TriumphForks said:
It is tough if you approach the game the way it was intended to be approached. There are literally millions, maybe billions of ways you can configure your character, items to use, weapons, builds, summons, special abilities, spells, etc. Literally every boss is cheesable in some way because there's no way for the devs to account for every possible thing that can be done in the game. Now the cheese is hard to figure out on your own but there are people who have figured out how to completely break the game and nearly one shot bosses that otherwise would be very difficult.
All of that is to say don't let the difficulty scare you off. This is a generation defining game. Just like there are whole hosts of games that try to be dark souls, for years to come people will be trying to make the next Elden Ring. It is a masterpiece. Don't pass it up. If you get stuck look it up. Someone out there has found a way to make a mockery of each of the bosses that are supposed to be intimidating. If you are like me and are a glutton for punishment you will find a way to brute force your way through. This week I will be starting an end to end walkthrough of the game on YouTube, very much geared towards helping new players learn what to do… for no other reason than i am passionate about these games and I want to help reduce the barriers that keep people from playing some of the best games of all time. If you decide to start playing and have any questions along the way just ask on this thread and me and I'm sure others are always willing to help.
Cheesing a boss completely removes one of the best things about From games... the feeling of elation when you defeat a boss.
I do agree that there are so many ways to build your character that some bosses will be easier for some versus others, based on your build.
One thing I always try to impart onto new players is about attribute management. Choose a direction and put the skill points in the specific attributes. If you spread them about too much, it will make the later game so much harder. For example, if you are going with a Dexterity build, only put enough Strength, Arcane, Int, or faith into the minimum you need to wield the weapon you want. Everything else needs to go into Dexterity, Vigor, and some Endurance.
Also, I see so many newer players dump so much into Vigor for more HP. You only need enough HP not to get 2 shotted by enemies. I have always played Souls games with the mantra, "Kill Quickly". I focus so much more on damage than I do on survivability. Every enemy telegraphs their attack. You must learn to avoid being hit, completely, to beat later game bosses. Putting 10 extra points into your damage stat instead of your HP stat will always be better.
I'm at level 120 right now, I dual wield daggers or a spear, and I have 36 in Vigor and 72 in Dexterity. I usually get my Vigor to around 20-25 in the early game, and then focus on damage dealing until i'm at around 50. Then I usually do about 2 to 1, damage to HP.
Endurance is another trap attribute. Only get enough to wear what you want to wear. The stamina boost isn't that great, and later bosses will not give you enough time to use your entire bar of stamina before you have to book it. Learn to manage your stamina better, and do more damage per hit.
To re-iterate: Learn to Kill quickly and avoid being hit.
I think this is one of the best things Bloodborne taught me and others. Previous Souls games had people just walk around, holding shields up. That is just a slow method and not fun at all. Bloodborne finally said, "No more shields! Learn to play, instead!"
EDIT: My stats, currently:
Vigor: 36
Mind: 20 (Increased to give me 100 FP for summons and weapon ash)
Endurance: 20 (increased to provide Med Load with my gear)
Strength: 16 (Increased to equip my spear)
Dexterity: 72
Intelligence: 9 (haven't touched)
Faith: 8 (haven't touched
Arcane: 17 (Enough to use my dagger. It's actually 20 from attribute increase from my helm)
