From Software Elden Ring - From Software's new game with writing by GRRM

[Lyric Suite]

I don't see how anyone can actually meet Alexander in Luirnia. You need to kill Radahn first and who the fuck is gonna do that before doing Luirnia. I wouldn't do it even knowing that step, as it just feels unnatural given how much harder Caelid is than Luirnia.

 

[Andnjord]

Phew, first half of the Haligtree, up to Loretta done. Only died once due to gravity when I tried to see if I could make a tricky jump (I couldn't), but I don't think I've ever played as carefully as I did, liberally using the Golem's Greatbow, Zweihander and greatshield and throwing enough volcanic pots around to deplete half of Mount Gelmir.


I swear this area is excellent but absolutely terrifies the hell out of me, now onto the second half...

 

[NJClaw]

I don't see how anyone can actually meet Alexander in Luirnia. You need to kill Radahn first and who the fuck is gonna do that before doing Luirnia. I wouldn't do it even knowing that step, as it just feels unnatural given how much harder Caelid is than Luirnia.

Meeting Alexander in Liurnia is optional. He goes directly to his location in Mt. Gelmir once you unlock the area, I think.

 

[mediocrepoet]

I don't see how anyone can actually meet Alexander in Luirnia. You need to kill Radahn first and who the fuck is gonna do that before doing Luirnia. I wouldn't do it even knowing that step, as it just feels unnatural given how much harder Caelid is than Luirnia.

I've never met him in Liurnia. In fact, unless someone posts a video of it, I'm not convinced that's real.

 

[Caim]

I don't see how anyone can actually meet Alexander in Luirnia. You need to kill Radahn first and who the fuck is gonna do that before doing Luirnia. I wouldn't do it even knowing that step, as it just feels unnatural given how much harder Caelid is than Luirnia.

In the area after Leyndell, on the snowy path with poor vision up to the elevator that you can't use until you've beaten Morgott, you can fight some Vulgar Millitia. These are the short guys in black armor with polearms and some magic spells. They drop 800-ish runes on defeat. Dragonbarrow has its infamous rune grinding area with the same enemies, but they're tougher and drop 1k+ runes.

That should give you an idea on when the game thinks you should go to those areas. Both areas are capped off with a Black Blade Kindred fight, with the latter area's version dropping one and a half times the runes for beating it.

 

[NJClaw]

That should give you an idea on when the game thinks you should go to those areas. Both areas are capped off with a Black Blade Kindred fight, with the latter area's version dropping one and a half times the runes for beating it.

But Caelid has nothing to do with Dragonbarrow, apart from being identical and right next to each other. Caelid can be tackled just after Limgrave and Liurnia, while Dragonbarrow is just hell on earth and one should probably go through it after the DLC that hasn't been released yet.

 

[Lyric Suite]

It's not just Dragonbarrow, southern Caleid is also a whole lot tougher than Liurnia. It seems unlikely one can meet the requirements of that step naturally, as one encounter with the t-rex dogs will probably make most people decide to just go check out the magic lake instead.

With that said, Patches in Shaded Castle is probably the wierdest step out of all the NPCs. You have to go to the Mountaintops of Giants to finish the volcano manor quests by which point Shaded Castle is a long forgotten memory and why would even think of going there in the first place. It's just bizzare.

 

[ELEXmakesMeHard]

It's not just Dragonbarrow, southern Caleid is also a whole lot tougher than Liurnia. It seems unlikely one can meet the requirements of that step naturally, as one encounter with the t-rex dogs will probably make most people decide to just go check out the magic lake instead.

With that said, Patches in Shaded Castle is probably the wierdest step out of all the NPCs. You have to go to the Mountaintops of Giants to finish the volcano manor quests by which point Shaded Castle is a long forgotten memory and why would even think of going there in the first place. It's just bizzare.

Another questionable one is that Millicent goes to the Midsommar skinning village after you do her Shaded Castle quest, very easy to miss.

 

[mediocrepoet]

It's not just Dragonbarrow, southern Caleid is also a whole lot tougher than Liurnia. It seems unlikely one can meet the requirements of that step naturally, as one encounter with the t-rex dogs will probably make most people decide to just go check out the magic lake instead.

With that said, Patches in Shaded Castle is probably the wierdest step out of all the NPCs. You have to go to the Mountaintops of Giants to finish the volcano manor quests by which point Shaded Castle is a long forgotten memory and why would even think of going there in the first place. It's just bizzare.

Yeah, there are a few oddball steps in some of these progressions that probably have to do with last minute changes or similar.

But... "the t-rex dogs" - I find that the difficulty of these is highly variable and dependant on the weapon you're using. With anything reasonably heavy that has an overhead or diagonal overhead swing, you'll smack them in the head and make short work of them which makes them completely trivial.

 

[Caim]

With that said, Patches in Shaded Castle is probably the wierdest step out of all the NPCs. You have to go to the Mountaintops of Giants to finish the volcano manor quests by which point Shaded Castle is a long forgotten memory and why would even think of going there in the first place. It's just bizzare.

