I logged 20+ hours on this game since it came out; I love it. I almost feel like it's easier than Demon's Souls, but maybe I'm just more prepared for what I've signed up for this time.
I'm sort of spinning my wheels against the Taurus Demon. I've done the lead up through the undeadburg about ten times now getting a little tired of those particular fights over and over again, lol. I don't have a ps3, so I never got a chance to try Demon's Souls. As a result, I'm probably a little behind the curve compared to other players. Other than being stuck, I'm loving the game but I haven't had time to play it in about a week.
I found that you can defeat the Taurus demon without much fuss if you immediately take out the archers before he appears. Then after he spawns in, immediately run to the ladder and climb up. Wait until he's under you, then give him a plunging attack (but don't wait too long or he'll jump up with you). Then you run for the opposite tower to draw him off, run back to the ladder and repeat. Fire bombs are also helpful against him if you don't want to do the tower thing.
Finally beat him. I hadn't had the chance to play in a while, but it still took me around 10 or so tries, which is a lot considering the run up to him after the bonfire. So I decided to give it another try last night and do things a little differently. I realized that using a shield on him is useless so I put it away and used two hands for the axe. Killed him in three hits with the tower/ plunging attack thing. Hurrah! Then I was swiftly burned to death by a dragon.
Oh Dark Souls..
I love this game. I'm level 125 and I'm basically just farming for materials to upgrade weapons before heading into the Kiln and finishing the game up.
Some advice on the game, to help with the difficulty;
Iron Skin is your friend if you're a melee build. The dragon bridge bit is rough you want to lure him into breathing once to clear the bridge, then you need to get your equip weight down so you can RUN across to the halfway point and hang a right down into a chamber under the bridge. you'll want to find and kick the ladder down into the bonfire area before progressing. Take the time to get a bow and farm arrows - you'll want to shoot the tail off the red dragon from the area beneath the bridge so you can get the special sword from it's severed tail - you'll do crazy damage with it and it helps with the early parts of the game.
Great game. Presently at the last boss (been for a while). But did'nt really want to go fight him until I had bought / got everything from the NPCs, gotten every weapon and improved the stuff I use to the max, including a weapon of each Lightning, Fire, and Divine (and maybe occult too).
Anyhow, Nathan's tips are spot on. Just realize the Drake Sword you get from there is a crutch for the early parts of the game. As soon as you can (which is shortly after) you should work on mastering and improving another weapon of your choice. The Drake Sword is NOT worth improving.
My personnal favorite was the Black Knight Sword I got from the first Black Knight (I was lucky as it is a rare drop). Learned it's swing pattern/timing, got it to +5 as soon as I could, and everything became much easier.
Also, decide on a build (either Str, Dex, Int or Faith) and try to stick to it. If you don't know what to increase, put points in END, it's the most important stat in the game (tough a bit less for casters). RES is useless. Do not touch it.
Awesome, thanks for the tips! I did get by the dragon and got the drake sword last night. I'm one point away from having enough strength to use it, but I should have that taken care of shortly.
I started off with the scimitar (wanderer) and was getting pretty good with it, but it broke and I haven't been able to find a new one. Is it worth it to try to upgrade mundane weapons or should I wait until I get something like the black knight sword and try to upgrade/ learn that?
Edit: Also, what is Iron Skin?
Great game. Presently at the last boss (been for a while). But did'nt really want to go fight him until I had bought / got everything from the NPCs, gotten every weapon and improved the stuff I use to the max, including a weapon of each Lightning, Fire, and Divine (and maybe occult too).
Anyhow, Nathan's tips are spot on. Just realize the Drake Sword you get from there is a crutch for the early parts of the game. As soon as you can (which is shortly after) you should work on mastering and improving another weapon of your choice. The Drake Sword is NOT worth improving.
My personnal favorite was the Black Knight Sword I got from the first Black Knight (I was lucky as it is a rare drop). Learned it's swing pattern/timing, got it to +5 as soon as I could, and everything became much easier.
Also, decide on a build (either Str, Dex, Int or Faith) and try to stick to it. If you don't know what to increase, put points in END, it's the most important stat in the game (tough a bit less for casters). RES is useless. Do not touch it.
All of that is good advice. Lightning Weapons are great if you're not going for a weapon that scales off a stat (they're damned good even IF you're scaling to a particular stat).
