So I just beat Maria and my weapon completely disappeared. Has this happened to anyone else? It doesn't matter what I equip, it's invisible. I can still hit enemies, but no weapon is there. I tried dying and restarting the game and neither worked. Fuck.
I finally beat the optional boss! I've never hit such a brick wall before with a souls game, so getting him down finally was quite the rush. It was on NG++ though. And I think I might be a bit underleveled for that.
So I just beat Maria and my weapon completely disappeared. Has this happened to anyone else? It doesn't matter what I equip, it's invisible. I can still hit enemies, but no weapon is there. I tried dying and restarting the game and neither worked. Fuck.
Edit: Scratch that, the weapon isn't invisible, it's just not there. Weapons aren't equipping at all.
Just how noticeable is the difference between NG+ and NG++, +++, etc? I've always just assumed that it's quite incremental and nothing to really "prep" yourself for.
Third try - actually first attempt by myself I got him down to 1/3 health and well into 2nd stage; then that damn sword caught me...for this go I enlisted Valtr to help and he did a good job distracting.
Just how noticeable is the difference between NG+ and NG++, +++, etc? I've always just assumed that it's quite incremental and nothing to really "prep" yourself for.
NG -> NG+ is gonna be the biggest leap. A friend of mine virtually beat most of the DLC content in one, or few, tries on NG. I'm around the same level and NG+ is a living fucking nightmare for me (3+ hours per boss, typically).
Just how noticeable is the difference between NG+ and NG++, +++, etc? I've always just assumed that it's quite incremental and nothing to really "prep" yourself for.
A big fucking difference with the bosses, may not notice it much with the enemies but the bosses have a ton of HP and hit like a truck... it is so god damn hard. The main game isn't nearly as hard in NG+ as the DLC is.
area, Fextralife is streaming a Lvl. 50 event (yeah I know, that's insane) and encouraging people to coop with him. Lower levels welcomed. Password is fextra.
Finished this up today and I'm kind of sad it's over. I really loved it from start to finish and I just didn't want it to end. The new weapons are great, and I especially love Simon's Bowblade and the Beasthunter Saif. I might try to platinum the main game now so that I have a reason to play with these new weapons a littler longer, haha
area, Fextralife is streaming a Lvl. 50 event (yeah I know, that's insane) and encouraging people to coop with him. Lower levels welcomed. Password is fextra.
Watching this for a bit is kinda painful... maybe it was awesome before I started but it seems like he is just staying back, which is smart considering how low level he is but it isn't fun to watch.
I think I messed up. I was running by lamp in Ludwig room hit R1 and hit Simon. He became aggressive so I killed him. I got Simons bowblade now but what did I mess up further in the DLC?
I think I messed up. I was running by lamp in Ludwig room hit R1 and hit Simon. He became aggressive so I killed him. I got Simons bowblade now but what did I mess up further in the DLC?
I think I messed up. I was running by lamp in Ludwig room hit R1 and hit Simon. He became aggressive so I killed him. I got Simons bowblade now but what did I mess up further in the DLC?
I think I messed up. I was running by lamp in Ludwig room hit R1 and hit Simon. He became aggressive so I killed him. I got Simons bowblade now but what did I mess up further in the DLC?
You will still find the key he has at the second lamp in the third area of the DLC. I assume you also get his clothes in that area, in a more U-turn place. I don't think you lose anything. At most, the clothes.
I thought it was at first but the accent sounds different than it does here. Could just be because they're whispering in one and not the other, though.
Put the choir set on, reduces arcane damage and don't stay in one place for too long. They're definitely a stick and move boss fight. Use the tree for cover for certain spells as well. You can also back stab the ones doing the meteor spell, also use bolt paper, if you can use Tiny Tonitrus then you should.
And with that, the final boss has been slain and I have completed The Old Hunters!
Somehow managed to get
OoK
down in my second try - and honestly, more like my first "real" try. The first time I decided I fuck around with "beast hood" for the very first time
mainly due to a particular armor set I had just picked up.
Yeah, that didn't work at all - threw me off my game. Second try though was a tough battle for sure, and took me 16 vials... but with that said, definitely wasn't even close to the most difficult part of the DLC for me (which I'll outline below).
Anyway - my impressions/mini review:
First things first: let me reiterate the compliment I gave the expansion a few days ago. In regard to the "feel" of the DLC, I'd argue that if everything from The Old Hunters had been released with the vanilla game, it would have fit in flawlessly - arguably much better than even a couple places in the main game (Brygenwerth, I'm looking at you, regardless of how awesome the area was). Sure, there are plenty of re-used assets - but they're used very creatively. The idea of a "nightmare" realm, which takes the familiar and mashes it altogether is a fantastic way to "cheat" in the art department while really fitting in nicely. Personally, I was much, much less bothered with assets here than I was in my short time with the Dark Souls 3 Network Stress Test.
