Dark Souls 2: Crown of the Old Iron King Guide and Walkthrough

Beat Dark Souls 2 with Prima’s free guide and walkthrough, including Crown of the Sunken King.

Once you successfully purchase the Dark Souls 2: Crown of the Old Iron King DLC, you will find a Heavy Iron Key in your inventory. Head to the Eygil’s Idol bonfire in the Iron Keep. All of the traps below should be turned off already, but if for some reason they’re not, flip the switch at the top of the ramp next to the bonfire. Head back down to the bonfire and continue down the ladder into the room below, then down the next ladder in the far right corner. 

When you reach the bottom, there’s a small passage next to the ladder. Defeat the enemy waiting in the passage, or lure it out and run past him. Continue down the rooftop and drop down to the path below. Head across the path to the location where you fought the Old Iron King, then continue around to the far right into the small room with a chest (that should already be opened) and the stairs leading down to the bonfire below. 

There should now be a doorway just beyond the bonfire that leads to a room with a serpentine obelisk in the back. Examine the obelisk to enter the DLC area. Head up the stairs and through the door at the very top, then step onto the lift ahead. When you reach the top, head into the mist. Continue to the right and up the stairs and ignore the fallen soldiers scattered about. 

Pick up the item in the statue near the end of the platform to obtain six Smelter Wedges. These are used to deactivate Ashen Idols. Some idols will spew flame and lava, while others simply spawn enemies. It’s easy to recognize the idols as they are flaming statues. When you see one, be careful of the flames (wait until there’s a pause), then walk up to the statue and examine it to use the Smelter Wedge and destroy it, stopping the flames. Make your way across the large chain beyond the now crumbled statue to enter Brume Tower. 

Brume Tower

Light the bonfire just ahead, then continue up the small set of stairs. An Ashen Idol is in the area ahead. Wait for the flames to cease, then quickly run up to the statue and examine it to insert the Smelter Wedge. It leaves behind a Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash. Pick up the item, then turn around to find a staircase to the right of the path you used to enter the small area.

Head down the stairs, then around the corner until you can drop down to the platform hanging in the air. Drop down again to the circular platform in the center of the room to find two Old Growth Balm items. Drop down once more just beyond the item to find a doorway. 

Continue down the stairs just beyond and an Axe Demon pops out of the soot. You have plenty of time to walk behind the enemy and land a critical blow before the enemy is ready to attack. Take out the demon and pick up the two Twilight Herbs at the end of the platform. Make your way down the path to the right and destroy the fallen knights along the way to potentially find a few random items. 

As you approach the bottom of the hill, three more Axe Demons appear. If you have ranged attacks available, you can attack two or three times before the enemies begin to make their way up the hill. If one of them jumps towards you, avoid the attack, then circle around behind it to land another blow from behind. Try to avoid fighting all three enemies at once. 

With the enemies down, head down to the bottom of the hill and make a sharp turn to the right. Another enemy pops out of the soot, but it’s alone and easy to take down. Continue to the end of the path to find an item near the gate. Pick it up to obtain a Rogue Water and head back the way you came and through the doorway to the right. 

Use the ladder to the left to climb down, then head to the end of the small platform and around to the far side of the circular structure ahead. A Blackweed Balm awaits on the far side. Pick it up if you need an intelligence boost, then head back to the small platform and continue down the next ladder to find a Scythe +7 at the bottom. 

Pick up the weapon and then you can make a slight detour to pick up a Bonfire Ascetic and two Human Effigy. If you want the items, drop down to the ledge just below to the right. A Possessed Armor and Axe Demon await inside the balcony area ahead. Take them down, then head through the doorway on the far side of the balcony. At the end of the path is a chest that holds a Bonfire Ascetic and two Human Effigy. 

If you don’t care for the items, head through the doorway to find 10 Prism Stones. Make your way around the corner and open the chest at the end of the hall to find a Titanite Slab. Climb down the ladder in front of the chest. In the room below is another Ashen Idol, as well as two more enemies, with a third enemy in the adjacent room. This is the room that the balcony with the Bonfire Ascetic and Human Effigy chest overlooks. 

From your initial position at the ladder, the first enemy in the room will move towards you, but the Ashen Idol will not activate. Stay by the ladder and take out the enemy without moving closer to the Ashen Idol. If the enemy won’t get close to you, move into the hallway on the right, but not far enough to get the attention of the enemy in the room beyond the hallway. 

With the first enemy down, move into the adjacent room to engage the enemy within. If you move toward the far side of the room, a second enemy appears, so stay close to the hallway so you only have to fight one enemy at a time. Take down both enemies, then pick up the Dance of Fire spell at the end of the room. 

Go back into the room with the Ashen Idol and use a ranged attack to take down the enemy at the far end. If you didn’t take out the enemies on the balcony, be careful, because they may drop down shortly after you engage the enemy on the far side of the room. You have plenty of time to take down the first enemy before the second attacks. 

Approach the Ashen Idol to spawn another Axe Demon to the right. Take it down, then use a Smelter Wedge on the idol to spawn one last enemy on the far side of the room. If you use ranged attacks from the ladder, it won’t have time to close in and engage before you defeat it. 

Pick up the Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash left behind by the idol, then pull the lever in the far left corner of the room to open the iron door ahead. Another enemy patrols just outside the door, so be careful as you move forward. Head through the door and to the left and down the hill toward the item below. 

As you approach the item, two Axe Demons spawn behind you. Take them out, then pick up the item to obtain five Lloyd’s Talismans. Head back up toward the door, then continue past it and around to the other side. Go down the stairs and open the door on the balcony ahead. 

