Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 That sounds fantastic. Is that a good way to get upgrade mats? I'm struggling to upgrade more than one weapon. You'll start rolling in shards and twin shards naturally after awhile. I've got enough to take 5 or 6 weapons up to +6 right now. Make sure to keep an eye out for the new version of the Crystal Lizard, they're called Skull Beasts (I think). They do not stand out like the lizards did, they tend to blend into the environment, and I've found a few that were hiding under or near large enemies, and I actually had to chase them down and kill them while the enemy was chasing me. Also, additional bug warning! Not quite sure what causes it, but I think it happened to me when I had my Resonant Bell looking for co-op hosts and got summoned right as I was coming to a stop at the bottom of an elevator. When I got back to my world, the pressure plate that activates the elevator was locked in position, and the elevator won't respond to stepping on it or using the lever. What's even better is that this elevator is the only way to get to a (fortunately optional) boss, and is easily four or five times lethal falling distance, so there's no way to kill the boss in my game without it being fixed. Searching online shows that others have had the same problem on a couple different elevators, so be careful! Oh man, that sucks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cyborg771 Posted March 31, 2015 I finally got coop to work last night after quitting and restarting the game. Helped take out the NG+ Cleric Beast and Gascoigne a few times. It's nice cause you get a ton of souls/insight and don't lose anything for dying. Gonna head into the snake woods with the RE4 enemies after work today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korax Posted March 31, 2015 I was just thinking about something that I don't believe anyone has mentioned here yet: Oaths. They're roughly equivalent to Covenants in Dark Souls, but instead of being an organization that you join, they are special Rune that you equip in the fourth blue-tinted Rune slot. They do have passive benefits, but as long as you have a particular Oath equipped, you are considered to be working under it. There are 3 known Oaths (and a few speculated ones): Hunter of Hunters - Tracks down and kills "blood-addled" Hunters. Not quite sure what that means in mechanical terms. If you've encountered the NPC in Oedon's Tomb after defeating Gascoigne, that's what's going on there. Vilebloods - PVP Oath. Kills other Hunters for sport, gets an item that allows them to rank up with an NPC and possibly get gear rewards. Executioners - Consider Vilebloods to be heretics, and hunt them down. What's neat is that if you are looking for co-op and happen to summon/be summoned by a Hunter that opposes your Oath, the players are considered adversaries and the session becomes PVP rather than co-op. I've been running around as a Hunter of Hunters and got pulled into a game with a blood-addled player, but there was a bug with a collision volume and we were separated just enough that we couldn't actually fight, so I eventually left. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cyborg771 Posted March 31, 2015 How do you get the oaths? I have the tune tool already. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 So I'm browsing Bloodborne stuff instead of working, and just learned that if you turn off the hud, use the monocle and sit down (not sure if that's necessary) you can take incredible and completely uncluttered screenshots. This game is fucking gorgeous. I have yet to find an oath. Oh, something I hadn't praised that I had been meaning to is how nice it is to have two different usable inventories, Square for emergency/combat stuff and the secondary one for bells, notebook, antidote, all the crap I don't want cluttering up my combat stuff. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cbirdsong Posted March 31, 2015 Oh, something I hadn't praised that I had been meaning to is how nice it is to have two different usable inventories, Square for emergency/combat stuff and the secondary one for bells, notebook, antidote, all the crap I don't want cluttering up my combat stuff. The first slot in the secondary one is a good slot for something you infrequently need access to, but when you do you want it quickly. I keep antidotes there. Click trackpad, hit X - almost as fast as just hitting square. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korax Posted March 31, 2015 You get them from Oath-related NPC's. I'm going to be vague with descriptions, but I'll tag them in case anyone wants to avoid them. Hunter of Hunters: Eileen the Crow (the NPC you help after killing Gascoigne), has more than one Hunter that she's tracking down. Vileblood: Found in an entirely optional area. Find a back door into Iosefka's Clinic to get the item needed to access it. Executioners: Alfred (blue-robed man) is an Executioner. He's looking for the Vileblood hideaway, so you'll need to do most of that area, too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 The first slot in the secondary one is a good slot for something you infrequently need access to, but when you do you want it quickly. I keep antidotes there. Click trackpad, hit X - almost as fast as just hitting square. That's exactly what I do Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kickinthehead Posted March 31, 2015 It's pretty safe