PixlBit

Ha! Thanks Darth!

It's quite the insane undertaking considering that I'm not even using a shield. Simply bow-only, with high stamina/dexterity and low health.

To be 100% honest though, I was inspired by the mass amounts of Arrow I've been watching lately. So in a sense, this is a cosplay playthrough of the DLC, I even named my guy Oliver!

By the way, killed the Sentinels this morning and made my way to the Chariot before I had to leave for work. Progress is slow but steady. I'm hoping to be deep in to the DLC by Saturday!

Yah! You crazy! Maybe crossbows are easier than bow. For close range combat anyway

I'm honestly not sure, I never really used a crossbow in the Souls game so I can't tell what the exact pros/cons would be.

I'm think a Crossbow would be easier, probably less draining on the stamina as well. The biggest kicker though would be the Release Time for the arrow. I'll have to research it a bit, but Bow-Only builds are all about the quick draw after a dodge and the ability to dodge effectively, meaning it's quicker and versatile, but heavily draining on stamina.

With that said; another thing to note about the Dark Souls II system is how Poison/Bleed now scale with Dexterity (primary stat of bow-builds), which is a new feature in the Souls universe. Once I hit a certain point, I'm going to be stocking and solely using Poison/Lacerating Arrows, but I need to get to that point first. I met the Poison Arrow Merchant (Gavlan) already, but Poison Arrows are way out of my league at the moment in terms of mass-stocking since my Soul incomes are generally lower right now. Things will definitely get easier though, I just need to give it time. The Pursuer gave me plenty of problems, but I toppled him eventually!

...FUCK THAT DRAGON! Seriously, it's a pain in the ass. Also, has anybody noticed how a certain boss looks and behaves a lot like Nashandra? I wonder if there's a connection?

I think I know who you are referring to. It has been speculated that Nashandras soul was from a "fragment" of a certain major soul , and this boss you are referring to now also holds another "shard" of that whole, if that makes sense. But it's specualation. Also, if you visit Vendricks crypt, there is a soul memory/flashback where you can talk to him and he mentions the Crown in the DLC. Not sure if it works if you killed Vendrick. 

Whoa.. What's all this shit?

Also, Blake..
I'm not sure if this is who you're talking about exactly, but...
Nashandra ALWAYS reminded me of Priscilla

Never thought of the Priscilla connection... but Priscilla is my all time favourite character from Dark Souls. I just love the lore surrounding her, her world, and how she allows you to choose whether to kill her or not - making you the true monster.

 In the DLC, there's a boss who will truly remind you of Nashandra, just a slightly harder version of her.

@ASREAL: Damn, I didn't do that flashback. Well, new character time lol!

The flashback is really short, and kind of vague. You see Vendrick before his zombie state. He talks about the crown, the one in the DLC I assume. The thing is that I didn't kill him on my main character because I was waiting for DLC, my other characters did kill him--the ones that went on to New Game +. So, I wasnt sure if he was refering to his crown,or some other crown. Just search for it on youtube. Also I recommend keeping one char in regular game, not New Game + to see these sorts of differences. 

The Priscilla connection is very, non-realistic to be honest. The only way she truly reminds me of Priscilla is through the body build (Massive lower body, human-esque upper body), and her weapon of choice is a scythe.

Finally reached the DLC this morning!!

What an adventure too, whoa.
First of all, I figured I would be way underpowered considering my build, so I made sure to gather all 4 Great Souls first just so I had the XP to be a substancial level. Let's just say that with level 85+, I'm just not doing much damage.
With the first twenty minutes of the DLC though, I'm really liking what I'm seeing as of now. I just can't wait to sink me teeth further in to it tonight!

I don't care what anybody says. This DLC is tuff! I honestly feel like the developers listened to complaints about the main game being too easy and put this out to shut everybody up. It really is meant to be played after you've explored and leveled up through the main content even though it is accessible early on. I spent a lot of hours exploring this thing, because I like exploring, but I honestly don't think I'm equipped enough to take on the bosses. Of course, I'm playing offline, out of choice and really can't easily level up anymore unless I re-fight bosses or level grind which I don't feel like doing. I enjoyed the DLC, and maybe I'll come back to it and finish it up soon. 

Knowing you, you'll probably beat it tonite. LOL!   I'm not complaining about the game either, I just don't feel like respec-ing or grinding at the moment. 

I doubt he will. I'mn trying to beat it before I write my review of it, but the third boss is literally making me pull my hair out to the point where I quit. I honestly don't think it's designed to be done solo.

I haven't found the first boss yet. I'm struggling quite a bit with my bow-only build.

Of course, I went to the DLC as soon as possible, so that may be a contributing factor.

I've been looking to tweak my build a bit though. Adding a lot of poison arrows to my arsenal since I JUST found out that I can buy an unlimited supply of Poison Arrows from the 3rd Gavlan area (In Pharros). Tonight I'm hoping to stock up 999 of those as the alternate arrows for my 999 Iron Arrows.

Oddly, one thing I've noticed so far in to the DLC is how often Poison is appearing.

I've been finding Poison Stones, Poison Resist Rings, Poison Boosting Armor, etc..
Interesting...

Possibly lore related (Don't tell me if it is)

To further clarify my struggles with the bow-only build:

it's the damage output that is hurting my right now.
The damage dealt is very small, so even with weaker enemies, I'm stuck dodging - firing - dodging - firing - dodging - killshot.

The nice thing about the DLC so far is how open it has been, meaning I can land numerous shots before any enemies get close enough to wreck havoc on me (Which is why I want poison to further weaken them before they reach me). Another plus side is how easy it is for me to gain the 'upper ground' and fire away safely.

The downside is that the enclosed areas are becoming increasingly smaller, meaning my dodge - fire - dodge is more crucial now then ever before.

It's ok though, for I'm just taking my time. Taking it all in, and sinking arrows in to some skulls.

BTW, I totally named my character Oliver Queen.

And summoning NPCs for help make the bosses harder! So then there's that. I actually found soloing to be a better option for this reason alone.

Anyone played the new one yet?

Sorry! No. I have to get on this. How is it? Did you finish?

Yeah.

I'm fucking struggling too.
Smelter2.0?
Fuck this guy..

Not finished. Got distracted. The last boss in this DLC may just be the hardest boss in the game. Hell, maybe the series. It would definitely be up there. It's the longest I've spent on a boss in quite a while anyway.

 Apart from that, the DLC is awesome. It feels much more like Dark Souls 1 than the rest of the game did :D

I haven't downloaded the DLC yet. What I read about the DLC boss is that it is meant to be more of a marathon session. Anyhow, I'm busy with my backlog at the moment. 

I'm an asshole