When Dark Souls 3 first released, it was mostly well-received with praise from players across the globe. Coming from a hardcore Souls fan, the second installment left me dissatisfied upon completion and doubtful about the future of the Souls series. Thankfully Dark Souls 3 more than made up for it, as it was everything I wanted and more. Next week, the first major expansion titled Ashes of Ariandel will debut across all platforms and it continues the adventure as you delve into the Painted World once again.
I recently had the pleasure of playing through the first 10 hours of the Ashes of Ariandel DLC and have plenty of useful information to share. Everything is quite consistent with the game world, which is brimming with difficult enemies, secret areas and plenty of stylish weapons. In this guide, we will show you how to access some of these places and uncover what’s inside.
Obtaining The Hidden Pyromancer’s Parting Flame
In Ashes of Ariandel, a new pyromancy flame is introduced called the Pyromancer’s Parting Flame. Its description tells us that it once belonged to Pyromancer Dunnel and has an ability called “Parting Flame”. Upon using this ability, it states that you will release death echoes and gain additional Estus for usage. While I don’t have enough INT/FTH on my character to use this Flame, I thought it was particularly interesting the term ‘death echoes’ is used here, considering there has been no such thing in any Souls game as of yet. Instead, this may be a reference to the souls you carry akin to the blood echoes you carry in Bloodborne.
In order to obtain the Parting Flame, first make your way towards a two-story crypt full of giant bloodsucking flies. On the second floor of this room, there is a shortcut that takes you straight to the main bonfire underneath the attic where Sister Friede sits. It’s trivial to unlock this shortcut in case you die during the upcoming steps. Next, make your way to the first floor of the crypt and look to the wall on the right for the shape of a doorway. Once you find this wall, hit it once to reveal a secret path. Additionally, this floor of the crypt contains a chained handle that unlocks a completely different passage to the first boss fight.
As you walk down the stairs and go outside, you will notice there is a birch root path where you can drop down, as well as a small colosseum in the near distance. After carefully making your way down by stepping on the roots, you will see a skeletal corpse that is holding the Pyromancer’s Parting Flame, along with 2x Homeward Bone. If you choose to enter the colosseum, a fight with an NPC will take place. Once you defeat this NPC, he will drop a new pyromancy spell called “Floating Chaos” which summons a fire-spitting chaos orb. This spell is also used by the NPC during the duration of the battle and deals heavy damage.
Tips For The Sister Friede Boss Fight
[ Author's Note: The text below was written from the perspective of a SL129 Knight in NG+. ]
The fight with Sister Friede can be extremely difficult if you don’t know the right moves to make. Personally, I spent over 3.5 hours on this boss and used up 22 embers before finishing her off. In my honest opinion, From Software really upped the difficulty with Ashes of Ariandel for both enemies and bosses alike. Considering this is the first main boss, I wasn’t expecting a three-part fight that gets increasingly punishing as time goes on. For those that believe soloing Pontiff Sulyvahn in Dark Souls 3 was a difficult task, you’re going to absolutely dread this boss fight.
To begin with, there is a summon sign by the bonfire entrance for an NPC that will help you during the second phase of the fight. In order to prepare, you must use the summon sign and equip the Estus Ring if it’s in your inventory. Although this boss mainly deals Frost Damage, I suggest equipping a ring that will assist you in withstanding heavy physical damage. In the first phase of the fight, Sister Friede will shoot lines of frost that explode after a few seconds and deal heavy frost damage. This can easily make your character become Frostbitten, so try to stay back when she performs this attack.
Sister Friede’s signature move is going invisible and teleporting across the room. She will try to perform an execution move on you with her vicious Scythe, but this can be easily avoided if you listen to her footsteps when she teleports. You’re able to walk up to her before she fully charges her execution attack and break the invisibility spell. If you played the original Dark Souls, then you may remember the fight with Priscilla who also shares an invisibility move. Most of the time, attacking Sister Friede will break her own attacks. She is also vulnerable to backstabbing. By the time you finish this phase, make sure you have at least 10 Estus Flask charges or the next two phases will be brutal.
After the cutscene ensues, part two of this fight will start. Sister Friede has a companion at her side this time around. Luckily for her, so do you. The NPC you summoned prior to the fight will suddenly appear and begin attacking. Let your companion deal with Sister Friede while you focus on the real target, Father Lloyd. Begin hitting Father Lloyd by getting behind him, while simultaneously dodging his devastating melee and fire attacks. After some time, he will stagger and become vulnerable to a riposte. Both bosses share the same health bar, but attacking Father Lloyd will deal more damage, thus making the health bar swiftly deplete.
In this final phase of the fight, Sister Friede will transform into Blackflame Friede and begin dealing heavy dark damage, as well as frost and melee damage. This is the most difficult phase as of yet, due to her melee attacks gaining tremendous speed.By this point in time, your NPC companion will probably be dead but we don’t need to rely on him anymore because Father Lloyd is gone as well. Friede has a couple of new moves in this phase, including a beam of dark damage and a charged dark blast that can be potentially fatal if you get in the line of fire. She will also jump high into the air and try to perform an execution attack from above.
In order to win this fight, you must dodge backwards when she uses her melee attacks on you. If she tries to inflict frost or dark damage, immediately dodge to the left or right. Eventually she will temporarily slow down and you can use this as an opening to unleash a couple of attacks. Try not to get greedy here or you will quickly wind up dead. Friede’s signature move from Phase 1 returns with a twist. When she goes invisible, she’ll try to hit you with two lines of Frost damage. Suddenly, she will teleport to a random place in the room and start charging her dark blast. As soon as you notice this, begin dodging to the left and do not stop until you successfully dodge the blast. Repeat this process until you defeat her and then proceed to give yourself a pat on the back.
Additionally, transposing the Soul of Sister Friede back in Firelink Shrine will let you obtain two weapons. Check out the picture below to see what you can get.
Getting To The Depths of the Painted World
Players can easily become lost in the Painted World of Ariandel, especially after defeating the first boss. The game does not direct you to any particular location and thus it can take a while to find the right path forward. What you’re supposed to do is leave the main bonfire area after the fight with Sister Friede and head towards the bridge you first crossed when entering the Painted World. Thinking back to the Catacombs in Dark Souls 3 reminded me to cut the bridge and descend to the depths below, which is precisely what you must do here.
Upon entering the Depths of the Painted world, you will be greeted by two Vikings that chuck spears at you from afar, which in return explode upon impact. These Vikings are very dangerous enemies, even in close-range combat. Once you get to ground level, there are two giant frost crabs wandering the area, along with your first bonfire. While I don’t want to spoil the rest of this area, I would like to advise players to be prepared for what lies ahead.
