History Main / CowardlyBoss

* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''PokemonGoldAndSilver'', Latios/Latias in ''PokemonRubyAndSapphire'', and Mesprit and Cresselia in ''PokemonDiamondAndPearl'', Unless you have a Pokemon that knows a move like Mean Look to prevent it.

* The Master Stalfos of the fifth dungeon in ''LegendOfZelda: Link's Awakening''.

* Skull Kid in ''{{Legend of Zelda}}: TwilightPrincess''. Although, in this case, he was actually trying to lead you somewhere.

* The ''MegaManX'' RPG ''Command Mission'' gives us the [[FatBastard rotund]], [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder untrustworthy]], [[TheStarscream power-hungry would-be traitor]] Botos. He tries to attack X and crew, goes down like a chump, then runs for the hills a good couple of times, forcing you to waste time and energy chasing him down. Frustratingly, the game doesn't even let the player actually beat him properly. [[spoiler: That's because someone takes the liberty of [[OffWithHisHead relieving Botos of his head]] before you get to him.]]

* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''PokemonGoldAndSilver'', Latios/Latias in ''PokemonRubyAndSapphire'', and Mesprit and Cresselia in ''PokemonDiamondAndPearl''.

* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''[=~Pokémon Gold and Silver~=]'', Latios/Latias in ''[=~Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire~=]'', and Mesprit and Cresselia in ''[=~Pokémon Diamond and Pearl~=]''.

** ''[=~Pokémon Black And White~=]'' gives us Tornadus and Thundurus. Unlike the rest, you can use the weather to determine their whereabouts. If it's raining like mad in your area, get your Repels and Master Ball ready...

* Not really a boss (like many other things on this page), but a really strong enemy. The Amazee Dayzee in ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' (all 3, even though one is InNameOnly) will run away as soon as it can. Made worse by the fact that it's super rare, and in the first game, it's the only thing that will give you exp at high levels (aside from Dry Bones, but those only yield Star Points if you [[KillItWithFire burn them to ashes]].) In Super Paper Mario, it'll even jump into bottomless pits to escape you.

* The Hulking Lungfish in ''{{Psychonauts}}'' is fought in four sections; in between those sections, it runs away from you, pulling its underwater air-bubble along with it. Raz [[SuperDrowningSkills isn't such a strong swimmer]], so you have to chase her while [[AdvancingWallOfDoom staying within the bubble.]] [[ThatOneBoss Guess which part of the boss is more difficult?]]

<<|BossBattle|>>

* Koji Shindo in ''Yakuza 2'' (''RyuGaGotoku'' 2) uses a katana in order to fight you, but runs after taking set amounts of damage. You eventually corner him in a Japanese courtyard, where Yayoi throws you a sword for the BladeLock duel to the finish.

* Popple in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'' runs away if you defeat his partner first.

* Not really a boss (like many other things on this page), but a really strong enemy. The Amazee Dazee in ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' (all 3, even though one is InNameOnly) will run away as soon as it can. Made worse by the fact that it's super rare, and in the first game, it's the only thing that will give you exp at high levels (aside from Dry Bones, but those only yield Star Points if you [[KillItWithFire burn them to ashes]].) In Super Paper Mario, it'll even jump into bottomless pits to escape you.

* The ''Lego Star Wars/Indiana Jones/Batman'' games feature lots of examples of this. Expect to do some mild platforming or puzzle solving in between each hit on a boss.

* In the NES version of ''Jaws'', the titular shark will sometimes disappear after you wound it forcing you to track it down again. Often, it will have healed forcing you to start over before getting to the actual attempt to kill it. Possibly a [[SubvertedTrope subversion]] since the shark doesn't run away as much as the timer for attacking expires.

* Most boss monsters in the ''MonsterHunter'' series will either run, dig, swim or fly to another area after you've damaged them enough, and to finish the job you'll have to find them again. Marking them with a paintball, paint shot or paint-coated arrow will save you a lot of time figuring out exactly where they flee to.

