Dark Souls 2: Crown of the Old Iron King Walkthrough Guide [Part 1]

Once you have successfully purchased the 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 that's 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 to 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 ahead, then continue up the small set of stairs. An Ashen Idol is ahead of you in the next area. Wait for the flames to cease then run to the statues and examine it to insert the Smelter Wedge. Pick up the Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash it leaves behind. Turn around after grabbing the item to find a staircase to your right, just beside the path you used to enter the room.

Head down the stairs and around the corner until you drop to a platform hanging in the air. Drop down once more to the circular platform in the center of the room to find two Old Growth Balms. Drop down one final time to find the doorway you need to go through.

Continue down the stairs beyond, an Axe Demon will pop out of the soot, but you should have plenty of time to walk behind it, and land a critical blow from behind before it is ready to attack. Finish taking the demon out and then pick up the two Twilight Herbs at the end of the platform. Make your way down the path to your right, destroying the fallen knights as you go to find a few potential random mob drops.

As you approach the bottom of the hill, three Axe Demons will appear. If you have it, use ranged attacks to attack two or three times before the enemies can make their way to you. If one of them jumps at you, avoid the attack and circle around behind it to land another blow to its back. Try to avoid fighting all of the enemies at once.

Once the enemies are down, head down the bottom of the hill and make a sharp turn to the right. Another enemy will pop out of the soot, but it’s alone and easy to defeat. Continue towards the end of the path to find a Rogue Water near the gate. Pick the item up and head back the way you came, detouring into the doorway on the right.

Climb down the ladder to the left, then head towards the end of the small platform and around the far side of the circular structure before you. You will find a Blackweed Balm, pick it up for an intelligence boost, and then head back to the platform and down the next ladder to find a Scythe +7.

Pick up the weapon, and make a detour to the pick up a Bonfire Ascetic and two Human Effgies. If you want the items, simply drop down to the right. A Possessed Armor and an Axe Demon wait inside the balcony area ahead. Defeat them before heading through the doorway on the far side, at the end of the path you’ll find a chest with the before mentioned items.

If you don’t care about grabbing the items, just head through the doorway to find 10 Prism Stones. Then make your way around the corner, opening the chest at the end of the hall to find a Titanite Slab. Climb down the ladder in front of the chest, to find an Ashen Idol in the room below. This Idol is guarded by two extra enemies, as well as a third enemy in the room beyond.

From your entry position at the ladder, the first enemy will head towards you, but the Ashen Idol will not become active. Stay by the ladder, taking out the first enemy without moving close to the Idol. If the enemy won’t come up to you, move into the hallway on your right, but not far enough to get the attention of the third enemy in the next room.

With the first enemy down, move into the next room to take out the enemy waiting within. If you move towards the far side of the room, a second enemy will appear, so stay close to the hallway to minimize your chances of death by facing only one enemy. Take down both the enemies then pick up the Dance of fire spell at the end of the current room.

Retreat back into the room with the Idol to spawn an Axe Demon to your right. Take it down, then use the Smelter Wedge on the idol to spawn a final enemy on the farthest side of the room. If you can, use ranged attacks from the ladder to take it down before it can reach you.

Pick up the Soul of Nadalia, Bride of ash left by the Idol, then interact with the level in the far left corner to open the iron door ahead. Another enemy patrols the area outside the door, so be careful as you move on. Head through the door, to the left, and down a hill toward the item below.

As you approach the item two Axe Demons will spawn behind you. Take them out quickly then pick up the item to receive five Lloyd’s Talismans. Head back towards the door, continuing past it and around the other side. Continue down the stairs and through the door on the balcony ahead.

Several enemies wait inside, holding explosive barrels. Use your ranged attack to explode the barrels and quickly kill all the enemies. Now head to the end of the room, hugging the left railing to reach a ladder. Climb down it, and move towards the edge of the stairs before you. From this position you should attract the attention of an enemy in the next room. Unlike other enemies this one won’t recoil from your attacks, so be ready to dodge, and use your shield against the coming attacks.

After defeating the enemy move around halfway down the stairs and look to your left. Next to the flaming statue will be another enemy with a barrel. Target the enemy and use your ranged attack to take him down. Careful though, there are still two more enemies near the statue.

If you have a ranged attack, such as Firebomb or Lightning urn, you can lob it over the gate to hit the enemies. Most likely they won’t go down, but it will get them to move towards you slowly. Once they start to round the corner, you can take them out easily enough with a more powerful ranged attack.

