From Software The Dark Souls II Megathread™

[Gentle Player]

Don't forget you can have multiple copies of the same spell equipped to double your casts so long as you've the attunement slots for it.

Oh, I know. If I couldn't, I would have restarted as melee or something by now, because God damn. I know you can hit shit with the staff and I often did, but spells deplete its durability also. I've heard rumors however that the Wharf has by far the beefiest run between bonfires (at least I hope there's a bonfire somewhere at the end of this shit), and I'm doing okay. Down to 23 casts and half durability on the Broadsword and I think I've cleared most of it, including the spindly black creepazoid shack.

There is not. One bonfire, and that's it.
Its not...the worst bonfire run in the game.
Sentry isn't too hard anyway, so you should be fine.

There's a shortcut near to the ship with the boss which leads straight back to the bonfire. Think it's only in Scholar though.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

Yeah, only in scholar. In the original you had to take a long walk back up to that portcullis thing.

So I just killed Aaava. I was surprised how close her arena was to the first bonfire. That's a fast boss encounter.
I'm assuming she has something to do with the Eye of the Priestess though, because it was an important looking glowing thing. Did I screw up the DS2 experience by going right and exploring first?
As a boss, she's a bit bullshit; I found her hitboxes were a bit off, and she's one those bosses where you want to roll into. Which honestly I don't really like design wise, because it seems rather counter intuitive, especially when dealing with a quadruped that has wide, sweeping attacks.
Once again, using shields is a bad idea because she drains a lot of stamina on hit.
So I had to take my pants off and roll under her, whacking her with the thorned greatsword.

 

[Gentle Player]

Yeah, only in scholar. In the original you had to take a long walk back up to that portcullis thing.

So I just killed Aaava. I was surprised how close her arena was to the first bonfire. That's a fast boss encounter.
I'm assuming she has something to do with the Eye of the Priestess though, because it was an important looking glowing thing. Did I screw up the DS2 experience by going right and exploring first?
As a boss, she's a bit bullshit; I found her hitboxes were a bit off, and she's one those bosses where you want to roll into. Which honestly I don't really like design wise, because it seems rather counter intuitive, especially when dealing with a quadruped that has wide, sweeping attacks.
Once again, using shields is a bad idea because she drains a lot of stamina on hit.
So I had to take my pants off and roll under her, whacking her with the thorned greatsword.

Aava is completely invisible without the eye.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

Yeah, only in scholar. In the original you had to take a long walk back up to that portcullis thing.

So I just killed Aaava. I was surprised how close her arena was to the first bonfire. That's a fast boss encounter.
I'm assuming she has something to do with the Eye of the Priestess though, because it was an important looking glowing thing. Did I screw up the DS2 experience by going right and exploring first?
As a boss, she's a bit bullshit; I found her hitboxes were a bit off, and she's one those bosses where you want to roll into. Which honestly I don't really like design wise, because it seems rather counter intuitive, especially when dealing with a quadruped that has wide, sweeping attacks.
Once again, using shields is a bad idea because she drains a lot of stamina on hit.
So I had to take my pants off and roll under her, whacking her with the thorned greatsword.

Aava is completely invisible without the eye.

Yeah, I thought it would be something like that. Considering how much of a bitch she is with the eye, I wouldn't want to fight her without it.

 

[Gentle Player]

Yeah, only in scholar. In the original you had to take a long walk back up to that portcullis thing.

So I just killed Aaava. I was surprised how close her arena was to the first bonfire. That's a fast boss encounter.
I'm assuming she has something to do with the Eye of the Priestess though, because it was an important looking glowing thing. Did I screw up the DS2 experience by going right and exploring first?
As a boss, she's a bit bullshit; I found her hitboxes were a bit off, and she's one those bosses where you want to roll into. Which honestly I don't really like design wise, because it seems rather counter intuitive, especially when dealing with a quadruped that has wide, sweeping attacks.
Once again, using shields is a bad idea because she drains a lot of stamina on hit.
So I had to take my pants off and roll under her, whacking her with the thorned greatsword.

Aava is completely invisible without the eye.

Yeah, I thought it would be something like that. Considering how much of a bitch she is with the eye, I wouldn't want to fight her without it.

You are going to be utterly delighted with the optional boss at the end of Frigid Outskirts.

 

[Blaine]

Yeah, I already know "Ornstein & Smaugh" will get together again later on down the line. It's inevitable. Those slant-eyed bastards are taunting me.

Really looking forward to that fight.

I've only had one more death so far since going through Dragonslayer, the Wharf, and now part of Bastille, by simply walking off a pier in Wharf with no foes in the vicinity.

 

[Gentle Player]

Blaine if you're playing a sorcerer then I'll give you a tip, though it may qualify as a spoiler so it's up to you:

Spoiler

use a bonfire ascetic at the bonfire before Duke's Dear Freja, after defeating her. Then defeat her again, preferably twice. That is the only way to get the best sorcerer weapon (the iconic Moonlight Greatsword) and also the best spell.

