Walkthrough - Guide for Dark Souls

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DARK SOULS Walkthrough
Version 1.00
Written by YggdrasilsSword
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Table of Contents
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Use CTRL+F and type in the number surrounded by brackets to jump to a certain 
section.

[0] Table of Contents
[1] Introduction
[2] Changes from DEMON'S SOULS
[3] Gameplay Primer
[4] Character Creation
 [4.1] Classes
 [4.2] Gifts
[5] Walkthrough
 [5.0] Reading the Walkthrough
 [5.1] Northern Undead Asylum
 [5.2] Firelink Shrine
[6] Thanks

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[1] Introduction
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Before you go any further, let me warn you: DARK SOULS is an extremely 
difficult 
game. In part, this is because DARK SOULS -- and DEMON'S SOULS before it -- 
hearken back to the days of "old school" classic gaming. In those days, you had 
a limited number of lives, and if you lost them, you had to start all over 
again.

DARK SOULS hasn't quite forsaken the modern cliches of gaming to that extent: 
you don't lose your save file just because you died one too many times. But 
dying does cost you all of your souls, which are both your money and XP, as 
well 
as a new value called humanity. You still keep your items and your levels, and 
you do receive one chance to make it back to the place you died and recover 
what 
you lost.

The difficulty is not trite, however. It's not that the enemies have an unfair 
advantage: they're just smart little buggers. Many will block your attacks, 
countering your ill-timed blows will deadly ripostes. Others may not block, but 
will attack aggressively and demand blocking on your end to survive. To beat 
these guys, you need to be a smart little bugger yourself, studying each foe's 
tricks and weaknesses while perfecting your defenses and attacks. DARK SOULS is 
tough, but this makes success (when it does come) all the sweeter.

Though I may try to butter it up with my masochistic love for this series, I 
don't want to deceive you. DARK SOULS is a game about dying. You play as an 
Undead character to begin with, and you will almost certainly die many more 
times as you play the game. But DARK SOULS is about learning from death as 
well. 
Enemy locations are not randomized, so if you're ambushed from around a corner 
in one life, you can bet that you're going to want to block (or dodge/attack/ 
cast a spell, depending on your playstyle) as you come around that corner in 
the 
future. DARK SOULS is ultimately an IQ test, an enormous exercise in pattern 
recognition and awareness. It follows, of course, to say that DARK SOULS is a 
smart man's game.

I strongly recommend you buy the game, if you haven't already. I refuse to 
support piracy, especially when it comes to such an awesome and underrated 
game. 
I foolishly chose to rent DEMON'S SOULS from Gamefly, only to spend as much to 
play it for months on end as I would if I had simply purchased it. I eventually 
found it for $20 in a Walmart bargain bin, but by then I had found a new love 
in 
DARK SOULS. If you've played and enjoyed DEMON'S SOULS, you should know better 
than to pass up this game. It was a first day purchase for me.

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[3] Changes from DEMON'S SOULS
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If you're not familar with DEMON'S SOULS... well, I pity you. Imagine this 
game, 
but with a different setting and a few minor gameplay differences. It's not so 
antiquated that it's not worth playing, I assure you. If you enjoy DARK SOULS 
and can't get enough of it, try going back and playing the original DEMON'S 
SOULS. You won't be disappointed.

SETTING
-------
- DEMON'S SOULS took place in the land of Boletaria. Under King Allant XII, the 
land entered into an age of prosperity. However, this proved to be a product of 
a dark ritual the king performed by channeling souls, unintentionally awakening 
an ancient demon called the Old One. The consequence was the appearance of a 
great fog and demons in the world that feasted upon men's souls, leaving those 
who survived soulless and mad. The other kingdoms learned of this plight and 
sent warriors to help Boletaria. Of these, one slain warrior was revived by the 
Maiden in Black, keeper of the Nexus, and sent back to Boletaria to slay the 
demons and retrieve their souls.

- DARK SOULS takes place primarily in the land of Lordran, a land liberated 
from 
the dragons using the souls of the Lords. In the waning days of the Age of 
Fire, 
the world is populated by the Undead, and the world lies on the brink of 
envelopment by darkness. One Undead, foretold of in prophecy, journeys from the 
distant Undead Asylum to Lordran, presumably to save the world from this 
darkness.

GAMEPLAY
--------
- Instead of returning to the Nexus, players can now heal and level up at 
bonfires, and will likewise return to the last bonfire they rested at if they 
die.