When those two defeated, pick up the Goldenfruit Balms at the bottom of the stairs. Move into the adjacent room, through the doorway, and to the left of the flaming statue. Head down the very next ladder, and defeat the enemy below, before moving around the right side to another ladder.

The enemy below contains three enemies. One can be targeted with your ranged attack from your current position. That enemy has Firebombs, but it you’re positions just right it won’t be able to reach you with its attack. With that enemy down, climb down the ladder, waiting for the remaining enemies to move away from the bottom before you reach the ground.

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

The invader will use throwing knives and attack with his whip. The whip has a longer reach than most weapons, and he will stun you at close range, so stay away from the invader and wait until he starts throwing knives. Once this happens close in and attack him two or three times (depending on weapon speed), before dodging away again. Alternatively, you can use quickly placed ranged attacks to try to take him out while dodging left and right to avoid his throwing knives.

With the invader defeated head back down the ladder to take out the remaining enemy. Once you’ve defeated that enemy open the chest in the corner of the room to obtain a Caestus +8. Now head through the doorway and down the stairs. Press into the room to the right, lighting the bonfire as you pass. Ignore the statues as they have no purpose at this point in time.

Continue up the stairs ahead and to your left, the door ahead won’t open yet. The railing to the right allowed you to see more into the room where the door leads. There are two enemies there moving between the series of flame traps, they carry bows. If you stay close to the railing you’ll be safe from the ranged attack, however, there is a chest in the corner away from your current position. The chest contains three Twinkling Titanite you may want to pick up.

If you plan on picking up these items, wait until an arrow hits the railing, then quickly move over and open the chest. The invincibility during the opening animation will allow you to retrieve the items without taking any damage. You can also get the attention of the enemies, just back up into the corridor where the railing starts. From this position the enemies will kill themselves by walking into the flames engulfing the room to the right.

Head back into the room with the bonfire and continue straight, around the corner to the right to find a mist-filled doorway. Move to the left, into the first alcove to find a ladder to your right. There’s another barrel holding enemy at the bottom, but he drops through a trap door shortly after you reach the lower area. Head out of the alcove and to the right. Move into the corridor to your right and open the door at the far end. Move away quickly right after opening it and have your ranged attack ready to take out two enemies with explosive barrels inside. A single shot should take them both out.

At the end of the room you’ll find a ladder with three Radiant Lifegems next to it. In the room below there are several enemies, including the barrel explosive enemy who fell through the trap door just moments before. If you’re patient enough you can wait to the left of the ladder (keep an eye out for the trap door) and use a ranged attack to take down the enemy with the explosive barrel. He may take a few moments to walk into view, but you can hit him squarely from this angle.

The room below is occupied by four Axe Demons, a Giant Club Demon that has fire shooting from his body, and an Ashen Idol. Being patient you can take out all the enemies using a ranged attack through the hole where the ladder is. You’ll have to climb down the ladder a little to get the enemies to move around, and it may take some time for all the enemies to move within your limited range, but it is easily possible to take down every enemy if you’re willing to wait.

If you don’t have a ranged attack, or just don’t care to wait around, you can climb down and engage them all at once. Try to avoid the Giant Club Demon until the others are down, and only focus on those that are closest to you. If you’re too far away from an enemy then you only have to deal with their ranged at tacks, which makes it much easier than taking them all on at close range. Once you engage the Giant Club Demon, try to move and avoid the fires that shoot from its body. It moves quickly when it wants to, so always try to stay on the move and behind it as much as possible.

There’s also another enemy in the cage on the far side, just above the room you’re in now. Watch out for it, as it launched fire bombs at you, but they won’t reach the entire area and he’s easily taken care of with ranged attacks from the ground floor. If you don’t move beyond the item on the ground (the one next to the rotting body), you’re generally safe from the fire bombs. At the least, do not focus on the caged enemy until you’ve taken out the closed Axe Demon and the Giant Club Demon.

Once the room has been cleared, pick up the Flame Quartz ring +3 near the bottom of the ladder. This ring increases fire defense. Now approach the Ashen Idol in the corner. This one if identical to the first one you encountered. When you reach the dune just ahead the idol will activate. Wait until the first set of lava fountains dissipate then quickly move to the idol and insert the Smelter Wedge to obtain another Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash.

