Playstation Demon's Souls, the exclusive you SHOULD be getting excited about

[X Knight]

Well, I have now completed all 1st stages of each world, along with 1-2. So, I estimate I am almost halfway there.

Going to now complete the rest of World 5 and 2-2 so that I can get all the necessary components to craft the Blue Blood Sword, which I want to use as my main weapon.

After trying out a slow, tanky Knight character, I have gone back to my initial concept of a Royalty "spellsword" character. It's fun being able to mix melee, spellcasting, and even archery, while still being fairly mobile and agile (no fat rolls!).

So far, I'm thoroughly enjoying this and I'm actually looking forward to playing through the game again in NG+. I'm glad I decided to give this game a chance. And now, I'm really hoping this Remake will lead to a proper sequel and continuation of the game.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Well, I have now completed all 1st stages of each world, along with 1-2. So, I estimate I am almost halfway there.

Going to now complete the rest of World 5 and 2-2 so that I can get all the necessary components to craft the Blue Blood Sword, which I want to use as my main weapon.

After trying out a slow, tanky Knight character, I have gone back to my initial concept of a Royalty "spellsword" character. It's fun being able to mix melee, spellcasting, and even archery, while still being fairly mobile and agile (no fat rolls!).

So far, I'm thoroughly enjoying this and I'm actually looking forward to playing through the game again in NG+. I'm glad I decided to give this game a chance. And now, I'm really hoping this Remake will lead to a proper sequel and continuation of the game.

Nice that you too are still enjoying this. I've had time to play quite a bit and I'm still really enjoying myself.

I just started my first NG+ playthrough yesterday, with my third character who also happens to be a Royalty mage with a sword. Well, I'm mainly geared for increased magic damage (and unfortunately, by default, also lowered magic defense) so I have a Kris Blade in my hand while casting and then a Crescent Falchion for mana regen and to hit things with.

It would certainly be nice to see a continuation and if nothing else I'd like to see a DLC that adds the sixth Archstone.

 

[X Knight]

Nice that you too are still enjoying this. I've had time to play quite a bit and I'm still really enjoying myself.

I just started my first NG+ playthrough yesterday, with my third character who also happens to be a Royalty mage with a sword. Well, I'm mainly geared for increased magic damage (and unfortunately, by default, also lowered magic defense) so I have a Kris Blade in my hand while casting and then a Crescent Falchion for mana regen and to hit things with.

It would certainly be nice to see a continuation and if nothing else I'd like to see a DLC that adds the sixth Archstone.

Yes. I would really love to see a proper sequel or at least DLC. I am now familiar with both this game's mechanics as well as its lore and characters, so I would definitely be interested to see that continue.

If I had to choose the next Souls game to play (other than waiting for Elden Ring), I'd probably pick Bloodborne, since it is only 1 game (instead of 3 Dark Souls) and the lore/story from what I know seems more interesting.

 

[X Knight]

Well, I did it! I beat Demon's Souls! And now I can say that I have completed a Souls game in my gaming lifetime. And that is something that I never thought I would say just over a month ago before I started playing this.

The game was definitely an experience, that's for sure. It was oddly addicting while not being entirely enjoyable - if that makes sense. And yet, it is now one of my favorite games that I have played.

I also discovered a new favorite piece of video game music in Maiden Astrea's Theme. When that boss fight cutscene first started, and the music kicked in, oh man!! I'd say that was probably my favorite boss fight in the game because the backstories of Astrea and Garl Vinland were the most tragic and haunting (which matches the theme).

I still wouldn't say Souls games are a preferred style of game, but I am now definitely more open to playing other Souls games. So I'm glad I took a chance on this game. And for this game alone, I say it was worth it to get a PS5 at launch.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Well, I did it! I beat Demon's Souls! And now I can say that I have completed a Souls game in my gaming lifetime. And that is something that I never thought I would say just over a month ago before I started playing this.

The game was definitely an experience, that's for sure. It was oddly addicting while not being entirely enjoyable - if that makes sense. And yet, it is now one of my favorite games that I have played.

I also discovered a new favorite piece of video game music in Maiden Astrea's Theme. When that boss fight cutscene first started, and the music kicked in, oh man!! I'd say that was probably my favorite boss fight in the game because the backstories of Astrea and Garl Vinland were the most tragic and haunting (which matches the theme).

I still wouldn't say Souls games are a preferred style of game, but I am now definitely more open to playing other Souls games. So I'm glad I took a chance on this game. And for this game alone, I say it was worth it to get a PS5 at launch.

Congrats!

I agree that there are some places I hate to be (I'm looking at you, 5-2) but somehow I'm still compelled to play, it's not the kind of dislike that makes me want to turn off.

The Astraea and Garl Vinland part was indeed great. That place had a great atmosphere and the whole thing really conveyed their tragedy. I like that there were so many different feels to different parts of the game.

I'm with you on that this game made the early PS5 purchase worth it on it's own and I think that Souls games might very well be my thing. I've always enjoyed third person fantasy games and this just had a great feel. It's a shame that From Software hasn't bothered to make a PS5 patch for Bloodborne. They could at least change the fps cap to 60.

I just hope that I can get the platinum trophy done on my NG+ playthrough, but I'm worried that I might be coming up short on getting pure white character tendency for the last ring, and I don't feel as confident in getting it through PVP on that character as I would on my two-handed sword guy.

 

[X Knight]

Congrats!

I agree that there are some places I hate to be (I'm looking at you, 5-2) but somehow I'm still compelled to play, it's not the kind of dislike that makes me want to turn off.

The Astraea and Garl Vinland part was indeed great. That place had a great atmosphere and the whole thing really conveyed their tragedy. I like that there were so many different feels to different parts of the game.

I'm with you on that this game made the early PS5 purchase worth it on it's own and I think that Souls games might very well be my thing. I've always enjoyed third person fantasy games and this just had a great feel. It's a shame that From Software hasn't bothered to make a PS5 patch for Bloodborne. They could at least change the fps cap to 60.

I just hope that I can get the platinum trophy done on my NG+ playthrough, but I'm worried that I might be coming up short on getting pure white character tendency for the last ring, and I don't feel as confident in getting it through PVP on that character as I would on my two-handed sword guy.

Oh yeah! I agree about 5-2. That was my least favorite level to traverse through (along with 5-1). All you are thinking is "Get me the hell out of here!" Which, I suppose, is by design. But, I trudged through those levels because I had to in order to get valuable items (like the Moonlight Great Sword) and because I knew I needed to get to Astrea for her Pureblood Soul to craft the Blueblood Sword.

I'm just glad that, for the spellsword build I completed the game with, I did NOT have to spend even more time in the 5-2 swamps to farm for Faintstone materials for Blessed weapon upgrades. For my other build I was doing, a holy knight paladin, I WOULD need to spend lots of time in 5-2 to farm for Faintstone since that character would use blessed weapons.

