The Knight’s Road

Stats, weights and attack-rating estimates come from the Mimic's Ledger records. Routes and tactics were checked against community wikis and walkthroughs (listed at the end); the wording is our own. Where sources disagree, the guide says so.

Part I: The Knight's Way

A Knight's strength begins before the first blow: in patience, preparation, and the will to hold the line.

The Knight is for the player who would rather hold a doorway than chase an enemy through it. You begin at level 5 with Vitality 14, the highest of any class, a Broadsword, and a Tower Kite Shield that blocks 100% of physical damage. Armor, a sound shield, and patience will carry you far, but only if you leave stamina for the answer.

The Three Vows

• Hold the line. Keep the shield up, let the enemy spend their strength against it, and strike when the swing ends. Your shield stops physical damage cold, but magic mostly walks through it, so give spellcasters their due respect and close the distance.
• Spend stamina like souls. Every block and every swing draws from the same bar. Never empty it with an enemy standing in front of you. A Knight with no stamina is a wall with the gate open.
• Grow into your blade. Vitality and Endurance first, then Strength and Dexterity. The stat plan below puts numbers on it, and the roll table shows how much Endurance each loadout needs.

Weight and the Roll

Roll speed depends on how much of your maximum equip load you carry: up to 25% is a fast roll, up to 50% a medium roll, and above that the slow, short fat roll. By the Ledger's figures, maximum equip load is about Endurance + 40.

A fresh Knight carries 31 (the Knight Set at 25, the Broadsword and the Tower Kite Shield at 3 each) against a maximum of 50. That is 62%, past the line: the Knight starts the game fat-rolling. Check it on your status screen, and make Endurance your first priority.

Havel's Ring raises your maximum load by 50% and the Ring of Favor and Protection by 20%, so either one lowers these targets.

The Blade's Road

Every Knight is chasing a sword, and most guides announce it too early. The Black Knight Sword is a greatsword with 220 base damage, rising to 330 at +5. It needs 20 Strength and 18 Dexterity. You start with 11 and 11. That gap is sixteen levels spent on Strength and Dexterity alone, which puts you at level 21 before you have raised Vitality or Endurance by a single point.

Here is the part most players miss: the sword is not an end-game prize. Black Knights guard the Undead Burg and the revisited Asylum, which are among the first places you will visit, and the sword can drop from them. You can hold it in the first few hours and be unable to use it for most of the game. So the road to the sword is a road of other blades, and each chapter below ends with a short note on what to carry and what to spend in that stretch.

The Broadsword is a sound blade, and a Knight who keeps it upgraded loses nothing by waiting for the better one. The Claymore is the natural midpoint: a Knight heading for 20 Strength passes through 16 on the way. Branching upgrade paths (Crystal, Lightning, Raw, and others) exist, and some are good, but this guide stays on the regular path so that every Knight can follow it. The one exception is the Divine Broadsword in Chapter 5, and only as a spare.

A Stat Plan for the Road

One way to spend your levels along this road: staying alive and rolling first, then each blade as it comes. Stats not listed stay where the Knight starts them.

Soul costs come from the Ledger's community formula, which is only accurate from level 12 up, so the first stage leaves out the cheap levels below 12.

What Each Blade Hits For

These are the Ledger's one-handed physical estimates, from each blade's base damage, scaling and your stats; check them against your status screen. They make the case for the sword: at the same stats, a +5 Black Knight Sword hits about half again as hard as a +15 Broadsword. They also show the Claymore pulling ahead of the Broadsword once you have 16 Strength.

Part II: The Road to Gwyn

Four prizes give this route its character: the Elite Knight Set in Darkroot Garden, the Balder Knights' equipment in the Undead Parish and Sen's Fortress, the Silver Knight Set in Anor Londo, and the weapons carried by Black Knights. The order below is counsel, not law. Lordran permits detours.

Chapter 1: The Northern Undead Asylum

A Knight leaves the cell with little. Discipline is what he carries forward.

You wake in a cell. Oscar of Astora gives you the Estus Flask before he dies. The first bonfire sits in the center of the courtyard, directly down the stairs from the Asylum Demon's boss fog.

You will come back here later. Once the elevator in the Undead Parish Church has been operated, you can climb to the Giant Crow's nest at the top of the Firelink ruins and curl up in it. The crow will carry you to a nest on the cliff above the Asylum. The trip brings prizes worth having.

