Dark Souls: Remastered: Complete Guide

A full-run guide to Dark Souls: Remastered: starting class and gift, stats and upgrades, a recommended route through Lordran, boss tips, missables, the Artorias of the Abyss DLC, and online play.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the final PC release (online services reactivated November 9, 2022). The game is no longer patched; mechanics below are stable.

Quick Start

• Pick the Master Key as your gift unless you have a reason not to. It opens shortcuts and sequence breaks, and it frees you from buying keys. (Thieves start with it; they can take another gift.)
• Kindle bonfires with Humanity. Kindling raises your Estus Flask charges at that bonfire. You must be Human (restored with Humanity) to kindle.
• Upgrade one weapon early. Andre the Blacksmith in Undead Parish upgrades with Titanite Shards. A +5 starter weapon beats a random +0 find.
• Stay under 50% equip load (below the "fat roll" threshold at 50%; under 25% gives the fastest roll).
• Lock on and shield up. Most enemies punish panic-rolling. Block, watch, then counter.
• Souls are lost on death and left as a bloodstain. Die again before reaching it and they're gone.
• Don't talk to NPCs only once. Many quests progress by exhausting dialogue and returning later.
• Go to Undead Burg first. From Firelink Shrine, the path up via the aqueduct is correct. The graveyard (skeletons) and New Londo (ghosts) are not early areas.
• Use the Drake Sword trick carefully. Shooting the Hellkite's tail from under the Undead Burg bridge gets a powerful early weapon, but it scales poorly and falls off later.

Classes

Class | Starting level | Good for

Warrior | 4 | Straightforward melee

Knight | 5 | Tanky start with a great shield (Tower Kite Shield)

Wanderer | 3 | Dex, scimitar

Thief | 5 | Master Key by default, bandit knife for backstabs

Bandit | 4 | Strength, battle axe

Hunter | 4 | Bow and shortsword

Sorcerer | 3 | Soul Arrow; best Int start

Pyromancer | 1 | Lowest level (most efficient stats), Pyromancy Flame

Cleric | 2 | Faith, heal miracle

Deprived | 6 | Challenge start; stats balanced at 11

Beginner picks: Knight (tanky) or Pyromancer (efficient stats, strong fireballs). Class barely matters after the first few hours; stats are what count.

Stats

Stat | Effect | Common target

Vitality | HP | 30–50 in most builds

Attunement | Spell slots | Only as needed for magic

Endurance | Stamina and equip load | 40 caps stamina; equip load keeps rising

Strength | Heavy weapons, two-handing multiplies it by 1.5 | 16–40 depending on build

Dexterity | Fast weapons, casting speed | 40 for Dex builds

Resistance | Mostly poison resistance and a bit of physical defense | Leave it low

Intelligence | Sorceries, magic weapon scaling | 40+ for sorcerers

Faith | Miracles, divine/occult scaling | 30–40+ for faith builds

Damage scaling tapers after about 40 in Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, or Faith. Avoid Resistance; it's the weakest stat.

Upgrading Weapons and Armor

Material | Upgrade range | Source

Titanite Shard | +0 → +5 | Common drops, Andre, merchants

Large Titanite Shard | +5 → +10 | Mid-game drops and merchants

Titanite Chunk | +10 → +14 | Late-game areas, some enemies

Titanite Slab | +14 → +15 | Rare, a handful per run

Embers open alternate paths and higher upgrade levels. Give them to a blacksmith:

• Large Ember (in a chest against the back wall of the Depths kitchen, behind the Butcher's table) lets Andre take Normal weapons from +5 to +10 and convert a +5 Normal weapon to Raw; the Very Large Ember takes Normal weapons to +15.
• Crystal Ember opens the Crystal path (high damage, but the weapon can't be repaired normally).
• Other embers (Magic/Enchanted, Divine/Dark for Occult, Large Flame/Chaos Flame) open the elemental paths; some of them are taken by the Giant Blacksmith or Vamos rather than Andre.