So, now I'm not sure if I want to continue with that holy paladin knight build.....haha.

Also, now that I've completed the game, story wise or lore wise, I'm not sure if playing as a holy paladin knight would fit because it basically implies that you, as the Slayer of Demons, have become a demon yourself by the end of the game. So, story wise, that just seems to fit my "dark knight" spellsword character better, so I'm actually glad I beat the game with her instead.

And I'm not sure if I will go for the Platinum trophy. It looks like I will need to do at least 3 NG+ playthroughs in order to get all the Spells and Miracles, and I'm not sure if I'm up for that.

But, if there's anything you need help with PVP wise, it is my understanding you can use a password feature to setup private sessions? So, maybe we could help each other PVP wise?

I'm not that interested in PVP, and my character is already at a higher level (108). I did manage to get the Black Phantom and Blue Phantom trophies out of the way, so I have no real further interest in PVP.

But, if you or I need help to change Character tendencies through PVP for trophy purposes, maybe we could use the password feature to setup private sessions or however it works.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Oh yeah! I agree about 5-2. That was my least favorite level to traverse through (along with 5-1). All you are thinking is "Get me the hell out of here!" Which, I suppose, is by design. But, I trudged through those levels because I had to in order to get valuable items (like the Moonlight Great Sword) and because I knew I needed to get to Astrea for her Pureblood Soul to craft the Blueblood Sword.

I'm just glad that, for the spellsword build I completed the game with, I did NOT have to spend even more time in the 5-2 swamps to farm for Faintstone materials for Blessed weapon upgrades. For my other build I was doing, a holy knight paladin, I WOULD need to spend lots of time in 5-2 to farm for Faintstone since that character would use blessed weapons.

So, now I'm not sure if I want to continue with that holy paladin knight build.....haha.

Also, now that I've completed the game, story wise or lore wise, I'm not sure if playing as a holy paladin knight would fit because it basically implies that you, as the Slayer of Demons, have become a demon yourself by the end of the game. So, story wise, that just seems to fit my "dark knight" spellsword character better, so I'm actually glad I beat the game with her instead.

And I'm not sure if I will go for the Platinum trophy. It looks like I will need to do at least 3 NG+ playthroughs in order to get all the Spells and Miracles, and I'm not sure if I'm up for that.

But, if there's anything you need help with PVP wise, it is my understanding you can use a password feature to setup private sessions? So, maybe we could help each other PVP wise?

I'm not that interested in PVP, and my character is already at a higher level (108). I did manage to get the Black Phantom and Blue Phantom trophies out of the way, so I have no real further interest in PVP.

But, if you or I need help to change Character tendencies through PVP for trophy purposes, maybe we could use the password feature to setup private sessions or however it works.

One of the best items in the game is the Sodden Ring that allows you to move like normal when wading in the filth in 5-2. Unfortunately it's extremely unlikely that a new player will find it without reading up on it as you need to be in the 3-2 swamp with pure black world tendency.

I've been through 5-2 many times with three different characters and I'm just about to go through all of 5 on my NG+ for my last objective to platinum. Not looking forward to it a ton but at least I have the Sodden Ring on this character and my newly acquired Fireball spell.

As for finishing the game, there is a light and a dark ending, depending on your choice at the end. If you want to continue with your good character you can just do the good ending. None of the endings really set up the second playthrough all that well story-wise though, so it's more of a pure game repetition with the story reset.

When it comes to the trophys you at least don't need to get all spells and all miracles on the same character. You can just get all the spells on one and all the miracles on another. The miracles can be done on the first playthrough but the spells require you to go into NG+.

Thanks for the offer of PVP help but I did acquire pure white character tendency on this NG+. It actualy was in PVP as I had a player invading the Old Monk boss, and apparently my spell slinging character isn't bad at PVP (I was worried about lower health, but it was fine). The bastard ambushed me straight out of the fog gate with a Firestorm spell, but I survived it and rolled away thinking that he likely has gear that makes him weak against magic, just like I have, so I gave him a Firestorm of my own. He went down immediately, which felt good after that cheap shot. I can help you if you want to change your tendency though.

 

[X Knight]

One of the best items in the game is the Sodden Ring that allows you to move like normal when wading in the filth in 5-2. Unfortunately it's extremely unlikely that a new player will find it without reading up on it as you need to be in the 3-2 swamp with pure black world tendency.

I've been through 5-2 many times with three different characters and I'm just about to go through all of 5 on my NG+ for my last objective to platinum. Not looking forward to it a ton but at least I have the Sodden Ring on this character and my newly acquired Fireball spell.

As for finishing the game, there is a light and a dark ending, depending on your choice at the end. If you want to continue with your good character you can just do the good ending. None of the endings really set up the second playthrough all that well story-wise though, so it's more of a pure game repetition with the story reset.

When it comes to the trophys you at least don't need to get all spells and all miracles on the same character. You can just get all the spells on one and all the miracles on another. The miracles can be done on the first playthrough but the spells require you to go into NG+.

Thanks for the offer of PVP help but I did acquire pure white character tendency on this NG+. It actualy was in PVP as I had a player invading the Old Monk boss, and apparently my spell slinging character isn't bad at PVP (I was worried about lower health, but it was fine). The bastard ambushed me straight out of the fog gate with a Firestorm spell, but I survived it and rolled away thinking that he likely has gear that makes him weak against magic, just like I have, so I gave him a Firestorm of my own. He went down immediately, which felt good after that cheap shot. I can help you if you want to change your tendency though.

Thanks for the offer. I don't really have to do any PVP or character tendency stuff right now, but in the future, if I need some PVP help, I'll shoot you a PM.

Btw.....I don't know if we have exchanged PSN IDs yet. Mine is KnightPSX if you want to add me to your PS Friends list.

I actually picked up the Sodden Ring on the character I just beat the game with. So, that's good to know that ring will come in handy for that character on future trips to the 5-2 Swamp. However, that doesn't do my other holy knight character any good.......haha.

And that's also good to know about the Spells/Miracles. I thought it had to be all with one character. If that's not the case, then I can focus on getting all the miracles for my holy knight character and perhaps some of the outstanding spells I didn't get with my other character. Then, I can get the remaining spells on my other character in NG+. So, that might save me at least one playthrough.....lol.

As for the story or character lore, I guess since most of it is not explicitly stated, you could interpret it however you want. Even though the Maiden in Black refers to you as a "new demon" when presenting you to the Old One at the end, I guess that's just her figure of speech and whether or not it becomes true depends on which ending you choose. If you choose the Bad Ending, then you really do become a "new demon" to serve the Old One. But if you choose the Good Ending, then that shows you renounced that path and used your power for good and thus did not actually become a demon. Guess that's one way of looking at it.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Thanks for the offer. I don't really have to do any PVP or character tendency stuff right now, but in the future, if I need some PVP help, I'll shoot you a PM.

