Dark Souls Walkthrough Part 10 – Lower Depths

At the bottom of the run-off drains you have a tunnel that heads off in two directions. To the left takes you to the area you would have fallen down into if you failed the roll either. If you, then likely you took care of the Basilisk. Otherwise, they will be there waiting for you. Through this fight you can get the Ring of the Evil Eye. You must watch your Curse level build up throughout the fight and never be afraid to retreat for your curse level to drop some in this fight. If you choose this fight use the narrow passages that are around to avoid getting surrounded by the Basilisk. This also ensures an escape path in case of either low health or high potential of curse.

Once that has all been dealt with head back to where all this started and go forward. Take the corridor along but keep wary as there are a number of Slimes in the area. Head to the left and along this path you will find the way to Blighttown, which is closed off for now, and a merchant Domnhall of Zena.

Merchant Stock
Name                Souls                           Name                Souls
Gold Pine Resin        1000                   Crystal Straight Sword    4000
Helm of the Wise        12000               Crystal Greatsword        6000
Armor of the Glorious    15000             Crystal Shield            4000
Gauntlets of the Vanquisher    10000     Golem Helm            5000
Boots of the Explorer        10000          Golem Armor            7000
                                                            Golem Gauntlets        5000
                        Golem Leggings        5000

Restock on what you might need and upgrade if you have the spare souls. Now head back and go through the corridor to the left. Head right out of the corridor and follow the path straight to the staircase. Take it on downwards. Here you can grab the Heavy Crossbow. Nearby you will find another set of stairs leading down. This is not a bad time to revive as Human as there are summon signs around here which can be a big help in the upcoming battle. Call what you can and prepare for a boss fight as you head down the next set of stairs into the fog. There you will find the Gaping Dragon waiting for you.

Gaping Dragon
If you can, chop off the dragon's tail. This removes one of its attacks and gives you a new weapon, the Dragon King Greataxe. It has a number of attacks and all powerful though slow. If you remove the tail, it takes away the one attack it can adjust if you attempt to get out of the way. In general though it is best to dodge its attacks by running away. All of them are very large making it hard to properly roll away from and they will likely overcome your shield and spill onto your health. The one fast attack it has is its Jump attack but it is still easy to see coming and avoid. One attack you must be on guard for is its corroding ooze attack. It will raise its stomach and expel an ooze that will quickly cover a large portion of the combat area. It rapidly drains the durability of everything equipped so stay out of it!

Once you have removed the tail and close to melee, use a Gold Pine Resin to increase the dealt damage. This will end the fight very quickly. If not, run away and close the distance as appropriate. Stay out of its reach and this fight will be over with only some difficulty.

After all of this, you will get the key to Blighttown. Retrace your steps and go back up to the merchant. From there it is very easy to get into Blighttown.