Part 28: Dark Chasm of Old

Ah yes, let's dive into the dark. If I had a choice I wouldn't though. I normally don't do these areas because I don't like them. But there is a pretty cool boss at the end of it all, so that's fine.








The Great co-op and PvP thing of tomorrow (29.11.2014)!
I still need some PvP footage and want to record the co-op areas of the first two DLCs. Crown of the Sunken King and Crown of the Old Iron King (only one of them, already did the one with the cooler boss solo). Third one, Crown of the Ivory King, will follow some other time, haven't played through that one on that character yet. Tomorrow strikes me as a good time to do this as any. I'm in Europe, so I may be awake at weird times for those of you located in the US. If you wanna join and happen to be from Japan, let me know so I can enable cross-region play (The two regions are basically Japan and not Japan. It's usually laggy, so disabling cross-region play is normally a good idea.)

But I think that 22:00 GMT+1 is probably the most reasonable time we're gonna get going. If I'm not successful then I'll try again later the same day.
The whole thing will be in a regular New Game on PS3.
My Soul Memory currently is 3269181
Set your Name-engraved Rings to Nahr Alma, God of Blood. This will increase the range I can summon you from using white signs and make sure no one else shows up for that and the PvP.

We'll first go through the Cave of the Dead of the first DLC, nothing special here. Just place your summon sign either at the entrance of the area directly or in the lobby of the DLC (which you can enter even if you haven't purchased it)
For the Iron Passage of the second DLC, however, we'll take the longer path. The short one is easy to screw up and I'll show that solo. To get summoned do as above, however, there are two chambers in the DLC Lobby to place summon signs. I'm not sure which is for this area. maybe both. I don't know. Maybe someone can enlighten me on this one.
To clarifly: Yes, you can get summoned even if you don't have the DLC. All the areas and gear will be in your game if you applied the latest patches. You can even get some of the gear if you're lucky enough to get a drop while being summoned. So do feel free to join in if you don't have the DLC. Just be aware, that the areas in question or not indicative of the quality of the DLC. The rest of both of them is actually very good.

I'll try to summon different people every time if there are enough. So please don't be mad if I only summon you once, okay?

As for PvP: I really only need Bloodbro Arena and Bluebro Arena footage. I'm not going to show every single covenant because not all of them are unique enough, for those that are I already recorded footage when they came up in the game. The difference is oftentimes just the item used to connect, and the type of player to connect to.

I'll post in this thread again with more details when I start. (E: It's probably a good idea if you post your PSN names so I know who to summon)



Darklurker

This guy looks like he's based on the design of Seath from King's Field 2. He has a couple attacks telegraphed way in advace. He has a soul greatsword type attack that's probably the best opportunity to get hits in. The attacks where he launches an orb of fire or dark into the air which then shoots at you are annoying but easy to dodge. In both cases just run to the sides. He ca also teleport, which may throw you off a little. In case he does his aoe thing just run away as well.

At half health, though, it gets interesting and the Darklurker turns into one of the hardest bosses of the game.. He will split into two but still have one health bar. You'll now have to dodge the same attacks but pay attention to two targets at once. It's a real boon that you have the opportunity to get acquainted with his moveset before this happens. Letting the player do that makes this a good design in my opinion. the worst part about that boss is getting to him, though. Not only do you have to go through three bad areas but you also can't just run through them as easily as most other areas. This normally would not be much of a problem, but you'll likely die a couple times to him. However, if all else fails just use fire. He's super weak to it. It's no ridiculous that some people claim to have used Chaos Storm to instantly kill him as soon as he splits up. I never managed to do that but it certainly seems possible with a little luck.


Boss Weapons
Soul of what lurks in the Dark Chasm.
The Dark Chasm of Old is the remnant of some ancient, dissipated being.
Note: That ancient dissipated being is most likely Manus, Father of the Abyss. The final boss of the DLC of the first game. That or the actual Abbyss is considered a being.

Lifedrain Patch

Trade Soul with: Straid
Magic Type: Hex
Requirements: 20 INT, 35 FTH
Description: Creates a large dark mass in front of you in exchange for 3000 Souls. It harms any friend or foe that touches it. It also harms the caster.

In-Game Description:
Consume a number of souls and affix dark to a certain spot.
Inflicts damage upon those who touch it.
This distorted dark, brewed by hexers, drains the life-force of those who touch it.
Catalyst: sacred chime
Note: In the first game there was such a thing called the Darkwraiths. Essentially the main invasion covenant which you could join by talking to someone in the Abyss. The Darkwraiths were infamous for using the art of lifedrain, which was triggered by using a special shield called the Dark Hand, which actually just created a spatial distortion in front of the user as a shield. Instead of a parry the Dark Hand would grab enemies and steal their humanity.

Dark Hand from Dark Souls:
The Darkwraiths, incited by Kaathe, use the power of the dark soul to absorb humanity, an art shared by this weapon, which also acts as a special shield. The ancients, particularly, could sap the humanity of even a replete saint in the blink of an eye.


Item Descriptions

Xanthous Set
Dark Souls II: "This blindingly-bright yellow costume is said to have been worn by Xanthous King.
Perhaps the heinously towering head cloth crown served some purpose, or perhaps it was some strange display of power"
Despite the costume's being in near tatters, its yellow hues are mysteriously unfaded.
Dark Souls: A mysterious item once worn by the Xanthous King Jeremiah, the legendary exile. No one knows where it came from.
The crown bears high-quality cloth which is quite soft to the touch, but its bright yellow color stings the eyes, and it is clearly far too big.
It may be tattered, but its bright yellow color still stings the eyes.
Monk's Head Collar from Demon's Souls: Head wrappings that were once the golden robe worn by the old master of Latria and eventually took control of the then withered old man. It is whispered that the robe now seeks to summon those who offer their aid, and carrying out its wishes grants them the use of these odd head wrappings. Could the golden garb be seeking out a new vessel to subjugate…?
Note: In Dark Souls there was an invader in the Painted World of Ariamis called Xanthous King Jeremiah. He wore this and dropepd it upon death. It's headpiece is a reference to the Monk's Head Collar from Demon's Souls. It was a reward for being summoned as the boss of a particular area and defeating the challenging player, the player who was invading to become the boss would wear this during the invasion too. This was quite a unique boss fight for the sole reason that it was actually another player. When no player could be found you'd fight an NPC wearing this instead.

Dragon Chime
A sacred chime shaped as a dragon. A catalyst for miracles and hexes.
This chime sat long in the Dark Chasm, but still one senses a sublime purity.
Only those with the deepest faith can wield this chime, but they will be rewarded with greatly amplified spells.
Note: Oddly, despite being a reward for maxing the covenant that's all about darkness and the abyss, this is probably the best Catalyst for Lightning.

Hex: Climax
A hex that distorts the power of life.
Emits a mass of dark, but at the cost of all souls.
Strength varies depending on the number of souls. Not a hex to be used lightly.
Catalyst: Sacred Chime
Note: Does indeed consume all souls. But caps out at about 5000 according to the wikis. Meaning it's a waste of souls if you have more than that on you. Which is very likely to be the case.

Abyss Seal
Ring of the Pilgrims of Dark covenant.
Increases the attack strength of hexes but casting them reduces HP.
What is dark? Perhaps we already know. We fear the dark, yet find solace in it.
Those who join this covenant can see the hidden Dark Chasm.