* Asdrubael Vect in ''DawnOfWar: Soulstorm'' when assaulting the Dark Eldar stronghold. He often attempts to solo your base within his [[strike:Pimpmobile]] Dais of Destruction, but when taken fairly minor damage he will scream to be taken back for repairs and repeat the process. The player can potentially tech up enough so that the next time he pays a visit you can unleash your own wave of destruction and hopefully blow him up before he returns to the base, thereby defeating the Dark Eldar for good.

* Skull Kid in ''{{Legend of Zelda}}: [[LegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]''. Although, in this case, he was actually trying to lead you somewhere.

* The Stonecore, one of the new 5-man instances in ''[[WorldOfWarcraft WoW: Cataclysm]]'', has a gnome that is this and a BaitAndSwitchBoss. You find him at the beginning of the instance with a group of mooks, and when he takes some damage he flees to another group of mooks further in. Repeat twice more, and he finally takes a stand with a huge crowd of mooks and begins charging his ultimate spell of doom... when a gigantic gyreworm smashes through the cavern wall, wiping out the gnome and his backup in one fell swoop.

!!'''Examples:'''

* Ultimate Weapon in ''FinalFantasyVII''.
* Doom Gaze in ''FinalFantasyVI'' and his cameo in ''FinalFantasyIVTheAfterYears''.
** Kefka is one of these early in the game, when he's just a funny clown. Later on, it's the protagonists who run from him.
* The Jumbo Cactar in ''FinalFantasyVIII''. This rather annoying boss has a ton of HP and can kill a character in one shot regardless of stats. After a certain point, it thinks about running away. If it does, you have to do the whole fight from the beginning.
* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''[=~Pokémon Gold and Silver~=]'', Latios/Latias in ''[=~Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire~=]'', and Mesprit and Cresselia in ''[=~Pokémon Diamond and Pearl~=]''.
** And in Platinum, Mesprit, Cresselia, ''and'' the Legendary birds, Moltres, Articuno, and Zapdos, all fit this trope.
** ''[=~Pokémon Black And White~=]'' gives us Tornadus and Thundurus. Unlike the rest, you can use the weather to determine their whereabouts. If it's raining like mad in your area, get your Repels and Master Ball ready...
** They aren't bosses, but in ''PokemonMysteryDungeon'', Pokemon with the ability 'Run Away' will flee if they're hurt too much. (Even your own Pokemon do this, unless they're the head of the party.)
* In ''CityOfHeroes'', some bosses (or at least mission notables) are programmed to run after hitting a certain health threshold, and you're supposed to stop them from running. If they escape (i.e. zone out of the map), you fail the mission, so there's no rematch.
* The most cowardly boss ''ever'' is the penultimate Golem-style boss from ''Lylat Wars'' (VideoGame/StarFox 64) on the easy route. He runs away from you constantly, fleeing down an endless corridor, never attacking you in any way. But he conjures pillars out of the walls and floors which you have to avoid - flying your Arwing in to them really hurts. He makes a comeback in ''Command'', along with smaller forms that pretty much act the same.
* Jerry Ying from ''Stranglehold'', in keeping with his DirtyCoward persona after [[spoiler: killing Billie]] at the Chicago History Museum, runs off after losing only a quarter of his health in his first major clash with you and yelling "This isn't over yet, Tequila!" You then have to kill your way through a good number of more mooks before finally cornering him in the stage's final showdown.

* Darth Malak in ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' does this -- ''twice''.
** Then there's the final boss fight, when every time you do a certain amount of damage to him, he runs off and sucks a Jedi captive's life energy out, completely healing himself. You can't attack him while he's running, but you ''can'' either kill the Jedi, allowing them to become one with the Force (they're basically dead anyway,) or suck their life out yourself.
* Popple in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]'' runs away if you defeat his partner first.

