I have so much respect for the Dragonlord, suspended in air, suspended in time. Truly, a harrowing experience in his second and third phases. The way he is able to still decimate us despite being aged and at half power. You have to wonder what he would have been like in his prime.
Fun Fact : when you face him he's actually been dead for a long time Which is why you go back in time in order to face him you can actually find his remains within Farum Azula
Fun fact: The names of the (ancient) dragons describe their nature. With Gransax meaning "large", Fortissax meaning "strong" and Placidusax meaning "calm" (was not able to figure out lansseax meaning). So yeah, the hesitation part is fairly accurate as he is simply not a fighter, he doesn't want to, but he can and he WILL. Placidusax is no dragon that can use forces of nature like others... He IS a force of nature, not aggressive, he doesn't attack you straight away. But he defends himself. Every move he makes shatters the ground, he can manipulate time itself (which he does during the fight by teleporting) he can not only use lightning, he can turn into it, his odem is a beam of destruction, his strongest lightning able to act as a nuke. That is not a dragon that fought in countless wars... That is the lord of all dragons, crumbling with and inside his home... This is not a dragon. This is the power of nature IN FORM OF a dragon! This is Placidusax, older than the erdtree, marika, maybe even the greater will. And you stand before this curse that nature unbound into the world!
Lansseax is a possibly improper form of Lancea(s)ax. "Inclined towards spears". Also the fact that they all end in ax is possibly a double-entendre due to -ax being a suffix that implies a relation to something whereas Sax being a noun form of Stone... the full title for their species or civilization is The Ancient _Stone_ Dragons.
Placidusax was Elden Lord at one point, so maybe his calm nature, and as Marco described it, his hesitation to fight, can be lent to the fact that he needed to focus on being a good ruler for his subjects rather than being a fighter. It could be much like how Godfrey abandoned his title of Hoarah Loux to focus on rulership.
@@LtCdrXander really doubt that. Dragons don't seem like a race that needs a ruler, only one under whose banner they can unite. Imagine Fortissax or Gransax being ruled!
That moment when the music stops and you see Placidusax dropping a nuke from afar is one of the best moments in the entire game, but I don’t think everyone has seen that, because he rarely do it
Yeah I got one-shotted by that attack the first time - learned quickly to run away immediately when the music cut out! And every time I did, I kept saying how cool it was.
That second phase music feels like a tsunami washing over you, the tsunami doesnt hate you, it feels completly indifferent to you. It just does what it does and you can do nothing but helplessly try to struggle and survive.
I love how both this track and Hoarah Loux's fit the characters so well. They both sound like they come from different cultures than the rest of the songs on the soundtracks, this one gives off an aged, reverent tone, fitting of Farum Azula and its lord, while Hoarah Loux sounds primal, raging, and chaotic with no frills or unnecessary flair, fitting of the strength-based warrior culture he created after leaving the Lands Between
This is by far one of the most cinematic boss fights. The music alone is already amazing but merge it together with the scenery of the arena, the bosses visual design and actions... It's a fuckin masterpiece.
For some reason, when you first meet him and see his arena, I'm reminded of when you first meet Singh, the final boss of DS2's sunken king DLC. Placidusax, to me, felt like an amalgamation of every dragon we've ever faced in the Souls series.
I've been trying to figure out why Fromsoft seems like such a hotbed for outstanding new classical. I think it's because of the unique level of storytelling required of the boss tracks. Composing is, at least at the start, improvisation. Anyone who can improvise will know that the best improv comes from within structure, when you have some guidance and can progress from there. In my job I hear a lot of works from new composers and I think the thing that they're lacking is direction and a goal. Classical composers have, historically, always been attempting to communicate something not to an elite who understands musicology, but to everyone. They were mainstream music in the time of Beethoven and he was the equivalent of a superstar musician. That's why I tend to believe that the future of classical isn't coming from composer funding programs at conservatories which are trying to hold onto the classical traditions of the 1800s, it's coming from industries like video games that need new classical to communicate meaning.
From Software games and especially the Monster Hunter series have had some of the most consistently impressive epic orchestrated style music I call it. Since Monster Hunter has a huge following in Japan, I think they actually occasionally have whole orchestrated shows playing some Monster Hunter theme or atleast do it for promotional stuff at times. I emplore you to explore that series music if you haven't already, it's absolutely top tier stuff and massive variety and influences
I just love how both music phases are really forcing on you a lot of emotions. Where some dragon tracks are just pure epic, full of adrenaline tracks, Placidusax is almost calm, sad, and you almost feel terrible for attacking it. And yet its also so intense it makes you feel like your heart is in a constant state of pressure. It's like killing an ancient animal for personal gain, or like cutting a tree that a home to hundreds of animals, you are challanging the nature, a nature that did nothing to anyone, an unstoppable force that when destroyed, leaves only sadness and death and emptyness. The only thing that Placidusax does is waiting. He is not driven by emotion or self gain like so many characters - he just wants to see his master again. And so his attacks are not direct to you for most of the time. Almost every attack ends with him backing up and protecting his body. His attacks have huge range but are slow and delicate. Even when he sets up an explosion, he doesn't hit the ground with full force, he only pressures the energy enough to make it go off. It's like attacking the old person that doesn't even know why is being attacked and for what. When the second phase starts, the music turns into this tense heartbeat. My heart literally made me stressed out by it's tempo and it fits perfectly, as the second phase is a pretty big suprise as this slow colossus gains a power to simply get to you in a second. He doesn't want to die so he uses everything againts you. And then in his final act he does his strongest breath attack he can get... and when he does that, he feels almost tired, not doing enything for quite a while. You can only imagine what a scary force he was in his glory, when he had all five heads... almost like a full human hand, compared to now known two or even three fingers. If he represented the whole five fingers, how powerful and old he really was? We will propably never know, but I somewhat hope for a DLC that takes us back in time and shows some of his old glory. It's propably first time that I really want specifically a DLC for a From Software game beside Sekiro (that will propably never get it) because so many things seem to be connected to the past it's insane. The lore in this one is way more thick than I expected and I hope it will be explored more someday.
