Elden Ring: YOU DIED on a horse

Bumped into the Scadutree Avatar! That was a surprise. Managed to somehow get it down to about 15% health on first try by just keeping very close to its left foot and smacking away.

Shadow Keep is just a maze of alternating branches. I keep going back to the various grace sites and realising there's a little path I forgot to go down, leading to another three paths, leading to yet another split! You can get so beautifully lost in there, but man, I am never going to find everything!

Yeah the boar rider dude is mega hard. Scadutree Avatar took me a good twenty goes or so, and then that weird thing of the time you beat it you have three or four potions left.

I tend to find sometimes the boss seems on beast mode and just annihilates you, and you know from early it is doomed, but other times it's like the game goes easy on you. Maybe just luck.

There definitely seems an RNG aspect where a boss will go *absolutely fps destroyingly mad* at you, lining up all its worst multi-move combos at lightning speed, and still hammering away well after you're dead (which happens after about twenty seconds). and then yes, other times where it acts like a big softie that just wants to play with a ball of wool in the corner while you wale on it.

Absolutely! Sometimes that happens and I'm thinking what's the point may as well just restart the PS5. I remember with the Elden Beast trying it absolutely loads then the time I beat it I just got sort of stuck behind it and walloped away until it was dead, had loads of potions left etc.

Haha, okay, let me eat my words about Scadutree Avatar

The first time I fought it, I somehow got stuck on its foot and was able to wale on it without any repercussions for a while

I was wondering if you meant you got to the end or just phase one? Some of the attacks are horrible.

Another thing I hate is trying to get your summon in as it pummels you.

So apparently it's pronoucned "Shadowtree", not "Scoobydoo Tree"

I was wondering if you meant you got to the end or just phase one? Some of the attacks are horrible.

Another thing I hate is trying to get your summon in as it pummels you.

― LocalGarda, Monday, 8 July 2024 15:00 (eight minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

YES! Why can't you summon until you're a step into the arena?! So annoying! And he just fires those stupid thorns at you before the fog has barely cleared.

Yeah, first phase - what a mean trick! I'm putting a skull on that bit of the map and coming back later with some power-ups.

SPOILERS: I take it he has three phases, based on the messages outside the boss door? *Skee-lo voice*: How am I gonna compete with that?

Yeah he's a nasty one for sure.

xp yeah scadu is the olde English way of spelling shadow supposedly. A la gael for jail

Learned something new today, I guess. I learned about fig wasps last night! Learning.

I had one of those "maybe I'll respec" moments last night after I started to feel guilty about Ordovis'ing my way through the DLC. Backed up and Larval Tear'd a Backhand Blade build. Then restored backup and Larval Tear'd another bloody build. Bleed builds do not please my synapses. I don't know why. There's an air of desperation about them that I just don't like, I like the methodical quality of a bonk bonk

ikwym. as mentioned before Bloodborne dex build was my intro to soulsborne, so bleed builds came naturally, but over time with DS I've adapted, and with this STR-FAI build I've embraced my inner bonk-bonk - there's something hypnotic about the timing of it all. roll, bonk, run, bonk, dodge, bonk, heal, bonk etc. obv i still mainly run in and spam R1 until after I run out of stamina.

Heh I could see that both ways...desperation because you feel the pressure to keep up the attack chains to trigger bleed, but you're also delaying gratification (less damage per hit but you get those big bleed bursts later on), compared to the immediacy of a hard-hitting bonk. That's why I'm so psyched that my current build has both backhand blades and huge bonks.

I wish I could back up on PS5. God knows what'll happen when I want yo reply the DLC again. Will I have to fight Mohg and Radahn all over again? I hope not!

You should be able to upload one cloud save, at least (I think people do some malarky with putting saves on USBs too, but I've never tried that).

I don't know what happened with my backup. My initial play through, I was about 100 hours in and at RL 150, and my save file got corrupted. I cried about it to Sony and they did nothing. Then I subsequently started again and dumped about 500 hours into creating five different amazing competitors at different levels, all the ashes and weapons times ten, all craft mats, was duelling like a mf.

Stopped playing for a year and a bit. Came back to the PS5 and... it's my initial play through, my original character, miraculously and horribly reappeared. But it's nice. I'm OK with it. Ordovis and some crucible armour is waging a holy war on these scadu-y losers

Commander Gaius makes Scadutree Avatar seem easy :/

Not sure how I feel about these incredibly long catacombs with a super tough boss at the end. I can't memorise new spells etc unless I go right back to the start

I like how Ongbal has moved from proving you can kill every boss naked while using a club and not getting hit, to using the swaggiest and most cinematic moves possible (with all their long wind-ups perfectly timed).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyrT6vzt7XY

(I'm doing pretty well at avoiding spoilers while on a break so far, I've heard the names of lots of bosses obviously but have averted my gaze for anything I haven't encountered yet.)

same though have gleaned that i can expect a massive and ultraviolent scooby-doo to turn up at some point

ruh-roh

Apologies if I've not been careful enough with discussing stuff, sorry! Wasn't sure where everyone was at.

No no go ahead, it's on me not too look at Elden Ring stuff online if I don't want potential spoilers, lol

yep absolutely, fill your boots. i get quite bored of hidden text stuff.