You shouldn't raise END more then 40 (that's when you stop getting stamina increases).
What is your build? Maybe we could direct you to better gear and equipment - the game is really deep and can be overwhelming at first. I've never been fortunate enough to get a Black Knight Sword (curses!) but Lightning Zweihander is kind of easy mode.
Currently I'm working on a Melisandre (Game of Thrones) Pyro/Faith build.
Awesome, thanks for the tips! I did get by the dragon and got the drake sword last night. I'm one point away from having enough strength to use it, but I should have that taken care of shortly.
I started off with the scimitar (wanderer) and was getting pretty good with it, but it broke and I haven't been able to find a new one. Is it worth it to try to upgrade mundane weapons or should I wait until I get something like the black knight sword and try to upgrade/ learn that?
Edit: Also, what is Iron Skin?
Upgrading weapons isn't a waste if you find one you like - higher level weapons are largely a matter of taste.
There is a smith not too much farther on that can repair your stuff - the undead merchant in the burg might be able to sell you a repair kit as well.
You know that if you two-hand a weapon you're strength is considered 50% higher, right? Just avoid using the hard hit with the drake sword 2 handed - it's really cool (sends out a shockwave for big damage) but it DESTROYS the weapons durability.
I actually just started over with another knight after getting stuck on Ornstein and Smough in Anor Londo. Also decided not to go for the drake sword in the early going on this playthrough- the early sections are a lot more challenging without it.
Well, I started off with a high dex build (at 17 if I recall) so I was rolling around a lot and getting quick hits in with my scimitar. Unfortunately, that broke and I've only gotten battle axes and long swords as drops, so I've sorta had to alter the style I was using. I still move around and roll a lot, but I rely much more on my shield, looking for openings and getting heavy attacks in.
You can get your scimitar fixed if you really like it; later in the undead parish area there's a smith at the bottom of a tower- there's also the repair powder from the merchant in Undead Burg, but it's too expensive. With a high dex, I would definitely recommend getting a spear to use with your shield- you can keep your guard up and still attack! The hit box is pretty small but with lock-on it's not a big problem.
Getting a spear can be easy if you fight the spear-wielding undead soldiers. Playing in human form also helps with the drops, as does holding a lot of humanity on your character instead of in items. It's risky, but you'll notice a lot more drops.
EDIT: I also forgot the very first blacksmith that you can access from the first bonfire in Firelink. Just head all the way down the stairs next to the depressed guy in chainmail. In the New Londo ruins, you take the staircase down next to the lounging undead guy and talk to the guy behind the bars- Rickert of Vinheim. If you talk to him twice, he'll repair and modify stuff for you as well as sell you a catalyst and spells.
Wow, attacking and keeping guard up seems pretty cool. I'll have to check out the blacksmith near the firelink place, I didn't explore that area much when I was there. When you say spear-wielding undead soldiers, do you mean the hollow guys? I've fought a ton of them and haven't goten a spear yet. Then again, I've been in undead form the entire time, so maybe I'm not getting good drops.
So, do you all play online? I've been online this whole time but haven't taken human form because I feel like I would get really annoyed if I get creamed by an invader when I'm trying to accomplish something. Is playing offline much different?
I actually just started over with another knight after getting stuck on Ornstein and Smough in Anor Londo. Also decided not to go for the drake sword in the early going on this playthrough- the early sections are a lot more challenging without it.
Yeah that fight's a killer. I solo'd it but it took me 20-30 attempts.
The trick is to kill Ornstein first, then get Smough caught on the other side of a column. Once he's there you move up enough so he tries to hit you, then back off. Run in and hit him with the lightning spear from Sen's a time or two. Rinse, repeat, que final fantasy victory fanfare.
(not as easy as it sounds, I know).
Wow, attacking and keeping guard up seems pretty cool. I'll have to check out the blacksmith near the firelink place, I didn't explore that area much when I was there. When you say spear-wielding undead soldiers, do you mean the hollow guys? I've fought a ton of them and haven't goten a spear yet. Then again, I've been in undead form the entire time, so maybe I'm not getting good drops.
So, do you all play online? I've been online this whole time but haven't taken human form because I feel like I would get really annoyed if I get creamed by an invader when I'm trying to accomplish something. Is playing offline much different?
