[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
I remember some things, but others are a discovery. I remember my way around the Undead Burg pretty well, but I'm getting lost in the nooks and crannies of the Firelink Shrine.
I've gotten Solaire on board for some jolly co-operation, and Siegfried's just hanging out in front of Sen's place waiting for me to ring the second bell. The first bell's been rung.
Oh, and Lautrec's dead. Dead dead dead. Didn't even boot him off the ledge. I just up and shanked that asshole.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Of course I'm playing a sorceror on my first pass.
Lock-on confirmed for jank. Still. Nice to see some things haven't changed.
I forgot just how _austere_ this place is. I caught myself a moment ago just... sitting and listening to the soundscape of the Northern Undead Asylum. Wind, chains rattling, stones crumbling. The place _sounds_ dead. And I'm wearing chain, so when I move, I'm all I can hear.
I don't want to go to Blighttown. Nobody wants to go to Blighttown.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Making it _into_ Blighttown through the front door is surprisingly easy.
Just fall.
There are several platforms positioned such that, if you fall correctly, you can get from the top of the rickety ladder to the toxic mud below with only about half your health gone. There's even a bonfire at the bottom in an abandoned sewer pipe. There's even one just inside Quelaag's Domain, if you get past the muck and the ogres.
Getting _out_ of Blighttown... is harder.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
I dropped the drider-queen on the first meeting, which isn't to say she's easy, merely that sorcery is highly efficient at dealing damage at range, and her only distance attack is a lava-spew which is fairly easy to dodge.
The music playing in the bell-chamber creeps me out; it's like Firelink Shrine, but worse.
Lockon still confirmed for jank. Looking at you, Mildred. That rolly-flippy stuff gets you zapped. Eventually. Hold still, damnit.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Out of Blighttown.
Through Sen's Fortress in five tries.
Iron Giant on the first encounter.
Logan rescued.
Got the bonfire on top of Sen's Fortress.
...
... forgot where the Cage Key was before leaving for Anor Londo. Gotta go back for that.
Need my Soul Spear.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
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... you can jump, not just roll?
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
I don't know if it's possible to feel _happy_ in Lordran, but damn do I feel _satisfied_ right now.
I got the Cage Key on the first jump.
I made it up the Buttress of Death on the second pass.
I got the front door to the castle open on the second.
I took out Ornstein and Smough on the fifth or sixth.
The Lordvessel is placed. The real quest begins.
Time for the Duke's Archives. I thirst for more sorceries.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Well, that was short-lived.
Feeling rather full of myself, I decided it was time to show the Capra demon what-for, so I did... and then I decided it was a good idea to plumb the Depths.
This was a mistake. This was a terrible mistake.
It wasn't the Gaping Dragon; they didn't like Soul Spear very much and decided to nope out rather than be poked again.
It wasn't the back door to Blighttown. I'm not afraid of dung pies.
Hidden basilisks, however, are not my friend.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Steady on.
Purging Stones are painfully expensive, but a few flicks of the Soul Spear at the Iron Guard of Anal Rondo and it's mine. Full health bar restored, I had a very lucrative run, recovering the Crest of Artorias; the Divine, Large, and Enchanted Embers; the soul of the Moonlight Butterfly; and the gorgons in the Duke's Archives. I even bought Grigg's Other Ring, and then his copies of Big Hat's Magic.
I will be so grossly incandescent.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Now we're moving.
Duke's Archives are done. Big Hat's free from the base of the archives. All three crystal spells learned. Shortsword to Enchanted +2, got the Crystal Ember.
Now... Seath.
Or maybe I'll just get some more levels first. I am in desperate need of both stamina and health. Fortunately, I've got my new power-level zone at the base of the archives.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Turns out Anor Londo plus Symbol of Avarice goes faster than the base of the archives, and has the advantage of being both warpable in and out.
Endurance of 40 and Havel's Ring will let you do the fast roll in Channeler's Armor. And at 120.0 equip load, I get a midroll in Havelpants, so that's nice.
Plus, it turns out even though Seath is magic-resistant, he's not magic-immune.
One down. Three to go. I will be so grossly incandescent.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
Down into the Catacombs and on to the Tomb of the Giants. Once I stopped worrying and learned to pick off the necromancers first, the Catacombs are just more caves full of skeletons. I managed to find Vamos and then clear my way back up through the tunnels. Gravemaster Nito's looking well in his sightless caves. Coming for him soon.
Also, Patches? I didn't even talk to him. I just arsed him. That _might_ have been hasty, but he's still a dick.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
So, that was productive, if absolutely painful.
Tomb of the Giants basically needs an external light source to be viable unless you've mastered the blindfolded Souls Speedrun. Don't tell me if you have; I haven't. I knew where the lantern was relative to Patches would be, but... well, I killed Patches. So I got lost. So I spent several hours just getting _to_ the lantern in the pit, only to discover I had one in my inventory from a necromancer.
Thank you Dark Souls.
[1.Ch.] Back into Lordren
That said, once I had two lanterns, it was a fairly straightforward run through the Tomb and onto Nito, who turns out not to like Crystal Soul Arrow very much at all. Even with the Big Red Spike taking off half my health bar, I got him in two runs.
That's half the Lords down. And I even took down the hydra while I was at it. Went back for the Large Magic Ember, and went to try to take Sif.
Sif will have to wait for another day.
