Dark Souls

So what should my next build be? I kind of feel like trying out Pursuers but I don't want to perfectly duplicate my last sorcery build. I'm open to all suggestions.

It begs the question, what builds have you played?

In the order I made them:

- Typical unfocused first build, ended up at 32 int for CMW, 40 vit/40 end, BSS user at SL125.
- Strength/faith.
- Pure sorcery.
- Dex (didn't really care for this play style.
- Obsidian Greatsword (love this build as I've said before but definitely not up for cutting that tail again.)
- Faith/unknown... possible Artorias sword user but still fairly low-level.

Myself I think I'm going to try a STR/END build to use heavy weapons and heavy armors.

Pyromancy build? Use chaos weapons.

Maybe, because I do have a strange yen for Combustion for some reason. I had this idea just now: and int/att-centered build that uses a catalyst and flame in the main hand, using sorcery at range and Combustion up close and forgoing melee entirely. Terrible? Maybe.

I've been thinking about trying a full on Pyromancy also, but it's not really a build as Pyromancy doesn't depend on any stat. I guess you could get a ton of attunement slots, and if you intend on doing almost nothing else you'll probably need them as Pyromancies don't have many casts.

That could be interesting but you should go catalyst in one hand and pyro flame in the other!

An updated Asylum and starting the player with the weapon upgrade box, a few spells, weapons, armours and some upgrade materials would let them explore the mechanics a good deal.

You can use real magic, though. No reason they can't tweak it and twink the starting levels. No summoning or invasions either, but it would highlight the combat system which is the star of the show.

Yea, max attunement because not only are there not many castings some take up two slots. I wonder how it would play on NG+ with double of each and how to attune them. You could be a walking flamethrower. But I added the chaos stuff in there two. I never used chaos stuff and I think you need 'live' humanity to max their damage which is a wrinkle.

Speaking of a demo, I had an awesome idea. When it ends at the asylum it could restart in new demo+ to make it more like the game. Then you twink the player or equipment. It could work.

The chaos pyromancies actually don't use humanity so no worries there. I would think by the end of NG+ your ideal rollout would be something like:

1x Great Chaos Fireball (2 slots)
2x Great Fireball
2x Great Combustion
2x Black Flame

So eight slots for twelve ranged spells and thirty-two close range spells. Seems kind of bad, BUT:

2x Great Fireball
2x Black Flame
Dusk Crown Ring

Only four slots for sixteen ranged spells and the same thirty-two close range ones, only they're all the better version. Hm. Not so bad?

Clearly your next build has to bee-line for the Parrying Dagger, and your gimmick will be successfully parrying everything in the game at least once. No blocking, ever.

Based on my record with parries a better challenge playthrough for me might be "try to parry one thing successfully at some point during the game."

Really liking my new look, and this character's a ton of fun. Started off with a rush towards Black Knight weapons, got lucky with a greatsword drop, and just built around that. I finally dipped into Pyromancy around level 65 and I'm sinking most of my souls into that now.

If anyone on PC has a BK Halberd or Greataxe around level 70, just let me know what you'd want for it. Heh. Not looking forward to farming for them otherwise. What's a good logical followup STR weapon for those that isn't a giant club?



(Havel's legs are down there somewhere)

How far into the game are you? The drop rate on all BK weapons is pretty high in the Kiln. Most people have more of them than they can handle by the time they finish NG.

I'm not far from there. I just killed Seath, and I just have the Ruins, Izalith, and then the Tomb/Kiln to go.

Ain't that the truth. I have at least a half dozen of swords and a bunch of the others from my last NG+ run to Gwyn.

Weird, I never got anything except the mandatory chunks.

I think I do, but I'm only ~45ish. Might be a while.

Should make a fire Zwei or fire Claymore? I've only got 16 str so I could one hand the Claymore but I'd have to two hand the Zwei and I don't plan on getting enough str to one hand the Zwei on this character.

Claymore pretty easily imo.

Yea. Two handing is a situational thing IMO, not something I would do as my only option.

Did you just kill Lautrec or did you take out his cohorts first? I opted for the latter which increases the difficulty tenfold. Running up the stairs to the top area by the stain glass pulls Lautrec away from his friends for a good isolated smashing since he will actually outrun them.

Just combusted Nito to death. He wasn't hard, but only because I could block/sink his damage and heal. Just Izalith and the DLC to go. Anyone know how to kill those stone giant bastards in the royal woods? I keep making mistakes on them.

So far I've only done the DLC content with a strength character, and I have to admit: doing it with that character build is basically easy mode. I'll tell you how I killed those stone giant guys:

I stood there with my Artorias shield up until they swung, then I hit him once with my Dragon's Tooth +5. I then put my Artorias shield back up while he did whatever silly stuff he was going to do. Creating an explosion with his buried axe, or howling at the moon... or... whatever the hell it was. But when he swung his axe again, I then hit him once more with my weapon and he was dead.

This, by the way, is the way I've been able to defeat pretty much every enemy (boss or otherwise) in the DLC. There were minor variations: I had to move a little to step out of the goo that Artorias leaves behind, and I had to move a lot when Kalameet flew straight up and breathed fire downwards. But by and large, me and my shield are best friends now.

I know this doesn't help you much if you can't use Artorias' shield. But... well... I admit it. I'm basking at how awesome this build is for all this content.

Ok, PC version acquired. Do I need to add you guys to some kind of friends list or something? If so, which one?

Additionally: what about a strength/sorcery build? Maybe 36ish int to run Pursuers and Soul Spear and 40 strength for BK weapons and Dragon's Tooth? It might be spread too thin, so alternately I guess 32 strength would work for just the BKH and the Large Club. My concern with this one is that the points in strength may be kind of wasted if sorcery takes over all of the combat the way it can/does. Thoughts?

What about strength/pyromancy, using ultra-slow stuff like Dragon's Tooth and GC/BF when quick attacks are needed? And the Dusk Crown Ring? I'm finding this idea more appealing.

I think it might be the case that in the new content, physical damage is encouraged. The OGS made short work of most things including Manus once I got it, and when I dipped my strength/faith character into the new content the Sanctuary Guardian was just laughably easy with the BKH (on NG++ no less).

I still don't understand weapon upgrading fully. I have Large titanite shards, but I can't get anyone to upgrade a weapon to +10. What am I missing?

Short answer: the Very Large Ember.

Long answer: weapon upgrading works more or less like this: upgrading a weapon past anything +5 or +10 requires ascension, which is in a different menu option. Some ascensions (like fire and lightning) can be done from the beginning of the game by the appropriate smith, but most of them require an ember. So you got the Large Ember at some point, which is what lets you go beyond +5, and now you need the Very Large Ember to go beyond +10.

Oh, huh.

One thing I don't like about dropping off embers is that I can't remember which blacksmith I've given what to (though it appears nobody has a very large ember).

an ember, probably.


Bags, DSPC uses the xbox live frends list, so you have me already and probably a few others.

Each ember only goes with one blacksmith. So just check a wiki if you don't remember.

Yep. In general:

Andre - physical, divine
Rickert - magic
Vamos - fire
Giant - lightning, boss weapons

man, this game.

Man. That's a cool technique but the last thing Dark Souls PvP needed was even more nonsensical backstabs.

Ok, cool. Time to add me, everyone who doesn't have me yet and is playing this on PC. Gamertag is surplus bags.

amfritz on the Xbox. amf on the steam, I think. I am mobile right now so add me as I may forget later.

ETA: maybe I'll try this smart glass app.