Online play is relatively safe depending on the location. I play online. Maybe we should all exchange PSN's and try to meet up....I hear that the multiplayer can be really difficult to get set up in a coordinated manner (at least my membership in the Dark Souls PVP facebook group tells me that) but I'd be happy to try.
Wow, attacking and keeping guard up seems pretty cool. I'll have to check out the blacksmith near the firelink place, I didn't explore that area much when I was there. When you say spear-wielding undead soldiers, do you mean the hollow guys? I've fought a ton of them and haven't goten a spear yet. Then again, I've been in undead form the entire time, so maybe I'm not getting good drops.
So, do you all play online? I've been online this whole time but haven't taken human form because I feel like I would get really annoyed if I get creamed by an invader when I'm trying to accomplish something. Is playing offline much different?
You can also do that with the Estoc sword- I think you even find one in the New Londo ruins near the blacksmith, too. Just don't go too far into the area itself- full of ghosts.
I play online and I've never been invaded- though, granted, I've been in the Way of White covenant. Hints left by other players can be pretty helpful, especially the first time through. I've never brought another player in to help out, either. If you're playing offline in human form, you can occasionally summon Solaire of Astora the sun knight and other characters to help you out in some boss fights. The gargoyle fight in particular is where he's helpful. Sometimes you'll have "scripted invasions" in certain areas of the game if you're in human form whether you're online or not- a black phantom NPC will spawn in to attack you but you can often get a unique item from them.
To play online with no chance of invasion, join the Way of White covenant that Petrus of Thorolund offers (the fat cleric in Firelink- just talk to him a few times until he'll teach you miracles). Hostile players won't see your name and if you wanted to help other people out, it makes doing that easier.
I actually just started over with another knight after getting stuck on Ornstein and Smough in Anor Londo. Also decided not to go for the drake sword in the early going on this playthrough- the early sections are a lot more challenging without it.Yeah that fight's a killer. I solo'd it but it took me 20-30 attempts.
The trick is to kill Ornstein first, then get Smough caught on the other side of a column. Once he's there you move up enough so he tries to hit you, then back off. Run in and hit him with the lightning spear from Sen's a time or two. Rinse, repeat, que final fantasy victory fanfare.
(not as easy as it sounds, I know).
I've seen a lot of good strategies for this fight, but I still find it pretty difficult. I think they're both weak to fire and poison, too, but I built my character for heavy armor and weapons so I don't have much pyromancy and I haven't bought special arrows. Plus, killing Ornstein last will (in my opinion) give you the better weapon to purchase later. Thanks for the tip, I'm sure I'll get him at some point; I'm also just enjoying going back to the beginning and trying again without the drake sword or ring of divine favor.
Definitely will do the Way of White covenant thing. Are the fat cleric and the depressed guy in chain mail the same person?
Alas, I've got a 360 and no PS3, so no PSN exchanging for me.
Thanks for all these tips, BTW. I wish I were home playing instead of at stupid work!
I've seen a lot of good strategies for this fight, but I still find it pretty difficult. I think they're both weak to fire and poison, too, but I built my character for heavy armor and weapons so I don't have much pyromancy and I haven't bought special arrows. Plus, killing Ornstein last will (in my opinion) give you the better weapon to purchase later. Thanks for the tip, I'm sure I'll get him at some point; I'm also just enjoying going back to the beginning and trying again without the drake sword or ring of divine favor.I actually just started over with another knight after getting stuck on Ornstein and Smough in Anor Londo. Also decided not to go for the drake sword in the early going on this playthrough- the early sections are a lot more challenging without it.Yeah that fight's a killer. I solo'd it but it took me 20-30 attempts.
The trick is to kill Ornstein first, then get Smough caught on the other side of a column. Once he's there you move up enough so he tries to hit you, then back off. Run in and hit him with the lightning spear from Sen's a time or two. Rinse, repeat, que final fantasy victory fanfare.
(not as easy as it sounds, I know).
Absolutely valid. I didn't have the drake sword on my first character - I ended up snagging the zweihander and using that instead. I'm really enjoying my faith build right now - lots of cool stuff you can do with it. I've actually really been regretting that I got the hammer instead of the lance, for the record.
You got Havel's ring, right? Makes life SO much better for the tank-y types.