Btw.....I don't know if we have exchanged PSN IDs yet. Mine is KnightPSX if you want to add me to your PS Friends list.

I actually picked up the Sodden Ring on the character I just beat the game with. So, that's good to know that ring will come in handy for that character on future trips to the 5-2 Swamp. However, that doesn't do my other holy knight character any good.......haha.

And that's also good to know about the Spells/Miracles. I thought it had to be all with one character. If that's not the case, then I can focus on getting all the miracles for my holy knight character and perhaps some of the outstanding spells I didn't get with my other character. Then, I can get the remaining spells on my other character in NG+. So, that might save me at least one playthrough.....lol.

As for the story or character lore, I guess since most of it is not explicitly stated, you could interpret it however you want. Even though the Maiden in Black refers to you as a "new demon" when presenting you to the Old One at the end, I guess that's just her figure of speech and whether or not it becomes true depends on which ending you choose. If you choose the Bad Ending, then you really do become a "new demon" to serve the Old One. But if you choose the Good Ending, then that shows you renounced that path and used your power for good and thus did not actually become a demon. Guess that's one way of looking at it.

I'll add you the next time I get on the PS5. My ID is Evil_Peter.

Nice that you already have it. It's certainly making all the fights against big hitters in the swamp so much easier.

Yeah, if you had to get all the trophies on the same character it would be really annoying. The spells and rings are the toughest to do. The rings could be done in one playthrough with perfect character tendency planning (although you'd start low for NG+) but it's a hassle learning where and when you can get them. The spells are straight forward but the requirement of two of some boss demon souls inevitably requires NG+.

I got my platinum trophy yesterday so I think I'll find another game to play, even though I'm still having fun with DS. I was invaded again when I was just messing around after that and again I one-shotted the invader with Firestorm, so clearly I was wrong regarding the PVP ability of my character (like you I'm not interested in it enough to seek it out though). Now I just need to figure out what I want to play next.

Regarding the story I just meant that the NG+ playthrough doesn't take the ending into account, it just resets the board (apart from world tendency) so you're back without any of your deeds having been done. It's in that regard I meant that your light character could go on after the ending, since you're still meeting the Maiden in Black for the first time again, etc.

 

[X Knight]

I'll add you the next time I get on the PS5. My ID is Evil_Peter.

Nice that you already have it. It's certainly making all the fights against big hitters in the swamp so much easier.

Yeah, if you had to get all the trophies on the same character it would be really annoying. The spells and rings are the toughest to do. The rings could be done in one playthrough with perfect character tendency planning (although you'd start low for NG+) but it's a hassle learning where and when you can get them. The spells are straight forward but the requirement of two of some boss demon souls inevitably requires NG+.

I got my platinum trophy yesterday so I think I'll find another game to play, even though I'm still having fun with DS. I was invaded again when I was just messing around after that and again I one-shotted the invader with Firestorm, so clearly I was wrong regarding the PVP ability of my character (like you I'm not interested in it enough to seek it out though). Now I just need to figure out what I want to play next.

Regarding the story I just meant that the NG+ playthrough doesn't take the ending into account, it just resets the board (apart from world tendency) so you're back without any of your deeds having been done. It's in that regard I meant that your light character could go on after the ending, since you're still meeting the Maiden in Black for the first time again, etc.

Great! I'll be on the lookout for your Friend Request.

I'm not sure if I'll go for the Platinum Trophy. I've never really been much of a Trophy hunter or completionist and I'm not sure this game can sustain my interest for multiple playthroughs.

I tried Ng+ and beat Phalanx to open the worlds back up. There definitely is a spike in the enemy difficulty and challenge, even on that first 1-1 level. If my character wasn't already at LVL 108 and didn't have powerful weapons like the Blueblood Sword and Moonlight Greatsword, then it would have been an even tougher challenge. So, not exactly looking forward to the rest of the game.....haha.

I do feel like I'm ready to move on to something else. Started playing Immortals Rising Fenyx last night and the change to a more whimsical tone and colorful world was quite welcome. I've also been meaning to finish Persona 5 Royal, so I think that will be my my next focus.

I'll just keep Demons Souls on the backburner and revisit it from time to time to make my way through NG+ or work on my other character. It was definitely worth it to experience the game through the 1st playthrough, but I'm finding myself feeling less motivated to play through it again.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Great! I'll be on the lookout for your Friend Request.

I'm not sure if I'll go for the Platinum Trophy. I've never really been much of a Trophy hunter or completionist and I'm not sure this game can sustain my interest for multiple playthroughs.

I tried Ng+ and beat Phalanx to open the worlds back up. There definitely is a spike in the enemy difficulty and challenge, even on that first 1-1 level. If my character wasn't already at LVL 108 and didn't have powerful weapons like the Blueblood Sword and Moonlight Greatsword, then it would have been an even tougher challenge. So, not exactly looking forward to the rest of the game.....haha.

I do feel like I'm ready to move on to something else. Started playing Immortals Rising Fenyx last night and the change to a more whimsical tone and colorful world was quite welcome. I've also been meaning to finish Persona 5 Royal, so I think that will be my my next focus.

I'll just keep Demons Souls on the backburner and revisit it from time to time to make my way through NG+ or work on my other character. It was definitely worth it to experience the game through the 1st playthrough, but I'm finding myself feeling less motivated to play through it again.

I'm not much of a trophy hunter either, but I do find it to be a fun thing if I'm still loving a game after completing it. I've only done it on two other games before, plus Astro's Playroom but that took 5 hours total so it hardly counts. I'm enjoying DS so much that I could keep playing it but I'll move on to something else.

With a mage in NG+ I'd say that it's a huge help to get all the magic damage boost gear, and a Talisman of Beasts as well. It really helps you bring the heat with magic and I was still one-shotting bosses with Firestorm in some places even though I only reached level 110 after getting my platinum.

Good that you reminded me of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I've been thinking about what game I should move onto next and that might be a strong candidate. My other thought was to try The Last Guardian as I loved ICO and Shadow of the Colossus back in the day. I might go back and play a bit of Marvel's Avengers as well, in addition to a new game.

 

[X Knight]

I'm not much of a trophy hunter either, but I do find it to be a fun thing if I'm still loving a game after completing it. I've only done it on two other games before, plus Astro's Playroom but that took 5 hours total so it hardly counts. I'm enjoying DS so much that I could keep playing it but I'll move on to something else.

With a mage in NG+ I'd say that it's a huge help to get all the magic damage boost gear, and a Talisman of Beasts as well. It really helps you bring the heat with magic and I was still one-shotting bosses with Firestorm in some places even though I only reached level 110 after getting my platinum.

