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Personally, I like the Ancient Wyvern fight a lot. I'm sorry, the Ancient Wyvern setpiece, because it's not really a "fight" per se. Still, I thought it was a fun boss encounter. Mileage may vary, needless to say, but once in a while I like a big puzzle/setpiece boss to mix things up a bit. Edit: I just imagined the Calamity Ring in Bloodborne. You wouldn't even take a step. You die immediately upon spawning at a lamp post and get your rear end booted back to the Hunter's Dream, where Gehrman mocks you relentlessly for putting on something called the Calamity Ring and expecting good fortune. KeiraWalker fucked around with this message at 14:26 on Feb 18, 2017 |
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Feb 18, 2017 14:04
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   Here we have the last bit of Main Game content and with it one of the bosses that many people view as the hardest in the game. The next few videos will cover the first DLC. There might be a break between the first and second DLCs in terms of updates, depending on how long it takes us to get through the DLC (it's at least five videos) King of Storms and Nameless King  For many years the identity of Gwyn's first born son has been a mystery. People wanted answers so bad that they looked far and wide. The disowned first born of the god king of Anor Londo has to be a pretty important character after all. Many bought into the theory that Solaire was Gwyn's son, personally I just always thought he was just crazy. Others thought he was Andre, because that was actually the original plan in the first game. He was supposed to take a more active role helping the player by moving a statue that blocked the path of progress out of the way. Gwyn's two other children (that we know of) have been somewhat accounted for. We met Gwyndolin in Dark Souls (and his fate is clarified in III)and Gwynevere has married some flame god called Flan but we've never actually seen her. For all we know she might look nothing like the illusion we've seen in Dark Souls. There was a room in Anor Londo, in wich we also fought Ornstein and Smough, that had satues of Gwyn, Gwynevere and, to Gwyn's right, an empty pedestal. For a long time we didn't know what prompted Gwyn to exile his own son. Now we know that he's allied himself with the dragons. Why exactly he did that is something that we still don't know. Maybe he just thought dragons were rad. In any case, dragons have been basically extinct for a long time. Dark Souls' definition of dragon is an odd one, when it talks about dragons it mostly means ancient dragons, of which we only ever encounter two: Seath as well as the infant ancient dragon in Ash Lake. There's many dragon-like things, like drakes and wyverns and occasionally some Kalameet or Sinh which the game itself calls a Dragon. At this point it's basically better to not care what's a dragon and what not. In any case, Gwyn's son, let's just call him Gwyn Goku, found himself a trusty steed. Which he's riding in the first phase of the fight. This phase is by far the easier one and once you got a handle of things it can be beaten rather quickly. Gwyn Goku can perform various swings from the back of the King of Storms, he can follow one swing up with another but there's a lenghty break between two hits. He can also charge his weapon with lighting and create a small AoE. It is brief enough to dodge through but when in doubt just get away a bit. It's nowhere near the best attack to get hits in. Sometimes the King of Storms will fly up and brathe fire downwards. This is not the only flying attack, though. Sometimes he will circle around you while the Nameless King throws a lightning spear. The King of Storms will usually follow this with a dive attack. The best attack to get hits in, though, is definitely the ground based fire breath. The drake will breathe fire from its left to its right. Once you know the tell for this attack you can just run in, stand near its neck and wail on it. If you land enough hits on its head there's a chance for it to get stunned and can be visceral attacked for a really great deal of damage. This'll usually finish it off. Phase 2 is where the real fun begins. Mechanically it's completely seperate fight from phase 1, in fact it has its own health bar. The fact that the first phase doesn't prepare you for the second due to how different they are is a pretty common complaint about this fight. I personally really like it. However, you have to beat the first phase every time you want to challenge the Nameless King. It's not a big deal to me but a lot of people also complain about that and I'd have no issue with the game just skipping phase 1 once you've defeated it once. With the King of Storms dead the Nameless King absorbs the power of his fallen friend. Outside of his attacks the Nameless King is relatively slow moving. A pretty good idea is to just