Tracking Elden Ring bosses properly is harder than it should be
The game itself doesn't really give you a dedicated boss log. Your rune runestones show progress, but they don't tell you what abilities a boss has, what weapons drop from them, or the most efficient route to take. That gap is why people built tools around it. I've gone through probably a dozen different tracking methods over the years, and most of them are either too cluttered or missing the data you actually need mid-run. The approach most people end up settling on combines a structured spreadsheet for planning routes with a separate reference sheet for boss mechanics. You'll want two things side by side: a progression tracker and a quick-reference combat guide. Don't bother trying to find one app that does both perfectly. They usually compromise on one side.
Elden Ring Boss Journal Best Options
The most widely used option right now is a community-maintained Google Sheet that organizes every boss by region, lists their drops, and has columns for whether you've defeated them. It gets updated regularly when FromSoftware adds patches. There's also a mobile-friendly web version that some people prefer because it loads faster on phones during runs. Both serve the same core purpose. For combat mechanics reference, the best companion resource is a boss move-set wiki page. The Sheet alone won't teach you how to dodge Margit's storm axe phase transitions or when Malenia's waterfowl dance actually starts winding up. I keep a separate browser tab open with the detailed strategy guides while I work through new areas. To set up a working system, start by copying the boss tracker sheet and filling in your own progress as you go. Name each column clearly: Region, Boss Name, Defeated (Y/N), Key Drops, and Notes. The Notes column is where most people skip important information. Put the specific rune reward and memory stone location there. When you're backtracking later, those details matter more than you'd expect.
One problem I ran into repeatedly was that the standard sheet doesn't account for optional bosses in a way that lets you filter them easily. Early on I was accidentally skipping Remorseful Varre or the Cleanrot Knights because the sheet grouped everything alphabetically under each lordran region. My workaround was adding a custom column called Type and marking each entry as Main, Optional, or Hidden. It took about twenty minutes to go back and fill it in, but it cut my map planning time in half going forward. You'll also want to add a column for Spirit Ash requirements since some fights change dramatically depending on what summons you bring.
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What most people get wrong about boss tracking
The biggest mistake is treating the tracker as a completion checklist rather than a routing tool. The real value comes from organizing bosses geographically so you can chain encounters efficiently. Malenia and Radahn are both in Caelid. If you're clearing that region, you plan both runs in one sitting instead of traveling back and forth three times across the map. This is especially relevant if you're speedrunning or doing a New Game Plus run where your build is optimized for faster clears. Another counter-intuitive thing: the order in which you defeat bosses matters less than what most guides claim. The game doesn't gate major progression behind specific boss kills in the way Dark Souls did. You can beat Rennala before Margit if you find the right path. Use your tracker to identify which bosses give you the strongest runes or most useful items for your current build level, then tackle those first. Don't feel obligated to follow any predetermined sequence unless you're specifically practicing for a leaderboard run. The drop tracking column in most sheets is also incomplete for weapon arts. Many entries list the base weapon but not the Ash of War you can acquire from the boss. For example, hitting the Godrick the Grafted entry should remind you that you get the Mortal Sword ash from his remembrance, not just the dragon heart. Cross-reference with a weapons database when your sheet feels sparse on this detail.
Limitations and when this falls apart
No tracker works well for co-op difficulty variations. Boss health pools change significantly when playing with multiple humans, and most community sheets don't reflect those adjustments. If you're playing with a group, treat the numbers in the tracker as approximate guidelines rather than hard data. Another honest limitation: the tracker assumes you're playing on the standard difficulty. If you're running a no-hit challenge or a build-specific run, the recommended weapon tier suggestions and rune estimates become useless. In those cases, you're better off building a custom tracker tailored to your specific constraints. It takes more upfront time, but it's faster to use during actual gameplay than constantly cross-referencing a general-purpose sheet. The mobile web versions of these trackers also tend to lag or misalign on certain phone screens. I've found that opening the Google Sheets app directly and using their offline mode is more reliable than any browser-based version, especially if you're playing on a handheld device or in an area with spotty internet. The data syncs when you reconnect, so you lose nothing by working offline.
For the actual download, search for the Elden Ring Boss Tracker by community member TarnishedLog on Google Drive or the official Elden Ring community Discord. The link gets pinned regularly and points to the latest version. There's also a Mirror site if the primary link goes down after a patch update. Bookmark both.
Practical workflow
Open your tracker before you enter a new legacy dungeon. Mark which bosses are in that area, note their approximate locations on your map, and decide the order based on your current gear and spirit ash options. Run the bosses. Update the sheet immediately after each kill while the details are fresh. Don't wait until you reach a site of grace hours later, because you'll forget which boss dropped which item and the whole tracking system loses its usefulness. This usually cuts down exploration time by roughly 30 to 40 percent compared to winging it without any tracking system. The initial setup takes maybe an hour, and the ongoing maintenance is minimal. The tradeoff is that you have to stay disciplined about updating it, and the community sheets depend on volunteer maintainers keeping them current after game updates. If a patch introduces new bosses or alters drop tables and the sheet hasn't been updated yet, don't trust the outdated numbers. Cross-check with the patch notes directly.
