Dark Souls

[Cookyman]

My copy was despatched today from zaavi - so fingers crossed

 

Well it didn't arrive today - better be here tomorrow.

 

Well it still hasn't arrived! not happy

[Sheikah]

That sucks. Although saying that I will be at my parent's house until Sunday so I can't play it either. ShopTo have never failed yet in getting games/consoles to me early. Maybe they're worth trying for the future?

[drahkon]

ShopTo sent it last Tuesday, but it hasn't arrived. Well, it's not their fault probably...I live in Germany so it may take a while longer. I won't be able to play Dark Soul's for a week if it doesn't arrive today, though...

[S.C.G]

So... I've played for about 3 hours and I've died a lot! but it was to be expected really... :wink:

 

Kind of stuck though, I'm at the first 'main' part after you 'escape' the first training section if I go up, I get killed by something and can't progress, if I go down then I get killed by something else and can't progress... fun.

 

Any tips are appreciated, other than the obvious 'stop sucking at the game!' :p

[Cookyman]

Any tips are appreciated, other than the obvious 'stop sucking at the game!' :p

 

I'd love to help but thanks to Zaavi my copy has still not arrived despite being despatched Wednesday morning. So all my other preorders with them are now cancelled also cancelled my preorder with the hut as they are the same company and are renowed for late deliveries.

 

You live and learn I guess. Lets hope it turns up Monday.

[MATtheHAT]

Go up the stairs first. You need to make your way to the Undead Berg past the viaduct. Keep your shield up and walk slowly. Always try to lure the enemy back to you so you can fight on your own terms. Use lock-on.

 

You will eventually come across shortcuts back to bonfires, this is Dark Souls' checkpoints. Try to make it to these.

 

Also, the equipment you start with and level up can make a huge difference. If you are heavy armoured, equip an axe and heavy shield, if you want high dex, equip something like leather armour and carry a light sword. Same goes for spellcasters. It's also a good idea to purchase a bow early on, ranged attacks can be so much easier.

 

Oh, and stop sucking!

[Aimless]

Every resident of Blighttown is a complete dick. It's like the Valley of Defilement from Demon's Souls, but worse.

 

I really like how the continuous nature of the world has increased the feeling of exploration — especially with the new jump move — although it can be a bit of pain not having the Nexus to teleport back to; even with all the shortcuts it can be quite the trek just to, say, buy arrows.

 

The new structure also makes the game even more opaque than the last one, as you're just moving through interconnected areas rather than progressive zones. You also have to seek out fairly core functionality; as an example, you can't write or rate messages unless you buy a certain item from a merchant.

 

Basically they weren't joking about this game being even more challenging than the first one.

[MATtheHAT]

I'm unsure whether to progress through Blight Town now or save it for later and do Londo Ruins first. Although killing the Ghosts is impossible without being cursed or using the Ghost Blade - which only drops from Ghosts!

 

Or I could attempt Darkroot Basin.

 

BTW, the Drake Blade is immense - one shot kills common enemies, and it can be aquired quite early in the game.

[Aimless]

You can use Transient Curses in order to fight the ghosts, Mat; you can loot 2 from the corpse in a jar just before the bridge across the water. That way you don't have to put up with the nasty effects of an actual curse, although I warn you now that the ghosts are really annoying to fight.

[S.C.G]

Well I'm currently playing this again, gradually progressing, spurred on by some of your success stories... playing online for the moment but will be playinf offline in a bit.

 

Regarding the bonfires... what are the 'Kindle' and 'Reverse Hollowing' options? Are they even useful?

[Aimless]

You Reverse Hollow to become human again, although naturally death undoes that. Whilst human you can summon other players into your game to help out and Kindle bonfires, which basically means that you upgrade them by spending another point of Humanity so that you're restocked with an extra 5 Estus Flask charges every time you rest at it.

 

Being undead or human likely affects other things, too, such as what NPCs say to you. I don't think that's something you really need to worry about, though.

[S.C.G]

Hmm true... I think the only thing I need to worry about in this game is trying not to die as much. :p

 

Regarding levelling up, which parameters should I - quite literally - pour my souls into?

 

My character is the basic 'default' class.

[Aimless]

It really depends on what kind of character you want to play, but Endurance is a good one as it increases your stamina bar and increases your weight limit. A few points in Vitality would obviously help, too.

 

Personally I'd recommend you try a shield and spear combo as it allows you to keep enemies at bay and attack whilst blocking. If you go on a bit of a suicide run into the graveyard filled with walking skeletons you should be able to pick up a Winged Spear — at least I think it's there; I definitely picked it up near Firelink. Your character will need 15 points in Dexterity to use it, 2 more than your class starts with.

