Have you guys found Havals set? Even better than the stone armor.
yeah i know that a lot of bosses can be taken out by "exploits" or by pure player skill (and a lot of time).. but the game is more than bosses, it's really nice to be able to take out the "trash mobs" quickly.. i watched a youtube video of a level 1 and wow, every enemy took a great deal of time for him even though he was a very skilled player. He just didnt do much damage with his weak weapon and low level.
What you're describing is not the average, first time player who thinks this game is really difficult, you're talking about people who's probably spent hundreds of hours on the game already, perfecting their skills and reading up on everything etc. Because i doubt they started out by doing a naked run, using a weak weapon and not leveling up at all in their first play through
Even for an average player, who starts the game afresh, DS gives pretty big hints about the "exploits". Jump attack is one them..which is useful on the first boss as well as on the Capra Demon.
About your "leveling up -> stats increase -> wield weapons that do more damage -> kill enemies faster" argument…I agree to some extent. However, my main point is that leveling up does not necessarily decrease the difficulty of the game, it simply means you will be able to survive just a little longer. For survival, player skills matter much much more than your character skills. Also, some quick weapons with lower stats requirements (such as Spear) when augmented with Lightning (which only requires Souls as currency) are much better than say, a two handed heavy weapons (with higher stat requirements), that do more damage but are likely to kill you faster due to their long attack and recovery animation sequences.
But, I also have to agree with Vurt, when you play the game the first time, you need your stuff.
But for talking so much about skill, you really draw a weird conclusion at the end of that paragraph. A heavy weapon doesn't kill you faster. Again, it's all about skill and style of play. For reference, my favourite weapon is the Zweihander, using the slow attack. So, from my experience, I would rather say the opposite. Get the timing right, and you plough through everything like a dozer.
I bet a lot of RPG's could be completed without leveling up and with the use of low level weapons only. I'm pretty sure it would be doable in for example Oblivion. That doesnt mean it's preferable or the most fun way to play it. For me leveling up was extremely important not only because it makes the game easier but because it's rewarding and fun too.
Personally I don´t see much misconception here, really.It's also a bit of a misconception that the game is hard. It's as hard as you want it to be since there are endless opportunities for just grinding and leveling up, which in turn will make the game easier, obviously.
Yeah, the poise on this is really nice, I´ve spent most of the latter half wearing the set.Have you guys found Havals set? Even better than the stone armor.
Leveling up (gear and character) definitely IS the case of becoming stronger in Dark Souls and it also opens up more options of how to play the game.Hmm, perhaps it could be my experience with Demon's Souls then. Right from the beginning of Dark Souls, I knew that MY skills will matter more than other "stuff" (i.e. level and gear). But if for someone Dark Souls is the entry point in the Souls series, I can understand why they would be inclined to think that leveling up == becoming stronger. Its definitely NOT the case most of the times in Dark Souls.
Aditya said:But if for someone Dark Souls is the entry point in the Souls series, I can understand why they would be inclined to think that leveling up == becoming stronger. Its definitely NOT the case most of the times in Dark Souls.
Leveling up (gear and character) definitely IS the case of becoming stronger in Dark Souls and it also opens up more options of how to play the game. It´s certainly not effective enough to replace the action aspect entirely, but it brings more tools at player´s disposal and allows for bigger margin of error which is invaluable from the first playthrough perspective.
Hmm, perhaps it could be my experience with Demon's Souls then. Right from the beginning of Dark Souls, I knew that MY skills will matter more than other "stuff" (i.e. level and gear). But if for someone Dark Souls is the entry point in the Souls series, I can understand why they would be inclined to think that leveling up == becoming stronger. Its definitely NOT the case most of the times in Dark Souls.
What I meant is, choose you weapons that will not hinder your skill as a player, i.e. those that affect your mobility and expose yourself defenseless for a longer duration. I have tried various heavy two-handed weapons (and even heavy armors) and they felt really clunky and slow.
I´m not and I´ve no idea why you´d think so .^ So you are basically saying what I have said already:
No it doesn't help 'significantly' either. Dark Souls is not a conventional RPG (or even a conventional ARPG) where leveling your character gives you skills points to unlock some high-tier abilities (to what you refer as "more options to play the game"). Leveling, at most, will help you dispatch the trash mobs quickly. Most of the challenging foes in the game CANNOT be won merely on the basis of your level and/or gear.
Feel free to counter this with some examples.
Leveling your character and gear gives you better survivability and allows for faster dispatching of enemies - that´s rather conventional.No it doesn't help 'significantly' either. Dark Souls is not a conventional RPG (or even a conventional ARPG) where leveling your character gives you skills points to unlock some high-tier abilities (to what you refer as "more options to play the game").
This comes in pretty handy, especially for first timers who explore without knowing where everything is.Leveling, at most, will help you dispatch the trash mobs quickly.
But they can be defeated a lot more easily. Figuring out a sound approach how to tackle these is easier when being hit once doesn´t equal death and executing that approach is easier when you have some leeway for mistakes.Most of the challenging foes in the game CANNOT be won merely on the basis of your level and/or gear.
As in, when stats allow for player skill to go out of the window?Feel free to counter this with some examples.
Since my fingers are not fast as they used to be, I needed to level up and increase my strength and stamina to be able to wield the knight sword (cool long sword) and equip the stone armour to defeat the two gargoyales near the bell tower. I just stood almost still to smash these two beasts with my weapons and armour, which I couldn't do without leveling up. Again, this is an essential option to allow players like myself to progress through the game at the expense (or not!) of grinding - but I am very happy with grinding with Dark Souls.
What isn´t quite conventional is that leveling stats/gear does not lead to, say, 10x more power on paper. However, Dark Souls´ combat mechanics are set up in such a way that even, say, 1.7x increase makes big difference.
but even some other stats may be worth bigger investments for certain character types (intelligence for sorcerers, strength or dexterity for weapons that scale well with these).
As for the more options thing, raising attunement adds better arsenal for more spellcast-y types, raising dex, str, fai and int opens more weapon/spell possibilities and endurance allows for more gear without hampering mobility as well as for more "action" possibilities (like being able to land more consecutive strikes with heavier weapons, more blocking and so on).