From this point on, all three diverging paths have roughly-similar difficulty, so you can choose your path without fear of being overwhelmed by anything. That said, there are varying threats in all directions, so you should try and stock up on a few resistance items. This is easy to do, as the previous area is very easy to farm for upwards of 5'000 doubloons a run.
The path with the dead trees and crumbling cliffs will eventually lead you to the outskirts of a shadowy stretch of wood, comprised of all dead and leafless trees. A tiny, narrow gravel path leads you inside of the creepy area, where you will find a flagpole to check your progress.
- OVERCAST FOREST -
Fittingly enough for what is clearly one of the scarier parts of the game, you are immediately greeted at the flagpole by a hooded spectre, who rises out of the ground beside you. Pausing momentarily to eye you, she then shrieks the word 'defiler!" in a raspy, resonant voice that sounds somewhat like a chorus of different voices, and charges you, taking a clean quarter of your health before you even begin, then dissipating into the air. Unfortunately, this is not the last time you will meet this phantom, as you will later see.
This area is 10/10 2spooky. Think Mirkwood Forest from The Hobbit, sans spider webs and with much more death. For the first stretch, there is nothing but dead silence, save for the occasional snapping of a twig, or rustling of the undergrowth. You will notice that a lot of the trees in the area have strange, eerie symbols carved upon them that seem to resemble small children, as well as branches that seem to sway at you with tendril-like fingers, as though to snatch at you. Moreover, there are many, many skeletal bodies strewn about, some of which will, predictably, rise as you come near.
Unlike previous games' skeletal enemies, there is nothing goofy about the way the Restless Remains act. They carry themselves with an air of tragedy and apathy, made evident in the way their skeletal jaws hang open mournfully, and moan softly as they strike. They carry woodcutting axes and bullwhips as weapons, and strands of cloth hanging between their bones indicates that these were once peasant folk, before meeting some tragic end.
The other enemy you will encounter in this first part are the Forest Magus, humanoid caster enemies who were a brown wooden mask very similar in appearance to the Green Man legend, depicting a face made of shrubbery and leaves. They are also dressed in a coat of leaves, giving them an earthy feel. As their name suggests, these enemies wield hexes, ranging from the typical dark orb/bolt attack to a special incantation that has its roots in the forest, Song of the Dead, where the player will be assaulted by a barrage of wailing children, causing their controller layout to be temporarily inverted. This brief period of confusion and panic can very easily lead to fearful players getting struck down by offensive hexes and skeletal gangbangs.
Occasionally, the Magus' will drop their mask.
Mask of the Overcast: Wooden mask crafted to resemble an ancient necromancer, long lost to time. This eerie headpiece bears the curse of the Overcast, the residents of the old forest residing on Dayle's northern Cliffside. It is said that the deathly screams which coincided with the abandonment of the forest still echo throughout the trees to this day.
The mask, which definitely resembles the old Giantdad attire, actually has the effect of halving your health, and maximising your physical attack output. This will always max out at 750, meaning that even with a +10 greathammer weapon (around 600 damage for reference), you will not be game-breakingly overpowered.
Items you can discover:
3x Bag of Salt
1x Remnants of a Beachlurker
4x Forest Charm: Single-use consumable that raises the power of tidal hexes for up to two minutes. Description reads: Token carried by the magus' that make the Overcast Forest their home. The woodland is brimming with spectral energy and haunted by restless spirits from a time long passed. This makes it ideal for the honing of tidal hexes, but not for the upkeep of a sane mind.
Hexing Gown: Robe/Gloves/Leggings of the magus' that make the Overcast Forest their home. Dark energy emanates from the very trees in the ancient forest, and this gown, sewn with cloth dipped in the blood of a bloated pig, has been crafted with the explicit purpose of harnessing these dark forces.
Wovern Idol: Item with no apparent use. Description reads: Effigy of the pirate king Wovern, alpha of the wolfpack that stalks the Barren Sea. The captain of the Darktreader is near-faultless in prowess, but falls foul of his own pride, giving great consideration to any member of his crew that worships him as a deity.
Additionally, there a few items to be scavenged here with the treasure hunt ability.
(Discovered in a hollow in a tree stump, requires 16 cartography): 4x Old Wax Candle: Prism stone equivalent, although this casts a much brighter light and can actually be retrieved and carried over long distances once placed.
(Discovered on a roll of parchment discarded in the grass, requires 17 cartography): Song of the Dead tidal hex. Description reads: Fearful tidal hex imparted by a long-dead necromancer to the order of magus that reside of the fallen realm of the Overcast. Casts a vortex that envelops its prey in an isolated state of mind for a short period of time. The spirits of the forest did not take well to the arrival of the heretical mages, and many of them were possessed, which ironically only bolstered the power of their hexes. (REQUIRES 25 INNER SOUL DARKNESS, 18 RESILIENCE)
Fortunately, the spell does not work on other players, and its sole use is for disorientating enemies. Curiously, it will not work on either the Restless Remains or the Magus'.
