Romina, Saint of Bud is a surprise addition to Elden Ring: Shadow of the Edtree’s mandatory boss list and fans will want to know how to beat her, or at least score a cheeky cheese victory.
Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC had a handful of trailers put out to promote its launch which highlighted some of its most recognizable bosses. While the Divine Beast Dancing Lion made a few appearances and Messmer the Impaler was front and center for much of the promotion, fans knew nothing about Romina, Saint of the Bud.
Romina is a mandatory boss battle, with her boss arena leading to the final area of the DLC. Found in the Church of Bud, in the southwest corner of the Ancient Ruins of Rauh, this amalgamation of various creatures can give many players a run for their money. Fortunately, she has weaknesses to exploit and a cheese strategy to take advantage of.
How to get to Romina, Saint of the Bud in Elden Ring DLC
Players can get to Romina, Saint of the Bud by crossing the bridge leading to the other side of the Ancient Ruins of Rauh area.
Starting from the Shadow Keep’s Store House, First Floor Site of Lost Grace, take the left path leading to an elevator that takes the player to a large gate that’s closed shut. Take the comically small gate next to it and follow the path leading to an elevator that drops the player into the Ancient Ruins of Rauh.

Follow the path west and enter the unnamed ruins with enemies outside. Players should locate a large golden door, open it, and continue exploring inside until they encounter a similar giant door. Opening that door and continuing straight will eventually lead to a hole in the floor with a spirit spring below that players can use to drop down. Going straight and turning left when the path runs out will lead the player out of the ruins and to the Rauh Ancient Ruins, East site of grace.
Players will see a long bridge near the site of grace connecting to the opposite plateau. Follow it while being wary of the Furnace Golem on the opposite side. Run past or beat the Furnace Golem and turn left to find the Rauh Ancient Ruins, West site of grace over a small ridge.
Head inside the ruins in front of the site of grace and follow the linear path leading the player to the upper floor. Continue straight and enter more ruins, this time filled with Scarlet Rot. Take the elevator inside leading the player to the upper floor, before taking the stairs east of the elevator. Depending on how players handled Needle Knight Leda’s questline, they may be invaded by the Hornsent around this elevator.
Follow the path and the Church of the Bud, Main Entrance site of grace will be visible. Right next to it is the entrance to Romina’s boss encounter. Romina, Saint of the Bud is one of the final bosses of the Elden Ring DLC, but players still have multiple strong options for beating her and a very strong cheese strategy to fall back on.
How to beat Romina, Saint of the Bud in Elden Ring DLC
Romina, Saint of the Bud is susceptible to Bleed and Frostbite status conditions, and is also weak to holy damage attacks.
Almost every attack Romina has in her arsenal is telegraphed, so dodging them an act of memorizing which pose means what attack. Most players will likely face difficulties dodging her scorpion tail, especially since Romina has a habit of chaining her tail attack with her spear attacks. However, staying close to her and rolling into her will work more often than not.

Romina’s second phase starts when she’s at 50% health. During this phase, she grows butterfly wings and starts flying around while summoning pink butterflies. These butterflies explode after a short duration, dealing damage and inflicting the player with scarlet rot. The most effective way to dodge this is simply running away and waiting out the butterfly explosions.
Those wanting to take advantage of Romina’s weakness to frostbite can take weapons like the Dark Moon Greatsword for gradual Frost buildup. Alternatively, weapons like the Rivers of Blood are excellent for Bleed buildup, especially since players can use Spirit Ash Summons and bleed-enhancing items to make the process easier.
Players don’t have to face Romina alone, as players can interact with Dryleaf Dane’s summon sign outside of the mist wall for extra backup. While Dane doesn’t deal much damage, the decoy is more than welcome so players can back out and heal when required.
How to cheese Romina, Saint of the Bud in Elden Ring DLC
Players can cheese Romina, Saint of the Bud by distracting her using summons and then spamming the Impenetrable Thorns incantation.
The first step for this cheese strategy is acquiring the Impenetrable Thorns incantation. For this, go to the Dark Chamber Entrance site of grace, just outside the area with Messmer. Backtrack by going down the stairs to reach the door leading the player inside the Shadow Keep.
Instead of going in, walk toward the ledge and locate an enemy bat to drop near. Defeat the bat and grab the purple Impenetrable Thorns item from a corpse along the wall.

Use a strong sorcery staff and ensure the arcane stat is high enough to deal good Bleed damage. The player can go to Rennala to respec for Romina’s fight if required.
The Cerulean Hidden Tear and Opaline Bubbletear are excellent choices for the Wondrous Physick. As for talismans, the Lord of Blood Exultation and Flock’s Canvas Talismans are great, and Elden Ring players can decide the other talismans they want.
Summon Dryleaf Dane before walking through the mist wall and summon the Mimic Tear Spirit Ash Summon before Romina sends out her first attack. Ensure the two summons get Romina’s attention before spamming the Impenetrable Thorns incantation. Continue spamming it until the Saint of the Bud eventually falls. As long as the summons have Romina’s attention, the only thing players must be careful of are the butterflies she sends out during her second phase.