Inside are several enemies holding explosive barrels. Use a ranged attack to explode the barrels and kill the enemies. Head to the end of the room and hug the left railing to reach the ladder. Climb down and move to the edge of the stairs ahead. From this position, the enemy in the next room will head in your direction. Unlike the previous enemies, this one won’t recoil from your attacks, so be ready to shield against its attacks or dodge out of the way. 

Defeat the enemy, then move about halfway down the stairs and look to the left. Next to the flaming statue is another enemy holding a barrel. Target the enemy with a ranged attack to get rid of it now. There are still two more enemies holding barrels near the flaming statue.

If you have a ranged attack that you can lob over the gate (Firebomb, Lightning Urn, etc.), use it to hit the enemies. More than likely, this will not kill them, but it will get them to slowly move you. Once they start to round the corner, you can easily take them out with a more powerful ranged attack. 

With the enemies cleared, pick up the two Goldenfruit Balms at the bottom of the stairs. Move into the adjacent room and through the doorway to the left of the flaming statue. Head down the next ladder and defeat the enemy below, then move around to the right side of the next ladder. 

There are three enemies in the room below. One can be targeted with a ranged attack from this position. The enemy has Firebombs, but if you’re positioned correctly it won’t be able to reach you with this attack. With one enemy taken out, begin to climb down the ladder and wait for the two remaining enemies to move away from the bottom of the ladder before you reach the ground. 

Once the area below the ladder is clear, climb all the way down. The easiest way to defeat these two is to separate them. The red invader will follow you back up the ladder, but the other enemy will not. Use this to your advantage and climb back up the ladder to fight the invader on the floor above. 

The invader will use throwing knives and attack with his whip, which has longer reach than most weapons. He will also stun you at close range and inflict considerable damage. Stay away from the invader and wait until he starts throwing knives. At this point, close in and attack two or three times (depending on the speed of your weapon), before backing away again. Alternately, you can use quick ranged attacks to take him out while moving left and right to avoid his knives. 

With the invader down, climb back down the ladder and finish off the last remaining enemy. Open the chest in the corner to obtain a Caestus +8, then head through the doorway and down the stairs. Head into the room to the right and light the bonfire. Ignore the statues as they have no purpose yet. 

Continue up the small set of stairs ahead and to the left (the door ahead does not open yet). The railing to the right allows you to see into the room where the door leads. There are two enemies here with bows moving between a series of flame traps. If you stay close to the railing you will be safe from the ranged attacks. However, there’s a chest in the corner away from the railing that holds three Twinkling Titanite. 

If you want these items, wait until an arrow hits the railing, then immediately move over and open the chest. The invincibility during the opening animation will keep you safe long enough to retrieve the items. You can also get the attention of the enemies, then back up into the corridor where the railing begins. From this position the enemies will walk into the flames engulfing the room to the right, effectively killing them for you. 

Head back into the room with the bonfire and continue straight ahead and around the corner to the right to find a mist doorway. Move to the left and into the first alcove to find a ladder to the right. There’s another enemy with an explosive barrel at the bottom, but he drops through a trap door shortly after you reach the lower area. Head out of the alcove at the bottom and to the right. Move into the corridor to the right and open the door at the end. Move away as soon as you open it and have a ranged attack ready to take out the two enemies with explosive barrels that wait just beyond. A single shot should take out both enemies.

At the end of the room is a ladder with three Radiant Lifegems next to it. In the room below there are several enemies, including the explosive barrel enemy that fell through the trap door earlier. If you’re patient, you can stand to the left of the ladder (watch out for the trap door) and use a ranged attack on the enemy with the explosive barrel. It may take a moment for him to walk into view, but you can hit him from this angle.

In the room below are four Axe Demons, a Giant Club Demon that has fire shooting from his body and an Ashen Idol. With a bit of patience you can take out all of these enemies using ranged attacks through the hole where the ladder is. You will have to climb down the ladder a bit to get the enemies to move around, and it will take some time for all of the enemies to move within your limited attack range, but it is very possible to kill every enemy if you’re willing to wait roughly five minutes for them to move within range. 

If you don’t have a ranged attack or don’t care to wait around, you can climb down and engage all of the enemies in the room below. Avoid the Giant Club Demon until the others have been killed, and only focus on the enemies closest to you. If you’re too far away from an enemy, you’ll only have to deal with their ranged attacks, which is much easier than taking on five enemies at close range. When you engage the Giant Club Demon, stick and move to avoid the fires that shoot from its body. It moves quickly when it wants to, so always be on the move and try to stay behind it as much as possible. 

There’s also an enemy in the cage on the far side, just above the room. It launches fire bombs at you, but they won’t reach the entire area and he’s easily dispatched with ranged attacks from the ground floor. If you don’t move beyond the item on the ground (next to the rotting body), you’re generally safe from the fire bombs. At the very least, don’t focus on the fire bomb enemy until you’ve taken out the closest Axe Demon and the Giant Club Demon. 

Once the room is cleared, pick up the Flame Quartz Ring +3 (increases fire defense) near the bottom of the ladder. Approach the Ashen Idol in the corner. This one is identical to the first one you encountered at the beginning of the area. When you reach the dune just ahead of the idol, it activates. Wait until the first set of lava fountains dissipate, then quickly move up to the idol and insert the Smelter Wedge to obtain another Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash. 

