For my fellow Tarnished

How goes your journey through The Lands Between? Are you on the path to become the Elden Lord?

For those unfamiliar, a game called Elden Ring released about a month ago. Based on my own experience so far, it's a great fantasy adventure RPG. Good combat, lots of diversity of weapons/armor/spells, and made to feel both incredibly unforgiving as well as very rewarding. It introduces you to the game by killing you immediately, just to set the tone.

My progress is probably a bit slower than a more dedicated gamer, but that aside, I've made it past Godrick and Rennala so far. Also, I'm sure I'm going to spoil some things here, so be forewarned.

This guy didn't like it lol


I'll wait until it's on special. I have 406 games in my library and I haven't finished many of them haha. I did see in some peoples game plays that they were fighting this giant dragon looking thing and basically could only attack the creatures ankles. With enough hits the dragon was killed. Looked stupid

This guy didn't like it lol


I'll wait until it's on special. I have 406 games in my library and I haven't finished many of them haha. I did see in some peoples game plays that they were fighting this giant dragon looking thing and basically could only attack the creatures ankles. With enough hits the dragon was killed. Looked stupid

I doubt there is any game in existence that doesn't have a bad review.  I think anyone on this site should be aware of the dangers of cherry-picking your data.

On Steam 92% of 200,000 players rated it positive, and the overwhelming response from reviewers and players is that they love it. 

That review is terrible click-bait by the way. He literally spends the entire thing complaining about the controls because he didn't see (or pretended not to see) the option to switch it to keyboard/mouse.  Now I admit it confused me too and I had to spend 5 minutes looking at the menus before I saw that option but once I did it all worked fine.  Sure it's a pain and I bitched about the crappy PC port (especially the controls which do have some seriously disappointing issues) too but really, the guy should have spent a LITTLE time to spot the option that selects between keyboard and controller, and maybe played it long enough to make it out of the tutorial.

But it's certainly not for everyone. Those 8% that didn't like it have their reasons.  I never played a Dark Souls game before because I figured I'd hate them, but was tempted by this one and am glad I did. It's loads of fun, one of the best games I've played in a while and worth every penny I paid for it.

You are free to dislike whatever you want but don't be afraid to try something new and different. You can always refund it if you hate it. I didn't think I'd ever play a Dark Souls game and I doubt I'll pick up any of the others but this one really is amazing and I'm extremely happy with it.

As for poking dragons in ankles, fighting my first dragon was a blast. Running around franticly trying not to get stomped on, burned to death , bitten or bitch smacked right off my horse was great, and when I managed to poke that ***** in the nose when it got close enough it was so satisfying.

For those unfamiliar, a game called Elden Ring released about a month ago. Based on my own experience so far, it's a great fantasy adventure RPG. Good combat, lots of diversity of weapons/armor/spells, and made to feel both incredibly unforgiving as well as very rewarding. It introduces you to the game by killing you immediately, just to set the tone.

My progress is probably a bit slower than a more dedicated gamer, but that aside, I've made it past Godrick and Rennala so far. Also, I'm sure I'm going to spoil some things here, so be forewarned.

Quite impossible not to get spoiled at some point with the internet drowning in spoilers and gameplay videos and guides and reviews. 

I've managed to get through my first playthrough and ended up plunging the entire world into a hellish nightmare out of spite because I couldn't get the ending I wanted because I gave the wrong book to a turtle.  This game is brutal.

I doubt there is any game in existence that doesn't have a bad review.  I think anyone on this site should be aware of the dangers of cherry-picking your data.

On Steam 92% of 200,000 players rated it positive, and the overwhelming response from reviewers and players is that they love it. 

That review is terrible click-bait by the way. He literally spends the entire thing complaining about the controls because he didn't see (or pretended not to see) the option to switch it to keyboard/mouse.  Now I admit it confused me too and I had to spend 5 minutes looking at the menus before I saw that option but once I did it all worked fine.  Sure it's a pain and I bitched about the crappy PC port (especially the controls which do have some seriously disappointing issues) too but really, the guy should have spent a LITTLE time to spot the option that selects between keyboard and controller, and maybe played it long enough to make it out of the tutorial.