- Resting at a bonfire now replenishes the player's Estus Flask, granting the 
player 5 healings per excursion. This can be increased by kindling. The Estus 
Flask can also be reinforced by the Fire Keeper with a Fire Keeper Soul to 
increase the healing it provides.

- You can buy tools that will allow you to perform certain functions at your 
bonfire that would previously require NPCs, such as weapon repairing. There are 
still NPCs to serve these functions, however.

- There are no Demons' Souls to collect, but there are still various ores to 
use 
to upgrade your weapons into awesome sauce. The improvement system has been 
upgraded to be easier to understand, and you can now improve armor the same way 
as weapons.

- No more of those infernal geckos.

- Enemies will no longer turn around and go back to their spawn points if they 
lose sight of you, but will continue to pursue you indefinitely. This is 
compensated by the fact that resting at a bonfire resets all enemies, making it 
a safe haven to run to in times of danger.

- New items include Gifts, items you can select for your character during 
character creation. Most can be found later in the game.

- New and improved classes. Notable is the Depraved class, which starts you 
with 
perfectly even stats and no equipment beyond a club and a weak shield.

- You can enjoy DARK SOULS on Xbox 360 as well as PS3. DEMON'S SOULS was a PS3 
exclusive.

Humanity
--------
- The "World Alignment" system has been thrown out. It has been succeeded by 
(in 
my honest opinion) a superior system. Now, performing various actions will add 
humanity points to your count in the upper left corner of the screen. As your 
humanity increases, you will get more item drops from enemies. However, you can 
also spend humanity to return to human form or kindle a bonfire. You will drop 
all of your humanity upon dying, along with your souls.

- The Soul Form from DEMON'S SOULS has been replaced with the Hollowed Form. 
Unlike Soul Form, being Hollowed doesn't cost you half your HP bar. However, it 
does have its disadvantages. You can't summon other players into your world, 
for 
example, and you can't kindle your bonfires to improve their Estus payout. As 
mentioned above, you can "Reverse Hollowing" at a bonfire to become human again 
at the cost of 1 humanity point.

- The advantage of Hollowed Form is that you can be summoned by Human players 
into their worlds.

- In addition to improving item drops, humanity (and also being in Human Form) 
make you more resistant to Curse.

- Humanity can be received by using "Humanity" items found lying around, just 
as 
using the various "Soul" items grants you souls. These may be dropped by 
enemies, notably sewer rats.

- Humanity points can also be dropped by enemies.

- Humanity is granted for helping to defeat a boss in another player's world.

- Going to another player's world with a red stone and killing them also grants 
you humanity, but be warned: a new item allows the victim to put a hit out on 
you and make your life miserable. Also, you can only enter the world of a 
player 
if they are in Human Form.

MAGIC
-----
- In DEMON'S SOULS, only sorcery spell slots depended on Attunement. Now, all 
spells (be they sorcery, pyromancy, or miracles) receive slots according to 
Attunement.

- A new type of magic has been added to the game: pyromancy.

- The MP system from DEMON'S SOULS is gone. Spells now receive a certain 
allotment of uses per "day," which are replenished at bonfires.

- Obviously, there are new spells, though they are too numerous to name here.

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[3] Gameplay Primer
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Here's where I tell you how to play the game. Though the game already does most 
of that for you.

Basic Controls (360)
--------------------
(A) Interact
(B) Tap to Backstep, Tap+LS to Roll, Hold+LS to Run, Tap while running to jump
(X) Use item
(Y) Change Weapon Style (Two-Handed <-> One-Handed) or Toggle Interaction
RB  Light attack/spellcasting with right-hand weapon, Tap+LS to kick
RT  Heavy attack with right-hand weapon, Tap+LS for jumping attack
LB  Block with left-hand weapon or shield, spellcasting if a magic item
LT  Attack with left-hand weapon, parry with shield
LS  Movement
RS  Camera, click to Lock On or center camera

Techniques
----------
- Press B while running to jump.

- If you parry an attack with your shield, you can quickly press RB to deliver 
a 
deadly counterattack.

- If you are standing directly behind a humanoid enemy, press RB to intiate a 
(usually lethal) backstab attack.

Notes
-----
- Blocking is essential to your survival, as just a few unblocked hits can kill 
you.

- Despite the above note, also remember that your stamina recovers more slowly 
while blocking. If you run out of stamina, you can be immobilized and hit for 
HP 
damage, so don't let this hit zero! You use stamina whenever you block a hit, 
attack, roll, or backstep.

- Movement speed will be reduced depending on the weight you have equipped. At 
25% of your limit, your movements will be slowed slightly. At 50%, you will 
notice a significant slowing. At 75%, you will be quite slow and unable to 
roll. 
At 100%, you will be overencumbered and barely able to move.

