Bandai-Namco Elden Ring

[obredaan]

Just beat the Lake Dragon, which felt great... Until I fought Godrick for the first time and he straight up ATE me.

The Lake Dragon was giving me fits until I used the JellyFish spirit. To my surprise the freaking JellyFish survived the battle and did serious damage. This game is bonkers.

Quick tip for everyone: Rain actually weakens fire spells but boosts lightning.

 

[Punisher_MAX]

Is it true theres some half dead dragon in a bog somewhere that gives a ton of runes?

 

[X Knight]

Finally cleared Stormveil Castle last night! What a tough slog! At least I managed to kill Godrick on my 1st try.......haha!!

Now that I've defeated my 1st "main" boss, I'm ready to venture further north into the "magic" area (Liurnia, I think it's called). I'm slowly putting the pieces together to start my quest for the Moonlight Sword as destiny beckons my character towards

Spoiler: Major Spoiler

his one true maiden and future wife - Lunar Princess Ranni

What I love about the Moonlight Sword in this game is that, unlike in Demons Souls where you just found it in the middle of a swamp, obtaining the Moonlight Sword in Elden Ring is tied to a long, intricate questline for the above mentioned major NPC (which also involves other main NPCs) that is rich with lore and also opens up one of the alternate endings to the game.

So, from a role-playing perspective, I feel going through the long quest to get the sword will be deeply satisfying.

 

[X Knight]

Holy ****!! There's a badass magic katana weapon called Moonveil that basically turns you into Vergil from Devil May Cry. It can be obtained by defeating the boss in the Gael Tunnel in Caelid, on the eastern edge of Limgrave.

Because the location was so close to the starting area, I decided to make a detour towards there, even though I had no business being in Caelid.....haha! But when I found out about this katana that scaled with Int/Dex, I knew I needed it for my battle mage. Plus, the name fits wells with my "moon" themed character. So, goodbye trusty Claymore and hello Moonveil!

 

[BrollySupersj]

So this is the first Souls game I've actually contemplated buying. I've seen some videos on how to farm the game's version of currency and how to obtain super powerful broken weapons right from the start or atleast just a few hours after starting.

But I'm not totally into the idea of the game world being vaugely guided. I have been seeing that for the most part, it's up to you to figure **** out. No quest markers or instructions. I don't know just yet.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

Yeah TBH you don't really need quest markers. The world is designed well enough that anything that looks big and important is obviously somewhere you need to go at some point. And talking to NPC's and following clues more or less always guide you to the right places. It's basically just BOTW without the quest log, which is a way is very freeing because that quest log was a nightmare.

 

[X Knight]

So this is the first Souls game I've actually contemplated buying. I've seen some videos on how to farm the game's version of currency and how to obtain super powerful broken weapons right from the start or atleast just a few hours after starting.

But I'm not totally into the idea of the game world being vaugely guided. I have been seeing that for the most part, it's up to you to figure **** out. No quest markers or instructions. I don't know just yet.

I understand how you feel. These Souls games definitely do ask that you "free" yourself of certain notions regarding the gameplay experience.

Like constantly dying to tough enemies and possibly losing a huge amount of xp/currency (Souls or Runes) that you worked so hard to accumulate through surviving the tough world.

As well as the overall vagueness of the story and quest progression. That's just part of what makes these games what they are.

I can't speak for all of the Souls games, but compared to Demon's Souls, I would say Elden Ring is more story and lore driven and the game design and mechanics seem to be more "beginner" friendly.

Yes, it still is vague and you have to figure stuff out yourself. But as Wolvieboy mentioned, the game does kind of point you in the general direction of where to go. There are literally golden rays of light out on the field and on your map that point in a direction. And if you see something interesting while exploring, it's generally worth checking out. For better or worse....haha.

If you see an area that looks interesting on your map (once you've collected the map fragments for that area), then just place a beacon/marker at that location. And ride like the wind towards that in the field. That's what I've been doing!

I would still definitely recommend using a wiki/guide online or on Youtube, though. Just do to the sheer size of the game. Especially, if there's a specific quest or item/weapon that you want to obtain (like the Dark Moon Greatsword for me).

Hope you give it a chance. And if you do, Good Luck!

