The Deprived’s Experiment

The numbers come from the Mimic's Ledger, through its build helper. The ideas come from somewhere else.

Part I: The Lab

The Knight swears. The Thief counts. The Warrior conquers. The Wanderer remembers. And I'm telling you, this works.

The Deprived starts at level 6, the highest of any class, with 11 in every stat, a Club and a Plank Shield. The Ledger's class record lists no armor at all. He's for players who get bored doing one thing, and players who open a wiki and think: but what if? Every weapon. Every school. Every bad idea. The maths is already done.

The gift is the Master Key. I didn't choose it. I reached for the list, sneezed, and there it was. (INT: we cannot prove that was luck. STR: we cannot prove it wasn't.)

The Committee

Eight stats, eight voices, and every one of them starts at 11. Nobody has a majority. Every decision goes to a vote. Every vote is four to four. I break the tie by doing the maths, and then by doing the thing.

• INT runs the experiments. At 11 it already clears the 10 Intelligence that Soul Arrow asks for. "I've done the sums. Twice. The second time, I enjoyed it."
• STR wants to hit things. At 11 it two-hands the Drake Sword, which asks for 16 one-handed and 11 with both hands. "Hit it." That's STR's whole contribution, and it's right more often than INT likes.
• VIT wants to go home. "We could just leave." We could not just leave.
• END keeps the books on weight: the maximum equip load is about Endurance + 40, so END's 11 carries about 51. "Everything you pick up, I carry. Everything I carry, I write down."
• DEX is the show-off, one point short of the Short Bow's 12; the plan gets DEX its point early. "Did you see that roll? Tell me you saw that roll."
• ATT keeps forgetting what's equipped. At 10 or 11 Attunement you get one slot; 12 gives two, and 14 gives three (Wikidot). "Which one did I equip? The arrow one? The fire one? Is there a fire one?"
• FAI prays over the firebombs. Heal and Force both ask for 12 Faith: one level away. "Bless this bomb." It's a firebomb. It doesn't need blessing. FAI blesses it anyway.
• RES speaks, and nobody listens. Wikidot reports the consensus that levelling Resistance is a waste. The proof below needs it left at 11 anyway. "I have a point—" No one has ever let RES finish.

And the luck? INT says it's arithmetic: by Wikidot's table, item discovery starts at 100 and climbs with Humanity, the number on your status screen rather than the items in your pack, to 210 at 10 Humanity. When something drops that shouldn't, INT checks the Humanity counter and nods. When the counter's at zero and it drops anyway, INT goes very quiet.

Three Laws of Mad Science

• Waste nothing. Every stat starts at 11, so a build that needs all of them wastes no starting point. Start from the build, not the class. Count the points it needs above 11. If every stat wants 11 or more, you've already won the argument.
• Wear nothing. With no armor, the whole equip load goes to the weapon. At END 11, a Zweihander and the Plank Shield come to 11.5 against a fast-roll line of 12.75. I don't fight naked because I'm brave. I fight naked because the numbers told me to, and they were very insistent.
• Try everything. A club, a bow, a dragon's tail, and one spell from every school. Proudest result so far: the Capra Demon. We never opened the door.

The Proof

Wikidot calls the Deprived's balanced stats "a hindering factor", because many builds don't want every stat. The Ledger's class records explain why, and where it stops being true. Each class's starting stats add up to its level plus a fixed amount: 82 for the Deprived, 83 for the Pyromancer and Wanderer, and between 79 and 82 for the rest. So for any build that needs every stat at 11 or more and leaves Resistance at 11, no class reaches it at a lower level than the Deprived: the classes with a bigger head start (Pyromancer and Wanderer) spend it on Resistance 12, which that build never asks for. Raise Resistance and the proof is off: Pyromancer and Wanderer get there first.

INT insisted on the full working: the level every class needs for each build above.

The levels count every point a build needs above each class's start, from the Ledger's class records; each class starts with the level and stats in its record, and a stat already above a build's need costs nothing and earns nothing. INT read it out loud. STR asked if that meant we could hit things now. RES tried to say something about Resistance 12 and was overruled, which is, mathematically, the whole proof.