- Save your "Soul" items for when you're at a bonfire or store and can use the 
extra souls right away. Otherwise, you could die and lose the souls you gain 
from using the item. You may want to follow a similar policy with "Humanity."

- During a riposte or backstab attack, you are invincible, but the 
invincibility 
ends at the exact moment you regain control. This makes you less vulnerable 
when 
taking out a crowd one by one in this manner than you would expect to be.

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[4] Character Creation
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[4.1] Classes
=============
First off, every class in the game is viable and useful in its own way. Even 
the 
Deprived arguably has its merits. That said, some are better suited for 
beginners, while some will be more satisfying for those who have already 
mastered this game and veterans of DEMON'S SOULS.

Warrior
-------
Difficulty: * (Beginner)
Stats: High STR and DEX; low ATN, INT, and FTH
Equip: Longsword, Heater Shield, Standard Helm, Hard Leather Armor Set
Desc: A balanced fighter. With both high Strength and high Dexterity, he'll 
deal 
out damage and be able to use most weapons, but with low Faith, Intelligence, 
and Attunement, he'll need some work if he's going to use magic. Notably, he 
starts with good armor and the Heater Shield, granting 100% nullification to 
physical damage while blocking.

Knight
------
Difficulty: * (Beginner)
Stats: Very high VIT; Low INT
Equip: Broadsword, Tower Kite Shield, Knight Armor Set
Covenant: Way of White
Desc: The tank class. Starts with a lot of vitality and heavy armor, but as a 
consequence of his equipment he will be somewhat slow. He has decent stats all 
around in other areas, and can easily pick up some healing magic. Also a member 
of the Covenant of the White from the get-go, which supposedly makes connecting 
with friends easier and reduces invasions.

Wanderer
--------
Difficulty: ** (Easy)
Stats: High DEX; Good RES; Low FTH
Equip: Scimitar, Leather Shield, Wanderer Set
Desc: A dexterity-based fighter. Focus on quickness rather than defense. The 
Scimitar is a great starting weapon, allowing him to quickly fell enemies 
before 
they can retaliate. Also well-suited to learn magic and already capable of 
using 
a bow. The wanderer's evasion-based play requires more skill.

Thief
-----
Difficulty: **** (Advanced)
Stats: Very high DEX; Good INT; Low VIT, END, and STR
Equip: Bandit's Knife, Target Shield, Thief Mask, Black Leather Armor Set
Bonus Gift: Master Key
Desc: The thief is a quick but physically weak combat class. His shield is weak 
when blocking and best for parrying, while his knife's high critical damage 
makes his ripostes and backstabs deadly. His good Intelligence, Faith, and 
Attunement make him well-suited to learn magic as well. He even comes with a 
free Master Key, so you can pick something else for your Gift. The thief is 
good 
in one-on-one combat, but out of his element when fighting multiple foes. 
Requires a lot of skill from the player, but can also be very rewarding.

Bandit
------
Difficulty: ** (Easy)
Stats: High STR and END; Good VIT; Low INT and ATN
Equip: Battle Axe, Spider Shield, Brigand Armor Set
Desc: A hard-hitter with high STR and heavy weaponry: that Battle Axe. Very 
strong in the early game, but weak defensively with poor armor and shield, 
though these are easily replaced. Requires significant investment to learn 
magic, though miracles will be a bit easier.

Hunter
------
Difficulty: *** (Intermediate)
Stats: High DEX; Good STR; Poor ATN, INT, and FTH
Equip: Shortsword, Short Bow, Large Leather Shield, Standard Arrow x30, Leather 
Armor Set
Desc: A versatile fighter. Notably starts with a bow and arrows, though you'll 
have to conserve those arrows until you reach the first merchant in the Undead 
Burg. While able to equip most basic weapons, he is best with DEX-based ones. 
Well-equipped to adapt to enemy weaknesses by using different weapons. Light 
armor means high mobility but low ability to take a hit. Needs work in the 
magic 
department if you want to do any casting, though.

Sorcerer
--------
Difficulty: **** (Advanced)
Stats: Very high ATN and INT; low VIT, END, STR, RES, and FTH
Equip: Dagger, Small Leather Shield, Sorcerer's Catalyst, Sorcerer Set
Spell: Soul Arrow
Desc: Starts with 30 uses of soul arrow, enabling him to fell enemies regularly 
with his magic. With a little more Attunement, he can stock another 15 uses. 
This guy is killer with magic, but a killee in melee. With low defenses and 
weapon skills, close quarters is not a situation a Sorc wants to be in. Soul 
Arrow's not much good at close range either. This caster is good for magic 
experts. Just watch your back, and if you get into trouble, use your high 
manueverability to hightail it out of there.

