LogFAQs > #945790753

Definitely look up what each stat does and probably also how imbuing works... and poise... and humanity... and maybe also what messing with the bonfires does. Do it even if you're doing a sort of blind run. It's really useful to know. Beyond that, you may not have realized it but your weight value affects your ability to roll/dodge. If your roll seems particularly garbage, it may be due to your weight %.

Accept that you're going to have to practice quite a bit at the game in order to truly get it down. Also you should know that while most parts of DS depend on you developing your skill level/knowledge of the game, there ARE parts which are really not a matter of skill, such as the Bed of Chaos boss fight. In those instances, just keep trying (yeah, it sucks) but parts like that are not numerous so you don't have to sweat it much.

If you haven't yet, I do recommend outright practicing doing backstabs/ripostes.

There are lots of little missable things in the game if you don't do things just right, but the game can get away with that because it's meant to be played over and over again. However, if you don't want to miss a lot, I would consider consulting a guide. If you want your first run to be blind, that's fine, but if you're interested in seeing everything the game has, consider consulting a guide on NG+ at least; that will help you with the obscure character quest/item requirements.

Spears pair well with shields, but a lot of people find fighting with shields boring. Experiment with different weapons/styles to see which ones you like. Most are viable in some way, either against AI or players.
Halberd/BK Halberd, Claymore/Zweihander, Estoc, Longsword/Broadsword/Silver Knight Straight Sword, Shotel, Pickax, Large Club... these are all great weapons and some of them can be acquired very easily.
As for shields, you can get a lot of mileage out of circumstantial shields such as Spider/Grass Crest/Sanctus/Bloodshield, and for blocking, there's Heater/Crest/Havel's which are all popular, but you can run most shields with success.
You might find this reddit topic useful for reference:
https://www.reddit.com/r/darksouls/comments/p9eng/armor_with_special_effects/

Alluring Skull can be very useful for manipulating AI. You can use it to get stupid enemies to run into fires, for example. Bows in general should also not be overlooked- they can be really good in certain areas.

Never forget to check for traps. Make sure the chests you open look right before you open them, for example. If they don't, you may want to chuck a Lloyd's Talisman at them. Some traps can and will kill enemies if you're careful.

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