The Knight's Armory

• Black Knights (on your return). Black Knights guard the revisited Asylum, one of them in the cell where you began. They carry sword and shield, drop a Red Titanite Chunk, and can drop the Black Knight Sword. Sources disagree on whether there are one or two.
• The Peculiar Doll. In your old cell, behind the Black Knight who guards it. It opens the way to the Painted World of Ariamis, which you will want much later.
• The Rusted Iron Ring. Opening the gate on the west side of the Asylum requires the Undead Asylum F2 West Key, found back at Firelink (see Chapter 2). The ring behind that gate eases the movement penalty of swamps. A Knight who expects to wade through Blighttown will want it.

Foes and Bosses

• Asylum Demon. The first trial. Drop onto him with a plunging attack as he lands, then stay behind him. His overhead slams leave a long recovery, which is your opening. Keep your stamina above half.
  Knight's answer: Wait out the slam, then hit his recovery. Never chase him into the open.
• Stray Demon. On your return, drop through the floor in the middle of the main hall where the Asylum Demon was fought, and he rises in the room below. He carries the same hammer, but his blows are mixed: his butt slam and hammer swings are physical, while his flame explosion and hammer explosion are magic, so your shield will not stop them all. Retreat from the butt slam, and get behind or under him to avoid the explosions. He drops a Homeward Bone and a Titanite Slab.
  Knight's answer: The shield answers the hammer, not the blast. Know which is coming.

The Blade's Road

You wield the Broadsword. Spend nothing yet, because Andre waits in the Parish. If a Black Knight on your return drops a sword, keep it. You are not ready for it, and that is fine.

If you only remember one thing: The return trip is optional, but the Titanite Slab, the Peculiar Doll and the Black Knights make it worth making once you are stronger.

Chapter 2: Firelink Shrine

At Firelink, even a weary Knight must choose which road deserves his strength.

Anastacia of Astora tends the bonfire here in silence. Petrus of Thorolund lingers nearby; he speaks for the Way of White, the covenant the Knight already starts in.

A warning before the errands: Lautrec of Carim, held in a cell in the Undead Parish church, will kill Anastacia if you free him, once you have either rung both Bells of Awakening or picked up the Fire Keeper Souls in the Undead Parish and Blighttown. The Estus advice in Chapter 4 needs a living Fire Keeper, but two others accept Fire Keeper Souls, the Darkmoon Knightess in Anor Londo and the Daughter of Chaos (the Fair Lady) in Quelaag's Domain, so losing her is not fatal to the route.

Two errands begin at Firelink, and neither can be finished on your first visit. The Undead Asylum F2 West Key lies on a rooftop above Petrus, and the way to it starts from the Parish elevator: ride it up, step off partway onto the cliff above the shrine, and work across to the building that lets you drop onto that roof. The Giant Crow's nest crowns the same ruins and carries you back to the Asylum.

To leave, climb: up the stairs beyond the well, through the Hollows on the slope, to the stone tunnel that opens onto the Undead Burg.

If you only remember one thing: Both errands wait for the Parish elevator. Open it first, then come back for the key and the crow.

Chapter 3: The Undead Burg

In the Burg, every doorway asks the same question: will you rush, or will you read the room?

The Burg's first bonfire is upstairs in a building on your left, just past the first fog door. The second sits at the foot of a stairway near the dragon's bridge; kick the ladder there down to make it a shortcut. The Undead Merchant trades close by.

The Knight's Armory

• The Black Knight at the watchtower. A Black Knight stands near the watchtower, guarding a corpse that holds the Blue Tearstone Ring. He is one of the first you will meet. He carries the Black Knight Sword, and he gives 800 souls. Wikis describe luring him up the stairs and striking from the roof above, which works well at low level.

Foes and Bosses

• Taurus Demon. Found on the walkway after the spiral-staircase tower. A plunging attack from the tower above is the classic opener. After that, keep him in the middle of the bridge and keep your shield up. His leaping slam hits harder than his swings, so roll that one rather than blocking it.
  Knight's answer: Strike from above, then own the middle of the bridge. Block the swings and roll the leap.
• Capra Demon. Waiting in the Lower Undead Burg, past the Undead Attack Dogs and Assassins. Clear the dogs first, because they make the fight worse. The stairs at the back of the arena give you breathing room to deal with them one at a time.
  Knight's answer: Clear the dogs on the stairs, then turn on the Capra.
• Hellkite Dragon. On the bridge, blocking the way to the Sunlight Altar. At this level most Knights run past him. Sprint down the middle of the bridge when he lands and do not stop to fight.
  Knight's answer: Restraint is also a tactic. Reach the far side first; glory can wait.