Pyromancer
----------
Difficulty: *** (Intermediate)
Stats: Good ATN and STR; low DEX and FTH
Equip: Hand Axe, Cracked Round Shield, Pyromancy Flame, Tattered Cloth Set, 
Heavy Boots
Spell: Fireball
Desc: The Pyromancer's approach to magic is very different from the Sorc's. As 
a 
Pyromancer, you'll want to use your Hand Axe on weaker enemies and save your 
few 
fireballs (which are effectively incendiary grenades) to easily bring down the 
tougher foes. Pyromancers start at Level 1, giving you maximum control over 
their progression. The Pyromancer still isn't especially tough defensively, as 
he doesn't have a whole lot of Vitality (though he's better off than the Sorc 
and Thief for sure). A good choice for most players.

Cleric
------
Difficulty: ** (Easy)
Stats: High FTH; Good STR; low END, DEX, and INT
Equip: Mace, East-West Shield, Canvas Talisman, Holy Robe, Traveling Gloves, 
Holy Trousers
Spell: Heal
Covenant: Way of White
Desc: Fairly free weapon selection makes the Cleric decent in combat. With his 
high Faith and decent Attunement, the Cleric is literally a Miracle worker. His 
exploration abilities are greater thanks to his Heal spell, allowing him to 
keep 
himself healed up beyond the use of his Estus flasks. The Heal spell is slower 
than an Estus Flask, so the latter is more feasible in combat. Though he can 
heal more easily than other classes, the Cleric's light defensive armaments 
mean 
that he is still relatively vulnerable to damage.

Deprived
--------
Difficulty: ***** (Masochistic)
Stats: Average in everything
Equip: Club, Plank Shield
Desc: This class seems designed solely to challenge the player. You start with 
nothing but a basic weapon and shield, plus whatever gift you chose. That means 
no armor or magic. On the bright side, the Deprived's even stats mean he can 
use 
magic early and wield most weapons, and you'll be able to grow him in whatever 
direction you desire. Until you find some better equipment, though, he'll be at 
a significant disadvantage. Only recommended for true DARK SOULS masters who 
can't get enough of this game's challenges.

[4.2] Gifts
===========
Selecting a gift isn't as significant as class choice, but it can still be 
useful. Every gift item except the Master Key can supposedly be found in-game.

Goddess's Blessing: consumable item, fully restores HP and cures ailments.
Black Firebomb (x10): explosive throwables, supposedly better than "STD bomb."
Twin Humanities: consumable item, restores 2 humanity points.
Binoculars: key item, allows you to zoom in a little. Can be acquired early.
Pendant: no gameplay effect, but affects the story. Recommended by director.
Master Key: opens any basic lock. If you're a thief, you already have one.
Tiny Being's Ring: increases max HP by 5%. IT DOES NOT HEAL YOU!
Old Witch's Ring: allows you to communicate with the white spider witch.

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[4] Walkthrough
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[4.0] Reading the Walkthrough
=============================
First off, I begin each section with the items found in that area. I then 
surround each item in the text with asterisks *LIKE THIS* so they're hard to 
miss. Bonfire locations are denoted with pluses +LIKE THIS+, which makes sense 
as they are a place of healing. The entrance to a new area is underlined with 
"===" while subsections within an area are underlined with "---".

Tutorial information has been included in the early areas to help players 
transition from DEMON'S SOULS to DARK SOULS, as there are a few minor 
differences in gameplay between the two. For a more extensive look at the 
changes, go up to section two.

[4.1] Northern Undead Asylum
============================
Starting Items:
- Straight Sword Hilt
- Black Separation Crystal
- Darksign
- Gift item (plus a Master Key if you chose Thief)
- Your Class's Armor Set (unless you picked Deprived)

Items:
- Dungeon Cell Key (from the corpse in your cell)
- Your Class's Shield (from the corpse in the hall with the archer)
- Your Class's Melee Weapon (from the place where the archer was standing)
- Estus Flask (from the Undead Knight)
- Undead Asylum East F2 Key (from the Undead Knight)
- Your Class's Additional Item (if you have one: roof area)
- Big Pilgrim's Key (reward for defeating boss)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (outside, on a hidden ledge to the left)

Regardless of your character choice, you will begin the game in a prison cell. 
A 
body will be dropped in the room. Search this body for a *DUNGEON CELL KEY*, 
which you can use to open the cell door. That's one puzzle down.

