Death



"A mysterious enemy appears before the arisen, whose face is unknown and always hasten, the form of the Grim Reaper, never let it take your breath, for it is named after Death."-Anonymous

Death is an Enemy in Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen.

Death in the Dragon's Dogma universe shares the same features as the Grim Reaper in popular mythological depictions. Larger than many creatures in the realm, Death has a black body that resembles that of a shadowy, tattered robe with no visible limbs. Thus, travels through the means of flight. Death's head also resembles a hood, with no visible face as opposed to the common skeletal depictions featured in mythology and popular culture. Using its tattered-like robed body as limbs, a scythe is gripped on the right side of it. Larger than it's own body, the scythe can impart fatal destruction even to highly skilled Arisens. A Bone Lantern rests on it's left side that allows it to cast Sleep.

It is theorised that Death is in fact the twisted form of Arthacos, an Arisen driven insane by loneliness and the unending labyrinth of Bitterblack Isle. To save his country from destruction, he was charged to offer one thousand human sacrifices to appease the Dragon who stole his heart. He continues his vigil still. Arthacos' accounts can be found in the form of ten epitaths scattered through the isle. Many of the noticeboard quests, specifically The Wages of Death, seem to also be written by Arthacos. When Death searches for you in the darkness, the whispering voice that drove him to madness can be faintly heard.

Information and Stats
Death is classed as a corpse-feeder enemy, and can be attracted to the presence of corpses or Rancid Bait Meat.

Further Explanation of Abilities
In terms of abilities, Death has only three. The first is a mid-range teleport that allows him to get the drop on the player. The second is Death's lantern, which Death will use to both Sleep the Arisen (blue glow) and seek the player out like a searchlight if Death loses track of the player. The third and most grave is Death's iconic scythe. A single touch will kill both Arisen and Pawns completely; pawns will be instantly forfeited with no chance of revival, and will have to be rehired later. Arisens however can use the "Reaper's Scorn", Wakestones, to revive from Death's attacks. The scythe sweep has a wide striking area, but should not be difficult to avoid if the player keeps on the move as the player battles. The Scythe can one hit kill any enemy as well, including Condemned Gorecyclops. Any enemy killed in this fashion however, will not drop loot or give experience to player.


 * Pawns often comment, "Death cannot be slain in one go"; Death has a great deal of health, and is designed to be battled over a number of separate encounters.
 * Death doesn't seem to be able to kill Metal Golems or any dragonkin (probably because the latter they can only be killed by the Arisen)

Locations
Death will appear numerous times throughout the various stratum and levels of the Bitterblack Isle, either searching for you as you enter a new area, or suddenly appearing in an area with a large amount of corpses. When he appears, it is usually advised to flee the area as quickly as possible. He can however be fought, and will leave if he sustains enough damage; he will also sometimes leave after killing your pawns or after a Wakestone is used. Any damage Death takes will carry over to any later encounters approached with him.

Bloodless Stockade Encounter Death's abode however seems to be the massive, pitch-black sewer tunnel-way in the far end of The Bloodless Stockade, in which the player can do battle with him in earnest. Death will depart the field after taking sufficient damage, but if the Arisen travels into another section and then returns, Death will have re-appeared. This location can be utilized until Daimon is defeated for the first time.

After Defeating Daimon Once Daimon is defeated, Death will leave the Bloodless Stockade and stalk the rest of Bitterblack Island indiscriminately. There is still an easy way to spawn Death. Much like the first encounter, Death can appear in the courtyard of the first area, The Garden of Ignominy, provided the stench of death there is high. This can be achieved either by killing of enemies, or more easily just using Rancid Bait Meat. If saurians are present in the courtyard, then Death is likely to appear there; if goblins are there, Garms are more likely to appear. The enemy variation can be changed by simply accessing and leaving a riftstone. After Death flees from too much damage, rezoning after dropping another bait can sometimes cause him to respawn immediately.

Spawning Death Infinitely Validity confirmation needed, method may have been recently patched.

Intuitively the following steps can be taken:
 * (1) When in the Garden of Ignominy defeat all enemies that spawn within the courtyard.
 * (2) Save the game.
 * (3) Stab the Arisen by using the Godsbane.
 * (4) Reload the save.
 * (5) Upon reloading drop a piece of Rancid Bait Meat. Death will Spawn.
 * (6) Damage Death as much as possible until he retreats.
 * (7) Zone the area by leaving and then re-enter.
 * (8) Repeat the steps 2-7 above to re-spawn Death again.



