Dark Souls II - Scholar of the First Sin - April 7, 2015

[Backlash]

I did find the Sunlight Altar on my own last night.  I also spent several minutes in that room looking for a hidden bonfire, because there was a message about an illusory wall and bonfire, and I've noticed so far that all the covenants have a bonfire right next to them so you can easily re-enlist (or give covenant items) without fighting through enemies.  Finally concluded it was a troll message and that you'd have to fight a few enemies to get back to the sunlight altar

 

[guardian_owl]

Ya, found the same troll message and did the same thing . It's not too bad, just have to fight one Ogre (though you could probably just run by it given how long the path is) and one twin blade dude from the second bonfire. I've switched around covenants a few times to buy other things and then gone back to sun bros, I'm just holding onto my sun medals until I have enough to max it out in one go because I am guessing you don't hold your place in rank if you abandon a covenant?

 

[britton_draws]

So I started a fresh NG after beating the game a couple days ago.

I started as a Sorcerer and am really enjoying it. Now that I have already beaten the game and now the patterns I have told myself I can't summon anyone on this play through and have been blazing past most bosses first try now. 

 

[Trakan]

I have read conflicting things online. Can I kill Freja my first playthrough, burn an acetic there making her essentially NG+ and then kill her again and have the Old Paledrake Soul? I believe Judou said he has the sword?

I have it too. Yes, you can do this. It's what I did.

 

[Supplice]

I had assumed when I saw those messages they were Trolls or referred to a Pharros Lockstone thing!

I have read conflicting things online. Can I kill Freja my first playthrough, burn an acetic there making her essentially NG+ and then kill her again and have the Old Paledrake Soul?

I made a few troll messages myself, . Especially when you put liar in front of the NPCs not found around Majula. Helps when the community rates your messages over 150, making it believable. :lol: Reminds me of the good ol' times in Demon's Souls with "Take a few steps forward."

You can also do the bonfire ascetic thing with other bosses too if you need additional weapons/rings from them. The max NG+ can go to is seven. Found that out after fully maxing out my favorite weapons and armor that required twinkling twinkling titanite.

Ya, found the same troll message and did the same thing . It's not too bad, just have to fight one Ogre (though you could probably just run by it given how long the path is) and one twin blade dude from the second bonfire. I've switched around covenants a few times to buy other things and then gone back to sun bros, I'm just holding onto my sun medals until I have enough to max it out in one go because I am guessing you don't hold your place in rank if you abandon a covenant?

You hold your place in your covenant when you switch. You can check with Shalquoir about the ranks in your previous covenants. Also, you do not accumulate sin for switching covenants.

 

[britton_draws]

I have it too. Yes, you can do this. It's what I did.

Well I know what I am B lining for tonight then!

Was she all that much difficult on NG+? I feel like especially as a magic user keeping back and avoiding her laser thing shouldnt be all that hard?

 

[Supplice]

Well I know what I am B lining for tonight then!

Was she all that much difficult on NG+? I feel like especially as a magic user keeping back and avoiding her laser thing shouldnt be all that hard?

She didn't give me too much trouble with [customspoiler='awesome tactical strategy'] circle strafing and baiting laser. This was for melee, but same for ranged. [/customspoiler]The only thing worth noting is watching out for the minions on NG+.

 

[britton_draws]

She didn't give me too much trouble with [customspoiler='awesome tactical strategy'] circle strafing and baiting laser. This was for melee, but same for ranged. [/customspoiler]The only thing worth noting is watching out for the minions on NG+.

Haha yeah I feel like her strategy is pretty simple.

AND EFF THOSE MINIONS. I finished my first playthrough with like no health left and went to breath a sigh of relief and let loose on the controller when one jumped at me still and I nearly pooped myself.

 

[io]

I also went back and found the two hidden bonfires in Drangleic Castle. One is near the first boss - I just hadn't gone down some ladders to find it (and it is behind an illusory wall to boot). The other is down that hole where the abyssal covenant guy is. I entered that covenant but didn't step into the circle. If I do that, can I get back whenever I want? Or am I stuck in there?

Anyone have an answer for this?

Ok [customspoiler='location]It's right above the Medusa Boss entrance. After killing the sorcerer's traveling from the 2nd bonfire, go up the ramp and turn left (where the scary as hell black phantom was). You'll now be on a ledge overlooking the entrance to the boss. Make a 180 degree turn so that your back is to the ledge. Sidestep to the right, push X on that wall to open an illusionary door with a chest, then sidestep to the left to the other side and press X to open an illusionary door hiding the bonfire.[/customspoiler]

Damn, I wandered all around there last night and couldn't find that. That place is pretty confusing though. I think I kept going in circles and ending up back to the first or second bonfire. I don't remember what the boss area was like there.

I am a compulsive message reader so I found it the first I went through there.

Yeah, me too, but I never saw anything about that nor about the 3rd bonfire in Iron Keep. But yeah, I'm seeing a LOT of trolling messages in the game now. For the sorcerer in Aldia's Keep trapped behind the fog that

Spoiler

supposedly attacks you if you are Hollow, there were a couple of notes with high ratings that told you to be hollow. That's a pretty crappy thing to do to a player to screw up his game. That one is particularly tricky because just prior in Shrine of Amana/Undead Crypt there was a door you could only open if you were hollow and the notes there were helpful about it. And now that I know trolling messages are getting high ratings I will trust them even less.