Note that you do not yet have all of your character's starting items. 
Currently, 
you have only your selected class's starting armor, any gift items you 
received, 
and a *STRAIGHT SWORD HILT*, which is quite possibly the worst weapon in the 
game.

You also have the *BLACK SEPARATION CRYSTAL*, which allows you to remove other 
players from your world or return to your own, and the *DARKSIGN*, which can be 
used to return to the last bonfire (checkpoint) you used, but at the cost of 
all 
of your humanity and souls. This is the same thing that happens when you die, 
which is all too easy to do in this game already, so the usefulness of 
activating your Darksign is quite limited.

The next hallway contains some automatic messages giving you a tutorial of the 
game's basic controls. It also contains a few enemies to practice on. These 
basic Hollows will not attack you, so take your time killing them. These guys 
drop 20 souls each. If you're not sure how to fight... well, the instructions 
are there on the floor, with onscreen "(A): Read message" prompts and 
everything. This is the easy part of the game, guys.

Another interesting thing to notice is that if you take a look at your 
character's face (removing your helmet if necessary) you'll see that you look 
just like these creatures, because you're an Undead too. Good thing too, 
considering how much dying you'll be doing, but ideally you want to get back to 
human form to improve item drop rates, allow you to summon other players into 
your world, etc. Be warned: you'll lose your human form again if you die and be 
back at square one.

You'll come to a room with another Hollow in the water and an exit to your 
right, leading to a ladder. At the top of the ladder, walk outside and you'll 
encounter a glowing sword stuck in the ground. Interact with it to light your 
first +BONFIRE+, and interact with it again to heal yourself, though I can't 
imagine how you could have taken damage by now unless you jumped back down 
after 
you climbed the ladder. Note that you can heal as many times as you like at a 
bonfire, but when you do, all of the common enemies you've killed will respawn 
(basically, you'll lose your progress). You also respawn here when you die.

When you're ready, open the large double doors ahead and then RUN FOR YOUR LIFE 
to the doorway on the left wall. When you get to about the middle of this area, 
the Asylum Demon will drop down into the courtyard and start swinging his club 
around, which will deal heavy damage if it connects. You don't have the 
equipment to fight this guy yet, so don't even try. As soon as you pass through 
the left doorway, a portcullis will slam down, preventing you from going back 
that way.

Down the hallway, there's another +BONFIRE+. Useful if that demon got a hit in 
on you. To the left there's another hallway, but this time there's a Hollow 
Archer at the end. To get past him, you'll need to duck into a path on the 
left, 
where you'll see an item. This will be *YOUR CLASS'S SHIELD*, depending on what 
class you picked. Go to your menu to equip the shield in your off hand (all 
Dark 
Souls characters are right handed, apparently).

Note that, like in DEMON'S SOULS, the game does not pause when you go to your 
menu, or when you press the Xbox Guide/Playstation Home button. The only 100% 
safe way to pause is to exit the game (which saves your location and the 
current 
world state) or rest at a bonfire.

Using this, you can block the archer's arrows and make it down the hallway. The 
archer will run away, allowing you to pick up the item he was guarding: YOUR 
CLASS'S MELEE WEAPON*. Again, what you get depends on your class. Now you can 
run up the stairs on the left and finish that bothersome archer, blocking his 
arrows with your shield and finishing him off with your melee weapon. (You'll 
get 24 souls for this guy instead of 20S for the Hollow layabouts.) Now that 
you're down with that nuisance, go ahead and "traverse the white light," 
removing the foggy barrier in front of you.

Turn left as you come out and you'll see that you're now on the second floor of 
the area that contained the initial Bonfire. There's nothing you can do to the 
left due to a broken staircase, so head right, where there are stairs going 
both 
up and down. Feel free to go down the stairs and through a door to get back to 
the bonfire and heal. When you're ready, ascend the stairs BUT BE READY TO 
DODGE 
TO THE RIGHT as a heavy metal ball rolls down upon you. This will smash through 
the wall behind you and open up the cell of an Undead who has nearly become 
Hollowed.

Turn around and enter the cell to talk to him. Answer "yes" and he will give 
you 
an *ESTUS FLASK*. This will give you 5 doses of healing, which you can refill 
simply by resting at any bonfire. Resting at a "kindled" bonfire is worth 10 
Estus instead of the usual 5, but more on that later. He'll also give you 
*UNDEAD ASYLUM F2 EAST KEY*, allowing you to progress. Note that if you return 
to this area later in the game, the knight will have become a Hollow, and you 
will be able to fight him, but it'll be a tough battle.