The cleric is in the ruined building with all the urns behind the firelink bonfire- he's got a red and blue shield.
I've seen a lot of good strategies for this fight, but I still find it pretty difficult. I think they're both weak to fire and poison, too, but I built my character for heavy armor and weapons so I don't have much pyromancy and I haven't bought special arrows. Plus, killing Ornstein last will (in my opinion) give you the better weapon to purchase later. Thanks for the tip, I'm sure I'll get him at some point; I'm also just enjoying going back to the beginning and trying again without the drake sword or ring of divine favor.I actually just started over with another knight after getting stuck on Ornstein and Smough in Anor Londo. Also decided not to go for the drake sword in the early going on this playthrough- the early sections are a lot more challenging without it.Yeah that fight's a killer. I solo'd it but it took me 20-30 attempts.
The trick is to kill Ornstein first, then get Smough caught on the other side of a column. Once he's there you move up enough so he tries to hit you, then back off. Run in and hit him with the lightning spear from Sen's a time or two. Rinse, repeat, que final fantasy victory fanfare.
(not as easy as it sounds, I know).
Absolutely valid. I didn't have the drake sword on my first character - I ended up snagging the zweihander and using that instead. I'm really enjoying my faith build right now - lots of cool stuff you can do with it. I've actually really been regretting that I got the hammer instead of the lance, for the record.
You got Havel's ring, right? Makes life SO much better for the tank-y types.
Yeah, it really helps. I tend to switch between the black iron set and the black and gold ringwraith set for more maneuvering and higher resistances.
The cleric is in the ruined building with all the urns behind the firelink bonfire- he's got a red and blue shield.
That question was more to point out your awesomely colorful descriptions, but I'm glad you answered anyway. :-)
Ah, okay. Yeah, these guys aren't really your friends anyway. Why bother learning their names?
Also playing this game, and loving it (and hating at the same time). Currently getting beaten up by ghosts in New Londo, damn those wraiths are some cowardly gits...
When I started, I was told it might be best to go for lots of armor and such, but comparing the Pyromancer I am using now to the knight and bandit I have in Blighttown and Anor Lando, it's insanely tougher to not have fire spells to lean back on. I tried to melee the whole Ornstein and Smough encounter for example, hot damn...
The scariest thing about the game however is that I now mutter a small prayer whenever I see the sun outside, thank you Tomb of Giants ><
Wow, this thread really picked up. :)
Ornstein & Smough are considered one of the toughest fights in the game. With reason. There was so much crying posts on the net about these guys that I kinda got affraid of them, and decided I would take NO chance with them (also I wanted to kill Ornstein last for his spear and armor).
So I made sure to put all chances on my side. Reverted to human, summoned Solaire, grabbed the Crystal Ring Shield I had just crafted, got a strong grip on my BSK+5, and went Captain America on their asses. Granted, that's a cheap tactic that soon won't work anymore. But hey, it's effective. They both fell in under 2 minutes first try, and I escaped with my sanity unscathed.
(The Crystal Ring Shield is a shield/weapon you craft using the Soul of one of the sub-Bosses, the Moonlight Butterlfy. You throw it on ennemies, and a bug makes it so that it adds the attack power of your right hand weapon to its own. So with a strong weapon you utterly destroy pretty much anything. This will be fixed in the upcoming patch, making this shield into pretty much a novelty item).
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As for the tips:
1. When you get to Andre of Astora, the burly blacksmith near the church, be sure to buy a repair box. This will allow to repair your weapons and armor yourself at bonfires. A broken weapon is bad enough in Undead Burg, but in Blightown, or the middle of the Tomb of Giants you will scream to all hell if you can't repair.
2. Do play online. Tips are extremely usefull. Invasions might be frustrating if you're not Way of the White, but are a great source of Souls/Humanity if you get good at PvP. Also, the NPC invasions might net you some cool items, and you'll waste the chance to experience them if you kill the boss of the area without having experienced them.
However, be wary of people who think it's clever to leave tips like "Try attacking" before an important NPC or "Try jumping" before a ledge.
