Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Yeah don't worry. DS2 is massive, especially with the 3 DLCs. Biggest game of the series.
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Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin |OT| Your weapons are weak, old man
- Thread starter VisceralBowl
- Start date
Loyce greatsword isn't that good either there's better DEX orientated greatswords in the base game that you can get relatively early into the game. The Mirrah Greatsword, Flamberge, Drangleic Sword all scale with DEX and have attributes which make them superior to both the Loyce and the Drakeblood due to the higher base damag and the STR scaling they have.
Tarkus
Member
BLASPHEMY!!!!
HF2014
Member
Yeah i start realising when he raise his sword to slam it to the ground, i try to roll to the right, but for unknowned reason, he still hit me . I guess i have to dodge back when he do that. I put myself some gears ro have less than 50% load so i can roll further, watch a bit the ign video , lors of rolling, dodging, i guess i really have to time eveything right, and learn his move after once hes morphing his sword into fire.
Hes really hard, im seriously at about 100 tries, will try back later. Thanks for the invite, im on ps4, and not using ps plus... Just normal summon i got available.
Im going to kill him, i will...i hope...
You will. When he slams his sword straight down into the ground, he pulses out fire energy which will kill anything next to him with one hit. He then shoots out fire balls around the screen. So basically if you see him hold his sword straight up with the fire imbuing, just GTFO. Get ready to also doge the fireballs, which come out in a ring and can be moved between.
Garrett Hawke
Member
So my initial impressions of this game were quite disappointing. I felt like the game was on the more frustrating end of difficulty balance. And I think it's because the opening hours are by far the hardest of the 3 Souls games I have played (Bloodborne, DS1 and now DS2).
I'm enjoying it much more now that I've made a bit of progress, levelled up a bit, and got some better gear. There's a really nice atmosphere to the game and I'm enjoying exploring and taking in the sights.
It's very different to DS1 so far imo but that doesn't make it bad.
So what sort of level are people by the time they finish? 200?
I'm enjoying it much more now that I've made a bit of progress, levelled up a bit, and got some better gear. There's a really nice atmosphere to the game and I'm enjoying exploring and taking in the sights.
It's very different to DS1 so far imo but that doesn't make it bad.
Interesting, thanks!
So what sort of level are people by the time they finish? 200?
True though.
It varies quite a lot as there's more variety in builds and stats than it would first appear outside of the basics for each so someone who went Quality would be a different level than say a HEX/STR or DEX/Pyro.
brandonh83
Banned
I went ahead and fully maxed the Mirrah, and so far I'm not seeing too much difference between them. However I haven't experimented too much yet so I'll keep at it to see which one I like more. Thanks for the recommendation though, it's certainly a cool ass weapon.
Psychoward
Banned
I'm 168 after defeating the last optional main game boss.So my initial impressions of this game were quite disappointing. I felt like the game was on the more frustrating end of difficulty balance. And I think it's because the opening hours are by far the hardest of the 3 Souls games I have played (Bloodborne, DS1 and now DS2).
I'm enjoying it much more now that I've made a bit of progress, levelled up a bit, and got some better gear. There's a really nice atmosphere to the game and I'm enjoying exploring and taking in the sights.
It's very different to DS1 so far imo but that doesn't make it bad.
Interesting, thanks!
So what sort of level are people by the time they finish? 200?
Man I wanna replay on a different character but then I remember I have no memory of the opening of the game and I don't know how to level up, where the estus flasks/shards are or where the rings are plus all the roadblocks I faced boss-wise and I'm not sure I will. It's not like Bloodborne where after completing it once the main game becomes a breeze imo, I imagine the dlc bosses will still be hard as balls even on my 2nd guy, as will things like the Ancient Dragon and Smelter Demon. Oh well, got my money's worth out of it at least.