Head toward the door on the far side of the room and pull the lever just in front of it to open the door. There’s a Possessed Armors enemy with a flaming sword and bow just ahead beyond the stairs. As you approach the stairs it takes shape and begins attacking. If you wish to use ranged attacks against it, wait until it has fully taken shape before you attack or else you won’t damage the enemy. If it rushes towards you, prepare for a series of flame sword attacks. When it appears to be on the ground, look out for a capoeira-like spinning sword attack.

Take care of the enemy, then head down the stairs to collect the five Large Titanite Shards, Human Effigy, two Twinkling Titanite and Dried Root at the bottom.  When you round the corner, a Fume Sorcerer attacks from the cliff ahead. If you move too close, several Axe Demons attack from the front and behind you. It’s best to use ranged attacks from just around the corner to take out the Fume Sorcerer. If you knock the Fume Sorcerer off the cliff, it ends up in the area below to the left. Watch out for attacks from below if this happens. 

As you make your way, another Fume Sorcerer attacks from far ahead. Once again you can attack with ranged weaponry. You can use the pillars lining the path as cover to avoid the Sorcerer’s attacks. The item to the left is a Human Effigy, so feel free to skip it if you do not need one.

At the end of the path is a ladder. As you start to climb down you’ll see an invader waiting below, but when you get halfway down the ladder, several more enemies spawn to the side. When this happens, climb back up the ladder and use ranged attacks to take out the newly spawned enemies. This makes the battle below much easier.

Once the enemies are taken care of, climb down the ladder until the invader notices you. At this point, quickly climb back up to the top and the invader will follow. Fight him alone at the top, then make your way down the ladder.

There are remnants of people buried in the snow off to the left. If you move through them, you may find a few soul items (i.e. Soul of a Proud Knight). If you wish to collect these items, be careful of the two enemies that pop out of the soot and immediately attack. Both attack you from positions close to the wall to the left. 

Collect the items (or not), then you have two paths ahead of you. You can continue down the stairs ahead and through the doorway on the left, or go straight ahead and through the doorway on the right. If you choose to go left, follow path 1A to eventually find an Alonne Greatbow +5, a Majestic Greatsword and two Bonfire Ascetic. Jump down to section 1B if you decide to go right in order to continue your way to the boss. 

1A 

At the end of the balcony to the left is a Raw Stone. Pick up the item, then head across the large chain to the area just beyond. Maldron the Assassin invades and waits in hiding to the left. To the right is a long staircase that leads to the bottom of the tower. 

There’s a chest at the end of the upper area that holds two Bonfire Ascetic, but Maldron stands between you and the chest. If you engage the invader, he will not let you kill him. Instead, he’ll flee down the stairs. Maldron’s general pattern of attack is to strike multiple times in rapid succession, then pause very briefly before attacking one more time. If you block his attacks and strafe around him it’s fairly easy to land a critical blow from behind. 

Before you do anything, as you move down the stairs you enter an area filled with curse and you’ll come across several enemies. Two alcoves are found to the right of the stairs as you make your way down. An Ashen Idol sits on the lower alcove. If you destroy it, the curse effect is removed. 

Your best bet is to ignore the chest and invader in the upper area and instead run down the stairs to the Ashen Idol to destroy it. Immediately head back up the stairs to the top area to avoid engaging a plethora of enemies all at once. You may find yourself trapped inside the alcove with the idol if you don’t destroy it fast enough. As you move down the stairs, two Axe Demons attack from each of the two circular platforms in the middle, while a Possessed Armor waits about halfway down. The Possessed Armor cannot be killed until the Ashen Idol is destroyed. 

On the way down you’ll find an item with five Silver Talismen to the right, and an Alonne Greatbow +5 on the second circular platform in the middle. A chest awaits at the bottom, but three more Axe Demons appear as you approach it. Inside the chest is a Majestic Greatsword. 

1B 

Go through the mist door to the right and continue down the stairs. Move around to the far side of the area to find a Spell Quartz Ruing +3 (increases magic defense). Light the bonfire in the small room ahead. Make note of a minotaur head near the middle of the main room. You need a Scorching Iron Scepter to activate the minotaur head, which can be found ahead. 

Head to the left of the bonfire and pick up the two Magic Stones in the room ahead. Continue through the next corridor and down the ladder at the end. Ready a ranged weapon. When you reach the flaming statue at the end, there are several enemies to the right, including two enemies carrying explosive barrels and a Fume Sorcerer. Shoot the explosive barrels to take care of the enemies or hit the minotaur head to move it down the corridor, killing the enemies as it moves.

Ignore the lever and continue down the next corridor. Another flaming statue is found just ahead, but in the corner to the left of the statue is another Sorcerer. It won’t appear until you get close, so move forward with the intention of backing away as soon as it appears. Wait around the corner for the Fume Sorcerer to approach, then attack at close range where it’s weak. 

Hit the flaming statue to move it down the corridor where two more Fume Sorcerers await. If you move across to where the first Fume Sorcerer appeared, you can target the Fume Sorcerers at the end of the corridor with relative safety (using the corner to cover you from attack). 

Pull the lever near the gate here and use ranged attacks to hit the enemies with explosive barrels in the next room. There are several, so make sure you get them all, but do not enter the room to remain safe from the explosions. When all visible enemies are down, move into the room and make sure the enemy up the stairs to the right is also down. 

At this point, you have a few options. You need to continue down the next corridor where another Giant Club Demon awaits. However, you can’t simply used ranged attacks this time around, and if you attempt to fight at close range, the area immediately around it doesn’t offer much in the way of mobility.