Naked and Fast

The roll rule, per the Ledger: maximum equip load is about Endurance + 40. Carry a quarter of it or less and you roll fast, half or less and you roll medium. Armor is usually what fills that quarter. The Deprived has none.

Armor? Never. VIT has filed a complaint. It has been noted.

The Apparatus

Three weapons, a nail club for bleeding, and three schools of magic. Every weapon is the wrong weapon for somebody. Every one of them is the right weapon for the experiment in front of you.

One of each takes three attunement slots: Attunement 14, three levels. Combustion, because it doesn't care about your stats. Soul Arrow, because the fire monsters of the Demon Ruins are weakest to magic. Heal, because VIT asked nicely. (ATT: three slots. I know what two of them do.)

A Stat Plan for the Experiment

The greatsword first, paid for by the Asylum Demon; then VIT's turn; then magic; then enough HP and stamina to survive being right. Resistance stays at 11 the whole way, which keeps the proof true. Stats not listed stay at 11.

Soul costs follow the published level table up to level 12 and the published formula past it. Each experiment below names the level to test at. If you keep dying, VIT gets the next five points, no debate. The committee suspends the vote for emergencies.

What the Apparatus Hits For

Attack ratings are the Ledger's estimates; two-handing counts Strength at 1.5 times. The Drake Sword has no stat scaling, so it hits the same at any stats, and its two-handed strong attack sends out a shockwave that costs 30 durability per use (Wikidot). Switch the moment Strength reaches 16: a +5 Zweihander already outhits a fresh Drake Sword two-handed, 257 against 200.

Part II: The Experiments

Each test subject below comes with the maths: what it deals, its weakest element, what it ignores, and the ring that answers it, all from the Ledger's boss records. The route is the Master Key way: the Burg, the Parish, then through the Valley of Drakes into Blighttown early. Come back for the Depths when you want the Large Ember and Laurentius.

Experiment 1: The Northern Undead Asylum

Day one. Subject wakes in a cell. No trousers. Thrilled.

Test at level: 6–8

Salvage

• The Peculiar Doll. Back in the starting cell, on the return trip. The way into the Painted World (Experiment 8).
• Rusted Iron Ring. Also on the return: behind a locked door on the west side of the second floor, on a broken staircase. Its key, the Undead Asylum F2 West Key, sits on the roof above Petrus at Firelink Shrine. The ring removes the slowdown in water and swamp.
• Black Knights, second visit. By the Ledger's records each one here guarantees a Red Titanite Chunk, and may drop the Black Knight Sword (STR 20 / DEX 18).

Test Subjects

• Asylum Demon. Fall on him from the ledge above for a plunging attack, then stay at his back. His overhead slams take a long time to recover from.
  The maths: deals physical; weakest element: lightning (54).
  Hypothesis: The first time, leave. Everyone does: the side door is the plan. Then come back over the ledge and fall on him with the Club two-handed; the plunge is the biggest number a level-6 Deprived owns. His 2,000 souls go straight into Strength: two levels on the spot, 1,533 souls, toward the Zweihander. (VIT: and the rest? There is always a rest.)
• Stray Demon. On the return, below the Asylum Demon's hall. Hammer blows physical, explosions magic, and the Plank Shield stops only 40% of magic. Roll out of the butt slam; be behind him or under him for the blasts. By the Ledger's records he guarantees a Titanite Slab.
  The maths: deals physical and magic, the physical per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: lightning (168); pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: There's no ledge this time; the floor gives way and you land in his room. Get underneath. VIT wanted the explosions explained, so INT explained them: they're magic, and the Plank Shield lets 60% of magic through. We don't block. We leave the area.

Apparatus

The Club, 87 base damage. Andre takes it to +5 on Titanite Shards for 130. That's 200 souls a level and a handful of shards, and it stays useful as the spare in the naked loadout. Keep the Stray Demon's Titanite Slab: it's what the Zweihander's +15 costs.

