Modder Reveals Lion Boss’s Secret: Two Guys Below

After my initial encounter with the electrifying Divine Beast Dancing Lion boss in Shadow of the Erdtree, three thoughts jolted through my mind: “WHAT?”, “Ouch“, and, somewhat hazily, “What is truly going on beneath there?”. Fortunately, a kind-hearted modder has now come to the rescue, answering that final query by stripping the creature bare and granting us a glimpse into the inner workings (spoilers ahead: no actual sausage is involved, but there are some Dancing Lion-related spoilers, so proceed with caution).

For those not in the know, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion is one of the earliest significant boss encounters in the Elden Ring DLC, residing at the summit of the Belurat tower settlement. It’s an awe-inspiring sight; a swirling, soaring, and snarling creation that draws inspiration from (as the name blatantly suggests) the traditional Chinese lion dance, where two performers – one manipulating the head, the other the tail – imitate the movements of a lion.

The sharp-eyed Tarnished have undoubtedly noticed the human legs protruding from beneath the lion’s fabric-covered body – one pair at the front, another at the rear – but the fluttering and thrashing material makes it challenging to discern much else while it’s in motion. However, it turns out that developer FromSoftware has taken it a step further than simply giving the Dancing Lion legs; two fully formed and (mostly) animated human performers are snugly tucked away beneath the cloth, and both can be seen frantically moving to control the beast when the cover is removed.

We owe this knowledge to the excellent work of Youtuber BonfireVN (thanks, PC Gamer), who promptly read everyone’s thoughts and whisked that cloth away. And what a spectacle it is! The performers themselves are mostly bare, except for a loincloth, a protective armour skirt, and, in the case of Mr. Rear, grubby bandages covering his face. Both are also properly animated – at least when their limbs touch the ground – with Mr. Rear spending a considerable amount of his time scurrying around on all fours.

Admittedly, the illusion rather comically disintegrates when the Dancing Lion executes some of its more extravagant maneuvers – such as its corkscrewing, airborne forward lunge – with the pair flailing and flopping back and forth with impossibly acrobatic abandon that defies the laws of physics. But still.

Of course, this isn’t the first time FromSoftware has gone the extra mile to create something magnificent that players wouldn’t typically encounter in Elden Ring – who could possibly forget the unveiling of the dreamy face of everyone’s favorite masked prawn guy? – but it’s always pleasant to catch a glimpse of the craftsmanship behind the scenes. Even if the curtain is hurtling towards you at a breakneck speed, with jaws snapping and lightning bolts shooting out of its rear.

So, if you find the Divine Beast Dancing Lion boss a tad too intimidating, why not follow that classic piece of advice and (now precisely) envision it without any clothes? Or, if that doesn’t do the trick, there’s always Eurogamer’s Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree guide.