AWKWARD ZOMBIE

i actually have gotten some pretty good kills on rat guys. if you can run to the far left wall in time, theres a small door that leads to a tunnel then raised platform. this is probably the best area to fight the guy at without getting fucked over by traps/npcs (the mastodons cant fit and the other guys generally de-agro and/or are easily dealt with)

i had one fight on that area that lasted so long our equipment started breaking

My PC CE arrived. The statue is pretty damn hefty and of good quality, the two weak points being the swords and the stand, which are not bad by any means. It also came with the soundtrack, artbook, steelbook case and a nice cloth map, plus those DLC weapons that you can get later anyway. The soundtrack is in MP3 format which I don't like because it's lossy.

Now I just have to wait till tomorrow.

Also, here's an early high quality gameplay video of the PC version.

DS2 unlocked on Steam. Dual wielding doesn't seem particularly worth it compared to a good shield.

its very good for pvp, and if you have the right weapon combination.

its also good if you just roll all the time

So far the roll seems to be shit compared to DS1. Apparently something something Adaptability and it gets better though? Meh, think I'll go with Sorceror.

I-frames with rolling are decided by adaptability. At about 20 adaptability, it's much more like DS1 rolling. Adapatability also determines how quickly you take drinks of estus, and how quickly you come out of the roll animation after your i-frames end.

And shields are for nerds. Seriously. Everything is way more easily avoided and punished by rolling, lifegems are cheap, and relying on a shield honestly just makes the game boring and teaches you the wrong lessons. Most bosses have at least one attack that can hit through shields, if they're not already 50 feet tall and able to just slam you down, so it's way way way better in the long run to roll instead of block.

There's also guard breaks instead of kicks now, for PvP, and if you're hit with that you go into a stun animation and people can get a critical on you so it's not even advisable to have a shield for pvp.

Power stancing, which is dual wielding while having 1.5x the required stats for both weapons (holding Y or whatever the top button is on the PS3), basically allows you to hit with both at the same time, and it really rapidly increases your DPS. Even not power stancing, as a mage, you're better off with a staff in your left hand and a weapon in your right or whatever.

Shields suck and they're not worth the time. Really are not. Not even the ones that like, increase stamina regen, because they're worse than an early game ring and the buffs don't stack.

Okay so I didn't know about powerstance since the game told me nothing about it. Guess I'll give the PANK Blade another shot. So named because his hair, beard, and eyebrows are neon PANK with a neon PANK tattoo covering his, or rather her since that sarcophagus, face.

game ain't gon tell u shit dats how it rolls

Game makes a point of telling you basic things with those stone tablets/messages.

It doesn't tell you what to do, but it does give the tools.

Just saying, probably should stick with one character unless you truly hate the playstyle of the build path you're on and can't seem to progress any further with it.

even then, you can get a respec item very early on and there's like, five total every NG?

i debated with myself for ten minutes on whether or not i should reveal that fact in my post. daisies you.

There is around five, give or take one, but with a certain item you can technically get unlimited.

Oh no worries, this is just what I like to do. I make alt characters like crazy, dabble in a lot of different classes and playstyles, then make my "real" character and proceed.

Last Giant is down, that was my first boss. What's the earliest decent twohander I can get? I'm currently using the heide knight sword and it's good but I want something with a little more reach.