circle around him (Ideally counter-clockwise, away from his dominant hand). He'll still attack but you should be able to get a few easy hits in that way. His melee swings should be simple enough to dodge if you managed to make it this far. If you are at a long or medium range from him he can perform a Stinger type move where he just rushes towards you to impale you. He can also jump into the air and dash at you from there. Ocassionaly, usually at around half health, he will be ripostable, after a successful visceral attack he tends to smash his spear onto the ground, which causes waves of lightning to move away in eight directions. He can also do this attack whenever he pleases but this is the situation he'll do it in most. Another great moment to get hits in is when he raises his spear upwards. This will be followed by lightning coming from above, this is tough to dodge, but the buildup to this attack lasts for a long time and you can easily get two or three hits in. Since most of his attacks are lightning based it might be worth a try to use a shield with high lightning resistance if this boss gives you trouble, which seems to be the case for a lot of people. I've heard people go as far as saying that the fight requires specific builds to beat, however, I beat this fight using both light and heavy weapons, with and without a shield and using magic. But maybe that's because I got gud somewhere along the road. Overall I quite enjoy this fight. I like the way it's presented.  Soul of the Nameless King Soul of the Nameless King. One of the twisted souls, steeped in strength. Use to acquire many souls, or transpose to extract its true strength. The Nameless King was once a dragon-slaying god of war, before he sacrificed everything to ally himself with the ancient dragons. Dragonslayer Swordspear A dragon hunting weapon from the age of the gods. The earliest form of the cross spear, serving as both a sword and a spear. Its owner was the Nameless King, a deific hunter of dragons. The swordspear is imbued with lightning, of which he was the heir. Skill: Falling Bolt - Hold swordspear high in the air to summon fierce lightning that descends upon distant foes. Storm Curved Sword Curved sword imbued with the strength of the Stormdrake. The Nameless King, ally of the ancient dragons, fought beside the Stormdrake in countless battles. When the great beast fell, the king claimed his soul, as was the custom in the age of gods Skill: Tornado - Imbue blade with the wrath of storm in a spinning motion, and follow with a strong attack to bear that wrath upon foes. Lightning Storm Miracle of the Nameless King, ally to the ancient dragons. Calls forth furious bolts of lightning. Once a slayer of dragons, the former king and wargod tamed a Stormdrake, on which he led a lifetime of battle. This miracle is likely a tale of their bond. Dragonslayer Spear Dark Souls III: Cross spear associated with Ornstein the Dragonslayer. A weapon of the gods imbued with the strength of lightning. Two-handed thrust utilizes the support of the cross and requires great might, but can pierce deep into the flesh of dragons, and send mere men flying. Skill: Lightning Charge - Charge with spear at waist to enwreathe with lightning, then release bolts with final thrust. Dark Souls II: A ranseur forged from the soul of the Old Dragonslayer. The spear of the knight known as the Dragonslayer was imbued with the power of lightning, and shattered the stone scales of dragons. Strong attack unleashes its latent power. Dark Souls: Cross spear born from the Soul of Ornstein, a Dragonslayer guarding Anor Londo cathedral. Inflicts lightning damage; effective against dragons. Two-handed thrust relies on cross and buries spear deep within a dragon's hide, and sends human foes flying. Dragonslayer Set Dark Souls III: Golden armor associated with Dragonslayer Ornstein, from the age of gods, and imbued with the strength of lightning. In the dragonless age, this knight, who long guarded the ruined cathedral, left the land in search of the nameless king. Dark Souls: Armor of the dragonslayer Ornstein, who guards the cathedral in the forsaken city of Anor Londo. Ornstein is believed to be the captain of the Four Knights. His golden lion armor is imbued with the power of lightning and should provide good protection against it. Dragon Tooth Created from an everlasting dragon tooth that will never break. Left by Havel himself, along with his boulder-like great shield. Grants its wielder resistance to magic and fire. Skill: Perserverance - Anchor weapon in earth to temporarily boost poise. Damage reduced while activated. Havel's Greatshield A tremendously solid and heavy greatshield, cut straight from a great slab of stone. Said to be a relic of the legendary Havel the Rock, along with the Dragon Tooth. The shield is imbued with a special power reminiscent of Havel himself. Great Magic Barrier Dark Souls III: The tale which was later interpreted as