How to Beat Mad Pumpkin Head Enemies in Elden Ring

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I've been playing video games pretty much nonstop ever since I got my first 360. I love arena shooters, MMOs, and MOBAs, but I'll pretty much try any kind of game.

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

The Mad Pumpkin Head is interesting for one reason — he has a pumpkin on his head. Well, sorta. It’s actually a large helmet shaped like a pumpkin, but where’s the fun in that? There are two instances of this enemy as a boss, and several where it’s a lesser, standard enemy. In this article, we’ll take a look at both the boss and lesser form of this enemy, as well as its lore.

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Mad Pumpkin Head Elden Ring Lore

There’s not a ton of information given about the Mad Pumpkin Head, but from the descriptions on its spirit ash and helmet, we can get an idea of who it is.

• The spirit ashes state that it is a “mad soldier” that has “stifled his panic within the dark confines of his helmet.”
• This corresponds with the description on the Pumpkin Helm — “The inside of the helm is pitch black, keeping the crazed warrior within from panicking.”
• It also mentions that the soldier under the helmet suffers from “pressure and claustrophobia.” 
• The Mad Pumpkin Head spirit ashes add that the “humming of insects” and “bloodshed” causes him to rampage.

From these descriptions, we get a decent understanding of the Mad Pumpkin Head’s mental state. It is a soldier driven mad, ridden with panic. We don’t know why he’s so panicked, or why it’s wearing the large Pumpkin Helm, but we know he isn’t happy about either.

We do know from the last line on the Mad Pumpkin Head Ashes, that he was once a gladiator. “This mad soldier is all that is left of a broken gladiator.” Whatever gladiator the Mad Pumpkin Head once was is long gone, however, as his helm is the only thing stopping him from delving fully into madness.

Solo Boss Fight

The first time you find the Mad Pumpkin Head as a boss will likely be at the Waypoint Ruins near the lake in Limgrave. To find this boss, all you have to do is go to the Waypoint Ruins and find the staircase that descends down into a small underground area. The Mad Pumpkin Head is down there, just past a fog gate.

Resistances (according to the Elden Ring wiki):

• Weaknesses: Physical Slash, Lightning, Bleed, Frostbite.
• Strong Against: Physical Strikes

How to Beat the Mad Pumpkin Head Solo Boss

Fighting the Mad Pumpkin Head is not a particularly difficult experience, but if you use the wrong weapons, it could become a struggle. Physical Slash type weapons (katanas, scythes, etc.) are strongest against him, and Physical Strike weapons (maces, fist weapons, etc.) are weakest.

Lightning, Bleed, and Frostbite are also very effective against him. Using a slash weapon with one of those elements would be the best way to go about the fight. Something like an Uchigatana with its native bleed build-up or a cold weapon would be a great idea.

In terms of the fight itself, the Mad Pumpkin Head doesn’t have any insane combos you have to worry about. Most of his combos are only two moves, so they’re pretty easy to dodge. Make sure not to hit his head, though, as the Pumpkin Helm he wears negates almost all damage. This makes landing jump attacks with certain weapons complicated, so either stick to slash damage at his legs or jump attack from behind to avoid the helm.

Another interesting mechanic of the boss fight is how the Mad Pumpkin Head reacts to sleep. If you put him to sleep and allow him to awake without getting the critical attack, he will go into a maddened rage and attack any allies. This is particularly useful in the duo version of this boss.

Duo Boss Fight

FromSoft couldn’t resist throwing a double Mad Pumpkin Head boss fight into the game, but luckily this duo isn’t as annoying as some of the later game ones. The Pumpkin Heads themselves seem to have mostly the same weaknesses as the original version. The same goes for their actual resistances (to bleed, cold, etc.), which are slightly scaled up, but not drastically so. 

How to Beat the Mad Pumpkin Head Boss Duo

This fight consists of two Pumpkin Heads, one with a flail and one with a large hammer. Both seem to have even levels of aggression and the boss arena is wide open, so you usually have to contend with both at the same time.

On the bright side, though, neither is super aggressive. The best strategy for this fight is to just run around in circles until you find an opening. The hammer one does have a few combos that might prove deadly, so I recommend dealing with him first.

Then move on to the original flail version. You can also utilize the sleep mechanic to make one of them attack the other for you. Just put one to sleep and don’t attack it, then it’ll madden and attack its ally.

Lesser Pumpkin Head Enemies

There are five known lesser Mad Pumpkin Head enemies throughout the game. They can be found in Castle Morne, the Atlus Plateau, Raya Lucaria Academy, Fort Haight, and Limgrave. These guys are very similar to their boss counterparts. Go about fighting them the same way you would the boss versions and you should be good to go.

Their drops are as follows (according to the wiki):

• Chainlink Flail (4% chance)
• Pumpkin Helm (3% chance)
• Sanctuary Stone (100% chance)
• Smithing Stone (5% chance)

Join the High Ground

Thanks for reading our article on the Mad Pumpkin Head in Elden Ring! Hopefully this article has been useful for you, so good luck with fighting the boss(es). Let us know your thoughts on this enemy in the comments below, and be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for exclusive deals and articles!

Happy gaming!

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