Now head toward the door on the far side of the room, pulling the lever just in front of it in order to open the door. There is a Possessed Armors enemy with a flaming sword and bow just ahead beyond the stairs. As you approach these stairs it will take shape and begin attacking. If you wish to use ranged attacks then wait until it has full taken shape before you attack, otherwise you won’t damage the enemy. If it rushes toward you, prepare yourself for a series of flame sword attacks. Once it appears on the ground, look out for the capoeira-like spinning attacks it does with its sword.

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

As you continue to make your way another Fume Sorcerer attacks from far ahead of you. Once again you can attack it with ranged weaponry. Use the pillars lining the path as cover to avoid its attacks. There is a Human Effigy to the left, feel free to skip it if you don’t need one.

At the end of the path you’ll find a ladder. As you climb down it you’ll notice an invader waiting below, but once you get about halfway down several more enemies will spawn to the side. When this happens climb back up, and use your ranged attacks to take out the newly spawned enemies. This will make the battle below much easier.

With the other enemies take care of, climb down the ladder until the invader notices you. At this point quickly climb back up to get the invader to follow you. Fight him alone at the top, then climb back down the ladder.

There are burned remnants of people in the snow off to the left. If you move through them, you may find a few soul items. If you wish to collect these items, carefully move until two enemies pop out of the soot and immediately attack you from positions close to the left.

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

1A

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

There is a chest at the end of the upper area that holds two Bonfire Ascetics, but Maldron stands between you and that chest. If you engage the invader, he will not let you defeat him. Instead he’ll flee down the stairs. Maldron’s pattern of attack generally involves multiple strikes in rapid succession, then a brief pause before attacking once more. Block his attacks then strafe around him to easily land a critical blow from behind.

As you move down the stairs you enter an area filled with curse, and come across several enemies. Two alcoves lie to the right as you make your way down. An Ashen Idol also sits on the lower alcove. If you destroy it the curse effect will be removed.

Your best bet is to ignore the chest and the invader in the upper area, instead running down the stairs to the Ashen Idol to destroy it. Immediately head back up the stairs to avoid engaging a plethora of enemies. You might find yourself trapped inside the alcove with the idol if you aren’t fast enough. As you move down the stairs two Axe Demons will attack from two circular platforms, while a Possessed Armor waits around halfway down. The Possessed Armor cannot be defeated unless the Ashen Idol is destroyed.

On the way down you’ll find five Silver Talismen to the right, and an Alonne Greatbow +5 on the second circular platform where the Axe Demons came from. A chest rests at the bottom, but three Axe Demons will appear when you approach it. Inside the chest you’ll find a Majestic Greatsword.

1B

Travel through the mist door to your right, continuing down the stairs. Move to the far side of the area to find a Spell Quartz Ring +3 (increases your magic defense). Light the bonfire in the small room ahead of you, making note of the Minotaur head near the middle of the main room. You need a Scorching Iron Scepter to activate the head. You will find this item ahead.

Head to the left of the bonfire, picking up the two Magic Stones in the room beyond. Continue through the next corridor, down the ladder, and ready a ranged weapon. Once you reach the flaming statue at the end, there are several enemies to the right, including two explosive barrel carrying enemies and a Fume Sorcerer. Shoot the 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, continuing into the next corridor. Another flaming statue is just ahead, but another sorcerer waits in the corner to the left of the statue. It won’t appear until you move close, so move forward, but prepare to quickly back away as soon as it appears. Wait around the corner for the sorcerer to approach, and attack at close range where it is weakest.

Attack the flaming statue to move it down the corridor where two more Fume Sorcerers wait. If you move to where the first sorcerer appear you can easily target the other two at the end of the corridor with relatively safe cover.

Pull the lever near the gate and use ranged attacks to hit the enemies with explosive barrels inside the next room. There are quite a few so make sure you get them all, but do not enter the room or you’ll get hit by the explosions. When all the enemies you can see have been defeated, move into the room and make sure the enemy up the stairs to your right is also down.

At this point you have a couple of options. You need to continue down the next corridor, where another Giant Club Demon waits. But you can’t simply use your ranged attacks this time around, and if you attempt to fight within close range, the immediate area doesn’t offer much in the way of mobility.

You can attempt to attack it at close range in this small of an area, but it is really best to quickly run to the level just left of the demon and open the gate. You can also run back to the lever you passed before (the one we told you to ignore before). Pulling that lever will open all three gates and give you plenty of room to move around. In addition to that, the Giant Club Demon will follow as you move past the flaming statues, taking damage in the process. Once he attacks, it will hit the barrels, inflicting even more damage.