The Blade's Road

Along the Hellkite bridge, a corpse holds a Claymore: 16 Strength and 10 Dexterity, a stop on your way to the greater blade. If the watchtower Knight drops the sword now, you hold the finest blade in the game and cannot swing it. Do not upgrade it yet. Ten Twinkling Titanite for the full climb is a real expense, and the Broadsword will serve you well for a long time.

If you only remember one thing: In every fight here, count your stamina before you count the enemy's weapon.

Chapter 4: The Undead Parish

The Parish rewards a steady hand: a bell to ring, a smith to serve, and steel to earn.

You reach the Parish from the Undead Burg. Activating the elevator here opens a permanent shortcut back to Firelink. The bonfire is in the old Undead Church, directly above Andre the Blacksmith. Andre upgrades your gear and sells the Crest of Artorias for 20,000 souls.

The Knight's Armory

• Black Knight (greatsword and shield). He stands at the top of a tower overlooking the Hellkite's bridge. Draw out one swing at a time and punish the recovery. He drops a Titanite Chunk and 1,200 souls, and can also drop his Black Knight Greatsword (20%) or Shield (5%).
• Balder Knights. Found here and in Sen's Fortress, in sword, rapier, and crossbow varieties. They can drop the Balder Side Sword, Balder Shield, and pieces of the Balder armor, along with Titanite Shards. The wikis disagree on drop rates (one commenter cites 1%, another reports 60-plus kills with no Side Sword), so treat any drop as a bonus, not a plan.

Foes and Bosses

• Bell Gargoyles. Fought on the roof of the main church building. Take them one at a time. Cut the first one's tail for a weapon, and keep your shield raised through their fire, which it largely absorbs. The second gargoyle joins partway through the fight, so save your stamina for that moment and punish them after they land.
  Knight's answer: One at a time. Shield up for the fire, strike when they land.
• After the fight. Climb the tower on the roof and ring the first Bell of Awakening.

The Blade's Road

This is where the road begins. Go to Andre and upgrade the Broadsword along the regular path. Titanite Shards take it to +5 for 123 base damage, a large gain for little cost. Take the Fire Keeper Soul from the altar as well (a Berenike Knight guards it): brought to Anastacia or another Fire Keeper, it reinforces your Estus Flask. If Lautrec is free, this soul is one of his two triggers (see Chapter 2).

If you only remember one thing: Upgrade the Broadsword to +5 at Andre before you chase a rarer blade.

Chapter 5: Darkroot Garden

In Darkroot, the old stones keep their counsel and the living must earn every step.

Beyond Andre, the path drops through the Titanite Demon's room (running past it is fine) and into the forest. Keep left past the tree creatures until you reach a stone door with a glowing lock. The bonfire is hidden in the wall to its left: strike the wall and it vanishes. The Crest of Artorias opens the glowing lock and leads to Sif.

The Knight's Armory

• The Elite Knight Set. Go right of the sealed Crest door, through the white fog, into the clearing; the set lies on a corpse against its left wall. Taking it wakes two Great Stone Knights and four Ents, so grab it and run. The set weighs 26.8 and has 95 physical defense. With the Broadsword and Tower Kite Shield, you need Endurance 26 for a medium roll (see the roll table).

Foes and Bosses

• Moonlight Butterfly. Reached by climbing the stairs to the fog gate. It fights at range with magic, so keep your distance and your shield ready. When it lands it stops attacking, which is your window for the blade. A few seconds later it glows and makes a noise before a wide area attack, so step back before the glow ends.
  Knight's answer: Be patient at range, strike while it rests, and leave before it flares.
• Sif, the Great Grey Wolf. Fought at Artorias's gravestone, beyond the Crest door. Stay close under his legs and roll through his swipes; his size is his weakness. Defeating Sif gives you the Covenant of Artorias ring, which you will need for the Abyss.
  Knight's answer: Stay beneath the blade. A Knight who fights the wolf at its feet turns size into a liability.