Beginner rule: for strength and dexterity builds, the Normal +15 path is the safest and strongest. Enchanted and Occult/Divine suit Int and Faith builds.

Estus, Humanity, and Kindling

• Estus charges start at 5. Kindling with 1 Humanity adds 5 more at that bonfire (to 10).
• The Rite of Kindling (from Pinwheel in the Catacombs) lets you kindle up to 20.
• Fire Keeper Souls reinforce your Estus Flask at a Fire Keeper for more healing per sip.
• Humanity restores human form, increases item discovery and curse resistance, and is used for kindling.

Recommended Route (No-Spoiler Level)

• Northern Undead Asylum → Asylum Demon (twice; the second time use the plunging attack from above).
• Firelink Shrine → climb up to Undead Burg.
• Undead Burg → Taurus Demon (drop attack from the tower ladder).
• Undead Parish → Bell Gargoyles (ring the first bell). Andre lives here.
• Depths → Gaping Dragon, then down into Blighttown.
• Blighttown → Chaos Witch Quelaag (ring the second bell).
• Sen's Fortress → Iron Golem.
• Anor Londo → Ornstein and Smough. Speak to Gwynevere to receive the Lordvessel.
• Collect the four Lord Souls, in any order:
• Gravelord Nito — Catacombs to Tomb of the Giants (bring a light source like the Skull Lantern or Sunlight Maggot).
• Seath the Scaleless — Duke's Archives then Crystal Cave (the first Seath encounter is scripted; you're supposed to lose).
• The Four Kings — New Londo Ruins; drain the town, then use the Covenant of Artorias ring (from Great Grey Wolf Sif) to walk into the Abyss.
• Bed of Chaos — Demon Ruins to Lost Izalith.
• Kiln of the First Flame → Gwyn, Lord of Cinder.

Optional bosses along the way: Capra Demon (Lower Undead Burg), Moonlight Butterfly and Great Grey Wolf Sif (Darkroot Garden), Hydra (Darkroot Basin), Stray Demon (return to the Asylum), Pinwheel, Ceaseless Discharge, Demon Firesage, Centipede Demon, Crossbreed Priscilla (Painted World of Ariamis, via the Peculiar Doll), and Dark Sun Gwyndolin (Anor Londo).

Boss Tips

Boss | Tip

Taurus Demon | Climb the tower ladder and plunge; stay under it otherwise

Capra Demon | Kill the dogs immediately by the stairs; climb and fight from them

Bell Gargoyles | Cut the first one's tail for the Gargoyle Tail Axe; kill it before the second fully engages

Gaping Dragon | Stay to the side; its charge and body-slam are its big hits

Quelaag | Fight at her side; fire resistance helps; stay away when lava flows

Iron Golem | Attack the ankles to stagger it off the edge

Ornstein and Smough | Use the pillars to split them; most players kill Ornstein first because empowered Smough is slower and easier to read

Sif | Stay close under her body and keep circling toward her back legs, away from the sword

Four Kings | Pure damage race: kill each King fast before the next one joins; a big HP pool and high-damage weapon help

