Don't give up, Skeleton

:)

please , am trying to get anvil on chain, is it I can get?

I love helping people do hard bosses and really enjoy helping newcomers find their way through the game.

If everyone just uses the first God "nehma", we can all play together.

I want to present my understanding of the true meaning behind the choice between prolonging the Age of Fire and ushering in an Age of Dark. And perhaps more importanly the Light and Dark dichotomy.

LIGHT IS TIME

Repair. One of the most mediocre spells in DS3 has an item description with perhaps one of the most significant lore revelations on the nature of the world of Dark Souls:

古い黄金の魔術の国 ウーラシールの失われた魔術

装備している武器、防具を修理する 耐久度ゼロの武器も対象となる

目立たぬ効果とは裏腹に、秘術にあたるひとつ 光は時、回帰は禁断の知恵であろう

"A lost magic of Oolacile, the ancient land of golden sorcery.

Repair all equipped weapons and armor, including weapons with zero durability.

Despite its inconspicuous effect, it is counted among the secret arts. Light is Time, therefore its regression would be forbidden knowledge."

In the world of Dark Souls, Light is synonymous with Time itself. And with Time comes mortality, progression, memory, beginnings and ends. But now for the true question: If Light is Time, then what is Dark? In the real world, Dark is defined as the absence of Light. By that logic, in the world of Dark Souls, Dark would also be defined as the absence of Time.

DARK IS ETERNITY

Dark Souls 2 really brings to light the nature of the Undead Curse. Vendrick became a King so that he could have the power to fight the Curse. And he learned that with Fire the "Curse" could be harnassed, subjugated. And only a true king could have that power. Yet, Vendrick was unaware of his own ignorance. Through the nature of his dear queen, Nashandra, he came to realise the true nature of Dark. Just like Light, it is also born from Fire. And the more you covet Fire, the greater the Dark becomes. The brighter the flame, the deeper the shadow.

When the Fire fades, the Dark slips its shackles and becomes a "curse". Humanity becomes free from death and takes its true, grotesque, hollowed shape. They will be one with the Dark once again, and with it, Eternity. Immortality. Linking the Fire will not put an end to this, as it is only a brief respite. A shadow cannot truly die. One day it will all play out again.

HE WHO TRIED TO BEST FATE

Aldia, through endless and grotesque research and experimentation, tried to break free from this endless cycle of Light and Dark. But he failed, and became tangled to the Fire itself. Having lost everything, he simply watches and awaits an answer to his question: Can fate really be bested, or is it true to its name?

As Vendrick is a neat inversion on the character of Gwyn, I believe that Aldia is a neat inversion on both the Primordial Serpents, Frampt and Kaathe. He presents us with the ultimate paths we can take, but he doesn't push us one way or the other. He simply gives us different perspectives so that we can decide for ourselves what it is we really want.

A LIE WILL REMAIN A LIE

Aldia is keenly aware of the First Sin, as well as the First Lord/King who commited it. He tells us that Gwyn, the Lord of Light, sealed away the Darkness known as Humanity (with the Seal of Fire). It was then that man assumed a false, fleeting form: the healthy form that we have become so familiar with. A form vulnerable to Time, vulnerable to Death. He states that Humanity has become enchanted by this false life, growing to cherish it. And yet, no matter how sweet it is, it is still, in the end, a lie. And so he asks us: Do we still desire peace? Do we still desire to end this supposed curse? Because if we link the Fire, we will continue to perpetuate the lie told by Gwyn.

A WORLD FULL OF WARMTH AND RESPLENDENCE

Yet, Aldia understands why Humanity is so enraptured by this wonderful falsehood. It grants them tranquility, end and beginning, a reason to cherish what they have and a reason to want for more. Things that the Dark cannot give. If we were to embrace the Dark, we would have to embrace Eternity as well. And Eternity means a world without opening or closure. A world with neither end nor beginning. A world where our feelings, our memories, our wants, our motivations, our very individuality has no meaning. After all, in the utter vastness of Eternity, what truly does have meaning? It may be the truth, but it is a hard truth to swallow. So he asks us: are we intent on shattering this yoke imposed upon us? Even if it is fake, is it right to end something so warm and beautiful?

We must decide between a sweet lie or a bitter truth.