For now, you can head up the stairs, where a lone Hollow with a sword awaits, 
again worth 24 souls. Use the key to open the door behind him. Here you'll see 
*YOUR CLASS'S ADDITIONAL ITEM*, if your class has one. Be careful, as there are 
two Hollows with swords and one with a bow just around the corner to your left. 
The white light leads to the boss area, but first head into the room ahead if 
you want to fight a Hollow Knight. This guy can block your attacks with his 
shield and tear you up with his swordplay, but if you can hit him when he's 
open 
and bring him down, he's worth a good 50S. Nothing else to do in here right 
now, 
so just head back and prepare for your first boss battle, then traverse the 
white light.

BOSS: ASYLUM DEMON
------------------
First off, you can take off up to half his HP by leaping down onto him from 
this 
platform and attacking as you fall, dealing an awesome cinematic blow that'll 
bring him down to a reasonable strength. Don't stand up here too long, though, 
or he'll smash the platform out from under you.

Once you're on the ground, keep your distance and avoid his huge swings. When 
he 
attacks, take advantage of the opening to get up close and get in a few swipes, 
then quickly dodge away before he recovers. Avoid getting hit by rolling, and 
if 
you can't dodge, at least block to mitigate the damage. He can swing side-to-
side, straight down, or even fly up in the air and smash himself down, so don't 
get cocky. A single unguarded hit can really hurt you and will most likely kill 
you outright. Even if you do guard, you'll probably still take damage and be 
knocked on your back, as you probably don't have much stamina at this point.

If you die, you can recover your lost souls by returning to the glowing spot 
where you died and pressing A. Try not to die twice in a row though, or you'll 
lose the hard-earning souls (and any humanity points) you were initially 
carrying.

---

Once you finally bring this big guy down, you'll get no less than 1000S and 
*BIG 
PILGRIM'S KEY*. This will allow to open the next set of double doors ahead, 
bringing you to the outside. Congratulations on escaping the asylum!

You're not quite done here yet, though. On a path the left, you'll find a 
corpse 
with *SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD*, which is worth 200 souls if you use it, but be 
sure to save this for when you're about to level up so you don't lose these 
free 
souls.

On the right of the path is a thin platform with a nest on it. Here you'll meet 
Snuggly the Crow, the replacement for Sparkly the Crow from DEMON'S SOULS. Here 
you can barter with Snuggly by leaving certain items near her nest. Here's how 
it works: drop the offered item by Snuggly's nest, then save and exit the game. 
When you reload, your reward item will be waiting in the nest itself.

Trade                Reward
-----                ------
Pendant              Proof of Revenge
Rubbish              Chunk of Titanite
Sunlight Medal       Chunk of White Titanite
Dried Finger         Chunk of Blue Titanite
Crimson Moss Ball    Shining Titanite
Purple Moss Ball     Shining Titanite
Cracked Red Eye Orb  Resist Curse Stone X2
Humanity             Ring of Sacrifice
Twin Humanities      Valuable Ring of Sacrifice
Seven Color Stone    Demon Titanite
Dung Pie             Demon Titanite
Magical Fire         Red Titanite
Egg Shell            Dragon Scale
Sun Insect           Old Witch's Ring
Ragged Bag           Demon's Maul
Skull Lantern        Mist Ring

*Courtesy of the Dark Souls Wiki (Wikispaces). Some item names may be outdated.

The only one of these barter items you could conceivably have at this point is 
Twin Humanities, if you chose it as your gift. Anyway, when you're done here, 
head up to the end of the road for a scene. When the scene is over, you'll be 
in 
Lordran territory.

[4.2] Firelink Shrine
=====================
Items:
- Humanity (well near the initial bonfire)
- Firebomb x6 (rightmost arch, end of path)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (middle arch, top of stairs)
- Cracked Red Eye Orb x4 (chest in the area at the bottom of the elevator 
shaft)
- Morning Star ("")
- Talisman ("")
- Homeward Bone x6 ("")
- Lloyd's Talisman x4 ("", overlooking the graveyard)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (behind pillar outside shrine, via graveyard entrance)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (second floor of shrine, at the far end)

This is as close to a Nexus as this game has. It's where characters you meet 
will gather, and there's a +BONFIRE+ in the center. You can talk to the man 
sitting near the fire for a little info, and possibly a comment on your 
appearance if you're in Hollowed Form.