Magic Barrier. Greatly increases magic damage absorption by covering the body in a strong white protective coating. Said to be a tale of Havel the Rock, arch enemy of Seath the Scaleless. Havel despised magic, and was never complacent in preparing means to counter it. Dark Souls II: Superior miracle to Magic Barrier. Increases resistance to magic, lightning, fire, and dark. The knights of Mirrah are expected to fight honorably, with reliance only upon swordsmanship. They only resort to magic the only time they truly need it: to face the magic of an enemy. Dark Souls: Miracle of Bishop Havel the Rock. Cover body in powerful def. magic coating. Havel the Rock, an old battlefield compatriot of Lord Gwyn, was the sworn enemy of Seath the Scaleless. He despised magic, and made certain to devise means of counteraction. Ancient Dragon Great Shield A wooden shield bearing the image of an ancient dragon. Very slowly regenerates HP. The painting is the result of an exquisite but painstaking technique. Lingering, undying traces of the ancient dragons can still be seen in their descendants, the man-serpents, though they have fallen far from grace. Dragon Head Stone Dark Souls III: Stone imbued with the power of the everlasting dragons, used in a secret rite by dragon worshippers. Gain the head of a dragon and , a transformation that is irreversible until death. From ancient times, the path of dragon worship was walked by warriors. It is said they envision Archdragon Peak in the depths of their meditation, and at times, they even hear the distant sound of the great bell at the peak. Dark Souls II: A stone containing the strength of dragons. Transforms the head into that of a fire-breathing dragon, an effect that will remain until death. The zealots who sought everlasting life are said to have conducted rites to imbue stones with the strength of dragons, but there are no records confirming their success. Dark Souls: Stone imbued with the power of the dragons. Rite of apostles of the ancient dragons. Gain head of dragon. Emit dragon breath. The dragon apostles seek transcendence of life itself, attainable by transformation into an ancient dragon. This rite is only one step, but it cannot be reversed until death. Twinkling Dragon Head Stone Stone imbued with the power of the everlasting dragons, the second of its kind, offered to a towering dragon. Gain the head of a dragon and emit breath alongside an archdragon mirage. The transformation is irreversible until death. The illusion achieved was the first case of a human imitating the form of an ancient dragon, and it revealed the smallness of human existence. The road to the old dragons is long and arduous, and only one can complete the journey. Twinkling Dragon Torso Stone Stone imbued with the power of the everlasting dragons, offered to a towering dragon. This stone shows signs of a nascent light. Gain the torso of a dragon and roar alongside an archdragon mirage. The transformation is irreversible until death. Yet true imitation will require a dragon head, as well. Dragon Chaser's Ashes Umbral ash of the fallen warrior who chose the path of the ancient dragons. With this, the shrine handmaid will prepare new items. Whatever it is, it is sure to grant strength to the most unrelenting warriors. Ring of Steel Protection Dark Souls III: Ring of the Knight King of ancient legend. Increases physical damage absorption. The Knight King was said to be lined with steel on the inside, such that even the talons of mighty dragons did him little harm. Dark Souls II: Wearer gains the protection of steel. Increases physical defense. Said to be the ring of the once legendary Knight King, though his tales are long forgotten, and even the greatly wizened have no recollection of his exploits. Dark Souls: This ring belonged to the Knight King Rendal. It grants its wearer protection by boosting defense against physical attacks. Of the many legends surrounding the Knight King Rendal, one of the more well-known speaks of his standing down a giant drake and slashing it to pieces. Calamity Ring Dark Souls III: A ring made from the orange eye of a calamitous dragon. Receive double damage. This ring has no useful powers, and is merely a symbol of dragon worship, a thing quietly passed down amongst its most fervent adherents, some of whom become convinced the task has been bestowed upon them as a sacred duty. Dark Souls: A ring enchanted by the orange eye of Kalameet, the bringer of calamity. Doubles damage received by its wearer. A useless ring befitting of no finger. Best left unknown, or at least well hidden. Thunder Stoneplate Ring Dark Souls III: Stoneplates are symbols of true knights, and yellow stoneplates are granted to those who would become dragons. Increases lightning damage absorption. Dark Souls: Stoneplates, the symbol of a true knight, grant the strength to face various hardships The yellow stoneplate symbolizes souls, and boost defense against lightning.
