Unlocking Power and Purpose: A Deep Dive into Dark Souls Covenants
Covenants in Dark Souls are much more than just clubs you join for fun. They are pathways to unique rewards, gameplay experiences, and lore, adding significant depth and replayability to the game. Joining a covenant provides benefits ranging from access to special items, spells, and miracles to distinct multiplayer interactions and opportunities to delve deeper into the world’s narrative. Think of them as specialized skill trees and role-playing opportunities wrapped into one. Covenants change how you play, how you interact with the world, and the rewards you reap for your dedication.
Benefits of Covenants: A Detailed Exploration
The beauty of Dark Souls’ covenant system lies in its diversity. Each covenant offers a different path, a different set of challenges, and ultimately, different rewards. Let’s break down the key benefits:
1. Unique Items and Equipment
Many covenants grant access to unique weapons, armor, and other items that are unavailable elsewhere. For instance, leveling up in the Gravelord Servant covenant unlocks powerful pyromancies, while the Blade of the Darkmoon covenant rewards you with an Intelligence-based weapon buff. These items can significantly alter your character build and playstyle.
2. Spells and Miracles
Certain covenants are directly tied to specific schools of magic. The Chaos Servant covenant, for example, grants access to the potent Great Chaos Fireball pyromancy, a must-have for any pyromancy build. Similarly, the Warrior of Sunlight and Princess’s Guard covenants offer unique miracles that enhance cooperative play and provide powerful support abilities.
3. Enhanced Multiplayer Experiences
Covenants heavily influence multiplayer interactions. Some, like the Darkwraiths, focus on aggressive PvP, allowing you to invade other players’ worlds with the goal of stealing humanity. Others, such as the Way of White and Warrior of Sunlight, encourage cooperative play, increasing the likelihood of summoning signs from fellow covenant members. Covenants like the Forest Hunter and Bell Keepers have specific areas you defend, automatically summoning you to protect them from invaders. This creates dynamic and challenging multiplayer scenarios.
4. Covenant-Specific Quests and Events
Joining a covenant can unlock unique quests and events that are not accessible to non-members. Ranking up in the Chaos Servant covenant, for example, allows you to save Solaire of Astora, a beloved NPC, from a tragic fate. These quests provide valuable lore insights and enrich the overall narrative experience.
5. Deeper Lore and Worldbuilding
Each covenant is deeply rooted in the lore of Dark Souls. By joining and interacting with these factions, you gain a deeper understanding of the game’s world, its characters, and its overarching themes. The Gravelord Servant covenant reveals secrets about Gravelord Nito, one of the original Lords. The Blade of the Darkmoon shines a light on the dark justice of Gwyndolin. These insights add layers of depth to the game’s narrative.
6. Stat-Based Requirements
Joining some covenants has specific stat requirements, such as the 25 Faith needed for the Warrior of Sunlight covenant. These act as additional challenges for players to overcome, and encourage players to develop their character in a specific way to unlock the desired covenant’s rewards.
7. Unique Aesthetics
Some covenants allow players to alter their character to reflect the covenant’s aesthetics. Becoming a Darkwraith, for example, lets the player use the Dark Hand to steal humanity, which will give the player a hollowed appearance. Becoming a Vagrant can be done by dropping humanity, which will cause them to transform the player’s appearance, adding to the uniqueness of covenants.
FAQs: Your Burning Covenant Questions Answered
1. What happens if I join a covenant?
Joining a covenant aligns you with a specific faction in the game, granting you access to their unique benefits, rewards, and multiplayer interactions. You may receive an item or a spell immediately upon joining, and will gain access to the covenant’s multiplayer mechanics.
2. Can I be in more than one covenant at a time?
No, you can only be a member of one covenant at a time. Joining a new covenant will automatically overwrite your current allegiance.
3. What happens if I abandon a covenant?
Abandoning a covenant is considered a betrayal and may result in a loss of rank within the covenant. Some covenants, like Alvina’s Forest Hunter covenant, may become permanently hostile towards you. You will lose access to whatever benefits the covenant provides.
4. Does abandoning a covenant reset my rank?
Leaving a covenant will result in a decrease in rank. If you rejoin the covenant later, you may have to regain your lost progress. As the article mentions, you may only lose half your progress, but not all of it.
5. What is the easiest covenant to rank up in?
The Way of Blue covenant is generally considered one of the easiest to rank up in, as it passively summons Blue Sentinels to aid you when you are invaded. The Heirs of the Sun are also fairly easy, as you only need to place your summon sign down to help players defeat bosses.
6. What do I lose if I switch covenants?
When you switch covenants, you lose all covenant-specific benefits from your previous allegiance. Any spells, items, or abilities granted by the previous covenant will no longer be accessible. You lose your rank within the covenant.
7. Can you save Solaire without joining a covenant?
No, saving Solaire requires joining the Chaos Servant covenant and offering humanity to open a specific shortcut.
8. Do covenant levels carry over into New Game Plus (NG+)?
Yes, your current rank in a covenant will carry over into New Game Plus. However, be aware that abandoning the covenant before entering NG+ will still result in a rank decrease.
9. Is Solaire the Nameless King?
No, Solaire is not the Nameless King. This popular fan theory has been debunked by lore established in Dark Souls III.
10. How do I join the Blade of the Darkmoon covenant?
To join the Blade of the Darkmoon covenant, you must obtain the Darkmoon Seance Ring in the Catacombs and then access the hidden bonfire in Anor Londo.
11. What is Proof of a Concord Kept used for?
Proof of a Concord Kept is used to rank up in the Blades of the Darkmoon covenant.
12. Does switching covenants cancel missions?
Yes, switching covenants will cancel any ongoing covenant-specific quests or missions.
13. Can you get covenant armor in other games?
The mechanics for obtaining covenant armor vary across different games. In Dark Souls, most covenant armor sets are specific rewards for ranking up within that covenant. The article mentions that in one of the games, the covenant armor set must be the preferred armor type for the character that obtained it.
14. Are covenants permanent in real estate?
The article states that covenants naturally “run with the land” and remain in effect indefinitely, even when a home changes owners. It’s only possible to terminate permanent covenants when property owners reach an agreement or after a favorable HOA board meeting vote. These differ from covenants in Dark Souls.
15. Why are covenants important in religion?
Covenants are one of the most important themes in the Bible—they are the key to God’s redemptive plan to restore humanity to its divine calling. God sets specific conditions, and He promises to bless us as we obey these conditions. Making and keeping covenants qualifies us to receive the blessings God has promised.
In conclusion, covenants are a vital component of the Dark Souls experience. They provide a wealth of unique rewards, shape multiplayer interactions, and enrich the game’s lore. By carefully choosing your allegiance, you can tailor your gameplay experience and unlock new depths of the game’s challenging and rewarding world. The system showcases how games can be a powerful form of learning as players understand complex systems and engage in problem-solving to advance within their chosen covenant. To learn more about the intersection of games and education, visit the Games Learning Society at GamesLearningSociety.org.