Elden Ring: New Fromsoft rpg

[Lazy8s]

I've been really grinding looking in all the nooks and crannies for new stuff lol. There's so much to find, and in surprising ways. The game is massive. So I'm focused on that, as well as trying to kill Malenia . I've probably spent 3 hours on her trying different tactics lol.

That boss helped me to overcome my inner completionist

Best of luck - I think that is FromSofts crowning achievement for a no frills, few gimmicks type battle, and I am so glad it’s optional. It’s an incredible fight, but it requires players to be much more skilled than I am lol.

[Lazy8s]

I’ve watched some videos of a few “professional” youtubers going through some of the boss battles that I had the hardest time with. Some of them are Much more skilled than I am, and they had some hard times in the same fights, for the same reasons I did.

This game is just brutally difficult in spots, no 2 ways about it.

Feeling better about it all

[Mangler]

A certain giant figure riding a horse was really really easy if you just use a bow and let the summons distract him.

[Lazy8s]

A certain giant figure riding a horse was really really easy if you just use a bow and let the summons distract him.

The new build I’m doing will have the stats for good bow damage. The last one didn’t…but it’s more the OP chain AOE attacks some later game bosses use. I’ve personally always had trouble with the timing on those. Weapons I’m pretty good with. Massive AOEs I just suck at.

[Meteor_of_War]

Well judging from your review Lazy8s sounds like the game is pretty epic overall.

As much time as you put in I'm still actually a little surprised you already beat it. From what you were saying before about opening new areas, etc, seemed like you were still a ways off. Did you thoroughly explore everywhere or are there still some areas left to dig through? And is there any kind of point of no return towards the end we should be aware of.

Also, feel free to spoil me on how the endgame works as far as dropping you back into the world after the credits roll. Is it like other Souls games in that you're free to continue exploring, with the option to move to NG+ when ready?

[Lazy8s]

Well judging from your review Lazy8s sounds like the game is pretty epic overall.

It’s epic alright. All of the usual Dark Souls tropes are present, but just when you think you’ve seen everything, you get another eye opener. Environment and design wise, the devs really went above and beyond here.

As much time as you put in I'm still actually a little surprised you already beat it. From what you were saying before about opening new areas, etc, seemed like you were still a ways off. Did you thoroughly explore everywhere or are there still some areas left to dig through? And is there any kind of point of no return towards the end we should be aware of.

I did open and make my way through all the maps, but I haven’t beaten all the hardest bosses yet. There is a point of no return of sorts, but the scope is limited. What I mean by that is that once you hit it, there’s a certain area that’s no longer reachable, but you can still go anywhere else in the game.

As far as the digging through, not really. I’m sure I missed a few things, but not much that would really affect the outcome. Multiple NPC quests can be followed and completed without breaking each other, and some optional bosses - like the one enforcer is working on now, just require 100% attention and time - it is so tough, but that’s because it’s about perfectly designed and requires an almost perfect effort on the players part. Makes Ishin sword saint just look cheap and amateurish.

Also, feel free to spoil me on how the endgame works as far as dropping you back into the world after the credits roll. Is it like other Souls games in that you're free to continue exploring, with the option to move to NG+ when ready?

Yes, you can choose to stay in the world after defeating the final boss.

Something I neglected to mention in my review is that there are items and spells/incantations that can be used on very specific builds that are just insanely OP.
So all of the griping I’ve been doing about boss AOE attacks> I believe that is how FromSoft tried to balance the game out. Uninterrupted, a player can devastate even the toughest bosses quickly. The rapid fire AOE attacks stagger you out of casting, so good timing etc is really more important here than any other game, shy of Sekiro maybe and for obvious reasons.

But again, I’ve never been one to bash a game just because I didn’t like a particular thing/attack/boss etc. I may not, but others will, so my overall score for this game remains at 10/10.

Like I said, there’s something for everyone

[Meteor_of_War]

Cool, your final impressions all sound good to me. Nice to know seems like there's nothing overly disappointing I'll encounter later on.

