V Rising Nightmarshal Styx : Location, How To Beat & Unlock Bat Form

Expand your Vampire Powers by learning how to unlock Bat Form in V Rising. In this walkthrough, we'll reveal the location of Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer and provide expert tried-and-tested strategies on how to defeat this formidable boss. In particular, we'll teach you how to cheese Styx using clever tactics with Major Explosive Boxes for a high-risk, high-reward approach.

Of course, we'll also provide a solid, no-nonsense legitimate approach so you know exactly how to beat Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer in V Rising, including the best offensive and defensive abilities to use. Finally, learn the secrets to unlocking the coveted Bat Form power, allowing you to soar through the night sky undetected. So get ready to dominate V Rising and leave your mark on this dark, immersive realm!

Update on 18 May 2023: We're in the process of updating all our V Rising guides to reflect the changes in the Gloomrot update, starting with the boss guides. In most cases, the guides are still accurate, with the exception of the boss' levels, rewards, and a few spells.

V Rising: Nightmarshal Styx The Sunderer Location

You can find Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer wandering the roads of the Cursed Forest in V Rising. The image above illustrates his roaming path in the game; however, if you want to pinpoint exactly where he is, it might be best to track Styx from the Blood Altar.

As always, ensure you've unlocked the Cursed Forest Vampire Waygate to easily teleport to the area after dying to Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer in V Rising (it's unavoidable). The Cursed Forest is a brutal biome, so don't be surprised if you are third-partied by other creatures during your fight.

How To Cheese Nightmarshal Styx The Sunderer In V Rising

Before we begin with the actual guide on how to defeat this boss, we want to take the opportunity to share a way to cheese Styx in V Rising. This following tip is courtesy of Tristan, who discovered a spot in the Cursed Forest where Styx could get stuck. You'll find the location where we cheesed this boss in the image gallery below. In short, you'll have to wait for Styx to pass this area and lure him toward the tree in the picture. After that, the boss will glitch out, allowing you to attack him without taking any damage.

Alternatively, I found that it is possible to use Major Explosive Boxes (unlocked by killing Jade the Vampire Hunter) against any roaming V Blood Carrier in the game. Note that you'll need to craft at least 20 of these explosives to reduce Styx's HP by any substantial amount, which is (needless to say) extremely costly! The best place to pull this off is by the bridge. You can begin planting the explosives ahead of Styx's arrival. Then, aggro him and hit the explosives right before he runs over them to (hopefully) kill him. At the very least, you'll do substantial damage. Just be sure to get out of the AOE for the explosion and not accidentally kill yourself (like I did).

How To Beat Nightmarshal Styx The Sunderer In V Rising

Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer is a Level 76 boss in V Rising, so a Gear Score of 75+ is recommended. That said, you'll likely find this battle challenging despite sporting a complete Bloodmoon armor set, Sanguine weapon, and Corrupted Artefact (or its upgrades). In the past, we've successfully used a Reaper Build against similar high-level bosses since you benefit from both melee and ranged attacks (i.e., by using the Howling Reaper ability). You can also swap Slasher or Sword as secondary weapons for additional close-ranged DPS.

Recommended Blood Type

Your choice of Blood Type is completely up to you and will largely depend on your approach. However, we suggest using the Scholar or Creature Blood Types, preferably with a 100% Blood Quality rating. If you use Scholar Blood, you'll get increased Spell Power, reduced cooldown on Spells, and Spell Life Leech, which are useful for stacking with the abilities we're about to discuss. On the other hand, you could use Creature Blood to benefit from enhanced Movement Speed, Damage Reduction, and Health Regeneration, which are vital for prolonging your survival during the fight.

Recommended Abilities

Regarding the best offensive ability, we suggest using Chaos Volley -- as you might tell from our other boss guides, we love this spell from the Chaos spell pool. And it's totally justified -- this ability launches two projectile attacks dealing 125% magic damage and inflicting Chaos Burn over time. As an alternative (or even secondary spell), you could use Sanguine Coil -- it has three charges, which you can launch to deal 75% magic damage and life leech 40% health on an enemy hit.