Gwyn | Parry him; he's very parry-vulnerable

Missables and Quest Notes

• Solaire of Astora: help him across the game (Undead Burg, Anor Londo). To keep him alive late, kill the Sunlight Maggot yourself in Lost Izalith before he does.
• Anastacia and Lautrec: free Lautrec in Undead Parish if you want his summon and questline, but he'll later kill the Firelink Fire Keeper. Use the Black Eye Orb left by her body to invade and kill him in Anor Londo, then return her soul to restore her.
• Siegmeyer of Catarina: a long multi-area questline; talk to him every time you see him.
• Big Hat Logan: free him in Sen's Fortress for sorcery vendors; he moves on to the Duke's Archives.
• Tail cuts: Priscilla (Lifehunt Scythe), Seath (Moonlight Greatsword), Gaping Dragon (Dragon King Greataxe), Hellkite (Drake Sword), Bell Gargoyle (Gargoyle Tail Axe), Sanctuary Guardian (Guardian Tail), Kalameet (Obsidian Greatsword). Cut them before the boss dies.
• Painted World: the Peculiar Doll is in your starting cell in the Northern Undead Asylum when you return there later (a Black Knight guards the area). You can only enter the Painted World (via the large painting in Anor Londo) while carrying it, and the only way out is jumping off the cliff past the boss room. Priscilla will let you leave without fighting.
• Andre, merchants, and Fire Keepers: don't aggro NPCs by accident; attacking them turns them hostile and can cost you a shop or blacksmith.

Artorias of the Abyss (Included)

Remastered includes the DLC. To access it:

• In Darkroot Basin, kill the Hydra and free Dusk of Oolacile (kill the Golden Crystal Golem holding her, then talk to her).
• In the Duke's Archives, the Crystal Golem at the entrance (right after the first elevator) drops the Broken Pendant, but only if you've done step 1.
• Return to Darkroot Basin and enter the vortex in the cave behind where the Hydra was. A cutscene pulls you back in time to Oolacile.

DLC bosses: Sanctuary Guardian, Knight Artorias, Manus, Father of the Abyss, and the optional Black Dragon Kalameet (Hawkeye Gough helps bring him down). Artorias is aggressive; learn to dodge through his flips and punish only after his combo ends.

Online Play in Remastered

• Supports up to six players in one world (host, summons, and invaders) using dedicated servers.
• Password matchmaking lets you team up with specific friends.
• Covenants can be switched at bonfires in Remastered.
• Summons are placed via White Sign Soapstone (and Red for invasions); you need to be human to summon.
• PC online was taken offline in early 2022 for security reasons and reactivated on November 9, 2022.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Leveling Resistance. Poor value per point.
• Spreading upgrade materials across many weapons. Focus one.
• Going to New Londo or the Catacombs first. Ghosts and skeletons will stonewall you.
• Attacking friendly NPCs by accident. Lock-on and aggressive swinging near NPCs is a classic run-ruiner.
• Heavy rolling everywhere. Check equip load; drop to under 50%.
• Not kindling. Ten Estus at key bonfires makes bosses much easier.
• Skipping the Master Key as a first-timer.

Advanced Tips

• Parry and riposte most humanoid enemies (Balder Knights, Silver Knights, Gwyn) with a small shield or Parrying Dagger.
• Backstabs are huge against human-sized enemies; circle around after a whiffed attack.
• Soul memory affects matchmaking. For co-op with friends, use password matchmaking.
• Use multiple consumables at once from the inventory menu (a Remastered convenience), e.g. soul items.
• Farm Humanity from the rats in the Depths with higher item discovery (Covetous Gold Serpent Ring, being Human) if you're struggling.
• Chaos Blade, Black Knight weapons, and Moonlight Greatsword are strong late options depending on stats.

FAQ

Is DSR's online still working on PC? Yes. It was restored on November 9, 2022.

Is the DLC included? Yes, Artorias of the Abyss is part of Remastered.

What's the best starting class? Knight or Pyromancer for beginners.

How do I unlock the DLC? Kill the Hydra and free Dusk in Darkroot Basin, get the Broken Pendant from the Crystal Golem at the Duke's Archives entrance, then enter the vortex behind the Hydra's lake.

Can I play with a friend? Yes, with password matchmaking, using summon signs.

Is there New Game Plus? Yes. After Gwyn, you can start NG+ with your gear and character, facing tougher enemies.

Sources

• DARK SOULS: REMASTERED on Steam
• Steam announcement: Online features for the PC version reactivated (Nov 9, 2022)
• Fextralife: Broken Pendant
• Fextralife: Peculiar Doll
• Fextralife: Large Ember