I like the hesitance you mentioned. If i understood the lore right Placidusax is very much a shadow of its former self. hes really scarred up, used to have five heads now has only two. not sure who did that to him, I did think Godfrey initially but thats probably wrong since the war with the dragons was after his exile, so probably either Radagon or Marika or both (if you know you know). its an avatar of an old god that was "fled" and Placidusax is now waiting (futiley?) for its return.
@@t29hotrod75 godwyn became friends with the lichdragon, though I'm sure he was the one that injured placidusax. Placidusax is also awaiting a god being sorta like the formless mother to return
@@SergeantPear Placidusax was Elden Lord in the time before the Erdtree, in the past Age. The god that fled was the one he was consort of, the "Marika" equivalent, vessel of the Elden Ring at Farum Azula.
Placidusax suspended himself within a timeless place within an equally timeless place, to await his God, where he has done so for so long that he has become less than a shell of what he once was, even without the music or lore fighting Placidusax I had the feeling that he wasn't really fighting out of desire or anything animalistic, but simply to make me leave, to make it known I am not welcome within the storm he has wrapped around himself, he knows it is not his time to wake and for disturbing his slumber he casts you out, but he definitely acknowledges your strength seeing as how he is willing to go beyond a simple idea of what the strength of a dragon is, it truly feels at times that the battles in Elden Ring with the most shared respect are the ones in which little to no words are exchanged
I was fascinated by how similar that finale is to the Mother of Dragons track from Game of Thrones. Surely has nothing to do with Martin being a part of development and just a coincidence. Imagination goes wild with DLC possibilities. When you lay down and a transported in time, it seems like a dream sequence. I wonder if there could be space for a fight with a fully capable Placidusax in such a DLC.
Finally I found someone else stating that the song sounds similar to Dany's theme song! I really thought I was going crazy, or was letting my love for GoT influence my interpretation too much.
@@nguyenkien5251 it reminded me so much of Midir which was my fav dragon fight prior to ER, so when it happened a just sat there and was shook with excitement
This music goes so much better if you actually saw the action that accompanies it. It’s one of the few bosses whose actions go in tandem with the music. The music can help you identify what move his about to make or when he’s gonna come out of his time rift portal thingy.
There is an enterprising soul who is translating the lyrics from latin to english. He's done a few by now, such as the godskin music and a few more. It's amasing what is hidden within the text. IT really shows the personality of the boss itself.
@@godefroiddebouillon7769 I don't think so I think it's latin being used, but then again I could bewrong but if you listen to the it there seems to be different texts
this song is somehow really elegant and graceful, especially with the sound of rain subtlety being added in inspiring a sense of awe of something truly great and majestic, but also a sense of melancholy, and then piling all of that up and bringing it down upon you like a rumbling Storm
Like most other boss tracks in this game the music switches to a more intense version once the second phase hits, however Placidusax is unique in how his music technically has a phase 2.1 As you might remember soon after the second phase starts and he turns into a storm cloud there is a brief moment of silence before the choir goes absolutely nuts which always syncs with them diving down to strike at you for the first time (3:22)
@@Amitlu That would be cool if it was. I mean, it's a dragon, so... But even if it isn't a cheeky reference/homage, it is still one of my favorite boss themes in this game. The boss itself took me a bit to defeat, but it felt so epic, almost tragic, and the whole time I kept saying to myself how cool it was.
I love this boss. I fought him after a certain other boss, so I was at that point very tired of the way some of the game's challenge was put up. Then I got up to the Dragonlord as the music really started to kick in. Put me right into them good vibes. I just found his teleporting / stormporting cool and enjoyable and, once I realized that you can use his tail as a way to measure where the safe zones for his breath are, the fight easily became one of my very favorites in the game. I'm not sure if I can say I enjoyed him more or less than Mohg, but he's up there. I'm with you on this respect and awe felt by the character through the music. It feels like something majestic and intense. The first thing I thought of when I heard this song was 'force of nature'.
I can't help but feel his theme is epic, ancient, and yet somber. The background choir almost gives off an air of sadness underlying the dragonlord's immense power. Like Placidusax's time has finally come, but he isn't going to go down like a wimp.
TBF, AFAIK, you can go to Placidusax's arena, use the item that you have to be there to use, and then TP away. You make the first move on Placidusax, he gives you plenty of space before he starts the battle. You're the hostile one.
The very beginning of this piece is my favorite, and it's so understated. To me, it sounds like an orchestra warming up / tuning their instruments. Just the first few seconds and the tone is set for the fight - called to battle from utter rest, a true beginning from absolutely nothing - and a battle completely unexpected to occur by both aggressor and defender.
