Rumble Royce

Once a member of a band of outcasts,  he fell protecting his brothers from a white skinned demon.  Now,  he fights a new fight to become king of the land of undeath.

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To the left is an optimized example of a loadout that this build supports.

This setup allows both weapons to be simultaneously enchanted-  and with the optional ‘Immolation’ spell activated it’s able to decimate most normal enemies in the game if taken one at a time.

Of course,  both the pyromancies in this example are mostly gratuitous-  the build can be operated much more sustainably by focusing on just Magic Weapon.  This is merely an interpretation of what the peak damage potential of this build could be.

Kill Ornstein 16k+ souls spent at Maughlin’s Pate/ Creighton questline. 5% chance to inflict 50% more damage with standard attacks, thrown items and spells. 16k+ souls spent at Maughlin’s

Replacing Magic Weapon with this spell in slot one should be considered more of a hypothetical ‘flex’ than anything.  Requires Maregold’s incense service to be cast.
Flash Sweat will always replace Flame Weapon in the second slot.  In areas where Flash Sweat is useful,  enemies are typically resistant to fire.
Repair is a mainstay of the third slot.  Only replace this with an abundance of Repair Powder on hand.
Warmth makes sense to replace either the second or third slots if those spells are sitting unused.
 

Stats Summary

SL: 165  (IMO the meta is somewhere between SL150-250)
Recommended Class: anything but Sorcerer 
Starting Gift: any

[consumablez|# consumables] This will be your stat distribution at SL 197, if you wish to level further try to improve on Vigor (Valid up to 50), Attunement (I prefer to bring this up to 60 because that will improve your cast speed, agility and allow 2 extra cast slots for some improved spellcasting) and ADP (Agility 105 or 110).

If you are starting this build from scratch, you have several options on how you ascend to SL197. I personally prefer starting as a Sorcerer, rush the Dragonrider boss x 2 (bonfire ascetic), kill Lycia of Lindelt and level INT/FTH to 21/21 ASAP. This allows you to access hexes in the first 10 minutes of the game (Vanille and SOTFS) by visiting Felkin the Outcast, making you a formidable caster already.

Some milestones to aim for:

DEX 12: Allows usage of the Rapier, an excellent finisher weapon for PvE and PvP.
INT/FTH 29/29:  Max scaling for Dark BNS.
INT 59: After maxing your Dark scaling, it's time to focus on maxing your Magic scaling. You can either do this before pumping in VGR/END/VIT thus resulting in an early/mid game glass cannon build (only recommended for experienced players that know how to roll) or pump those defensive stats first allows this to be a more forgiving build in PvE.
STR 40/VIT 22: I prioritize these stats latest, because there is no utility for this before you reach end game.

Equipment

Dark Rapier 
A finisher weapon useful in both PvE and PvP. The dark infusion is most optimal, defnitely if you buff it accordingly.

Dark Crypt Blacksword
Think about an Atom bomb. Think about Nashandra. Think about the Giant Lord.
After a wild night and nine months later this baby came into existence. The Crypt Blacksword has insane damage (primarly Dark, which in general has the least resistance in the game), an unusual moveset that excels at PvE and PvP íf you master it (switching between Ultra Greatsword and Ultra Greataxe) and a counter attack of 130 (thus resulting in the hardest hitting weapon in the game when counter attacking)! 
Be sure to buff it with Dark/Resonant Weapon for maximum agony at close range.

Sunset Staff 
PvE Dark Orb spam, 'nuff said

Magic Black Witch's Staff
A relative fast staff that offers insane versatility. With this peculiar spell loadout the staff is able to cast all spells in your menagerie with only a slight hit to your magic damage. 

Watcher's Shield
This tiny shield is a huge addition to our arsenal. It has excellent stats, can parry aptly, can function as a musical instrument (jokes aside, it will help you learn to parry better) and weighs only a couple of units. The low stability should not deter the avid user; never spam block, pay heed to rolling and trading hits with your CBS.

Binoculars
Allows for sniping in PvE.

Armor

Hexer's hood
Hands down the best caster headpiece. +1 INT/FTH and extra spell casts. An optional contender is the Kings Crown with +3 INT/FTH.

Throne Defender
Offers some hefty protection so we are able to trade hits effectively, plus fashion souls.

