Getting back into dark souls after break

I used to play Dark Souls quite a bit up until about I took a break of 4+ months.  I had 1,000+ hours before, but played sparingly since.

I was looking for advice on what pvp hotspots are worth checking out.  I made a second account, and I want to start making builds again, since I have taken a refreshing break, I dont mind the pve grind to make a pvp build right now.

Roughly how much has the population changed? Are some areas getting quiet?

Are the matchmaking mechanics of the arena working? I remember only getting arranged matches to work.

Would SL 50, 100, and 120 still be the prevalent pvp levels?

What are your favorite current pvp hotspots and what SL build are you using there?


I remember enjoying: sl 50 anor londo and really anywhere, SL 100/120 in the dlc areas, kiln, and burg.  Any suggestions I didnt list here?

Vastly appreciate the input.  Highly recommend taking a healthy dks break btw, my enthusiasm for the game went back up after it had gotten so tired and familiar before.  Thanks for your input!!!

Best thing to do is go thru the PvP section for hotspots. As far as population, it depends. A lot of PS3 players have gone back to Demon Souls. Quite a few people have capped at sl55. Other than those answers, you may want to check the forum and view a few threads to get caught up. Might be a faster way than waiting for people to respond here.

I have no problem getting pvp for sl130 and below (Can't comment on higher sl since I rarely go there).

My SL55 likes to invade anor lando, PW, and lord soul areas.

I tend to duel (sl100 - sl130) in moon pit, pw, burg, township. It depends on what flavor of pvp I'm in the mood for.

If I feel like being a douche, the forest is still an active war zone

Forgot to mention i'm on PS3.

Also, welcome back!

RCPD_STARS wrote:I used to play Dark Souls quite a bit up until about I took a break of 4+ months.  I had 1,000+ hours before, but played sparingly since.

I was looking for advice on what pvp hotspots are worth checking out.  I made a second account, and I want to start making builds again, since I have taken a refreshing break, I dont mind the pve grind to make a pvp build right now.

Roughly how much has the population changed? Are some areas getting quiet?

Are the matchmaking mechanics of the arena working? I remember only getting arranged matches to work.

Would SL 50, 100, and 120 still be the prevalent pvp levels?

What are your favorite current pvp hotspots and what SL build are you using there?


I remember enjoying: sl 50 anor londo and really anywhere, SL 100/120 in the dlc areas, kiln, and burg.  Any suggestions I didnt list here?

Vastly appreciate the input.  Highly recommend taking a healthy dks break btw, my enthusiasm for the game went back up after it had gotten so tired and familiar before.  Thanks for your input!!!

Oolacile Township seems, IMO, to have become a new spot for random, high level PvP.  For all the talk about caps, I think a lot of those are used for organized fight clubs.  If you just want to fight anyone who invades, roll your game and leave all the bosses alive.  Just stand around and wait for random invaders.  Parish is still a good place to catch griefers while waiting around with a high level toon.

Forest is still a busy spot.

SL 55 gets mentioned a lot, as does level 100.  120 not as much.  But honestly, it's all over the board now.  Hover anywhere in the 100 to 120 range, drop a red, and you'll get action.

From what I've read lately, there are some problems with people using modded toons, but I'll admit, I rarely see them on Xbox.  The number of new players on the Box has gone through the roof in the past few months.  The population is still a mix of people who like to help and people who like to grief, and just about everything in between.