Easily my favourite FromSoft boss (and I've beaten all of them). The way the music weaves in and out as he vanishes and attacks is amazing. Hearing the music outside of the fight doesn't do it justice honestly
Holy shit buddy this is my first time here Quelaag sent me, you were so spot on with the themes and storytelling elements I've been theorizing around this character bravo this is for sure gonna be in my multimedia essay some day
the thing about hesitation is damn right this is why i love music like this. it tells you everything you need to know if you listen to it. you feel a sense of ancient might and wonder but its not necessarily trying to destroy you. you straight up just go back in time to kick this dragons ass for no reason of course he does not wanna fight hes waiting for his outer god to return
The highlight of this fight for me was the arena-wide nuke, where he slams his lightning spear into the ground, and the whole music stops for a second, kind of like, a "calm before the storm". On top of that, the whole fight, the way the dragon moves, the music in the back, along with the general arena gives me the feeling that you're fighting a force of nature. And the music itself, the later phases feel like hearing a tsunami approach, hearing the heavy winds crash over the shore, as the water rises up slowly to meet your ankles and soon the waves slowly engulf you and everyone around you. While its not explicitly stated in the game, I'm fairly sure that Placidusax is the "Storm Lord" that Godfrey defeated.
Dragonlord Placidusax, just like Malenia indeed, always felt "off" and the way you had to fight them, they're completely optionnal. [SPOILER] Even the first time I fought him I asked myself why I was there, there's no reason to put him down, especially after what he went through when the Greater Will came into the planet, though he's already dead, stuck in a wall in the Farum Azula that you can find elsewhere. [END OF SPOILER] You should do The Nameless King from Dark Souls 3, very interesting piece.
I saw something in some item description (I don't remember which one now) that I believe said something along the lines of "the dragons put their lord into stone to preserve him." I don't remember the actual quote, but it seemed to signal to me that Placidusax was still alive inside the rock, but idk.
Not sure if the statues of Placidusax's heads aren't just an image or a different dragon to begin with. I mean, his remembrance mentions Placidusax waiting for his god's return within this vortex beyond time. Which kinda implies he stayed alive and just sealed himelf within this vortex, akin to a slumber.
Another track like Slave Knight Gael that is so intrinsically connected to the actual act of fighting them. In the second phase the fade out and the sort of slight false return the music makes before dipping out again then crashing in hard perfectly syncs with Placidusax disappearing, then (if you're eagle eyed) seeing him gradually materialize out of the storm clouds in the distance before crashing down at you from the skies like a fighter jet on a bombing run. Then the next drop out and fade in, it does a similar maneuver, only this time when it comes back and the song reaches it's zenith, it drops to the end of the arena and unleashes an absolute eardrum blowout cacophony of sound and light as it dumps everything it has into this colossal wild flailing supercondensed laser beam out of it's mouths. The entire arena is exploding around you as you freak out trying to just get close to it and finish it off before it takes down the whole arena with you. Yeah its pretty nuts.
Can you seriously imagine the fight between Godfrey and Placidusax? Im probably wrong, but I always thought the reason why Farum Azula is so wrecked is cause their fight was that intense. It shattered time and reality itself
I would love it when you react to the ost Chandelier from Ace combat 6 some day. It’s completely different from Zero, Unsung war and megalith. For me it’s hard to describe it, because it’s just to beautiful and somehow epic.
When Placidusax do the nuke attack, he stops time so the lightning keep charging until it exploses. If you pay attention, the music stops during this attack. I think he litterally press pause on the ost like that good old Dio back in Stardust Crusaders opening.
Man, Placidusax is one of the best fights in Elden Ring.A shame he is that hidden...The drop window is so tight,I think,even Fortissax and Malenia,two of the most hidden bosses are more accesible than Placi.
A small explanation: In phase 1, the dragon is stable, does not fly and is not particularly active, therefore such a "stable melody", in phase 2 it takes off into the air and begins to teleport throughout the arena, materializing and disappearing, attacking us with very dangerous blows. Therefore, in part 2, such a "ragged" and non-linear melody, it is synchronized with his teleportations.
I do have my own almost a fanfic about whats happening in fight in his mind. From his perspective, he is there waiting for his god to return and help him heal, but suddeny somebody shows up. Even tho he knows its not easy to get to him, he slowly descends on ground and roars for lightning to strike you and does not move much, as he sees you as something beneath him. But as fight goes on, he starts attacking, but he is slow, almost in a way he doesnt want to hurt himself, because he knows he is old, hurt and fragile. But there is one thing he realises during the fight before his second phase - his god and hope are gone and you, the player, are not such an easy kill. During the second phase he is throwing himself at you, disregarding his own pain and goes all out, knowing this is his last final moment of glory. You can see it hurts him, after some of the heavier attacks he needs to take his breath. He goes from not respecting the player to embracing death by such a strong foe.
If Placidusax spoke: "Things are what they are, and what once was will never again be... Here lieth my crumbling Legacy. Little Progeny of Man, thou hast come to take I see, allow me then - Allow I, to demonstrate, what awaits those who challenge our ilk. Such is my final Courtesy to ye, behold the Craft of I, Placidusax, Lord of Dragons."
Probably late, but I noticed this and Lancsseax share some similarities, specially in the chorus who I'm pretty sure sing the same notes at times. I think they're from the same composer. As metal as Fortissax's theme is, it would have been cool to have the same composer for all ancient dragon themes for continuity's sake.
