More Dark Souls Tips

Some more tips after having spent a few hours in the game:

• The stability stat of your shield is crucial; it determines the amount of stamina required to block an attack.
• Spears and like weapons allow you to attack while keeping your shield up.
• The kick attack works wonders in disrupting shield-bearing enemies. Tap Fwd and quickly hit RB to kick.
• You can jump. Run by holding B while pointing LS in any direction, then release the button and tap B again.
• You can slide down ladders by pressing B.
• Keep an eye on your equipment weight. If you have less than 50% of your max weight, you can roll dodge (very useful). If you have less than 25% you're even quicker.
• Note that most weapons scale with certain stats (e.g. a given greatsword may scale with strength at grade C and dexterity at grade E; focus on strength if you want to use this weapon).
• If you die, make a priority of retrieving your bloodstain (all of your dropped humanity and souls) before dying again. If you die twice in a row without retrieving your bloodstain, it will all be gone.
• When you reach the first blacksmith, upgrade your gear. It's cheap and you can always farm for plenty more upgrade materials. Upgraded gear will often strengthen your character more substantially than simply leveling up.