The Blade's Road

A Divine Ember lies past the Moonlight Butterfly, at the top of the tower across the bridge. Taken to Andre with a Broadsword at +5, it becomes a Divine Broadsword, and a divine weapon ends the Catacombs skeletons for good. It trades away physical damage, though, so this is the one branch worth taking: Andre sells a second Broadsword, and a Divine spare for the Catacombs leaves your main blade on the regular path.

By now the Broadsword should be at +5 and your Strength climbing. This is a good time to count your levels honestly. Strength 20 is far off, and the stretch ahead will not ask for it.

If you only remember one thing: Wear the Elite Knight Set only once you have Endurance 26, or it will cost you your roll.

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

The Depths are no place for pride. Keep your footing, your supplies, and your temper.

The Key to the Depths comes from the Lower Undead Burg. The Depths lead down to Blighttown, where poison and difficult footing punish haste. Carry cures and move with care. Quelaag's Domain lies beyond the swamp, and the second Bell of Awakening waits there.

There is little Knight-specific gear in this stretch. Here, discipline means conserving supplies, watching your footing, and refusing to let the terrain hurry you.

Foes and Bosses

• The Butchers. They roam the Depths. Keep your shield up and circle them; their cleavers are slow.
  Knight's answer: Circle and wait. Strike in the cleaver's recovery.
• Gaping Dragon. Behind a fog gate at the bottom of the Depths. Defeating it gives the Blighttown Key. Fight at his flank, never in front of his jaws, and when he rears up for his charge, already be moving sideways.
  Knight's answer: Flank him, never face the jaws, and start moving sideways when he rears.
• Chaos Witch Quelaag. Her fire is the danger, and your shield absorbs 70% of it. Stay close, block, and strike between her sweeps. When she rears up to spit lava, back away and let it cool before closing in again.
  Knight's answer: Hold the line against the fire. The 70% your shield takes is the difference between a Knight and a corpse.

The Blade's Road

Spend your souls on Vitality and Endurance here, since the swamp punishes anyone who runs short of either. A Large Ember lies in a chest in the Depths, and with it the Broadsword can pass +5 and keep climbing.

If you only remember one thing: Bring poison cures, and watch your footing before you watch the enemy.

Chapter 7: Sen's Fortress

Sen's Fortress was made to punish haste. Let patience be the armor beneath your armor.

With both bells rung, the gate to Sen's Fortress opens from the Undead Parish. The fortress is a gauntlet of traps, swinging blades and boulders. Its only bonfire is near the top: when you come out onto the roofs, climb toward the ground scarred by firebombs, then look for a gap you can drop through onto a balcony. The bonfire waits there, your last checkpoint before the Iron Golem. The Cage Key opens the cages that give you a route down through the fortress.

The Knight's Armory

• Balder Knights. More of them guard the fortress, including crossbow variants. Fight them from behind your shield and take the crossbowmen first wherever you can.

Foes and Bosses

• Iron Golem. Atop the structure, past the final boulder run. Stay close to avoid his longest swings, but do not linger between his legs: he will stomp, or grab you from there. The grab is telegraphed by his empty hand pulling back; roll away, because a landed grab slams you down and can throw you off the roof. Punish the long recovery after his big swings. Defeating him carries you up to Anor Londo.
  Knight's answer: Stay close, not underneath. Watch the hand, and strike in the recovery.

The Blade's Road

Nothing here requires a new blade. Keep your Broadsword sharp, and carry spare titanite into Anor Londo, where the upgrade options widen.

If you only remember one thing: In Sen's, traps come before duels. Look before you step.

Chapter 8: Anor Londo

In Anor Londo, the grandeur is a test. Let your conduct match the stones.

Anor Londo is the heart of the Knight's story. Its bonfires sit in the courtyard where you arrive, in the castle beside Solaire, outside Gwynevere's chamber after the boss, and in the Darkmoon Tomb. The way to the boss runs in this order:

1. The courtyard bonfire. Rest, then take the elevator in the small tower across from it.
2. The first Gargoyle. One waits on the walkway beyond the courtyard. Deal with it before you move on.
3. The rafters. Painting Guardians patrol the beams, and a fall here kills at any Vitality. Lure them to you one at a time.
4. The staircase tower. Turn the lever at its top to swing the stairs into place. A second Gargoyle waits nearby; the two do not fight together.
5. The buttress archers. Two Silver Knights with greatbows hold the far ledges of the buttress, and this is the cruelest stretch of the city. Their arrows knock you back, and a knockback here can throw you off. Walk with your shield raised rather than rolling, and take them one at a time.
6. The Silver Knights and the castle bonfire. Inside, take the Silver Knights slowly and use cover. Then rest: Solaire of Astora waits through the left door in the cathedral corridor, and you can summon him against the Royal Sentinels and the boss.
7. Clear the castle and unlock the shortcuts. Do this before the boss, so the road back is short.
8. Ornstein and Smough. Then the Chamber of the Princess, and the bonfire outside Gwynevere's chamber.