* Asdrubael Vect in ''DawnOfWar: Soulstorm'' when assaulting the Dark Eldar stronghold. He often attempts to solo your base within his [[strike:Pimpmobile]] Dais of Destruction, but when taken fairly minor damage he will scream to be taken back for repairs and repeat the process. The player can potentially tech up enough so that the next time he pays a visit you can unleash your own wave of destruction and hopefully blow him up before he returns to the base, thereby defeating the Dark Eldar for good.
** Sometimes he gets stuck between his own units horrible pathfinding and the side of a cliff.
** And then there's things like the Tau Barracuda, which are pretty good hunters.

* The second part of the boss fight with the giant possessed tree in ''Drawn To Life'' consists entirely of trying to track down a small, shadowy lizard thing that leaps erratically between the platforms of the area so you can shoot him. He dies in three hits and doesn't even try to attack; however, he is exceptionally annoying to keep track of and there are bunches shadowy tentacles scattered about the area that lash out at you if you get too close.
* The fight with Dr. Mueller in Splatterhouse 2 is of this kind. He dies in one hit, but you got to chase him down his lab while he runs away throwing at you potassium bombs and [[InvincibleMinorMinion Invincible Minor Minions]] and trying to avoid some explosive traps.
* Not exactly a boss, but the ??? (yes, that's its name) from ''DungeonSiege 2''.
* ''{{WWE}} [=SmackDown=] vs. Raw 2009'''s Road to [=WrestleMania=] mode actually has one of these - in Chris Jericho's story mode, he is being harassed by a masked man who will repeatedly escape by some way or another every time Jericho has the chance to get his hands on him he escapes. Depending on what choice you make at a crucial point, you either [[spoiler: eventually attack him and reveal him as Randy Orton]] or [[spoiler: never fight him.]]
* The Hulking Lungfish in ''{{Psychonauts}}'' is fought in four sections; in between those sections, it runs away from you, pulling its underwater air-bubble along with it. Raz [[SuperDrowningSkills isn't such a strong swimmer]], so you have to chase her while [[AdvancingWallOfDoom staying within the bubble.]] [[ThatOneBoss Guess which part of the boss is more difficult?]]
* Koji Shindo in ''Yakuza 2'' (''RyuGaGotoku'' 2) uses a katana in order to fight you, but runs after taking set amounts of damage. You eventually corner him in a Japanese courtyard, where Yayoi throws you a sword for the BladeLock duel to the finish.
* Dr. Nefarious in ''RatchetAndClankUpYourArsenal'' combines this with ISurrenderSuckers.
* The Greenbottle Fly in ''BreathOfFire 2'' is a minor example: you only fight him twice, but in between, he leads you on a chase through two boss fights and a minefield of enemies.
* Ozzie from Chrono Trigger runs across the bridge, then animates the dead bodies into a giant skeleton to stall you. Then later in Magus' castle, he only confronts you in the second-to-last room, meaning you've defeated literally everything in Magus Castle except for Ozzie and Magus. And then Ozzie casts an impenetrable barrier on himself.

* Skull Kid in ''{{Legend of Zelda}}: Twilight Princess''. Although, in this case, he was actually trying to lead you somewhere.
* Not really a boss (like many other things on this page), but a really strong enemy. The Amazee Dazee in VideoGame/PaperMario (all 3, even though one is InNameOnly) will run away as soon as it can. Made worse by the fact that it's super rare, and in the first game, it's the only thing that will give you exp at high levels (aside from Dry Bones, but those only yield Star Points if you [[KillItWithFire burn them to ashes]].) In Super Paper Mario, it'll even jump into bottomless pits to escape you.

