The Matriarch, the Weekly Boss: Her Spells, Her Stages and How to Beat Her

Every week, Solwaris changes boss. After the Archmage, then the Forgemaster and the Sentinel, the Matriarch moves in from Monday 12 October 2026. She is a melee monster, very tough and very mobile, who never leaves your heroes alone. This article sums up what to know before meeting her. The full breakdown, spell by spell, is in the Matriarch guide.

The boss fight keeps the basics of Solwaris: a board, AP and MP, line of sight. If you have never played against a boss, our introduction to the co-op fight explains how groups work.

Who is the Matriarch, and where is the fight?

The arena is called the Nest: a hive crater above a lake of acid. At the top, the laying chamber; in the middle, a pit with a ring around it; on the sides, two islets linked by bridges; at the bottom, the ledge where your heroes start. Seven acid vents, the geysers, hold the passages.

Her numbers fit in a few lines:

• 10,000 HP, whether you are solo, in a pair or in a trio;
• 30% permanent resistance: her chitin;
• 14 AP and 5 MP per turn, and a 5-cell Leap: she comes to you;
• no ranged damage spell: her only real attack is the Claw.

The fight lasts 50 turns at most, and what counts is the total damage dealt to the Matriarch, win or lose.

Her spells

Each spell has a cooldown: Leap, Acid Spit, Rush, Brood and Devour come back every other turn, Molt every third turn. The acid pool lasts 3 turns and poisons anyone standing in it on impact, entering it or crossing it. The poison does not stack: going back in only refreshes it.

Eggs, spawnlings and the Nest

This is the heart of her game. She starts with 2 eggs already laid. An egg has only 60 to 80 HP depending on group size and hatches at the start of her second turn after being laid: it becomes a spawnling with 110 to 170 HP, which bites for 26 to 34 damage.

Every bite applies a Parasite. On the third, the hero is immobilized: no MP on their next turn. And within 2 cells of their mother, spawnlings hit 30% harder.

The cells next to an egg form the Nest: a hero who ends their turn there is mired and loses 2 MP on the next one. Break the egg and the nest disappears with it. Another trap: a spawnling left alive is a 300 HP heal for her when she devours it.

The geysers: the heroes' weapon

She has one weakness, her own scenery. From her second turn, then every other turn, two geysers start to bubble: their nine cells pulse green. On the Matriarch's next turn, they erupt: 140 to 170 damage to everything standing there, your heroes, her eggs, her spawnlings... and her, who takes 50% extra damage, the acid eating into her chitin.

The good idea is to lead the Matriarch to where the acid is about to erupt, and not be there yourself. Geyser damage to the Matriarch counts for the ranking.

Her stages

When her HP drops below 66%, then below 33%, she moves up a stage and roars: all your heroes are pushed back 2 cells.

Keep your big spells for the start of a stage, when she has just been pushed away from you, and do not rush to finish her: the Starving Queen is the most dangerous stage, not the easiest.

Beating her solo, in a pair or in a trio

• Solo: eggs have only 60 HP and spawnlings 110, so one spell often breaks an egg. Her Claw never hits the same hero twice in a turn, so alone you only take one. Stay mobile and draw her towards a bubbling geyser.
• In a pair: her two Claws each find a target. Share the work: one breaks the eggs and keeps the spawnlings away, the other keeps her busy and leads her to the geysers.
• In a trio: eggs at 80 HP and spawnlings at 170 HP, the brood becomes a real threat. Spread out against the Leap and the Spit, and always keep one hero free for the eggs.

One tip per class

• Warrior: Cuirass reduces all damage taken by 16%, and Anchor stops you being moved, even by her landing. Taunt, cast in a straight line, pulls her to you: pick a cell at the edge of a bubbling geyser.
• Brute: Quake pulls everything in its 2-cell cross towards the centre, which can drag her into the acid. Stomp hits everything within 2 cells, eggs included.
• Arcanist: Blast and Comet hit several targets at once, so several eggs. Blink (2 AP) takes you out of the Nest without spending MP.
• Shade: Creeping venom eats at her for 2 turns, and Quick dagger hits 35% harder on a poisoned target. Lay your traps on the spawnlings' path.
• Clockmaker: Reversal throws her to the other side of you, at the same distance: stand between her and a geyser.
• Artificer: Shove pushes her 3 cells, straight into the acid, or brings her closer to a geyser.

The mistakes that cost the most

1. Letting the eggs hatch. Every ignored egg becomes a spawnling that bites, parasites and feeds its mother.
2. Ending your turn in the Nest: 2 MP less, often the turn she catches you.
3. Crossing a pool: walking through it is enough to be poisoned for three turns.
4. Standing on a bubbling geyser.
5. Attacking under Molt. Break an egg instead, and keep the big hit for the next turn.

Playing against her

The free boss is played against the Matriarch from 12 October, solo, in a duo or in a trio: the best way to learn her timings without spending anything. There is also a paid version of the weekly boss, with its own ranking and prize pool, reserved for accounts linked to a wallet, with an entry of 0.50 USDC per player per fight; its full rules are on the Loot page.

In the Solwaris menu, switch the selector to PvE, choose Solo, Duo or Trio, and start the fight. Answers to the most common questions are in the Matriarch guide.