It's not evident in normal gameplay or in game lore, but in the code for Placidusax's model his left head is labeled male and the right female. It's plausible he came about through several dragons merging into one being rather than being born with five heads.
I think you should listen to "blood and guts" from berserk. It's a manga/anime. Would be an opportunity to vary the content, so you don't bring only videogame music. It also has opera singing, so you can show your skill to us breaking it down.
Dragons are always cool, but a 2 headed dragon 0_0. The song kinda tells to me that what you are facing is not a normal dragon. Its an abomination of 2 combined where the necks twist and twirl around the body. Yes I know what it looks like but I can really hear that from the song.
It's amazing how you nailed the fact that, indeed, he doesn't want to fight you. You, as the player, kind of interrupt his state of deep mediation (or something like that), so he's got no other choice than to fight you. And oh boy, what a fight that is!
I would love seeing react to some Monster Hunter tracks! Some of the best ones are Mizutsune, Zinogre, Fatalis (iceborne version and white fatalis). If anyone has more themes write em down in the replies
While I fucking despise this boss and find it to be a worse fight than Ancient Dragon from Dark Souls 2, the music is one of the only redeeming qualities of the fight. The other being the nuke that cuts out the music, that is cool. I didn't feel like I was getting better with this fight, instead it felt like I was getting lucky with RNG thanks to the teleporting bullshit. IMO the ONLY melee boss that did teleporting well was the Twin Princes in DS3, that should tell you how I feel about Radagon and his DAMAGING teleports. His health pool, the damage that he does and the teleporting ruin the fight for me, that and some bullshit hitboxes that don't feel fair. However my biggest problem is that he's the follow-up to Darkeater Midir in terms of being a Dragon super boss, and all of the poor design choices baffle me so much after Midir knocked it out of the stratosphere. At least Fortsaxx is a good dragon fight, no Midir but better than Sinh from DS2. That and the run to the boss is complete cancer with bullshit drop downs that are WAY too easy to mess up and die trying to get to the boss.
![[UA] NAVI vs MOUZ | BO5 | IEM Rio 2024](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/CMBYk0cbGoA/mqdefault.jpg)
I have so much respect for the Dragonlord, suspended in air, suspended in time. Truly, a harrowing experience in his second and third phases. The way he is able to still decimate us despite being aged and at half power. You have to wonder what he would have been like in his prime.
yeah, some people theorize that he had 4 or 5 heads during his prime, imagine all of the fire breaths lol
Miyazaki games are great because they make my fantasy go wild.
Fun Fact : when you face him he's actually been dead for a long time Which is why you go back in time in order to face him you can actually find his remains within Farum Azula
@@generalfeldmarschallaugust8089 Petrified within some boulders right?
Marco thank you so much for making this video I love you
Fun fact: The names of the (ancient) dragons describe their nature. With Gransax meaning "large", Fortissax meaning "strong" and Placidusax meaning "calm" (was not able to figure out lansseax meaning). So yeah, the hesitation part is fairly accurate as he is simply not a fighter, he doesn't want to, but he can and he WILL. Placidusax is no dragon that can use forces of nature like others... He IS a force of nature, not aggressive, he doesn't attack you straight away. But he defends himself. Every move he makes shatters the ground, he can manipulate time itself (which he does during the fight by teleporting) he can not only use lightning, he can turn into it, his odem is a beam of destruction, his strongest lightning able to act as a nuke. That is not a dragon that fought in countless wars... That is the lord of all dragons, crumbling with and inside his home... This is not a dragon. This is the power of nature IN FORM OF a dragon! This is Placidusax, older than the erdtree, marika, maybe even the greater will. And you stand before this curse that nature unbound into the world!
Lansseax is a possibly improper form of Lancea(s)ax. "Inclined towards spears". Also the fact that they all end in ax is possibly a double-entendre due to -ax being a suffix that implies a relation to something whereas Sax being a noun form of Stone... the full title for their species or civilization is The Ancient _Stone_ Dragons.
Placidusax was Elden Lord at one point, so maybe his calm nature, and as Marco described it, his hesitation to fight, can be lent to the fact that he needed to focus on being a good ruler for his subjects rather than being a fighter. It could be much like how Godfrey abandoned his title of Hoarah Loux to focus on rulership.
@@LtCdrXander really doubt that. Dragons don't seem like a race that needs a ruler, only one under whose banner they can unite. Imagine Fortissax or Gransax being ruled!
@@LtCdrXander no placidusax is the god of the dragons. Literally another religion
@@mobilevision2624 we know for for a fact that placidusax was Elden lord, so uh
That moment when the music stops and you see Placidusax dropping a nuke from afar is one of the best moments in the entire game, but I don’t think everyone has seen that, because he rarely do it
Guhhhh
My mouth dropped open the first time I seen it. Shit was incredible mid fight.
Placidusax gets to have three "signature" moves. The railroad spike thunder nuke, the thundercloud dive, and "ruin".
Yeah I got one-shotted by that attack the first time - learned quickly to run away immediately when the music cut out! And every time I did, I kept saying how cool it was.
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!!!
That second phase music feels like a tsunami washing over you, the tsunami doesnt hate you, it feels completly indifferent to you. It just does what it does and you can do nothing but helplessly try to struggle and survive.
