What Levels Should I Be For Dark Souls DLC? The Complete Guide

As an avid Dark Souls fan who has played through the iconic Artorias of the Abyss DLC many times, I recommend being at least level 70, ideally 80-100 before tackling it. The additional bosses, areas and enemies are designed to challenge players who have completed the base game.

I‘ll provide specific levelling tips for different builds and playing styles. But first, let‘s look at why overlevelling for the DLC is generally a good idea:

Why Being Overlevelled for The DLC is Recommended

The Artorias of the Abyss DLC features lots of tough new content:

• 4 Bosses – Artorias, Manus, Sanctuary Guardian and Black Dragon Kalameet
• New enemies like Bloathead Sorcerers and Humanity Phantoms
• The Royal Wood, Oolacile Township and Chasm of the Abyss areas

The boss fights in particular rival and even exceed the difficulty of endgame bosses like Ornstein & Smough. For example:

So being a higher level gives you a safety net against these lethal encounters.

Gaming journalists and the wider Souls community back this up:

"The Artorias of the Abyss DLC features some of the toughest battles in the entire Souls series. A good rule of thumb is to be at least level 70" – IGN

"I‘d recommend being around SL 85-100 at least before trying it, probably after completing the base game." – u/Ashen_Shroom on r/darksouls

Now let‘s break it down further between specific builds, scenarios and how you want to experience the DLC.

Playing Blind vs Overlevelled

How you approach the Dark Souls DLC depends largely on whether you want to:

A) Play it blind, facing the unknown at just the base recommended level

or

B) Grind until you‘re 15-20 levels higher for security.

Both approaches have merits. Playing blind captures that pure first-time sense of danger and achievement. But being overlevelled lets you explore at your own pace without frustration.

As a Dark Souls expert, my personal recommendation is:

• Play blind first time at SL 70-80 for the real challenge
• Go for being "overlevelled" at SL 100+ on subsequent characters

This way you get the best of both!

But ultimately it‘s a personal choice – go with what suits your skill level.

Recommended Levels for Different Builds

Below are the ideal DLC entry points tailored for common Dark Souls builds:

Melee builds with high vitality and endurance have an advantage in dodging and recovering stamina. So they can get by at SL 80-90.

Whereas mage builds are glass cannons – lower vigor but high damage. So having 25+ extra levels to take a few hits is valuable.

Ultimately any build at SL 85-100 will have solid damage output and HP to stand up to buffed DLC enemies.

When To Attempt The DLC

The AotA DLC is designed as late-game content, made for characters who have:

• Completed Anor Londo and obtained the Lordvessel
• Defeated the Hydra in Darkroot Basin
• Reached the max level range through hours of grinding

So ideally, go through Anor Londo then wrap up any optional content before taking on the expansion.

Many players wrongly assume they can access it mid-game, hitting walls due to the difficulty spike. I don‘t recommend entering before SL 70 unless you enjoy frustration!

Don‘t Waste Levels Beyond SL 120-140

A common question new players ask is:

Can‘t I overlevel even more beyond SL 100 to trivialize the DLC?

I urge restraint! Going beyond roughly SL 120-140 gives strongly diminished returns for most builds due to the stat soft caps.

The online meta also centers around SL 120-125 to match most co-op/PvP groups. Limiting your level has other long-term benefits too:

• Replaying at higher New Game+ cycles stays challenging
• You can respec to try completely different builds

So there‘s no need to hit the 713 maximum level cap. Stay around 140 to retain fun long-term play.

Final Thoughts

To sum up:

• A minimum of SL 70, really SL 80-100 is recommended
• Tackle it blind first time then overlevelled for subsequent runs
• Go through the base game ending before attempting it
• Diminishing returns kick in past SL 120-140, no need to max out

I hope these levelling tips help you take on the brutal Artorias of the Abyss bosses confidently while keeping the game entertaining long-term! Let me know in the comments if you have any other questions.