The Knight's Armory

• The Silver Knight Set. At the foot of the cathedral's long spiral stair, a door on the right leads down to a room held by two spear-carrying Silver Knights. Behind them, two chests hold the set. It weighs 28.8 and gives 47 poise and 126 physical defense; with the Black Knight Sword and Tower Kite Shield, a medium roll needs Endurance 40. For a Knight, it may feel like home.
• Silver Knight weapons. Sword-and-shield knights can drop the Silver Knight Straight Sword and Shield, and spear-and-shield knights the Silver Knight Spear and Shield. Rates are low (commenters cite about 1% to 2%), so treat these as blessings, not plans.

Foes and Bosses

• Silver Knights. Block, wait for the overhead charge and three-hit combo, then punish after they miss. Dodge the spear lunge, which can reach through a shield.
  Knight's answer: Wait out the combo, then strike. Stay clear of the spear's reach, since it passes through the shield.
• Ornstein and Smough: the way in. The chamber lies beyond the Royal Sentinels' hall. Two Sentinels guard the floor, with a Silver Knight archer on the side balcony. Clear them, pull the lever left of the main door, and enter the fog gate.
• Ornstein and Smough: the numbers. At New Game, Ornstein has 1,642 HP and Smough 2,645, with 349 and 180 physical resistance. Together they reward 50,000 souls.
• Ornstein and Smough: the kill order. Whichever you kill second absorbs the other's power for phase two. Kill Ornstein last for the Soul of Ornstein, the Leo Ring, and Humanity, or Smough last for the Soul of Smough and Humanity.
• Ornstein and Smough: the fight. Use the pillars to keep them separated, and never trade blows with Smough's hammer.
  Knight's answer: Refuse the bad exchange. Split them with the pillars before you commit.
• After the duo. Gwynevere's chamber door waits behind the arena, and she gives you the Lordvessel.
• Dark Sun Gwyndolin. Optional, in the Darkmoon Tomb, where a statue of Gwyn blocks the way. Wearing the Darkmoon Seance Ring inside the tomb clears it. Attacking Gwynevere, who is an illusion, also opens a way, but it changes Anor Londo for the rest of the playthrough.

The Blade's Road

Anor Londo is the midpoint of the Blade's Road. The Giant Blacksmith is here, and he sells Twinkling Titanite. You can push the Broadsword toward +10 if you have Large Titanite Shards, and branching paths open for those who want them. This is also the time to ask yourself whether you are actually going to chase the Black Knight Sword. If you are, your next levels go to Strength and Dexterity.

If you only remember one thing: Fight Ornstein and Smough apart, never together.

Chapter 9: New Londo Ruins and the Abyss

Some duties lead downward. A Knight measures them by what must be done, not by the dark.

New Londo Ruins lie below Firelink Shrine: take the stairs down to the left of the bonfire, then a second flight, to the elevator. You can go at any time, but the ghosts make it a poor early detour. Ordinary blows pass through them. You can only harm them while under a Transient Curse (a consumable lasting about five minutes), while fully Cursed, or with a cursed weapon. A few Transient Curses lie on a corpse in a jar before the bridge, and merchants sell them too, so stock up before you go down. The Key to the Seal, from Ingward, drains the water and opens the lower ruins, where the Very Large Ember waits in a chest. Wear the Covenant of Artorias ring you took from Sif before the Four Kings: the ring is what lets you walk in the Abyss, and removing it there before the Kings are defeated is fatal.

Foes and Bosses

• The Four Kings. In the Abyss, beneath New Londo Ruins. They arrive one by one, and the fight is a damage check: every king you drop quickly is one fewer you face at once. Maximize your damage, and make sure you can take hits while you deal it, with your heaviest armor and your poise kept high.
  Knight's answer: Hit hard enough to end each king early, and be sturdy enough to survive the trade.

