The opening stretch of Echoes of Aincrad drops you straight into a contained dungeon that doubles as the game’s tutorial. It starts slow, but it ends with two demanding fights before you ever set foot in the open world. Knowing the layout and the boss patterns ahead of time turns the prologue from a wall into a warm-up.
Quick answer: Clear the tutorial corridor, meet Iori at the first junction, defeat the Sentry Golem at the first resting point, then beat Illfang the Kobold Lord across his three phases. Finish him with three finishers, walk to the dungeon exit, and a cutscene teleports you to the central township.
What the prologue gives you in the demo
In the demo you play a fixed beta character whose appearance cannot be changed. The full release, which launches on July 10, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam, lets you build a custom avatar instead. Either way, the prologue plays out the same: a linear, hallway-style dungeon with two major checkpoints.
Iori joins you part way through and becomes your permanent party member. Her charged attacks matter in both boss fights, so treat her as part of your damage plan rather than a passenger. You only get Iori in the demo; more party members open up later in the full game.
Walk through the prologue dungeon
How to defeat the Sentry Golem
The Sentry Golem hits far harder than anything before it, but it is slow and its attacks are easy to read. There are only two moves you need to track, and both leave openings.
| Attack | How to handle it |
|---|---|
| Stomp (repeats while you stay close) | Move out from the front and reposition behind the boss. |
| Ground sweep (wide radius, staggers you) | Parry it, then follow up with Iori’s charged thrust. |
Stay behind the Sentry Golem at all times and punish it with charged heavy attacks. Because the sweep can knock you out of your animations, time your hits between its moves rather than greeding for extra swings.
How to defeat Illfang the Kobold Lord
After a cutscene, you face Illfang the Kobold Lord, the toughest fight in the demo. He hits hard, has three phases, and can flood the arena with extra enemies. The good news is his core moveset stays consistent across phases.
| Attack | How to handle it |
|---|---|
| 360-degree ground sweep | Create distance or dodge through it before it lands. |
| Charged roar (forces you and Iori to block, summons fodder) | Block through it, then clear the summons before resuming pressure. |
Illfang repeats these two attacks throughout each phase. In the final phase he stops summoning fodder, so you can commit fully to damage. The key detail is the finisher: once you drain his health bar, his health regenerates unless you stop it.
To perform a finisher, stand in front of or to the side of Illfang and press the heavy attack button. Repeat this across all three phases. Land the finisher three times and the fight ends.
Reach the exit and confirm completion
With Illfang down, the rest of the dungeon is a short, linear corridor. Walk to the end and you will find the exit leading to the outside world. A brief cutscene plays and teleports you to the central township.
You know the prologue is complete when you regain control in the township and can choose your own quests freely. That hub is the point where the demo opens up beyond the linear opening.
Carry your demo progress into the full game
Demo progress transfers automatically to the full version. On PC, keep the demo’s save files intact. The save data lives at C:\Users\AppData\Echoes of Aincrad. On consoles, your progress continues even if you delete the demo, but do not delete the demo’s saves themselves.
Finishing the prologue and the rest of the demo is not required for your progress to carry over. However, completing the demo unlocks mission replay, which lets you upgrade weapons and level up to the demo’s cap. If you want a stronger head start in the full game, clearing both bosses is worth the effort.