I watch that guy for comic relief. He has a big stick up his arse over the AAA gaming industry and he hates consoles and controllers and is obsessed with being allowed to rebind keys. He is never objective and will never judge a game on its merit and it's always judged on his personal biases. He returned the game after 30 odd minutes, most of which he was cursing at the menu/options screen or something. Then thinks he has the hide to 'review' it lol. ACG and Gameranx are my go to's for reviews

I'll get it eventually, but I never pay full price for games. They always go on special eventually, most of the big ones by at least 50%

Quote from: boydster on March 30, 2022, 08:28:34 PM

For those unfamiliar, a game called Elden Ring released about a month ago. Based on my own experience so far, it's a great fantasy adventure RPG. Good combat, lots of diversity of weapons/armor/spells, and made to feel both incredibly unforgiving as well as very rewarding. It introduces you to the game by killing you immediately, just to set the tone.

My progress is probably a bit slower than a more dedicated gamer, but that aside, I've made it past Godrick and Rennala so far. Also, I'm sure I'm going to spoil some things here, so be forewarned.

Quite impossible not to get spoiled at some point with the internet drowning in spoilers and gameplay videos and guides and reviews. 

I've managed to get through my first playthrough and ended up plunging the entire world into a hellish nightmare out of spite because I couldn't get the ending I wanted because I gave the wrong book to a turtle.  This game is brutal.

This was my first Souls game too, and I had no idea what that even meant until after I opened the game for the first time. Two of my other buddies also picked it up because it said it had multiplayer co-op and we figured it sounds an awful lot like we can finally do co-op on a Skyrim-type game without going into the MMORPG kind of thing that is Elder Scrolls Online. One of those buddies rage-quit on day one, then came back 2 weeks later and hasn't been able to put it down. 

I met this turtle that you speak of. I don't think I've given him any books yet, and I know I was not in need of his blessing at the time of my last visit. Also, I visited Redmane Castle. Fuck me. That's a place I need to go back to with a better plan. A much better plan.

Shifter, that dragon you saw was probably Agheel. And if you're a melee player fighting a dragon, you're kind of limited in places you can hit it because you have to be able to reach. Ankles and wings are pretty much your options. But you can fight with a bow or a crossbow or you could be a magic wielder and hit him with spells. But yeah, your dagger isn't going to do much if you are just standing in front of the dragon, jumping up and down hoping to land a blow and chop his head off from halfway up his neck. Not unless you find a way to play as a character that's 25' tall, anyway.

This was my first Souls game too, and I had no idea what that even meant until after I opened the game for the first time. Two of my other buddies also picked it up because it said it had multiplayer co-op and we figured it sounds an awful lot like we can finally do co-op on a Skyrim-type game without going into the MMORPG kind of thing that is Elder Scrolls Online. One of those buddies rage-quit on day one, then came back 2 weeks later and hasn't been able to put it down. 

I met this turtle that you speak of. I don't think I've given him any books yet, and I know I was not in need of his blessing at the time of my last visit. Also, I visited Redmane Castle. Fuck me. That's a place I need to go back to with a better plan. A much better plan.

I play with friends too and co-op is a lot of fun, but be aware you can't play co-op without opening yourself to getting invaded by other players.

Which can be fun, but sometimes I just want to explore and do stuff and not deal with getting ganked in the middle of stabbing a dragon in the ankle with a dagger.

Oh those invasions are fun, I've been enjoying them. The first one caught me off guard though lol.

I've been enjoying the videos from these guys.  Their FPS logic is a lot of fun as well.

Got it last weekend or maybe the weekend before. Pretty fun. At about 60 with 40 hours in. I find that its a bit too open ended though, some more story and what not would be nice.

Oh and the magic system is crap.

Got it last weekend or maybe the weekend before. Pretty fun. At about 60 with 40 hours in. I find that its a bit too open ended though, some more story and what not would be nice.

I really wish they told us more about the lore, because it seems like there's a lot. So many interesting characters, with really intertwined histories, but I feel like I've barely scratched the surface in really understanding much about this world. They paid big bucks to have GRRM help develop all the deep lore, I'm honestly kind of surprised it isn't presented a little more prominently. But I guess that's maybe just part of how FromSoft makes games. If you haven't already gotten your first Great Rune, you can expect to get a decent amount of the background for the bosses back at the Roundtable Library once you acquire that rune.