Only thing I'm concerned about at this point is I'm still not fully committed to my build, even though at level 60 now. I feel like its very possible even at this point I'm going to eventually want to swap to a different weapon, or respec. We shall see though.

I steam rolled over a couple more bosses last night in single attempts that i felt fairly OP for. I'm kind of liking the feeling of being OP. I'm going to keep aggressively leveling up to the point where i can easily absorb mistakes. Just want to breeze through this playthrough to see it all with little stress, then maybe later on I'll replay for a more challenging go at it.

[Lazy8s]

Cool, your final impressions all sound good to me. Nice to know seems like there's nothing overly disappointing I'll encounter later on.

Only thing I'm concerned about at this point is I'm still not fully committed to my build, even though at level 60 now. I feel like its very possible even at this point I'm going to eventually want to swap to a different weapon, or respec. We shall see though.

I steam rolled over a couple more bosses last night in single attempts that i felt fairly OP for. I'm kind of liking the feeling of being OP. I'm going to keep aggressively leveling up to the point where i can easily absorb mistakes. Just want to breeze through this playthrough to see it all with little stress, then maybe later on I'll replay for a more challenging go at it.

I basically leveled per Dark Souls memories for what worked best and that served pretty well, although there are differences. Where some soft caps used to be, I was getting increases instead of decreases lol....you're at a point where you'll be finding some really good stuff that adds a lot to your build

[Meteor_of_War]

I basically leveled per Dark Souls memories for what worked best and that served pretty well, although there are differences. Where some soft caps used to be, I was getting increases instead of decreases lol....you're at a point where you'll be finding some really good stuff that adds a lot to your build

How do you know where i am? I dont even know.

[shrike126]

Ok here we go. I'll keep this spoiler free, but here's the stats and gear I beat the game with.






-CleanRot Knight armor set
-Sword of Night and Flame +9
-Brass Shield +20
-Arsenal Charm talisman
-Erdtree's Favor talisman
-Mottled Necklace Charm
-Pearldrake talisman

Great Rune used was Morgott's.

I'll keep this short. GOTD for sure. That said, there were extremes for me regarding preferences. But I'll start with the world itself.

I have 111 hours on this build per Steam, and the world is a crowning achievement. The variety of flora and fauna, the use of great depths to lower maps to towering, palm sweaty type climbs up massive structures is beyond anything I've ever played before.
Caves are hidden from beach level to mountain tops, and sometimes on cliff faces that require some very cool equine parkour to reach.
Enemies are as varied and densely packed as anything else in the game, including loot.

Obscure clues are everywhere, on items you pick up to ghostly shades you can speak with to any of the many NPCs scattered throughout the game.

And sometimes, night time can bring special and unexpected challenges to an other wise seemingly boring area.

I said I would keep it short, but I simply can't give this world enough praise.

Bosses and combat > This game literally runs the gamut from some of the most annoying enemies and bosses to some that are among the best I've seen in a video game. Some hilarious, some annoying, and some just terrifyingly beautiful as they rip you to pieces.

FromSoftware has added some, for me, unwelcome boss tactics. So there's my chief complaint. Their games were always known and admired for the "Tough but fair" boss battles.

Throw that notion out the window. Some of these bosses are made to murder, anger, annoy and disillusion players. I'm fairly good at Souls type games, and I had to walk away multiple times.

The other side of the coin though, is that after battling through just to get to the boss in some occasions, and then meeting and eventually defeating that majestic, terrifying and beautiful monster, well done. You know you've earned it.
This game brought back ALL of the magic from my very first Dark Souls play through, and then some. Terror at not being able to find the next grace, disbelief at what I had to go through to reach the end.

Meteor_of_War asked me to tough on what I think might be OP for endgame. The truth is, I do not know. At level 146, and being able to wreck most everything in the game, the final 2 bosses required much more skill and timing than most other bosses. I lost many times to both. It was quite painful and quite a relief when they went down.

