Dark Souls III Guide (Steam) Additional Rules & Helpful Tips
Matchmaking Details
Here’s a little more detail about Dark Souls III’s matchmaking system. First, a player must be eligible for multiplayer. Those already engaged in multiplayer are excluded. Anyone who doesn’t have his or her game patched correctly will be out, too.
Next, character levels are taken into consideration. Most of the time, there is a potential spread of 40 levels between the minimum and the maximum levels allowed. The host is used as a baseline and other players drawn into their world are within 20 levels (above or below) the host. Players with passwords get to break this, allowing anyone of any level show up as long as the passwords match. However, this is a general rule for level spreads. More details are covered later in this section.
Weapon reinforcement levels are also compared. Players with high-end weapons won’t normally going end up fighting a player who doesn’t have a single +1 item anywhere in their backpack.
If Cross-Play is enabled, you can be paired with players from other regions. Otherwise, this is set to off and you will be sent into multiplayer against other players from your home region.
Players who have set passwords will only be set up against other players who have entered the same passwords. This is a great way to form dueling clubs, compete against buddies, and so forth.
Reinforced Weapon Level Details
Players can only be matched if their highest weapon has a reinforcement value within two or three points of each other.
Reinforced Weapon Levels
| Player A’s Highest Reinforcement Value | Highest Possible Reinforcement for Player B |
|---|---|
| 0 |
2 |
| 1 |
3 |
| 2 |
4 |
| 3 |
5 |
| 4 |
6 |
| 5 |
8 |
| 6 |
9 |
| 7 |
10 |
| 8 |
10 |
| 9 |
10 |
| 10 |
10 |
If you have a weapon at maximum reinforcements, you can be paired with other players who have as low as +7 weapons. If you haven’t upgraded any of your gear, you might still encounter players with +1 or +2 reinforcements.
Level Difference Details
The level difference (and distribution of those levels) allowed is determined by the type of Phantom involved. Take a look at this chart to learn more!
Level Differences
| Official Covenant Name | Minimum Level | Maximum Level |
|---|---|---|
| Summoning a White Phantom, Warrior of Sunlight, a Person Without a Covenant, or a Mound-Maker | Host - 20 | Host + 20 |
| Being Visited by a Watchdog of Farron or Aldrich Faithful | Host + 10 | Host – 40 |
| Being Visited by a Blade of the Darkmoon or Blue Sentinel | Host + 10 | Host - 30 |
| Being Invaded by Someone With No Covenant or Warriors of Sunlight | Host + 10 | Host – 30 |
| Being Invaded by a Mound-Maker | Host + 10 | Host - 35 |
White Signs and the use of Red Soapstone Signs leads to very balanced numbers. People you summon with these symbols will oftentimes be very close to your level and the odds aren’t in anyone’s favor.
In the case of invasions, the player being invaded has the edge. Based on the odds, they’re more likely to be the person with a higher level. However, it’s still possible to end up fighting targets that are a little bit higher than your character’s level.