Finally, you reach the midpoint of the level, where a dark, babbling brook runs through the undergrowth, and a rickety old wooden bridge takes you over into the ruins of a small village, with wooden shacks overrun by ivy and mould.
As you cross this bridge, you are visited again by the hooded phantom, who rises out of the ground, this time simply pointing an accusatory finger before slamming into you and disappearing again. However, if you carry the Wovern Idol, which you are likely to have at this point, she offers a brief bit of dialogue before she attacks.
"You cutthroat killers... Why won't you leave us be? Have we not lost enough already?"
The village features similar enemies to before, with Magus sniping you from atop balconies whilst their skeletal companions rush you from all directions. However, there is an additional enemy introduced here: the Surge of Darkness. This enemy, which appears as a shifting, pulsating collection of foggy black mist adorned with white lights visually comparable to stars, is extremely dangerous, and if it gets too close to you, it will start to build up your Sea Madness count, as well as inflicting a less prevalent form of the Song of the Dead upon you, which only inverts the thumbsticks and only whilst you are in very close proximity.
Luckily, these enemies are very infrequent, although encountering one is akin to coming face-to-face with Slenderman. They have an incredibly disturbing movement pattern, slowly shifting their own mass in your direction in a manner which reminds one of a lava lamp, whilst humming and giggling like a child. They appear from absolutely nowhere as well, the first one materialising behind one of the houses whilst you are out front fighting the skellymobs, and slowly coming from around the back to get you. They have a large-healthpool, but do not respawn once killed. Also interesting to note is that if you have, for any reason, not killed the Magus from the prior section before coming to this part, they will deal far more damage and build up Sea Madness much faster.
Regardless of which order you slay the three that will spawn in this section, once all of them are down, the last one to be defeated will drop the hex Childhood, an incantation with a frightening description.
Childhood: Tidal hex originating in the Overcast Forest that has been prohibited in all forms, even by secret practitioners of the arts, and punishable with the worst forms of execution available. This hex, which was born alongside the simultaneous death of all of the village people's children, is a pure realisation of dark, and is said to harness the lifeforce of the deceased, agonising them even in death. (REQUIRES 42 INNER SOUL DARKNESS, 25 RESILIENCE)
This spell also has a spooky effect, as your character absorbs a flood of dark energy, before letting out a sharp, child-like shriek, which drops the defence of every enemy in the vicinity to minimal level for up to a minute. It even affects online players, meaning that there is no such thing as a Havelmonster in the metagame of Dark Seas.
You will also occasionally notice the hooded phantom watching you from a distance. This happens infrequently, but she can spawn anywhere, and will disappear after about ten seconds regardless of whether she has been noticed or not. She will vanish if you try and approach her, diving into the shadows accompanied by a chorus of whispers.
Searching the second half of the level, you can find the following items:
3x Dead Jellyfish
2x Bag of Salt
Spiteful Concord: Dark purple ring embellished with a bloody red jewel. Raises your physical attack based upon your Inner Soul Darkness stat. So, for example, if you have 300 PA and a 20 in Inner Soul Darkness, you will gain a +80 boost to your attack stat. Description reads: Jewelled ring signifying the unearthly pact between the forest of northern Dayle and the Overcast, the spirits that roam its grounds. The balance of the forest was broken when the magus' took residence, but in time, a shared affinity with the dark led the two forces to a fragile harmony.
1 x Sack of Salt - Grants 25'000 doubloons.
Shadow Brand: A longsword class weapon with a unique whip-like animation with R2. The blade, which appears to be nothing but a hilt on first glance, will flourish with dark power to form a literal shadow blade when attacking, and deals pure hex damage, scaling with Inner Soul Darkness. The description reads: Blade crafted by a magus swordsmith. The blade, taken from a broken hilt and re-forged in the darkness that seeps from the very earth, is a prized weapon of the order of magus that have taken up residence in the old woodland of Dayle, and is at its most powerful when it remains close to its power source. (REQUIRES 22 SKILL, 15 INNER SOUL DARKNESS, 17 DEXTERITY)
As the description suggests, the Shadow Brand's attack power is cut by a third when it is used outside of the Overcast Forest area, meaning it is a great weapon for cosplay and invasion only, as well as its obvious cosmetic value.
Malicious Staff: Catalyst for tidal divinations AND hexes. Tip is affixed with an effigy of an owl. Description reads: Staff hewn from the deadwood of the Overcast Forest. Steeped in dark energy, this staff is nevertheless able to channel tidal divinations, albeit with a greater emphasis on the darker elements of the energy force. (REQUIRES 36 ARCANE, scales with both Arcane and ISD)
8x Torch Splint
You can also summon a special NPC around here called Holy Woman Yancie, whose utility of New Age Charms is very effective against the enemies of this area. If you defeat the area boss with her, she will also give you her chime.
