You're pushing the stick around and in once while juggling other things. Obviously you know that. Against Capra and Smough, running is quite necessary because staying in close range while you haven't take care of their companions doesn't work. Being close of course makes them easier to hit you, but you also have the problem of close camera angles making it difficult to see their companions. Maybe it does for you and you're awesome.
If you stay in close, some of their attacks will go over your head. You can also pay attention and know when to run, step to the side, or unlock and try and dart through their legs.
You can block once against Smough, but twice? Then you need to chug a flask. Or maybe you have high enough poise, which is another concept that can be oblivious to new players.
Better yet - try not to get hit. If you do block, but still take damage - wait for the right time to chug a flask. Hell, this is still a mistake I make of 'oh shit, chug!' the moment I take damage, but really - you should re-position yourself, pay attention and wait for the right time to chug.
They're not unblockable, but blocking them prevents you from counterattacking effectively. Smough's attacks are of course heavy, Ornstein's attacks usually push you back or stun you enough that avoiding them are better to get more hits in.
- avoid getting hit and manually dodge out of the way
- or, have enough poise
- or, use a great shield
- and/or, use grass to regen stamina which can help loads
O&S is hellofafight, I still have a hard time with it if trying it solo, it's even harder if you are trying to kill a specific one first to get their soul/armor.
One thing I have noticed with O&S though, is some times their AI can get very 'streaky' --- I'll get like 5 attempts in a row where they are super aggressive and I go splat before I even manage to get a hit in, then I'll get sort of like, the 'easy-mode-AI set' of which for some reason - they are not nearly as aggressive and I get a bit more breathing room.
By time you get to O&S though, you have already cleared about half of the game - how much more gradual of an increase do you want? For me, it's one of those fights where I tend to know exactly what to do, it's just my skill in being able to execute it near perfectly that tends to be the problem. Every death, I can almost pinpoint exactly where I fucked up -- either getting cocky and going in for an attack when I shouldn't of, or getting panicked and trying to chug a flask instead of dodging/rolling out of the way.
One of the biggest keys to the fight (especially if you are trying to kill fatty first), is positioning yourself so fatty is in-between you and the other guy. Need some spatial awareness, and often may need to give up some opportunities to attack/heal just to ensure they stay positioned the optimal way.