.

Also, something else I'm seeing a lot of ias messages right in front of walls saying "Illusory wall" (or hidden path or whatever they say). But they are right where you'd have to click 'X' so instead of being able to check the wall, you get the message instead. Some of them have high ratings too. So are people able to block hidden paths with messages like that or does the game not allow it?

Also, does anyone remember where that "embedded" guy is (a hollow tied up to a fence)? I just realized I have the "embedded key" to use on him and I couldn't remember where he was.

 

[Kameleon]

Yeah, me too, but I never saw anything about that nor about the 3rd bonfire in Iron Keep. But yeah, I'm seeing a LOT of trolling messages in the game now. For the sorcerer in Aldia's Keep trapped behind the fog that

Spoiler

supposedly attacks you if you are Hollow, there were a couple of notes with high ratings that told you to be hollow. That's a pretty crappy thing to do to a player to screw up his game. That one is particularly tricky because just prior in Shrine of Amana/Undead Crypt there was a door you could only open if you were hollow and the notes there were helpful about it. And now that I know trolling messages are getting high ratings I will trust them even less.

.

Also, something else I'm seeing a lot of ias messages right in front of walls saying "Illusory wall" (or hidden path or whatever they say). But they are right where you'd have to click 'X' so instead of being able to check the wall, you get the message instead. Some of them have high ratings too. So are people able to block hidden paths with messages like that or does the game not allow it?

Also, does anyone remember where that "embedded" guy is (a hollow tied up to a fence)? I just realized I have the "embedded key" to use on him and I couldn't remember where he was.

1. Yes, you can only talk to him as a Hollow. [customspoiler='other requirements']Just make sure you don't/haven't pull(ed) the lever in the hallway on the other side of the stairs (because I did)[/customspoiler]
2. Yeah, I've been duped by those too. I tend to upvote them since I keep thinking it will make me not select them anymore (but that never happens, I just forget). What I'll usually do is disconnect and try to press where it was. I think a good hint for knowing which ones of those messages are real is how close it is to the wall. If there's an actual illusory wall, they tend to be a bit back so you can actually press "X" where the illusory wall is supposed to be.
3. Last (fourth?) bonfire of Drangleic Castle, go down the hallway opposite the boss room. Take the elevating platform in the middle. You might need to use the lever to bring it down, unless you haven't unlocked it yet. [customspoiler='unlock condition']If not, you'll have to go up a long ladder to the right and go through the iron gate. Once there, you'll have to fight some statues soldiers, making sure to kill them near the giant. After successfully killing one or two near it, it will turn the switch it's holding (looks like a bird bath) and unlock the platform. You'll then have to either homeward bone/aged feather out of there, or go through the small door and proceed past a large part of the level with some Alonne Knights with bows, some Mastodons, and some Syan Knights. [/customspoiler]

 

[britton_draws]

Also, does anyone remember where that "embedded" guy is (a hollow tied up to a fence)? I just realized I have the "embedded key" to use on him and I couldn't remember where he was.

Pretty sure from the third bonfire in the Castle, you take the elevator platform up

 

[io]

1. • 
     
     • Yes, you can only talk to him as a Hollow. [customspoiler="other requirements"]Just make sure you don't/haven't pull(ed) the lever in the hallway on the other side of the stairs (because I did)[/customspoiler]

1. Wait, you CAN'T talk to him as a Hollow is what I've read. That is, if you are Hollow he will try to kill you. I talked to him human, after opening the fog, and he will talk to me and sell me stuff. Thing is, other than a little equipment, he has nothing good (no new spells or anything - I already had what he sells). He has a witch's hat that gives you an additional attunement slot.
   
   But I also know he invades as a phantom later if you release him. I was helping someone and he invaded and wiped us both out.
   
   So, the King's Door in Forest of Giants? The first one you find. Nothing happens in there - odd... Do I need to do something else for anything to happen in there. I saw lots of bloodstains of people fighting something in there. If it is the tree giant things, I still get "Nothing happens" when I approach them.
   
   Here's my answer on the Pilgrims of the Dark covenant: http://darksouls2.wiki.fextralife.com/Pilgrims+of+Dark#.UzTYuZDn-Uk
   
   So how tough are these guys?

 

[io]

I'm really confused about Navlaan.

The Wiki says this:

Spoiler

4) Walk straight ahead and into the 3 archways. If you make a left you will encounter several messages on the ground imploring you to pull back. At the end of a hallway is a lever with another message saying Don’t You Dare! Warning: Pulling this lever to free Navlaan will cancel out a side quest and loot. If you do pull the lever, go back and down the opposite hallway where you meet the now free Royal Sorcerer Navlaan. He talks to you briefly and is available as a merchant.

No mention of him attacking you. I did make a PS+ backup of my save just before opening the fog so I can download that if needed - problem is I'll have to wait till like 4am to do so which means I can't play tonight .

But the walkthrough doesn't mention the sidequest.

