run up through anor londo is about as perfect as games get. the lordvessel arch is still a spottier affair for me but it didn't turn me off quite as much as i was fearing. i can see why the tomb of giants has its defenders even if i'm not a huge fan and the new londo ruins is kind of enjoyable. four kings aren't as annoying of a boss to solo as i remembered either. once i realized their attacks don't do much damage if you stick close to them i could literally just tank their hits and dps them one a time before the next one spawned in. i still like dukes archives; in particular i love the stretch after you wake up in the cell and make your way down the tower with the odd siren going off. even the invisible bridge is more forgiving and shorter than i remembered it being. lost izalith i still mostly don't care for, but i did manage to use the shortcut this playthrough.
i have mixed feelings about gwyn. i like the vibe the fight seems to be going for but it ultimately just feels like a grind to get parry consistency down, insofar as that isn't the case he's a pain in the ass in a manner no other boss in the game is, insofar as you've got it, he's uniquely trivialized. in my case given how much damage he did per swing i really didn't have much room for practice per attempt before i was toast, so i wound up trekking back to the boss arena far more times than i had to with any other boss (precisely as i remember my first time trying to beat him). can't help but think he could be balanced in a more compelling way. maybe next playthrough i'll use a faster weapon and try trading attacks in a more straightforward way, while building fire defense so the chipping isn't too costly. you have next to no room for estus chugging after dodging any of his attacks other than the grab which also amplifies the difficulty of a straight fight relative to other bosses.
went with a strength build using a fully upgraded large club + sorceries + pyromancies, so with all the souls i needed for all of that i elected to spend a lot less points on pumping my health and endurance bars than i normally would have, so i had overall more flexibility than any build i'd done previously but also less room for error. had a blast for the most part.
i have mixed feelings about gwyn. i like the vibe the fight seems to be going for but it ultimately just feels like a grind to get parry consistency down, insofar as that isn't the case he's a pain in the ass in a manner no other boss in the game is, insofar as you've got it, he's uniquely trivialized. in my case given how much damage he did per swing i really didn't have much room for practice per attempt before i was toast, so i wound up trekking back to the boss arena far more times than i had to with any other boss (precisely as i remember my first time trying to beat him). can't help but think he could be balanced in a more compelling way. maybe next playthrough i'll use a faster weapon and try trading attacks in a more straightforward way, while building fire defense so the chipping isn't too costly. you have next to no room for estus chugging after dodging any of his attacks other than the grab which also amplifies the difficulty of a straight fight relative to other bosses.
went with a strength build using a fully upgraded large club + sorceries + pyromancies, so with all the souls i needed for all of that i elected to spend a lot less points on pumping my health and endurance bars than i normally would have, so i had overall more flexibility than any build i'd done previously but also less room for error. had a blast for the most part.