Another Crab's Treasure: How To Beat Duchess Magista (Boss Fight)

This newly crowned crustacean is the second-story boss of Another Crab's Treasure, and beating her is no easy feat. Her fight opens up the rest of the map; until you beat her, you're confined to the starting area and its surrounding caves and crevices. You'll quickly run out of things to do here, so beating Magista is a surefire way to find new places and shells to put on.

Magista is the self-appointed Duchess of Slacktide, the castle near Kril's tide pool. When his home is repossessed, he's told that it's due to some new tax laws that the new leadership has put into place, and he needs to take it up with the Duchess if he wants leniency. The Loan Shark points you in the direction of the castle, and so that's where you head. You fight Nephro on the way, but once you reach Magista, you'll need to be ready; she's a toughie, though developer Aggro Crab has a solution for you if you find the fight too tricky.

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How To Beat Duchess Magista In Another Crab's Treasure

Best Tips & Tricks

When you arrive at Slacktide after retrieving Magista's pearl as she asked you to, you'll notice things have changed since you left. After navigating the newly gooped Slacktide and its denizens, you'll return to Magista's audience chamber to present her pearl.

However, instead of rewarding you with your shell back, she'll treat you to a monologue about how life on the reef is ending. In her benevolence, she will also assist you in finding your end and beginning the boss fight.

Duchess Magista has an exciting combination of ranged, AoE, and melee attacks that make her a horrifying boss to fight. In her first phase, she has a ranged grab attack, a sweeping attack, and a ranged poison slam attack. Each has a different effect:

Attack Effect Ranged Grab She tosses her tea-strainer flail towards you, grabbing and slamming you to the ground. This attack will one-shot-kill you at lower VITALITY. Sweep She swipes a semicircle in front of her with her claws to deal damage. Ranged Poison Slam She slams you with her tea strainer, leaving a poisoned puddle where the hit lands.

Magista's ranged grab attack makes her a lethal threat, similar to the Underwater Snail's grab attack in Elden Ring. Avoiding her ranged grab is difficult, as its hitbox is pretty large. You'll know she's about to do it when the red warning sign appears above Kril's head, so watch her for the timing of the throw.

Once the flail reaches Kril, dodge directly away from Magista rather than right or left, as the hitbox on the flail expands before she pulls it back towards her. Dodging away from her means you don't have to worry about that pesky backswing and can avoid being crushed to death.

Her poison slam works similarly to the grab but with an easier method of avoiding it. Since she's not looking to grab you with this one, avoid the slam and keep moving; take care not to step in the puddle the hit leaves behind.

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This poison will build over time, and when the bar is full, it will drain your health slowly. Healing doesn't stop the poison; all you can do is wait it out and keep healing until it's gone, so avoid it if you can.

Generally, this fight is one where you want to stay on the move. Poison, along with Magista's huge attacks, means that there is danger everywhere. Unlike, where poison can be deleted from the water in Oxygen Not Included, you can do nothing about Magista's pollution but dodge around it. Use the columns around the room for cover until they're all broken, then keep moving between attacks.

She will bring another attack after dodging her attacks and getting her to about half-health. When you get close, she crouches like she will hit you with that sweeping attack. Instead, she'll back up in a wavy line and puke out a bunch of poison vomit.

If you're in the poison when she spews it, it will stack up quickly. Suppose you can try to attack her from the sides so that you're out of the direct line of fire from this attack. If you find yourself stuck in it, jump instead of dodging, as the dodge is a bit slower and will cause you to accumulate more poison than jumping.

Take your time-fighting Magista. Her attacks have a precise dodge window and hitbox, which can only be learned by fighting her until you have them down pat. Watch for the indicators of each attack, and make sure to use your Shell Spell and your fork to whittle down her health. No matter what shell you run into this fight with, you'll need to be at your best to beat Duchess Magista in Another Crab's Treasure.

Best Shells To Use Against Magista In Another Crab's Treasure

A few shells are good against Duchess Magista, but which one you pick will depend on your playstyle. Heavy, medium, and small shells each have their benefits, which you choose will determine the approach you should use when dealing with Magista. See some of these shells in action in Flembons' YouTube video above. Here are a few that will work well when fighting Duchess Magista:

Shell Spell Effect/Strategy Teacup Morning Buzz This spell costs three points and will make your attack faster for a period of time. This shell is good for players who want to play pretty aggressively. As a light shell, Krill will be able to move quickly but only take a few hits to the shell before it breaks. Coconut Rollout Rollout sends Kril careening in the direction he is facing at high speeds, either to get from one place to another quickly or to run into an enemy and deal damage. The coconut is a heavy shell, meaning Krill will move and recover from dodges slowly but take more hits on the shell. Soda Can Fizzle Like in the Nephro fight, Fizzle should be used when Kril is too close to the boss for comfort. This spell does a small amount of damage and boosts Kril backward, so use it when you need to move away from Magista quickly.

Each of these shells can be found in and around Castle Slacktide, so find your favorite and head into the fight! While Magista is only the game's second boss, she's by far one of the trickiest due to how small her room is. If you enjoyed this fight, maybe check out another new soulslike that comes out this year. Once you have deposed the corrupted Duchess, head towards New Carcinia to get your shell back in Another Crab's Treasure.

Video Credit: Flembons/YouTube