The Blade's Road

If Strength and Dexterity have not kept pace with your plans, the Broadsword still has the reach to carry you through. The Very Large Ember from the lower ruins lets Andre take it past +10, all the way to +15.

If you only remember one thing: Wear the Covenant of Artorias before you drop. Taking it off in the Abyss before the Kings fall is fatal.

Chapter 10: The Duke's Archives and Crystal Cave

Seath hides behind his own crystal. Find the source before you chase the shadow.

In the Duke's Archives you free Big Hat Logan from his cell. The Archives are also where the Blue Crystal Golem near the entrance can drop the Broken Pendant, if you own the Artorias of the Abyss expansion (see the Interlude). Seath is fought twice: a scripted first loss in the Archives, then the real fight in the Crystal Cave.

Foes and Bosses

• Seath the Scaleless. He regenerates for as long as the crystal in the arena stands. Break it first; only then can you finish the fight. His breath inflicts curse: if the meter fills, your maximum HP is cut. Keep moving and avoid being pinned among the crystals.
  Knight's answer: Crystal first. Until it falls, every other blow is wasted.

The Blade's Road

Nothing new here. Check your Strength and Dexterity against the sword's requirements.

If you only remember one thing: Break the crystal before you swing at Seath, and keep moving to dodge his curse.

Chapter 11: The Catacombs and Tomb of the Giants

In this country of the dead, keep a living purpose before you.

The Catacombs are a maze of skeletons that rebuild themselves unless you kill the Necromancers or finish the bones with a divine weapon. The Tomb of the Giants is dark and treacherous. Move slowly, and bring a light: the Skull Lantern is a rare drop from the Catacombs necromancers, and lies on a corpse in the Tomb pit that Patches kicks you into.

The Knight's Armory

• Black Knight (halberd and shield). Past the first fog gate in the Tomb of the Giants, beside two Skeleton Beasts and a Skeleton Archer. He drops a White Titanite Chunk, and can also drop his Black Knight Halberd (20%) or Shield (5%).
• Black Knight (greataxe). A greataxe-wielding Black Knight waits in the Catacombs, through a crumbling floor before the last Necromancer. He drops a White Titanite Chunk, and can also drop his Black Knight Greataxe (20%) or Shield (5%). He does not respawn.

Foes and Bosses

• Pinwheel. In the Catacombs, past the Skeleton Wheel valley. Rush him and cut him down fast; he falls quickly, but his clones add up if you give him time.
  Knight's answer: Commit and finish it. Every pause adds a clone.
• Gravelord Nito. At the end of the Tomb of the Giants. You land in his arena from above, so heal the fall off first. Stay near where you landed: the giant skeletons join the fight when you wander too far from that spot. His small skeletons respawn unless a divine weapon puts them down. Slip behind Nito for free hits, and run when you hear the scream that precedes his sword.
  Knight's answer: Stay near your landing spot. Wander, and the giants join the fight.

The Blade's Road

No new blade here. The Black Knight Sword drops only from sword-wielders (see the roundup), and neither the halberd nor the greataxe Knight is one.

If you only remember one thing: Kill the Necromancers or bring a divine weapon, or the skeletons will keep rising.

Chapter 12: The Demon Ruins and Lost Izalith

The ruins burn without ceremony. Meet the heat with judgment, not bravado.

Fire is everywhere here, and your Tower Kite Shield blocks 70% of fire damage. That helps, but it is no license to stand in every flame.

The Knight's Armory

The Black Knight Sword is the Black Knight's weapon and the Knight's long-sought prize.