Good that you reminded me of Immortals: Fenyx Rising. I've been thinking about what game I should move onto next and that might be a strong candidate. My other thought was to try The Last Guardian as I loved ICO and Shadow of the Colossus back in the day. I might go back and play a bit of Marvel's Avengers as well, in addition to a new game.

I did pick up the TOB on my first playthrough. It came in handy, since I use both Spells and Miracles. Also, since it scales off both Magic and Faith, it works nicely with my Blueblood Sword build since those stats were kept even to meet the min requirements for the sword, and I have since kept them in lockstep as I've leveled up.

I did install Bloodborne, so I think that will be my next Souls game. I forgot that I also own Nioh 2 and Code Vein and those are also Souls type games. But I think I want to tackle Persona 5 Royal first before I move on to another Souls experience.....haha.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

I did pick up the TOB on my first playthrough. It came in handy, since I use both Spells and Miracles. Also, since it scales off both Magic and Faith, it works nicely with my Blueblood Sword build since those stats were kept even to meet the min requirements for the sword, and I have since kept them in lockstep as I've leveled up.

I did install Bloodborne, so I think that will be my next Souls game. I forgot that I also own Nioh 2 and Code Vein and those are also Souls type games. But I think I want to tackle Persona 5 Royal first before I move on to another Souls experience.....haha.

I only used Second Chance as far as miracles go but it was handy not to have to switch from a catalyst to a talisman, so I could have a mana regen item as my secondary left hand slot. The scaling is the big thing though, so it can eventually outscale the Insanity catalyst and not have the big hit to mana. I didn't try any weapon that scales off multiple stats like you though. I did create the Northern Regalia (although that doesn't scale off stats at all) and thought of boosting my stats enough to use it one-handed, but ended up just boosting my magic instead and sticking with the very fast, easy on stamina falchion as my hitting weapon.

Bloodborne will be my next Souls game but I'm still annoyed that From Software can't at least unlock 60 fps. Sure, it's plenty more coding than just changing a value but one single amateur programmer has done it and will release an unofficial patch in February unless FS announces anything of their own. I haven't looked into how that would work though and I fear that one might need a modified console, which I'm not willing to do. We'll see.

I ended up getting Immortals: Fenyx Rising and it's pretty much the exact opposite of Demon's Souls in that it's bright, cute and funny. It's giving me plenty of Zelda feel and I'm enjoying it this far.

 

[X Knight]

I only used Second Chance as far as miracles go but it was handy not to have to switch from a catalyst to a talisman, so I could have a mana regen item as my secondary left hand slot. The scaling is the big thing though, so it can eventually outscale the Insanity catalyst and not have the big hit to mana. I didn't try any weapon that scales off multiple stats like you though. I did create the Northern Regalia (although that doesn't scale off stats at all) and thought of boosting my stats enough to use it one-handed, but ended up just boosting my magic instead and sticking with the very fast, easy on stamina falchion as my hitting weapon.

Bloodborne will be my next Souls game but I'm still annoyed that From Software can't at least unlock 60 fps. Sure, it's plenty more coding than just changing a value but one single amateur programmer has done it and will release an unofficial patch in February unless FS announces anything of their own. I haven't looked into how that would work though and I fear that one might need a modified console, which I'm not willing to do. We'll see.

I ended up getting Immortals: Fenyx Rising and it's pretty much the exact opposite of Demon's Souls in that it's bright, cute and funny. It's giving me plenty of Zelda feel and I'm enjoying it this far.

I'm glad you're enjoying Fenyx Rising. It actually reminds me of Disney's Hercules, so it feels like you are playing a game version of that. And I agree that it is a refreshing change of pace compared to a Souls game!

I've also tried a bit of Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3. Again, I've tried both games in the past back when they released, but I just could not get into them. Now that I've played and beaten Demon's Souls, the other Souls games feel more familiar and easier to get into (though with their own differences).

However, I still find myself returning to DS Remake. In fact, I've decided to start over with a new character. This time, I'm using an online calculator site I came across, MugenMonkey, to help build and plan out my character. And I even saved my own build layout on the site if you're interested in checking it out.

MugenMonkey

This build is not too different from the spellsword/battlemage build I just completed the game with because I did enjoy that playstyle. However, instead of building the stats around a specific weapon like the Blueblood Sword, which requires investing in multiple stats including luck, this time around I'm going to try to focus on just the stats I need for a LVL120 cap in mind. And aside from the TOB and Dark Silver Shield, I'm going to use weapons that are readily available early on in the game.

Also, for role playing purposes, instead of running with a Royalty class for a magic character, this time I'm going to see if I can take a lowly Soldier and turn her into a bada** spellsword Slayer of Demons.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

I'm glad you're enjoying Fenyx Rising. It actually reminds me of Disney's Hercules, so it feels like you are playing a game version of that. And I agree that it is a refreshing change of pace compared to a Souls game!

I've also tried a bit of Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3. Again, I've tried both games in the past back when they released, but I just could not get into them. Now that I've played and beaten Demon's Souls, the other Souls games feel more familiar and easier to get into (though with their own differences).

However, I still find myself returning to DS Remake. In fact, I've decided to start over with a new character. This time, I'm using an online calculator site I came across, MugenMonkey, to help build and plan out my character. And I even saved my own build layout on the site if you're interested in checking it out.

MugenMonkey

This build is not too different from the spellsword/battlemage build I just completed the game with because I did enjoy that playstyle. However, instead of building the stats around a specific weapon like the Blueblood Sword, which requires investing in multiple stats including luck, this time around I'm going to try to focus on just the stats I need for a LVL120 cap in mind. And aside from the TOB and Dark Silver Shield, I'm going to use weapons that are readily available early on in the game.

Also, for role playing purposes, instead of running with a Royalty class for a magic character, this time I'm going to see if I can take a lowly Soldier and turn her into a bada** spellsword Slayer of Demons.

I never saw Disney's Hercules but I can imagine that it's similar. Just with more adult humor I would assume.

Nice that you're still having fun with DS Remake. Looks like a fun character and I assume that you're going to focus mostly on weaponry and aid it with magic. If you plan on using a lot of magic I'd probably recommend going a bit lighter on endurance as I got away with about 20-25 on my mage. Given that you're using a shield I think my first assumption is right though, and blocking certainly requires plenty of stamina. I always support making roleplaying choices as well. I'd recommend getting the Crescent Falchion from early 4-1 for that build. It's fast and does magic damage, which most enemies aren't very resistant towards. It's at least a good option to have.