You can attempt to attack it at close range in this small area, but it’s best to quickly run to the lever just left of the enemy to open the gate. You can also run back to the lever you passed before (near the first flaming statue). Doing so opens all three gates and gives you plenty of room to move around. In addition, the Giant Club Demon will follow as you move past the two flaming statues, taking damage in the process. There should also be some explosive barrels left in the large room, which you can put between you and the enemy. When the enemy attacks, it will hit the barrels, inflicting significant damage.

If you continue to move past the flaming statues and use the explosive barrels to your advantage, you won’t actually have to engage the enemy at all. Once the enemy is down, pull the lever to open the gate it was blocking, then head outside. Go through the corridor to the left and into the next room. Climb up the ladder to pick up the Dried Root, then pull the lever to raise the gate. This makes it much easier to reach the boss should you die and return to the last bonfire. 

Head back down the ladder and outside, then make your way across the large chain and through the mist door. Continue down the corridor to the left, but watch out for the enemies crawling on the floor. They are easily dispatched with ranged attacks. If they get close to you they explode, and if any of them are caught in the explosion (only the exploding enemy dies), they catch on fire and their speed increases significantly. There are two at first, then a second set of three as you continue down the corridor. 

Pick up the two Petrified Dragon Bone items at the end, then head through the doorway.  As you make your way down the ladder ahead, dark spirit Quicksword Rachel invades and begins to climb up the ladder. Head back up the ladder to engage her at the top. 

With the invader down, you can take the ladder to the bottom of the area or take a small detour to pick up a Dried Root. If you would like the item, face the ladder and run toward the opening so you fall to the ledge just below. Defeat the crawler in the room to the side, then jump over to the room to find the Dried Root in the corner. You can then drop down to the room below.

Whether you take the ladder or drop down from the room with the Dried Root, the room below has five doors. If you’re standing in the middle of the room, facing the ladder, the door on the far right holds another crawling enemy. To the left of that is a room that contains a Recollection and two Twinkling Titanite items, but a Fume Sorcerer appears in the room as you approach the items.

The next two doors to the left are connected by a small hallway, with two crawling enemies behind the doors (positioned behind the leftmost door). The final door is the only one you actually need to enter and has two crawlers directly behind it. One of them begins to explode as soon as the door is opened, so prepare to move away and deal with a much faster second crawler. The easiest way to handle the situation is to back up to the middle of the room, use a ranged attack on the second crawler as soon as it reaches the doorway, then if it’s still alive, let it get close and roll to avoid the explosion that will kill it. 

Head into the door and down the ladder on the far side. When you reach the bottom, continue down the hallway until you reach an open door near the end. Through the door are several more crawling enemies. Use a ranged attack on one, which ignites the rest, increasing their speed. At this point, wait to see if any leave the room to pursue. If not, shoot one to get its attention. When one of these enemies heads towards you, wait until it’s close enough to activate the explosion animation, then run toward the ladder to escape the blast. You don’t have to be that far away to avoid damage, and this is the easiest way to clear the room (one enemy at a time). 

With the room cleared, examine the lever in front of the furnace to obtain the Scorching Iron Scepter you needed earlier. Head through the doorway on the side of the room and take out the crawler in the next hallway. Pull the lever at the end of the hallway to activate the lift, then move away to a safe distance to avoid the crawler that’s sitting on the lift above. Take down the crawler, then use the lift to reach the level above. 

Head down the next hallway and drop through the hole at the end. The doorway ahead is the same one you entered after walking across the chain. Go back across the chain and make your way to the minotaur head that required the Scorching Iron Scepter (the one right before the most recent bonfire). Insert the scepter to activate two lifts in the room, one to the left of the minotaur head, and one to the right (closest to the bonfire).

Use the lift to the left to move up to the level above. When you step off the lift, step onto the next lift straight ahead. The lift moves quickly, so you don’t have time to dilly-dally. When you reach the next level, go right and head through the door at the end. 

Beyond the door is another flaming minotaur statue to the left, as well as an explosive barrel enemy a bit farther down and a Possessed Armor near the end. Hit the minotaur head to destroy the enemy at the end, and possibly the closest enemy depending on where it’s at in its patrol. If the closest enemy is not destroyed, use a ranged attack to get rid of it. 

The right side of the hallway is lined with alcoves. Destroy the explosive barrels in the third alcove (if that hasn’t already been done) to find 15 Lacerating Knives. Continue up the stairs at the end of the hall. Another flaming statue awaits at the top. Send it down the hallway to take care of the two explosive barrel enemies, leaving one more explosive barrel enemy in the first alcove on the left, three flaming sword enemies and two Axe Demons farther down the hall. Some of the enemies are standing near explosive barrels. Shoot the barrels to inflict significant damage, but only attack one enemy at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed in the narrow hallway. 

In the last alcove at the end of the hallway is a chest that holds four Smelter Wedges. Collect the items, then drop down through the adjacent hole to reach the hallway with the lifts. Move to the opposite end of the hall to find a gated door. The Tower Key unlocks this door and allows access to the lift beyond. The key can be found in another part of the area. Jump down to section 2A to find the key. 

When you reach the upper level, head up the stairs to spawn the first dark spirit Prowler. Take out the dark spirit, then approach the Ashen Idol at the top of the stairs and insert a Smelter Wedge to obtain another Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash. Head through the doorway on the opposite side of the room to spawn four more dark spirit Prowlers. 

Move back to the lift and head down to the lower floor to stop all four invaders from ganging up on you. Go back up to the top and you can engage them one or two at a time. If they continue to be overwhelming, use the lift again.

With all of the invaders down, head up the stairs and around the corner to find a bonfire on the far side of the next room.

