Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition: Complete Guide

A practical guide to the original 2012 PC release of Dark Souls: where it stands today, how to get it running well, how to build a character, the order to tackle Lordran, and how to reach the Artorias of the Abyss content.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the final Prepare To Die Edition build (online services ended; delisted from Steam). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Status check (September 2026): Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition is no longer sold on Steam — the store page carries the notice "no longer available on the Steam store". It was superseded by Dark Souls: Remastered (released 25 May 2018). On 25 October 2022 FromSoftware/Bandai Namco announced they could not restore the PTDE online service "due to the aging of the system", so online play (summons, invasions, messages, bloodstains, the PvP arena matchmaking) is gone for good. If you already own PTDE, it still works as a single-player game. If you want co-op/PvP, you need Remastered. The half-price upgrade offer for PTDE owners ended on 30 September 2021.

Quick Start

1. Treat PTDE as an offline game. Nothing online will connect. Play offline mode from the start so you are not waiting on failed connection attempts.
2. Install DSFix (by Durante) to unlock the internal render resolution — the stock PTDE port renders at 1024x720 no matter what you set. Keep the frame rate at 30: unlocking it to 60 breaks physics (sliding down ladders, jump distances, and some falls).
3. Pick your class for its starting stats, not its gear. Any class can become any build. Pyromancer and Knight are the most forgiving starts; Deprived is for veterans.
4. Take the Master Key as your gift if this is your first run. It opens shortcuts and alternative routes (including the path to the Valley of Drakes and the Darkroot back door) and saves you a lot of grief.
5. Upgrade one weapon, not five. Titanite is scarce early. A +5 or better starter-grade weapon beats a pile of +0 finds.
6. Get the Estus up. A bonfire's Estus refill depends on its kindle level, not on whether you're human. You do have to be human to kindle, though: it costs 1 Humanity and raises that bonfire's refill from 5 to 10.
7. Lock on, keep stamina in reserve, and roll through attacks. Stay under 50% equip load for a normal roll; over it you "fat roll" and get punished.
8. Retrieve your souls. Dying drops your souls and Humanity as a bloodstain; die again before reaching it and they are lost. Spend souls before risky areas.
9. Wrong way is often the right way. Early on, the Catacombs and New Londo Ruins are dangerous for a fresh character; the intended route is Undead Burg to Undead Parish.
10. The DLC is in this edition — Artorias of the Abyss is part of PTDE, so you do not need to buy anything else to reach Oolacile.

Getting It Running on a Modern PC

Other practical notes:

• The PTDE Steam build was moved off Games for Windows Live years ago, so you do not need GFWL anymore.
• The January 2015 patch removed the old multiplayer region lock and fixed a Book of the Guilty crash — both moot now that online is closed, but it tells you the Steam build you have is the final one.
• If you choose Japanese as the game language, the January 2017 update notes that mods are disabled.

Core Mechanics

Stats and what they do

Humanity and Hollowing

• You spend most of the game Hollow. Using a Humanity item at a bonfire (Reverse Hollowing) makes you human.
• Human form lets you kindle bonfires. Normal bonfires refill 5 Estus; kindled once, 10. Kindling further (up to 20) requires the Rite of Kindling, dropped by Pinwheel in the Catacombs.
• Your Humanity counter (the number top-left) also boosts item discovery and curse resistance, and increases some weapon damage (for example the Chaos-upgraded weapons).

Upgrading

• Titanite Shards take normal weapons to +5, Large Titanite Shards to +10, Titanite Chunks to +14, Titanite Slab to +15.
• Andre of Astora in the Undead Parish is your main smith early. The Giant Blacksmith in Anor Londo and Vamos in the Catacombs (fire/chaos) handle later paths. Elemental paths need the matching Embers found around the world.
• Boss weapons are made from Boss Souls by the Giant Blacksmith.

Build Archetypes

Useful early items to know:

• Drake Sword — shoot the Hellkite Drake's tail on the Undead Burg bridge. A strong early weapon that falls off later because it does not scale.
• Grass Crest Shield — speeds stamina regeneration.
• Havel's Ring — raises equip load; from Havel the Rock in the Undead Burg watchtower (Master Key or Watchtower Basement Key).
• Ring of Favor and Protection — boosts HP, stamina and equip load by 20% each, but breaks for good if you ever unequip it. Knight Lautrec drops it, or you can trade a Xanthous Crown to Snuggly the crow for it.
• Hornet Ring — boosts critical damage (backstabs and ripostes). It's on a corpse behind Artorias' grave in Sif's arena, beyond the Crest of Artorias door. Circle wide around the grave and you can grab it without starting the Sif fight.

Area Order (First Playthrough)

1. Northern Undead Asylum — tutorial; Asylum Demon.
2. Firelink Shrine hub, then Undead Burg (Taurus Demon) and Undead Parish (Bell Gargoyles). Ring the first bell.
3. Lower Undead Burg (Capra Demon) and Depths (Gaping Dragon), opening Blighttown. Beat Chaos Witch Quelaag and ring the second bell.
4. Optional in this window: Darkroot Garden/Basin (Moonlight Butterfly, the Hydra, Great Grey Wolf Sif later).
5. Sen's Fortress — traps and boulders; Iron Golem at the top.
6. Anor Londo — Ornstein and Smough, then receive the Lordvessel.
7. The four Lord Souls, any order:
   • Nito — Catacombs into Tomb of the Giants (bring a light source such as the Skull Lantern or the Sunlight Maggot helm).
   • Seath the Scaleless — Duke's Archives and Crystal Cave.
   • The Four Kings — New Londo Ruins; you need the Covenant of Artorias ring from Sif to walk the Abyss.
   • Bed of Chaos — Demon Ruins (Ceaseless Discharge, Demon Firesage, Centipede Demon) into Lost Izalith.
8. Kiln of the First Flame — Gwyn, Lord of Cinder.