Regarding the TOB there is a fun thing to use that for with a melee based character. I have one where I got the Dragonbone Smasher as early as I could (took down Flamelurker as my third boss and could then just run in and grab it by Dragon God) and I later used the talisman to cast Cursed Weapon to increase my damage. The spell continuously drains your health, but since I didn't have enough Faith for the prerequisite of the talisman the spell was lessened, but in a very beneficial way. I got all the damage boost but it just drains 1 health per second or something. That character hits like a truck when it's on and most things go flying from the hits as well. Pretty fun.

Btw, I did throw a friend request on PSN a couple of weeks ago.

 

[X Knight]

I never saw Disney's Hercules but I can imagine that it's similar. Just with more adult humor I would assume.

Nice that you're still having fun with DS Remake. Looks like a fun character and I assume that you're going to focus mostly on weaponry and aid it with magic. If you plan on using a lot of magic I'd probably recommend going a bit lighter on endurance as I got away with about 20-25 on my mage. Given that you're using a shield I think my first assumption is right though, and blocking certainly requires plenty of stamina. I always support making roleplaying choices as well. I'd recommend getting the Crescent Falchion from early 4-1 for that build. It's fast and does magic damage, which most enemies aren't very resistant towards. It's at least a good option to have.

Regarding the TOB there is a fun thing to use that for with a melee based character. I have one where I got the Dragonbone Smasher as early as I could (took down Flamelurker as my third boss and could then just run in and grab it by Dragon God) and I later used the talisman to cast Cursed Weapon to increase my damage. The spell continuously drains your health, but since I didn't have enough Faith for the prerequisite of the talisman the spell was lessened, but in a very beneficial way. I got all the damage boost but it just drains 1 health per second or something. That character hits like a truck when it's on and most things go flying from the hits as well. Pretty fun.

Btw, I did throw a friend request on PSN a couple of weeks ago.

Yeah, the visual style of Hercules is somewhat similar to Fenyx. But Fenyx has more adult humor, as you said.

I'll have to check the friend request. Still kind of getting used to the PS5 interface, and I don't recall seeing any notification pop up.

I did hear about that TOB "glitch" with Cursed Weapon. Can you use Cursed Weapon on enchanted weapons like Moon or Crescent weapons?

I thought about using Cursed or Light Weapon buffs for this build, but I decided to go with Moon and Crescent weapons to have the magic damage and scaling already built in. Plus MP regen with Crescent weapon. That way, I can free up slots for defense buff spells like Protection or Warding. And, in the heat of battle, I won't have to worry about buffing both my weapon AND myself for defense. So that's one less thing to worry about during a fight.

And the Crescent Falchion in 4-1 is a good early weapon for magic-based characters, and came in handy for my prior character before she used the Blueblood Sword. This time around, though, I decided to skip CF since I planned on turning my starting Broadsword into a Crescent Broadsword, which I just did last night.

And that's one thing I like about this new build and starting with Soldier class this time around. She already starts with the Broadsword and a Short Spear as well as the Coat Plate armor set, which I like the look of and will use until I get Gloom Set. The Winged Spear can be found in 1-2 or dropped even in 1-1 (I think I got it as a 1-1 drop this time). The Compound Short Bow and Wooden Catalyst can also be found in 1-2, and the Claymore can be bought from the Dregling Merchant in 1-2. So, other than the TOB and Dark Silver Shield, pretty much all the weapons I want to use with this build can be found fairly early on.

Besides, my magic stats aren't that impressive yet as I approach LVL 40 with this character. So, the Crescent Falchion wouldn't matter as much. I'm now going to start building my magic and intel stats to start turning my character into more of a mage-melee hybrid. And roleplaying wise it fits, because I'll now be venturing into 3-1 to free Sage Freke. So, I'll just chalk it up to Sage Freke tutoring my character in the ways of magic!

My intent is to still be primarily melee-based with this character. Melee combat is just so satisfying in this game. She'll use some offensive spells like Soul Arrow/Ray and defensive buffs like Protection or Warding. And, again, roleplaying wise, I'll say she's channeling her magic power into her Moon and Crescent weapons for the damage scaling, even if she won't be a powerhouse with spells like a pure spellcaster.

And I'm getting my Endurance that high so I can at least wear Gloom Armor and Gloom Legging for the looks and still be able to fast roll. Ideally, I wanted to be able to equip the Gloom Gauntlets as well, but I had to make that trade off.

And overall, I'd say my character is inspired in part by the anime/manga character Goblin Slayer. Not just in terms of being a brutal killing machine of monsters, but also in the philosophy of being practical and conservative in using just what is necessary and nothing more. So, that's kind of how I'm managing my item equipment, weapon selection, and use of spells.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Yeah, the visual style of Hercules is somewhat similar to Fenyx. But Fenyx has more adult humor, as you said.

I'll have to check the friend request. Still kind of getting used to the PS5 interface, and I don't recall seeing any notification pop up.

I did hear about that TOB "glitch" with Cursed Weapon. Can you use Cursed Weapon on enchanted weapons like Moon or Crescent weapons?

I thought about using Cursed or Light Weapon buffs for this build, but I decided to go with Moon and Crescent weapons to have the magic damage and scaling already built in. Plus MP regen with Crescent weapon. That way, I can free up slots for defense buff spells like Protection or Warding. And, in the heat of battle, I won't have to worry about buffing both my weapon AND myself for defense. So that's one less thing to worry about during a fight.

And the Crescent Falchion in 4-1 is a good early weapon for magic-based characters, and came in handy for my prior character before she used the Blueblood Sword. This time around, though, I decided to skip CF since I planned on turning my starting Broadsword into a Crescent Broadsword, which I just did last night.

And that's one thing I like about this new build and starting with Soldier class this time around. She already starts with the Broadsword and a Short Spear as well as the Coat Plate armor set, which I like the look of and will use until I get Gloom Set. The Winged Spear can be found in 1-2 or dropped even in 1-1 (I think I got it as a 1-1 drop this time). The Compound Short Bow and Wooden Catalyst can also be found in 1-2, and the Claymore can be bought from the Dregling Merchant in 1-2. So, other than the TOB and Dark Silver Shield, pretty much all the weapons I want to use with this build can be found fairly early on.

Besides, my magic stats aren't that impressive yet as I approach LVL 40 with this character. So, the Crescent Falchion wouldn't matter as much. I'm now going to start building my magic and intel stats to start turning my character into more of a mage-melee hybrid. And roleplaying wise it fits, because I'll now be venturing into 3-1 to free Sage Freke. So, I'll just chalk it up to Sage Freke tutoring my character in the ways of magic!

My intent is to still be primarily melee-based with this character. Melee combat is just so satisfying in this game. She'll use some offensive spells like Soul Arrow/Ray and defensive buffs like Protection or Warding. And, again, roleplaying wise, I'll say she's channeling her magic power into her Moon and Crescent weapons for the damage scaling, even if she won't be a powerhouse with spells like a pure spellcaster.

