What?! I thought it had 3 of the best bosses in the whole game. Artorias pummelled me until I changed my whole fighting style, which made it an incredibly satisfying kill. Kalameet was great fun and Manus made me switch fighting style again until I took him down.
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Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin |OT| Your weapons are weak, old man
- Thread starter VisceralBowl
- Start date
What?! I thought it had 3 of the best bosses in the whole game. Artorias pummelled me until I changed my whole fighting style, which made it an incredibly satisfying kill. Kalameet was great fun and Manus made me switch fighting style again until I took him down.
If you were curious, going to that door earlier said something like "Produce more powerful souls"
And since that level up lady keeps telling you you need powerful souls to go meet the king, that's why that door opens once you have enough
AuthenticM
Member
There are a lot more petrified npcs this time around, blocking paths. Are there enough yore branches in the game to let me depetrify them in a single playthrough ? I don't want to waste any.
I felt the same way, always hesitating to use them. But I finished the game and unfroze pretty much everyone I wanted so yeah you should be fine.
I never got past Artorias. That fight and the one against the big lion upset me. They weren't designed like the rest of the boss fights in the game. All of the bosses leading up to it could be handled in a very methodical way. Stand back, play defensive, keep your shield up, observe the enemy, learn its pattern, go in for pokes when it's exposed. The boss fights in the DLC were like, let's throw a bunch of SSJ4 Goku motherfuckers at you ninja flipping and spamming attacks so fast you can't think.
I eventually got good enough at being the lion, but then the forest area after that pissed me off really badly as well. I'd try REAL hard to methodically and thoroughly explore the area and get all of the loot out of it like I had been for the entire rest of the game, but the perfectly spaced out enemies that would always come in groups of 3 with a gigantic dude that practically one shot me, I eventually got fed up and just sprinted thru the whole place.
Then I got to Artorias and it was yet another fight where the guy flew around in the air and never stopped moving and attacked repeatedly and relentlessly, and it was just tedious. Far more tedious than anything in the vanilla game save for maybe the Bed of Chaos.
I just got tired of it and gave up. Still haven't gone back to that DLC area in any character since the first one. I might some day, but those first two fights and that forest area have left such a bad taste in my mouth with how cheap they felt I don't feel the need to.
StoppedInTracks
Member
Thanks for the clarification!
Nah that guy's a chump. He's the seventeenth Knight Boss at that point. The summon thing is cute but he's otherwise v straight forward, just his shield is stagger-y. Maybe I was just OP for him, got him rocked without any allies before he summoned any allies himself. But I never had a play-through where he was tough or interesting.
Yeah I had the same thought just last night down in the Shrine of Amana. I went to go open the "secret" bonfire and there was a dude there and I didn't have any branches left. So I went to go check shops and realized I'd already bought them all... No idea how / if / where I'll get more.
It wouldn't let me upgrade it past lvl 5
StoppedInTracks
Member
Exactly. He is just another Dragonrider, Pursuer, Lost Sinner etc.
Ideas to make this fight better:
- give him constant lightning enhancement on his weapon so that you take damage even if you block (ala Smelter Demon)
- throw some stone statues around the battlefield that come to live in specific intervals of the fight i.e. 75% health, 50% health etc.
Dont get me wrong the boss fight is alright when it comes to execution and surprise element but not at this stage of the game. Not after you've dealt with dozens similiar bosses already using the very same strategy.
Tarkus
Member
You need some large shards. Did you exhaust all of Chloanne's dialog at Harvest Valley? You'll soon need some chunk and a slab too.
You're not going to like DS2's DLC bosses much better. In fact, you'll probably hate them (like I did). They're massive difficulty spikes from the main game, have an absurd amount of HP and with some of them, you can't use your shield because one hit from them drains all your stamina and then they strike again.
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
So guys. Last I played, I was hammered by the Smelter guy. Instead of going back for my souls and boning out, I decided to traverse shaded woods as a few of you encouraged. Those un-lock-on-able invisible enemies WHAT!? I then spoke to the coolest NPC in the game and I couldn't even see him. Bought the Claymore as recommended (BTW, I've been using a Drangleic sword +1 this whole time, not a BK sword). I then manage to fight off these dreaded minotaur-esque beasts and eventually fall through the floor surrounded by those bug-eyed creeps and a minotaur... and survived. Found my way back to the bonfire in the area and I just want to say that my souls are still waiting for me with Smelter bro. Phewwwww this game! My wife and five year old were watching and creeped out by the curse pots.