Oh and the magic system is crap.

This is something I have yet to play around with. For my first go at this, I'm loading up Vigor, Strength, Dex, and Endurance - basically prioritized in that order. Faith, Arcane, and Int have all been dump stats for me so far. That's about 60 hours in and level 71. Very heavily invested in melee combat with this character, at least right now. I suppose I can always do a respec on it at some point and change style, but I think I'm going to just finish the game with my melee character and then start a new game with a mage of some sort.

Quote from: John Davis on April 04, 2022, 11:35:46 AM

Got it last weekend or maybe the weekend before. Pretty fun. At about 60 with 40 hours in. I find that its a bit too open ended though, some more story and what not would be nice.

I really wish they told us more about the lore, because it seems like there's a lot. So many interesting characters, with really intertwined histories, but I feel like I've barely scratched the surface in really understanding much about this world. They paid big bucks to have GRRM help develop all the deep lore, I'm honestly kind of surprised it isn't presented a little more prominently. But I guess that's maybe just part of how FromSoft makes games. If you haven't already gotten your first Great Rune, you can expect to get a decent amount of the background for the bosses back at the Roundtable Library once you acquire that rune.

Quote from: John Davis on April 04, 2022, 11:35:58 AM

Oh and the magic system is crap.

This is something I have yet to play around with. For my first go at this, I'm loading up Vigor, Strength, Dex, and Endurance - basically prioritized in that order. Faith, Arcane, and Int have all been dump stats for me so far. That's about 60 hours in and level 71. Very heavily invested in melee combat with this character, at least right now. I suppose I can always do a respec on it at some point and change style, but I think I'm going to just finish the game with my melee character and then start a new game with a mage of some sort.

I went full caster astronomer, with just enough other stats to wear okayish armor.

Unless there's things I haven't seen yet magic system wise, my main complaint so far is that I've got maybe... 8 spells and each one except enchanting my sword is worse than using the level 1 spell you start with that shoots one pebble at a time. As you can imagine, that gets rather boring after a bit.

What kind of stats do you have at 71 for your main stats? I'm somewhat concerned I've been misplacing them.

What kind of stats do you have at 71 for your main stats?

Currently sitting at:
Vigor 34 (currently stacking here until 40)
Mind 10
Endurance 20
Strength 40 (really wanted to wield Godrick's Axe but now I'm not even using it)
Dex 22
Int 9
Faith 9
Arcane 7

After I hit my vigor goal, I'm moving to mind. Main weapon right now is Bloodhound's Fang from Blaidd, leveled to +6, two-hand wielded. My parry game is shit so I don't bother with a shield.

Unless there's things I haven't seen yet magic system wise, my main complaint so far is that I've got maybe... 8 spells and each one except enchanting my sword is worse than using the level 1 spell you start with that shoots one pebble at a time. As you can imagine, that gets rather boring after a bit.

Magic balancing is terrible I agree.  I ended up using the starter spell and first staff I found for 80% of the game.  There are tons of other spells and they all look and act cool but are just terrible in a fight.

They buffed some of them in a recent patch but they are still worse than the pebble which I use 99% of the time.

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

It works great with Azur Comet, especially on bosses that stand still for 15 seconds.

I became Elden Lord a couple of weeks ago. I've been working on a 100% run on NG+

I became Elden Lord a couple of weeks ago. I've been working on a 100% run on NG+

Nice! I just made it to Volcano Manor and met the nice lady in there. Waiting for the potential consequences of my actions from making a certain agreement while there.

Quote from: John Davis on April 04, 2022, 03:28:36 PM

Unless there's things I haven't seen yet magic system wise, my main complaint so far is that I've got maybe... 8 spells and each one except enchanting my sword is worse than using the level 1 spell you start with that shoots one pebble at a time. As you can imagine, that gets rather boring after a bit.

Magic balancing is terrible I agree.  I ended up using the starter spell and first staff I found for 80% of the game.  There are tons of other spells and they all look and act cool but are just terrible in a fight.

They buffed some of them in a recent patch but they are still worse than the pebble which I use 99% of the time.

So I kinda figured out the rationale behind the crap spells; if you have limited stamina, you can stagger cast between the various spells at the cost of fp to keep a steady stream of more than average pebble damage so you don't end up having to dodge around while your stamina reups.