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Feb 24, 2017 19:33
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My guess is that Ornstein left Anor Londo to track down the Nameless King, perhaps under orders at first, but eventually to serve him. Once he got there, he shed his armor and transcended to become a dragonkin, one of those dragon-looking humanoids just like you can become when you use a dragon stone, that you see all over the place in the area as "statues" that are probably real people who passed on ages ago. How he survived the events of Dark Souls, I don't know, but he apparently did.
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Feb 25, 2017 00:27
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I think the easiest way for Ornstein to have survived the first game is to not have been in it in the first place. So much like Gwynevere Ornstein is a magical construct. Also Solaire may not have been the Firstborn but he probably met him at some point. Lord_Magmar fucked around with this message at 01:33 on Feb 25, 2017 |
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Feb 25, 2017 01:29
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Lord_Magmar posted:I think the easiest way for Ornstein to have survived the first game is to not have been in it in the first place. So much like Gwynevere Ornstein is a magical construct.
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Feb 25, 2017 01:53
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See, here I spent two whole Dark Souls games thinking that Gwyn's firstborn totaled his dad's Charger or something.
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Feb 25, 2017 03:23
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The implication seems to be that the Ornstein the Dark Souls PC fought in Anor Londor was a fake, but Smough was real. Which seems kind of convoluted, really, but...
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Feb 25, 2017 05:11
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Somewhere in these threads was a comment that dark souls makes more sense from an eastern mystic viewpoint. Becoming a dragon maybe is the path to true enlightenment (ultimate fighting power), and mixed in with more mysticism means dragons are too enlightened for mere matters like linking the flame or running a kingdom or whatever, hence the exile stuff?
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Feb 25, 2017 05:41
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Sum Gai posted:The implication seems to be that the Ornstein the Dark Souls PC fought in Anor Londor was a fake, but Smough was real. Which seems kind of convoluted, really, but... Actually seeing as you only ever get one soul from that fight, and later fights of a similar nature drop 2 souls or 1 combined soul it could be a retroactive change that the soul you get is always Smough's, but from the player perspective you assume it's the guy left. Ornstein is sort of Smough's ideal self too, a beloved and well respected knight of Gwyn instead of a hated and feared executioner. Which is honestly one of the cooler things done in 3, Smough died a knight and a hero defending as or Anor Londo from an enemy that represents the thing that originally made him so hated, cannibalism.
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Feb 25, 2017 06:41
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Wait a minute, Smough ate people?
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Feb 25, 2017 09:18
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wiegieman posted:Wait a minute, Smough ate people? More or less, he ground the bones of those he executed into his bread is my understanding. So not full eat them alive and luxuriate in their screams like Aldrich, but awkward enough to stop Smough from being knighted by Gwyn himself.
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Feb 25, 2017 10:18
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wiegieman posted:Wait a minute, Smough ate people? Nah, he just used their bones for seasoning. Anor Londo cuisine is that bland.