 

Stat contribution to weapon damage is dependant on a letter grade. For instance the Winged Spear has E for Strength and a C for Dexterity, so the latter will contributes more to its output. As such whether you want to focus on Strength or Dexterity depends on the type of weapons you fancy using.

 

Oh, and Mat: I just made it through the ghosts and it's a dead end until you've rung both bells. D'oh!

[MATtheHAT]

Oh, and Mat: I just made it through the ghosts and it's a dead end until you've rung both bells. D'oh!

 

Ha Ha. I plumped to do the Blighttown first anyhow. Made some good progress last night, managed to get Black Phantom Miralda to invade in the swamp - who drops an awesome weapon that I won't spoil, but also she can then be summoned to fight the boss.

 

Also, when you ring the second bell, make sure you explore the area below, without giving too much away, there's a secret wall that reveals an interesting NPC.

 

For me, I find consulting DarkSoulsWiki is invaluable for getting the most out of this game. I don't use any of the guides, just information on the more obtuse items that you would never aquire without someone telling you how.

Edited October 9, 2011 by MATtheHAT

[S.C.G]

Whilst human you can summon other players into your game to help out and Kindle bonfires, which basically means that you upgrade them by spending another point of Humanity so that you're restocked with an extra 5 Estus Flask charges every time you rest at it.

 

Hmm at an early point in the game I was actually starting from this certain bonfire with 10 Estus Flasks... this continued to happen until I was killed by the ghosts but I died multiple times trying to get back to that point, if I get back to that point will I be able to 'pick up' something from that spot where I died which will restore my ability to claim 10 flasks again or am I completely misunderstanding this?

 

Just that I recall having 10 flasks and since that point I've gone back to 5 and was just thinking how useful it would be to have those extra flasks back.

[Oxigen_Waste]

So... how does it stack up to Demon's Souls, so far? For those who've been playing it?

I already have it, but I'm rediscovering just how awesome demon's souls is all over again...

[Aimless]

Just that I recall having 10 flasks and since that point I've gone back to 5 and was just thinking how useful it would be to have those extra flasks back.

The effect of Kindling only applies to that specific bonfire, if you spawn at another you'll only receive the default amount. That said if you died with 10 charges in stock death won't subtract from that, even if you spawn at a lesser bonfire.

 

So... how does it stack up to Demon's Souls, so far? For those who've been playing it?

I already have it, but I'm rediscovering just how awesome demon's souls is all over again...

It's a very similar game, albeit a subtlety superior one based on what I've played so far. There isn't really one thing I can point to as a huge advancement, but the new contiguous area progression and replacement of healing herbs with the rechargeable Estus Flask necessitate a slightly different approach.

[Sheikah]

A handy early game tip is to get the Drake Sword. After coming across the giant dragon in the Undead Burg that swoops the bridge to torch you, go to the underneath of the bridge and aim with a bow at his tail. In about 10-15 large arrows you'll cut off his tail and get the sword.

 

The damage doesn't scale and instead does a flat 200 damage (unupgraded). And that's with the regular R1 attack. Makes earlier levels quite easy.

[Deathjam]

Two best friends play Dark Souls, looks like they didnt learn from Demon Souls:

 

[Aimless]

Right, whilst I have a minute I figure I might as well throw out a few tips for anyone having trouble/new to the game:

• Don't rush! When exploring somewhere new take your time, walk with your shield up. And if you die don't give into the desire to get back to your bloodstain as quickly as possible, you'll only end up kicking yourself when you die and lose your souls for good.
  
• Know your limits. If something seems too strong for you, chances are it is and you should try another way. That said, a little bit of bravery will sometimes pay off...
  
• Use real world logic, which is to say try not to think of Dark Souls in terms of other games but rather what makes sense. For instance slicing a skeleton isn't going to be as effective as blunt trauma from a mace, and piercing attacks will be better for getting through tough hides.
  
• Group up! After killing the Taurus Demon you'll come across an NPC that gives you a summoning stone. If you're human/unhollowed you will see shimmering signs on the floor, distinct from the normal messages, and by interacting with them you can summon other players into your game for aid. Likewise you use your own summoning stone to place down your own marker, entering another's world to earn a portion of their souls, gain Humanity for defeating bosses and basking in the knowledge that if you die you'll simply return to your game unscathed. Incidentally, the etiquette is to leave summon signs either near bonfires or just outside boss rooms.
  
• Make use of shortcuts. The world of Lordran loops back on itself in all sorts of ways, so as you venture forward you'll find various ways to unlock previously inaccessible routes, considerably cutting down on journey time. To give one example, after your fight with the Taurus Demon you're faced with another bridge to cross, and halfway along there's some steps to head down below: if you search around a bit you'll find a ladder you can kick down to access the Undead Berg bonfire from earlier, and once you open a shortcut it stays open regardless of death.
  