Now some Qs: Two doors were inaccessible in shaded woods. What are these, late game areas, dlc? Invisible guy warned about his body... I need to know more. Is there a way to reveal the hidden enemies or join their cult a la DS1 to make them non-violent? I want to explore the area but I don't think I have the courage now that I've made it through safely once.
Edit: Also, I had smashed two wooden chests and got rubbish. Is that because I smashed the chests in case they were mimics? =(
Now some Qs: Two doors were inaccessible in shaded woods. What are these, late game areas, dlc? Invisible guy warned about his body... I need to know more. Is there a way to reveal the hidden enemies or join their cult a la DS1 to make them non-violent? I want to explore the area but I don't think I have the courage now that I've made it through safely once.
Edit: Also, I had smashed two wooden chests and got rubbish. Is that because I smashed the chests in case they were mimics? =(
iRAWRasaurus
Banned
I dont think it would be worth getting for you. Thats just me however.
They're both late-game areas and DLC, depending on the door. The enemies can be revealed but not until much later (as I recall) so you might as well just explore that area thoroughly (especially its sides) when you're not in risk of losing those souls.
Unfortunately, yes.
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
Thanks. I got a handful of items from the woods but I suspect there's more. I kept getting turned around and only the glow of a new item and fear of a new enemy near by it did I find my way through.
Dang about the rubbish. I hope they weren't super rare and never to be found/bought again items...
Has anyone found the beginning part of Dragon Shrine as hard as I have? I don't know whats going on with this particular sequence of the four giant metal NPCs, but the second one with the mace hits like 6 times in a row and the one after that hits through your shield. Before even getting to the guy on the giant staircase I've probably died about 40 times, it's getting ridiculous at this point.
edit: welp this post unjinxed myself I guess
edit: welp this post unjinxed myself I guess
Usually wooden chests are consumables or buyable gear, I wouldn't sweat too hard on it. I usually test them but giving them one bop with my shield. If it's a Mimic, it'll start unfolding after it takes a single hit.
The dude with the mace is notoriously cheap. I died a bunch of times on him. Found the ones with the sword easier (and I farmed on them, in fact).
Cannon Goose
Member
I think the Mace guy literally has infinite stamina if you try and block his swings. If you dodge him then he will eventually stop swinging but it's really much better to just run past him.
Figures. I'll still give them a shot since I've been playing a totally different type of character this time around.
Can't believe this. I got the
. Was so excited, I forgot to take a screenshot lol. I have my issues with this game but it like all the souls games have this ability to give you a feeling that you can't get from other games and it felt damn good to get that
fucking Seppuku from Sir Alonne
seppuku.
That's actually what I loved about it. I had to reassess my tactics. It made me think about playing a different way and challenged my preconceptions of how I should play Souls.
The next two bosses (Kalameet and Manus) were much more akin to the bosses in the rest of the game though.
But, if you like a tactic and want to stick with it, then I understand why you didn't like it. Your assessment is valid, I was just curious as to why you thought that.
NinjaBoiX
Member
I've been playing for around 12 hours (just got to Harvest Valley, I want to get to the Iron Keep ASAP to snag myself a Black Steel Katana!) and I'm really enjoying it but I'm not sure where to focus my souls now.
I'm going for a dex build but I'm not sure if I should be leveling up faith or intelligence at all. Here are my current stats:
Have I poured too many points into adaptability?
Any other advice?
I'm going for a dex build but I'm not sure if I should be leveling up faith or intelligence at all. Here are my current stats:
Have I poured too many points into adaptability?
Any other advice?
You're probably going to eventually want some HP. I played most of this game at like 6 VGR too, and didn't feel like I was having too many problems, but my friends said I was crazy so I got my VGR up to 25ish and I feel a lot safer than I did before.
If you're ok ignoring all casting/infusion then don't even bother with attunement/int/faith.
Endurance and Dex can both use 10 more points if you want to get more use out of them.
If you're ok ignoring all casting/infusion then don't even bother with attunement/int/faith.