Lab note: Come back for the doll, the ring and the Slab. The Asylum pays better the second time.

Experiment 2: Firelink Shrine

A bonfire. A crow. A graveyard full of opinions. And a sword I can't lift. Yet.

Test at level: 6–10

Salvage

• The Zweihander. A corpse in the graveyard behind the shrine, in front of the large tombstone at the far right of the stairs down. Two Skeletons and a dormant Giant Skeleton keep it. STR 16 to two-hand it. Run in naked, roll the Giant Skeleton's first slam, grab the sword, and let the skeletons kill you. You keep what you picked up, so dying is the taxi home. (VIT: I object to the taxi.) The Asylum Demon's souls already put Strength at 13; the first souls from the Burg finish the job at 16.
• The Master Key's first door. Off the stairs down toward New Londo, a locked door opens into the Valley of Drakes, the back way to Blighttown.
• Petrus of Thorolund sells Heal and Force (4,000 souls each, FAI 12) and a Talisman (1,000).
• Griggs and Laurentius set up here once freed: Griggs from the Lower Undead Burg, Laurentius from the Depths. Free Griggs first, for Soul Arrow. His door in the Lower Burg is the one door the Master Key can't open (Wikidot); the Residence Key from the Undead Merchant does it. Laurentius can wait in his barrel until the Depths.

Apparatus

Nothing to swing but the Club until the graveyard pays out. The miracles are 4,000 souls apiece, and every soul is spoken for: Strength first, then whatever VIT can get away with.

Lab note: Take the Zweihander now. Three more levels of Strength and it's swinging, two-handed, long before anyone sensible would have one.

Experiment 3: The Undead Burg

The Burg is full of soldiers who trained for years. I trained for none. Let's compare results.

Test at level: 10–15

Salvage

• Undead Merchant (Male). Sells the Short Bow (STR 10 / DEX 12) and Wooden Arrows (3 souls each), a spare Club, and Firebombs. Kill him and he drops the Uchigatana, but the shop closes for good.
• Gold Pine Resin. A locked room behind three Hollow Warriors atop the stairs past the firebombing bridge holds three. The Master Key opens it (so does the Residence Key).
• Blue Tearstone Ring. A corpse guarded by a Black Knight. +50% defense while your HP is below 20%.

Test Subjects

• Taurus Demon. From the tower above the walkway, drop on him. After that, the middle of the bridge is where you want him. His leaping slam is his heaviest blow: roll it.
  The maths: the records name no damage type for it; weakest element: lightning (67).
  Hypothesis: Make the tower an instrument. Clear the two crossbowmen. Walk out until he lands. Run back up the ladder. Drop on him. Wikidot has the loop. When he jumps up after you, fight on the roof, away from the edge. (DEX: look how fast I am.)
• Capra Demon. In the Lower Undead Burg. The dogs die first, or nothing else works. The stairs at the back of the arena turn the dogs into one dog at a time.
  The maths: deals physical, per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: lightning (106).
  Hypothesis: Never open the door. Stand outside the fog. Aim by hand. Lob Firebombs or Dung Pies over the wall; Wikidot documents it. When he dies the fog lifts and the dogs come. They're just dogs now.
• Hellkite Dragon. The tail is the experiment. Wikidot gives it 240 HP in a first playthrough and two ways to take it. The bow: a Short Bow and 50 or more Wooden Arrows, from the bridge segment below the drake, above the shortcut to the bonfire, shooting the tail where it hangs down. The resin: Gold Pine Resin on a basic weapon, then run the right side of the bridge after he jumps down and hit the tail 3 to 5 times, depending on the weapon. Cut it and the Drake Sword is yours.
  The maths: deals fire; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire.
  Hypothesis: DEX finally earns its point: a Short Bow, a pile of Wooden Arrows, and the bridge segment under his tail. INT's alternative is Soul Arrow from the same spot, once Griggs is free. STR's alternative, the resin run across the bridge, is for people who enjoy fire.

