CornBurrito
Member
The problem is those are still a bit too late for my tastes. Why bother struggling in the early game with magic when you can jump into a melee build ASAP.
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Dark Souls |OT4| Victory achieved for Scamco, text defeated
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The problem is those are still a bit too late for my tastes. Why bother struggling in the early game with magic when you can jump into a melee build ASAP.
darkistheway
Member
You will not struggle with a INT build. As i said, enchanted +4 without fighting a single boss (assuming you have master key).
ihearthawthats
Banned
struggle? there's a reason many speed runners and sl1 runs rely on magic. you can get to the giant blacksmith without swinging your weapon even once. raw weapons vs enchanted at a low sl level won't make much difference at all, and actually enchanted is probably even worse. temporary fire or lightning weapons will usually dominate low sl regardless of build.
yes, you can obtain +4 enchanted before killing a single boss, but its a slow, long and imo boring farm. why spend a few hours farming when the bell gargoyles and quelaag are not even that hard in the first place?
CornBurrito
Member
Alright I'll give it a shot then. Though stat assignment sounds like a nightmare to figure out.
Endurance, Vitality, Intelligence, Attunement... that's a lot of stats to raise.
Endurance, Vitality, Intelligence, Attunement... that's a lot of stats to raise.
AnonymousTipster
Neo Member
I'd also recommend raising strength and/or dex enough to get a reliable fallback/buff weapon. You have to do a lot of investing with caster builds but it pays off hugely down the line.
why endurance and vitality? there's no need to raise those with a magic build.
attunement I raise it until I have 6 slots which around 23.
well that's assuming you go full magic.
it's definitely not pvp friendly, this build I use it mostly for coop.
CornBurrito
Member
Because I want to go magic knight and use the greater magic weapon + shield spells?
Red Liquorice
Member
Shield spells seem pretty useless, they don't last long, but Crystal Magic Weapon is very popular and powerful.
INT builds are a lot of fun.
INT builds are a lot of fun.
It is easy to see coming, everything can be dodged with a roll. I still have problems with Pursuers though.
I see...
Completely agreed that the online feature is so amazingly integrated into the game despite the lag and what not. There are something in that design which is brilliant.
I often read people complaining about the absence of voice chat which makes me smile. IMO it's not a restriction but by design and not integrating it was a good decision.
As for me, I came to Dark Souls after having beaten Demon's Souls at least a dozen of times through the 3 versions if not more. So I was prepared and at the same time that made me do some mistakes given there are some tiny differences in the design that can have big incidences in the game. So, coming into Dark Souls completely new isn't really a disadvantage since you start fresh and not influenced by the previous game.
Anyway, I played my 1st playthrough hollow for the most part. This was one of the bad reflexes from Demon's because in that game you loose a part of your HP in soul form, so seeing I don't loose that in Dark made me go hollw, no mention that in Demon's being in human form altered the world tendency, which doesn't exist in Dark.
Being hollow, helping people to practice the levels and bosses was my way to go into Dark Souls. I beat all the bosses solo except for Gaping Dragon (what the hell) and so, I missed the invasions (including the NPC ones).
It's only starting from NG+ that I began loosing my Demon's Souls habits and started to play the game differently.
Last year I did a SL1 run in Demon's Souls and I still have that character, so I can now level up in NG+ and help you if you need. The online aspect in that game is much more solid since it's server based.
I have the 3 versions of the game, so don't hesitate to ask and I will gladly help.
CornBurrito
Member
I just ran past both snipers... Fuck them.
Hmm so does an INT build need to use Magic Weapon, or can I just use magic spells like Soul Arrow?
you can make a melee based int build with magic weapon (good for pvp and pve) and weapon of choice, or a long range int build (sucks for pvp, great for coop) with all the spells.
I tried both already, the long range int build is the one I use for sunbros covenant and the other for pvp.
Visualante2
Member
Just discovered I can grind like 1000 souls in 20 seconds on the dragon bridge. Am I right in assuming that by going under the bridge I can make it into the castle? Killed my first knight tonight and got a cool shield. Haven't made much progress but the game is pretty addictive. I wish I could make it to a new bonfire already.
Red Liquorice
Member
You're so close to a new bonfire, but you have to be brave to get to it! Otherwise the next one is at the end of the next section.
Yep, you can get into the Parish (castle) from under the bridge.
darkistheway
Member
I don't think it would take hours. Green titanite drop regularly from slugs, the.enchanted ember takes minutes to get and crystal golems by the hydra have a decent drop rate for chunks.
Obviously, you don't need to be so strong for the gargoyles or quelagg but the point is to try different things. I like to see what is possible in the game without "progressing" and it's so fun nuking bosses with magic. A few farming runs in the beginning change the feel of the game. I didn't bother on my first run through but now I experiment with builds.
Visualante2
Member
Made it! Got some sweet loot nearby for my flask also. Feels good to be in a new area. Discovered how to +/- rate the messages too which is cool. Wanna try online see if I can get some humanity soon.
e. Oh I see what you mean by being brave, managed to go back and unlock it. Two bonfires in one day is pretty good progress!