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Feb 25, 2017 10:23
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asio posted:Somewhere in these threads was a comment that dark souls makes more sense from an eastern mystic viewpoint. Becoming a dragon maybe is the path to true enlightenment (ultimate fighting power), and mixed in with more mysticism means dragons are too enlightened for mere matters like linking the flame or running a kingdom or whatever, hence the exile stuff? The metaphor's slippery. The dragons are also pretty clearly the titans/Ymir to Gwyn's Zeus/Odin, primordial beings that had to die for him to make the world as we know it. And clearly they were mortal, ultimately, since Gwyn killed them. Likewise I think there's an element of nostalgia to the whole dragon worship thing- people trying to get back to an idealized past that didn't have to deal with life and death/light and dark/whatever. But that's gone. The dragons are dead and not coming back, and the people trying to transform into dragons are never going to get beyond weird hybrids.
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Feb 25, 2017 15:19
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I've recorded more with shibbo and Skippy. It's bad. Episode N: Don't Try This At Home - Kiln of the First Flame Episode O: Time Is Convoluted In This Let's Play - Archdragon Peak Feel free to use the below audio for anything. 
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Feb 26, 2017 21:22
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You say "bad" and I say "loving hilarious," and I will compliment Shibbo and Skippy again for being loving weirdos, because I haven't been able to stop laughing since I hit Play.
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Feb 27, 2017 04:41
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The only bad thing in these videos is Shibbo's laugh/cough which sounds legit scary and concerning. Get well soon/late/now/time is convoluted in this thread, Shibbo!
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Feb 27, 2017 11:09
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Does anything special happen when you use the Storm Ruler on the King of the Storms? Since they're two halves of a Demon's Souls callback and all.
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Feb 28, 2017 18:29
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Tasteful Dickpic posted:Does anything special happen when you use the Storm Ruler on the King of the Storms? You know... I never tried. But looking it up mentions nothing. So either nobody thought to try (not likely) or it does nothing.
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Feb 28, 2017 21:10
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It does nothing, heck Storm Ruler doesn't even do extra damage to other giants. It only does bonus damage to Yhorm.
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Mar 1, 2017 01:53
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Wow, lotsa Sen's fortress callbacks on Archdragon Peak. I guess that would make the Nameless King's true identity, Sen Goku.
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Mar 1, 2017 02:12
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Lord_Magmar posted:It does nothing, heck Storm Ruler doesn't even do extra damage to other giants. It only does bonus damage to Yhorm. The Yhorm storyline is so full of wasted potential! The boss fight itself is nothing special, especially compared to the other Lords. Yhorm acts like any other giant, and without the sword you kill him by hacking at his shins. It concludes the most pandery NPC questline in an unsatisfying way. Siegmeyer was maybe the character in Dark Souls 1 with the most poignant storyline (if you take away someone's purpose in life or do their job for them they have nothing to live for), but Siegward does nothing to live up to that legacy. It'd be interesting if they reversed it, by having him help you out like he did in the settlement, but that goes away quickly. You help him by killing Yhorm, but it doesn't articulate differently if you do nothing. Lastly, the Storm Ruler. Yes, it's cool to have a special weapon to kill one of the Lords quickly, but as you say, it's not a giant slayer, and it's a weirdly out of place Demon's Souls reference, that doesn't do justice to the source material. Also there are two of them, to give Siegward his final moment. Imagine if there were two Moonlight Greatswords, that's about as nonsensical as this.
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Mar 1, 2017 06:34
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Tasteful Dickpic posted:The Yhorm storyline is so full of wasted potential! The boss fight itself is nothing special, especially compared to the other Lords. Yhorm acts like any other giant, and without the sword you kill him by hacking at his shins. It concludes the most pandery NPC questline in an unsatisfying way. Siegmeyer was maybe the character in Dark Souls 1 with the most poignant storyline (if you take away someone's purpose in life or do their job for them they have nothing to live for), but Siegward does nothing to live up to that legacy. It'd be interesting if they reversed it, by having him help you out like he did in the settlement, but that goes away quickly. You help him by killing Yhorm, but it doesn't articulate differently if you do nothing. It's one of those rushed areas/storylines that are sadly typical of souls late game areas. Which is too bad, because Siegward's cutscene is pretty badass when he walks in. Wish the entire thing had been expanded more so it meant something.