If you have the Ashen Mist Heart (obtained from the Ancient Dragon at the top of the Dragon Shrine), the armor in the center of the room will be illuminated. If you wish to head into the memory and confront the boss, Sir Alonne, examine the suit of armor. This is purely optional.

Memory of the Old Iron King 

Head through the hallway and into the large room ahead to face off against an Alonne Knight. Before you climb the small stairs ahead, use ranged attacks to kill the Demon Frogs in the alcoves that line the room. If you don’t have any ranged attacks, the passages to either side of the room lead around behind the Frogs so you can kill them with melee attacks. Pick up the items in the middle which include five Smooth and Silky Stones, three Human Effigy and a Skeptics Spice.

There’s a passage to the left as soon as you go up the stairs. Head into the passage to find a Rusted Coin near the end. Two more Alonne Knights attack from the room ahead, which also features more Demon Frog in the alcoves that line the room. Continue down the next hallway to circle back around to the first room. 

Head to the right to engage another Alonne Knight, and make sure to clear any remaining Demon Frogs from the alcoves. There’s another passage off to the left as you near the end of the room. Go down the passage and take out the Alonne Knight that awaits. If you don’t kill him, he will rush out and attack. 

The passage leads back to the main room. Continue through the room to engage yet another Alonne Knight. There’s another passage to the left just before the hallway at the end of the room. This path leads around behind the Demon Frog that blocks your way directly ahead. Take out the Demon Frog, then drop down through the hole to the level below.

Continue down the hallway and into the next open area ahead. Five more Alonne Knights await in this room. If you move too far into the room, all of them attack at once. Take your time and move slowly through the room so you aren’t ambushed by enemies. Toward the end of the room you will find three Repair Powders and five Radiant Lifegems. 

Go down the stairs on the far right side of the room, then head right at the intersection to find a Twinblade +7 in the corner ahead. Drop down into the room ahead and use ranged attacks to take down the Demon Frog to the right.

There’s another hallway in the far right corner where an Alonne Knight awaits. This leads around to the back side of the Demon Frog. The path in the far left corner has two Alonne Knights. Head down this path and up the stairs to the left to get back up to the main room.

Continue to the left and into the hallway at the end. Go down the stairs ahead to find a mist door at the end which leads to a boss battle against Sir Alonne.

Boss Battle: Sir Alonne

Reward: Soul of Sir Alonne

There are two ways you can engage Sir Alonne. You can fight him up close with continuous strafing, or you can fight from a distance and dodge his ranged attacks. If you fight him at close-range, you can strafe to either direction to avoid most of his attacks. However, sometimes he’ll use a single lunging attack, and other times he’ll use a combo consisting of two or three attacks. Pay close attention to his attack animations to determine what he’s doing, then attack him during the brief pause between his attacks. 

Sir Alonne doesn’t like to fight at close range, so he will jump back through the battle. When this happens, be prepared for a long-range lunging attack. This can be dodged with good timing, and you generally have enough time after rolling to land an attack or two (depending on the speed of your weapon).

You can use a shield and block Sir Alonne’s attacks, but it’s not recommended. All of his attacks inflict bleeding damage, so if you block too many in rapid succession, you’ll take damage. Blocking his attacks also takes considerable stamina unless it’s one of his combo attacks. Even when blocking his combo attacks, if you block all three you won’t have much stamina remaining to counterattack.

Occasionally Sir Alonne will use a projectile attack from a distance. This attack travels at a decent speed, but he does charge up before using it. If you’re ready for it you can dodge to the left or right to avoid it. It’s easier if you start moving left or right as soon as Sir Alonne starts charging, then roll in the direction you’re moving as soon as you see the projectile attack. 

From a distance you simply have to worry about the projectile attacks and Sir Alonne’s various lunging attacks. Wait for the dash that precedes the lunging attacks and roll to the right or left of Sir Alonne just as he’s about to reach you. Do not roll directly right or left, you want to aim your roll so you’re moving toward Sir Alonne. This will keep you close enough to attack him while he’s recovering from his lunge. It’s also possible to roll backward, but the timing is a bit more strict.

Sir Alonne may also use a jumping attack, which is a bit faster and harder to dodge. As soon as you see him jump into the air, dodge to the right or left. Do not hesitate or you will take damage from the attack.

Once Sir Alonne is down, head through the hallway in the far right corner to find a room with a throne. Examine the throne to obtain a Smelter Wedge and complete the memory.

2A 

Go back to the level where you used the Scorching Iron Scepter and take the lift to the right this time. When you reach the lower level, run across the room to the hallway on the far side. 

At the end of the hall are two more flaming statues with a number of explosive barrel enemies on either side. If you can’t target any of the enemies from the hallway, run in to get their attention, then quickly head back into the hallway and wait until you can target at least one with a ranged attack. Hitting one should be all you need to destroy all of them.

Another Giant Club Demon emerges from the field of soot ahead. There are two more hidden in the soot, so move forward carefully so you only have to fight one at a time. Once all three are down, pick up the items in the soot to obtain a Skeptic’s Spice, two Wilted Dusk Herbs, two Titanite Chunks, a Tower Key, five Charcoal Pine Resin, two Twinkling Titanite and two Human Effigy. Once you have the Tower Key, go to section 3A to find out where you can use it in the areas you’ve already been through. 

Head back down the hall and into the large circular room. If you wish to head directly to the Fume Knight boss, jump to section 2B. If you would like to head to the side area and fight the Smelter Demon optionl boss, skip ahead to 2C for a walkthrough of the Iron Passage. If you wish to continue in this area, head back up to the room where you used the Scorching Iron Scepter and open the door behind the minotaur head. 