Sgt.Pepper
Banned
Faith builds are usually tanks in the first half of the game, then get more offensive options later. It's probably the best path to go if you want to help other people, since you'll be able to heal yourself without the host using an estus. You're going to want to get summoned into lots of people's games for the gargoyles early on to enter the Sunbro covenant. This will get you one of the lightning spear spells.
Other than that, it's mostly defensive stuff until later on in the game. Sunlight Blade, Wrath of the Gods, the other 2 spear spells are all good for PvE, but I believe all of those are post-Anor Londo stuff.
Sgt.Pepper
Banned
Better than anything. Tried going Pyro first, and I was bored to tears.
Still playing the strength build and have been trying to focus on the applicable weapons but the biggest surprise for me this playthrough has been the Gargoyle Halberd.
- Solid damage
- Fantastic reach, especially on the 1H R1 attack. Feels like you can hit people like 3 or 4 character spaces away.
- Very fast recovery after a successful attack, especially on the first 1H R1 attack.
- Between the fast recovery and surprising range it almost feels unfair at times (Anor Londo was a joke with this thing at +10). I often attack way out of the enemy's reach .
- Adds 25% resistance for Bleed and Poison
The only downside I see is that it has a long whiff animation but that comes with the weapon class. Other than that it has become one of my fave weapons overall. Being able to get it so very early in the game is a huge plus as well.
- Solid damage
- Fantastic reach, especially on the 1H R1 attack. Feels like you can hit people like 3 or 4 character spaces away.
- Very fast recovery after a successful attack, especially on the first 1H R1 attack.
- Between the fast recovery and surprising range it almost feels unfair at times (Anor Londo was a joke with this thing at +10). I often attack way out of the enemy's reach .
- Adds 25% resistance for Bleed and Poison
The only downside I see is that it has a long whiff animation but that comes with the weapon class. Other than that it has become one of my fave weapons overall. Being able to get it so very early in the game is a huge plus as well.
Portugeezer
Member
I'm in the Tomb of Giants.
One question.
Is that good or bad?
One question.
There is a dude who pushed me off a ledge, I made my way back around and spoke to him, in the end I killed him because he was a prick
Is that good or bad?
ihearthawthats
Banned
i think that still counts as a sin, if you're worried bout that kinda thing. but his name is
and he's a
i never used him much tbh. he teaches you a cool gesture tho.
patches
merchant, if you care to google what he offers.
The_Hitcher89
Member
Ha, I asked this a while ago.
The swings never get faster once you have the parameters. You could go two-handed, but that'sall you can do
I'd love it if you could get strong enough to swing the Greatswords around like a tracer
Ha, I asked this a while ago.
The swings never get faster once you have the parameters. You could go two-handed, but that'sall you can do
I'd love it if you could get strong enough to swing the Greatswords around like a tracer
Oh man, that's rough.
I have opted to go for a Divine Greatsword for Tomb of the Giants as well.
2H it is.
Portugeezer
Member
If you want speed just upgrade lighter weapons. It's why I love using the spear/winger spear, good speed with the benefit of a very long reach (on right trigger attacks especially)
Not so much wanting speed, just this playthrough I was focusing on a high STR build to wield powerful weapons. I just assumed the higher STR you had, the better you could swing a larger weapon.
Portugeezer
Member
I have another question myself. Does increasing Strength or Dexterity increase your weapon power, even if it doesn't show the weapon strength going higher in the stats?
I've always wondered, because sometimes levelling Strength or dexterity it doesn't show every weapon damage increasing.
I've always wondered, because sometimes levelling Strength or dexterity it doesn't show every weapon damage increasing.
Strength and Dexterity will increase your weapon's power if they have scaling for those respective skills, and are upgraded to +5/+10/+15 to capitalize on that scaling. If you toggle the display on a weapon and look for Param bonus, you will see grades next to a bicep and hand symbol, from E to S in quality of grade. So, if your weapon is properly upgraded the damage will increase as you level the respective skill(s). There is a steep drop off to stat scaling though, after Level 40 for Dexterity and 27 (for 2H) and 40 (for 1H) for Strength the damage bonus after that will be much lower.
Elemental upgrade paths like Lightning, Fire and Chaos remove stat scaling completely. Faith and Intelligence have their own upgrade paths to capitalize on scaling with those stats. Occult/Divine for Faith, and Enchanted/Magic for Intelligence.
It only increases the damage if your weapon scales with that stat.
This is the screen where you can tell what stats it scales with:
Look at the "ParamBonus" section. The icons are, in order, strength/dexterity/intelligence/faith.
If there's a letter next to an icon, it scales with that stat. S is the best scaling (adds the most damage), then A, B, etc. In this example the longsword has C scaling with strength and dexterity, which means it benefits most if you level up both of those stats.
The +175 next to "Physical 200" shows how much damage is added because of your stats.
