Underneath my yellow skin

FromSoft games and me, part three

In the last post, I was talking about my love/hate relationship with FromSoft games, heavy on the love and light on the hate. I think I would say it’s not even hate–it’s more frustration. Krupa from RKG has said several times taht he does not play the game for the difficluties; in fact, he’s quite forthright about not enjoying banging his head repeatedly against the wall with a hard boss. He’s also said immediately and openly that Rory has become better at the games than he is.

I feel the same. I have said that I’m not good at these games. I don’t play them for the difficulty; I play them for the exploration. That was the same thing that Krupa has said. He loves the worlds and delving into the lore. He does not care as much about the difficulty or the armors/weapons. In fact, when people ask him about builds, he would say that he didn’t know much about that. He likes a big sword paired with a shield and presumably whatever armor he can wear comfortably.

I am definitely more into armors than he is. I don’t min-max, but I do try to wear armor that is best for each situation. I have some go-tos–and there are a few that I love just because they look so cool. In Dark Souls III, for example, this is the progression of weapons/armor. I start as a Pyro as usual. I wear that outfit until I get Lucatiel’s armor or the Fallen Knight armor, depending on which stats I feel like leveling up first.

I always skimp on whatever stat governs equip load, especially since in this game, it has a separate stat of its own. Which is bullshit, by the way. In this game, I have to level up Attunement, Intelligence, and Faith as a caster. Even as a Pyro. The pyros in this game have requirements, unlike the previous game. But in return, you have as many casts as your blue bar/Ashen Estus Flasks will allow.

Side note: In the first game, pyros were stats-less, but you were limited on casts. Same in the second game, but you could get more casts from different wearables. In the third game, as I said, it’s as many casts as you can manage with your blue bar. Before Elden Ring, I did a 10/5 split with the Estus Flasks in DS III. In Elden Ring, however, I did a 7/7 split because you could get more flasks from defeating a whole group of enemies. Which, by the way, is a great QOL tweak that doesn’t get enough praise.


In the RKG Discord, they do a “Return to _____” event every Februrary. This year was Return to Lothric, which was the first time I’d participated in the event. It’s also the first time I played Dark Souls III in full since Elden Ring dropped.

I do it the same way every time. Start as a Pyro and get my Attunement up so I can use three spells. Vitality up to 10 until I need more, then 15. That’s the equip load stat. Dex up to 12 so I can use the short bow and then I don’t touch Dex for the rest of the game.  Wait. That’s not true. I need 14 for the Irithyll Straight Sword. Then I don’t need to touch it for the rest of the game.

Armor-wise, it’s Pyro set, then either Lucatiel’s or Fallen Knight, and that carries me (well, a mix of Fallen Knight and Pyro) until I can get the–well, let me put it this way. I put on the Sage’s Big Hat once I kill the Crystal Sage and that hat is never taken off again except for a laugh now and again. Then, once I get to The Ringed City DLC, I get the Black Witch Set (it’s purple, but it’s called that because the witch wearing it is considered ‘black’ for being bad), that’s what I wear unless I need specific protection against a boss. I keep on the Sage’s Big Hat, but then wear everything else of the Black Witch Set.

My final ‘fit is Black Witch Set + Sage’s Black Hat + Lorian’s Greatsword. And my casting stuff, too, of course. Which is the Pyro Flame for pyros and the Crystal Chime for sorceries and miracles. Yes, it can do both, and while it’s not the best for either, I like being able to only have two things in my off-hand because then I can cast Tears of Denial and Hidden Body with the same casting agent.

It’s hilarious to wtach Rory bceause he is very jittery and has the attention span of a gnat. At one point, he had four spell slots, but he refused to use them all because it overwhelmed him. So even though he had four or five spells, he only slotted three.

In the earlier games, he basically used a weapon and a shield. He had a few pyromanices, but he never upgraded them and he never really used them. In the original Dark Souls, he used a katana for some of the game and a halberd for most of it. In the third game, he used….ah…I think a katana for most of it. He did like Lorian’s Greatsword near the end, which made me happy. In the second game, they used more of a variety….I can’t remember what was his main weapon. In Elden Ring, he’s used mostly the Twin Blades for the first season. He’s stressed out a few times about having too much stuff, especially in the current Retry.

You have a weapon 9or two), magicks (which he is actually digging), a new flask (Flask of Wondrous Physick in which you mix two tears. Krupa was smart in the way he described it to Rory. Krupa said it was like a soda stream in which you mixed your ingredients to make your own smoothie. Rory got it immediately), golden seeds to upgrade your other two flasks–and you need ever-increasing amounts to get another swig, golden tear to increase the amount you can swig each time, and there’s Torrent. Plus the map is massive.

Oh. Weapon-wise, I go from the starting weapon of the Hand Axe to the Irithyll Straight Sword to the Executioner’s Greatsword to Lorian’s Greatsword. I will also get the Onyx Blade in the second DLC as my backup weapon when I’m fighting something susceptible to Dark.

I have recently gone back to Dark Souls Remasterd and am tromping through it. I don’t think I’ve died yet, and I’m up to Undead Burg. Haven’t gone there yet. No death run! Heh. No, I’m sure I died at some point. Probably to a gang of scrubs. Wait. Did I die to the Taurus Demon? No, I don’t think so. To any other boss? Lautrec, Solaire, and I did the Bell Gargs in about ten seconds. Next up is the Capra Demon, who can be tricky because of the damn dogs. If you can get up on the ledge, then you’re golden by cheesing it with magicks.

I have never had a really hard time with the Capra. Ironically, the hardest time I’ve had is with my strength run because you can’t get too beefed up by then. Well, you can, but you have to grind. I may do the Moonlight Butterfly first jsut for funsies. You have to do her with Witch Beatrice if you want to summon the latter for the Four Kings. Which I do.

I’m done for now. More later.

 

 

 

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