And I'm getting my Endurance that high so I can at least wear Gloom Armor and Gloom Legging for the looks. Ideally, I wanted to be able to equip the Gloom Gauntlets as well, but I had to make that trade off.

And overall, I'd say my character is inspired in part by the anime/manga character Goblin Slayer. Not just in terms of being a brutal killing machine of monsters, but also in the philosophy of being practical and conservative in using just what is necessary and nothing more. So, that's kind of how I'm managing my item equipment and weapon selection.

I discovered that glitch on my own by accident as I had looked up the ToB and how to get it, but forgot to look at the prerequisites and only had enough Faith for Second Chance. I'm not entirely sure regarding enchanted weapons but I don't think that they be enhanced by spells or consumables.

Yeah, that setup makes sense for the kind of character you've decided on and it sounds like fun. The Winged Spear is in 1-2, on the first segment of the bridge. That was my weapon of choice for my first character although I just took it to +10 rather than to go any enchanted route. I had planned on going Sharp on NG+, but I ended up making a new character when I beat the game.

I had planned on going with the Claymore on my second, two-handed focused character but then I got the idea to see if I could take down Flamelurker already as the third boss to get the DBS, but while that weapon is more powerful I am more of a fan of realistic weapons in terms of looks. Who knows, I might make a fourth character just to do something like that.

I think Crescent weapons can be useful early on even without stat scaling since there are plenty of enemies in some early parts that have worse defense against magic than physical damage, but the falchion is still irrelevant since you already got the broadsword done. Sounds like good timing to boost your mental stats while going for Freke.

Yeah, Endurance is very important for many reasons for melee focused characters. It is well designed that you often have to think about using full heavy armor with the strength ring or to sacrifice some armor to use some other ring. I agree that melee is really satisfying and I did enjoy cutting down some enemies now and then even on my pure mage. Magic is fun but it doesn't have the same special feel.

I hope you have fun with your playthrough. I'll see when I get back to the game as I suspect I will at some point, but I think I'll give Bloodborne a shot before that.

 

[X Knight]

I discovered that glitch on my own by accident as I had looked up the ToB and how to get it, but forgot to look at the prerequisites and only had enough Faith for Second Chance. I'm not entirely sure regarding enchanted weapons but I don't think that they be enhanced by spells or consumables.

Yeah, that setup makes sense for the kind of character you've decided on and it sounds like fun. The Winged Spear is in 1-2, on the first segment of the bridge. That was my weapon of choice for my first character although I just took it to +10 rather than to go any enchanted route. I had planned on going Sharp on NG+, but I ended up making a new character when I beat the game.

I had planned on going with the Claymore on my second, two-handed focused character but then I got the idea to see if I could take down Flamelurker already as the third boss to get the DBS, but while that weapon is more powerful I am more of a fan of realistic weapons in terms of looks. Who knows, I might make a fourth character just to do something like that.

I think Crescent weapons can be useful early on even without stat scaling since there are plenty of enemies in some early parts that have worse defense against magic than physical damage, but the falchion is still irrelevant since you already got the broadsword done. Sounds like good timing to boost your mental stats while going for Freke.

Yeah, Endurance is very important for many reasons for melee focused characters. It is well designed that you often have to think about using full heavy armor with the strength ring or to sacrifice some armor to use some other ring. I agree that melee is really satisfying and I did enjoy cutting down some enemies now and then even on my pure mage. Magic is fun but it doesn't have the same special feel.

I hope you have fun with your playthrough. I'll see when I get back to the game as I suspect I will at some point, but I think I'll give Bloodborne a shot before that.

Thanks for all of your advice. It's good to be able to talk to someone on this level of detail on a game like this!

Yeah, I agree that Magic is fun. But I don't think I could play an entirely pure magic character without melee.

I'm going to see how well this new character build can hold up as I progress through the game. My goal is to beat the game at around LVL 75-80 this time around. Last time, I think I was around 105 when I beat the game, but I also leveled up a few extra points at the end when I found out Old King Allant can delevel you with one of his attacks!

So, if I'm able to beat the game this time around at a lower level, using non-special weapons (not Blue Blood Sword or Moonlight Sword), I think that will be proof that this new build is viable for PVE. I'll also try my hand at PVP invasions, to see how well the build holds up there.

Hope you enjoy Bloodborne. I tried getting into it, but I decided to go back to Demon's Souls.....lol.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Thanks for all of your advice. It's good to be able to talk to someone on this level of detail on a game like this!

Yeah, I agree that Magic is fun. But I don't think I could play an entirely pure magic character without melee.

I'm going to see how well this new character build can hold up as I progress through the game. My goal is to beat the game at around LVL 75-80 this time around. Last time, I think I was around 105 when I beat the game, but I also leveled up a few extra points at the end when I found out Old King Allant can delevel you with one of his attacks!

So, if I'm able to beat the game this time around at a lower level, using non-special weapons (not Blue Blood Sword or Moonlight Sword), I think that will be proof that this new build is viable for PVE. I'll also try my hand at PVP invasions, to see how well the build holds up there.

Hope you enjoy Bloodborne. I tried getting into it, but I decided to go back to Demon's Souls.....lol.

Aye, it's been fun to talk to someone that's also really into the game and also new so the experiences are similar.

Going pure magic would get a bit more tedious since you'd have to wait for mana more often, but I enjoyed the character that dealt with all strong enemies almost purely with magic. It's clearly easier than melee though so that also takes away some of the fun since overcoming risk is fun.

I'm sure you'll do fine with that level. Regarding Old King Allant that was also something I noticed while playing. He hit me and lowered my Endurance so suddenly I started slow rolling because my gear got too heavy and I got pretty confused when what I thought was a debuff never wore off. Sneaky bastard.

I'm sure the build will do fine and the more you play the better you get at it, so that will probably keep helping as well. PvP is probably more of a tossup since it depends greatly on whom you're matched against, both in terms of player skill, gear, and stylistic match up. But it's just for fun so not much to lose by failing there now and then.

We'll see how it turns out with Bloodborne. It won't be quite yet in any case since I'm going to get through I:FR first. This far I've been pretty bent on clearing the map of stuff so it's taking a while.

 

[X Knight]

Aye, it's been fun to talk to someone that's also really into the game and also new so the experiences are similar.

Going pure magic would get a bit more tedious since you'd have to wait for mana more often, but I enjoyed the character that dealt with all strong enemies almost purely with magic. It's clearly easier than melee though so that also takes away some of the fun since overcoming risk is fun.

I'm sure you'll do fine with that level. Regarding Old King Allant that was also something I noticed while playing. He hit me and lowered my Endurance so suddenly I started slow rolling because my gear got too heavy and I got pretty confused when what I thought was a debuff never wore off. Sneaky bastard.