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Mar 2, 2017 19:50
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How do I become best friends with Skippy and Shibbo?
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Mar 3, 2017 04:38
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SloppyDoughnuts posted:How do I become best friends with Skippy and Shibbo? How fundamentally broken are you as a person
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Mar 3, 2017 06:32
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Skippy Granola posted:How fundamentally broken are you as a person I had to take a 6 week intensive group course on how to value myself and also almost broke someone's nose with a punch bowl.
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Mar 3, 2017 06:47
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Welcome to the family then, son!
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Mar 3, 2017 07:43
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hanales posted:It's one of those rushed areas/storylines that are sadly typical of souls late game areas. See I've always assumed that the Catacombs of Carthus are also part of Yhorm's story. It's the past of his lands, and Wolnir is his ancestor. Which doesn't really make the area he's in better but expands his area a lot more than it otherwise would be.
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Mar 3, 2017 10:15
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It's not made that clear (even in Dark Souls terms) in that case. Carthus is a nice side area, skeleton balls and all. Not much overall significance to the plot, but a cool short story. It'd be neater in my opinion if Yhorm was optional and The Nameless King was a Lord. The fight is unique, the area has a lot of references to DS1 stuff with the Dragonbros, and Gwyn's firstborn is a riddle that (sort of) needed to be solved. Place Archdragon Peak more on the critical path and say something about kingdoms converging and it's fine. The other Lords, who are just fantastic, both lorewise and ludically, kind of suffer by comparison.
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Mar 3, 2017 10:25
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Nah, Yhorm is the only Lord with even a passing similarity to the story of Dark Souls 2, so to that end he's actually kind of an important Lord, and making the Dragon area optional is a nice thing because it calls back to how hard the original path of dragon was to find, relatively speaking.
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Mar 3, 2017 12:13
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Lord_Magmar posted:Nah, Yhorm is the only Lord with even a passing similarity to the story of Dark Souls 2, so to that end he's actually kind of an important Lord, and making the Dragon area optional is a nice thing because it calls back to how hard the original path of dragon was to find, relatively speaking. The Abyss Watchers are dark diver grandahl's nephews fighting over his inheritance.
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Mar 3, 2017 12:46
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frankenfreak posted:The only bad thing in these videos is Shibbo's laugh/cough which sounds legit scary and concerning. Get well soon/late/now/time is convoluted in this thread, Shibbo! you're not my real dad, I'll die if I want to! Really though, thanks for the well wishes! I was sufferin' from bronchitis and a partially collapsed lung, but I am indeed doing better! SloppyDoughnuts posted:How do I become best friends with Skippy and Shibbo? In a stunning plot twist, you are already best friends with us, as I love all people 
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Mar 3, 2017 13:09
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 We've finished the main game and it's time to tackle the first of two DLCs (The second of which, at the time of writing this, has not come out yet). Traditonally the DLCs are considered the best parts of their games. And to some extent. Dark Souls III's first DLC, Ashes of Ariandel, got a rather lukewarm reception, unfortunately. The most common complaint being that it's too short. But I actually liked it and felt it was just the right length. Not the best part of the game but to me that speaks more for the quality of the main game than against that of the DLC. And since we're starting the DLC I'll go a bit over what each of the DLCs added to their respective games and what sets them apart, if anything. I won't cover them all at once, though. Crown of the Sunken King As far as Dark Souls DLC areas go, this is my favorite. This might surprise those who know that Dark Souls II is by far the Souls game I like the least, one of my chief complaints being that the level design is lacking. But that is the part that Shulva gets right. From the very beginning it tries to establish that you can go anywhere in this vast looking area. You enter and immediately see a Ziggurat, which is your destination without a doubt. Since you're standing there staring at the thing already you also look around a bit. Looking down into what might at first assumed to be a death pit you see creatures walking around. Even though it's ultimately not that big of an area it gives you the impression of being huge. You're quickly introduced to this areas mild puzzle elements. Hit weird swith things and pillars get raised or lowered. They can damage enemies or create platforms for you to walk on. Some do both. This slight puzzling continues on once you enter the shrine, which is why some people compare it to a Zelda temple. By hitting switches you unlock an item needed for progression, some neat extras here and there as well as a bonfire. In retrospect, the bosses weren't THAT great, but a welcome breath of fresh air in Dark Souls II, as the game didn't have an awful lot of monster bosses. They are still fun to fight, though. Elana likes to summon adds (one of which can be a previous boss) and can wreck your day with Pyromancies and Hexes. Sinh is a cool fight against a dragon that can actually go airborne, as opposed to Kalameet from the first game's DLC. Then there was the co-op area but all the co-op Areas from Dark Souls II's DLCs were poo poo and the boss for this one is just three NPCs that do NPC things and are very tedious to solo. I am still baffled that some people apparently liked this boss fight.