 

[obredaan]

I would still definitely recommend using a wiki/guide online or on Youtube, though. Just do to the sheer size of the game. Especially, if there's a specific quest or item/weapon that you want to obtain (like the Dark Moon Greatsword for me).

Hope you give it a chance. And if you do, Good Luck!

I would avoid Guides for anyone new to the Souls franchise. Many of these guides can be spoilery but more importantly they also reduce the challenge of the game(I know some don't like this but the game is supposed to be a challenge).

Part of what makes these games so special is the sense of discovery, finding secrets and weapons on your own. It.'s meant to be a rewarding experience when you finally figure out where to find that cool weapon or develop your own strategy to beat a boss. My advice is to always try and finish the game once before delving into guides.

But as others have said, this game is easier than most Souls games. Grace Points will guide you in the general direction you need to go and even Item descriptions can tell you what you need to do and where exactly to go. Just having a map in a souls game almost feels like cheating.

 

[X Knight]

I would avoid Guides for anyone new to the Souls franchise. Many of these guides can be spoilery but more importantly they also reduce the challenge of the game(I know some don't like this but the game is supposed to be a challenge).

Part of what makes these games so special is the sense of discovery, finding secrets and weapons on your own. It.'s meant to be a rewarding experience when you finally figure out where to find that cool weapon or develop your own strategy to beat a boss. My advice is to always try and finish the game once before delving into guides.

But as others have said, this game is easier than most Souls games. Grace Points will guide you in the general direction you need to go and even Item descriptions can tell you what you need to do and where exactly to go. Just having a map in a souls game almost feels like cheating.

Oh, I don't disagree!

If you want to avoid spoilers and prefer the max challenge, then yeah, you should avoid the guides and Youtube videos.

Personally, I don't mind some spoilers, though I don't want everything spoiled. And I still want to experience the game and story for myself. And believe me, even with all the guides and videos online, the game is challenging enough....haha!

I'm trying to balance exploring the game on my own while relying on guides and wikis as needed. Especially since I am going for a specific weapon (Dark Moon Greatsword) which spans a massive, intricate questline involving multiple NPCs and ties into a specific ending (Age of Stars). Given the size and scope of the game, and given that there are no multiple save files to fall back on, I want to make sure that I am following the questline properly and not "breaking" or unintentionally messing things up!

 

[BrollySupersj]

I did see a weapon that had an ability called...

Spoiler

Wave of Gold, it looked so awesome like a sword going super saiyan

 

[The Infernal]

There's a cool looking ronin type who will help you with the lake dragon fight. I used him and he easily survived the battle. Afterwards if you speak to him again where you originally meet him, he will advise you about a place where you can acquire dragon incantations.

 

[X Knight]

There's a cool looking ronin type who will help you with the lake dragon fight. I used him and he easily survived the battle. Afterwards if you speak to him again where you originally meet him, he will advise you about a place where you can acquire dragon incantations.

I think I know who you're talking about.

Haven't fought any dragons yet. But while I was exploring the lake area, I got invaded by a red phantom and a ronin NPC showed up to help. Haven't spoken to him since, though.

And that's one thing that I really like about this game. In certain cases, you have the option to summon NPCs, or they can just show up I guess, when you face off against certain enemies like bosses. It gives a "multiplayer" experience to a single player. And it also helps make the world, and these NPCs, feel more "alive" like they are part of your journey. As opposed to just static characters you just talk to or do business with.

The other day, I was having a hard time clearing a boss in a catacomb dungeon that I needed to beat to advance the (optional) precursor quest to the moonlight sword quest. At my wits end, I decided to summon an NPC before the boss fight, and that made it so much easier. Also did the same before the Margit and Godrick fights.

 

[obredaan]

So if you've noticed that you're losing a % of runes when you die in Stormveil Castle, this is tied to an NPC that you encountered. Death comes to all Rune theives.

 

[BrollySupersj]

Called all 3 Gamestops in my area. None had a PS4 copy in stock. Bummer.

 

[Marvolo]

I would avoid Guides for anyone new to the Souls franchise. Many of these guides can be spoilery but more importantly they also reduce the challenge of the game(I know some don't like this but the game is supposed to be a challenge).