Starting now, you'll be able to do the following things at any bonfire: "Level 
Up," "Kindle," and "Reverse Hollowing." "Level Up" allows you to spend souls to 
improve your stats. For every stat point gained, your level also increases by 
1. 
Press BACK/SELECT (depending on your console) to view what each stat actually 
does. Note that every level increases your defenses, so Resistance isn't as 
useful as it seems, and it doesn't even affect your Magic or Lightning 
Defenses. 
This boils down to a relatively small defense gain, while other stats seem far 
more useful. Resistance does help you resist poison, though, so keep that in 
mind.

Focus on stats related to your play style: Endurance and Vitality are "vital" 
to 
pretty much any character, as they affect your Stamina Points and Hit Points 
respectively. Magic users will all need Attunement (a change from DEMON'S 
SOULS), then Sorcerers and Pyromancers (to a lesser extent) need Intelligence 
while those who use Miracles will need Faith instead. If you use heavy weapons 
(big swords, blunt weapons, axes) focus on Strength, while if you use finesse 
weapons (light blades, polearms, and bows) you should prioritze Dexterity. 
Level 
up costs will increase with each level, so try not to waste points if you don't 
want to have to grind for souls.

"Reverse Hollowing" makes you human again at the cost of one humanity point. In 
addition to making you a pretty smoothskin, being human improves drop rates, 
enables kindling, and allows you to summon other players into your world to 
help 
you. The other thing you can do to improve drops is to have a lot of humanity 
points. Note that having humanity is not the same as being human, and the item 
"Humanity" is not the same as humanity points. The item will add 1 to your 
humanity counter and heal you, but you may want to save these, as you do not 
lose items when you die like you do Humnaity points.

The other option, "Kindle," is only available when you're in human form. You 
can 
spend humanity to kindle or "power up" a bonfire, allowing you to get 10 Estus 
Flask uses each time you rest there instead of the usual 5.

When you're done leveling, head up to the well and retrieve *HUMANITY* from the 
corpse. This item is note the same as humanity points (which are shown in the 
upper left of your screen). Rather, using the item gives you 1 humanity point 
and some healing. However, you can keep the item if you die, while you can lose 
the humanity points you receive from using it (much like "Soul" items).

Next, head up the stairs and through the arch. You should see several more 
arches; go through the rightmost of them, which leads to *FIREBOMB x6*! This 
item, when used, will throw a bomb at your target for heavy fire damage. Make 
sure to lock on first (by clicking the right stick, remember?) or it won't be 
very accurate. It still has a rather limited throwing range.

Go back and enter the next arch to the left of the rightmost one (in other 
words, the middle arch). Here you'll meet Petrus, who will simply brush you off 
if you try to speak to him. Up the stairs to the right, however, you'll find 
two 
things of note. At the top of the stairs, there's a corpse with *SOUL OF A LOST 
UNDEAD* (worth 200S), and on the level below, an empty elevator.

You can jump down the shaft, but note that it will exit into a slightly harder 
area, and you'll probably want to run home to your bonfire quickly. On the 
bright side, there's a ton of useful stuff down here in various chests: 
*CRACKED 
RED EYE ORB x4*, which allows you to invade other players' worlds; *MORNING 
STAR*, a decent heavy weapon; *TALISMAN*, a Miracle implement; and best of all, 
*HOMEWARD BONE x6*, which allows you to return to your last bonfire with souls 
and humanity intact.

Near the chest with the homeward bone is a narrow pass between wall and rock, 
allowing you to get out of here. There's yet another chest down here with 
*LLOYD'S TALISMAN x4*, an item that prevents local Estus healing for a time. 
This may seem disbeneficial, but remember that some enemies can use Estus too 
(often at the most annoying times).

You can now jump down, but be ready to bolt up the stairs to your left. This 
will lead to a flooded shrine area, and by exiting via the front doorway, 
you'll 
find yourself back at the bonfire, where you can rest and cause the skeletons 
following you to disappear. If you do end up fighting the Skeletons around 
here, 
be warned that they yield a whopping 0S when killed.

Also, go back into the shrine (via the left arch) and exit through the 
graveyard 
entrance. Then pass under the arch on your left and look behind the pillar 
ahead 
near the edge, where you'll find a body with a *SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD*. On the 
second floor of the shrine, there is another body with another *SOUL OF A LOST 
UNDEAD*. Again, these are all worth 200S.

