Dungeons

Two places in Dark Souls 2 never appear on the route to the throne. One is a covenant dungeon split across three entrances and paid for in Human Effigies; the other is a memory hidden at the top of a DLC tower behind two separate keys. Both end in an optional boss, and both are covered by our two area walkthroughs. This guide sets out what you need before you go, then summarises each run.

Area	How you get in	What you need first	Boss	Guide
Dark Chasm of Old	Through the Pilgrims of Dark shrines in the Black Gulch, Shaded Woods and Drangleic Castle	Join the covenant by talking to Darkdiver Grandahl in all three places, a Human Effigy per entry, Flame Butterflies for the beacons	Darklurker	Dark Chasm of Old walkthrough
Old Iron King memory	A set of glowing armor at the top of Brume Tower	The Tower Key from the ash cliffs, the Ashen Mist Heart from the Ancient Dragon	Sir Alonne (optional)	Old Iron King memory guide

Dark Chasm of Old

Speak to Darkdiver Grandahl in the Black Gulch, the Shaded Woods and Drangleic Castle and he admits you to the Pilgrims of Dark; from then on, sacrificing a Human Effigy at any of his three shrines drops you into a section of the chasm. Bring Flame Butterflies, because each section holds an Abyss Beacon that has to be lit before the boss will show. Our walkthrough starts from the Black Gulch shrine and takes the three sections in turn.

Black Gulch entrance. Follow the narrow tunnel into a small room and shoot the Abyss Ironclad waiting below rather than meeting its hammers. Deal with the Pretender the same way and the third enemy however you like, then go left to light the beacon and right to clear a small room, which lifts the mist and sends you back to the Black Gulch.
Shaded Woods entrance. The path leads to a room with two Dark Spirits and a Forest Spirit beside a pit. Pull or shoot the Tenebrous Rogue first, then kill the Forest Spirit before its Shockwave knocks you into the drop. Light the beacon, call the elevator from the far side, fight the enemies that arrive with it, and follow the path to a hole that returns you to the Shaded Woods.
Drangleic Castle entrance. Wade through the water to A Chip off the Ol’ Rock, then a Dark Spirit, then another Forest Spirit. Light the last beacon, backtrack to face a Phantom that ranged attacks handle well, and step through the cleared mist. Instead of the castle you arrive in the Darklurker’s arena.

Enemy	Threat	Our page’s answer
Forest Spirit	A spread of spells, sometimes a Sacred Chime with healing and knockback miracles	Poison Arrows, or a backstab; kill the chime carriers first
Abyss Ironclad	Two Greathammers that will flatten a small shield	Poison Arrows for a slow kill, or an Ultra Greatsword
Pretender to the Xanthous Throne	Great Chaos Fireball, Great Combustion, Flame Swathe and Forbidden Sun	Fire resistance makes it nearly harmless
Tenebrous Rogue	Bandit’s Knife and Mytha’s Bent Blade aimed at breaking your defence	One of the easiest kills here; arrows from range work
Underworld Deadeye	Compound Bow and Shortsword	Low poise; block with a small shield, corner it, or hit it while it dodges spells
Shadowveil Assassin	Relentless offence that dodges spells and arrows	Horizontal swings it cannot sidestep, or push it off the ledge
The Ghost of Princes Past	Agile, but blockable	Knock it into the nearby pit, or use ranged attacks and magic
A Chip off the Ol’ Rock	Great Hammer damage and a Greatshield that blocks everything	It stands where you can throw it into the pit; otherwise Poison Arrows

The Darklurker rewards patience. In melee, bait its Shadow Blade, which is easy to avoid, and punish the recovery; keep your distance when it starts Hellfire Barrage or Dark Soul Bomb, since both are simpler to dodge from far away; and keep targeting it while it goes invisible and teleports, because it can still be hit. At 60 percent health it splits into a clone. Melee characters should herd the two together so every hit has a chance to land twice and the ranged attacks overlap less; ranged characters should do the opposite and pick them off apart. Poison does nothing to it.

Old Iron King memory

The Crown of the Old Iron King DLC hides a memory near the top of Brume Tower for players who want a co-op challenge past the end of the tower. Two items open it. The Tower Key sits on the farthest ash corpse on the platform above the great ash cliffs, guarded by headless knights with clubs. The Ashen Mist Heart comes from the Ancient Dragon in the Dragon Shrine, which lies beyond Aldia’s Keep through the King’s Door, itself opened by the King’s Ring from the Undead Crypt. Our keys guide lists both items.

Travel to the Foyer bonfire, the third in Brume Tower, next to the giant kiln that powers the tower’s elevators.
Ride the iron ore lift to the left of the switch upward and step off at the balcony.
Take the elevator straight ahead and pass through the door the Tower Key opens.
One more elevator ends at a flight of stairs; climb to the round chamber where a suit of glowing armor stands.
Interact with the armor to enter the memory, where you can summon co-op partners. Sir Alonne waits at the end, and fighting him is optional.

Both areas connect to systems covered elsewhere. The chasm’s admission fee comes from the Human Effigies page, its covenant is in the covenants guide, and the boss souls you carry out are valued on the boss souls page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I enter the Dark Chasm from any shrine?

Yes. Each of Grandahl’s three shrines leads to its own section, and the walkthrough only picks the Black Gulch as a starting point; the Darklurker appears after the third beacon whichever order you take.

Is the memory the whole DLC?

No. Our page covers only the route from the Foyer bonfire to the memory and its optional boss; the rest of Brume Tower is not walked through on the site.

What else is optional in Dark Souls 2?

Plenty, from covenant belfries to the Shrine of Amana’s hidden merchants, but these are the two areas with their own pages. Everything else we cover is on the Dark Souls 2 hub.