Yancie's Chime: Catalyst for New Age Charms, wielded with elegant efficiency by the clergywoman Yancie, a renegade pilgrim of Mattas' order. Yancie, upon hearing the legends of the devastation of the Overcast children, sought to purify the ancient forest, but was overwhelmed by the native magus' who have made it their home. (REQUIRES 21 ZEAL)
Speaking of area boss, it is pretty much time to face it. After battling your way through the abandoned village, you reach a sinister-looking gap in a rockface, leading you into a circular clearing whereupon a cutscene will play.
Stooped down low, in the centre of a puddle surrounded by jagged, inward-facing tree branches, is the hooded phantom. There are tears rolling down her cheeks as she slowly stands up, turning to face the player as her hands are slowly enveloped by a shadowy set of razor-sharp claws.
She speaks in a low, soft voice. "You should never have come. You should have left us well alone."
Her clawed hands slowly settle beside her body as she starts to glow with spectral energy, a cloud of black similar in appearance to one of the surges of darkness cloaking her in its protective aura as the giggling of multiple children grows more and more audible. Again, if you have the Wovern Effigy to hand, her dialogue will be slightly altered.
"You should never have returned. You should have left us well alone. The arrogance of man is his insufferable belief in his own immortality. Now, you will reap the consequences of such arrogance."
And so, the battle with The Lingering Dark begins.
This boss is pretty difficult until you have learnt its patterns. Attacking using her shadowy claws, the Lingering Dark's main ability is teleportation, which she can use to appear anywhere around you - including behind. Her claws will rack up bleed very quickly, as well as her aura building up Sea Madness the longer you stay within her proximity.
She can do a spinning slash, a twirling slash, and a downwards slash, and moves somewhat like the Wet Nurse from Bloodborne. At least, for the first phase anyway, as once she hits one-third health, she will dissolve in a puddle of dark, and reform as several, smaller versions of herself, each of them singing in its own unique voice as the children of the Overcast Forest fight as one.
They have a shared healthpool at this point, and all of them must fall for you to win. However, with about twelve of them, they all go down in about three hits.
Claiming victory is no easy feat, but the Dark is weak to New Age Charms as well as fire. Also, Yancie is very useful in this fight for the final leg, distracting the other phantoms whilst you whittle them down.
Defeating the Lingering Dark gets you 20'000 doubloons and the Forest Ink. The description reads: Ink tainted by the lingering darkness of the Overcast Forest, where atrocities led to the deaths of twelve children in an act of sacrifice. The forest is long-abandoned by the living, and now serves as home to an order of magus' from across the sea, who leech off of its stagnant dark.
The tattoo is of an unblinking eye, and bolsters resistance to curse damage.
You are also granted access to another flagpole, as the forest finally starts to thin out, and you are lead out onto a Cliffside, with an imposing stone fortress just ahead in the distance.
Warping back to the Dragon's Bounty, you can get more dialogue from Greta for defeating The Lingering Dark.
"You... You cleansed that foul forest, didn't you? I... underestimated you."
"In times long forgotten, even before the fall of Freegalia, that forest, and all of its residents, were plundered by Captain Wovern and his crew. You see, in their service to the Abysmal Angel, they sought the blood of the pure. A sickening ritual to be sure. It was long before either of our times, and yet, I thank you, for finally putting a bookend on the whole thing."
"The Abysmal Angel, you say? I couldn't tell you. All I know is that it's a load of baloney. Wovern was mad as a maelstrom. Still is, I suppose. Listen, if you ever heed a word of advice I give you, you'll stay well away from the Barren Sea. Only death awaits you there."
Samuel the vendor also offers new wares.
Old Wax Candles (800 doubloons each)
Remnants of a Beachlurker (800 doubloons each)
Cursewarder Set: Blue leather armour with a metal headpiece shaped like a fox's head. Description reads: Helm/armour/gauntlets/boots of the Cursewarders, elite members of Podrice's court. The fox, symbolic of survival, became a treasured mascot of the group. These soldiers were once dispatched to the distant Barren Sea, tasked with the assassination of Captain Wovern and his demonic crew. However, they never returned, and only their gear remains to represent their impact upon the world. (7'500 per piece, as the name suggests, the set grants resistance to curse)
Charmer Tobias also offers a new item for sale.
Eye of the Overcast: Pure black gemstone brimming with dark energy. The existence of such a stone, born off of the slaughter of children from hundreds of years ago, would be seen as high heresy, and, as such, it is unlikely that few have ever lain eyes on its deathly sheen.
Trinket spot: Extends duration of certain hexes, such as Song of the Dead and Childhood.
He also has a scrap of new dialogue: "Heading out to the Barrens Sea, are ye? Aye, be careful. There's a reason why nobody sane sets foot on those shores these days. The wolves are still on the hunt.
Warnings out of the way, you (foolishly) head back out to the fortress.