Meh. The uses for this I have found are few - though they exist, especially if you want to farm something or have a short area to get through before a grace.

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

I think I found that recently too but I am bad about saving all my consumables until I don't need them.

Quote from: John Davis on April 04, 2022, 03:28:36 PM

What kind of stats do you have at 71 for your main stats?

Currently sitting at:
Vigor 34 (currently stacking here until 40)
Mind 10
Endurance 20
Strength 40 (really wanted to wield Godrick's Axe but now I'm not even using it)
Dex 22
Int 9
Faith 9
Arcane 7

After I hit my vigor goal, I'm moving to mind. Main weapon right now is Bloodhound's Fang from Blaidd, leveled to +6, two-hand wielded. My parry game is shit so I don't bother with a shield.

That makes me feel a bit better. I think I'm at lvl 78 / 45 hrs and around these stats:

Vigor 25
Mind 23
Endurance 23
Strength 13
Dex 15
Int 38  (chasing after better spells that still suck)
Faith 10
Arcane 10

Quote from: boydster on April 05, 2022, 12:02:19 PM

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

I think I found that recently too but I am bad about saving all my consumables until I don't need them.

fyi the tears/flask are reusable and not a single consumable (if you didn't know already), though you have to rest at a site of grace to recharge after use. id suggest mapping it to one of the alternative quick menu item slots.

in other news,i have defeated malenia, blade of miquella and have obtained and activated all of the possible great runes. now just to finish off everything else for my 100% run.

Quote from: John Davis on April 07, 2022, 06:38:07 PM

Quote from: boydster on April 05, 2022, 12:02:19 PM

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

I think I found that recently too but I am bad about saving all my consumables until I don't need them.

fyi the tears/flask are reusable and not a single consumable (if you didn't know already), though you have to rest at a site of grace to recharge after use. id suggest mapping it to one of the alternative quick menu item slots.

I didn't know that, thanks ha.

So played a bit more, and yeah got a bit more of the story after killing a few lords, but I think I managed to over level enough that I'm wiping the floor with most the bosses which is a bit of a downer, but also lets me progress rather fast. Very early on I got in that parkour tower in Celia and killed the two guards there for 1200xp each too many times

Quote from: Junker on April 08, 2022, 09:56:12 PM

Quote from: John Davis on April 07, 2022, 06:38:07 PM

Quote from: boydster on April 05, 2022, 12:02:19 PM

OK last night I found a Cerulean Tear that is pretty damn useful. You can mix it in your Flask of Wondrous Physick, and when you drink it, for the next 15 seconds anything you use that costs FP suddenly costs 0 FP.

I think I found that recently too but I am bad about saving all my consumables until I don't need them.

fyi the tears/flask are reusable and not a single consumable (if you didn't know already), though you have to rest at a site of grace to recharge after use. id suggest mapping it to one of the alternative quick menu item slots.

I didn't know that, thanks ha.

So played a bit more, and yeah got a bit more of the story after killing a few lords, but I think I managed to over level enough that I'm wiping the floor with most the bosses which is a bit of a downer, but also lets me progress rather fast. Very early on I got in that parkour tower in Celia and killed the two guards there for 1200xp each too many times

Wait till you find the murder bird by a certain Blood Omen's area...

I played a TV game once.  My opponent enjoyed annihilate me.   

I asked what button does what?   

He gained some great power by not telling me how to play.   



eeF it, I went fishing.     
It's like VR without the V.


             


 

My 15 yo great nephew plays video games until he pees his pants. 

His mother and GRANDMOTHER don't know how to fix the problem.

Any suggestions?   


.

His mother and GRANDMOTHER don't know how to fix the problem.

Why is grandmother in all caps?

Quote from: Bullwinkle on May 04, 2022, 04:07:19 PM

His mother and GRANDMOTHER don't know how to fix the problem.

Why is grandmother in all caps?

Imagine ignorant combined with control freak.   

My 15 yo great nephew plays video games until he pees his pants. 

His mother and GRANDMOTHER don't know how to fix the problem.

Any suggestions?   

Taking away his console would seem like an obvious one.

That's one way to finish playing

I have become the Elden Lord!