I’ve moved from blind exploration to ‘check some stuff, avoid looking at other stuff’. Names def don’t bother me.

I am sure I have missed some of those twats with the sparkly pots early game, so I am going to find out where they live and kill them. I want my scooby snacks.

I may also look up some npc quest stuff soon because idk wtf is going on, hornsent this, hornsent that

fave NPC so far - the one who just goes PAAAAIIIIN I'M IN SO MUCH PAIIIIIIN (bcos Bayle).

He seemed really unhappy. I'd like to help him out! But maybe I shouldn't. That's elden ring for you.

I just met him, think I am sort of on his quest now but I didn't consciously choose to help him.

Also killed Messner this evening, found him towards the easier side of bosses.

Back to bonk. I will be trying out that blinky long haft axe and the fiery knight sword when I find them. I'm pleased to be wearing my favourite outfit again! (Fire Prelate gloves, Fire Prelate greaves, Blue Silver chain mail and an exposed head so you can see my stylish hair and eyeballs)

Keep finding more and more places to go. Can't believe I missed the Cerulean Coast path the first time I went down that valley, but then again the map is a multi-layered quadruple helix with branches peeling off it at every turn. Wouldn't surprise me if the map itself didn't look like some sort of tree

I just got there last night having missed that entire area and lots of adjacent stuff. A lot of paths branch off very closely around there.

I did all the Dragon Pit stuff last night also, some breathtaking scenery. I'm enjoying in this game how when something is high up, it's higher and higher and higher, then higher again, and the same when something is below ground. I never realised how boring it is for games to just make physical height/depth into sort of one up one down wallpaper. Maybe this spatial awareness is the best thing about these games.

As for dragon pit, I never find dragon fights too difficult even the major ones. Hit the legs?

I did dragon pit a while back.

Absolutely did not clock the big doors at the back after you've beaten up mr dragon man.

So I only got to experience the majesty of jagged peak last night, after having a quick 'what's the deal with this moaning Igon guy?' wiki check.

And LG otm on the visceral verticality of the game - the fissure was a wild trip.

I'm on a big scadutree fragment gathering fest before I go back to Commander Gaius again.

otm on verticality - the way the map is almost misleading/enticing with actual dead ends and channels that only look like dead ends because they go under the surface terrain. it’s so cleverly done.

I'd love to see how they design the world or how they start from nothing or whatever, must be a very specific art in itself.

dumpling cosplaying soulsborne dogs imo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkk8Ac19K48

This is the first time I've played a From DLC contemporaneously. As such, I've already spent so much time in the game that many things have lost their currency. I'm levelled to where I desire (175), my armor and weapon choices are set (dragon greatshield + Ordovis), my build is one I'm extremely content with. The constant stream of smithing stones that the DLC feeds me are essentially irrelevant, as there are few weapons I even desire to experiment with, I feel like my current build and playstyle is honest and interacts extremely well with the challenges ahead.

With that in mind, the reported-upon density of the DLC is somewhat absent for me. Aside from maps, upgraded versions of talismans I like, and Scadutree Fragments, I feel short of rewards. This is fine! The catacombs are designed well, the scenery is breathtaking. After making it to Scadutree Level 5 I stopped getting one-shot by randoms, and now it just feels like a very long and opulent 100-course meal. The bosses kill me once and then I kill them the second time. It's great!

That said, the feeling of combing through every room and environment for treats, that wonderful feeling I had especially in Demon's Souls and DS1, the architectural twistiness and the dopamine rushes that the interlocking paths would trigger, they're just not there. Instead there's something else... upon descending down the river, waterfall after waterfall, thinking "how low does this world go?", I started to wonder if the designers planned to have the bottom of the world end at its top, in an infinite loop, like that Ted Chiang short story. The increasing feeling of loneliness in the descent, and then suddenly The Cerulean Coast appeared out of nowhere, and I shuddered with pleasure. What the heck, this game is so beautiful

Yeah there are some very open and empty areas. I got to the Cerulean Coast recently too and wow...
But then there's Shadow Keep and that's definitely dense

Fuck this game. I’m trying to read Kafka before bed and just keep seeing it as Miyazaki levels. Elden Ring is just a really long version of Before the Law with bonk, fine fine

Ok I'm setup to get back to this for my 30 min a day cardio, and I've arrived at the Scadutree Avatar. Ok, guess I'll be here for a little while.

some beautiful areas indeed. the path to charo's hidden grave is incredible.

tonight i finally killed commander gaius, prob the hardest boss for me across main game and dlc. to the point where i levelled up and went back twice and still could only get him down to about 25%. tried a different tactic tonight and it made it really easy. i won't spoil but if anyone is having difficulty i can share. i think i must be near the end now, have discovered lots of areas and i know i'm near enough to the final boss. the lead-up to that is horrible tho, just a really grim difficult level, and not so enjoyable.

fwiw me and mimic tear hit him with a big sunflower over and over and over again and eventually he died

he felt almost broken to me, couldn't get even near killing him even with beloved mimic. plenty of times he'd kill me in three hits and about ten seconds, and i am like level 215.

part of my secret to eventual victory was using a greatshield, which goes against everything i believe in. embarrassing.

also greatshield soldier ashes are p cool for some bosses, they sort of swarm around and slow them down.

The final boss is very hard :/

Time to go and do any minor dungeons I didn't do.