Engraved Gauntlets
An unique armor piece that gives a 5% chance to inflict 50% more damage with standard attacks and spells, in general a 2.5% damage increase and can instantly end a duel in PvP.

Havel's Legging
Offers some astonishing physical protection, helping general PvE traversing and trading hits in PvP.

Rings 

Third Dragon Ring
This ring has it all; increased health, stamina and equip load.

Clear Bluestone Ring +2
Increases casting speed quite noticably, mandatory for PvP and highly recommended for PvE.

Southern Ritual Ring +2 
Gives 3 attunement slots extra, which is desperately needed because our hexes and sorceries are quite demanding.

Royal Soldiers Ring +2
Allowing a respectable equip load whilst utilising the hefty Crypt Blacksword and the matching armor.


{anchor: consumables}
Spells 

PvP

• Resonant Flesh (self buff)
  A self buff adding 20% more health, making you more resilient. It only requires one slot to equip, duels usually end before this buff wears off.
  
  Dark/Resonant Weapon (weapon buff)
  Mandatory for the CBS, making it a lean killing machine. Resonant further improves upon dark damage, but costs souls and requires an extra slot (recommended if further increasing ATN).
• Affinity (offensive buff)
  This spell is a nightmare for most players, with INT/FTH 60/30 it casts 5 dark orbs floating over you- poised to strike at a nearby foe. It has high damage, insane tracking and saps stamina to boot. The projectiles travel quite slow, generally requiring several rolls of the opponent to dodge.
  
  Dark Fog (offensive spell + positioning manipulator)
  An AoE spell that rapidly inflicts toxic, draining quite some health over a medium time window. It inflicts panic in the mind of thy enemy, making them recklessly charge you aloft or cowering further back. The fog that is casted also hampers the vision of the enemy player.
  
  Crystal Soul Spear (offensive spell)
  The most damaging spell in your arsenal. Minor tracking included.
  
  Soul Shower (offensive spell + positioning manipulator)
  
  Minor soul arrows strike from above inflicting stun plus minor damage.
• Soul Spear
  The second most damaging spell in your arsenal. Minor tracking and only takes up 1 slot.
  
  
  Strategy
• Always maintain your self buff, Resonant Flesh
• Always maintain your weapon buff, Crypt Blacksword is insane when buffed
• Engage in battle with Affinity casted
• Duels usually start at mid/long range, with this in mind always cast Dark Fog to engage. The true power of Dark fog does not lie in the vicious ailment infliction, but in the vision and position manipulation. Dark Fog gives the enemy player 3 options;
  
  
  • Roll back, mayhap evading status ailment and be shrouded by the Dark Fog
  • Remain positioned in the fog, hampered by status ailment and shrouded vision alike
  • Roll forward, mayhap evading status ailment and posturing in close range to you
    
    When shrouded by the fog, you gain an opportunity to cast a Crystal Soul Spear and almost always landing it succesfully because of the intensive rolling and split second window to dodge.
    When they posture close range, allow Affinity to fire to inflict heavy damage as well combined with your Crypt Blacksword.
    
    
• Soul Shower is your second manipulator and set-up spell. Inflicting stun and minor damage from above if the player fails to roll out of it in time, or depleting his stamina in order to succeed. In both occassions, you can almost always follow up with a (close range) CBS to the face or a (Crystal) Soul Spear at medium/long range.
• The spells are are intentional in this order this allows for fluid casting & switching
• Your stamina bar exactly allows you to cast this barrage of agony when it's full and you are pre buffed, firing a Dark Fog, Crystal Soul Spear, Soul Shower, (Crystal) Soul Spear in a quick and relentless succession. Duels usually end at the end of this sequence. 
• Feel safe to trade with other brawlers wielding UGS and the like; with Resonant Flesh and TDR you are quite on par healthwise, with a buffed CBS combined with its counter strength you are almost always inflicting more damage than the other one.
• One handed R1 + R1 combo on CBS is insane, the first R1 is slow and looks like an opening for a counter attack on their behalf. When they get lured in, unleash the second R1 which follows extremely fast for an UGS- this almost always hits for tremendous counter damage.
• One handed roll/backstep R1 is a combo that sometimes hit two times, allowing you to really put the hurt on their knightly knightness when they least expect it.

This build has been written by the Dawnbringer, deemed one of the most excellent builds to take you all the way in PvE to PvP- from NG to NG+8!