Love this description
well said
I love how both this track and Hoarah Loux's fit the characters so well. They both sound like they come from different cultures than the rest of the songs on the soundtracks, this one gives off an aged, reverent tone, fitting of Farum Azula and its lord, while Hoarah Loux sounds primal, raging, and chaotic with no frills or unnecessary flair, fitting of the strength-based warrior culture he created after leaving the Lands Between
This is by far one of the most cinematic boss fights. The music alone is already amazing but merge it together with the scenery of the arena, the bosses visual design and actions... It's a fuckin masterpiece.
Fighting placidusax is like Fighting a force of nature, every move he makes can shatter cities and you can feel it
For some reason, when you first meet him and see his arena, I'm reminded of when you first meet Singh, the final boss of DS2's sunken king DLC.
Placidusax, to me, felt like an amalgamation of every dragon we've ever faced in the Souls series.
I've been trying to figure out why Fromsoft seems like such a hotbed for outstanding new classical. I think it's because of the unique level of storytelling required of the boss tracks. Composing is, at least at the start, improvisation. Anyone who can improvise will know that the best improv comes from within structure, when you have some guidance and can progress from there.
In my job I hear a lot of works from new composers and I think the thing that they're lacking is direction and a goal. Classical composers have, historically, always been attempting to communicate something not to an elite who understands musicology, but to everyone. They were mainstream music in the time of Beethoven and he was the equivalent of a superstar musician. That's why I tend to believe that the future of classical isn't coming from composer funding programs at conservatories which are trying to hold onto the classical traditions of the 1800s, it's coming from industries like video games that need new classical to communicate meaning.
From Software games and especially the Monster Hunter series have had some of the most consistently impressive epic orchestrated style music I call it. Since Monster Hunter has a huge following in Japan, I think they actually occasionally have whole orchestrated shows playing some Monster Hunter theme or atleast do it for promotional stuff at times. I emplore you to explore that series music if you haven't already, it's absolutely top tier stuff and massive variety and influences
I just love how both music phases are really forcing on you a lot of emotions. Where some dragon tracks are just pure epic, full of adrenaline tracks, Placidusax is almost calm, sad, and you almost feel terrible for attacking it. And yet its also so intense it makes you feel like your heart is in a constant state of pressure. It's like killing an ancient animal for personal gain, or like cutting a tree that a home to hundreds of animals, you are challanging the nature, a nature that did nothing to anyone, an unstoppable force that when destroyed, leaves only sadness and death and emptyness.
The only thing that Placidusax does is waiting. He is not driven by emotion or self gain like so many characters - he just wants to see his master again. And so his attacks are not direct to you for most of the time. Almost every attack ends with him backing up and protecting his body. His attacks have huge range but are slow and delicate. Even when he sets up an explosion, he doesn't hit the ground with full force, he only pressures the energy enough to make it go off. It's like attacking the old person that doesn't even know why is being attacked and for what.
When the second phase starts, the music turns into this tense heartbeat. My heart literally made me stressed out by it's tempo and it fits perfectly, as the second phase is a pretty big suprise as this slow colossus gains a power to simply get to you in a second. He doesn't want to die so he uses everything againts you. And then in his final act he does his strongest breath attack he can get... and when he does that, he feels almost tired, not doing enything for quite a while. You can only imagine what a scary force he was in his glory, when he had all five heads... almost like a full human hand, compared to now known two or even three fingers. If he represented the whole five fingers, how powerful and old he really was? We will propably never know, but I somewhat hope for a DLC that takes us back in time and shows some of his old glory.
It's propably first time that I really want specifically a DLC for a From Software game beside Sekiro (that will propably never get it) because so many things seem to be connected to the past it's insane. The lore in this one is way more thick than I expected and I hope it will be explored more someday.
five headed placidusax when he was still elden lord would lore wise probably be among the strongest things ever, period
I like the hesitance you mentioned. If i understood the lore right Placidusax is very much a shadow of its former self. hes really scarred up, used to have five heads now has only two. not sure who did that to him, I did think Godfrey initially but thats probably wrong since the war with the dragons was after his exile, so probably either Radagon or Marika or both (if you know you know).
its an avatar of an old god that was "fled" and Placidusax is now waiting (futiley?) for its return.
It was Godwyn, after the fight , they became friends. And Pacidussax awaited his Godwyns return in a timeless stasis
@@t29hotrod75 godwyn became friends with the lichdragon, though I'm sure he was the one that injured placidusax. Placidusax is also awaiting a god being sorta like the formless mother to return
@@SergeantPear Placidusax was Elden Lord in the time before the Erdtree, in the past Age. The god that fled was the one he was consort of, the "Marika" equivalent, vessel of the Elden Ring at Farum Azula.
@@SergeantPear yes you are right. I got the names mixed up, apparently it was Godfrey who fought him.
Might just have been decay and the passage of time that weakened him
Placidusax suspended himself within a timeless place within an equally timeless place, to await his God, where he has done so for so long that he has become less than a shell of what he once was, even without the music or lore fighting Placidusax I had the feeling that he wasn't really fighting out of desire or anything animalistic, but simply to make me leave, to make it known I am not welcome within the storm he has wrapped around himself, he knows it is not his time to wake and for disturbing his slumber he casts you out, but he definitely acknowledges your strength seeing as how he is willing to go beyond a simple idea of what the strength of a dragon is, it truly feels at times that the battles in Elden Ring with the most shared respect are the ones in which little to no words are exchanged
I was fascinated by how similar that finale is to the Mother of Dragons track from Game of Thrones. Surely has nothing to do with Martin being a part of development and just a coincidence.