Apparatus

The Drake Sword two-handed, at the stats you started with. It upgrades only with Dragon Scales, 10 of them for the climb to +5, and it never scales with stats: Wikidot notes that around the Gaping Dragon, weapons with even minor scaling overtake it. Two hundred damage, held in both hands by a man with eleven Strength and no shirt.

Lab note: The tail first. The dragon can wait; he's not going anywhere, and neither is his bridge.

Experiment 4: The Undead Parish

A church, two bells and two gargoyles. I like these odds, and I haven't done the maths yet.

Test at level: 13–18

Salvage

• Andre works Standard weapons to +5 on Titanite Shards; +6 and up need the Large Ember from the Depths. The Drake Sword is Unique and upgrades with Dragon Scales instead (Wikidot).
• Balder Knights can drop the Balder Side Sword and the Buckler.
• Lautrec's cell opens with the Master Key. Freed, he kills Anastacia once both bells are rung or the Fire Keeper Souls are taken. Free him and summon him for the Gargoyles. Then, back at Firelink, boot him off his ledge before you ring the second bell or take a Fire Keeper Soul: Anastacia lives, and he drops the Ring of Favor and Protection. (INT: on what evidence? STR: intuition.)

Test Subjects

• Bell Gargoyles. On the church roof. The first one's tail cuts off into a weapon. Hit them as they land; a second arrives partway through, so keep stamina in hand.
  The maths: deals physical; weakest element: fire (98).
  Hypothesis: Summon Solaire and Lautrec, then throw Firebombs at whichever gargoyle is busy: fire is their weakest element (98). (FAI: bless these bombs.)

Apparatus

The Zweihander joins the Drake Sword. If the Asylum Demon's souls did their job, it already has. The naked fast roll still holds: the Zweihander and the Plank Shield come to 11.5 against 12.75. (END: 11.5 of 12.75. The books balance. Barely.)

Lab note: Ring the bell. The committee voted unanimously, which has never happened before.

Experiment 5: Darkroot Garden and Basin

A forest that hates visitors, a butterfly that hates everyone, and a wolf. I've brought a bow, a plank and no clothes.

Test at level: 16–24

Salvage

• Dark Wood Grain Ring. From Shiva of the East's bodyguard (Forest Hunter covenant). The fast roll becomes a cartwheel, but only at 25% load or less: a naked Deprived lives there.
• Havel the Rock. The Master Key opens the watchtower basement from Darkroot Basin. His ring: +50% equip load.
• Hornet Ring. Behind Artorias's grave, in Sif's arena. Critical attacks do 30% more.

Test Subjects

• Moonlight Butterfly. Up the stairs to the fog. It casts from the air; when it lands, it stops casting, and that's when to hit it. Back off before its glow ends.
  The maths: deals magic; weakest element: fire (110); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Shoot it as it comes in to land, then two-hand whatever's sharpest the moment it touches down; Wikidot has both halves. Beatrice's sign is here too, if you'd rather watch. (ATT: which spell did I equip? INT: none. Shoot it.)
• Sif, the Great Grey Wolf. Through the Crest door, at Artorias's grave. Get under him and roll through the swipes. He leaves the Covenant of Artorias, which the Abyss requires.
  The maths: deals physical; weakest element: fire (182).
  Hypothesis: Bring a club with nails in it. The Reinforced Club builds 30 bleed a hit (Wikidot, 350 souls from the Burg merchant), and Sif's bleed resistance is 200, his lowest status number in the Ledger. Seven hits, and a bleed takes about 30% of his health. (STR: hit it seven times. INT: exactly seven.)

Apparatus

Join the Forest Hunters, take the ring from Shiva's bodyguard, and cartwheel through Lordran with a greatsword. The ring only works at 25% load or less, and a naked man with a Zweihander and a plank is at 11.5 of 12.75. (DEX: finally, an audience.)

Lab note: The Hornet Ring is behind the grave. Pick it up on the way out; the wolf won't mind any more.

Experiment 6: The Depths, Blighttown, and Quelaag's Domain

Down. Further down. The Depths, the swamp, and a spider lady. VIT has stopped speaking to me.