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Mar 3, 2017 18:58
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I do appreciate the Nameless King's Dragonball Z wig you're wearing.
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Mar 3, 2017 22:28
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Anyone who says that the DLC in previous Souls games screwed up casters is exaggerating. DS1 tried but laughably failed with more resistance and health (which only made a difference for Manus), DS2 mostly just upped boss health in general and slightly increased trash resistances (still not a problem unless you're used to the pre-nerf days of its miracles), and Bloodborne didn't really change things much at all in that regard. Copied from Steam because Chrome gets wacky with non-https images sometimes on these forums. And if you think that Shulva's gank squad isn't an amazing white-knuckle ride then you probably hate fun or something. (More likely, it's because it's there to model a PvP fight and you've expressed a perennial lack of enjoyment with Souls PvP - perfectly valid.)
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Mar 4, 2017 05:57
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In the first Dark Souls, the Homing Soulmass spells would often two or three-shot bosses. Combined with the fact that you got a great ranged option with Sorceries, I'd say they were quite overpowered. The DLC didn't screw over sorceries as much as it brought it in line. Miracles however almost didn't work at all against Manus and Kalameet, at least when I tried. In addition to that, you had to understand how defenses work in Dark Souls to figure out a good strategy against those two bosses if you have an intelligence build. When I used a fully upgraded Moonlight Greatsword with 50 int against Manus, it did pitiful damage. Crystal Homing Soulmass also does almost nothing. However, defense in Dark Souls works less well against a single massive attack than against multiple weaker ones. So, the Soul Spear series of spells are still capable of delivering most of their damage. With two Soul Spears and one Crystal Soul Spear, you can remove about three quarter of Manus' health. So, remove about 25% of his health by other means (I used Great Soul Arrow with Tin Crystallization Catalyst) and then remove the last 75% with the Soul Spear spells. The same principle applies against Kalameet, except it has less health than Manus which should make the strategy simpler. However, if you don't know how defense works, you may, after noticing that neither the Moonlight Greatsword nor the Soul Mass spells work reasonable, think that this means Sorceries period is near useless against those bosses. The rest of the DLC is no problem for a Sorcerer, everything else just gets wrecked by sorceries. I don't know a good strategy for a faith build though.
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Mar 4, 2017 09:33
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I have some Plot Speculation based on the Farron Followers armor description. Is that fair game at this point?
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Mar 4, 2017 18:21
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Discendo Vox posted:I have some Plot Speculation based on the Farron Followers armor description. Is that fair game at this point? Sure, I've loosened my spoiler policy a while ago anyway. If you're in doubt about something being a spoiler just tag it and you're good. That said, item descriptions of stuff we could have found at this point are fair game, even if I haven't posted them yet.