Use ranged attacks to take down the enemy at the bottom of the stairs. Before you head down the stairs, use an item that reduces or cures curse (i.e. Divine Blessing). When you get halfway down the stairs, you’ll enter an area that is filled with curse being caused by an Ashen Idol located on the lower level.

At the bottom of the stairs is an invader and an Axe Demon. Step into the hallway at the bottom, then head immediately back up the stairs until you get one of them to follow you so you can take them out one at a time. If you go down the left hallway you’ll find a chest in the room to the left that holds three Old Radiant Lifegems. To the right is another red invader enemy, but no items. 

If you continue down the next set of stairs, another Axe Demon awaits, with a second one down the hallway to the right. Two Possessed Armors are waiting down the hallway to the left with five Large Titanite Shards at the end of the hall. There’s also a door on the left if you go down the left hallway. Inside the room is another Ashen Idol that gives you a Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash when you use a Smelter Wedge on it. Destroying the idol removes the curse effect from the area. 

Down the hallway to the right is another room on the right. Inside is a chest that holds a Fire Snake Pyromancy spell. Once you have the spell, all of the items in this area have been collected and you can proceed to 2B to head to the main boss, 2C to reach the Iron Passage and the Smelter Demon side boss, or 3A to go back for items accessible with the Tower Key and lifts active. 

2B 

Go to the Foyer bonfire in Blume Tower and take the lift straight ahead that lowers you to the area below. Head to the far side and take the second one even lower. As it lowers, turn around to see two paths. Run and jump as the lift approaches the uppermost path. In the room ahead there’s a chest in the corner that holds a Strength Ring (increases your strength). Use ranged attacks to take out any enemies you can see through the large hole in the floor. 

Drop down to the room below and continue to take out as many enemies as you can through the holes in the floor before you drop down to the next level. There aren’t a lot of enemies, but there are a few Axe Demons, including two with flaming axes that inflict a bit more damage than normal.

When you reach the fourth and fifth floors down, there’s a damaged area of the floor in one of the corners. If you step on this area, you will fall through multiple floors. The damaged section will also crumble if an enemy steps into the area. 

As you drop from floor to floor, you’ll find a Partizan +6 weapon on the sixth floor just below the bottom floor. From the floor with the weapon, you will see three enemies below. Two Axe Demons (one with flaming axes), and one Giant Club Demon. You can take them all out with ranged attacks, then safely drop down. Note that this drop will cause a bit of damage.

When you reach the bottom floor, pull the lever near the large door to open it. There are also two Axe Demons and two Possessed Armor enemies ahead, one of which remains dormant on the ground until you get close to it. You cannot kill the Possessed Armors until the Ashen Idols below have been destroyed. 

Run past all four enemies and down the stairs on the far side of the area. Be careful as you approach the first Possessed Armor, as it wakes up and attacks with huge range in an attempt to knock you off the path to your death. The second Possessed Armor uses a similar attack once it’s off the ground and ready to attack, but you should be long past it by that time. 

Just before the stairs, there’s a path to the right that leads to a chest which holds a Sorcery Clutch Ring (increases magic attack). Don’t worry about this until you’ve taken out the Ashen Idols and can kill the enemies in this area. In the room ahead, go up the stairs and step onto the lift to lower it down to the level below. When you reach the bottom level, step on the lift again to send it back up to the top. If you die, the position of the lift doesn’t reset.

Head up the stairs in front of you to enter an area with four Ashen Idols (one on each side). As you approach each idol, a Giant Club Demon emerges from the soot and attacks. You cannot kill either demon until at least two of the Ashen Idols are destroyed. 

There’s a mist door dead ahead which leads to a boss battle against the Fume Knight, but if you leave these Ashen Idols untouched, they heal the boss if he gets close to them. Destroy as many as you can before you head into the mist. 

Boss Battle: How to Beat the Fume Knight

Reward: Soul of the Fume Knight 

Approach the sword in the ground near the middle of the area to begin the boss battle. During the first phase of this fight, the Fume Knight uses a light rapier-like sword and an ultra greatsword. Stay close to the Fume Knight and strafe around him to the right to avoid a good number of his greatsword attacks. These require considerably more stamina to block compared to the rapier attacks. Usually the Fume Knight will attack twice with the rapier, then once or twice with the greatsword. He has considerable windup before he swings the greatsword, so if you watch carefully you’ll know when he’s about to swing it. 

There are times when he’ll just swing the greatsword. This attack comes from the opposite side and can hit even if you’re strafing to the right. This attack consumes a large amount of stamina if you block it, and the Fume Knight will not hesitate to do it two or even three times in a row. It’s best to roll to avoid it if possible. 

If you back away the Fume Knight will use a lunging attack with the rapier or a huge swing with the greatsword. Both attacks have considerable reach, so don’t relax just because you’ve created some distance between you. If any of the Ashen Idols were left untouched, do not let the Fume Knight near them or he will be healed. 

After a short time the Fume Knight powers up. When this happens the rapier disappears and his ultra greatsword becomes engulfed in magic. From this point until the end of the fight, all of his sword attacks inflict magic damage. 

Continue to stay close to the Fume Knight and strafe around him to the right. However, if you were blocking his attacks before, it’s far more important to dodge them now. All of his attacks have a lengthy startup animation and are easy to see coming, so rolling to avoid them should not be overly difficult. 