Part of what makes these games so special is the sense of discovery, finding secrets and weapons on your own. It.'s meant to be a rewarding experience when you finally figure out where to find that cool weapon or develop your own strategy to beat a boss. My advice is to always try and finish the game once before delving into guides.

But as others have said, this game is easier than most Souls games. Grace Points will guide you in the general direction you need to go and even Item descriptions can tell you what you need to do and where exactly to go. Just having a map in a souls game almost feels like cheating.

Oh, I don't disagree!

If you want to avoid spoilers and prefer the max challenge, then yeah, you should avoid the guides and Youtube videos.

Personally, I don't mind some spoilers, though I don't want everything spoiled. And I still want to experience the game and story for myself. And believe me, even with all the guides and videos online, the game is challenging enough....haha!

I'm trying to balance exploring the game on my own while relying on guides and wikis as needed. Especially since I am going for a specific weapon (Dark Moon Greatsword) which spans a massive, intricate questline involving multiple NPCs and ties into a specific ending (Age of Stars). Given the size and scope of the game, and given that there are no multiple save files to fall back on, I want to make sure that I am following the questline properly and not "breaking" or unintentionally messing things up!

If you want help or insight then Vaatividya and Fextralife are the go to sources. Vaatividya is a staple of the souls community. Both have youtube channels. Fextralife has his on wiki also with build guides. Both assemble and breakdown lore of souls games. And both are respectful about spoilers so you dont have to worry about either of them blindsiding you with spoilers.

 

[Marvolo]

Called all 3 Gamestops in my area. None had a PS4 copy in stock. Bummer.

I checked Amazon and ****ing hell, the wait is 1 to 2 months! I hope you're able to find a copy sooner than that.

You could buy digital and maybe get the physical version on sale in a few months.

 

[X Knight]

If you want help or insight then Vaatividya and Fextralife are the go to sources. Vaatividya is a staple of the souls community. Both have youtube channels. Fextralife has his on wiki also with build guides. Both assemble and breakdown lore of souls games. And both are respectful about spoilers so you dont have to worry about either of them blindsiding you with spoilers.

Yep! Fextralife has actually been my default go-to source for this and Demon's Souls. Both the wiki site and the Youtube channel. The build info on that site is especially helpful to give me ideas for my own builds or what to aim for in general.

I like Vaatividya's channel too.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Elden Ring is what people lied and told me Breath of the Wild was. Six for six for the best video game director of all time imo.

 

[BrollySupersj]

What builds are you all using? What have you been investing in with upgrades? Health, magic, stamina?

 

[Marvolo]

What builds are you all using? What have you been investing in with upgrades? Health, magic, stamina?

Intelligence, mind, and vigor. I put 3 points in Faith before I realized it wasn't helping my astrologer. About 8000 runes down the drain.

 

[Wolvieboy17]

I dumped points into health and stamina early for my Vanguard. But now that my stamina is high enough to fast roll with a shield and greatsword, it's been all damage all the way haha. When you level up your flasks, health starts to feel less important than stamina for dodging anyway.

 

[TheVileOne]

Why are game devs trashing this game on Twitter? Isn't that kinda not cool?

 

[Wolvieboy17]

Why are game devs trashing this game on Twitter? Isn't that kinda not cool?

It's been blown out of proportion I think. It's mostly a reaction to the die hards banging their drum that Elden Ring is better than any other modern, so I think it's largely just devs going "Yeah the game is great buuuuuuuut..."

Which is fair enough. I think there's a lot that Elden Ring does well and then plenty of blindspots that most fans are willing to overlook.

 

[TheVileOne]

It's been blown out of proportion I think. It's mostly a reaction to the die hards banging their drum that Elden Ring is better than any other modern, so I think it's largely just devs going "Yeah the game is great buuuuuuuut..."

Which is fair enough. I think there's a lot that Elden Ring does well and then plenty of blindspots that most fans are willing to overlook.

Except that some of the games they are making aren't really better. And the companies they represent have not been building sterling records of late.

 

[BrollySupersj]

Why are game devs trashing this game on Twitter? Isn't that kinda not cool?

Seems to do with the fact the game is relatively unguided. Which is my only hang up at the moment. But in the end, it will become second nature the more I play it.