Test at level: 20–30

Salvage

• Laurentius waits in the Depths; free him and he gives you the Pyromancy Flame back at Firelink.
• Large Ember. In a chest near the Butcher's table of raw meat, in the Depths. Standard weapons +6 to +10.
• Blighttown early. The Master Key's Valley of Drakes door is the back way in. Wear the Rusted Iron Ring in the swamp.

Test Subjects

• Gaping Dragon. At the bottom of the Depths; he holds the Blighttown Key. Fight from his side, never in front of the jaws, and be moving sideways when he rears up.
  The maths: the records name no damage type for it; weakest element: lightning (84); shrugs off poison and toxic.
  Hypothesis: The first Gold Pine Resin comes out of the Burg room and onto the Zweihander: lightning is his weakest element (84). Then the flank. Sideways, always sideways, especially when he rears. (STR: not in front of the mouth. Anywhere but in front of the mouth.)
• Chaos Witch Quelaag. Fire is her whole argument, and the Plank Shield stops only 20% of fire. Stay close, hit between her sweeps, and get out when she rears to spit lava.
  The maths: deals physical and fire; weakest element: lightning (205); shrugs off fire, poison and toxic; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire.
  Hypothesis: FAI finally gets a fire spell and points it at us. Power Within (a hanging corpse beside the Parasitic Wall Hugger in Blighttown, per Wikidot) trades HP for damage. (FAI: a fire spell! INT: a pyromancy. It doesn't scale with Faith, or with anything we own; only the flame's upgrades.) Then the second resin: she's immune to fire. Lightning is her weakest element (205).

Apparatus

With the Large Ember, the Zweihander climbs to +10. Keep the Soul of Quelaag. The Chaos Blade wants a katana and the Furysword wants a curved sword, and the committee owns neither. (STR: we could buy a katana. INT: we could also not.)

Lab note: Rusted Iron Ring on before the swamp, and keep the last resin. Lordran has a lot of things weak to lightning.

Experiment 7: Sen's Fortress

A fortress built entirely out of traps. Finally, someone who thinks like me.

Test at level: 30–36

Salvage

• The cages open with the Master Key as well as the Cage Key. Big Hat Logan is in one.
• Ring of Steel Protection. In a chest at the top of the long outdoor boulder ramp, in a room with a Serpent Mage. +50 physical defense.

Test Subjects

• Iron Golem. Top of the fortress, beyond the last boulder run. Close but not under him. When the empty hand draws back, that's the grab: roll away. Hit him in the recovery after a big swing.
  The maths: deals magic; weakest element: lightning (245); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Pick one leg and never stop. Wikidot says enough damage to his legs while he staggers knocks him down, and then you get a long time to just stand there and hit him. Stay clear of the grab that throws people off the roof. (STR: one leg. Just one. INT: the left. STR: the left.)

Apparatus

The Zweihander at +10, the Drake Sword for the shockwave, the Plank Shield, and nothing on our body the archers can admire.

Lab note: Open every cage with the key. Logan's in one of them.

Experiment 8: Anor Londo (and the Painted World)

The richest city in Lordran, guarded by archers, painted knights and a fat man with a hammer. I came naked. It seemed respectful.

Test at level: 35–42

Salvage

• The Giant Blacksmith makes boss-soul weapons and the Lightning path. A +10 Zweihander qualifies for Lightning.
• The Painted World, through the Peculiar Doll. Cut Priscilla's tail before she dies, or her dagger is lost for the playthrough.