If the Fume Knight plunges his sword into the ground, you have two options. The following attack is a 360-degree spell that sends a bevy of fireballs along the ground in every direction. If you opt to stay close to the Fume Knight, you must roll with extremely precise timing to avoid the fireballs. If you decide to back away, you have a little bit more room to avoid them, but it can still be difficult if you aren’t paying attention. If you’re hit with a single fireball it inflicts tremendous damage.

Between fireball attacks, continue to strafe around the boss, attacking when you can. He takes decent damage if you’re geared well enough, and shouldn’t take too many attacks to go down. This battle is about avoiding his magic greatsword attacks. If you can do that, there isn’t much else to worry about. 

With the battle complete, you beat the Crown of the Old Iron King DLC. However, there’s still plenty of loot to be had and the Iron Passage side area. 

3A 

Teleport to the Upper Floor bonfire in Blume Tower, then head toward the gated area (not up the small stairs), around the corner to the right and down the stairs. When you reach the circular room, go right. From here you can take the lift to three destinations. If you want a Simpleton’s Ring (makes wearer invisible while rolling), follow route 3B. If you’re after some additional loot, including Titanite Shards and Flame Butterflies, follow route 3C. You can get another chest that holds a Pilgrim’s Spontoon weapon by following route 3D. 

3B

Take the lift to the doorway above. It doesn’t stop at the doorway, so you’ll need to jump off as the lift is moving. Head around the corner and down the stairs to the room that had a chest on one end. Take down the two Possessed Armors, then you can pick up the Old Radiant Life Gem sitting under the flaming statue if you wish. Head to the opposite side and through the door. Go out onto the balcony to find a Simpleton’s Ring to the far right. 

3C 

Use the lift to cross the small gap and reach the path on the other side of the lift. Open the door at the end of the path on the right to find a room with several doors and a chest (which holds a Life Ring +3), all guarded by a Giant Club Demon that continually gets its health replenished (meaning you can’t kill it yet). 

Behind the third door (counting from the left) is an Ashen Idol. Wait until the enemy moves away from the door, then open it and use a Smelter Wedge to destroy the idol and find a Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash. With the idol down, the enemy is no longer constantly healed.  

Take out the enemy, then you’re free to open the doors and the chest at the end. There’s nothing behind the first door. The second door hides a Broadsword +7, 10 Titanite Shards and one Petrified Something. The last door on the right hides five Flame Butterfly items behind it. 

3D 

Take the lift down to its lowest position to find a very narrow ledge that leads to an alcove. Carefully step onto the ledge (you don’t have to jump) to find a chest that holds a Pilgrim’s Spontoon inside. Collect the weapon, then carefully make your way back to the lift. 

3E 

Head to the Throne Floor bonfire in Blume Tower. Go up the stairs toward the location of the first Ashen Idol, then round the corner and continue down the next flight of stairs. When you reach the room ahead, go right and hop on the lift at the end of the ledge. Take the lift to the top to find a Baneful Bird Ring near the corner, on the railing. The ring reduces stamina loss when blocking with a shield. 

2C 

From the large circular room below the Foyer bonfire, use the Tower Key to unlock the door on the far side near the lift that moves up. Go down the long flight of stairs ahead, then go right at the bottom to find two Twilight Herbs. Take the lift on the other side of the platform to reach the lower level and head through the tunnel to enter the Iron Passage.

Iron Passage 

Light the bonfire ahead and drop down into the room below. Two markings on the ground allow you to summon helpers to fight your way to the Smelter Demon. Head through the hallway and into the next room. The corridor ahead is lined with cells on either side (that hold enemies) and a gate at the end. There’s a lever in the center of the room that opens all of the cells and the gate, but the gate only stays open for a short time. If you pull the lever in the middle of the room and immediately run for the gate, you can make it into the next room ahead. If you want to use this route, jump ahead to 4A. 

Pull the lever in the middle of the next room. This activates a fireball trap just ahead and unlocks the cells of four Axe Demons. Move to the side to avoid the fireball trap and wait for two of the Axe Demons to attack. Take them down, then take care of the enemies in the last two cells. In the third cell on the right are seven Large Titanite Shards. 

Collect the items, then head back into the room with the lever and through the side passage. Drop down to the room below to engage several Axe Demons and two Hollow Mages. The Mages are on an elevated area that you can’t reach yet, so use ranged attacks on them.

Defeat the enemies, then drop down into the small alcove at the end, but not all the way down to the next corridor. An Axe Demon awaits just below. Use ranged attacks to kill him, then drop down into the corridor. In the room ahead there are three Axe Demons, two Possessed Armors, one Fume Sorcerer and one Hollow Mage. All of the ranged enemies are on elevated platforms, which means you must used ranged attacks. 

One Axe Demon is clearly visible from the entrance, while the second is standing to the right of the entrance and the third is at the far end of the room. All of the ranged enemies are along the right side of the room. If you wish to rush through, you only need to take the Axe Demon down, but the Hollow Mage may slow you down if you make a run for it. You can still make it to the end without too much trouble, but it’s best to take the Hollow Mage down as well. 

In the next room are two Giant Club Demons with flames from their bodies (one is invader red), several Axe Demons, two Hollow Mages and a Possessed Armor. 

4A 

Drop into the room at the end before the gate closes, then engage the Hollow Mage inside. He uses relatively slow magic attacks, so you have time to get in several attacks between spells. Kill the Hollow Mage, then look down the passage to the left of fireball trap. There are two more Mages and several Axe Demons in the room ahead. They can’t reach your current location, so you can use ranged attacks without fear of a counterattack. 

Take down the enemies, then head into the room (do not drop down to the lower area) and find two Crimson Water items on the far left side. Collect the items, then go back into the room with the fireball trap and head through the passage on the opposite side. 