Pestilence from the Unholy spell pool is also a good choice, though. While each projectile only deals 40% damage, it will knock back Styx and amplify any outgoing damage you deal to him by 25% for 5 seconds. This spell is also spammable, allowing you to drop the boss' HP extremely fast. Otherwise, if you prefer, you might want to opt for a defensive spell instead.

In this regard, Power Surge (unlocked by beating Azariel the Sunbringer) is highly recommended. It removes all debuffs and applies a shield for 150% of your spell power. You'll also benefit from +25% Movement and Attack Speed, allowing you to block Styx's attacks while dealing damage. Crimson Aegis and Ward of the Damned are both exceptional alternatives you can consider using. Regardless of your choice, these abilities stack nicely with Scholar Blood, allowing you to tank Styx's damage and deal enough damage to take him down.

Styx's Moveset

You'll likely encounter several battle phases during your fight with Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer in V Rising. Some notable moves to be mindful of include the V Blood Carrier's duel-wielding sword attacks, which he will use in combination with his two abilities: (i) Styx will summon bats that protrude from either side of the screen to damage you; and (ii) Styx will spin and dash out multiple whirling blades in all directions, dealing damage to everything in their path.

In both cases, you should do your best to dodge them with your Travel Ability. Veil of Blood is perhaps the best movement skill to use here since you can avoid the damage dealt by these attacks while healing immediately after hitting Styx once he's performed the attacks. Halfway into the fight, this formidable boss will begin to summon ethereal units to the battlefield. While these units deal damage, you will heal by killing each of them. For this reason, assuming you survive the first phases, you could get away with not using any Blood spell pool abilities during the fight.

Be mindful of Styx's ability to teleport at various stages in the battle. He often pops up from behind you, so dash out of the way or block his attack with one of your defensive abilities. The final ability Styx will use involves the screen going dark and the boss summoning an army of bats to attack you. Since he takes reduced damage during this phase of the fight, your primary focus should be to avoid these bats from attacking you. At this point in the fight, you might consider using either Crimson Beam or Heart Strike Ultimates to heal up.

How To Unlock Bat Form In V Rising

Assuming you've made it to the end of the fight, you will have unlocked the Vampire Power: Bat Form. With this ability, you can traverse the map by flying around undetected in the sky. Note that you should only use Bat Form in V Rising at night. Since you have no sun protection from trees, you'll burn to a crisp if you use it during the daytime. Also, note that it takes some time to transform so be careful when you use it. Finally, you can only land unclaimed territories, meaning most enemy bases will be out of bounds.

That being said, you can use Bat Form to infiltrate enemy bases; however, this will depend on whether the area you land in is claimed or not. Regardless, this power is extremely useful for getting an aerial view of an enemy's Castle, allowing you to plan your next attack better. It's worth noting that you cannot activate Bat Form if you are carrying resources (sad). You can learn more about the limitations of this powerful Vampire Power in the video above. And that's everything to know about how to defeat Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer in V Rising.

Featured image courtesy of Stunlock Studios.

V Rising Nightmarshal Styx : Location, How To Beat & Unlock Bat Form FAQ

Where can I find Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer in V Rising?

Nightmarshal Styx can be found wandering the roads of the Cursed Forest in V Rising. Track him from the Blood Altar or use the Cursed Forest Vampire Waygate for easy teleportation.

How can I defeat Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer easily in V Rising?

One method is to cheese Styx by luring him to a specific tree where he gets stuck. Alternatively, you can use Major Explosive Boxes or a Reaper Build with Chaos Volley and Sanguine Coil abilities for high DPS.

How do I unlock Bat Form in V Rising?

Defeating Nightmarshal Styx the Sunderer unlocks the Vampire Power: Bat Form. Use it at night to fly undetected and gain an aerial view of enemy bases, but be cautious of sun exposure and resource-carrying limitations.