Imagination goes wild with DLC possibilities. When you lay down and a transported in time, it seems like a dream sequence. I wonder if there could be space for a fight with a fully capable Placidusax in such a DLC.
Finally I found someone else stating that the song sounds similar to Dany's theme song! I really thought I was going crazy, or was letting my love for GoT influence my interpretation too much.
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!!!
this might be the coolest fight in the series. not the best, but the coolest.
Seeing him suspended in midair like that will never not be scary AF
Although others may argue that there are more impactful fights, there is absolutely zero competition on Placidusax's battle being the most cinematic
Indeed. The moment when music stop and dragonlord drop a nuke, the moment when fire breath become a ray, if that things is not cool, idk what is
@@nguyenkien5251 it reminded me so much of Midir which was my fav dragon fight prior to ER, so when it happened a just sat there and was shook with excitement
@@AnonymousInternetUserLaine I think the only one I'd put on more cinematic value would be Rykard.
The fact that you pronounced his name right is the most amazing part of this video.
Why? 😂
@@MarcoMeatball
Because 90% of people struggle trying to pronounce the name lol
@@mouaz670 really? Placid-ooh-saxophone 😂😂
I always just pronounced it Placiduesax
Is there an official pronunciation? I'm inclined to pronounce it as Marco does here but I am not aware of an official pronunciation.
This music goes so much better if you actually saw the action that accompanies it. It’s one of the few bosses whose actions go in tandem with the music. The music can help you identify what move his about to make or when he’s gonna come out of his time rift portal thingy.
There is an enterprising soul who is translating the lyrics from latin to english. He's done a few by now, such as the godskin music and a few more. It's amasing what is hidden within the text. IT really shows the personality of the boss itself.
That guy isn't translating anything though, there are no actual lyrics in Elden Ring soundtrack, just meaningless syllables.
@@godefroiddebouillon7769 I don't think so I think it's latin being used, but then again I could bewrong but if you listen to the it there seems to be different texts
this song is somehow really elegant and graceful, especially with the sound of rain subtlety being added in
inspiring a sense of awe of something truly great and majestic, but also a sense of melancholy, and then piling all of that up and bringing it down upon you like a rumbling Storm
Like most other boss tracks in this game the music switches to a more intense version once the second phase hits, however Placidusax is unique in how his music technically has a phase 2.1
As you might remember soon after the second phase starts and he turns into a storm cloud there is a brief moment of silence before the choir goes absolutely nuts which always syncs with them diving down to strike at you for the first time (3:22)
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!!!
The sound and certain notes of this piece sound (to me) a lot like Danaerys' theme from Game of Thrones.
Clearly an intentional reference considering the GRRUM connection.
@@Amitlu That would be cool if it was. I mean, it's a dragon, so... But even if it isn't a cheeky reference/homage, it is still one of my favorite boss themes in this game. The boss itself took me a bit to defeat, but it felt so epic, almost tragic, and the whole time I kept saying to myself how cool it was.
Yeah I thought the same thing
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!!!
Doesn’t hit the same without the ear piercing tactical nuke attack he has, but still an amazing track for a fight lost in time
I love this boss. I fought him after a certain other boss, so I was at that point very tired of the way some of the game's challenge was put up. Then I got up to the Dragonlord as the music really started to kick in. Put me right into them good vibes. I just found his teleporting / stormporting cool and enjoyable and, once I realized that you can use his tail as a way to measure where the safe zones for his breath are, the fight easily became one of my very favorites in the game. I'm not sure if I can say I enjoyed him more or less than Mohg, but he's up there.
I'm with you on this respect and awe felt by the character through the music. It feels like something majestic and intense. The first thing I thought of when I heard this song was 'force of nature'.
I can't help but feel his theme is epic, ancient, and yet somber. The background choir almost gives off an air of sadness underlying the dragonlord's immense power. Like Placidusax's time has finally come, but he isn't going to go down like a wimp.
TBF, AFAIK, you can go to Placidusax's arena, use the item that you have to be there to use, and then TP away.
You make the first move on Placidusax, he gives you plenty of space before he starts the battle. You're the hostile one.
The very beginning of this piece is my favorite, and it's so understated. To me, it sounds like an orchestra warming up / tuning their instruments. Just the first few seconds and the tone is set for the fight - called to battle from utter rest, a true beginning from absolutely nothing - and a battle completely unexpected to occur by both aggressor and defender.
Easily my favourite FromSoft boss (and I've beaten all of them). The way the music weaves in and out as he vanishes and attacks is amazing. Hearing the music outside of the fight doesn't do it justice honestly
I love these videos, and I'd love to see a reaction to the Fire Giant's theme. Might be my favorite in the game
Holy shit buddy this is my first time here Quelaag sent me, you were so spot on with the themes and storytelling elements I've been theorizing around this character bravo this is for sure gonna be in my multimedia essay some day
Thanks so much!
YES! I was waiting for this one
the thing about hesitation is damn right this is why i love music like this. it tells you everything you need to know if you listen to it. you feel a sense of ancient might and wonder but its not necessarily trying to destroy you. you straight up just go back in time to kick this dragons ass for no reason of course he does not wanna fight hes waiting for his outer god to return
YESSS!!! Thank you sir. Was waiting for this😁
The highlight of this fight for me was the arena-wide nuke, where he slams his lightning spear into the ground, and the whole music stops for a second, kind of like, a "calm before the storm".