Anyway, the environments are really spectacular and varied. You go from a Nightmare Realm where all of Yharnam is is flipped upside down. The blood river is creepy as shit, and then you quickly find yourself in the Research Hall - which is, possibly, my favorite area in the game. Don't quote me on that, yet - but it's definitely up there. Finally, the third and final "main area" had wonderful atmosphere and a great sense of dread - but it did disappoint a bit. Personally, I felt the mobs were a bit boring - again, utilizing quantity rather than quality - and the shortcuts were pretty boring, especially the second one... it felt like it came about two minutes after the first. Whole area was smaller than I would have liked. I think wondering through a bigger town on the water would have been nice and added to it.
Weapons and equipment? AWESOME! The Old Hunters adds so damn much to the vanilla inventory. Weapons for every kind of build - I honestly can't wait to keep leveling up my char in future NG+ so I can switch between Strength, to Arcane, to Bloodtinge builds and fights like it's nothing - becoming a super hero of sorts. The armors are super cool, look awesome, and have great stats. Variety on everything is really great. Personally, I stuck with my Ludwig HB most the entire DLC, but that's only because I want to fuck around with the other weapons a bit before committing on my next +10. Oh, and holy shit is the
rakuyo
fucking badass. I'm a Str/Skl build right now, so it's not very good for me - but I don't give a fuck. I'm gonna level up a lot more just so I can use this thing.
Everyone else is playing it - so I don't need to say what I imagine everyone can agree on: the soundtrack is sensational.
The difficulty is definitely up a notch. Someone earlier in this thread described it perfectly. BB really punishes you early on. The first half is very, very difficult in the vanilla game. But then the second half doesn't keep that difficulty sustained. It's still tough - tougher than 95% of the other games out there - but compared to the first half, From lets you have a "victory lap" of sorts in the second half. A reward for grinding so much in the beginning. Well with the Old Hunters, it adds a nice, hefty dose of difficulty to the game again. Sure, you can get to the area about 2-3 hours in... but I believe this is best left for end-game based on my first play through.
I tried the DLC with a level 17 new character, and actually managed to get through
Ludwig
and onto
Laurence
... but that second boss was just too damn punishing for me. Sure, I'm sure some of you CAN do it. And I might be able to if I wanted to invest 50 hours into just the DLC. But, I'm not that good or patient. So I loaded up my level 90~ character that was still in standard NG, and started from the beginning. The DLC still took me 10+ hours, I think, and I really struggled with
Laurence
just the same.
Regardless, in terms of difficulty, I'd rank the encounters in the Old Hunters as such:
Descending order, listed from most difficult to least:
1. Laurence - aka Mr. Fuck your shit and fuck your camera. Fucking good luck getting away from this fucking lava that is fucking everywhere while I fucking jump halfway across the fucking room and knock out 40+ vitality in one fucking hit
2. The Well Sharks - one is doable, the second is a bitch; thank God for the trick others made me aware of. My fiancé’ didn’t understand it at all when I said “these are just normal fucking enemies!”
3. The very first hunter you encounter - and that's because 1) you don't expect that to be the first enemy, 2) they now respawn, and 3) most of us are probably a bit rusty just booting it up - it's a beautiful reminder of what you're embarking on
4. Ludwig. Personally, I think he's very fair - and the second phase was a blast. But no doubt he has gallons and gallons of HP
5. Not getting lost in the Research Hall and completing all the quest lines
6. Gattling Gun Guy
7. Haha, fuck you, that's just another Blood Starved Beast for kicks
8. Orphan of Kos - a beautiful fight that was easy for me, but I'm likely over leveled
9. Two hunters that tag team you right after Ludwig
10. Maria - my absolute favorite boss in the game. She's swift and fast; and while not punishingly difficult, she's FUN to fight and it all felt super fair
11. The mobs in the Research Hall, plip plop is fine, but those guys that swipe you in teams of 10 are bullshit
12. The other bosses
13. The blood suckers in the blood river
14. Everything else
Anyway - really, really wish we were getting more Bloodborne. I'd gladly pay another $20 for an expansion of this caliber. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm honestly not desperate for a sequel. I fear it'll ruin my good feelings of how exceptional this first entry is. I mean, honestly, I think Bloodborne is damn close to a perfect game. Outside of some weird difficulty spikes, a sometimes shit camera, and some performance hiccups - it's really damn exceptional.