Test Subjects

• Crossbreed Priscilla. Optional. She won't attack until you do. Hit her and she turns invisible; her footprints in the snow still show.
  The maths: deals physical, bleed and magic, the physical and magic per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: fire (195); pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Don't fight her. Wikidot says Dung Pies toxic her without making her hostile, so you can stand there and watch. Want the dagger? Cut the tail first, and when she vanishes, shoot her: the arrows stay in her and show you where she is.
• Ornstein and Smough. Keep a pillar between them and never trade blows with Smough's hammer. The one you kill last gives up his soul; Ornstein last also gives the Leo Ring.
  The maths: deals lightning, per Fextralife's damage tables; weakest element by form: Ornstein magic (226), Ornstein giant form magic (221), Smough lightning (108), Smough lightning form fire (125); pack the Thunder Stoneplate Ring for the lightning.
  Hypothesis: Kill Smough first. The last Gold Pine Resin goes on the Zweihander, because his lowest resistance is lightning (108). Then fight giant Ornstein with Soul Arrow from behind the pillars: his weakest element is magic (221). (VIT: we could kill Ornstein first like everyone else. INT: everyone else isn't us.)
• Dark Sun Gwyndolin. Optional, in the Darkmoon Tomb. Push forward from pillar to pillar during his bow shots. His large magic blasts pass through pillars.
  The maths: deals physical and magic, the physical per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: fire (155); pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Don't chase him. Stop six pillars away, as Wikidot says, and feed him Poison Arrows: seven or eight to poison him, several rounds to finish. (DEX: this is the best day of my life.)

Apparatus

The Zweihander stays Standard. Smough got the resin instead, and it keeps climbing with Strength.

Lab note: Kill Smough first, for once. The Leo Ring is Ornstein's apology.

Experiment 9: New Londo Ruins and the Abyss

A drowned city full of ghosts, and below it, four kings in the dark. VIT has written a will. It's very short.

Test at level: 40–46

Salvage

• Ghosts take damage only while you're cursed, under a Transient Curse, or holding a ghost-hitting weapon. Transient Curses: 4,000 souls from the Undead Merchant (Female), 1,000 from Ingward.
• Very Large Ember. In the lower ruins once the water is drained. Standard weapons +11 to +15.
• The Abyss kills anyone without the Covenant of Artorias. Keep it on through the whole Four Kings fight.

Test Subjects

• The Four Kings. In the Abyss under New Londo. They arrive one at a time, and every king left alive adds to the next fight. Kill each one fast.
  The maths: deals physical and magic, per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: lightning (177); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Power Within the moment you land. Get behind each King. Cast Combustion. Wikidot says each one dies very quickly that way, and INT reminds FAI, again, that pyromancy doesn't care that our stats are all 11. (VIT: we are on fire from the inside. INT: yes. And he's on fire from the outside.)

Apparatus

With the Very Large Ember, the Zweihander can reach +15. Take it there. The Stray Demon's Titanite Slab has been waiting in the pack since the Asylum.

Lab note: Get cursed on purpose for the ghosts, and let Ingward lift it for one Humanity when you're done. (VIT: the will was premature.)

Experiment 10: The Duke's Archives and Crystal Cave

A library run by a dragon who can't die. I've never felt so understood.

Test at level: 44–49

Salvage

• Crystal Lizards run through the Archives, as they did in the Undead Burg and on the Darkroot Garden cliffs. They carry the titanite for the high upgrades.
• Big Hat Logan sets up here once freed. Magic Weapon, which asks INT 10, so we qualify today, for the Zweihander. Great Heavy Soul Arrow once Peer Review puts Intelligence at 16.

Test Subjects

• Seath the Scaleless. While the crystal in his arena stands, he regenerates. Break it first. His breath can curse you, and cursed means a lower maximum HP. Don't get pinned among the crystals.
  The maths: deals physical, curse and magic, the physical per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: fire (207); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Cursebite Ring for the curse and the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: The first meeting is a scripted death, so INT bought insurance: wear a Ring of Sacrifice (Wikidot suggests it) and lose nothing. In the real fight, break the crystal, then burn him with Combustion: fire is his weakest element (207). (VIT: I have never died more efficiently.)

Apparatus

Nothing new to swing. Hunt the Crystal Lizards and let INT browse. (ATT: I have attuned something for this. I could not say what.)

Lab note: Die on purpose with a Ring of Sacrifice on. It's the cheapest experiment in the guide.