I'm sure the build will do fine and the more you play the better you get at it, so that will probably keep helping as well. PvP is probably more of a tossup since it depends greatly on whom you're matched against, both in terms of player skill, gear, and stylistic match up. But it's just for fun so not much to lose by failing there now and then.

We'll see how it turns out with Bloodborne. It won't be quite yet in any case since I'm going to get through I:FR first. This far I've been pretty bent on clearing the map of stuff so it's taking a while.

Yeah, magic in this game is definitely OP. Starting with Royalty class makes the early part especially easier because you have Soul Arrow as well as equipment that boosts your total MP and a ring that regenerates MP all from the start. That's partly one reason why I wanted to start with Soldier class this time around. It has been more challenging using mainly melee with this character. But, as you said, overcoming risk is fun and that is a large part of this game.

Yeah, Allant's Soulsucker attack affected my Endurance (and rolls), too. I think how the mechanic works is that the delevel ignores your Vit stat, but targets your other stats. Starting with the stat that has the biggest difference from its base level (so the stat you've leveled up the most). Looks like in both of our cases, we leveled up End the most, so that was the first to get affected. But yes. It is sneaky! The 1st time I fought Allant, I got hit 4 times by his Soulsucker, so that means I lost 4 levels and 3 points in End!

Speaking of PVP, I managed to take on 3 different invading Black Phantoms last night. I defeated 2 and lost to the 3rd after a good back-and-forth battle. This is in stark contrast to the other times where I was invaded on my other characters and got my butt kicked right away. So, hopefully, this also a sign that my skill at the game is improving.

I actually welcome getting invaded now, in World 2-2, because if I win, then my Character Tendency shifts towards white (for the Ally/Friends Ring), and if I die, then World Tendency shifts towards black (for TOB and easy Colorless Demons Soul). So, it's kind of a win-win situation for me.

As my character levels up, I'll see how I fare against higher level invading Phantoms. If I find myself enjoying PVP more, then that might incentive me to stick to that LVL 120 "meta" cap, which, from my understanding in these games, is generally the max recommended level for PVP.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Yeah, magic in this game is definitely OP. Starting with Royalty class makes the early part especially easier because you have Soul Arrow as well as equipment that boosts your total MP and a ring that regenerates MP all from the start. That's partly one reason why I wanted to start with Soldier class this time around. It has been more challenging using mainly melee with this character. But, as you said, overcoming risk is fun and that is a large part of this game.

Yeah, Allant's Soulsucker attack affected my Endurance (and rolls), too. I think how the mechanic works is that the delevel ignores your Vit stat, but targets your other stats. Starting with the stat that has the biggest difference from its base level (so the stat you've leveled up the most). Looks like in both of our cases, we leveled up End the most, so that was the first to get affected. But yes. It is sneaky! The 1st time I fought Allant, I got hit 4 times by his Soulsucker, so that means I lost 4 levels and 3 points in End!

Speaking of PVP, I managed to take on 3 different invading Black Phantoms last night. I defeated 2 and lost to the 3rd after a good back-and-forth battle. This is in stark contrast to the other times where I was invaded on my other characters and got my butt kicked right away. So, hopefully, this also a sign that my skill at the game is improving.

I actually welcome getting invaded now, in World 2-2, because if I win, then my Character Tendency shifts towards white (for the Ally/Friends Ring), and if I die, then World Tendency shifts towards black (for TOB and easy Colorless Demons Soul). So, it's kind of a win-win situation for me.

As my character levels up, I'll see how I fare against higher level invading Phantoms. If I find myself enjoying PVP more, then that might incentive me to stick to that LVL 120 "meta" cap, which, from my understanding in these games, is generally the max recommended level for PVP.

Yes, going Soldier was certainly a good move to make it more challenging and makes sense if you want to focus more on melee as well. Of course there can be some risk with a more pure mage as well since it's likely that you become a glass cannon, but there are plenty of beneficial factors to mitigate that, where good damage at range is the biggest one even before the spell arsenal gets wide.

Yes, that's how I also understood it after looking it up. I got hit twice the first time so had to ditch one piece of armor for a lighter one on the second attempt as I didn't bother leveling up again until after I beat him, which would turn out to be unnecessary given the state of the final "boss". Endurance was very important for my first character as I went spear and shield, which allows you to block and strike at the same time. That is very strong defensively but can use a ton of stamina.

Nice that you're enjoying PvP more. I've found it to be exciting as well and more fun when I started getting better and being able to beat people more consistently. It's certainly a win-win in your situation where you want to get those things. It's interesting that it should be best to have pure white character tendency when being invaded and pure black when you invade. It's thematically fitting.

I would assume that one would be more likely to face skilled players when one is round the common meta levels, which is why I was a bit worried about my mage when doing Old Monk on NG+ as I had read that while magic is strong in PvE it's not that strong in PvP. My experience was different though since my pretty optimized magic damage made Firestorm extremely useful. Then again I guess that's what you have to do since the magic projectiles are too easy to avoid, so in that sense magic is pretty bad.

It would be fun if they had more of a pure PvP mode in Souls games as well. It would be fun with some kind of Battle Royale stage, although I guess the games can't handle that many players at once.

I did complete Fenyx Rising yesterday so I'll see what I try next. It was a fun game with lots of nice puzzles but fighting was easy and it's not a game I will carry with me for a long time afterwards.

 

[X Knight]

Yes, going Soldier was certainly a good move to make it more challenging and makes sense if you want to focus more on melee as well. Of course there can be some risk with a more pure mage as well since it's likely that you become a glass cannon, but there are plenty of beneficial factors to mitigate that, where good damage at range is the biggest one even before the spell arsenal gets wide.

Yes, that's how I also understood it after looking it up. I got hit twice the first time so had to ditch one piece of armor for a lighter one on the second attempt as I didn't bother leveling up again until after I beat him, which would turn out to be unnecessary given the state of the final "boss". Endurance was very important for my first character as I went spear and shield, which allows you to block and strike at the same time. That is very strong defensively but can use a ton of stamina.

Nice that you're enjoying PvP more. I've found it to be exciting as well and more fun when I started getting better and being able to beat people more consistently. It's certainly a win-win in your situation where you want to get those things. It's interesting that it should be best to have pure white character tendency when being invaded and pure black when you invade. It's thematically fitting.

I would assume that one would be more likely to face skilled players when one is round the common meta levels, which is why I was a bit worried about my mage when doing Old Monk on NG+ as I had read that while magic is strong in PvE it's not that strong in PvP. My experience was different though since my pretty optimized magic damage made Firestorm extremely useful. Then again I guess that's what you have to do since the magic projectiles are too easy to avoid, so in that sense magic is pretty bad.

It would be fun if they had more of a pure PvP mode in Souls games as well. It would be fun with some kind of Battle Royale stage, although I guess the games can't handle that many players at once.