Optional bosses worth doing: Crossbreed Priscilla (Painted World of Ariamis, reached via the Peculiar Doll), Dark Sun Gwyndolin (Darkmoon Tomb in Anor Londo), Stray Demon (return to the Asylum), Pinwheel (for the Rite of Kindling).

Artorias of the Abyss (the PTDE extra content)

How to get there:

1. Kill the Hydra in Darkroot Basin.
2. Free Dusk of Oolacile from the golden Crystal Golem in the Basin.
3. In the Duke's Archives, a Crystal Golem at the entrance area (after the first elevator) drops the Broken Pendant — only if Dusk was rescued.
4. Return to Darkroot Basin and enter the dark vortex in the cave area behind where the Hydra was.

DLC bosses: Sanctuary Guardian, Knight Artorias, Black Dragon Kalameet (Hawkeye Gough helps you ground it), and Manus, Father of the Abyss. Aim for roughly the Anor Londo point of the game or later before going in; the enemies are tuned for a character with a +10 weapon or better.

Boss Tips

• Taurus Demon — go up the tower ladder and plunge-attack when he walks under you.
• Capra Demon — the arena is tiny. Sprint up the stairs to the left immediately to deal with the dogs first.
• Ornstein and Smough — use the pillars to separate them. Kill the one you can hit most safely; the survivor powers up, so be ready for either phase.
• Sif — he swings the greatsword in his mouth in wide arcs, so stay close to his legs rather than at mid-range, and punish after each swing. He limps once he's low on HP.
• Four Kings — pure DPS race. Maximize damage and kill each King before the next spawns in.
• Artorias — do not heal when he backs off to power up; interrupt with an attack instead, or heal at a distance only when he is committed.
• Manus — the Silver Pendant (a DLC item) reflects his dark magic barrage; otherwise stay close and punish his slow combos.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Leveling Resistance. It does very little per point; spend on Vitality and Endurance instead.
• Going down to the Catacombs or New Londo early from Firelink. Skeletons and ghosts will farm you. Ghosts can only be hit with a cursed weapon or while under the Transient Curse item.
• Unlocking to 60 fps in DSFix. Ladders and jumps break; some glitches can kill you.
• Freeing Lautrec without planning — he later kills the Fire Keeper Anastacia at Firelink. You can get her back by retrieving her soul, but it is a detour.
• Attacking friendly NPCs by accident (Andre, Solaire). Hostility can lock out services and quests.
• Burning Humanity for no reason. Keep a couple for kindling and for the DLC.
• Rolling fat. Keep equip load under 50% for normal rolls.

Missable and Easy-to-Miss Content

• Solaire of Astora — his questline runs through the Parish, Anor Londo and Lost Izalith. Kill the bug-headed enemy in Lost Izalith (it drops the Sunlight Maggot) before Solaire gets there, or he goes hollow.
• Siegmeyer of Catarina — follow him through Sen's Fortress, Anor Londo, Blighttown and Lost Izalith for his reward.
• Anor Londo — attacking Gwynevere dispels the illusion and darkens the city for the rest of the playthrough. Plan before you do it.
• Lord's Blade Ciaran and Hawkeye Gough in the DLC give different rewards depending on how you deal with them. Talk to both before deciding anything.
• Crystal Caves and Painted World items are easy to overlook.

Advanced Tips

• Parry-riposte everything humanoid. Black Knights and Silver Knights are easy to parry once you learn the timing.
• Poise matters: heavier armor sets like Havel's let you trade hits instead of being staggered.
• Backstabs happen when you walk behind an unaware or attacking enemy and press attack — prioritized over normal hits.
• Shortcuts: the elevator between the Undead Parish and Firelink Shrine is the most important early one — open it before you ring the first bell. Warping between bonfires is only unlocked after you receive the Lordvessel.
• Soul farming: the Darkroot Garden and Anor Londo silver knights are common routes; the Silver Serpent Ring (Covetous) increases soul gain.
• New Game Plus begins as soon as you finish the ending; enemies get tougher and you keep your gear.

Dark Souls: Remastered — What Changes

Most tactics, bosses and builds in this guide apply to both.

FAQ

Can I still buy Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition? Not on Steam — it is delisted. The current PC version is Dark Souls: Remastered.

Does PTDE multiplayer still work? No. Official online service for PTDE ended; the 2022 announcement said it cannot be restored.

Is the Artorias of the Abyss DLC included? Yes, it is built into the Prepare To Die Edition.

Should I use DSFix? Yes, for resolution. Keep the frame cap at 30 to avoid physics problems.

What starting gift is best? Master Key for a first run; Binoculars and Pendant are effectively cosmetic.

When should I do the DLC? After Anor Londo is a comfortable point, since you need access to the Duke's Archives for the Broken Pendant anyway.

Do PTDE saves transfer to Remastered? No, they are separate games with separate saves.

Sources

• Steam store page — Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition (delisting and online notices)
• Steam announcement — PTDE online service update, 25 Oct 2022
• Steam — Dark Souls: Remastered
• Fextralife Dark Souls Wiki — Broken Pendant
• Fextralife Dark Souls Wiki — Ring of Favor and Protection
• Dark Souls Wikidot — Hornet Ring
• Fextralife Dark Souls Wiki — Dexterity