Experiment 11: The Catacombs and Tomb of the Giants

The dead get back up here. Professional courtesy.

Test at level: 47–52

Salvage

• The Rite of Kindling from Pinwheel, and the Skull Lantern in the pit where Patches kicks you. Nothing else to grab. The Rite of Kindling goes to the Firelink bonfire, and the lantern goes in the left hand: the Plank Shield is taking the Tomb off.

Test Subjects

• Pinwheel. Past the valley of Skeleton Wheels. He dies quickly; give him time and his clones multiply.
  The maths: deals fire; weakest element: lightning (99); pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire.
  Hypothesis: Rush him before the clones add up. INT notes his weakest element is lightning (99), and that we spent all the resin on bigger problems. STR says just hit it. STR is right.
• Gravelord Nito. At the bottom of the Tomb, after a drop. Heal off the fall and stay near the landing spot, or the giant skeletons join in. His back is free damage. A scream means the sword is coming.
  The maths: deals toxic; weakest element: fire (221); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic.
  Hypothesis: Combustion, from behind: fire is his weakest element (221), and he shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic. (RES: my three best—) Heal off the fall and stay where you land.

Apparatus

Nothing new. The Zweihander is doing fine, and so is our patience.

Lab note: Light the Tomb and stay where you land. The giants are polite until you wander.

Experiment 12: The Demon Ruins and Lost Izalith

Lava, demons, and a floor that isn't there. FAI is beside himself.

Test at level: 50–56

Salvage

• The Gold-Hemmed Black Set, guarded by Ceaseless Discharge.
• The Orange Charred Ring from the Centipede Demon: 80% less lava damage.
• The Large Flame Ember in a chest between Ceaseless Discharge and the Demon Firesage, and the Red Titanite Slab in Lost Izalith.

Test Subjects

• Ceaseless Discharge. Picking up the Gold-Hemmed Black Set wakes him. Retreat toward the fog door; he gives chase and grabs the cliff edge one-handed. Hit the hand until he falls, and stay out from under it.
  The maths: deals physical and fire, the physical per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: magic (220); shrugs off bleed, fire, poison and toxic; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire.
  Hypothesis: INT's rematch: stand back and Soul Arrow the fire giant. Magic is his weakest element (220), and fire he shrugs off entirely. If the casts run dry, fall back to the fog door and hit the hand when he grabs the cliff. (FAI: we brought the beginner spell to the lava god. INT: we brought the right one.)
• Demon Firesage. In the Demon Ruins, on the way down to the Centipede Demon.
  The maths: deals physical and magic; weakest element: lightning (166); pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: The nail club again: his bleed resistance is 75, the lowest number on his sheet. Three hits and he bleeds. (STR: I remember this club.)
• Centipede Demon. Cut off his tail and kill the small worm that drops from it, and the Orange Charred Ring is yours before the fight ends; otherwise he drops it on death. With it on, his lava is survivable. Stay between his legs.
  The maths: deals fire and magic; weakest element: magic (174); shrugs off fire; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire and the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Soul Arrow again: magic is his weakest element too (174). Go in for the tail only when he's close enough to hand over the ring.
• Bed of Chaos. The floor collapses as you go. Break the glowing root on each side, then drop to the Chaos Bug at the end. Broken roots don't come back.
  The maths: deals fire and magic; shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire and the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Break one root. Quit to the menu. The root stays broken; you start again at the fog. Do the other. Quit again. Drop for the Chaos Bug. The floor is the real boss. We declined to meet it more than once.

Apparatus

Leave the embers for someone with a fire weapon. The Zweihander is Standard and staying that way.

Lab note: Orange Charred Ring before the Centipede's lava, and Soul Arrow for anything made of fire.

Experiment 13: The Kiln of the First Flame

The end of the road. I'm told this is where people get serious. I've brought the plank.

Test at level: 56–62

Salvage

• Five Black Knights, respawning when you rest. They can be backstabbed and parried.