to say that I'm obsessed with this game right now. I briefly hit a wall where I was just exploring all the areas to find where I should be, but I didn't mind it at all because the way the levels interconnect is just mind boggling to me. I love when I find myself back at a familiar place via a completely different and unexpected route. I've gotten far enough to unlock an area that is listed on the 2nd fast travel gravestone in the Hunter's Dream (I had to look this up because I was going nuts wondering why the lamp wasn't listed on the 1st one). Every new area is a mix of fear and exhilaration of discovery. My proudest achievement so far was beating I think the 4th boss on my first try! I just love love love how the game feels to play and all the discovery. I thought I was halfway through but now I have no idea how big this game is O_O Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
melmer Posted March 31, 2015 I've got 15 insight and this game has got SOOOO much harder. I'm getting my arse kicked. I've tried for about an hour and I can't handle it, I'm going to go buy some stuff with it and get it down to about 12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korax Posted March 31, 2015 I keep forgetting that Insight has some nebulous effect on difficulty. I should buy some stuff and knock mine down, because I've been rocking around 50 for a good long while. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 I keep forgetting that Insight has some nebulous effect on difficulty. I should buy some stuff and knock mine down, because I've been rocking around 50 for a good long while. Wait, what?! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quantum_leopold Posted March 31, 2015 I played both Demon's and Dark Souls for about a day on their initial release, and almost immediately bailed on them for being impenetrable and frustrating. But sometime last spring I became curious again, so I picked up Dark Souls and ended up putting in ~30 hours and killing a good 10 or so bosses and started to get a feel for things. I then moved on to Dark Souls 2, which really clicked with me, especially once I figured out how coop worked. I know purists will cringe at this, but I beat at least a third of the bosses in DS2 with co-op help, which made the game much less frustrating for me, while still retaining plenty of challenge. I also spent a lot of time leveling by helping other players take on bosses, which felt really rewarding on both a social level and in terms of my stats. (At one point, I was summoned into something like 8 straight boss fights where a the same other player was also assisting, and I felt we had developed something of a rapport in the way that one does with the Souls series limited methods of communication, so after that play session I figured I should see if that guy was on Steam so I could friend him or something. I felt pretty stupid when I looked into friending my new pal Masterless Glencoe). So anyway, that is to say: I'm really digging Bloodborne so far, about 5 hours in, several levels gained, Cleric Beast down, next boss met but not attempted thanks to Bold Hunter's Mark (I had a lot of echoes when I stumbled upon him). I'd love to figure out how coop works, although I suspect I've got a little ways to go before I can engage in it. I know I can ring my own bell to ask for help, but that a)it costs insight, of which I only have 2 points right now and b)given my low level, it's unlikely I'll find anyone to help me. Is that right? So when can I get the option to go help other players? And does that cost insight? Do you gain insight or any other stat or item for successfully helping other players defeat a boss, the way you could recover humanity by helping out a player in DS2? I assume you at least accumulate blood echoes, right? I'd much rather grind levels by helping out other players than by killing the same minor enemies repeatedly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Horse Bag Posted March 31, 2015 It might outstay its welcome, but sometimes the loading screen makes for a pretty perfect title card: (minor spoiler for the FW area) If you're avoiding all media, here's the video in emoticon form, albeit lacking the gratuitous ShareFactory goofiness: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korax Posted March 31, 2015 Wait, what?! I'd have to spend some decent time thinking about where it all came from. I've lost about 20 to the asshole mind flayers, but I've topped up using items, too. You get 1-2 for meeting NPC's. Bosses start at 1 for a first encounter, and 2 for killing them, but get to at least 2 and 2-3 later on. Killing a boss as a co-op partner gets you 1. Actually, a lot of it probably came from Chalice Dungeons. Three floors, 1 boss per floor. Even assuming dungeon bosses only give you 2 Insight, that's 6 per, and I've finished 4 or 5. I've also done a lot of helping with bosses. Even if I kill a boss by myself, I'll hang out and co-op for a little while. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 I was actually "wait, whatting" the insight affecting difficulty thing I think I'm up around 40, mostly because I haven't spent any (except for summoning help once) and I've co-oped most bosses at least 2-3 times after beating them myself. I just had no idea that it had an effect other than as a currency and summoning. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JonCole Posted March 31, 2015 From what I've heard, insight makes certain enemies do elemental damage when they wouldn't normally or even makes certain enemies appear that wouldn't otherwise. It also affects story stuff (insofar as the story can actually be affected, being so passive to begin with), with more subtle things happening in boss fights like whispers in the background or whatever. So while there are reasons to avoid high insight, I think there are also reasons to keep it if you want the "full experience" so to speak. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Salacious Snake Posted March 31, 2015 I can totally see why the narrower set of play styles is a bummer for people, but god I love it. In Demon's and Dark Souls, I just always felt like I was making the worst choices. Whenever I would start specializing in some direction, I'd feel sick thinking about all the other doors I was closing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quantum_leopold Posted March 31, 2015 I have heard that high insight levels supposedly leads to "frenzy," although I don't know what that is... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 I have heard that high insight levels supposedly leads to "frenzy," although I don't know what that is... Frenzy is like Bleed from DS1. A Frenzy meter builds up by certain attacks on you, and if it fills, it just obliterates a fixed amount of your health bar instantly. It's possible Insight might affect some defenses. I know it does affect the Beasthood stat, high Insight, lower Beasthood, so less of a damage bonus when using the Beast Pellets (which I still haven't remembered to try out). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Korax Posted March 31, 2015 It's one of those things that just doesn't have a lot of concrete info because there hasn't been a lot of time to test it. The most obvious change is the gravekeepers in the Cathedral Ward area. Lantern guys get a wreath of eyeballs on the lantern and start shooting magic instead of just swinging at you. Scythe guy gets blue fire on his scythe. There are one or two other types. There are some anecdotal accounts of later enemies using extra attack sets that they didn't seem to have at lower Insight, but lack of testing makes that hard to be sure about. There are also some non-combat effects. Some things can only be seen or heard with high enough insight, though 40 is the highest threshold for known effects. I have heard that high insight levels supposedly leads to "frenzy," although I don't know what that is... Lore-wise, it would make more sense as "insanity." It's caused by attacks or auras projected by some of the more monstrous enemies. Insight lowers resistance to frenzy buildup, and might increase the damage dealt when the meter pops. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bjorn Posted March 31, 2015 FWIW, the frenzy defense matters a ton. I was wearing one of the church sets for it's high poison resist when I was running around a poison swamp, and forgot to change. Warped to the Cathedral with the crucifix guys, and one of them tagged me with a single hit, and it was enough to fill the frenzy bar and kill me. Turns out the church sets have almost no frenzy defense. Went back to my hunter garb, and took a hit just to experiment, the meter only filled to about half and increased much slower. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eot Posted March 31, 2015 I was going to ask about frenzy. I just spent ages in an area that I don't think I was meant to go to yet (it was in the fourth gravestone and I was only 5 bosses in). When I thought I'd passed the worst of it I ran into this enemy with a super long range AoE Frenzy that was impossble for me to get past, killing the thing didn't even help. Eventually I figured out how to stealth past it but that can't be the only way. Almost beat the boss on my first go despite having to play one handed for two minutes, but the final phase of that fight was a lot harder. That area also had a nice evil callback to Dark Souls that cost me 25k echoes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
melmer Posted March 31, 2015 Insight: The most obvious change is the gravekeepers in the Cathedral Ward area. Lantern guys get a wreath of eyeballs on the lantern and start shooting magic instead of just swinging at you. Scythe guy gets blue fire on his scythe. There are one or two other types. Yeah these were the guys that we're kicking my butt. Both grave keepers and the sack dudes are markedly tougher. They were that much easier at level 13 that I felt like I was cheating. Didn't mater anyway as I killed a boss shortly after and am now at 17. I think it's there as more of an easy mode for new starters and people that are bad at the game, enlisting co-op help and still dying over and over. Bloodbabe mode Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cyborg771 Posted April 1, 2015 This game is actually making it hard for me to sleep, not because I'd rather be playing (well partially because of that) but because its friggin creepy! The later game goes from Van Helsing into Lovecraft pretty subtly, and at this point there are towering brain monsters and talk of celestial children and it's really getting under my skin. I just found my way into Iosefka's clinic and when I found her I was so creeped out by her behaviour that I killer her almost immediately. I need to watch some cartoons to calm myself down now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