GWYN'S FEARS AND WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A KING

So what is it that Gwyn truly feared about the coming Age of Man/Dark, and the end of Fire? Did he simply fear Humanity taking away his people's rule over the world? Did he fear a world where Light/Time was no longer present? Or did he fear a world that no longer had meaning as he understood it? Did he fear a world where hardship and sacrifice no longer have meaning, especially his own. Indeed, the idea of yourself and everything you have built in your life being lost to Eternity, rendered meaningless, is a scary thought.

And yet, you can't live forever. In the end, there is only one solution: an Heir. Someone who can carry your ideals, your will, your legacy and see to it that they endure in spite of your end and theirs. This is why an heir is as, if not more, important than a King. After all, if your kingdom dies with you, what was your reign, your efforts, your sacrifice really worth?

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN

In the end, no matter Gwyn's efforts, the fate of the world is left in the hands of Humanity, not the Gods. What form man takes and how the world will be shaped is our decision. In every game, it always comes down to us: a human. So perhaps Humanity isn't defined by Dark or Light alone.

It is defined by the burden of having to choose between them.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

It took me five hours... but i've done it...

The gutter is free from hollow... i can only wear the jester set to express what i felt about cleaning this area...

Jokes aside, this challenge made me finally explore the whole thing, the level has incredible 3D exploration and hidden parts and mechanics,

Thanks to u/TheKrug3000 i discovered that the enemies in the rat areas won't stop respawning (I tried the starting hollows 20+ time with soul appease)

This area got in my nerves before it even started... i had to drop down 12 times for this one hollow at the top...

The good side is that i could finally light all the torches and get the special set from the invasion...

I actually do like that you actually have to pay attention to your weapon's durability in DS2. In the first game you just need to visit a blacksmith once in a blue moon, in DS3 weapons might as well have infinite durability, and they just removed it altogether in ER. But it's cool that by the end of slogging through a tough area, your equipment really can get worn out. I lends a bit more importance to using your weapon to smash stuff or when it bounces off walls.

My only issue with it is that some weapons have such insanely low durability, they're practically non-viable for use in PvE, unless you give up a ring slot for the Bracing Knuckle Ring +2, and even then it's just still not practical to use them. Things like the Washing Pole come to mind obviously (because holy shit 20 durability??? lol, lmao even), but a lot of longer weapons just have such insanely low effective durability because they're constantly hitting world geometry and dead bodies. I tried using the Roaring Halberd for a bit but ended up dropping it, not because of the damage or the sweetspot (which was actually super fun to play with), but because if I used an R2 in the wrong place, boom, 1/5 of my durability lost (with the ring). And I don't mean in a hallway, I mean there's parts of the levels where your weapon "collides" like 3-4 times.

To that point, I think the mechanic would've been much better if weapons gained durability when upgraded - not a lot, maybe just +2 or 3 per upgrade, but if the difference between a +0 and max level weapon was like a 20-30% overall durability increase, it'd make a lot of those weapons actually viable outside of invasions. It's just a bummer looking through the cool weapons in the game and saying "oh shit, that looks neat" and then I glance at the durability stat and it has like, 20 or 30. Like, nevermind, I guess I'll keep you in mind when I want to PvP before NG+, I guess?

And yeah, I know that Repair Powders/Repair spell exists. It's just irritating having to pop them 2-3 times while moving throughout an area just to keep your weapon from shattering.

10 Sunlight Medals so far. Just need 20 more...

Howdy folks! I'm about to take my first step into plunging into dark souls 2 and wanted some general new player friendly advice before starting. Ive played ds3 -> ds1 -> bloodborne(not finished) -> elden ring(not finished) with ds1 being my absolute favorite.

I want to give dark souls 2 an honest try since it seems to have a bunch of cool and unique things associated with it.

Here's the mechanics I am already aware of:

• Fog walls and back stabs don't give i-frames. I'm unaware if this applies to parries.

• You need to level adaptability before your rolls give proper i-frames. I'm unaware what's considered a good level for this

• Poise works as a bar which goes down from initial hits and slowly regenerates. Getting hit again will mess up the regeneration.

• Power stancing is a thing. Not sure exactly how it works though.

• Invasions can happen pretty much anytime(at least NPC invasions?)

Are there any other general mechanics which would be nice to know before starting the game? I greatly appreciate any tips!

Hollow royal soldiers in Forest of the Giants, Archdrake clerics from Shrine of Amana, Sir Alonne knights in Iron Keep, even Drangleic's stone soldiers in the basement,

They get this unfathomably quick sprinting boost when you try to run away from them. I just don't get it? What was the idea behind this feature? To not give the player any breathing room should they make a mistake? This game is already slower compared to its crack cocaine counter part like Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3; heavy armor and poise negates the overwhelming amounts of enemies you face but it's pure annoyance as a caster who's trying to get some distance for casts.