Test Subjects

• Gwyn, Lord of Cinder. Parryable: the opening jump and any swing you can read. Otherwise let the combo finish before you move in.
  The maths: deals physical and fire, the physical per Fandom's damage tables; weakest element: fire (249); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Flame Stoneplate Ring for the fire.
  Hypothesis: Parry the jump. First, shed your own HP: under 20%, the Red Tearstone Ring (Valley of Drakes) adds at least 50% to attack, by the Ledger's figure, and the Hornet Ring adds 30% to critical hits. One riposte. Two rings. A +15 Zweihander. (VIT: absolutely not. INT: absolutely yes.)

Apparatus

The Zweihander +15, two-handed, naked. The Drake Sword is in the pack for sentimental reasons. (DEX: one last roll. Watch closely.)

Lab note: Parry the jump. Everything before this was rehearsal.

Appendix Experiment: Artorias of the Abyss (Optional)

Another world, older and angrier. The committee voted to go. VIT was outvoted seven to one.

Test at level: 50 and up

Separate content. The key is the Broken Pendant, which a respawning Blue Crystal Golem near the start of the Duke's Archives drops. Run this before the Kiln; most of these subjects outclass Gwyn.

Test Subjects

• Sanctuary Guardian. Just past the first bonfire in the Sanctuary Garden, the gatekeeper to everything else here. Wikidot lists lightning blasts from the air and the ground, a poisonous tail swipe, and melee flurries of up to four hits; his tail can be cut for the Guardian Tail.
  The maths: deals physical, lightning and poison; weakest element: fire (480); pack the Thunder Stoneplate Ring for the lightning and the Poisonbite Ring for the poison.
  Hypothesis: The nail club, one more time: his bleed resistance is 100, the lowest on his sheet, so four hits and he bleeds. Cut the tail for the Guardian Tail while you're down there.
• Knight Artorias. In a stone building in Royal Wood. Punish the recovery after his leaps and slams; when he kneels to gather darkness, hit hard enough to break it.
  The maths: the records name no damage type for it; weakest element: lightning (591); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic.
  Hypothesis: Give him one life as the control group: watch everything, hit nothing. Then punish only the recoveries, and when he kneels to gather darkness, hit him hard enough to break it.
• Black Dragon Kalameet. Hawkeye Gough can shoot him down if you've set it up; Gough's tower is in Royal Wood, opened by the Crest Key from a Mimic in Oolacile Township.
  The maths: deals physical and magic, per Fextralife's damage tables; weakest element: lightning (762); shrugs off poison and toxic; pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Have Gough ground him, then work the tail: it becomes the Obsidian Greatsword, STR 20 and DEX 16, and the stat plan ends at exactly 24 and 16. (INT: I didn't plan this. INT is lying.)
• Manus, Father of the Abyss. The Silver Pendant, hidden early in Oolacile Township, repels some of his dark attacks.
  The maths: deals dark and magic; weakest element: fire (624); shrugs off bleed, poison and toxic; pack the Spell Stoneplate Ring for the magic.
  Hypothesis: Rescue the wolf pup in the Chasm first, and his sign appears in this fight. Let him take the Father of the Abyss's attention while you work the Silver Pendant.

Lab note: Run this before the Kiln. The committee came back with fewer opinions.

Lab Equipment at a Glance

Sources

Stats, weights, attack-rating estimates, soul costs and boss records come from the Mimic's Ledger, through its build helper; the boss resistance figures are the Ledger's boss records, taken from each boss's Wikidot page, and the efficiency proof is computed from the Ledger's class records. Attunement slots, item discovery, the Drake Sword's shockwave, the Hellkite's tail HP and the two ways to cut it come from the site owner's snapshot of the Dark Souls Wikidot, as do the strategies credited to Wikidot in the text (the Capra Demon, Gwyndolin, Seath, Taurus Demon, Priscilla, Four Kings and Iron Golem pages, and the Power Within, Reinforced Club, Ingward and bleed pages). Sif's summon sign in the Manus fight is from Fandom's Manus page. Routes and tactics are the site owner's, in our own words; check anything important in game.