I love FromSoft's games. Despite not generally having any real affinity for difficulty - I had zero interest in Alan Wake II's "Nightmare" difficulty setting added with the Final Draft update - there's something so deeply satisfying about their games (and not just Soulsborne ones, as I'd extend this to Armored Core VI) that I'm willing to tolerate the punishing difficulty.
I also think it's notable that I don't actually die all that often when I start a new Elden Ring character. For sure it's not like Final Fantasy I, where in my entire playthrough I only once saw my Black Mage go down and suffered no other deaths. I'll still get taken down by an Erdtree Watchdog or have to give a boss two or three tries.
But it's a game where deep knowledge and familiarity with it can really make the experience smoother and, frankly, easier.
One aspect of their games I'm not so happy about is how easy it is to miss content.
My first Elden Ring character started off as an Astrologer. He's always been a primarily Intelligence-based character, and was truly a primary spellcaster until very late in the game, when I switched him to a build centered around the Darkmoon Greatsword (to give you an idea of how late in the game, I think this was after I had beaten both Malenia and Mohg, the latter of which I did by cheesing Comet Azur with the crystal tear that makes your spells free briefly).
But, because I too-eagerly pursued Ranni's quest chain before I finished Seluvis' quest to turn his mistress into a puppet, I missed out on an item that is generally considered crucial to any intelligence-based build, which is the Magic Scorpion Charm. While this character is still quite good and powerful, there's a little asterisk that sticks in my head knowing he could be a little more effective if I hadn't screwed up that quest early on.
According to Fextralife (the site that, if I'm honest, I get most of my builds and info about the game from,) the DLC will actually have a lot of these missable character quests. In other words, it's likely that I'll blunder into some form of progression that has me miss my window to complete one of these quests.
And so, for that reason, I'm tempted to set aside my favorite characters in favor of a less-favored one so that, should I screw something up, I'll be able to correct the mistake when I take the other character through.
Thus, I'm tempted to let my Darkmoon Sorcerer chill out, along with, probably, my Strength/Faith greatsword-dual-wielding guy with the Blasphemous Blade (who was the first character I beat the game on). Instead, I might go for my Faith/Arcane Dragon Communion caster (who also used Rivers of Blood for a little) and perhaps see if I can find a weapon or set of spells that feel a little more broadly useful with a Faith/Arcane set-up. I also have an Intelligence/Faith caster with a bunch of Death Sorcereries. And then there's my Faith-focused Pyromancer, who I think maybe had the easiest time with the late game of all my characters. I also have a Dex/Int build that uses Moonveil and I suspect could easily adapt to other equipment (he also has a fully upgraded Wing of Astel that he's capable of using effectively).
I think my goal is to try to avoid fully respeccing any of my characters and instead finding new DLC weapons and spells that fit into my existing attributes. (Though if we see Int/Arcane spells that are worth trying, I might be tempted).
In anticipation of the DLC, I have a new character who is a Strength/Intelligence build, but he's still in the mid-game, having jumped around a little (he's done most of Volcano Manor without actually doing anything outdoors in Mt. Gelmir) in order to get the equipment he needs for his build. Point is, while he has Radahn down, he's a ways off from being able to take on Mohg (though thanks to Varré's quest in Liurnia, he's already made it to the Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum and made ample use of that one bird you can shoot with an arrow to get a little over 10k runes).
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