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Mar 4, 2017 19:09
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 Champion's Gravetender  And so we meet our first boss of the DLC. If you don't know what this fight entails ahead of time it can be really tough. If you don't it's gonna be really simple. Compared to bosses of past games' DLCs this one is comparatively easy. I believe this is due to the fact that this boss drops the Champion's Bones, which you need to access the PvP arena. At first glance this boss seems like it's just a random NPC accompanied by a couple wolves. It's wise to kill the wolves first. Then deal with the guy who acts exactly like a standard NPC. Or how a standard NPC would act with a unique Weapon. He uses the Valorheart, a Shield and Sword combo. As in, this one inventory item is both sword and shield. But all in all he's just that: A regular NPC. He doesn't even have all that much health for an NPC. That's because the Champion's Gravetender is only half the fight. At about half health the Gravetender's Greatwolf, which you can meet twice before this fight, joins the fray. For each of the two previous encounters you defeat the wolf at he'll start with a little less health. If you didn't focus down the Gravetender while the Wolf showed up you'll now have to deal with two opponents, which is where this fight can get tough. In that case I recommend dealing with the Gravetender first. Because while the wolf has the same moveset as in the previous encounters at first, that's just phase one. Once the wolf heats up he becomes much more aggressive. Chaining dashes together more frequently and more times in a row. In addition to that he also gets an ice breath which, as long as you're in the right spot at the time, allows you to get in a quick combo or two. It bears mentioning that he's vulnerable during his howl he does to transition into the second phase and he CAN be stunned into a state where he can be visceral attacked. This may allow you to flat-out skip phase two. It's my prefered way of dealing with this fight because Phase 2 of the Wolf is the hardest part of the fight by far. After winning the fight we don't get a Boss soul. Instead we just straight up get the Valorheart as well as the Champion's Bones. Thinking about it now I really think it would have been cool if they recycled the gimmick of the Old Monk from Demon's Souls, where the Old Monk was actually another player with a Boss' health bar. I think that'd be a really cool way to spice up this encounter somewhat. Valorheart Weapon once wielded by the Champion of the Undead Match. A special paired set consisting of a broad sword and a lion shield. the champion fought on, without rest, until he lost his mind. In the end, only his page and a lone wolf stayed at his side. Skill: Lion Stance - While in stance, use normal attack to thrust forward with shield up, and strong attack to execute a shield bash with a lion's roar. Champion's Bones The charred but warm bones of a champion. Long ago, an Undead declared a fight. A fight to celebrate their undeath, and so to preserve what remained of their souls. So it was that the Undead Matches were born. The merit of an Undead is measured in deaths. Could there be a greater gift for such a creature, than a fight that has no end? Note: Burning this at the Bonfire in Firelink Shrine lets us join a PvP arena. I actually recorded PvP footage including the Arena, but because the video I made with that footage also features parts of the DLC we haven't seen yet I'm gonna post it once we're done with the DLC
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Mar 10, 2017 21:31
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The Farron Followers are explicitly a part of Farron's Undead Legion, of which the Abyss Watchers were the main Abyss suppressing force. They're explicitly tasked with killing off and disposing of Abyss Watchers that are corrupted by the Abyss- they were hollow, non-insane footsoldiers who basically cleaned up when one of the Watchers fell. Farron and the Abyss Watchers "fell to ruin", which left the Followers as a pack of wandering undead. It's presumably only then that they entered the painting. My guess is that the Abyss Watchers/Farron were generally a big success and linked the fire, but that the catastrophic time corruption caused by the fire maiden getting eyes blended the timelines of the various Lords, and left the Abyss Watchers open both to direct attack by the Abyss, and the attack of the Pontiff's forces. Additionally, the Follower Torch has this telling part in its description: Some forms of the Abyss manifest as pus within the body, treated from ancient times with fire. So the various pus-laden enemies, including the corrupted Iudex Gundyr and the dead wyverns, are also explicitly Abyss-corrupted.
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Mar 10, 2017 22:21
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| # ? Jun 7, 2024 06:40 |
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Isn't this whole mess happening because Gundyr couldn't make it in time to link the fire, and instead got Abyssed by whatever when wrong his time around?
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Mar 10, 2017 23:26
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