Post #3142982

2026-06-06 15:00 UTC

I have a fire longsword Yeah that fire sword is the sword I use on probably every single character I’ve ever played at least through the end of Heide’s Tower, lol. It’s very valuable for the early game and it really never falls off if you keep its upgrade level up to date. It’s boring, but very effective. This character is a realization of my long-dreamed build of a warrior with a melee weapon (a sword, most probably) in one hand and a crossbow in another, and I’m kinda held back by this vision. As such, I avoid going two-handed or weapon-in-each-hand stances. Have you considered a rapier? Regular old rapier is my go-to weapon for casters, for a couple of reasons. First of all, they look swaggy as hell. Second of all, rapier heavy attack is a parry, which means you have a defensive option in your hands even when you’ve got both hands full of sword and staff (or in this case, sword and gun crossbow). That parry is probably one of the most dangerous and ballsiest moves in the whole game, but it also comes loaded with the biggest dopamine dump in the whole game when you actually pull one off. Rapiers also universally have high critical modifiers, and also additionally benefit from the Old Leo Ring. I think your crossbow should also benefit from the Leo as crossbow shots deal piercing damage. When I think of “sword-and-gun stance” the first sword that comes to mind is the katana, and the second that comes to mind is the rapier. At least personally. Several rapiers have something cooler than the parry as their heavy attacks, but I find them a bit lacking, and I usually end up going for the regular non-specialized Rapier that you can buy right in Majula. Spider’s Silk is also a good one though. I’m glad they didn’t make a good fight for the finale so I can avoid waiting through the unskippable credits /hj Tell me about it 🙄 I think you can technically defeat Nashandra and then just walk out without taking the Throne, but I don’t remember the specifics. I usually leave her fight for last so I don’t have to be concerned about it, and also so that I can come obliterate her body with my maximum power level. Besides, Throne Watcher/Defender gear is great, their swords and shields are peak. Defender Shield almost always ends up being my end game shield in sword and board builds. Watcher’s sword is also very cool and powerful. I recall only moonlight sword and chaos katana as the special drops. I think there’s also crystal spear? I’ll need to do it again to see what can be crafted. Would be nice if Ornifex picked a better place for their workshop Moonlight Greatsword, Chaos Blade, Crypt Blacksword, and Dragonslayer Greatbow. They also can get you some spells instead, which aren’t as useful here - specifically, Crystal Soul Spear (excellent, off-build), Flame Weapon (also excellent, might be considered), Numbness and Blinding Bolt (both useless for you right now). Remember that Straid also will let you access some boss soul items that Ornifex doesn’t, and vice versa. Out of those options, MLGS is good but probably not fit for your build. Crypt Blacksword is damn good but also doesn’t fit the build quite perfectly, however it’s just about the only colossal weapon that I actually prefer to use one handed instead of 2H. CBS was my go-to PvP weapon back in the day. That boy hits like an isekai truck.

Replies (2)

@catfeeder@piefed.blahaj.zone 2026-06-06 16:17

Yeah that fire sword is the sword I use on probably every single character I’ve ever played at least through the end of Heide’s Tower, lol. It’s boring, but very effective. That reminded me that I had a specific plan for the very early game in DS2: specific way to get through the Giants Forest and then I always went to the Tower with McDuff’s hammer. This was primarily due to the limitations of the Deprived, mind you, but it was still quite tedious. Have you considered a rapier? My problem with rapiers is that they have low poise damage and their narrow attacks are poor against groups of enemies. Since I don’t need to save on strength and dexterity (unlike casters) I can afford stronger options for my weapon. I think you can technically defeat Nashandra and then just walk out without taking the Throne I believe you won’t be allowed to leave (either it will teleport you to the same spot or won’t work at all) once you’ve beaten her. But maybe I’m thinking about DS1. Throne Watcher/Defender gear is great, their swords and shields are peak. Hm, I’ve never considered their stuff. By the time I’m fighting them by build is so well developed that I turn ignorant to the new options. Crystal Soul Spear (excellent, off-build) CSS (huh) is so fun in PvP actually! Most players will easily dodge it if you just straight-up shoot it at them but if you add to this Soul Shover or especially the mist spells… panic and blocked vision turn Spear into Dark Souls’ save-or-suck spell! Flame Weapon (also excellent, might be considered) That’s a good option if I end up with spell slots. Crypt Blacksword is damn good It’s interesting how it uses the greataxe movement despite being an ultra greatsword. I need to take a look at it!

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@catfeeder@piefed.blahaj.zone 2026-06-09 19:02

Update on my DS2 playthrough: I went through all the shops that could offer some weapons and bought out everything that looked interesting. Checked all the bought stuff, upgraded some all the way to +6 and then checked out around Drangleic. Some thoughts: I bought rapier and estoc to check them out. I liked estoc a bit more because it has higher poise damage (it’s actually the same as of the longsword!) and better stat scaling for my build so now it’s my fastest weapon in the arsenal. It helped a lot clearing through Drangleic’s “surprising d6” with ruin sentinels. I added uchigatana to the lonely washing pole and checked both of them out. Holy damn!! Washing pole is crazy, feels like I’m a boss, with my attacks reaching for half the arena lol. I knew it was quite large but not this much! Uchigatana is a nice fast weapon, it might replace my longsword in the long run. I really appreciate that both of them have thrust as their strong attack. I got the regular twinblade back in the Castle so I checked it out - and was disappointed as in one hand its’ attacks are pretty basic. Only at the end of the session, when I got to the entrance of the Crypt, had I found the red twinblade - and this one does have a unique moveset even when held with one hand! I’ll check it out later. I also bought red rust sword and shield crossbow with no real plan on what to do with them (if anything). The rust sword is pretty interesting as it seems to have the moveset of axes while shield crossbow will likely just be in my collection of crossbows as it doesn’t look as cool as the light crossbow. Now, all this departure felt really good because the next place I needed to go to was the dreaded Shrine of Amana. The way to the third bonfire was nerve-wracking. Fighting the ogre knowing that it will murder me in two successive hits is fucking scary. Not to mention the precarious paths for the estus shard, with all the deep water around… In the end, I managed to get through the Shrine without dying at all. I believe it might first time doing it deathless. And I got everything I could except for the crown. Pyromancers killed me plenty though :D Why do they have poise??? The Crypt is next and I’m excited as I quite like it!

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