* The Ghostring in Ragnarok Online can pack quite a wallop. However and rather frustratingly for players, when its hitpoints drop below a certain threshold, it'll spam teleports and move randomly around the map in an attempt to avoid the player (to be precise: 50% chance of teleporting every time it attacks).
* In the NES version of ''Jaws'', the titular shark will sometimes disappear after you wound it forcing you to track it down again. Often, it will have healed forcing you to start over before getting to the actual attempt to kill it. Possibly a [[SubvertedTrope subversion]] since the shark doesn't run away as much as the timer for attacking expires.
* The Stonecore, one of the new 5-man instances in WoW: ''Cataclysm'', has a gnome that is this and a BaitAndSwitchBoss. You find him at the beginning of the instance with a group of mooks, and when he takes some damage he flees to another group of mooks further in. Repeat twice more, and he finally takes a stand with a huge crowd of mooks and begins charging his ultimate spell of doom... when a gigantic gyreworm smashes through the cavern wall, wiping out the gnome and his backup in one fell swoop.

<<|BossBattle|>>

* Popple in ''MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga'' runs away if you defeat his partner first.

* The most cowardly boss ''ever'' is the penultimate Golem-style boss from ''Lylat Wars'' (StarFox 64) on the easy route. He runs away from you constantly, fleeing down an endless corridor, never attacking you in any way. But he conjures pillars out of the walls and floors which you have to avoid - flying your Arwing in to them really hurts. He makes a comeback in ''Command'', along with smaller forms that pretty much act the same.

* Dr. Nefarious in ''RatchetAndClank: Up Your Arsenal'' combines this with ISurrenderSuckers.

* Not really a boss (like many other things on this page), but a really strong enemy. The Amazee Dazee in PaperMario (all 3, even though one is InNameOnly) will run away as soon as it can. Made worse by the fact that it's super rare, and in the first game, it's the only thing that will give you exp at high levels (aside from Dry Bones, but those only yield Star Points if you [[KillItWithFire burn them to ashes]].) In Super Paper Mario, it'll even jump into bottomless pits to escape you.

** ''[=~PokémonBlackAndWhite~=]'' gives us Tornadus and Thundurus. Unlike the rest, you can use the weather to determine their whereabouts. If it's raining like mad in your area, get your Repels and Master Ball ready...

Examples:

Compare the RecurringBoss, who [[VillainExitStageLeft runs as a matter]] [[GameplayAndStorySegregation of the storyline]].

* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''[=~Pokémon Gold and Silver~=]'', Latios/Latias in''[=~Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire~=]'', and Mesprit and Cresselia in ''[=~Pokémon Diamond and Pearl~=]''.

* The Legendary Dogs/Cats/[[FanWank Gerbils]] in ''{{Pokemon}} Gold and Silver'', Latios/Latias in Sapphire and Ruby, and Mesprit and Cresselia in Diamond and Pearl.

** They aren't bosses, but in ''{{Pokemon}} Mystery Dungeon'', Pokemon with the ability 'Run Away' will flee if they're hurt too much. (Even your own Pokemon do this, unless they're the head of the party.)

** Then there's the final boss fight when, every time you do a certain amount of damage to him, he runs off and sucks a Jedi captive's life energy out, completely healing himself. You can't attack him while he's running, but you ''can'' either kill the Jedi, allowing them to become one with the Force (they're basically dead anyway) or suck their life out yourself.

* Ozzie from Chrono Trigger runs across the bridge, then animates the dead bodies into a giant skeleton to stall you. Then later in Magus' castle, he only confronts you in the second-to-last room, meaning you've defeated literally, everything in Magus Castle except for Ozzie and Magus. And then Ozzie casts an impenetrable barrier on himself.

* Not really a boss (like many other things on this page), but a really strong enemy. The Amazee Dazee in PaperMario (all 3, even though one is InNameOnly) will run away as soon as it can. Made worse by the fact that it's super rare and is the only thing that will give you exp at high levels. In Super Paper Mario it'll even jump into bottomless pits to escape you.

* Asdrubael Vect in ''DawnOfWar'' when assaulting the Dark Eldar stronghold. He often attempts to solo your base within his [[strike:Pimpmobile]] Dais of Destruction, but when taken fairly minor damage he will scream to be taken back for repairs and repeat the process. The player can potentially tech up enough so that the next time he pays a visit you can unleash your own wave of destruction and hopefully blow him up before he returns to the base and officially beating the Dark Eldars.