3. Iron Flesh is a Pyromancy spell that is sold by Laurentius of the Great Swamp, the first Pyromancy trainer. You will find him stuck in a barrel somewhere close to the beggining of The Depths. To save him, DO NOT attack the barrels. Roll into them instead. Currently Iron Flesh raises your defense and poise to absurd levels, making you able you able to wistand the heaviest blows without flinching (i.e allows you to 2-hand your big weapon and assault the ennemy, practically ignoring it's blows). However it prevents rolling and makes you move VERY slowly. This spell will soon be nerfed.
4. Can can only be part of one covenant at a time. Joining a new one will break your old covenant, and in some case make the NPC that proposed the previous covenant to you angry at you. To prevent this, always leave a covenant by talking to Oswald of Carim. You will find this NPC in the tower of the Undead Church. I think he appears right after you ring the bell. Also, if you make an NPC angry you can come to see this guy and pay him to get your sins pardoned (and be friends again with the NPCs). Breaking a covenant with him is free. Being pardonned costs [Your level*2000] in Souls. Better safe than sorry.
5. At some point you'll meet a cat. She is VERY sensitive, so I suggest you agree with what she says (she's a real diva and hates being told NO). If you make her angry or are not satisfied with what she offered you, refer to #4.
5. If a boss has a tail, try to chop it.
6. Upgrade, upgrade, upgrade! This will make a world of difference to you.
7. Some unassuming items become very good if upgraded. A good exemple of this is the Hollow Soldier Shield, which is one of the best shield in the game at +10 (for now, it's going to be nerfed soon).
8. Stability is very important on a shield, as it allows you to lose less stamina by blocking blows (and as such block more/harder blows). Good contenters for this are: All greatshields, the Hollow Shield when upgraded (past +5 or so), the Balder shield when unupgraded (past +5 I believe Hollow is better).
9. In the Church you can unlock an elevator/shortcut back to Firelink. When you get there, play around with the elevator. There is a few secrets to be found. Open you eyes, and practice your jumping.
10. Do not be afraid to die, especially if it's by trying stuff. There are amzing things to be discovered this way. Also, try to stay away from the Wiki, as it abounds with spoilers and you might end up feeling like you finished the game without having played it halfway. We already said a lot, but nothing too spoilerish. And we'll be glad to continue helping you.
Incidently, what was your starting class?
To piggyback (again)
Poise is your ability to take hits and not be interrupted in whatever action you were taking. Poise is, if you're playing a str character with a high damage weapon, indispensible.
If you play online, I think they fixed the crystal round shield bug like... yesterday?
In terms of gear, I like to have one lightning, fire, and then a weapon designed to take advantage of my highest stat. For instance, my pyro/faith build has the following;
Fully upgraded Lightning Washing Pole
fully upgraded Flame Estoc
Fully upgraded Divine Rapier
... You'll really want to play around with it all a bit to see how you're combat style works. I like to leap in, strike a few times, and back off until the enemy gets concerned and tries to heal. Then I immediately roll into a wrath of god or start casting a chaos fireball.
Also, I'm using the dark hand as my shield. 80% resistances across the board is pretty sweet, but more it fits the theme I was going for.
More great tips, thanks! My starting class was the wanderer and I took the key as my starting item.
Question, how does upgrading work? I found the blacksmith in the New Londo ruins (didn't go past him per James' suggestion) and it looks like I need some kind of shards or scales? How do I get those? I didn't have any. Also, on my trip to the Ruins, I found the Estoc which may be my new favorite weapon.
Upgrading requires both materials and costs souls.
Titanite shards are used to upgrade regular weapons up to +5. I believe the cost of the upgrades are 200 souls per + at this level. Titanite shards will be found as treasure and as drop from some ennemies. Also, they can be bought from 800 souls apiece from Andre of Astora.
After +5, upgrading branches up various paths. To go trough these paths you will need to chose the Modify Weapon tab in your blacksmith's options. Also, to modify a weapon into a specific branch a blacksmith needs a special item tied to that specific branch that is called an Ember. You find those around the world and bring them to the blacksmith. He'll ask if he can take it from you, and when you give it to him it opens that related upgrading path. This means that you can only upgrade to +5 until you start finding Embers.
Also, it is at this point that different kinds of titanite will be needed for upgrades. Large titanite shards, titanite chunks, green titanite, white titanite and red titanite. Also, titanite slabs exist of each colors to get the final upgrade in a given path (those are very rare, up to 3 regular slabs can be found in game, and 1 of each color. They can be dropped by some ennemies, but this is an extremely rare occurence, akin to getting a world drop epic in WoW).
