Chosen Undead's History
The Chosen Undead is the player character and the protagonist of Dark Souls.
After becoming an undead the player character was imprisoned in the Northern Undead Asylum. They are rescued by Oscar of Astora, who drops a key into the player's cell so that they may be freed. After escaping from the Asylum Demon, they encounter a fatally wounded Oscar, who tells the player about a prophecy, stating that an undead shall partake in pilgrimage to ring the Bells of Awakening.
Oscar gives the player an Estus Flask and dies in peace, trusting the Chosen Undead to take his place. After defeating the Asylum Demon, the Chosen Undead escapes the asylum and is flown to Lordran by a Giant Crow.
Upon arriving in Lordran, the Giant Crow drops the Chosen Undead in Firelink Shrine, which acts as a hub for the player for the rest of the story. After hearing the location of the Bells of Awakening from the Crestfallen Warrior, the Chosen Undead sets out on their journey. Various characters can be encountered throughout Lordran, such as Solaire of Astora, a charismatic warrior seeking "his own sun"; the treacherous knight Lautrec of Carim; and Siegmeyer of Catarina, an absent-minded knight who frequently finds himself in danger.
On a rooftop in the Undead Parish, the player slays the Bell Gargoyles and manages to ring one of the bells. Later on, the player makes their way deep into the infested swamps of Blighttown. There, the player defeats the Chaos Witch Quelaag and rings the other bell. After ringing both bells, the gate to Sen's Fortress is opened.
After passing the trials to ring the two bells, Kingseeker Frampt, a primordial serpent, appears to task the character with another quest before they are deemed worthy as Chosen. The player must go into the city of Anor Londo and retrieve the Lordvessel from Gwynevere, Lord Gwyn's daughter. In order to complete the quest the player needs to traverse Sen's Fortress, an old proving ground built by the gods. After passing through the fortress and its many dangerous traps, the player battles the Iron Golem, and with its defeat gains the entrance into the forsaken city.
Once in Anor Londo, the player makes their way into the Anor Londo cathedral, where they face Dragonslayer Ornstein, of the Four Knights of Gwyn, and Executioner Smough. The Chosen Undead triumphs over them and gains access into the chamber of Gwynevere, where they are greeted by the Princess and awarded the Lordvessel. When Frampt sees that the player had completed their quest, he declares the prophecy set in motion and that the character is indeed the incarnation of the Chosen Undead.
The player is given the choice to put the Lordvessel on the Firelink Altar and proceed along Frampt's designs. In this instance, Frampt prompts that the Chosen Undead is the hero destined to succeed Lord Gwyn and extend the Age of Fire, continuing the curse of the undead. The player is also given the choice to place the Lordvessel for another ancient serpent named Darkstalker Kaathe, an agent of the Darkwraiths. Following this path will bring about the eradication of the old gods, and usher in the Age of Dark.
To gain access to Gwyn, Lord of Cinder, the Chosen Undead must satiate the Lordvessel. There are several beings who possess souls powerful enough to do so: Gravelord Nito, the Witch of Izalith, Seath the Scaleless and the Four Kings of New Londo.
Four kings grab
One of the Four Kings draining humanity from the Chosen Undead.
In order to defeat the Four Kings, the Chosen Undead needs to acquire the Covenant of Artorias, a ring that is kept by the Great Grey Wolf Sif. The ring allows one to traverse the dark void called the Abyss. Upon arriving in the ruins of New Londo, the Chosen Undead, with the help of Ingward, drains the flooded city, earning passage to the Darkwraiths and their masters. If the player has not yet placed the Lordvessel before defeating the Four Kings, Darkstalker Kaathe will appear in the abyss.
In The Duke's Archives the Chosen Undead confronts Seath the Scaleless, an albino dragon who betrayed the Ancient Dragons and won Lord Gwyn´s trust. During their first encounter, the Chosen Undead is unable to cause any harm to Seath and is captured. Seath imprisons the Chosen Undead inside his prison tower where the player cannot warp out from. Despite the inconveniences, the Chosen Undead eventually escapes.
Later on, the Chosen Undead learns from Big Hat Logan that Seath is immortal due to an ancient artifact known as the Primordial Crystal, an old relic that Seath stole from the Ancient Dragons. The Chosen Undead then departs to the Crystal Cave, where the artifact lies, and shatters it. This annuls Seath's immortality, allowing the Chosen Undead to slay him.
The Chosen Undead also travels to the Catacombs, where they defeat Pinwheel and acquire the Rite of Kindling. The Chosen Undead then descends into the Tomb of the Giants, where the scavenger, Trusty Patches tricks the player and kicks them off a cliff. The Chosen Undead survives and rescues Reah of Thorolund, a maiden who ventured into Nito's domain in search of the Rite of Kindling. Finally, the Chosen Undead advances toward the deepest part of the area: Gravelord Nito's tomb. There, they finish off the conductor of death.
Lastly, the Chosen Undead advances into the deepest part of Lordran: Lost Izalith. If the player speaks to Quelana in Blighttown it will be discovered that her mother tried to use her power to replicate the First Flame, but failed and was engulfed within it; eventually succeeding but at the cost of their former forms. This killed some of her daughters in the process and turned others into deformed creatures, and only Quelana and a Daughter of Chaos maintained the entirety of their human forms. Within the city, the Chosen Undead comes upon the Bed of Chaos, the source of all the demons that wander Lordran, and overcomes it.
After offering the necessary Lord Souls, the doors to the Kiln of the First Flame are opened to the Chosen Undead. Gwyn, now reduced to a Lord of Cinder, breathes his last breath in the final confrontation with the Chosen Undead. It is here that the Chosen Undead may make their decision of either linking the flame or walking away from it. Depending on which course of action is taken, one of the two possible endings will be unlocked. Whether the player has aligned themselves with Kaathe or Frampt will not affect the ending of the game.
Link the Fire: This ending is unlocked if the player rekindles the First Flame. The Chosen Undead offers themselves as kindling to the fire. Sacrificing all of their souls, the Chosen Undead is consumed by the flames and the Age of Fire is extended, as life is breathed into the First Flame once more.
Dark Lord: This ending is unlocked if the player leaves the arena after killing Lord Gwyn. Upon leaving, the Chosen Undead is greeted by the Primordial Serpents, who bow down before their Dark Lord. Rejecting the Age of Fire, the Chosen Undead instead ushers in the Age of Dark, and becomes the ruler of a dying world.
