Crusher and the Saw: How to Beat Phantom Blade Zero Boss

Who Are the Crusher and the Saw?

Rock Paper Shotgun’s boss index places the Crusher and the Saw at number 58 of 61 — the first of the endgame gauntlet on Mount Soulrend, the final region before the point of no return. KeenGamer’s roster and PowerPyx both confirm the pairing is mandatory, and you actually meet the duo twice: an earlier run-in during the Crimson Forest storyline, then the real duel in The Giant’s Lair. The Saw is a Shadow Warden of the Order — the Bonesaw’s own item card confirms the weapon “was once wielded by the Saw” — while the Crusher is a chained giant hauling a cracked red iron ball, pale and massively muscled, per AllThingsHow’s fight footage.

Where to Find Them: The Giant’s Lair

Rest at The Giant’s Lair Bell — a bell post with red candles in the snow, roughly 40 meters above the arena — then drop down to the frozen lake ringed by icicles and ice pillars. Step onto the ice and the first health bar appears: “The Crusher and the Saw,” logged at 185,100 HP on AllThingsHow’s Pathbreaker reference. The Phantom Blade Atlas guidebook adds the traversal detail: past the broken bridge, slide down the long wall, then head right across the ice to reach the cavern.

Phase One: Divide and Conquer the Duo

The opening phase is a two-enemy fight, and the community-tested answer is focus, not fairness. Phantom Blade Atlas recommends locking on to the Saw — the smaller, faster threat — while keeping enough distance from the Crusher to read his giant, slow swings. Two pressure points define the phase:

• Poison stacks. The duo’s long-range and poison attacks turn the fight into a war of attrition. Bring antidotes or poison resistance; if the bar fills during a long attempt, the chip damage compounds fast.
• Guard-break offense. Multiple players recommend concentrating damage on the Crusher’s smaller leg and leaning on high Guard-Break weapons to open punish windows. When the Crusher commits to a ball slam, expect a 2–3 second snow cloud that obscures follow-ups — hold position at the edge of it rather than charging in blind.

Patience wins this phase. Let the Saw come to you, sidestep the Crusher’s telegraphs, and never spend healing flasks reactively — the phase two checkpoint means everything you carry matters.

Phase Two: The Crusher, Earthshattering Form

From roughly the halfway mark of recorded clears, the name bar changes to “The Crusher, Earthshattering Form” — the same fighter reborn as a dark armored figure with a long braid, still swinging the red iron ball on its chain (per Phantom Blade Atlas’ capture and PowerPyx footage). His health pool jumps substantially, and his strings get nastier: the key read is the hammer swing into a leaping spin red-flash attack. Red flashes cannot be parried — Ghoststep it with a perfect dodge, then punish the landing. There is a checkpoint between phases, so a phase-two death only costs you the rematch, not the duo.

Rewards: Bonesaw and the Baishan Headband Condition

The loot screen is where this fight hides its trap. The Bonesaw is guaranteed — a two-handed main weapon (312 damage / 142 Guard Break per IGN) whose Bloodsaw gauge at weapon level 15 adds Bleed buildup to your attacks for 15 seconds. Its Savage Finale Power Surge is unblockable and deals bonus damage to Guard-Broken enemies, making it a natural follow-up to phase one’s guard-break strategy. Full arts in our Bonesaw guide.

The Baishan Headband is conditional: per KeenGamer and Phantom Blade Atlas, it only drops if you finished the Cui side tale first. Maxroll’s walkthrough shows why — Cui’s parents wait at a camp on the Soulrend Cliffs ascent, and their storyline concludes in this region. Finish the Cui quest before ringing the Giant’s Lair Bell, or you forfeit the headband until your next cycle. It is a Soul Tempering material, so route it into your Soul Tempering material plan immediately.

Saw It Through: The Silver Trophy

Defeating the duo pops Saw It Through — “Defeat the Saw and the Crusher,” a Silver trophy per PowerPyx and PlayStationTrophies.org (PS5 display name: Case Closed). It is story-bound and unmissable, one of the 17 boss-kill trophies counted in our trophy guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which phase is harder, the duo or Earthshattering Form?

Community clears split the difference: the duo tests target discipline and poison management, while Earthshattering Form tests dodge precision against red-flash chains. Most deaths come from phase one greed — splitting damage between two health bars.

Is Bonesaw worth using after this fight?

Yes for bleed builds. Prey on the Mighty charges the Bloodsaw Gauge faster against boss-level enemies, and Savage Finale rewards the guard-break playstyle the fight itself teaches. See Jagged Steel for a lighter bleed alternative.

What should I do before this fight on Mount Soulrend?

Clear Cui’s tale, restock antidotes, spend pending Soul Tempering materials, and consider the difficulty slider if you are stuck — it can be changed at any time. The full regional checklist is in our Mount Soulrend walkthrough.

Sources: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/phantom-blade-zero-bosses-order (boss #58, The Giant’s Lair Bell, phase name, reward list) — https://www.keengamer.com/articles/guides/phantom-blade-zero-all-bosses-and-their-rewards (#59, two phases, Bonesaw, Baishan Headband gated behind Cui tale, Saw It Through Silver) — https://www.powerpyx.com/phantom-blade-zero-trophy-guide-roadmap/ (Saw It Through condition) — https://phantomblade.guide/bosses/the-crusher-and-the-saw/ (name bar order, Earthshattering Form capture) — https://phantombladeatlas.com/zh/bosses/saw-and-crusher/ (lock-on strategy, poison, checkpoint, location) — https://allthings.how/phantom-blade-zero-crusher-and-the-saw-boss-fight/ (arena, HP, snow cloud, memory flower) — https://allthings.how/phantom-blade-zero-bonesaw (arts, Bloodsaw) — https://insiderdownloads.ign.com/wikis/phantom-blade-zero/Weapons (Bonesaw stats) — https://www.playstationtrophies.org/game/phantom-blade-0/trophy/saw-it-through.html (trophy rank) — https://maxroll.gg/phantom-blade-zero/walkthrough/soulrend-cliffs-walkthrough (Cui’s parents camp, reward list) — October–November 2026.