Well, crap, the Wiki has this:

http://darksouls2.wiki.fextralife.com/Royal+Sorcerer+Navlaan#.UzTyi5Dn-Uk

So I guess you DO need to talk to him as hollow, but NOT open the fog. I guess if you open the fog and then approach him as hollow you get in trouble. I wish wherever I read that which only had half the info was more thorough. I was trolled by the Internet . So I guess I will reload my save and redo that part.

 

[Jodou]

Well I know what I am B lining for tonight then!

Was she all that much difficult on NG+? I feel like especially as a magic user keeping back and avoiding her laser thing shouldnt be all that hard?

For me she was initially, but only because I was trying a (silly) strat of ignoring the adds. If you're super aggressive in taking out the adds, then she's not particularly hard. Only real RNG that can you over is when she jumps and you lose sight of her. I had a 5% wipe once thanks to that because I thought she had jumped further away and her leg came crashing down on me. : \

 

[britton_draws]

So, the King's Door in Forest of Giants? The first one you find. Nothing happens in there - odd... Do I need to do something else for anything to happen in there. I saw lots of bloodstains of people fighting something in there. If it is the tree giant things, I still get "Nothing happens" when I approach them.

Yeah there is something you get that lets you 'interact' with them.

It is basically the last thing you do in the game and then the final boss. I really liked this sequence too, added a really cool aspect to the common story arch I felt.

So the Sorcerer I started the other night is already level 69 haha I really need to slow down with my Dark Souls : p

 

[io]

So, wait, as I understand it, this guys "dairy" is total bullshit then:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/27/dark-souls-ii-diary-an-uneasy-beginning

He says he kills all the Giants (in the memories) before he goes to Aldia's Keep and Dragon Aerie. But I think the way it works is that you don't get the item needed to unlock the memories until you get to the Dragon Aerie, right?

 

[io]

Ya, found the same troll message and did the same thing . It's not too bad, just have to fight one Ogre (though you could probably just run by it given how long the path is) and one twin blade dude from the second bonfire. I've switched around covenants a few times to buy other things and then gone back to sun bros, I'm just holding onto my sun medals until I have enough to max it out in one go because I am guessing you don't hold your place in rank if you abandon a covenant?

FYI - You do hold your place. I turned in Sun medals 4 or 5 times and joined other covenants when I came upon them. I would just make my way back to the sun cov, rejoin, and then turn in medals. I got the gold trophy for that a while ago now and just keep getting more sun medals from the phantoms I summon. The question is do you get anything for turning in any more than the 30 needed to max out your covenant level?

 

[britton_draws]

So, wait, as I understand it, this guys "dairy" is total bullshit then:

http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/27/dark-souls-ii-diary-an-uneasy-beginning

He says he kills all the Giants (in the memories) before he goes to Aldia's Keep and Dragon Aerie. But I think the way it works is that you don't get the item needed to unlock the memories until you get to the Dragon Aerie, right?

Yeah it seems like his timeline is a bit warped. As far as I know, as was the case with my play through, you needed the item you get at the very end of the Dragon Aerie to access the memories.

 

[guardian_owl]

Ha, anyone else not find the switch to move the ship in the Wharf? I went down to the end of docks, wondered HTF do I get to the ship. I saw that wheel attached to the rope which goes into the water near the sorcery vendor and spent about a minute or two pressing X, or chopping at the wheel or the rope to break it. Wandered around some more looking for something I missed. Looked up on a walkthrough to see that I missed a switch. Did a full circle of the end area (starting by backtracking through the shortcut) a couple of times still walking past the switch, then finally noticed a new message on the ground, zero rated that said "switch ahead" right in front of it.

Given the noise it makes it would of made more sense to put an eye-drawing large bell, and then hang a rope down for you to pull, that tiny switch was easy to miss even with the pharro stone, hanging torch burning.

Damn, I wandered all around there last night and couldn't find that. That place is pretty confusing though. I think I kept going in circles and ending up back to the first or second bonfire. I don't remember what the boss area was like there.

Ok, let's see if I can remember. [customspoiler='More Detailed Location']Starting from second bonfire in Earthen Peak as soon as you walk through the door turn left and go up the stairs. Rather than going through the door that you unlocked that shows the view of outside, look for the tall ladder that has one enemy hiding behind a column near its base (it's the one that also has a floor plate that triggers an arrow to fire at you). Climb the ladder and then as you are facing the giant gears that were turning before you burned the windmill, go right. If you see two sorcerers and poison pots you are in the right place. Dispatch the sorcerers and spear knights and instead of going left to the boss chamber entrance, go up the ramp, turn left and follow the path up to the ledge above the boss chamber. There's an illusion door on both sides.[/customspoiler]

edit:

Or if you are still lost just backtrack from the first Iron Keep bonfire, take the elevator back down, then keep taking lefts (I think it is 3 lefts) and you'll find the ledge.

 

[Backlash]

Ha, anyone else not find the switch to move the ship in the Wharf? I went down to the end of docks, wondered HTF do I get to the ship. I saw that wheel attached to the rope which goes into the water near the sorcery vendor and spent about a minute or two pressing X, or chopping at the wheel or the rope to break it. Wandered around some more looking for something I missed. Looked up on a walkthrough to see that I missed a switch. Did a full circle of the end area (starting by backtracking through the shortcut) a couple of times still walking past the switch, then finally noticed a new message on the ground, zero rated that said "switch ahead" right in front of it.