• You need a shield that blocks 100% of physical damage. For the vast majority of the game you're going to be blocking standard enemy attacks, so the importance of coming out unscathed can't be overstated. Some classes will start with a suitable shield, but if you didn't you can purchase a Heater Shield from the first merchant you meet — look for some stairs hidden behind barrels near the Undead Berg bonfire — which is nice and light.
  
• Soul Levels aren't super important. Obviously levelling your attributes makes you stronger and more resilient, but attributes are really about allowing you to equip better loot. This isn't like WoW where being several levels above someone makes you almost impervious to attack; you will live and die on the state of your equipment.
  
• Give as good as you get. In other words, enemies are susceptible to the same things you are. Lure them into traps, kick them off ledges and generally get your own back!
  
• Talk to people and read item descriptions, you can learn a lot and pick up useful tips by doing these things. The game's not going to give you a waypoint, but it has all sorts of pointers to offer if you seek them out. (Oh, and remember not to attack NPCs unless you really mean it.)
  
• Whilst on a ladder, press Circle/B to slide down it and the attack buttons to strike above and below you. This can be useful for the more wily enemies that follow you up them! Also, if you tap the roll button whilst holding it down to sprint you'll jump, and this can be used to cross small gaps.
  

 

There's loads more to say, but part of the fun is figuring it all out for yourself.

[Pit-Jr]

Ive really been trying to go guideless this time and only get help from the soul signs.

 

I consider myself to be competent at Demon's Souls but Dark Souls still manages to make me feel like a noob. Love it!

 

The instruction manual is useless. Is there a way to do a forward jump?

[Sheikah]

Run with circle and press circle while running to forward jump.

 

Those are some good tips Aimless.

 

I have a few more for the stat/gameplay concerned.

 

If you can, pick Pyromancer or Bandit at the beginning. They actually have more stat points due to some internal formula, with sorcerer being worst.

 

The Master Key is the only gift you can't obtain in game. And it's pretty nifty.

 

It's probably a waste of time levelling DEX, STR, Faith and INT. The latter two only if you really want to play as a mage. The reason is that scaling is really bad in this game and lightning owns all. Somebody abused a soul gaining glitch to get L320 and found the lightning uchigatana still bests upping str/dex for weapons (lightning doesn't scale, but it does tons of damage and not much is resistant to it).

 

So basically, try get an uchigatana (either kill the merchant in the undead burg or join the forest covenant and buy it there) and make it lightning to win. Then you can spend your points on great things like endurance, attunement and vit.

 

Pyromancy kicks ass. It doesn't rely on INT or faith, and one of the spells makes you super resilient to damage (you can barely move as a result, but hey, who needs to do that :p).

 

If you attack NPCs and aggro them accidentally, a guy after the gargoyle boss in the belltower can undo the aggression.

 

Cut off tails of some bosses/large enemies. You can get weapons as reward and significantly disable their attack options (especially gaping dragon).

Edited October 12, 2011 by Sheikah

[Aimless]

I've only recently gotten into Pyromancy — I assumed it was tied to Intelligence or Faith, so hadn't paid it much heed — and it is incredibly useful. The attacks I have at the moment don't have many charges, but when a single Great Fireball one-shots a huge armoured knight the fact I can only do four per bonfire visit isn't too much of an issue.

 

Sorcery is also a recent addition to my repertoire, pretty much purely so I could Cast Light to see where the hell I was going in a certain area. I later discovered another way to solve that issue, but it was worth the investment anyway as now I can turn into a bit of furniture and jump out at people.

[Sheikah]

You can upgrade your pyromancy/get new spells by a few methods, with eah offering different spells.

 

One is to free the guy stuck in a barrel in the depths near the bonfire. Careful not to aggro him so roll to free him, then see him later by firelink shrine.

 

Secondly there's a very easily missable, secret wall that you have to destroy to access the witch's lair. Right after you ring the second bell after the boss at the end of bright town, go down the stairs in the bell ringing leaver room and hit one of the walls. Don't attack the guy who looks like an enemy when you enter! Joining her covenant gives you a free spell and she sells others, as well as enhancing your estus flask (handy if Anastacia at firelink is dead and you haven't got to reviving her yet).

 

And the last one I've found who sells uber spells is just outside of the boss that the witch's lair was at. Where the fatties are rolling big rocks around, look for a tall pillar past the poison marsh and bead towards it. Not everyone can get the npc to spawn though.

 

Upgrading your pyromancy is also a good way to increase the power and number of uses of your spells.

[MATtheHAT]

The multiplayer is much more developed in this compared to Demon's Souls.

 

I spent 2 hours yesterday with the cat's ring on getting summoned to invade non-covenant players who dare to enter Darkroot Garden area. I'm now in The Book of the Guilty.....

 

Awesome.