On top of that, the whole fight, the way the dragon moves, the music in the back, along with the general arena gives me the feeling that you're fighting a force of nature. And the music itself, the later phases feel like hearing a tsunami approach, hearing the heavy winds crash over the shore, as the water rises up slowly to meet your ankles and soon the waves slowly engulf you and everyone around you. While its not explicitly stated in the game, I'm fairly sure that Placidusax is the "Storm Lord" that Godfrey defeated.
Idk but I think there is so much Danny riding her dragon theme from GoT in this one... Maybe a small hommage to GRR Martin work on Elden Ring ?
Dragonlord Placidusax, just like Malenia indeed, always felt "off" and the way you had to fight them, they're completely optionnal. [SPOILER] Even the first time I fought him I asked myself why I was there, there's no reason to put him down, especially after what he went through when the Greater Will came into the planet, though he's already dead, stuck in a wall in the Farum Azula that you can find elsewhere. [END OF SPOILER]
You should do The Nameless King from Dark Souls 3, very interesting piece.
I saw something in some item description (I don't remember which one now) that I believe said something along the lines of "the dragons put their lord into stone to preserve him." I don't remember the actual quote, but it seemed to signal to me that Placidusax was still alive inside the rock, but idk.
@@LtCdrXander It may explain this then. We are lacking so much answers to questions that I hope some at least would be, in the DLC's to come.
Not sure if the statues of Placidusax's heads aren't just an image or a different dragon to begin with. I mean, his remembrance mentions Placidusax waiting for his god's return within this vortex beyond time. Which kinda implies he stayed alive and just sealed himelf within this vortex, akin to a slumber.
This song sounds like entropy and ages coming to pass. Time crashing down upon you not with cruelty but with begrudging purpose
Ayy finally, been waiting for this, one of my favourite tracks
Thanks for this! One of my favorite bosses and themes of all time
The first 10 seconds gives me a massive goosebumps that I can’t describe
Another track like Slave Knight Gael that is so intrinsically connected to the actual act of fighting them. In the second phase the fade out and the sort of slight false return the music makes before dipping out again then crashing in hard perfectly syncs with Placidusax disappearing, then (if you're eagle eyed) seeing him gradually materialize out of the storm clouds in the distance before crashing down at you from the skies like a fighter jet on a bombing run. Then the next drop out and fade in, it does a similar maneuver, only this time when it comes back and the song reaches it's zenith, it drops to the end of the arena and unleashes an absolute eardrum blowout cacophony of sound and light as it dumps everything it has into this colossal wild flailing supercondensed laser beam out of it's mouths. The entire arena is exploding around you as you freak out trying to just get close to it and finish it off before it takes down the whole arena with you.
Yeah its pretty nuts.
It’s funny how the pure emotion from music can pin point the exact lore of characters
Ah finally what we've been waiting for
Can you seriously imagine the fight between Godfrey and Placidusax? Im probably wrong, but I always thought the reason why Farum Azula is so wrecked is cause their fight was that intense. It shattered time and reality itself
Woahhhhh
I would love it when you react to the ost Chandelier from Ace combat 6 some day. It’s completely different from Zero, Unsung war and megalith. For me it’s hard to describe it, because it’s just to beautiful and somehow epic.
For sure :)
I love the nods to game of thrones especially at the very end.
Cool ass boss, cool Arena, godly music= One Epic ass fight to the death
Ahhh finally! Epic fight backed by some truly epic music.
You should do the “Soul of cinder” from dark souls 3, it has the plin plin plon from Gwyns theme in it, and is an excellent final boss theme
Oh I will..
easily my favorite in the elden ring ost, as well as my favorite boss 💙👌
When Placidusax do the nuke attack, he stops time so the lightning keep charging until it exploses. If you pay attention, the music stops during this attack. I think he litterally press pause on the ost like that good old Dio back in Stardust Crusaders opening.
It will be interesting to hear your opinion about morgott theme
Man, Placidusax is one of the best fights in Elden Ring.A shame he is that hidden...The drop window is so tight,I think,even Fortissax and Malenia,two of the most hidden bosses are more accesible than Placi.
A small explanation: In phase 1, the dragon is stable, does not fly and is not particularly active, therefore such a "stable melody", in phase 2 it takes off into the air and begins to teleport throughout the arena, materializing and disappearing, attacking us with very dangerous blows. Therefore, in part 2, such a "ragged" and non-linear melody, it is synchronized with his teleportations.
I do have my own almost a fanfic about whats happening in fight in his mind. From his perspective, he is there waiting for his god to return and help him heal, but suddeny somebody shows up. Even tho he knows its not easy to get to him, he slowly descends on ground and roars for lightning to strike you and does not move much, as he sees you as something beneath him. But as fight goes on, he starts attacking, but he is slow, almost in a way he doesnt want to hurt himself, because he knows he is old, hurt and fragile. But there is one thing he realises during the fight before his second phase - his god and hope are gone and you, the player, are not such an easy kill. During the second phase he is throwing himself at you, disregarding his own pain and goes all out, knowing this is his last final moment of glory. You can see it hurts him, after some of the heavier attacks he needs to take his breath. He goes from not respecting the player to embracing death by such a strong foe.