Endurance and Dex can both use 10 more points if you want to get more use out of them.
NinjaBoiX
Member
Yeah, I might need some more HP at some point. But VIT raises HP just as VGR does right? I know it's not as much but I'd rather have higher equip load and poise then petrify resistance. I'll probably bump VGR up to 10 over the course of the game.
Isn't the soft cap for END 20? It feels like I have plenty right now, I think I'll hang on for a bit with that.
Yeah, right now I'm thinking VGR, ADP and some more DEX. Probably aim for:
VGR - 10
DEX - 40
ADP - 30
Thanks guys.
Every stat you take gives HP, but a very minuscule amount. VGR gives 30/level until 20 and 20/level after that for a long time. It's worth investing more points in it to at least 20. Those are valuable points to have.
"Soft cap" for END just means no more 2 stamina per level. It's still 1 stamina per level for a long time after that, and getting more than 120 stamina is really good if you're meleeing a lot as your primary damage, which a DEX build is. I'd say after DEX, just getting more and more stamina should be your primary stat for doing more damage.
So is there a better sword than this?
http://darksouls2.wiki.fextralife.com/Arced+Sword
I have a str/dex build going on, and I was using the bastard sword +10 for a long time.. until I came upon this gem. can I do better?
http://darksouls2.wiki.fextralife.com/Arced+Sword
I have a str/dex build going on, and I was using the bastard sword +10 for a long time.. until I came upon this gem. can I do better?
Cannon Goose
Member
More Vigour, less Adaptability and you're good to go. Use whatever combination of stats (ATN and ADP) to get yourself 100 Agility and your dodges will be fine.
In Tower of Flame
Get summoned into the game of guy named 2stoned2play
Attacking the first knight
2stoned2play swings at knight, hits nothing
2stoned2play rolls into the ocean
World master 2stoned2play has died
Returning to your world...
Get summoned into the game of guy named 2stoned2play
Attacking the first knight
2stoned2play swings at knight, hits nothing
2stoned2play rolls into the ocean
World master 2stoned2play has died
Returning to your world...
Lollipop Dave
Member
true to his name.
NinjaBoiX
Member
Well I didn't know that. I think I'll get it to 10 then see how I go. It seems like quite a negative stat though, like an admission that you suck.
But yeah, I get your point.
Especially as I suck!
;P
Hmmm, really not sure about more endurance quite yet. I certainly don't feel lacking in that department, even though it's clearly a case of "the more the better".
I'm definitely not putting anything into ATN, I have no desire to use magic at all. Also, I quite like having fairly high adaptability, it belies my aging reflexes!
But I hear you're point about VGR, I really should pile on some HP to my character.
StoppedInTracks
Member
Question: who drops Titanite Chunks?
I know who drops Titanite Slabs (Stone Soldiers), Large Titanite Shards (almost every big enemy), Twinkling Titanite (Archdrake Clerics, Flexile Sentry) but no idea who drops Chunks.
Some random thoughts:
- best three areas in the game so far: Majula, The Gutter, Shrine of Amana. All are very moody, atmospheric and look great graphically (none of this Tseldora PS2 garbage). Shrine of Amana features a brilliant usage of the torch mechanic - you need the light to see where the cunderwater cliffs end. Otherwise, happy diving...
- some random sorcerer-type of enemy in the Undead Crypt dropped the Black Witch's Staff which is incredible. At +6 it is already more powerful than my Bone Staff +10 (tested on 4 different enemy types). Yowza.
- beginning from Drangleic Castle the three areas I've traversed: Castle, Shrine, Crypt are really of top-notch quality. The level design have finally picked up and is on top of From's game.
- the Crypt features the twin-shield warrior which is one of the best ideas and concepts for aKnight enemy I've *ever* seen. Compare it to the ridiculousness of Flexile Sentry and you can bet that A-Team designed him.
I know who drops Titanite Slabs (Stone Soldiers), Large Titanite Shards (almost every big enemy), Twinkling Titanite (Archdrake Clerics, Flexile Sentry) but no idea who drops Chunks.