That's all for now. Enjoy the game people.

FromSoft > I hate you, and I love you.
Thanks for the ride

I like this review. So far it seems to match my experience. Seeing your endgame level and build, I'm actually not that far off from that myself. I do want to farm up that armor set. Been running Moonveil but now thinking I might give that sword a try since I have that too.

A certain giant figure riding a horse was really really easy if you just use a bow and let the summons distract him.

Yeah. **** that guy. Dragon Rot Breath for the mother****ing win and may he stay dead and buried. I thought he was going to be my Bed of Chaos bullshit boss to deal with but thanks to Lazy's suggestion I'm not stuck in that Groundhogs Day hell.

I’ve watched some videos of a few “professional” youtubers going through some of the boss battles that I had the hardest time with. Some of them are Much more skilled than I am, and they had some hard times in the same fights, for the same reasons I did.

This game is just brutally difficult in spots, no 2 ways about it.

Feeling better about it all

Watching FightingCowboy struggle with Radahn was cathartic in a way. It made me feel better about not liking that boss.

[Lazy8s]

@Shrike - I ran with Moonveil for a while and it just never compared the Night and Flame. That thing is almost a perfect weapon for the game.

And FightinCowboy’s videos have been my therapy There’s another guy, johhnycage or something that’s really good. I’ve seen him hang his head a few times too.

Make sure you post your thoughts after the final bosses. I want to know if you have the same…..issues with them that I did.

Right now I’m making an early game OP faith / arcane build. I know where everything I want is, so I want to see how badly I can wreck that first boss after a 2-3 hour preparation

[shrike126]

@Shrike - I ran with Moonveil for a while and it just never compared the Night and Flame. That thing is almost a perfect weapon for the game.

And FightinCowboy’s videos have been my therapy There’s another guy, johhnycage or something that’s really good. I’ve seen him hang his head a few times too.

Make sure you post your thoughts after the final bosses. I want to know if you have the same…..issues with them that I did.

Right now I’m making an early game OP faith / arcane build. I know where everything I want is, so I want to see how badly I can wreck that first boss after a 2-3 hour preparation

Worth burning a larval tear to put 24 pts in Faith for that? Right now I'm more evenly split with 30 Str, 20 Dex, and 30 Int with the Moonveil. I finding the incantations kinda underwhelming though and tempted to go heavier into Faith.

[Lazy8s]

Worth burning a larval tear to put 24 pts in Faith for that? Right now I'm more evenly split with 30 Str, 20 Dex, and 30 Int with the Moonveil. I finding the incantations kinda underwhelming though and tempted to go heavier into Faith.

I think so. When you have time to get that weapon’s special attacks off, you just mess enemies up, even late game.

[Meteor_of_War]

Weekend's here so that means good chunks of time to play.

So I am working my way northeast, following the grace arrows. Went off the path to explore for items and materials and found my first somber smithing stone [6] (Old Atlas Tunnel) so can finally upgrade my meteoric ore blade to +6. Seems to be getting harder to find high tier upgrade materials for these special weapons.

Then worked my way around this new castle structure and encountered Draconic Tree Sentinel. This boss certainly felt more suitable to my level, and kicked my ass a good 5 times before I got him. I really could not figure out how to reliably avoid his 2nd phase lighting strikes while on Torrent, so the trick that worked for me was get off the horse for the second phase, get up close to him and just go ape **** with quick sword attacks. So haven't gone forward past the new grace yet, but beating that guy seems to gain me easy access to a back door.

[eNforcer]

That boss helped me to overcome my inner completionist

Finished a few more boss's today, then on a whim decided to try again and beat her first try

[YellowBeard]

Not gonna lie, the "difficulty" spike after Margott and into the Mountaintops is kind of killing the game for me. Doesn't feel like it respects my time anymore.

Looking online it seems that I'm not the only one.