Given the noise it makes it would of made more sense to put an eye-drawing large bell, and then hang a rope down for you to pull, that tiny switch was easy to miss even with the pharro stone, hanging torch burning.

I totally missed it and did the exact same thing as you (that wheel thing totally looks like it should do something). I ended up dropping my summon sign back at the bonfire and the guy I was helping ran through the area (obviously he had done it multiple times before) and when I saw him pull the lever I realized what the deal was.

 

[Backlash]

Also, anyone else having DNS errors when trying to sign in to PSN?  It has happened to me twice in the last 2 days.  Last night I got it again, so I had to play offline.  I figured I'd go ahead and kill the gargoyles while I had that problem so I didn't have to worry about Bell Keepers (and I knew I wanted to try them without summons anyway).  Felt a little cheap playing that section offline, but I figured when life gives you lemons...

I did beat them on my second try and didn't find them as difficult at the fight from Dark Souls.  Maybe because I was supposed to do this area a long time ago?  I still love not knowing where to go and playing areas out of order

 

[Jimmienoman]

Well I got my thrill of beating my head against the wall last night. Wanted to beat the sentinels all 3 at once. So I had to burn an aesthetic there.

5 hours of abuse and I finally bested them. Too bad it was 4am when I finished as I was too stubborn to stop until I beat them.

PS I suck against multiple mobs hence why I wanted to try it.

 

[io]

Ok, let's see if I can remember. [customspoiler="More Detailed Location"]Starting from second bonfire in Earthen Peak as soon as you walk through the door turn left and go up the stairs. Rather than going through the door that you unlocked that shows the view of outside, look for the tall ladder that has one enemy hiding behind a column near its base (it's the one that also has a floor plate that triggers an arrow to fire at you). Climb the ladder and then as you are facing the giant gears that were turning before you burned the windmill, go right. If you see two sorcerers and poison pots you are in the right place. Dispatch the sorcerers and spear knights and instead of going left to the boss chamber entrance, go up the ramp, turn left and follow the path up to the ledge above the boss chamber. There's an illusion door on both sides.[/customspoiler]

edit:
Or if you are still lost just backtrack from the first Iron Keep bonfire, take the elevator back down, then keep taking lefts (I think it is 3 lefts) and you'll find the ledge.

Yeah, I found it last night. For whatever reason the other day I just couldn't figure out how to get back to the boss area from the second bonfire. I kept making circles around that fan blade area and ending up back where I started. I should have just backed in from the Iron Keep - I forgot about that.

The funny thing is once I got there I had apparently found the hidden wall with the chest, but not the one on the other side with the bonfire.

I reloaded my PS+ save and talked to Navlaan as a Hollow (without letting him go) so now I can do the sidequests he provides. Problem is now I have to wait for all the flames to get the map guy's helm (I don't want to kill him). I have 7 of the 8 - looks like I just need to finish up Aldia and Dragon's Aerie to get the last one.

I also never knew you could get the silver ring + 1 from the hag merchant. Apparently I've never spent enough with her (as she doesn't sell anything good beyond that key and initial Pharros lockstone).

Also, I read somewhere else that the Rotten is an easy one to kill after using ascetics. That's also where you can summon Lucatiel, right? (Though somehow I missed her when I did it the first time). I've seen her at Aldia's but have not talked to her so she doesn't leave. If I do the Rotten twice (since I did one fight with Lucatiel already even though she never entered the Smelter Demon arena when I did it) I should then be able to talk to her and get her equipment/trophy, right?

 

[io]

Also, anyone else having DNS errors when trying to sign in to PSN? It has happened to me twice in the last 2 days. Last night I got it again, so I had to play offline. I figured I'd go ahead and kill the gargoyles while I had that problem so I didn't have to worry about Bell Keepers (and I knew I wanted to try them without summons anyway). Felt a little cheap playing that section offline, but I figured when life gives you lemons...

You actually don't have to do this offline if you want to solo it. I wanted to do it with summons but I only ever saw one, once. And while you wait for them to show up you invariably get invaded. So eventually I just did a dash from the bonfire in Lost Bastille and up the two sets of stairs (sometimes killing the 3 dwarves, sometimes not). More often than not I didn't even get invaded anyway. If you go quickly chances are it won't happen. Now, I did clear out the top floor of Belfry Luna while the server maintenance was being done a week or so ago. That was hard enough without some jackass invading.

Also it seems like you can run up there and go through the fog even when an invader is present. I know I did it once for sure. I'm sure that pisses them off, too, which is an added bonus . I say f*$%ck anyone who is invading and trying to grief you.

I got invaded in the Undead Crypt while I was just going back to talk to the guy who hates light (after getting the King's Ring since he gives you stuff then). I had to back out away from the spell casters and take him on near the bonfire. This is the first time the online portion seemed cheap to me in this game. He had a twinblade I think and would make contact with me even when his thrust was 5-10 feet short of me. I got a few hits in on him but I was using my slow, sweeping PvE greatsword so I really didn't stand a chance. If I can increase my weight allowance a bit I might stash the lightning winged spear in my equip inventory to use against those people in combo with a greatshield.