Some random thoughts:
- best three areas in the game so far: Majula, The Gutter, Shrine of Amana. All are very moody, atmospheric and look great graphically (none of this Tseldora PS2 garbage). Shrine of Amana features a brilliant usage of the torch mechanic - you need the light to see where the cunderwater cliffs end. Otherwise, happy diving...
- some random sorcerer-type of enemy in the Undead Crypt dropped the Black Witch's Staff which is incredible. At +6 it is already more powerful than my Bone Staff +10 (tested on 4 different enemy types). Yowza.
- beginning from Drangleic Castle the three areas I've traversed: Castle, Shrine, Crypt are really of top-notch quality. The level design have finally picked up and is on top of From's game.
- the Crypt features the twin-shield warrior which is one of the best ideas and concepts for aKnight enemy I've *ever* seen. Compare it to the ridiculousness of Flexile Sentry and you can bet that A-Team designed him.
Easiest chunk farm of your life (and occasional slabs), join the Bell Keepers and equip your ring and just PVP. Even if you're the worst PVPer in the history of the Souls games (like me) you will still luck your way into a chunk every few minutes.
There's 2 ways to PVP with the Bell Keepers. You can either be in the Belfries and get invaded (but then you have to do a fairly easy bloodstain retrieval but it counts as an actual death) or just equip your ring and do the invading. It's a little harder to kill as an invader, BUT if you can stall long enough 2 more invaders can join and help, making most invasions super easy. I joined the keepers and farmed enough chunks and slabs to +10 my character's entire load out within about 5 hours.
edit: I think I'm done with this stupid Shulva DLC area. What a piece of shit. I swear the design philosophy for ALL of this series' DLC is to just make it as annoying hard as possible cause that'll some how make it worth the money.
Don't give up, man. It's nowhere as hard as it seems.
NaturalHigh
Member
I see what your saying but you are just gimping yourself and will be saving yourself frustration for when you die in one hit to an inevitable boss hit. Some bosses will have AOE damage and even when you roll correctly you will take damage. You need HP. Would you play Zelda and ignore all the heart pieces? Probably not. Same thing here. A lot of people go to 50 vigor for PvP and I think they are all pussies but that is the norm. I tend to stay between 20-30 on most of my characters because generally I don't need a lot of health. I also stay at 20 endurance. With the Dragon Rings you get 10+ more stamina which is plenty enough for me (132 with Third Dragon Ring). Another wise thing to do would be dump some points in Att to like 13, so you can have a couple of slots to play with for weapon buffs later. Then just dump some points into ADP until you get 105+ agility, which is where I tend to stay.
My best advice, get your vigor to 20 and then up your dex to 40. At this point decide what you want to buff your weapons with. I would say stick with Faith to 20 and get you Sunlight Blade to buff your weapon with lightning or maybe fire. This would also allow you to use a couple of different healing miracles with one of the chimes you will have found.
Is it worse than it seems? Cause it seems awful. Is there just no more bonfires in there? I've gone what I feel is pretty far into the "Dragon's Whatever" area of that place, into a place with spiky floors and those invisible/ghost guys chasing me and a lady shooting Dark Orbs at me from above and I can't take it anymore. There's so many enemies and they are really annoying to kill as a hexer.
Tarkus
Member
There's a bonfire really close to there, although hard as hell to find,
it's hidden
I'll take your word for it, thank you!
AuthenticM
Member
When should I do the DLC and In which order should I do them ? Also, where can I find the items required to do them ?
edit: alright, I got a guide telling me where to find the keys. But Gaf, in which order should I do them ? Do they all follow the same story ? Or maybe I should do them in order of ascending quality ?
edit: alright, I got a guide telling me where to find the keys. But Gaf, in which order should I do them ? Do they all follow the same story ? Or maybe I should do them in order of ascending quality ?
Yeah, #1 doesn't have a lot of bonfires. You might want to jump to #2, which is a little kinder. Bosses suck, though.
The creatures that live in the tar in Black Gulch drop Large Shards and Chunks. Easy enough to break all the statues once and just keep running back and forth between the bonfires respawning the enemies.
StoppedInTracks
Member
Thanks a lot!
I noticed that smith's daughter also sells them but in a limited supply.
I killed another Armored Knight Boss (#876234 in the game...) and finally met Vendrick. Huh. Interesting.
They become unlimited at the daughter after you beat the game once.