There are various levels of upgrade.
-Normal up to +15 (special embers required past +5 and +10)
-Divine up to +10 (from a +5 weapon, require divine ember and large divine ember past +5)
-Occult (from a +5 divine weapon, required Dark ember)
-Magic up to +10 (from a +5 weapon,requires large magic ember for +6 and up)
-Enchanted up to +5 (from a +5 Magic weapon, requires enchanted ember)
-Raw up to +5 (from a +5 weapon)
-Fire up to +10 (from a +5 weapon, requires large fire ember for +6 and up)
-Chaos up to +5 (from a +5 fire weapon, requires chaos ember)
-Lighting up to +5 (from a +10 weapon)
-Crystal up to +5 (from a +10 weapon, requires crystal ember)
Note that crystal weapons and armor can not be repaired.
Also, note that giving an special enchantment to a shield WILL NOT increase any elemental resistance, only give elemental attack power. On a shield. Yes, it is as useless as it sounds.
Twinkling Titanite is used to upgrade special weapons and armor. Special is a pretty generic term, as a lot of armor suits fall into this category. Black Knight weapons, most of the weapons dropped from large ennemies, and almost of of the armor sets that are not the starting set of one of the classes. Upgrading an item with twinkling titanite costs 2000 souls per if I remember well (or is that boss weapons?). Twinkling titanite is a rare resource that you will rarely find in as treasure, but mostly as a drop from the elusive Crystal Lizards*.
Special weapons upgrade to a max of +5.
Dragon Scales are used to upgrade Dragon Weapons or given to the Everlasting Dragon to advance in the Path of the Dragon Covenant. They are extremely rare, and are acquired by defeating dragon-type ennemies or winning duels as a Dragon-covenant member. Upgrading a dragon weapon costs the huge amount of 10K souls per level along with a varied number of scales. Dragon weapons are extremely powerful, but do not scale with any stat at all, which greatly reduce their effectiveness past a certain level (exception being the Moonlight Sword). And with the Drake Sword, lowliest of all dragon weapons, this level comes pretty quick.
Dragon weapons upgrade to +5.
Demon Titanite is used to upgrade weapons crafted from the souls of certain bosses. The chance to craft such weapons will come to you later in the game, when you meet the giant blacksmith. To craft a boss soul weapon you need: A boss soul (obviously), a certain type of weapon upgraded to +10 (type of weapon required varies for each boss soul, there are generally 2 different options, sometimes 3), souls and I believe some titanite. Some boss weapons are very powerful, some are rather weak. Boss weapons upgrade to a max level of +5.
Oh, and finally a very important tip: If you happen to find an item called Firekeeper's Soul, DO NOT consume it. Bring it to a firekeeper (the first one is the mute chick in Firelink Shrine, you will meet others later) and ask to "Upgrade Estus Flask". Your flask heals will now be permanently stronger.
About the embers, each blacksmith will use specific embers.
The first blacksmith, Rickert I believe, will use the large magic and enchanted embers. The second blacksmith will use divine, large divine and dark embers.
Also, I previously mentionned Crystal Lizards as a mean of getting twinkling titanite. They deserve a post in themselves.
Crystal Lizards are elusive little critters that will run away when they spot you and try to burrow to safety. When killed they drop one or more twinkling titanite and sometime other kind of titanite (some of them might even drop a slab!). They do not respawn when they die. However if they just burrow away, they will come back if you die/rest at a bonfire/reset the game. This means the most efficient way to catch one that got away is to stand where it first was, quit your game via the menu and log back on. The lizard will be just beside you waiting to be harvested. Dead lizard will not respawn. So make sure they do not fall to their death, and to kill them somewhere you can loot. If you are unsure, let it escape and try again.
Note that a large amount of crystal lizards can be found in an area call The Great Hollow. The lizards there are a bit different. A total of about 10 lizards live there, but only 4 or so will spawn at any given time, concentrated in 4 various locations in the hollow. The game will randomly check each time you respawn/rest/reset to know which lizard spawn. If any of the selected lizard has already been killed, no lizard will spawn on that spot for that occurence. This mean that if you see a spot with lizards, stand there and quit/log back on until you are confident you have killed all of time (ie, no lizard spawned there for quite a few resets).