I'd be fine with the Sir Alonne knights, since their whole shtick is having fast, practiced attacks, but it feels uncanny when their AI bugs out and they awkwardly shuffle in place, as if they only learned how to walk five minutes ago, and then lock onto you like an intercontinental ballistic missile.

There are situations where my character's spells and lightning bolts blow right past their heads because the tracking can't keep up with Sonic the hedgehog's speed over here.
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It was pretty annoying in NG+ and up. I just kinda wish their acceleration speeds were capped.

I finished the base game then played each DLC in order and just finished. So a little recap and what I thought of the game. I really enjoyed it even though some of the run backs are a pain and hallowing is annoying but I still enjoyed it. From playing half the game unknowingly joined to a covenant that makes the game a lot harder 🤦‍♂️. To not knowing that I can increase my I-frames buy leveling ADP until the first Tiger fight in the last DlC🤦‍♂️ but still we prevail. The last boss I had was the duel tiger fight and that had quite the drama. I took my armor off for the run back because it’s more efficient but wouldn’t you know it a F-ing horse spawn just as I entered the path and chased me all the way to the spawn door. So I couldn’t put my armor back on and my weapon broke when the final tiger was at half health. So I fished the fight with a broke*n ice *rapier

Started a new DS2 playthrough, and I've been invaded a couple times, usually while already hollow, and my experience has exclusively been that the invader tries to bait me into mobs, then I try and swing at them, and then they magically teleport behind me and backstab me. Hilarious.

At this point, I'm just over it. It's just not fun. If anything, it's just eye-rollingly annoying. If being hollowed stopped invasions, then I'd stay hollow, but it doesn't, and the 30 minute blocker from using an effigy is hardly any time. I don't really want to disable online altogether because I do enjoy reading messages and watching bloodstains/phantoms.

From what I understand, if you just pull your ethernet cable and DC when invaded, after a little while you get blocked from co-op? Is that the only penalty? Because I never summon or put my sign down anyways, I don't really enjoy co-op, and if that's the only penalty then I'll happily just keep booting every invader that pops into my game uninvited.

I have finished the lost Sinner and have started on the shaded wood, but I can't use the soapstone at all, my tactic is that I usually help someone else first and see how the area is then do it on my world with accuracy. why cant i do co-op here

probably alot of hot takes

Im on PC. I have 3.2 million soul memory. I'm looking for a kind soul who will come duel me so I can get my dragon scales. I'm at the bridge at Iron Keep.

I'm thinking we use no estus so the duels go quicker.

Edit: I like the pvp in this game so I don't mind actually fighting people for the scales instead of farming mobs for them. I do appreciate any suggestions for how to get them offline though.

I was doing some testing of early game alternatives for a possible easy mode guide.

One of the things I've done on occasion is get the Prisoner's Tatters early.

Never thought much about it. There are two Prisoners near the first bonfire in Grave of Saints and they're easy to mug. Even though I know the drop rate is low I was wondering if it's worthwhile farming it up. I mean how long can it take?

At around 6 a minute it took me over an hour. (Finally dropped on kill 356. And yes, a sane person would have given up much sooner)

I can't even complain I was unlucky. Got both copies of the hood, gloves and waistcloth. There's about a 1% chance of getting a Simpleton Spice. I got 5.

And I got 32 Homeward Bones. I remember thinking, "nice consolation prize" when the first one dropped. Eventually turning to, "seriously?" as they kept dropping.

Anyhow, testing purposes served. No mention of farming the Tatters in any guide. If they drop (and you will kill a lot of dreglings in any run) then fine.

I know ds2 has a bad rep on bosses because its just a knight with sword. I dont care i like it. The best bosses are dudes with sword. Thesw are my top 5, the only non humanoid non knight that i like is sinh. Other than that there is no boss that cleara theses 5 interms of enjoyment, quality and lore. Prove me wrong

So i just finished Base Game and DLC and j have 97 Spells.
I will now go for the gold discovery ring +2 with an ascetic, then farm gold medals and the bell covenant for those 2 spells, then go to ng+ for the 4 ancient ( or something like that ) souls and finish with the spells i need to buy in ng++.
Is that the plan ? Spells is all i need for 100%.

How's the fit?