As you enter the room ahead, a Fume Sorcerer appears in the corner. Take it down, then you must once again decide between two paths. When you pull the lever in the room, the cells and gate down the next corridor open, but you must run immediately after pulling the lever to make it through the gate. If you choose to go through the gate, move ahead to 4B.

If you head through the side passage, you end up on the bottom floor of the next room, but on a raised ledge with the two Possessed Armors straight ahead, a Hollow Mage on the upper platform and two Axe Demons on the ground floor. In the corner a third Axe Demon blocks one of the exits into the last room in the far left corner. 

Take out the two Possessed Armors and head to the other exit straight ahead and to the right. The item on the ground here contains two Wilted Dusk Herbs. This exit is only accessible from the raised ledge. If you drop down to the ground you will have to use the exit blocked by the last Axe Demon. No matter which exit you take, both lead to the same location in the final room before the Smelter Demon. 

The final room is filled with one Possessed Armor on the ledge above, along with two Giant Club Demons and two Hollow Mages on the ground floor. The Giant Club Demons block the mist door to the boss. If you have helpers still with you, let them distract the enemies, then head to the mist door to fight the Smelter Demon. Wait for both Hollow Mages to use their gravity spell before you make your move. You don’t want to be stuck moving slow between two Giant Club Demons. There’s also a Dried Root on the floor near the closest Hollow Mage. 

4B 

Pull the lever, then immediately run for the gate at the end of the corridor ahead. Drop down into the room below to find a Hollow Mage waiting down the hallway to the left. Kill the Mage, but you don’t need to move into that room. Two Possessed Armors and two Axe Demons await down below, but there’s nothing for you in the upper area that you have access to. Instead, head down the path to the right. 

Head around the corner, but do not enter the next room. Ahead you will find one Possessed Armor on the same height level you’re on. Take it down from the corridor, using the wall as cover from its ranged attacks. In the area down below there are two Giant Club Demons emitting from their bodies (one is invader red) and two Hollow Mages. You can take them all out with ranged attacks from higher ground, but the Hollow Mages will use ranged attacks in return, so be ready to dodge.

There are two item locations at the end of the path, one holds three Cracked Red Eye Orbs and the other holds three Old Growth Balms. Pick up the items, then drop down to the area below to find a Dried Root on the far side (opposite the mist door). Collect the items, then head into the mist to battle against the Smelter Demon boss.

Boss Battle: How to beat the Smelter Demon

Reward: Smelter Demon Soul 

This isn’t the first time you’ve fought against the Smelter Demon. When you originally played through the Iron Keep, you faced off against the Smelter Demon there as well. Since the new DLC extends from the Iron Keep, it makes sense that you would run into this guy again.

Luckily, the Smelter Demon fights exactly the same way he did during the original encounter. The main difference is that he’s covered in magic instead of flames, and has considerably more health. It’s a good idea to equip armor and a shield (if you’re using one) that have high magic defense. Magic damage is unavoidable throughout this fight, even if you plan on attacking from a distance, so a shield with 100 percent physical damage reduction isn’t going to protect you taking damage when you block some of the Demon’s attacks.

If you summoned your two helpers just after the bonfire, they can essentially tank the Demon while you attack from behind or with ranged attacks. As you probably already know, the helpers in this game aren’t super useful. They will almost certainly die before you can kill the Smelter Demon, even if they both enter the boss battle with full health. 

Early on in the battle, the boss stops attacking and bends over slightly. When this happens, move away as he’s powering up the magic in his torso. When the power up is complete, a burst of magic damages everything within a short radius of the boss. Make sure you’re clear of this or at least have a shield up that absorbs a good amount of magic damage. 

After his initial power up, anytime you’re close to the Smelter Demon, you will take magic damage in moderately small doses. Shortly after the power up, the Smelter Demon plunges his sword into his torso and gives it the effect of magic damage as well. At this point, anytime you block an attack from the sword, it will deal magic damage. Once again, if you don’t have a shield that absorbs magic damage, you will still take some damage even if you block. 

The difficulty in this battle lies solely in the amount of health the upgraded Smelter Demon has. It will take some time to chip away at his health bar, and with his powered up magic abilities, you’ll almost certainly take damage throughout the fight. The key is to inflict as much damage as possible while your two helpers keep him occupied. 

If you’re using ranged attacks that inflict less than 200 damage, when one of the helpers goes down, move in for close-range melee attacks. If you can’t inflict at least 200 damage per hit, more than likely the boss will have at least 40 percent of his health left by the time both helpers die. At this point, you need to dodge his attacks as often as possible so you have time to get in as many hits as you can before he readies another attack. 

The Smelter Demon fights with a standard two swing combo that ends with a more powerful third attack in the form of a grounded or jumping strike. Occasionally, after the jumping strike the Demon will pause in a kneeling animation. This indicates another magic burst is about to occur, which means you should move away. Once the Demon is powered up, the magic burst has significantly more range, so keep this in mind. 

Using a standard melee attack build with a Greatbow and Greatarrows, we attacked from a distance until the first helper was down. At this point, we moved in and used two-handed attacks (inflicting a little over 200 points of damage with each swing). By the time the second helper was down, the Smelter Demon only had roughly 10 percent of his health remaining. A few dodged attacks later and the battle was over. 

With the Smelter Demon down, head through the cave on the far side to find a Pharros Mask to the left of the lift at the end. Pick up the item, then use the lift to move up to the floor above. Exit the lift and drop down to the floor below, then take the next lift up until you reach Blume Tower again.