 

[Lazing Dirk]

Blaine if you're playing a sorcerer then I'll give you a tip, though it may qualify as a spoiler so it's up to you:

Spoiler

use a bonfire ascetic at the bonfire before Duke's Dear Freja, after defeating her. Then defeat her again, preferably twice. That is the only way to get the best sorcerer weapon (the iconic Moonlight Greatsword) and also the best spell.

Chameleon is the best spell though

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

There's also a mandatory end game boss that gives you a sword that can buff itself. Its supposed to be one of the best weapons for an int build, and you don't even need NG+ / A bonfire ascetic to get it.

 

[Gentle Player]

There's also a mandatory end game boss that gives you a sword that can buff itself. Its supposed to be one of the best weapons for an int build, and you don't even need NG+ / A bonfire ascetic to get it.

In my experience the MLGS is still a lot better. For one, it is pure magic damage so it doesn't suffer the weakness of split damage weapons when calculating enemy defenses. This is particularly pertinent in the DLC where defenses are rather high. Plus, it is an iconic weapon that no respectable mage should be without!

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

That is true. I remember getting the MLGS during my mage run in DS1, and it was friggen awesome. That strong attack is great.
Can't spam it though, because that breaks the sword really quickly.

I keep hearing that split damage is actually somewhat viable in DS2, but I'm just not seeing it.
The Drakeblood greatsword, while a cool weapon, doesn't seem to deal as much damage in practice as my other greatswords.
Speaking of greatswords, is it me or do From not know what a greatsword is? Because the Drakeblood and Drangleic swords are pretty short for a greatsword.

 

[Gentle Player]

As Hyperion already mentioned fire doesn't scale from INT but from the lower number between INT and FTH (if you have INT 30/FTH 8 your fire will scale only from FTH 8).

Unless I'm remembering wrongly, this is incorrect. Dark scales in the way that you suggest, but Fire is actually a combination of both INT and FTH, regardless of how low one of them may be.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

You know, I've been thinking about that; does that mean you can pretty much switch between a dark and fire build at will, since they both build off the same stat? To maximize dark scaling, you'd want to keep int and faith at similar levels, right? That should also make fire pretty strong as well.

Also, I don't understand how pyromancy works in regards to this new fangled fire damage scaling system. Ok, so pyromancies don't seem to need stats to use and the pyromancy flame has to be upgraded to get stronger. Ok, that's fine. But where does fire scaling come into this? Do I have to put stats into faith and int to make my pyromancies good?
I can see that the pyromancy flame has scaling, but won't that only affect the melee attack, like in dark souls 1?

In dark souls 1 you can tell how powerful the casting item is due to its magadjust stat, but I can't seem to find the corresponding stat in ds2.

 

[Gentle Player]

That is true. I remember getting the MLGS during my mage run in DS1, and it was friggen awesome. That strong attack is great.
Can't spam it though, because that breaks the sword really quickly.

I keep hearing that split damage is actually somewhat viable in DS2, but I'm just not seeing it.
The Drakeblood greatsword, while a cool weapon, doesn't seem to deal as much damage in practice as my other greatswords.
Speaking of greatswords, is it me or do From not know what a greatsword is? Because the Drakeblood and Drangleic swords are pretty short for a greatsword.

I'm probably one of the few people who thinks that the Drakeblood greatsword was an excellent weapon in DSII (idk about DSIII). It's actually one of my favourites, for PvE at least. Yes, it's shorter than most greatswords. But it also uses less stamina. More to the point (and I believe this was actually introduced in a late patch, which may be why most people seem to be unaware of this), its counter rating is unusually high and so it can dish out some serious damage to bosses recovering from their attack animation, particularly if you slap on a Leo ring. My Faith build used a Lightning Drakeblood Greatsword, and by NG+ I also had 40 Dex. I found that it was easier to kill the Fume Knight (who has high elemental defenses, particularly in NG+) with the DBGS than it was with the powerstanced dual rapiers which are widely known to be overpowered.

You know, I've been thinking about that; does that mean you can pretty much switch between a dark and fire build at will, since they both build off the same stat? To maximize dark scaling, you'd want to keep int and faith at similar levels, right? That should also make fire pretty strong as well.

Also, I don't understand how pyromancy works in regards to this new fangled fire damage scaling system. Ok, so pyromancies don't seem to need stats to use and the pyromancy flame has to be upgraded to get stronger. Ok, that's fine. But where does fire scaling come into this? Do I have to put stats into faith and int to make my pyromancies good?

For dark, yeah. Fire can work well with dark, but it can also work equally well with either pure Faith or pure Int. Dark scaling is based on the lowest of either Faith or Int. Fire is based on a combination of the two. So you can have good pyromancies with an equal FAI/INT split, pure FAI, or pure INT. Dark requires an equal FAI/INT split, however.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

Oh I do like the DBGS, and I have noticed its much lighter and not as stamina hungry as the other swords. It just feels a bit weak despite giving the highest attack rating in that profile screen.
Maybe I should infuse it. I only have 15 faith though :/

 

[Hyperion]

Unless I'm remembering wrongly, this is incorrect. Dark scales in the way that you suggest, but Fire is actually a combination of both INT and FTH, regardless of how low one of them may be.