Strategies

 * Initially, the most effective strategy against Death is to avoid it. Whilst Death will sometimes show up suddenly in battles, prompting you to continue to fight or simply run away, it can also lie in ambush. If this is the case, you will hear an ominous ambience upon entering a new area - this should be immediately noticeable, as rooms typically have no background music until you engage in battle. Listen out for bells, chimes or whispering whenever entering a new area - any of these signs mean Death is probably searching for you. Death has a unique battle theme - if you hear a sudden shift in background music, it has likely found you. Listen for bells, or a constant humming/ringing sound.


 * If you have confirmed that Death is in the dungeon, turn your Lantern off. Also consider not giving your pawns lanterns. Death actively seeks light sources, so avoid spells or other sources of light. Avoid going near it, and you can avoid it's view.


 * Death's scythe has an extremely wide range, and a pawn or Arisen only need to be within the area of effect for it to kill. Avoiding a direct hit from the blade will not escape the effect. Death's scythe cannot be countered by Masterful Kill or Blocked with a Sheild. Pawns killed by Death are immediately forfeited, so do your best to keep them away from it.


 * The most troublesome aspect of Death is it's initial Sleep spell, indicated by his Lantern turning blue. Like the scythe, it has a significantly large range. Curatives help, though sometimes the stunning effect of being put to Sleep is enough to mean your end. It is highly recommended to have as high sleep resistance as possible when facing death, ideally a full 100%. Pawns especially will benefit from this. Spells or items that protect against debilitations can also help.


 * Death tends to float off the ground, and cannot be grappled. This, combined with the range of the scythe, makes melee a very poor strategy. Spellcasters and Bow users will have a much easier time against him, but should be wary for its tendency to teleport behind them suddenly.


 * The initial strategy of avoiding light can help in battle. If Death is unable to find any Lantern light, it will keep wandering around the room but rarely attack, only casting Sleep occasionally. As long as you and your pawns have a high Sleep immunity, then you should be able to keep attacking Death until it disappears or dies. Even with lanterns lit, applying Death's own hit-and-run strategy will in most cases be enough to allow you to battle it competently.

Additional tactics:


 * Eliminate any surrounding enemies before confronting Death. Pawns usually get distracted by them and easly fall prey to Death's scythe.
 * Death can be grounded with enough damage, or by ambushing it with certain attacks. Magickal Gleam can stun an unaware Death, allowing you to strike, or giving you time to run past it. Explosive barrels also do the trick.
 * In places like the The Bloodless Stockade, you can use riftstone beacons to cause moderate damage to Death. Get him close to one, wait until he begins to cast and light it up.


 * Strider/Ranger Tactic seen here. Shots to the head cause massive damage from bows and longbows. If equipped with blast arrows, assuming you have high enough strength between weapon attack and base attack, you can chain-lock Death infinitely, allowing you to kill him with ease as long as you have enough blast arrows. Using four Conqueror's Periapts will increase your damage significantly. (Periapts can be purchased from Fournival, and Blast Arrows purchased from Camellia's Apothecary in Gran Soren)


 * The magickal bow can do good damage with Sixfold Bolt in wide open areas, and Ricochet Bolt in close quarters. Explosive Bolts are also very damaging, but hard to activate when Death is above ground.


 * There is a blindspot just behind Death when he swings his scythe, albeit very small.


 * In areas such as the The Bloodless Stockade, the abundance of water can leave you drenched, and extinguish your lantern. This can work for or against you, depending on your strategy. If you wish to fight with a reliable light source, the Ring of Desiccation is extremely useful here.


 * Death can be defeated by having it fall into deep enough water or off a cliff, achieved by surprising it with Blast Arrows or Magickal Gleam. When Death appears above the bridge at the entrance Fortress of Remembrance, this is quite possible. You will gain the Experience, and but none of the item drops.


 * With 100% sleep resistance, Death is obviously much less of a hassle. You can confidently attack him when his lantern is blue, then stay out of his reach when it is yellow. This is a very effective strategy to use with Autonomy as pawns are very likely to die.


 * If Death does not 'see' you with his lantern and you attack him while he is stuck, he will never go into the cutscene where he disappears. This can be exploited either to kill him, or if you want to save and reload to affect item drops.

Rewards

 * Base exp - 420,000 on normal/easy mode, 840,000 on hard (can change depending on various factors).
 * Bone Lantern - Forging Material
 * Scythe Shard - Forging Material
 * Jewel of Summoning
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.2
 * Bitterblack Armor Lv.3 - (Rare)
 * Bitterblack Novelty Lv.3
 * Bitterblack Gear Lv.3
 * Bitterblack Weapon Lv.3 - (Rare)

Note: Death does not drop Elite Lanterns, they are instead obtained from Bitterblack Novelty items.