 

[Supplice]

So the Sorcerer I started the other night is already level 69 haha I really need to slow down with my Dark Souls : p

Same here lol. My first character is just retired on NG++ and I started another to help out friends. Just staying steady at 50 for belfry stuff since I need the chunks. I'll try for the exhalted rings soon on another slot soon. That is going to be an interesting speed run.

Also it seems like you can run up there and go through the fog even when an invader is present. I know I did it once for sure. I'm sure that pisses them off, too, which is an added bonus . I say f*$%ck anyone who is invading and trying to grief you.

Could always troll them with chameleon too. :lol: I'm surprised on how many people actually pass by an unsuspecting vase.

 

[Supplice]

Dark Souls II Patch 1.03 Announced

From Software has just announced new patch 1.03 for Dark Souls II. Details regarding release date is still kept under wraps but developer does revealed list of changes and bug fix Dark Souls II patch 1.03 will come with. ~Gamepur
 
The changelog below is from the Japanese website of Dark Souls II
 

• To change the specifications to be able to revive as a live person when the success of the cooperative play “white sign agalmatolite” and using the “small white sign pyrophyllite”
• At Ojo Dolan Greig, the problem was fixed that the progress is impossible gates without opening
• Online multiplayer, after a failed matching, correction of phenomenon that can not be used online items such as white sign pyrophyllite
• Online multiplayer, when you start the battle with the knight of mirror to summon in other players, bug fixes fail to summon the client
• Online multiplayer, modification of phenomenon that error code from being displayed not start normally in Shigo of non-execution chamber
• Online multiplayer, modification of phenomenon that would take off the ring of each pledge and before going to the other world after matching
• Modification of the phenomenon that item being left to stand for once can not be obtained, would have been displayed “Inventory is full” and
• Corrected in the sinus of the gap, so as to display a dialog when entering the coffin where you can change the gender
• Bug fixes that illusion, blood stains, the message does not appear in some area
• Bug fixes or item object which is installed from being reset to the initial state
• Improvement of display response in Character Making
• Modification of the phenomenon of tattoo set angle set by the Character Making from being changed
• Improved display speed of the Start menu, the bonfire menu
• In the round of the second round or later, a particular item modification of phenomenon that are not line up to shop
• Modification of the phenomenon that buried under the ground in the tower of the soil, when it is summoned by the wall in front of the main room of the area
• A problem was fixed that when you died equipped with a ring of the basket of life, lose soul
• Modification of the phenomenon of those players face in the dialog of summoning sign is different from being displayed
• Modification of the icon image of the “guardian of the fort” trophy
• When the guard occurs, is modified to vibrate the controller
• Partially modified the text of equipment Help menu of “capacity correction value darkness”
• affect (Error) on the ability of the higher
• to affect the ability (positive) lower
• Modification of the phenomenon would fall by slipping in the elevator on the rise, when you use the spell in the state that except for the binoculars

 

[io]

• To change the specifications to be able to revive as a live person when the success of the cooperative play “white sign agalmatolite” and using the “small white sign pyrophyllite”

So does this mean you are supposed to revive as human when helping out? I thought it was a bug that it happened sometimes and it was not supposed to happen at all. Not that it matters too much. I still have like 30 human effigies after using 10+ and I have yet to buy one either. I noticed that it had not been happening at all recently so I thought they fixed this with the last patch (to make it so you don't revive as human).

 

[Supplice]

Initially they said it was a bug (ref back to when I posted their JP twitter response). I guess they changed their minds.

 

[Kameleon]

Initially they said it was a bug (ref back to when I posted their JP twitter response). I guess they changed their minds.

Considering the original Dark Souls gave you a humanity when you helped beat the boss, so you could turn human if you wanted, I can understand them letting you become human now all of the time.

So here's what I'm understanding from those patch notes (since it seems like Google translate was used or something).

• Online multiplayer: Allowing you to use online items (ex. white soapstone) after failing to connect to a session.
• Online multiplayer: When fighting the Looking Glass Knight, fixes the bug of summoning a blue phantom to the fight.
• Online multiplayer: Fixes bug which removes the covenant ring before being summoned as a grey phantom (Bellfries)
• In Things Betwixt, displays a message when using the coffin to change your gender
• Fixes bug of messages and bloodstains not appearing in some areas.
• Improves responsiveness when changing appearance during Character Creation
• Fixex bug that caused one to lose their souls after death while wearing the Ring of Life Protection
• When guarding, the controller will now vibrate

A few of the other ones don't make sense to me. Not being allowed to use a soapstone if my connection failed, the gender-swapping coffin, and losing your souls upon death with the Life protection ring all happened to me.

 

[io]

Oh, crap - I just realized something. When I stripped all my armor off to go into one of the acid areas I noticed I looked a lot like a woman (well, with the bra thing anyway). I thought that was odd as I definitely started off as a dude. I know I tweaked some of the sliders though (including the "masculine/feminine" one) so I thought maybe I just screwed up in the beginning.

But with all my armor off I was a pretty ugly woman (with masculine facial features, short hair, etc). I just realized I used that coffin thing very early on in the game. I asked you guys here what it did and no one answered. Because it certainly didn't tell or show me anything when I did that. It looks like the bug fix is to show a dialog telling you about it - because like I said it said nothing when I did it. I expected to be taken to a new area or something like the coffin in the original Dark Souls but I just popped right back out of it. I just figured I didn't have the right item or something. I was probably wearing a helmet at the time and couldn't tell I had changed.