If Placidusax spoke:
"Things are what they are, and what once was will never again be... Here lieth my crumbling Legacy. Little Progeny of Man, thou hast come to take I see, allow me then - Allow I, to demonstrate, what awaits those who challenge our ilk. Such is my final Courtesy to ye, behold the Craft of I, Placidusax, Lord of Dragons."
Probably late, but I noticed this and Lancsseax share some similarities, specially in the chorus who I'm pretty sure sing the same notes at times. I think they're from the same composer. As metal as Fortissax's theme is, it would have been cool to have the same composer for all ancient dragon themes for continuity's sake.
Ahh yes, King Ghidorah but not an evil monster out to destroy everything
Marco you should do Laurence, The first vicar theme that shits nuts. Probably one of my favorite boss themes
I did! Check out the fromsoft playlist
It's not evident in normal gameplay or in game lore, but in the code for Placidusax's model his left head is labeled male and the right female. It's plausible he came about through several dragons merging into one being rather than being born with five heads.
I LOVE THE BUFF PIKACHU WTF
😂
Best ost imo
FINALLY
I thi k design-wise he is my fav boss, followed by the godskin apostles (not nobles, ew), and black-knife assassins.
Edit: Fire giant? 🥺
I think you should listen to "blood and guts" from berserk. It's a manga/anime. Would be an opportunity to vary the content, so you don't bring only videogame music. It also has opera singing, so you can show your skill to us breaking it down.
I only cover video game music - thanks for the suggestion!
@@MarcoMeatball noo what a shame. Well, I still recommend you to listen to it without recording. It's a masterpiece!
Its probably been recommended but shadow of the colossus soundtrack, im most interested in prologue.
Oooo coming so soon!
Ah yes
Dragons good
Also
Day thirty-eight of recommending Stay Gold from the Arknights OST
You should react to pontiff sulyvahn from dark souls 3 his theme is amazing
Would love to see you react to "Remains" from dark souls 2.
Speaking of dragons, will you ever react to darkeater midir from ds3?
When I’m ready and able
I love you so much
❤️❤️❤️❤️🫂
If you find the time, it could be fun to get your reaction to 'Memory of the Lost' from 'Code Vein'.
Darkeater midir!! Please! I would love to hear what you think of that piece from dark souls 3
You should react at pontiff sulyvanh theme in ds3
I should ❤️🔥
Dragons are always cool, but a 2 headed dragon 0_0. The song kinda tells to me that what you are facing is not a normal dragon. Its an abomination of 2 combined where the necks twist and twirl around the body. Yes I know what it looks like but I can really hear that from the song.
I have to suggest a song from project wingman idk why it feels so powerful its called Kings
It's amazing how you nailed the fact that, indeed, he doesn't want to fight you. You, as the player, kind of interrupt his state of deep mediation (or something like that), so he's got no other choice than to fight you. And oh boy, what a fight that is!
Can you make a reaction video one of the best ds3 osts pontiff slyvhan and twin princes plss looks like you forget them :l
I would love seeing react to some Monster Hunter tracks! Some of the best ones are Mizutsune, Zinogre, Fatalis (iceborne version and white fatalis).
If anyone has more themes write em down in the replies
Fatalis and others coming down the road!
@@MarcoMeatball hell yeaaaah!
Hey Marco, could you listen to "Il mare eterno nella mia anima" from jojos bizarre adventure?
Id love to hear your take on it!!!
can you React to Armored Core 4 Ost Fall, they are two versions of the song, the original one, and Fall - Into the Grace
2:48 Woow is it just my ear or that's (almost) the Dune theme from Toto.
1:50 ua-cam.com/video/zZD99X_S7SA/v-deo.html
While I fucking despise this boss and find it to be a worse fight than Ancient Dragon from Dark Souls 2, the music is one of the only redeeming qualities of the fight. The other being the nuke that cuts out the music, that is cool.
I didn't feel like I was getting better with this fight, instead it felt like I was getting lucky with RNG thanks to the teleporting bullshit. IMO the ONLY melee boss that did teleporting well was the Twin Princes in DS3, that should tell you how I feel about Radagon and his DAMAGING teleports.
His health pool, the damage that he does and the teleporting ruin the fight for me, that and some bullshit hitboxes that don't feel fair. However my biggest problem is that he's the follow-up to Darkeater Midir in terms of being a Dragon super boss, and all of the poor design choices baffle me so much after Midir knocked it out of the stratosphere.
At least Fortsaxx is a good dragon fight, no Midir but better than Sinh from DS2.
That and the run to the boss is complete cancer with bullshit drop downs that are WAY too easy to mess up and die trying to get to the boss.
Plz do one of DS3 sister fride
Try ff 15 noctis apocalypsis and ff16 first annoucement trailer
Both are here
Incase you didn't know, in the time before the Erdtree the Dragon Lord Plasscidusax was the First Elden Lord.
Oh wow I did not know that
Thats actually a mistranslation.
@@Aiden-iy9du no it’s not???
My bad, chill.
@@biotoxin6280 Hope you enjoyed that dopamine rush
Pleaseeeeee do Deep Stone Lullaby from Destiny 2!!!! One of the greatest video game pieces I’ve ever heard
Yup!
Shame he was an easy fight
Truthfully elden ring is by far the easiest of the series