[Mangler]

Completing that quest chain that leads you to the lake of rot without the recipe for the anti-scarlet rot thingie was fun.

[Mangler]

Also, **** the camera in some of these boss fights, this game needs a higher FOV so you can actually tell what is happening.

[Lazy8s]

Also, **** the camera in some of these boss fights, this game needs a higher FOV so you can actually tell what is happening.

What… you don’t like fighting the bear from…inside the bear?

LoL’d hard when I saw that.

[Lazy8s]

Weekend's here so that means good chunks of time to play.

So I am working my way northeast, following the grace arrows. Went off the path to explore for items and materials and found my first somber smithing stone [6] (Old Atlas Tunnel) so can finally upgrade my meteoric ore blade to +6. Seems to be getting harder to find high tier upgrade materials for these special weapons.

Then worked my way around this new castle structure and encountered Draconic Tree Sentinel. This boss certainly felt more suitable to my level, and kicked my ass a good 5 times before I got him. I really could not figure out how to reliably avoid his 2nd phase lighting strikes while on Torrent, so the trick that worked for me was get off the horse for the second phase, get up close to him and just go ape **** with quick sword attacks. So haven't gone forward past the new grace yet, but beating that guy seems to gain me easy access to a back door.

Those dudes are no joke. That’s how I got in, and basically the same strat I used too.

Finished a few more boss's today, then on a whim decided to try again and beat her first try

Isn’t that how it goes? Good job man. I still haven’t beat her.

[Lazy8s]

Not gonna lie, the "difficulty" spike after Margott and into the Mountaintops is kind of killing the game for me. Doesn't feel like it respects my time anymore.

Looking online it seems that I'm not the only one.

It’s worth it dude. Run past what you can’t fight yet and screw the runes. If you can get to Mogwyn’s you’ll have all the runes your heart desires

[Lazy8s]

So if anyone is interested, I just went after Margit on my new faith build after following a guide by Valkyrie Knight. All credit to them, I just did what the guide said. Love it lol.

https://youtu.be/PLD7gkHHrVU

Just absolutely trivialized everything. The fight was over in about a minute. I love these YouTubers that put together guides like this lol.

I have about 2 hours on the new build and am at level 40.

Revenge time

[eNforcer]

Beat! GG, bring on the DLC.


Level 166, 140 hours.

[Meteor_of_War]

Those dudes are no joke. That?s how I got in, and basically the same strat I used too.

I haven't played since earlier after beating that boss. Didn't enter the city proper yet.

My only concern is if this is really the area i should be in yet, or is there an easier area i should tackle first. The 50k runes i just got from that optional boss has me questioning it.

I'll give it a go and see. If i get curb stomped pretty consistently there's no shame in going elsewhere.

[Evileh]

**** this game

[Lazy8s]

I haven't played since earlier after beating that boss. Didn't enter the city proper yet.

My only concern is if this is really the area i should be in yet, or is there an easier area i should tackle first. The 50k runes i just got from that optional boss has me questioning it.

I'll give it a go and see. If i get curb stomped pretty consistently there's no shame in going elsewhere.

Pretty much the standard fare > path of least resistance. What level are you at? Are you doing pure melee? Just curious because FromSoft put a huge emphasis on spells and incantations in this, including quite a bit that they got pretty imaginative with that can really benefit a melee build.

[koralis]

So Godrick's rune doesn't do **** as a passive like people suggest it's supposed to? The level up screen and status screen match, even though I have it equipped (as far as I can tell.. it's in the lower center box on the status screen) and my Mind is still at my starting value, so I know I'm not just mistaken. Removed then reselected with no changes. Only happens with a Rune Arc trigger? Any ideas? I could really use those stats right about now.