Now I wanna jump in to 3 but $50 is too much for me
Mirrah has C in STR as well as A DEX scaling so you might want to raise STR to make the most of it but off the bat it's already stronger than a Drakeblood and without split damage. Also two hand it and use the old leo ring as all its 2H strong attacks count as thrust damage.
brandonh83
Banned
Sweet thanks. Really appreciate the tips.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Glad you're enjoying it! The game has a lot, and I do mean a lot to offer, despite some obvious shortcomings.So my initial impressions of this game were quite disappointing. I felt like the game was on the more frustrating end of difficulty balance. And I think it's because the opening hours are by far the hardest of the 3 Souls games I have played (Bloodborne, DS1 and now DS2).
I'm enjoying it much more now that I've made a bit of progress, levelled up a bit, and got some better gear. There's a really nice atmosphere to the game and I'm enjoying exploring and taking in the sights.
It's very different to DS1 so far imo but that doesn't make it bad.
Interesting, thanks!
So what sort of level are people by the time they finish? 200?
And to answer your question, I don't remember which level my initial vanilla-DS2 character finished the game at, but it's well above 100 (I finished DS1 at maybe SL... 70? pre-patch; post-1.04 patch I typically finished a bit higher, ~80-90, since souls payout was much higher), with some characters in the 150 range after finishing the DLC in NG. So yeah, typically levels increase at a much higher rate than in other Souls games and since the game is longer, you can easily finish the game at SL 200, depending on whether you tend to spend souls on levels instead of items or other things.
brandonh83
Banned
Not looking forward to Fume Knight at all after everything I've heard about it, and I'm on the eve of that confrontation.
Psychoward
Banned
I beat O&S on my third try
one of the reasons I think BB>DS2>DS1 is because DS1 can be straight easy mode with a good weapon. Black Knight Halberd +5 makes the game a joke, beat Manus and 4 kings on my first try as well and I'd only consider myself an average player.
HF2014
Member
I just got myself a PS3 back, and ordered online the UK version of Dark Souls Prepare to die edition, seem not available in US/Canada. I want to beat it again, got it on pc, but i feel more confortable playing on console. I need to do it again, to see if its really as hard as it was the first time i play threw it. I advanced a bit on pc, beat Queelag on my second try, when i remember having like tried 20 time and need summon help to beat it, but now just waiting for my copy to arrive. Im no longer playing with halberds, i like greatword now,
DS2 with the expansion add a lot , bosses seem all very difficult, just too bad most of the original bosses are mostly too easy. But its great, i like it way more than i was previsously liking it, even really thinking i put it ahead of DS3. Not that DS3 is bad, i think its just too easy, some bosses have some exception. I beat in 40 hours DS3, and beat new game plus in... 14 hours...
Maybe a 3.0 patch is in the work, im just crossing my finger.
Souls games forever, they are all just great!
Meh, anyone else finding themselves coming back to this again after DS3?
I can't even look at DS3 anymore I'm so burnt out on it. Like, even the music turns my stomache at this point. Granted, I've played it for like 110+ hours since the japanese launch, but man that game just ran through itself for me like none of the other games in the series have before. Idk if it's the linearity or the reused and (frankly) banal level design, but probably a combo of both. The game just feels like a giant retred and the lack of play variance between playthroughs just exacerbates the issue.
Meanwhile this game can feel like a different game every time I play it due to how chaotic the world structure is.
I can't even look at DS3 anymore I'm so burnt out on it. Like, even the music turns my stomache at this point. Granted, I've played it for like 110+ hours since the japanese launch, but man that game just ran through itself for me like none of the other games in the series have before. Idk if it's the linearity or the reused and (frankly) banal level design, but probably a combo of both. The game just feels like a giant retred and the lack of play variance between playthroughs just exacerbates the issue.
Meanwhile this game can feel like a different game every time I play it due to how chaotic the world structure is.
Really?
Other than undead settlement, and even that was basically an expanded retread of Hemwick Charnel Lane, I can't think of anything in that game that was unique to DS3 and wasn't an area trope that was done at least once, if not twice or even three times across the series.