The peak of this is that for weeks/months after replease people thought that Patches disappeared from the game after that... except he returns to the cave you first encounter him in and becomes a permanent shop there because who the fuck goes back to one of these mini-dungeons after beating it, especially since Patches' place is so small and ill-defended it's very easy to get all the loot from it in one go.

 

[Haplo]

Phew, first half of the Haligtree, up to Loretta done. Only died once due to gravity when I tried to see if I could make a tricky jump (I couldn't), but I don't think I've ever played as carefully as I did, liberally using the Golem's Greatbow, Zweihander and greatshield and throwing enough volcanic pots around to deplete half of Mount Gelmir.


I swear this area is excellent but absolutely terrifies the hell out of me, now onto the second half...

Eh, it should be pretty easy to bonk trough.

Well, the castle gate fight can be a bit brutal. Those respawning spastic grafted abominations at the bottom are annoying. And Malenia, of course

 

[NJClaw]

With that said, Patches in Shaded Castle is probably the wierdest step out of all the NPCs. You have to go to the Mountaintops of Giants to finish the volcano manor quests by which point Shaded Castle is a long forgotten memory and why would even think of going there in the first place. It's just bizzare.

The peak of this is that for weeks/months after replease people thought that Patches disappeared from the game after that... except he returns to the cave you first encounter him in and becomes a permanent shop there because who the fuck goes back to one of these mini-dungeons after beating it, especially since Patches' place is so small and ill-defended it's very easy to get all the loot from it in one go.

At release, Patches' never spawned at Shaded Castle. That got patched in the game with 1.03, and he goes back to his starting cave only since 1.04.

 

[Dhaze]

So, reading you guys... am I the only stubborn moron who scoured almost all of Caelid and Dragonbarrow before stepping into Liurnia proper?

Because within an hour of playtime after creating my character, I opened the chest in the Dragon-Burnt Ruins, which teleported me to the Sellia Crystal Tunnel. And that was hell, but I made it out alive then started exploring, and was promptly beaten into a very red, almost misty pulp by Commander O'Neil, at which point I thought, "Okay, I'm not supposed to be here, right?"

But I kept exploring a bit, combed through the Town Of Sorcery, and beat the Nox Priestess + Nox Swordstress on my first try. They were quite easy, so I thought that maybe it was okay for me to be here.

Ultimately I alternated between Limgrave and Caelid, so that when I beat Godrick all I had left in Caelid/Dragonbarrow was Radahn (though I didn't know it at the time), the Godskin Apostle, and that fucking Runebear in a cave. Then and only then did I sink my teeth in Liurnia.

By the way, I think they did a terrible job distinguishing between Caelid and Dragonbarrow. I'm sorry, but the somewhat increased amount of runes you get in Dragonbarrow is not nearly enough, given how out-of-whack the rune-to-difficulty ratio is in the entire game. At the very least Caelid and Dragonbarrow needed a clearer land separation.

 

[Caim]

Well, the castle gate fight can be a bit brutal. Those respawning spastic grafted abominations at the bottom are annoying. And Malenia, of course

I'm not sure if they actually respawn or that there's just a shitload of them. The gate can be snuck around, but even then if you go back to pick a fight you can easily get your shit pushed in.

Little help for that fight.

Try luring the knights up the ladder next to the bonfire to make the fight much easier.

By the way, I think they did a terrible job distinguishing between Caelid and Dragonbarrow. I'm sorry, but the somewhat increased amount of runes you get in Dragonbarrow is not nearly enough, given how out-of-whack the rune-to-difficulty ratio is in the entire game. At the very least Caelid and Dragonbarrow needed a clearer land separation.

IIRC the only way to get to Dragonbarrow from Caelid is either by a spirit spring or the teleport to the end of the area, so there is at least something of a divide betwen the areas. Dragonbarrow is also home to two of the most bullshit "drop down to get to a special thing" areas in the entire game.

 

[NJClaw]

just one more salty jerky, those 200 more damage will definitely help x 1

 

[ELEXmakesMeHard]

Well, the castle gate fight can be a bit brutal. Those respawning spastic grafted abominations at the bottom are annoying. And Malenia, of course

OP anti-spastic tip:

Spoiler

Do you have 12+ Faith? Get this incantation, and the revenants become nearly trivial. Healing can stunlock them, and deals massive damage. It's AoE.

 

[toro]

And now, for the moment that literally no one was waiting for... my lazy analysis of early game bleed and a bonus mini video showing why delayed attacks and input reading is actually awesome. It's so short I'm not sure if I should've bothered uploading it, it just struck me as funny when it happened.

you are good justification for abortion

 

[mediocrepoet]

And now, for the moment that literally no one was waiting for... my lazy analysis of early game bleed and a bonus mini video showing why delayed attacks and input reading is actually awesome. It's so short I'm not sure if I should've bothered uploading it, it just struck me as funny when it happened.

you are good justification for abortion

Why would you say that, son? Your mother and I love you!

EDIT: Oh I see. You're literally unable to understand what you've read. I guess I agree. The terminally retarded should be aborted.

 

[Lambach]

It's not just Dragonbarrow, southern Caleid is also a whole lot tougher than Liurnia. It seems unlikely one can meet the requirements of that step naturally, as one encounter with the t-rex dogs will probably make most people decide to just go check out the magic lake instead.

