In Killing Floor 3, you fight hordes of enemies known as Zed’s with 5 different waves with increased difficulty, culminating in a 6th wave with a boss. While the game only features 3 bosses, they all definitely pack a punch, even on the lowest difficulty. With this guide we are going to help you get through the fight with one of the 3, The Impaler.
The Impaler, in our opinion, is the most difficult of the 3 bosses. It packs a serious punch and on the higher difficulties can kill you very quickly, especially in a full lobby. Speaking of a full lobby, how many Impaler’s spawn will depend on how big your party is.
- 1-2 Players = 1 Impaler
- 3-4 Players = 2 Impaler’s
- 5-6 Players = 3 Impaler’s
As you can see, the more players you have, the more difficult the game becomes. While there isn’t some kind of magical way to beat the Impaler, we can give you as much information as possible to help you even the odds. Every enemy, even the Impaler has its weaknesses we can look to exploit, and with any luck you will be killing this giant beast and collecting your Ichor crafting items.
The Impaler’s Weaknesses
First off, the Impaler has a few elements he’s weak too. Acid and Electric are its main weaknesses. It also has a lot of armor on it so using armor piercing ammo is a great tactic as well.
It also has a few weak spots on it. You can see glowing spots on its arms and back. These main weak spots are where you should focus your attack as quickly as possible (more on this later). Using armor piercing and acid ammo will help damage and destroy these weak spots quicker. You can also attack its head which like most Zed’s, is also a weak spot.
How To Defeat The Impaler
Now that you know its weak spots and weaknesses it’s time to deal with how to actually defeat it. The Impaler is super agile and can easily catch you, so running away isn’t the best course of action. When you have a full lobby and multiple Impaler’s you can sometimes get away by running as it will focus on your teammates if they attack it, allowing you to get a breather and heel if needed.
Attack Its Arms First: As soon as the Impaler spawns you should focus on its arm cores. Doing so will help you later on in the battle as destroying its arm cores prevents it from shooting rockets at you later in the battle. Shooting the arms also helps build up Zed Time which of course is super valuable, and usually only accrued when aiming for a Zed’s head so take advantage while you can.
Attack Missiles While They Charge: If you haven’t successfully destroyed its arm cores before The Impaler starts firing rockets at you, you can take advantage of this a bit. Attacking the missiles as they charge up (his back will begin to glow) will cause the missiles to explode on his back and damage him. Be careful though as once the missiles are fired they cant be destroyed and will cause you a lot of harm.
Perhaps Spead Out A Bit: While it generally is best to stick together as a team in Killing Floor 3, if you have 2 or 3 Impaler’s it might be best to somewhat split up. Having, 2-3 players deal with 1 Impaler each might be more manageable than having 2 or 3 Impaler’s on top of you at once. Don’t stray too far away from the other group in case you need healing, but it is something to at least consider. If you do this I’d try and send a medic with each split off group.
Electric Ammo: You may also want to bring some electric ammo and grenades to help keep The Impaler grounded. The Impaler likes to jump around and attack a lot, so using this ammo helps keep him stunned and easier to attack.
Watch Its Movements: The Impaler will give you some signs on what it’s going to do when it attacks, specifically with its head. If its head moves back, try and dodge side to side when it lunges at you. If its head moves to the side, try and dodge backwards when you can. Watching these movements can save you a lot of health in the long run.
Abuse Your Zed Time: At this point you should probably be used to hearing this, but Zed Time is super important and can really help, especially in boss battles. With the ability to gain Zed time attack the Impaler’s weaknesses you should get more Zed Time than normal. Use it.
If you use all these tactics, it should give you a better chance at surviving against the Impaler and winning. Like we said at the top, there’s no real way to cheese him so do your best and tackle him with caution. Flex those FPS skills and take him down!