If you continue to move past the statues and use the barrels to your advantage you can easily defeat the demon without engaging him yourself. Once the demon is down, pull the lever to open the gate it was blocking and head outside. Go down the corridor to the left, and move into the next room. Climb up the ladder to obtain a Dried Root, and pull the level to raise the gate. This will make it much easier to reach the boss should you die and return to the last bonfire you lit.

Head down the ladder and back outside. Quickly make your way across the large chain and through the mist-filled door. Watch out for the enemies as you continue down the corridor to the left. These enemies are easily dispatched with ranged attacks, but if they get close to you they explode, catching any of the others around them on fire, and increasing their speed (only the exploding enemy will die). You’ll encounter two at first, then later down the corridor you’ll run into another set of three.

Snag the two Petrified Dragon Bones at the end, then head on through the doorway. As you make your way down the ladder, dark spirit Quicksword Rachel will invade and begin to climb up the ladder towards you. Simply head back up the ladder and fight her at the top.

With the invader defeated you can safely take the ladder down to the bottom of the area, or take a small detour to pick up a Dried Root. If you want the item, face the ladder and run towards the opening so that you fall to the ledge below. Defeat the crawler in the room to the side, then hop over to the room to find a Dried Root in the corner. Then you can drop down to the room below to continue.

Whether you take the ladder or the detour 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 hides a crawling enemy. To the left of that is a room with a Recollection and two Twinkling Titanite items, but a Fume sorcerer guards appears in the room if you approach the items.

The next two doors to the left and connected by a short hallway, with two crawling enemies behind the doors. The final door is the only one you actually need to enter to continue, and has two crawlers right behind it. One of them begins to explode as soon as the door opens, so prepare to move away and deal with the leftover crawler who will now be much faster. The simplest way to handle this situation is to back away into the middle of the room, use a ranged attack on the flaming crawler as soon as it reaches the doorway. If it’s still alive afterwards, simply let it get close, and roll to avoid the explosion that will destroy it.

Head through the door and down the ladder on the far side of the room. Once you reach the bottom, continue down the hall until you reach an open door close to the end. Through this door are several more crawling enemies. Use a ranged attack on one, which ignites the rest, greatly increasing their speed. No you’ll need to wait to see if any leave the room to pursue you. If not, then shoot one to get its attention, then wait until it’s close enough to activate the explosion animation. Then run towards the ladder and escape the blast. You don’t have to be that far away to avoid being damaged, but this is the easiest way to clear the room one enemy at a time.

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

Continue down the next hallway, and drop down through the hole at the end. The doorway ahead is the same one you entered earlier, when you walked across the chain. Go back across the chain to make your way back to the Minotaur head that required the Scorching Iron Scepter (the one right before your most recent bonfire). Insert the scepter to activate the room’s two lifts, one on the left, and one on the right.

Use the lift to your left to move up a level. When you step off the lift step onto the very next lift straight ahead. This lift moves quickly so you don’t have time to waste. Once you reach the next level turn right and head through the door at the end.

Beyond this door is another flaming Minotaur statue to your left, as well as an explosive barrel enemy a bit further down, a Possessed Armor also stands guard near the end. Hit the Minotaur head to destroy the Possessed Armor depending on where it is at in its patrol. If the closest enemy is not downed, use a ranged attack to quickly defeat it.

The right side of the hallway is now lined with alcoves. Destroy the barrels in the third alcove to find 15 Lacerating Knives. Continue up the stairs at the end of this hall to find another flaming statue at the top. Send it down the hallway to take down two explosive barrel enemies, leaving one last barrel enemy in the first alcove on your left, three flaming sword enemies, and two Axe Demons further down to contend with. Shoot the barrels some of the enemies are standing near to inflict significant damage, but try to only attack one enemy at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed in the narrow space.

The last alcove at the end of the hallway holds a chest that holds four Smelter Wedges. Collect the items and drop down through the adjacent hole to reach the hallway with the lifts. Move to the opposite end of the hallway to find a gated door. The Tower Key will unlock the door, and allow access to the lift beyond. That key can be found in another part of the area, jump down to section 2A to find the key.

Once you reach the upper level head up the stairs to spawn the first dark spirit Prowler you’ll have to face. Take it out, then approach the Ashen Idol at the crest of the stairs and insert a Smelter Wedge to obtain another Soul of Nadalia, Bride of Ash. Now head through the doorway on the opposite side of the room, this will spawn four more dark spirit Prowlers.

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

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

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

Continue your quest in Part 2...

Shack Staff

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