long to swing a Colossal Greatsword. This locks you mid-animation, leaving you vulnerable to attacks. Polearms are similar in this regard. While Polearms offer range, Curtis also uses a Polearm, and with a wider radius than anything you have on offer. So, the best option is a close- to mid-range weapon that dishes out damage quickly.
Unless you are incredibly patient in long boss fights, you can reduce the length of time it takes to defeat Curtis by upgrading your weapon at the anvil in Lower Commons. We recommend the Golden Dart, Hungover Strike, Coastal Harpoon, and Drunken Sword Lines against Curtis, as these have a short animation time, and offer versatility in its close- and long-range attacks.
Curtis, the Price of Laughter moves and combinations
A format used in soulslikes and Enotria is bosses with two phases. Curtis’ second phase appears when you lower his health bar to halfway. In his first phase, Curtis uses his Polearm to execute various combos at you. The Prince includes an occasional single attack that you can coax out of him by distancing yourself from him to reset his combos. Curtis’ moves are as follows:
First phase
| Move | Description | Counter |
|---|---|---|
| Dash and swing | When standing far away, Curtis runs at you and swings his Polearm above his head and straight down. This is almost always the first move he’ll make. | Dodge towards him mid-swing animation. Aim to land at the right of his legs. Alternatively, parry right before his weapon hits you. You can hit him twice before he attacks again. |
| Low to high swing | Curtis swings the Polearm in an anti-clockwise direction starting from the floor and ending above him. | Parry or dodge backwards. |
| Two swing and jab combo | This is his standard combo where Curtis swings right and then left, following the combo with a forward jab attack. | Keep close and dodge left, ring, and then dodge either side to avoid all attacks. Use parry for each move if you don’t like dodging. |
| Heavy attack swing | A slow swing with a wide attack radius. | Parry or dodge. |
| Four swing combo | A three swing combo followed by a final fourth swing that adjusts to your position. | Dodge left, right, left, and left, or parry each move until the fourth attack lands. |
| Fake out attack | A difficult move to evade is Curtis faking out his swing, luring you to block or dodge at the wrong time, to then punish you with a delayed attack. | Watch his arms and wait until the very last moment to evade this delayed attack. |
It’s vital you don’t stack moves while you fight. This includes mashing buttons in hopes that you’ll move quicker. Enotria‘s controls are sensitive, meaning you can easily get animation-locked if you hit two consecutive actions. Play slow and patient. Panicking will only make your perception of Curtis seem faster than he actually is.
This particular arena is small compared to other soulslikes. You can use the stairs to your advantage to evade combinations, but don’t stay in a spot too long as the camera can rotate to an awkward position, disorienting you as Curtis continues to attack. Try to stay in the center of this arena, as the claustrophobic areas near the pillars can trap you. Unlike Lies of P, you can safely cancel healing by pressing another button, without animation locking in front of the encroaching Curtis.
Curtis’ moveset from the first phase continue into the second, adding an additional two attacks to his final form. Here’s what you need to know:
Second phase
| Move | Description | Counter |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical slam | A stationary attack where his Polearm slams vertically into the ground twice. | It’s best to move out of the way for this move. |
| Shield pushbacks | Curtis spawns a shield while dashing forwards, attempting to hit you with two shield blasts. If you haven’t used a Line to destroy the shield, this attack can include the Polearm. | If close to Curtis’ Awakened state, you can dash into Curtis when he’s running at you with the shield out, and follow this with a critical attack. |
If you have a preference to dodge like myself, we want to stress that you shouldn’t rely on backwards dodging to evade the Prince’s moves. His combinations become relentless if you get hit, making him a difficult boss to Awaken. Avoiding jumping at all costs as this animation opens you to his combos and often leaves you on the floor, missing out on a massive chunk of your health bar.