I, uh, I got there at below level 40 and decided to push on. I thought I was doing something wrong, getting my ass kicked repeatedly by common mobs. I fought Commander O'Niel for something like 6-7 hours in total over 3 days before cheesing him with Poison bolts + running away from him on Torrent + more Poison bolts + Ash summons and that other summon in the area, what's-her-face, when he summoned the second squad of his goons.

The pacing of this game is fucked up for a brainlet like me. I never know whether I'm getting my ass kicked because I suck at the game or because I'm severely under-leveled and under-equipped. They should put a suggested level notice on the map for each area or something, ffs.

 

[Andnjord]

The pacing of this game is fucked up for a brainlet like me. I never know whether I'm getting my ass kicked because I suck at the game or because I'm severely under-leveled and under-equipped. They should put a suggested level notice on the map for each area or something, ffs.

Here is your quest compass:

Spoiler

 

[Dhaze]

The pacing of this game is fucked up for a brainlet like me.

No, the pacing of this game is fucked up, period.

You can roflstomp over a boss, while another boss fifty meters away—in the same area!—might rape you with your own dick.

Cases in point;

- In Caelid: Nox Swordstress & Nox Priestess vs. Commander O'Neil
- In Dragonbarrow: Putrid Avatar vs. Godskin Apostle
- In Consecrated Snowfield: Theodorix vs. Death Rite Bird

The pacing of this game is fucked up for a brainlet like me. I never know whether I'm getting my ass kicked because I suck at the game or because I'm severely under-leveled and under-equipped. They should put a suggested level notice on the map for each area or something, ffs.

Here is your quest compass:

Spoiler

 

[Monstrous Bat]

By the way, I think they did a terrible job distinguishing between Caelid and Dragonbarrow. I'm sorry, but the somewhat increased amount of runes you get in Dragonbarrow is not nearly enough, given how out-of-whack the rune-to-difficulty ratio is in the entire game. At the very least Caelid and Dragonbarrow needed a clearer land separation.

IIRC the only way to get to Dragonbarrow from Caelid is either by a spirit spring or the teleport to the end of the area, so there is at least something of a divide betwen the areas. Dragonbarrow is also home to two of the most bullshit "drop down to get to a special thing" areas in the entire game.

There's a small pathway into Dragonbarrow very shortly after entering Caelid from Limgrave (near the second site of grace I think?)

 

[Lambach]

I guess there must be some serious differences between patches too, and that plays into the whole thing.

For example, I was fully expecting to spend all the time I have for playing vidya for the next week fighting Mr. Starscourge at level 92, given what I've read about him. But I took him out on my second attempt. Summons + Ekzykes's Decay wore him down during the first phase and left him with barely 30% health. After he slammed into the ground, I just ran away on Torrent, buffed the ever-living fuck out of myself, and finished him off in like 30--40 seconds or something.

 

[mediocrepoet]

I guess there must be some serious differences between patches too, and that plays into the whole thing.

For example, I was fully expecting to spend all the time I have for playing vidya for the next week fighting Mr. Starscourge at level 92, given what I've read about him. But I took him out on my second attempt. Summons + Ekzykes's Decay wore him down during the first phase and left him with barely 30% health. After he slammed into the ground, I just ran away on Torrent, buffed the ever-living fuck out of myself, and finished him off in like 30--40 seconds or something.

A lot of stuff got rebalanced to be made more fair (generally easier) and a few exploits closed that mostly impacted pvp balance and fixed things that were actually bugged. Radahn was one of them.

 

[Andnjord]

Spoiler

Heh, while it's true that the Caelid to Dragonbarrow is all kinds of fucked up, it really is the worst offender in terms of difficulty jump otherwise it's not that bad. Other one I'd say is somwhat bad is Mt Gelmir being a lower difficulty than Leyndell, I always feel like the normal human reaction once reaching Altus Plateau is to go to the Capital, not go on another detour through a new area before tackling the big shiny city on a hill considering how long you've already been playing by that point.

Still, what's with so many people here pushing through Caelid/Dragonbarrow even when it's obvious they're getting one-shot by every rat in the area? Even Dark Souls allowed you to access the Catacombs, New Londo and potentially Blight Town from the very start, yet I've never seen people complaining about that.

- In Caelid: Nox Swordstress & Nox Priestess vs. Commander O'Neil

Yes, the Nox sisters are a pushover, ever heard the concept of a mini-boss? Also, Cmdr O'Neil? Rape you with your own dick, really?

- In Dragonbarrow: Putrid Avatar vs. Godskin Apostle

Again, recurring mini boss that always gives a specific type of reward vs a somewhat serious boss. Except at least Apostle doesn't one shot most builds.

- In Consecrated Snowfield: Theodorix vs. Death Rite Bird

Hey, Theodorix has some really damaging attacks, I'm talking 80% of your health with 60 vigor + 50% DR. But yeah, Death Rite Birds have a far more threatening moveset than the drakes, that's not a pacing issue, it's a difference of difficulty type. By that point you should know which one is hard and which one isn't.