Dark Souls’ Sif is a stunning, great wolf who deserves so much more than what she gets. Her story is one of the more heartbreaking across all of the SoulsBorne games, but it’s also full of bravery and valor. All Souls players know who she is, and even those who have never been to Lordran may well know about Sif, regardless. There’s a lot more to this character than you might think when you first meet her, you can even get a different opening scene to her boss fight.
So, with that in mind, we took it upon ourselves to dive into who Dark Souls Sif is. Naturally, Sif’s story intertwines with her master’s, so we suggest giving our Dark Souls Artorias guide a read when you’re done here. We also have Dark Souls Gwynevere, Dark Souls Gwyndolin, Dark Souls Solaire, Dark Souls Manus, and Dark Souls Priscilla guides if you want to familiarise yourself with some of the game’s most important characters.
This is what you need to know about Dark Souls’ Sif.
Who is Dark Souls’ Sif?
Sif is a great grey wolf that you encounter at roughly the midpoint of the game. At first glance, you might not think there’s anything too special about her, except for the fact that she’s absolutely huge. However, there’s actually a surprising amount of lore behind Sif, as she’s directly tied to Artorias, one of the Four Knights of Gwyn. Even though her friend and master is gone, she guards his grave, refusing to let anyone approach it. Sif is a fiercely loyal pup, so you’d best be ready to take her down when her fight starts.
Back when she was no more than a young pup, Sif accompanied Artorias on his quest to fight back against the abyss in Oolacile, an endeavor that would end in heartbreak for the great wolf. The pair encounter Manus, Father of the Abyss, which unfortunately ends in their defeat. However, Artorias refuses to allow both himself and his loyal friend to fall, opting to give up his greatshield to protect Sif as humanity sprites surround her.
Despite his vigor and fighting abilities, Artorias falls to the very thing he swore to fight, leading him to be a husk of his former self – you do him a favor when you encounter him just outside of Oolacile at the end of the Royal Woods. You might wonder how Sif herself managed to leave those lands and return to where you eventually meet her. Well, the answer is you.
Artorias the Abysswalker takes you to the past, and you, the chosen undead, are the one who allows Sif to escape. In fact, the young pup can even aid you in your fight against Manus, which makes it much sadder when you face her as a boss. Should you do the DLC before her fight, there’s a brief moment that shows she recognizes you. As a result, she howls in despair at the moon, for she knows what she must do.
Sif doesn’t want to fight you, and you don’t want to fight her. It’s a heartbreaking situation, but the legacy of this pooch and her master lives on – we’ll never forget them.
Where can I find Dark Souls’ Sif?
Dark Souls
Sif awaits you at the end of the Darkroots Gardens behind a huge concrete door; you can’t miss her. That fact is especially true as you need to defeat her to progress the game, meaning she isn’t optional. Still, with amount of freedom you have in terms of exploration in Lordran, allow us to explain how exactly you can reach her.
Just run straight ahead when you enter the area after you use the Artorias medallion next to the Dark Souls bonfire. Eventually, you come across a castle-type building and continue through. Once out the other side, run across the field, and you come to a huge door. Sif is behind it.
Dark Souls Artorias the Abysswalker DLC
We know you want to save Sif in the expansion, and if you don’t, well, we don’t have the words for you, especially as giving this pup the chance to continue her master’s legacy is easy when you know what you’re doing.
As soon as you enter the Abyss caverns, walk forward, and soon enough, you can see some smoke on a lower level, drop onto it. Next, you can see a cat, follow it – it disappears and reappears a little further in front to guide you. Eventually, you come to an area with a branching path.
However, what you want to do is defeat the humanity sprites there and turn to the wall on your left. This is an illusory wall – hit it and go down the path. Soon enough, you can see the young Sif surrounded by humanity sprites. Kill the enemies, and then Sif howls in gratitude before she disappears.
That’s it. You’ve managed to save Sif. As a reward, she can help you in the Manus boss fight. You can also watch a truly heartbreaking scene if you’re yet to defeat her in the main game, as she recognizes you as the kind soul who saved her life years prior, but she’s duty-bound to protect her master’s grave, meaning you two have no choice but to fight to the death. Do yourself a favor and do it quickly; this loyal and courageous wolf deserved so much more – what a good and gorgeous girl.
Dark Souls Sif boss fight
Okay, nobody likes it when the dog dies, much less being the one to put the pup down, which is why you must end this fight as quickly as possible, especially since in the last part of the fight, Sif is limping – it’s heartbreaking to watch and is a painful reminder that perhaps we’re not the good guy we think we are.
Fortunately, the fight is one of the easier ones in the game. All you need to do is stay under Sif and smack away, though be prepared to throw up your shield or roll away on occasion. If you have a decent damage output, regardless of your build, the fight is over before you know it.
The best bit of advice we can give is to attack her legs, as it slows her down, making her limp and giving you ample opportunity to finish the fight as soon as possible. It’s quite the sight at the end when she limps towards you with little health left, it leaves you feeling like an abomination and you know what? You are. Poor Sif, this wolf deserved so much more.
In all seriousness, end the fight and then mourn what truly was a great wolf. For even more details, check out our Dark Souls bosses guide.
There you have it, everything you need to know about the majestic being that is Dark Souls’ Sif. For some more Souls content, check out our Dark Souls Rings guide. If you want some similar titles to play, our lists of the best Soulslike games and games like Dark Souls are full of great suggestions.