 

[britton_draws]

UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

So I sped through my NG as the Sorcerer to get to Freija so I could get the Moonlight Greatsword and I am getting my a$$ handed to me. I beat her just fine the first time but now after I burned the Ascetic I just can't get her. I tried getting summons to help but they are extremely rare for her I feel like and every person I have summoned is literally the most incompetent player ever I feel like, dying within the first few moment of the fight. I literally tried all last night with no success...

Any tips?

 

[guardian_owl]

Oh, crap - I just realized something. When I stripped all my armor off to go into one of the acid areas I noticed I looked a lot like a woman (well, with the bra thing anyway). I thought that was odd as I definitely started off as a dude. I know I tweaked some of the sliders though (including the "masculine/feminine" one) so I thought maybe I just screwed up in the beginning.

But with all my armor off I was a pretty ugly woman (with masculine facial features, short hair, etc). I just realized I used that coffin thing very early on in the game. I asked you guys here what it did and no one answered. Because it certainly didn't tell or show me anything when I did that. It looks like the bug fix is to show a dialog telling you about it - because like I said it said nothing when I did it. I expected to be taken to a new area or something like the coffin in the original Dark Souls but I just popped right back out of it. I just figured I didn't have the right item or something. I was probably wearing a helmet at the time and couldn't tell I had changed.

I did that too and didn't realize what it did until after I read about it online (I thought why are my dying screams so high pitched ). just pop back into the coffin and it will flip you back over to the other gender.

 

[Supplice]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNjegMau5JA

 

[britton_draws]

That was amazing Supplice hahaha

I finally beat the bastard Freija on NG+ and got my MLGS. Man do I love that thing. After I got it and leveled it to +2 for now I went and just helped dominate the Scorpioness like 10 times. I love this new build I have created, much more fun to play as than the archer I made on my first run through of the game hah

 

[Supplice]

Another one worth watching.

Dark Souls 2 - Neo fights the Twin Pursuers - Bare Fists No Damage [NG+++++]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfo_sbhI5oY

 

[britton_draws]

Another one worth watching.

This was literally my face the entire time hahaha

 

[io]

I don't see how that guy was rolling into so many attacks. Every time I roll anywhere near an enemy attack I get nailed. I think he did pop up a quick piece of text saying his ADP was 99, though. So maybe that makes a difference.

But yeah, I'm not doing that .

So in my own game last night I fought my way to the Dragon and got the Ashen Heart. Then I did the first memory. Man, I had no idea what I was doing in there the first few times and the timer is a pain.

Spoiler

I assumed I was supposed to go to that courtyard area and beat all the big giants there. More often then not I'd get killed by some giant fireball. It took me like 4 times to figure out that was coming from the soldiers, not the giants :lol:. I thought, well, with the timer, there's no way I'm supposed to go past all those guys and do something, so it has to be them! Well, yeah, then one time I ran past, I found the other buildings/stairs, and finally found the dead giant you get the soul from. Silly me, I just assumed it would be a "boss" fight and I'd have to kill something...

So I see for the Dragon Covenant you need a petrified egg. Where is that? You don't have to beat the big dragon at the end for that do you? I was messing around in that area and was really surprised that I saw no summons signs and even when I placed mine I found very few takers. I got called in a couple times as a Shade but that is almost silly - you are done once you kill just one of the big knights on the way to the dragon. I may just be too high a level at this point and kind of screwed in terms of getting summons help. I'm like SL 160 now, with close to 100 hours in. Once you beat the end boss, can you continue on in the regular game? At that point I'd want to try bonfire ascetics on the Rotten to get Lucatiel's trophy. But I'll do it just before the end boss if that is the way it has to be done.

 

[britton_draws]

I don't see how that guy was rolling into so many attacks. Every time I roll anywhere near an enemy attack I get nailed. I think he did pop up a quick piece of text saying his ADP was 99, though. So maybe that makes a difference.

But yeah, I'm not doing that .

So in my own game last night I fought my way to the Dragon and got the Ashen Heart. Then I did the first memory. Man, I had no idea what I was doing in there the first few times and the timer is a pain.

Spoiler

I assumed I was supposed to go to that courtyard area and beat all the big giants there. More often then not I'd get killed by some giant fireball. It took me like 4 times to figure out that was coming from the soldiers, not the giants :lol:. I thought, well, with the timer, there's no way I'm supposed to go past all those guys and do something, so it has to be them! Well, yeah, then one time I ran past, I found the other buildings/stairs, and finally found the dead giant you get the soul from. Silly me, I just assumed it would be a "boss" fight and I'd have to kill something...

So I see for the Dragon Covenant you need a petrified egg. Where is that? You don't have to beat the big dragon at the end for that do you? I was messing around in that area and was really surprised that I saw no summons signs and even when I placed mine I found very few takers. I got called in a couple times as a Shade but that is almost silly - you are done once you kill just one of the big knights on the way to the dragon. I may just be too high a level at this point and kind of screwed in terms of getting summons help. I'm like SL 160 now, with close to 100 hours in. Once you beat the end boss, can you continue on in the regular game? At that point I'd want to try bonfire ascetics on the Rotten to get Lucatiel's trophy. But I'll do it just before the end boss if that is the way it has to be done.