The entire game just feels like a continuous series of "been here, done that". There's really not even any unique twists here either. About the craziest DS3 gets with its level design is the giant cross bow in SL.
I feel like you are confusing design with theme.
Design speaking, nearly every area was packed in such a way vertically with side paths, enemies, items and quest lines that the only game that beats it in my eye is probably Demon's. Every single area was very cleverly designed to hide something, I found maybe only 40% of what each level had to offer on my first playthrough, and finding them in itself was hinted at in the environments.
Comparing that to DS2, which did have some excellent design choices sprinkled in, was mostly horizontal in its structure, which made it pretty interesting for some shortcuts that snuck up on you, but made for other secrets to be either too obvious or too obscure, especially in the late game.
You do see a lot of the verticality from DeS and DS1 come back in the DLC, though. I liked the compact yet crammed design of them quite a bit.
If it's similar visuals you are bored with, that I can understand, but besides the thematic continuation of some looks from DS1, I felt like there was a lot of original looking areas in DS3 as well, though maybe not as many as people were hoping.
I'm not confusing them.
All the levels in DS3 use the same design tropes as other games in the series. Not only from an aesthetic point of view, but also design. Not going to get into specifics because I hate spoiler tagging, but if you can think of a design trope used in DS1, Demon's, or Dark 2 it probably showed up in DS3 too, while I honestly can't think of a single defining trait to DS3's level design that sets it apart from the other games.
Sure they're layered better due to not having to force everything into 512MBs of ram, but most of that is seriously undercut by over-reliance on shortcuts and bonfires.
I'd still disagree with you, but I don't see how you could still consider it boring?
I've spent too much time with the games and boredom was the last thing crossing my mind when it came to DS3's level design.
Idk, DS3 was the first game in the series that i've played where I got that old "WADer's hand" feel in the level design, where I could see the designer pushing and pulling me in a direction as I played it in real time because I had already seen and done this shtick in this series so many times before.
I almost can't play linear story driven games anymore because this, they've just become so routine.
Usually when this starts to happen is a good sign that I'm just done with a game/series. I'll just say that I'm glad they've said they're done with the series at this point in time, because DS3 kinda proved to me that they'd just totally ran out of ideas.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Um.... Irithyll?
Eleum Loyce and Central Yarham did it before and the former arguably better.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Central Yharnam? How do you figure?
And if we're using any snowy area as example, then Eleum Loyce is just a copy of the Painted World. Come on.
And if we're using any snowy area as example, then Eleum Loyce is just a copy of the Painted World. Come on.
Central Yharnam is basically the same area as Irithyll, design wise. Winding and twisting streets mixing horizontal pathways with vertical architecture sprinkled in + wandering mobs.
EL is basically Central Yharnam beta in that way, only I think BB missed the mark by taking out the super cool environmental puzzles featured in all three DS3 DLCs. It's one of the biggest disappointments of DS3 that those didn't really come back and we're back to what amounts to LTTP dungeons again.
I'm on NG+ and I feel like an idiot. I missed the first bonfire in Heide's Tower of Flame during my first run through the game... Every time I died I had to make my way back from Majula to Heide. Damn. Turns out there is a bonfire near the first knight.
Still love using my Greatsword +10. I also have the Fume Ultra Greatsword and upgraded it to +5 but I don't like the move set. The horizontal swing on L1 with the Greatsword is so useful.
And despite getting all the awesome armour in the game I still mostly run in the Tseldora set with a Prison Hood haha. I just like collecting souls.
I think once I finish this run I will go into NG++ as a caster.
A good tip not to lose souls is also to always use one of the ring slots for the Ring of Life Protection. So when you have a ton of souls and die you'll not lose them.
Still love using my Greatsword +10. I also have the Fume Ultra Greatsword and upgraded it to +5 but I don't like the move set. The horizontal swing on L1 with the Greatsword is so useful.
And despite getting all the awesome armour in the game I still mostly run in the Tseldora set with a Prison Hood haha. I just like collecting souls.