Foes and Bosses

• Ceaseless Discharge. Past the bridge beyond the first Demon Ruins bonfire, guarding the corpse of one of his sisters and the Gold-Hemmed Black Set. A widely reported trick: after he is aggroed by taking the armor set, run back toward the fog door. He pursues and, at the door, leaps to grab the cliff edge with one hand. Strike his hand until he drops. The trick works only if the armor set aggroed him, and the grab is a real attack, so do not stand under it.
  Knight's answer: Draw him to the fog door and let the cliff do the work, but only if the armor set aggroed him.
• Demon Firesage and Centipede Demon. The Centipede waits at the lowest point of the ruins. Cutting off his tail gives you the Orange Charred Ring right away, which lets you endure the lava in his arena. Stay between his legs, where his leaps are weakest.
  Knight's answer: Under the belly, where the leaps cannot find you. The ring is earned by the tail.
• Bed of Chaos. In Lost Izalith. This one is not a fight but a climb. Destroy the glowing roots in the large orbs on each side, and watch the floor more than the boss: it crumbles into bottomless pits. When both roots are gone, make for the Chaos Bug at the end of the tunnel. Destroyed roots do not return, so if you quit and reload, you keep your progress and re-enter at the fog door.
  Knight's answer: Strike, run, and watch the floor. If it takes you, begin again from the gate.

The Blade's Road

If you have the Black Knight Sword and the stats, this is where it earns its place. If not, your Broadsword has carried you this far and will carry you through Lost Izalith.

If you only remember one thing: Your shield absorbs 70% of fire. Use it, and stay out of the flames anyway.

Chapter 13: The Kiln of the First Flame

At the end of the road, there is no honor in haste. Make each step deliberate.

The Kiln is the final stretch of ash and ember. The final bonfire is beyond Gwyn. Linking the fire brings the game's traditional ending; stepping away brings the alternative. Either leads into New Game+.

The Knight's Armory

• Five Black Knights. They are the only enemies in the Kiln, standing from the foot of the entry stairs, across the ash, and down the last stairway to Gwyn. Unlike Black Knights elsewhere, they respawn when you rest, and they nearly always drop titanite chunks. Each can drop the weapon it carries, so look at what each one holds: a sword-wielder is another chance at the Black Knight Sword. Their attacks are heavy but slow to recover from. Block, wait, and strike.

Foes and Bosses

• Gwyn, Lord of Cinder. The last Knight's trial. He leaves few openings. Keep your shield up, spend stamina carefully, and strike only when he finishes a combo. The oldest Knight's art also works here. Several of his swings can be parried, including his opening jump, and a clean riposte is the surest way to end the fight.
  Knight's answer: Parry the jump and any swing you can read. Otherwise shield up, and strike when a combo ends.

The Blade's Road

The road ends here. Whatever you carry at the last fog gate is the blade you chose. The Broadsword at +15 and the Black Knight Sword at +5 are both honorable choices.

If you only remember one thing: Gwyn can be parried, starting with his opening jump.

Interlude: Artorias of the Abyss (Optional)

Remember Artorias not only for where he went, but for whom he meant to spare.

The Artorias of the Abyss expansion is separate content. Its key is the Broken Pendant, dropped by a respawning Blue Crystal Golem near the start of the Duke's Archives. Do this before the Kiln, because these fights are harder than Gwyn.

• Knight Artorias. Fought in a stone building in Royal Wood, near Marvellous Chester. Punish him after his leaps and slams, and keep your shield ready for his spinning attacks. When he kneels to gather darkness, strike hard to break the gathering.
  Knight's answer: Break the gathering before the darkness rises.
• Black Dragon Kalameet. Hawkeye Gough can ground the dragon, but only if you set it up. His tower is in Royal Wood, near the Artorias arena, and you reach it with the Crest Key from a Mimic in Oolacile Township. After you first meet the dragon, talk to him until he repeats himself, leave, speak again, and answer yes to both of his questions. In the canyon fight, speak to him again and he will shoot Kalameet down.
  Knight's answer: Set up Gough before you face the dragon.
• Manus, Father of the Abyss. The Silver Pendant lies in a hidden room early in Oolacile Township: follow the narrow walkway down from the first Bloathead Sorcerer to a tower, and light the illusory wall with a light source. Used as an item, it emits a blast that repels some of Manus's dark attacks. It is no help against Kalameet's breath.
  Knight's answer: The Pendant is an aid, not a replacement for reading Manus.

If you only remember one thing: Take this road before the Kiln. These fights are harder than Gwyn.

The Black Knight Roundup

Black Knights are the Knight's signature quarry. Only some of them can drop the sword.

The Knight's Armory at a Glance

Sources

Stats, weights and attack-rating estimates come from the Mimic's Ledger records. Routes, locations and tactics were checked against the Dark Souls wikis at Fextralife and Fandom and GamesRadar's walkthrough, then written in our own words. Drop rates for the Balder, Silver Knight and Black Knight weapons vary between sources and are noted where they matter.