I'm a bit irritated about the spellcasting mechanic in Elden Ring. Having to swap gear out in order to cast a spell is damned fussy and makes me think I can't really use any offensive oriented spells on this build... if doing a build where I can keep Seal/Staff equipped at all times it'd be a bit different. Right now mostly using it for pre-combat damage negation spells if I know I'm going vs magic, holy, etc, and for curing poison. Weapon buffs I get the sense are too short to hassle with (unless I get a lot better at swapping gear?) Maybe I can eventually get to a point where I could open a tough combat with a couple of spells and swap back to melee loadout? *ponder*

[Lazy8s]

Beat! GG, bring on the DLC.


Level 166, 140 hours.

Nice! What did you think of the last big 3? Malekith was my favorite, but the Elden beast was really different and pretty cool looking.

[Mangler]

So Godrick's rune doesn't do **** as a passive like people suggest it's supposed to? The level up screen and status screen match, even though I have it equipped (as far as I can tell.. it's in the lower center box on the status screen) and my Mind is still at my starting value, so I know I'm not just mistaken. Removed then reselected with no changes. Only happens with a Rune Arc trigger? Any ideas? I could really use those stats right about now.


I'm a bit irritated about the spellcasting mechanic in Elden Ring. Having to swap gear out in order to cast a spell is damned fussy and makes me think I can't really use any offensive oriented spells on this build... if doing a build where I can keep Seal/Staff equipped at all times it'd be a bit different. Right now mostly using it for pre-combat damage negation spells if I know I'm going vs magic, holy, etc, and for curing poison. Weapon buffs I get the sense are too short to hassle with (unless I get a lot better at swapping gear?) Maybe I can eventually get to a point where I could open a tough combat with a couple of spells and swap back to melee loadout? *ponder*

You activate the great runes with the rune arc item, and you lose the effect when you die, think of rune arcs as this games humanity.

You can even farm them from rats.

[Lazy8s]

You activate the great runes with the rune arc item, and you lose the effect when you die, think of rune arcs as this games humanity.

You can even farm them from rats.

He may not have taken it to the divine tower yet.

[koralis]

You activate the great runes with the rune arc item, and you lose the effect when you die, think of rune arcs as this games humanity.

You can even farm them from rats.

Ah, ok. So the rune arcs are necessary, but it's a semi-persistent thing. Hmmm. Doesn't really alleviate my need to level the stats then as there are times I'll die over and over and only have so many rune arcs. More useful for minor boost for general levelling then

He may not have taken it to the divine tower yet.

Did that. Don't think you can equip it until you do.

[Meteor_of_War]

Pretty much the standard fare > path of least resistance. What level are you at? Are you doing pure melee? Just curious because FromSoft put a huge emphasis on spells and incantations in this, including quite a bit that they got pretty imaginative with that can really benefit a melee build.

Level 60 i think. Yes doing some sorcery. I'm using a pretty weak staff at the moment though. After i get my vigor leveled to where i want it I'll start focusing on leveling INT more so i can use one of the stronger staves i found then I'll really dive into trying the different spells and see which ones i work best for my playstyle.

[Nunz]

I'm level 72 now.

Killed Godrick at level 37 with a +2 Winged Scythe and +3 Brass Shield.

Had a housewarming party at my new place yesterday and half of my buddies just wanted to show me where all the glitches were in Elden Ring

One person killed Mohg (sp?) boss on my character with a glitch where he doesn't fight back, and it gave me 500k runes. Oops.

I did some PVP last night and noticed most people are dweebs with 2-3 ppl in their world as allies so invading is an exercise in frustration.

[Lazy8s]

Level 60 i think. Yes doing some sorcery. I'm using a pretty weak staff at the moment though. After i get my vigor leveled to where i want it I'll start focusing on leveling INT more so i can use one of the stronger staves i found then I'll really dive into trying the different spells and see which ones i work best for my playstyle.

Nice, there’s so much to use and try out. I’m stepping out of my comfort zone with this next ‘take my time’ build. I want to try a high FTH/DEX build with extra point into ARC. Don’t know, just having fun with it at the moment.

[Meteor_of_War]

I did some PVP last night and noticed most people are dweebs with 2-3 ppl in their world as allies so invading is an exercise in frustration.