I did complete Fenyx Rising yesterday so I'll see what I try next. It was a fun game with lots of nice puzzles but fighting was easy and it's not a game I will carry with me for a long time afterwards.

Glad you enjoyed Fenyx. I'll return to it at some point, but right now I seemed locked into Demon's Souls......lol. And I really want to finish Persona 5 Royal and FFVII Remake before moving on to other games. And before I get the itch to tackle another Souls game properly.....haha.

And I managed to get Pure White Character Tendency surprisingly fast and easy after killing only 2 invading Black Phantoms and Black Phantom Scirvr for the TOB. So, I got that out of the way and got the Ally Ring this playthrough.

It's going Pure Black Character Tendency for the Foe Ring that I'm not looking forward to for role playing or thematic purposes. But I'll do that in NG+ so I can get that ring. And might as well get the ring from killing Old King Doran while I'm going bad and kill Maiden in Black at the end for the Bad Ending trophy.

So, it's looking like NG+ will be my "bad" character playthrough. I'll just say she finally snapped after all she went through........

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Glad you enjoyed Fenyx. I'll return to it at some point, but right now I seemed locked into Demon's Souls......lol. And I really want to finish Persona 5 Royal and FFVII Remake before moving on to other games. And before I get the itch to tackle another Souls game properly.....haha.

And I managed to get Pure White Character Tendency surprisingly fast and easy after killing only 2 invading Black Phantoms and Black Phantom Scirvr for the TOB. So, I got that out of the way and got the Ally Ring this playthrough.

It's going Pure Black Character Tendency for the Foe Ring that I'm not looking forward to for role playing or thematic purposes. But I'll do that in NG+ so I can get that ring. And might as well get the ring from killing Old King Doran while I'm going bad and kill Maiden in Black at the end for the Bad Ending trophy.

So, it's looking like NG+ will be my "bad" character playthrough. I'll just say she finally snapped after all she went through........

Yeah, it's a fun game but not a real "must play" title so go for it when you feel that you're up for it. I hold FF7R higher.

Nice that PvP helped you that much. In hindsight I see that my reluctance for PvP wasn't necessarily right, as my collector character was really good at it and my Character Tendency journey required me to plan pretty well (especially since I didn't realize that any given trophy had to be done on just one character until I was into that playthrough). Then again that planning did pose a challenge in itself so I enjoyed it.

Your role playing idea for going black sounds good and the setting certainly is right for people to lose their minds eventually. There are also a couple of NPC's that I didn't mind killing although, in case you haven't already read it, be careful so you don't kill more than one of the NPC's that you will be quested to kill before you get the missions. I read that it can screw up the quest line.

 

[X Knight]

Yeah, it's a fun game but not a real "must play" title so go for it when you feel that you're up for it. I hold FF7R higher.

Nice that PvP helped you that much. In hindsight I see that my reluctance for PvP wasn't necessarily right, as my collector character was really good at it and my Character Tendency journey required me to plan pretty well (especially since I didn't realize that any given trophy had to be done on just one character until I was into that playthrough). Then again that planning did pose a challenge in itself so I enjoyed it.

Your role playing idea for going black sounds good and the setting certainly is right for people to lose their minds eventually. There are also a couple of NPC's that I didn't mind killing although, in case you haven't already read it, be careful so you don't kill more than one of the NPC's that you will be quested to kill before you get the missions. I read that it can screw up the quest line.

Yeah, manipulating Character Tendency this time around made me realize how much I messed up or missed out on that aspect for prior characters.

But, just like in the game itself, with each new character I create and try, I learn something new or how to play the character/game better or differently. I only wish the game gave you a way to delete unwanted/unused character files. In Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne, you can easily do that. But here it seems to be missing. Which is unfortunate, because it can get quite messy when you've amassed a number of characters that you would like to discard and delete.

The upside to having multiple character files, though, is that I can focus on earning individual trophies on different characters instead of trying to do it all with one. So, for my Holy Paladin knight, for example, I can focus on getting all miracles with that character. For my mages or spellswords, I can focus on getting all spells for that character. The Ring trophy is going to pose the biggest challenge because that will require changing Character Tendency back and forth for one character.

Speaking of spellswords, I've decided to restart and redo the Blueblood spellsword build I used to beat the game with previously. Now that I've learned some new things trying out other characters, like Character Tendency, I can rework that original build I used and manage the character more effectively. Also, using an online build calculator like MugenMonkey, I can plan out the character build better than I did the first time around.

 

[Mjolnir Reborn]

Yeah, manipulating Character Tendency this time around made me realize how much I messed up or missed out on that aspect for prior characters.

But, just like in the game itself, with each new character I create and try, I learn something new or how to play the character/game better or differently. I only wish the game gave you a way to delete unwanted/unused character files. In Dark Souls 3 and Bloodborne, you can easily do that. But here it seems to be missing. Which is unfortunate, because it can get quite messy when you've amassed a number of characters that you would like to discard and delete.

The upside to having multiple character files, though, is that I can focus on earning individual trophies on different characters instead of trying to do it all with one. So, for my Holy Paladin knight, for example, I can focus on getting all miracles with that character. For my mages or spellswords, I can focus on getting all spells for that character. The Ring trophy is going to pose the biggest challenge because that will require changing Character Tendency back and forth for one character.

Speaking of spellswords, I've decided to restart and redo the Blueblood spellsword build I used to beat the game with previously. Now that I've learned some new things trying out other characters, like Character Tendency, I can rework that original build I used and manage the character more effectively. Also, using an online build calculator like MugenMonkey, I can plan out the character build better than I did the first time around.

Yes, it's a odd that you can't delete characters. While I'm not really in need of it myself it feels like something that definitely should be implemented, and it should be really easy to do.

Some trophies are definitely best done on different characters since it would be neither optimal build-wise nor playthrough-wise to do it all on one character going further into NG+ playthroughs. As for the Ring trophy it shouldn't be that hard for you on tendency though, as you've already reached pure white and are doing pure black later, especially as going towards black is easier as far as the PvE part goes. I didn't plan my run optimally as I didn't use PvP and I went black first, and not until fairly late in my first playthrough, so I had to make my NG+ run pretty optimized. Then again I was completely wrong on the viability of my mage character in PvP so it would have sorted itself out anyway.

I certainly agree that it's a game where you have many details of gameplay to learn and you can certainly make your character better the second time around. I never used a build calculator but I did decide on a rough stat distribution before starting my characters so I never went far off my visions for the characters, but it does of course get more precise if you build it for real with a calculator. A calculator might also be more necessary with a build that uses many stats, like your Blueblood build, but I haven't tried anything like that myself yet.

If I'm to make another character I think I would go with a dual wield build. Perhaps a Dex build with some katanas.