The Petrified Egg is somewhat near the Ancient Dragon. Before you ascend the main set of stairs leading to him with all the guards on there, there should be an alternate path you can take by dropping down a ledge. From there you follow that new path and it leads to the Egg. I know that isn't very detailed I suppose but who wants to be told EXACTLY how to do stuff in a Souls game?! : P

And yes you can beat the final boss and still go around in your world as much as you like. The option to start NG+ is always there from the bonfire (cant remember if just in Majula or all of them) for when/if you choose to.

 

[Supplice]

I don't see how that guy was rolling into so many attacks. Every time I roll anywhere near an enemy attack I get nailed. I think he did pop up a quick piece of text saying his ADP was 99, though. So maybe that makes a difference.

But yeah, I'm not doing that .

You have to roll just before what would be the point of contact. With a single Pursuer, its more easy to do because he telegraphs his attacks in advance. Its just down to knowing his move-set. Being summoned a lot by people at FoFG makes for very good practice.

Anyway with my new character, I rushed to Earthen Keep to join the Sun covenant at SL 30. I didn't expect to get so many messages to know about 'sunbros/how to get the color' when being summoned for the FoFG/HToF areas lol

 

[io]

The Petrified Egg is somewhat near the Ancient Dragon. Before you ascend the main set of stairs leading to him with all the guards on there, there should be an alternate path you can take by dropping down a ledge. From there you follow that new path and it leads to the Egg. I know that isn't very detailed I suppose but who wants to be told EXACTLY how to do stuff in a Souls game?! : P

And yes you can beat the final boss and still go around in your world as much as you like. The option to start NG+ is always there from the bonfire (cant remember if just in Majula or all of them) for when/if you choose to.

Thanks - well, once I cleared the area of all the knights I looked around and didn't see anything. So, yeah, while it is good to find stuff yourself, sometimes a few hints are helpful. Since I thought I was thorough I just assumed I needed to kill the dragon to get it. That was very wrong and could have led to a lot of frustration .

You have to roll just before what would be the point of contact. With a single Pursuer, its more easy to do because he telegraphs his attacks in advance. Its just down to knowing his move-set. Being summoned a lot by people at FoFG makes for very good practice.

Anyway with my new character, I rushed to Earthen Keep to join the Sun covenant at SL 30. I didn't expect to get so many messages to know about 'sunbros/how to get the color' when being summoned for the FoFG/HToF areas lol

I got one message very early on after I joined asking me why I was yellow. But I was still probably more like SL 60-80 at the time. I guess you are seeing a lot of newbies at that level .

I know we've discussed this before but the free flow of souls in this game is almost ridiculous. I used the dup trick in Dark Souls to get a bunch of Hero souls so I could level up to where I wanted to be for the bosses and such. In this game, I almost wish I could dial back my soul level/soul memory so I could find more coop opportunities. And unlike both of the previous games, I never farmed for souls. For a while I was using the silver ring but I've since removed that - I don't want to level up any more than I have to. But doing the 30 medals for the Sun Covenant really pushed me up there too.

 

[britton_draws]

Thanks - well, once I cleared the area of all the knights I looked around and didn't see anything. So, yeah, while it is good to find stuff yourself, sometimes a few hints are helpful. Since I thought I was thorough I just assumed I needed to kill the dragon to get it. That was very wrong and could have led to a lot of frustration .

Hah yeah I attempted to fight him pretty much right away and I got my a$$ handed to me nearly as soon as the fight began haha

So I want the Black Witch Hat for this new build. What is the earliest point I can obtain it?

 

[Supplice]

I got one message very early on after I joined asking me why I was yellow. But I was still probably more like SL 60-80 at the time. I guess you are seeing a lot of newbies at that level .

I figured as much lol. Actually, I'm also surprised to see a few soul signs out this far as too. I'm still travelling around at SL 30. I saw a few in Huntsmen's Corpse, less so around the first boss of Earthen Keep, and none near the second boss or Iron Keep. On the northern side, I've seen four around Shaded Ruins, but none in Tseldora Cave. Didn't get "rat summoned" at all in both of their perspective locations. Also, there's plenty of action at Lost Bastille Bell area this early. Need those chunks.

So I want the Black Witch Hat for this new build. What is the earliest point I can obtain it?

I think Navlaan sells that set.

 

[Trakan]

Got the platinum.  Spoilers -

Spoiler

The Shrine of Winter skip is really easy to do to get the last few spells in NG++

 

[guardian_owl]

It's a little annoying that they put 5 exploding hollows in the same room as an important NPC is Lost Bastille.

 

[io]

Got the platinum. Spoilers -

Spoiler

The Shrine of Winter skip is really easy to do to get the last few spells in NG++

'Splain please! I noticed on the Wiki that nearly but not quite all of the covenant spells (and by that I mean all the casting stuff) were purchasable from that guy in NG++. Is that just an oversight and you can really buy them all then? I don't want to put in the time for that if not. And what is the easiest way to get Benhart and Lucatiels's stuff. Ascetics on the Rotten and the group of undead worshippers (forget where or what that is but it was easy with Benhart on NG anyway).