Also, twinkling titanite can be obtained from Snuggly by trading him various kinds of moss. You can get up to 3 this way. (There is a bug allowing you to get much much more but it will be soon fixed). Snuggly is a talking bird living in a small nest on the path down to the undead Asylum (yes, there is a way to get back there, and you can reach it before ringing the first bell). To trade with Snuggly, drop an item in his nest, and log out/back in. If snuggly likes your gift, your reward will be in his nest instead of what you dropped.
Favorite bosses so far?
I liked the Great Wolf Sif optional fight; the location was really atmospheric with all the swords stuck in the ground like grave markers.
The Gaping Dragon also felt really epic, even if he wasn't very hard.
Man, the Capra demon is really kicking my butt. I've fought it 4 or 5 times and have barley even hurt it so far. Anyone have any tips?
He can be really tough. The first few seconds can really determine how the fight goes. First priority should be taking out his dogs- try to roll around him and up the stairs on the left- you may be able to separate them long enough to put down a dog or two. Then drop off the ledge on top once he follows you. You have a little time to heal when he lands or to take a few swings. He' also weak to fire, so if you have a fire weapon or oil to throw, that also helps. Just keep him running up the stairs, drop down, get a few hits when he lands. Staying behind him is also helpful, but his swords have a lot of reach.
Picked up Dark Souls again last night. I was punished severely for the transgression.
Stupid lower undead burg...
Man, the Capra demon is really kicking my butt. I've fought it 4 or 5 times and have barley even hurt it so far. Anyone have any tips?
The problem with the Capra Demon is that you don't get a chance to learn his moves at that point in the game, and he does loads of damage. If you need a better weapon (your chosen weapon should be around +5 at this point) Grab a bow and shoot the tail off the dragon from the right side of the area under the bridge it guards - it'll give you a really powerful early game weapon that you can use to help push you through the harder parts.
Anyway, it's worth talking about the layout of the room a bit before tackling the Capra;
You enter a fog gate. In front of you is a small courtyard, to your right are a series of columns that support a building. To the left, you've got stairs that leads up maybe 15 feet and hooks right.
The Capra starts in the back of the room next to the stairs, with a hound on the stairs and the other at the base of them. Typically, the hounds will rush , while the Capra launches one of it's attack routines - these basically boil down to three hit combo, or leaping strike.
If you don't kill the hounds, you're toast. If you're using a weapon with exceptional reach, go ahead and exploit it to kill the first hound. Remember that you can still BLOCK attacks - even the Capra's, though you'll take some excess damage through the shield.
Running up the stair WILL buy you a little time to breath and take out the second hound - which, after killing the first, is the smartest move.
Note - when you roll you have a moment of invincibility - if you are slow rolling, unequip some of your gear until you have a faster speed.
Once the hounds are dealt with, the easiest way to handle the Capra is to run up the stairs, and step to the right and onto the overhang atop one of the doors.
Let him chase you *ABOUT HALFWAY UP THE STAIRS*. Anymore and he'll do his leap attack, which will hit you even on the overhang of the door. Fall off, and he'll do a jump attack which will end with him falling and doing nothing for a moment. Use that moment to strike him a few times, then rinse and repeat until VICTORY!
Otherwise, you can totally stand and fight him as long as you watch him and roll/block effectively. I think I ran through that fight like 8 times before I beat it the first time.
Yeah I decided to wander around a bit to collect some souls and maybe level up my gear a bit. Not sure how much it'll help, ha ha. I've barley been able to get into the room without getting mobbed by the dogs and immediately killed. I'd say once in every five tries, I can get to the stairs.
I'm playing Dark Souls currently myself and I have to say, I think this might be one of my favorite games of all time. I often times have a hard time becoming very involved in a game because there isn't too much thinking or skill involved but I am really enjoying creeping cautiously through this world and trying to figure out the most effective way of beating each boss and collecting each treasure.
Something that might help with the Capra fight (I don't know what your build looks like) would be to snag the Zweihander thats behind the ruined buildings in Firelink altar. It hits really hard early game and breaks a LOT of poise - more importantly then even hitting hard, this will allow you to stun-lock a lot of different enemies.
