Boss: High Lord Wolnir

To win this fight, you need to destroy Wolnir’s bracelets. Wolnir has these bracelets at the end of his bony arms, and they shine with golden light. It’s pretty clear what you need to hit!

Wolnir can strike you directly with his arms. He also emits a cloud of death that surrounds everything near his body. Dodge well after he raises whichever arm is closer to you. It’s not too difficult to avoid these attacks.

The cloud of death is more dangerous, though, as Wolnir moves around. It’s not fast, but you can still find yourself closer to the body than you expected. The damage output from this is very scary, and it’s an area of effect. If you start taking damage, roll away from Wolnir, and then sprint until you’re far enough away to be safe. Then, you can heal and get back into things.

If you're too far away from the edge of the death cloud, it is possible to heal through it using multiple flasks. This is not ideal, but it can save your life if you get out of position. Avoid that by wait for Wolnir to put his arms near you. Don't chase them!

Skeletons also spawn during the fight, though they're a minor problem compared to Wolnir himself. Break all three bracelets, and finish the encounter. It’s a quick one.

After you have destroyed the boss, you find a Bonfire and the route out to Irithyll. It’s up to you whether to cut the bridge behind you and descend farther into the region, or to move forward toward Irithyll.

Major Battle

Attack the bridge at (10) a single time, and wait for it to break. Make sure that your health is full so that the coming fall doesn’t kill you. The bridge breaks after a few seconds, and then you have a good plunge. Stay near the halfway point of the bridge as it breaks. If you’re too close to the wall, you actually end up falling farther.

You can climb up the damaged bridge from the bottom, and that is another reason why it’s smart to kill the boss before coming down here (you get a Bonfire that is only a few moments from the top of the bridge).

Make sure that you are ready to tackle this area when you come back. A Demon blocks your way to the next Bonfire. It fights like the one back at the Undead Settlement, though this Demon has much more health and damage output. Fire Resistance gives you an advantage in this fight.

Roll around the large Demon to get free strikes at its flanks. Though it takes a number of hits to kill, you almost always get multiple swings every time the massive monster misses an attack. In this battle, dodging is far better than shield use.

From here, it’s a dead shot into the Smouldering Lake; you can’t miss it. Before you continue, make sure that you've gotten the Soul of a Demon from the mini boss, the Old Sage's Blindfold and Witch's Ring from a cubby before the Bonfire, and the Black Blade from a Mimic in the Demon's room.