Beginner's Guide to Dark Souls 3

New to Dark Souls? This guide covers everything you need to survive Lothric.

Estus Flask & Healing

  • 1You start with 4 Estus charges -- find Estus Shards to increase up to 15.
  • 2Undead Bone Shards (burned at Firelink bonfire) increase healing per sip.
  • 3Ashen Estus Flask restores FP for spells -- allocate at Andre the blacksmith.
  • 4Estus refills at bonfires and when you kill a group of enemies.
  • 5The Estus Ring (found in Firelink Shrine tower) boosts healing by 20%.

Bonfires & Progression

  • 1Bonfires are your checkpoints -- resting respawns all non-boss enemies.
  • 2You can teleport between any discovered bonfires from the start.
  • 3Kindling bonfires with Undead Bone Shards is permanent and carries across NG+.
  • 4Some bonfires are hidden -- explore thoroughly, especially after defeating bosses.
  • 5Dying drops your souls at your death location -- you get one chance to retrieve them.

Stats Explained

  • 1Vigor (HP) -- level to 27 early, then 40 for the soft cap. Most important stat.
  • 2Endurance (Stamina) -- 20-30 is usually enough for any build.
  • 3Strength/Dexterity -- your main damage stats for melee weapons.
  • 4Intelligence/Faith -- for sorceries and miracles respectively. 40+ for dedicated casters.
  • 5Luck -- affects item discovery and bleed/poison buildup. Only level for specific builds.
  • 6Vitality -- determines equip load. Stay under 70% for medium roll, under 30% for fast roll.

Hollowing & Ember

  • 1Being Embered increases your max HP by 30% and enables online play.
  • 2You become Embered automatically after defeating a boss.
  • 3Ember items can be used to restore Embered state -- save them for tough fights.
  • 4Hollowing increases from dying while branded by Yoel of Londor (Dark Sigil).
  • 5High hollowing (15+) gives free +5 levels to Luck with Hollow-infused weapons.
  • 6The Fire Keeper can heal the Dark Sigil to remove hollowing (costs souls equal to your level-ups from Yoel).

Essential Beginner Tips

  • 1Knight is the best starting class for new players -- great stats and shield.
  • 2Level Vigor to 27 before anything else -- survivability is king.
  • 3Learn to roll INTO attacks, not away -- invincibility frames activate mid-roll.
  • 4Upgrade your weapon at Andre -- a +10 weapon matters more than 20 levels of stats.
  • 5If a boss feels impossible, explore other areas first -- the game is semi-open.
  • 6Summon NPCs at fog gates (look for gold signs) for free help on tough bosses.