Horizon Forbidden West’s revamped combat system meant that the developers could get more creative with enemies both machine and human. With new ways for Aloy to fight them, it only made sense to make sure that it was a fair match.

That is until the Far Zenith arrived, that is. With technology well beyond anything on Aloy’s post-apocalyptic Earth, members of this new faction seem nearly unbeatable. And Erik Visser looks like the worst of them all.

With a big mouth and a bad attitude, Erik represents the worst of Far Zenith’s twisted ideology. After spending long years hunting prey in Virtual Reality Programs on the Sirius system while the earth was destroyed, he now craves actual prey to hunt.

He takes on the mission to establish a Far Zenith Base on Earth with joy, creating machine lures to get machines to attack Tenakth territory. He even kills Varl “for fun”!

Far Zenith’s Brawn

Erik’s location remains a mystery to Aloy for a major part of the story, until the events at Cauldron Gemini which sees Far Zenith member Tilda join forces with Aloy and her team. Aloy soon learns about the Far Zenith base, launching the final arc of the main story as she prepares an assualt in order to rescue Beta from Gerard and Erik.

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Aloy first encounters Erik in the story mission Death’s Door when she is surprised to encounter the Zenith team and her clone, Beta. This initial encounter with Erik is all about surviving the fight, as you cannot cause any damage to him as long as he is shielded. Instead, bring the roof down on him by attacking the weak points on the mechanism overhead to make your escape.

Another encounter with Erik at Cauldron Gemini during the story ends with similar yet disastrous results. His technological advantage lets him dictate the terms of combat, with Varl paying the ultimate price for his loyalty to Aloy’s cause.

This guy is due for a beatdown. But his shields make that quite the challenge. However, progressing the main story brings good news on that front.

The third time’s the charm! During the final story mission Singularity, Aloy has Sylens on her side. He manages to disable the Far Zenith shields, making them vulnerable to being damaged and killed. Finally.

How to Beat Erik in Horizon Forbidden West

You encounter Erik just before you take the elevator up to the final boss of the game. As the penultimate boss of Horizon Forbidden West, Erik puts up quite a fight!

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However, using fire and frost weapons coupled with shock-resistant armor can create a huge advantage throughout the fight. Explosive arrows and even spikes from the Spike Thrower can help deal significant damage consistently, allowing you to concentrate on dodging his arsenal of attacks.

Erik likes to get up close and personal, which means dodging and sprinting should keep you out of his reach. You can avoid his quick-forward dashes and spin attacks with relative ease, taking care to maintain the space you need to launch some attacks of your own.

When he takes to the air, either take cover from his shockwave attacks or dodge his ranged attacks as the situation demands. Your main target should be Erik’s helmet, which you can remove to improve damage from headshots, and end the fight easily.

Some of Erik’s attacks also work as Traps, blocking off sections of the arena and limiting your mobility. However, careful counterattacking and the clever use of elemental damage can see his health bar melt away fairly quickly with an upgraded end-game loadout at your disposal.

With Erik out of the way, it’s time to take on the rest of what Horizon Forbidden West has to offer, and perhaps dive into the Burning Shores DLC before the inevitable chaos that Nemesis is sure to bring along arrives.