EDIT: beaten by Booshka like the darkwraith he is.
Divine weapons kill the skeletons permanently in catacombs without the need to kill the necromancers first, but there's no such requirement in ToTG. But if your faith stat is fairly high, a divine greatsword isn't a bad choice
STR weapons will always be slower but each swing will generally be more powerful. They just require a different timing
Laurentius
Member
Yeah, the drawback of the large strength weapons is their slow swing speed. But man, when they hit, it can be devestating. I actually like the slow methodical swing speeds of those weapons. It really makes you feel the weight of them, and also makes you have to really think about each of your swings, as they can leave you wide open if you're not careful.
Been using a fully upgraded Demon's Greataxe and a +14 Tower Shield on my strength character. It hits so hard, and the amount of abuse you can take behind those tower shields is just fantastic. I love being able to block a huge barrage of attacks from a boss only to lose half of my stamina, or less.
I think more people should try out the greatshields. You can't parry, but the stability makes them awesome. I've even had some pretty good success with them in PVP, at least against non-bleed weapons.
Portugeezer
Member
Fuck, level 80 and I'm still a noob. Thanks, very helpful.
ihearthawthats
Banned
different weapons in the same class may have different attack speeds. for the ultra great sword category, i believe the zwei and greatsword are the fastest. stats won't affect swing speed, but upgrades on a weapon may affect swing speed, as it also may affect the length of stagger.
check out this vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UkwwszN-TQ
Portugeezer
Member
Guys how do I make boss weapons? Like, which is the best one? I've seen the Quilag or whatever it's called weapon in some videos, that is a boss weapon right? Who can do that for me and does it work on any +10 weapon?
Laurentius
Member
You can make them with boss souls and certain weapons at the blacksmith in Anor Londo.
CornBurrito
Member
Is it bad that on my first playthrough I've been using the souls for souls? I haven't crafted any boss weapon yet.
Yeah, that was a bad idea.
Laurentius
Member
I honestly have never really used the boss weapons myself, besides Quelaag's Furysword. I think they're generally not that great. Still, they don't give you a whole lot of souls if you eat them, so I generally just save them in case I want a particular weapon.
CornBurrito
Member
I'll pick them up on NG+ at least.
Honestly only a couple of the weapons are any good.
Quelaag's Furysword and Chaos Blade
Moonlight Butterfly horn for INT builds
Zeouterlimits
Member
I'm still struggling with the Capra Demon, I feel very foolish.
Portugeezer
Member
It's one of the toughest bosses. At the level people get to him they probably don't have a lot of stamina to deal with his attacks.
Red Liquorice
Member
Wear the highest poise armour you have or grab the Wolf Ring from the forest. Poise helps you take the dogs out quickly because they won't interupt your attacks with their own.
Once they're dead Capra shouldn't be a problem - if you have trouble dodging his attacks they can all be blocked except the two-handed ones which you can see coming a mile off to dodge them.
Spears and rapiers are good for the dogs too because you can attack with them whilst still holding your shield up. Lastly, in genral - remember to always lower your shield inbetween blocking a hit, so that your stamina regen is faster - it's very slow with a shield up, and no stamina = guard break = YOU DIED!
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
So I haven't touched this game since I accidentally attacked and killed the blacksmith in the catacombs. My question as I disembark on my quest once again, how do I upgrade my +5 sword to +10 to create sword of Artorias? I have the necessary items, so I believe, but the sword isn't available to modify or reinforce.
And what of this guy that kicked me down into a pit? I stupidly forgave expecting an item or him becoming a merchant. Wrong. I just want to return the favor and kick him down there...
And what of this guy that kicked me down into a pit? I stupidly forgave expecting an item or him becoming a merchant. Wrong. I just want to return the favor and kick him down there...
Red Liquorice
Member
+10 weapons by getting
the large ember from the Depths and giving it to Andre the Undead Parish blacksmith.
As for Patches:
If you DON'T forgive him, he would've given you a twin humanity. He does become a merchant back at Firelink once you have defeated Nito, the boss of Tomb of the Giants - so you can kick him off the edge back, but recommended only once you've bought his goodies!
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
Thank you.
I'm currently getting clobbered by 57 giant skeletons in that hidden-ish room in the tomb of the giants. So brutal. I just want the loot and to see what else is there, yeesh.
My mehod is leading them to a far corner, drop down attack, then book it back to the ladder and repeat haha.
Sgt.Pepper
Banned
Pyromancy works nicely. Jump over to the other side and lure the skeletons, then drop down and use something like Great Fireball, I killed four in one hit (Ascended Pyroflame +2).
So I just started the game today. Completely blind about the series except for how ridiculously difficult its stuppose to be.
I've reached the first boss and boy does the game dip in performance. Is this gonna happen throughout? It's not as bad as Dragon's Dogma but it's noticeable. A shame there is no install option.
I've reached the first boss and boy does the game dip in performance. Is this gonna happen throughout? It's not as bad as Dragon's Dogma but it's noticeable. A shame there is no install option.
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