Haven't messed with PvP at all yet but i think the way it works in this game is unless someone is looking to get invaded by summoning, you are always going to only invade someone who is doing co-op. From what i understand I don't believe you can invade someone who is playing solo.

[eNforcer]

Nice! What did you think of the last big 3? Malekith was my favorite, but the Elden beast was really different and pretty cool looking.

Maliketh was definitely very cool design wise. I didn't really get to see many of their movesets otherwise since they died so quicky from me and my Mimics night and fire sword beams


I should have upgraded some of my weapons before starting NG+. Now I have to find all the Bell Bearings again to buy smithing and somber stones . But did level up the Prince of Death's staff to +25.

[Nunz]

Haven't messed with PvP at all yet but i think the way it works in this game is unless someone is looking to get invaded by summoning, you are always going to only invade someone who is doing co-op. From what i understand I don't believe you can invade someone who is playing solo.

I noticed that if I stayed alive long enough (which is difficult given that the people in co-op tend to be laggy trolls who are instant killing you the second you summon in with no chance to roll or fight back) then usually another invader would get summoned.

However, even in the starter areas, I noticed that everyone is high level, rolling with broken weapons (like night and flame) and playing in really lame manners.

I did have a really good 1v1 with a guy that came down to the wire. He made an AMAZING parry after I nailed him with the same fake-out combo twice and got me. It was an awesome fight, but that was 1 out of 20+ invasions. The rest are all 3 dudes, typically two high level mages just spamming spells while the host runs in circles.

[Lazy8s]

Maliketh was definitely very cool design wise. I didn't really get to see many of their movesets otherwise since they died so quicky from me and my Mimics night and fire sword beams


I should have upgraded some of my weapons before starting NG+. Now I have to find all the Bell Bearings again to buy smithing and somber stones . But did level up the Prince of Death's staff to +25.

I was wondering what they would remove starting an NG+ run.

I’ve just been screwing around, but I need to get back to clean a couple of things up and start an NG+ myself.

Good times

[YellowBeard]

It’s worth it dude. Run past what you can’t fight yet and screw the runes. If you can get to Mogwyn’s you’ll have all the runes your heart desires

Nah, I think I'm close to done. Considering you have to get through a dumb boss to get there. Finally got it down to just him and me and he one shots me from across the room. I'm wearing OK armor and using both damage reduction trinkets and in one move I was dead.


This back half, if it is the back half, just seems lazy to me. You go from larger open areas to the game now funneling you through small areas filled with supped upped reskinned enemies. There's no real option to putz, explore, and grow in strength, especially when it seems rune acquisition has slowed to a crawl.

Even more so when the prevailing option to everything is just moonveil sword, rot breath, mimic tear, or orbital cannon sword.

Running out of steam and the front half was a lot better, stronger, and more engaging than the back half from what I've seen so far.

[Meteor_of_War]

I noticed that if I stayed alive long enough (which is difficult given that the people in co-op tend to be laggy trolls who are instant killing you the second you summon in with no chance to roll or fight back) then usually another invader would get summoned.

However, even in the starter areas, I noticed that everyone is high level, rolling with broken weapons (like night and flame) and playing in really lame manners.

I did have a really good 1v1 with a guy that came down to the wire. He made an AMAZING parry after I nailed him with the same fake-out combo twice and got me. It was an awesome fight, but that was 1 out of 20+ invasions. The rest are all 3 dudes, typically two high level mages just spamming spells while the host runs in circles.

Yeah, that's just how it is with Souls PvP. It kind of always has been a crap shoot. Sometimes it can be fun but a lot of times not, which is why I haven't really got back into it since DS2.

What I've always assumed is most of the time people do not want to be invaded, so you're not going to get a good experience going for them. I think its always better to figure out the good spots where people that are looking for PvP matches are going to be, and just invade there. You'll get the more "honorable duels" that way.