I think once I finish this run I will go into NG++ as a caster.
A good tip not to lose souls is also to always use one of the ring slots for the Ring of Life Protection. So when you have a ton of souls and die you'll not lose them.
Psychoward
Banned
Yeah I missed that bonfire and the first bonfire for Forest of the Fallen Giants for a while. Eventually found them but man that initial trek was torture.
HF2014
Member
I find myself coming back to DS2 after beating twice DS3. My NG+ of DS3,a bit on a speed run, took me 14 hours. I think something is a bit wrong in DS3, perhaps the difficulty of the level, ability to overrun everything, i think its just more forgiving than the first 2. I really enjoyed the bosses in DS3, and im not necessarly point the levels design as bad as you.
I really hated Dark Souls 2. But decide to give a fair chance to SotFS, and now for me its no longer a bad game. Expansion add a lot. Suck it didnt increase the original bosses difficulty, but for levels, its a chsllenge. And thoses bosses from the DLC... I think for now im putting SotFS ahead of DS3, but when all expansion of DS3 will be out, it might be a different story, who know, they might do some change like they did in DS2 to make it more challenging.
Long live Souls games. They are all for me just great. Some people are crazy over Zelda games, for me the best games are all the Souls one.
Wow that sucks. I don't know how you could miss it. That is like a Dark Souls 1 bonfire run. DS2 has so many.
Ring of LP is nice but only toss on once you get over 14K souls. Otherwise you're losing money.
Does summoning work without PS+?
HF2014
Member
I think its not, well, havent seen any online phantom, so i guess its not working. Only npc summons work.
I think I was at bout 130 in DS, and 110 in DS2, so you guys seems pretty quick to me!
brandonh83
Banned
It's so hard for me to rank them. After hearing some negativity about DSII a while back I either heavily disagree or they've made considerable changes since that have improved opinions. Though I still see some negativity here and there even after the fact.
Bloodborne is my undisputed favorite because of its art direction and swings toward a gothic horror vibe (and has my favorite lore!) but the three Dark Souls games are all about the same to me. I think DSII actually has an amazing amount of content and diverse locales, and the gameplay is super fun. DSIII felt more refined and "safe" but I have no problem with "safe" if it means quality.
I haven't played the first one or Demon's Souls in a long while though so it's hard for me to really compare them. I'd like to revisit them and I'm praying to the gods that they'll both get a remaster on PS4.
Bloodborne is my undisputed favorite because of its art direction and swings toward a gothic horror vibe (and has my favorite lore!) but the three Dark Souls games are all about the same to me. I think DSII actually has an amazing amount of content and diverse locales, and the gameplay is super fun. DSIII felt more refined and "safe" but I have no problem with "safe" if it means quality.
I haven't played the first one or Demon's Souls in a long while though so it's hard for me to really compare them. I'd like to revisit them and I'm praying to the gods that they'll both get a remaster on PS4.
Outside of the crazy torch system. I am really digging Dark Souls II so far. Just got my first lost soul in the Sinners Tower place. The one thing I don't like is them popping up pursuer battles in the middle of areas with extra enemies. Boss fight ambushes are fun, getting ganked by dogs while doing a boss fight? Not so fun.
I actually really liked the crazy torch system.
I loved lightning sconces with my Torch. Sad that DS3 barely needed the Torch.
I would love to play the trailer Dark souls 2 someday
Lighting all the sconces in Things Betwixt should make something happen so you may missed one (SOFTS only).
Ah crap! I didn't get that. I have the PS3 SoFTS edition, but it's unchanged I guess compared to PS4. I don't know why they called it the SOFTS edition as well since there are so many changes.
PS3 and PS4 SOTFS should be the same if I'm not mistaken. You maybe missed a sconce?
If you light them all you get an
invasion
JetSetRadio
Banned
Ah the torches, had to grind the gutter at one point, great memories.
Also reaching the end of the level and looking back and watching all the sconces lightened was awesome.
Yeah definitely. A fun level!