It's a little annoying that they put 5 exploding hollows in the same room as an important NPC is Lost Bastille.

Yeah. That was one place where the first thing I did was clear them all out until they stopped spawning.

 

[Supplice]

They have dedicated servers for this one, Dark Souls 1 was peer to peer as I understand it is why this is so much better.

I just learned from searching around that only the matching making portion is on dedicated servers, but the coop/invading is still on P2P. That certainly explains a lot now.

 

[io]

Yeah, I did finally get phantom backstabbed by an invader last night. So I'm facing off with him and then he takes a few swings so I get a couple in while his stamina is supposedly low. Next thing I know, I'm turned around 180 degrees and he's backstabbing me. WTF!? I attacked forward at him and I just got flipped backwards. At least in DS1 they would just disappear from in front of me and then all of a sudden be behind me backstabbing. This guy somehow flipped my character around.

Yeah... Invading sucks all around. A pox on anyone who does it. Tonight I was trying to get that petrified egg in Dragon's Shrine and I was pretty far in there when some jackass invades. In that part you really can't get back to the beginning, which I usually like to do when invaded so that when I get killed I can recover my souls more easily. I had about 60K with me this time which is more than usual! I guess you can get back if you jump off the ledges but I hadn't gotten in to the throne area yet and for all I knew there were more enemies in there. The last thing I wanted to be doing was engaging an enemy when the phantom shows up. So I sat in the little courtyard you have to fall into (where the mimic is) to get to the egg. I waited... And I waited some more... Finally I said, WTF, this guy is wasting my f*!&%ing time. So I quit the game at the XMB and restarted. Problem solved. But I gave him a good 10-15 minutes before I did that. There should be a time limit and if they don't find you they lose and you get an item.

 

[io]

Well, tonight I finished up the memories and then tried to keep Benhart alive during the Giant Lord one. Man, was that a pain. The first 4 or 5 times he ran off and got run over by the giant rolling head. I finally figured out that I need to run in there to trigger that while he's still fighting with the closer ones.

Then, invariably, he'd get pounded a few times by the fireballs and not have much health left by the time we got to the Giant Lord. I couldn't heal him because he kept running forward instead of following me.

So a few more times I got killed trying to either heal him or trying to take out the Giant Lord quickly before Benhart got finished off. Finally, I did it with Benhart having a sliver of health left. Then the idiot started to run back towards where the fireballs are! He disappeared and I didn't see the vanquished sign come up but it was also right when a fireball hit. I'm hoping he just faded away like he was supposed to after we won. Man, what a pain.

Is there any chance of him surviving the throne stuff? Does he only have to make it through one of those?

Then I went and tried my hand at the king. Yeah, I got slaughtered. I need to read up on that. The problem with both him and the dragon is that are they are a pain to get back to.

 

[britton_draws]

Well, tonight I finished up the memories and then tried to keep Benhart alive during the Giant Lord one. Man, was that a pain. The first 4 or 5 times he ran off and got run over by the giant rolling head. I finally figured out that I need to run in there to trigger that while he's still fighting with the closer ones.

Then, invariably, he'd get pounded a few times by the fireballs and not have much health left by the time we got to the Giant Lord. I couldn't heal him because he kept running forward instead of following me.

So a few more times I got killed trying to either heal him or trying to take out the Giant Lord quickly before Benhart got finished off. Finally, I did it with Benhart having a sliver of health left. Then the idiot started to run back towards where the fireballs are! He disappeared and I didn't see the vanquished sign come up but it was also right when a fireball hit. I'm hoping he just faded away like he was supposed to after we won. Man, what a pain.

Is there any chance of him surviving the throne stuff? Does he only have to make it through one of those?

Then I went and tried my hand at the king. Yeah, I got slaughtered. I need to read up on that. The problem with both him and the dragon is that are they are a pain to get back to.

The King really is quite easy to get back to. All you have to do is kill one enemy. The last bonfire is right next to that long hall room already. All you have to do is get there, drop down, kill the hollow under the stairs before he rings the bell, then hug the side wall as you go forward. You can actually run past all of the knights there with relative ease and then just got for Vendrick,

 

[Trakan]

'Splain please! I noticed on the Wiki that nearly but not quite all of the covenant spells (and by that I mean all the casting stuff) were purchasable from that guy in NG++. Is that just an oversight and you can really buy them all then? I don't want to put in the time for that if not. And what is the easiest way to get Benhart and Lucatiels's stuff. Ascetics on the Rotten and the group of undead worshippers (forget where or what that is but it was easy with Benhart on NG anyway).


Yeah. That was one place where the first thing I did was clear them all out until they stopped spawning.

Spoiler

I was able to get all spells on NG/NG+ aside from two miracles and a pyromancy. They are covenant related and require a lot of PVP which I don't care for. You can only get them from Chancellor Wellager on NG++ (can't use an ascetic.) Here's a video on how to do it. (Need to be on pre-patched game, Ver. 1.0. It's not hard to delete patches though.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXAppqzUUAw

As for the NPCs, I was able to do Flexile Sentry, Lost Sinner, and Smelter all on NG+ for Lucatiel. Benhart's I did two Congregations and Looking Glass on NG+.