How to Beat Shrieker (Cockatrice)
Boss: Shrieker (Cockatrice)
The Shrieker acts in an almost identical way to the Griffin that we fought in White orchard and as such the tactics remain essentially the same. Although it has wings, for the most part it will attack from the ground and has quite a large area of attack due to its wings being able to perform sweeping moves. The Cockatrice can also jump in the air and dive bomb your position and use a nasty lunge attack, which you can roll under if timed correctly. Any attack that it hits Geralt with has the chance to cause a damage over time bleeding effect.
The easiest way to take it down quickly is to hit it with crossbow bolts or AARD whilst it is flying to bring it crashing to the ground – run up and smash it a few times and then use your dodges and rolls to avoid its ground-based attacks whilst dishing out your own attacks when you see an opening. Repeat this process until it hits the dust.