Graveyard
---------
Items:
- Large Soul of a Lost Undead (near stairs to shrine area)
- Large Soul of a Lost Undead (middle of graveyard, crumpled body by tombstone)
- Caduceus Round Shield (semi-hidden ledge to the left)
- Winged Spear (right at first fork)
- Zweihander (right at second fork, or follow path from the first right)
- Binoculars (follow path from second right to edge of cliff)

If you're not comfortable fighting the skeletons yet, or if your class just 
isn't well-suited to fighting multiple enemies early in the game, feel free to 
come back to this section later and move on to the bridge area.

Down by the skeletons, there's a body on the edge near the stairs I told you to 
run to. It's guards by two more skeletons (a sword and shield guy and a heavy 
sword guy), but it does have *LARGE SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD* (400S), which is 
awesome. If you get into trouble, try luring the skeletons up to the ledge by 
the shrine. That way, if you die, you can safely retrieve your souls.

A little further into the graveyard, but still in plain sight of the stairs to 
the shrine, there is a crumpled corpse with yet another *LARGE SOUL OF A LOST 
UNDEAD*. I happened to run through as the skeletons assembled themselves, and 
once I was behind them, they didn't notice me.

On a ledge on the left (with one way down near this spot), you'll find an 
ambush 
of two more skeletons, but you'll also find a *CADUCEUS ROUND SHIELD* (I don't 
remember there being any shields in Trauma Center...). These guys are pretty 
easy to kick off of this ledge if you're careful.

There is are two forks in the graveyard path. Backtracking to the first fork, 
you'll find a *WINGED SPEAR* guarded by a giant skeleton. There is also a path 
that connects with the right path of the second fork. Here ther are four 
skeletons, one giant skeleton and a sword: *ZWEIHANDER*. I don't recommend 
engaging the giant skeletons in battle, but rather grabbing the items and 
fleeing. Continuing further to the edge of the cliff (with skeleton army in 
tow, 
no doubt), you can find a pair of *BINOCULARS*. Hopefully you didn't pick that 
as a gift item... for numerous reasons.

The second left path leads to the Catacombs. Entering the Catacombs for the 
first time will give you 500S. I suggest you turn back now, as I will not be 
covering that area yet.

Bridge
------
Items:
- Soul of a Lost Undead (body guarded by Hollow Knight)
- Ring of Sacrifice (on the lower platform of the bridge, far end)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (on bridge ledge)
- Soul of a Lost Undead (inside bridge/aqueduct, by sewer rat)

To get here, climb the stairs leading up from the bonfire area (toward the 
bridge, oddly enough). Here, one Hollow Warrior will be waiting for you, and 
another will jump down from the stairs above. You'll see a Hollow Knight ahead, 
but do not approach him! The Hollow Bombardier above will hit you with a nasty 
Firebomb.

Instead, ascend the stairs and take out the Hollow by kicking him off the ledge 
while avoiding his firebombs. The Hollow Axeman on the ledge and another Hollow 
Warrior up on the bridge stairs will likely join the fray. With these Hollows 
defeated, you can head down and fight the Hollow Knight unimpeded. Then you can 
take the *SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD* from the body he's guarding.

To get onto the lower platform on the bridge, you have two options, both likely 
to kill you. Option one is to try to jump the gap from the spot with the body. 
The other is to fall from above, on the opposite side of the bridge from where 
the Hollow Bombardier. Either way, if you get onto these hidden area, you can 
carefully strafe around the pillars and reach a *RING OF SACRIFICE*. This ring 
will keep you from losing your humanity and souls upon death one time, and then 
it will break. Save it for a truly dangerous situation, I suggest.

The only way to get back on the cliffside is to run and jump the gap to the 
place where the Hollow Knight was. It would stink you have your bloodstain 
stuck 
on that bridge, so get a good running start.

Now get up to the bridge proper via the stairs, beating the Hollow up here if 
you haven't already. Go to the end of this little ledge for a corpse with, 
surprise, a *SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD*. Next go into the bridge itself (maybe this 
is actually an aqueduct?). Turn left and kill the Sewer Rat here. Pillage the 
corpse it was chewing on for a... *SOUL OF A LOST UNDEAD*. A lot of these 
things 
around, aren't there? Now turn around and go down this tunnel. You can't open 
the gate here, so enter the doorway on your left. This leads to the Undead Burg 
area.

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[5] Thanks
_______________________________________________________________________________

From Software - For developing two of the best games I have ever played.

Bandai - For bringing this wonderful game to North America and Europe.

GameFAQs - For hosting my guide.

Dark Souls Wiki - There are several, and they are fragmented, but they provided 
me with some helpful info.
_______________________________________________________________________________


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_______________________________________________________________________________
)2011 Mason V., a.k.a. YggdrasilsSword                [email protected]