Yep, total jimbo on my part. For some reason I thought they leveled the same. Fire Bonus is the average between Int and Faith. Takes 2 points to get bonus for it no matter what.

I'm probably one of the few people who thinks that the Drakeblood greatsword was an excellent weapon in DSII (idk about DSIII)

Widely considered fantastic, just like Lucatiel's. Even gets an S rank scaling in Dex! It went hollow in DS3. RIP in peace Drakeblood Greatsword.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

How is lucatiel good? I noticed its damage was also pretty low compared to my drangleic and claymore.
Is its moveset just that good?

 

[praetor]

Loyce greatsword is best greatsword. that 2H moveset is amazing

 

[Hyperion]

How is lucatiel good? I noticed its damage was also pretty low compared to my drangleic and claymore.
Is its moveset just that good?

2hR2 is a poke. And it's fast. Like praetor said, the Loyce is insane. All of its attacks are nice. 1hR2 can be fully aimed like an Ultra Great weapon. Greatsword damage with Leo Ring boosting is a huge PvP advantage.

 

[sullynathan]

Drakeblood greatsword

Iirc it's still good in DS3

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

So I just tried the mirrah greatsword.
Holy crap I've been missing out. Its actually a pretty nice sword. Not too heavy, as long as a claymore and it has a nice strong attack combo if you two hand it. Seems to be a bit fragile though, compared to the drang and claymore.

Bit of a lore question - Why do the Eleum Loyce knights look like Ruin Sentinels? I looked at the Ruin Sentinel soul and it didn't say anything about them being from / based on Eleum Loyce.

 

[insukk]

DARK SOULS™ II: Scholar of the First Sin on Steam is for 12 $ together with some other crap that will unlock in month: https://www.humblebundle.com/monthly

 

[Blaine]

Fuck off, FAGlorn.

It seems to me that a great many of the situations in this game essentially force you into melee-style tactics. The hardest-hitting enemies and bosses tend to be very fast, aggressive, and have impressive range. I've frequently found myself wishing I went pure melee simply because I'd be able to take more hits, both directly and in terms of shield-blocking stamina, and with more Poise to boot. Hitting them with spells is oftentimes no easier or safer than just using a weapon, and even the most basic spell is slower, even with a Bluestone Ring.

To be fair though, sorcery does give you some breathing room in certain situations. If there's a pack of three enemies, you can most likely take out at least one from medium range, and possibly also retreat while continuing your barrage, or even escape to a vantage point. Against some bosses and enemies (ogres being a prime example), you can really break out the cheese. Then again, pure melee characters can do this too to some degree with bows, although I've noticed they use far more stamina and of course you have to buy arrows.

I squeaked in 3 more points of STR in order to wield a 100% physical resist shield and a light crossbow. The versatility is pretty great, and the crossbow is in my opinion a fairly satisfying way of having backup in the case of spell exhaustion.

Unfortunately I'm severely over-leveled due not to farming but to spending far too much time fucking around and looking and re-looking in every nook and cranny, so (I'm assuming) no one is able to summon me for bosses and when I get invaded, it's even more skewed in the invader's favor. Speaking of which, edgelords like to claim that invaders are disadvantaged, but I really don't think they are unless the player has human summons and/or a Seed. In most cases invaders will find people partly Hollow, possibly engaged with an enemy or in a place where they can easily aggro enemies, low on Estus, not specifically geared or built for PvP, etc. Being able to use Estus isn't that great of an advantage when fighting invaders because you're as likely to get skewered while using it as you are to heal yourself.

 

[Blaine]

Got Fencer Sharron in two tries. Dennis took three. Well, he took three "real" tries; I conducted a couple of abortive melee experiments, and then opted to parry and block his spells with an upgraded Cleric's Parma instead while spamming my own, ducking behind corners, and sometimes running away at top speed.

These phantoms should have about half the health points they actually do. The fights get pretty tedious, whether you roll, block, or dodge (mix and match), although I suppose a melee master with good equipment would have a quicker and easier time of it.

I've done some testing, and while melee strikes with a longsword appear to use the same amount of stamina as any of the soul arrow spells, you can chain 2-3 melee hits together in the time it takes to cast one spell, even at 40 INT, 26 ATN, and wearing a cast speed ring. The windup is slower, too. I imagine dedicated melee characters will do similar or more damage per hit.

Ah, well. Being able to kite a little is probably a much bigger advantage than I realize. Speaking of which, I'm now fully addicted to using the Light Crossbow and upgraded it to +6 with a Raw infusion. Lord knows how many iron bolts and souls I've gone through baiting and sniping enemies, or simply conserving spells. It's great to be able to spend excess souls at McDuff's on bolts when there's nothing else I want to buy.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

Whoever designed though ice rodents need to have a hedgehog anally inserted in him. Fuck those things, seriously.
Wheel Skeletons were dangerous, but at least they had no health. These fuckers have like 1000 hp.