The thing I love about this game is just how tightly combat controls. Heavy swords and axes feel heavy and swing wide, catching on the environment. Spears and light weapons jab quickly and are perfect for defensive fighting behind a shield or in tight corners. Even a point or two more in endurance makes heavier armor feel slightly lighter as you adjust to it. There's a definite sense of impact when an enemy is struck or strikes you. Unlike some games where it feels like waving a sword at something until it falls down. It's unforgiving, but it's a finely tuned machine of a game.
I’m finishing up my end game grinding for the most part and I am thinking of trying to take on Gwyn. Anyone have any good strategies in mind that might be worth trying?
My build is:
Vitality 40
Attunement 19
Endurance 40
Strength 40
Dexterity 33
Resistence 11
Intelligence 18
Faith 24
My fav weapon is a fully upgraded greatsword of Artorias and my flasks are +5. My pryo flame is ascended to +5 and I have the resources to upgrade any specific weapon or armor bit I might need.
The thing I love about this game is just how tightly combat controls. Heavy swords and axes feel heavy and swing wide, catching on the environment. Spears and light weapons jab quickly and are perfect for defensive fighting behind a shield or in tight corners. Even a point or two more in endurance makes heavier armor feel slightly lighter as you adjust to it. There's a definite sense of impact when an enemy is struck or strikes you. Unlike some games where it feels like waving a sword at something until it falls down. It's unforgiving, but it's a finely tuned machine of a game.
Yes, I love that too, combat styles all actually feel different and are all mostly workable, when you throw in a bit of magic too there are a hundred different ways you can challenge a situation, I really like it.
The thing I love about this game is just how tightly combat controls. Heavy swords and axes feel heavy and swing wide, catching on the environment. Spears and light weapons jab quickly and are perfect for defensive fighting behind a shield or in tight corners. Even a point or two more in endurance makes heavier armor feel slightly lighter as you adjust to it. There's a definite sense of impact when an enemy is struck or strikes you. Unlike some games where it feels like waving a sword at something until it falls down. It's unforgiving, but it's a finely tuned machine of a game.
Agreed completely. I love the feel of the game as a whole, but specifically the combat system is AMAZING.
I’m finishing up my end game grinding for the most part and I am thinking of trying to take on Gwyn. Anyone have any good strategies in mind that might be worth trying?
My build is:
Vitality 40
Attunement 19
Endurance 40
Strength 40
Dexterity 33
Resistence 11
Intelligence 18
Faith 24My fav weapon is a fully upgraded greatsword of Artorias and my flasks are +5. My pryo flame is ascended to +5 and I have the resources to upgrade any specific weapon or armor bit I might need.
For Gwynn? The big thing is that his moveset can be parried. Once you get used to his swings you can just L2/counter him until he's dead. Also, if you've been relying on Iron skin, I wouldn't - he throws loads of lightning damage.
For Gwynn? The big thing is that his moveset can be parried. Once you get used to his swings you can just L2/counter him until he's dead. Also, if you've been relying on Iron skin, I wouldn't - he throws loads of lightning damage.
Thanks, that was very helpful to know going in that you can parry his attacks, made that fight a lot easier than it might have been otherwise.
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Hey no problem, man, one thing you'll find about the Des/Dks communities - we're all pretty helpful.
Lol so in the NG+ I was having a pretty easy time of it until I faced Ornstein and Smough again and now I am feeling pretty challenged, they hit so hard they can kill me in basically two or three hits even before they combine. I am doing my typical dodging around enhanced with the dark wood grain ring that has served me so well in this game but I keep slipping up and getting smushed, lol.
I refuse to play this because of Demon's Souls. I loved Demon Souls and bought it because reviews said it was challenging etc. The game had a great Atlus vibe to it, decent story and good gameplay.
That said, it was NOT challenging at all, it was merely futile and tedious to play if you died. I lost patience with the reclearing runback somewhere after defeating the first boss in the following chapter. I really liked the game too.
If Dark Souls is more of the same reclearing after dying, then It's not really challenging either, it's just a game for players with Alot more patience than I have. :)
To each their own.
Here is a tip for anyone looking to skip the Capra Demon fight. If you have the master key and make your way all the way through Blight town, when you finally get to the door to the depths.. it will be locked and you will be screwed. Sigh.