Dark Souls III: The Second Painting

Tales from Dark Souls - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

Following Sirris' instructions I find Sir Gael at the Cleansing Chapel (of the Deep). I guess I misunderstood that he could help me though, since he is the one asking for help - tasking me with bringing fire to the painted world of Ariandel, holding out a scrap of painting which serves as a teleporter. Why not, it's not like this is the first painting I've stepped into.

I soon find myself in a wintery mountainside, inhabited by tall, javelin throwing viking dudes, lonely trees, and packs of wolves. Individually they aren't that tough against my fully upgraded axe, but since this is Dark Souls - they come in groups of three or more. Still not a problem though. Even the giant wolf pack leader isn't a problem since I've fought one who wielded a giant sword before.

I like that it's just sitting in plain sight so you know what you're walking into.

Progress seems good until I hit some ruins near a crumbling guard post - that's when I encounter the giant Nords who live up to their appearance and cane me very easily. At that point I decide to look for a way around these guys...

Dark Souls: Kill you Later

Tales from Dark Souls - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

Beyond the Colosseum lay the ruined township of Oolacile, collapsing into the gaping abyss beneath it. The remaining inhabitants were either beholder head hollows or ugly chaos mages that used dark sorceries of the abyss. Fortunately there was a cool counter to this in the form of a simple silver pendant I found, which basically gives a one second "shield" that deflects all dark magic. Your timing in using it just had to be good (much easier than parry), so I spent a bit training with it - intentionally letting mages blast me.

Chester, the grinning merchant also decided to try snipe me while I crossed one of the long bridges. I pummeled him into submission then used his sniping tactic to get passed a horribly strong ogre thing that blocked the path down into the dark. Again. F-ing dark places. Here at the Chasm of the Abyss I got slammed by dark magic coming out of the darkness. So much for my shield huh? Good thing there was a bonfire right at the start.

Since I couldn't be cautious, it was running mode time - down and down until I started fighting ghost humanities (a consumable item?) which must be the easiest opponents ever. I also got visions of Alvinia (the cat) leading me through one section and right to a secret path where a much younger Sif was trapped. Of course I saved the puppy. If I didn't how could I kill it later? That would be a paradox!

I guess the sword also "grows up"?

Almost right beside that chamber was another shortcut elevator up to the "hub" section. Yay! Also, Chester apparently survived our previous encounter and was understandably upset upon seeing me again. I executed him for his crimes. One less bandit to worry about.

I do like it when they beg.

Dark Souls: Darkest Dungeon

Tales from Dark Souls - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

Where there are knights there are kings, and I soon found a great pit that led to their domain: the Abyss. Fortunately I had the ring of Artorias "the Abysswalker" which let me survive simply being in the endless black void. Where'd I get it? From his pet wolf - Sif. See what I can learn just be reading item descriptions? :P

The Kings of nothing. Literally. Just look at that screenshot.

There are four kings down here, and the fight is more a DPS race than anything else which makes it pretty straight forward. Upon slaying all four I am rewarded with my third lord soul. My next stop would be an even darker place though: the tomb of giants which is at the bottom of the catacombs I got the Rite of Kindling from before. Annoyingly I couldn't warp to the bonfires there, which meant getting there the long way on foot.

Using Solaire's bright bug on my head (yes, I'm not sure that's so appealing given it drove him mad) illuminates a small radius though - enough for me to get by when I finally reach that place and true to its name - is filled with giant skeletons who do equally giant damage. Since fighting all of them on precarious ledges and fallen pillars in the dark is not very appealing, I opt to run past and thankfully come across the safety of a bonfire! A familiar, bald spear-wielder is here too. "What, you again?" Patches exclaimed.

He was peering down a deep looking pit and asked if I could help him get the treasure below. Like a dunce I said "Sure!" and peered over the edge only to have the bastard push me down into it.

I am so killing you later.

Dark Souls: A Big Improvement

Tales from Dark Souls - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

Gets less dangerous with less heads!

Having defeated the hydra at Ash Lake I thought I'd revisit the one in Darkroot Basin. As expected, running up to it was the only problem but once in there, he had the same weaknesses and suffered the same fate. Pity he didn't guard much though: a suspiciously empty cave and a ladder leading to another part of Darkroot forest. One with giant, rolling cats which I stayed the heck away from and one that led back to the forest guardians area.

Ambushed by shrubberies!

They were hostile again but now it was easy for me to take them down, and since they gave good XP I hunted them for a fair bit. Also at one of the cliff edges I found Shiva's corpse (or a corpse wearing Shiva's armor). I guess he was killed by the shrubberies / spriggans. Figured I'd rechallenge Sif, the great wolf too. Now that I could wear Havel's full suit though, I finally put the dog down.

High on a winning streak I decide it's finally time to return to Anor Londo for a rematch against the executioner and dragon hunter: Smough and Ornstein. "I do amazingly well and win on the first go!" is what I'd like to say, but what actually happened is I got curb stomped. WTF? At least I was getting one of them to half health now. A big improvement from last time.

Dark Souls: Cats and Dogs

Tales from Dark Souls - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

I am surprised to find the next section of forest guarded by people (not hollows)! It takes some adjusting to get used to their combos but with the handy bonfire I eventually have them down well enough to progress towards the ruined tower they are guarding, and it's sole inhabitant: a talking cat! The kitty is the leader of the "forest hunter" covenant (group) and invites me to join in a convoluted "ye olde" way of talking. I accept after learning it means the rest of the clan outside will stop being hostile to me! Win! :)

Alvinia - one sinister looking cat.

After briefly chatting to their field commander, Shiva of the East (I suppose he's a ninja?), I am free to go even further into the woods coming across a small colony of the cutest mushroom people ever. Since they aren't hostile I just leave them alone and push on until I reach a strange circular graveyard across a bridge. Upon examining a gigantic sword in the center, I am attacked by the biggest wolf ever, who so happens to be able to wield said gigantic sword.

Drop! I said Drop! Uh oh...

Sif (the wolf) proceeds to thrash me a couple of dozen times before I give up and follow a winding path down to Darkroot Basin. After beating another knight and a few crystal golems I am dissuaded from hanging around by the powerful water breath of a nearby (like, rifle range nearby) hydra. Instead I opt to go into what looks to be the base of a stone tower and run smack into Club Knight again. I'm much stronger both level and equipment wise now though, and even more adept at parrying so this time I win. I take his pretty awesome ring which lets you carry heavier stuff and learn his name was Havel.

Good night, club knight!

Feeling confident with the win I make the trek back to Sif and... promptly get thrashed again. Lol.