Forest Hunter |
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| Kills | Rewards |
| 1 | Divine Blessing |
| 3 | Ring of Fog |
Forest Hunter is a Covenant in Dark Souls, popularized for its anything-goes pvp action.
You can join this covenant in the dark forest (in one of the towers joined by a bridge, past the sealed gate) by talking to the huge cat referred to as Alvina of the Darkroot Wood. Joining this covenant will result in Alvina giving you the Cat Covenant Ring, which she will use to summon you when other players, who aren't part of the Forest Hunter covenant, journey into the first part of the forest.
Having the ring equipped essentially puts you in a queue for PvP. When a non-Forest Hunter enters the area you will be summoned to "invade" them. It is possible for more than one Forest Hunter player to be summoned to invade a single trespasser (maximum of one other invader). You do not have to remain in the forest for it to work and you do not have to be in human form, though you do need to have it equipped.
Defeating a trespasser will often gives you a random titanite shard/chunk excluding red chunks (note that you do not need to land the killing blow to be credited with a victory). If the enemy is killed, you are returned to where you were standing upon being summoned and all of your spells and miracles are refilled. If you are killed, you are returned to the last bonfire you rested at, but do not lose any souls, humanity, or items. Defeated trespassers may use an Indictment on you if they possess any.
Killing any hostile creatures in the area (i.e. anything you can target) does not seem to affect your covenant status, though attacking Alvina, Shiva and any of the non-hostile NPC hunters will result in the breaking of the covenant. It seems that walking or rolling into one of the hunters in the forest can be counted as a betrayal, prompting them to ban you from the covenant and begin attacking.
This is the one and only covenant that has no betrayal penalties and also has the helpful effect of deflecting other betrayal penalties. If you join this covanent (after abandoning another without Oswald's help) you will not receive the penalties of leaving that previous covenant. However, if you get kicked out of a covenant, it will earn you a sin. (PvP Sin)
If you answer "No" to Alvina's first question she will refuse to speak with you until you absolve your sins with Oswald of Carim. Hitting Alvina (fists, spells, weapons) will result in the NPC leaving permanently. You will lose the ability to unlock the covenant and receive the achievement until NG+.
Joining
1. 
Reach Alvina at the Darkroot Garden, who stands just before the bridge linking to the ruined structure.
2. Accept covenant (choose "YES" for each questions )
3. Obtain a Cat Ring that will allow Alvina to summon you to defend the Forest.
Invading
Forest Hunters invade as a "Dark Spirit", but are blue. There are 3 spots to spawn as a Forest Hunter:
- On the ground, next to the stairs that lead to the sealed door
- Inside the small room that contains Alvina, right next to the doorway
- In the back of the forest, near the small pathway that leads to the bridge
Forest Hunter Rewards
Each successful invasion gives a small amount of souls based on the Soul Level of the defeated player and a random item. Note: You do not have to kill the host yourself, all you have to be is alive in their world when they die to receive the reward (Souls and Item). A list of possible reward items is shown below :
| Icon | Reward | Drop Rate |
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Blue Titanite Chunk | 10% |
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White Titanite Chunk | 10% |
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Green Titanite Shard | 25% |
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Titanite Chunk | 10% |
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Large Titanite Shard | 25% |
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Titanite Shard | 10% |
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Rubbish | 5% |
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Pendant | 5% |
Rank Requirements
Each successful defeat of a forest invaders is one point closer to a rank up. However, ranking up will net you no items, only a number.
| Rank | Victories | Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1 - 3 | If you speak to Alvina after defeating a certain number of forest invaders, she will reward you with the following: 1 kill: Divine Blessing 3 kills: Ring of Fog (can also be obtained through trade with Snuggly) 3 kills: After a loading screen Alvina talks about Shiva, and the distrust she has in him. |
| +1 | 10 | None |
| +2 | 30 | None |
| +3 | 80 | None |
Betrayal Penalties
- Attacking any covenant related NPC's found in the grove (Alvina, Shiva, non-hostiles forest guardians) MAY possibly lead to Betrayal
- There is no penalty for betraying this group (other than the npc's in the area turning hostile again)
Notes
POSSIBLE BUGS
- Be aware that once you join this covenant, RELOAD YOUR GAME IMMEDIATELY.The npc's A.I. becomes bugged due to one of them either dying or falling off the cliff. This ends up kicking you out of the covenant and making the Forest Hunters attack you.
- (This problem has surfaced for several players so might as well note this until a patch comes up to fix it.) ~Spamsilog
- Possible Fix: Before joining the covenant make sure that you kill all the human members that are after opening the gates and before reaching the tower where Alvina is at (there aren't any after that tower and before Sif). Once you are 100% sure that all of them are dead (just wander through the zone), join the Covenant. Shiva and his guard will spawn outside, but there is a bug that can cause his guard to fall off the cliff if the game is reloaded.
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When you join the Forest Hunter covenant, regardless of how you do it (abandoning other covenant or not being in any covenant), will make you sin. I couldn't find any apparent harm, as in, anyone acting hostile towards you or denying any services, but it is apparent and you can test it:
1. Start at Oswald, making sure 'You have not sinned'
2. Run to Alvina without killing any of NPCs
3. Answer her questions correctly and join the covenant
4. Make sure nothing's bugged, no NPCs died and you aren't attacked by NPCs
5. Run straight back to Oswald
6. Use the 'absolve sin' option and see that you, in fact, have sin now, simply by joining Forest Hunters
Regarding the Ring
- The Cat Covenant Ring ignores the normal level range for invasions. The invasion limit below is 20% under your level, but there is no limit upward
- Be ready to face any kind of situation: 1v1, 1v2, 2v2, or 2v1
- Some Players tend to "farm" the souls that Forest Hunters invaders award when killed, these players usually summon a phantom to help them and are well prepared, so be careful and remember to prepare yourself before trying to invade.
- As an invading Forest Hunter, you do not lose any souls if your phantom is vanquished (Killed by host or environment)
- Occasionally, there may be a bug making you a red phantom instead of a blue phantom. Even more rare, is when you spawn as a white phantom.
Achievements/Trophies
- Covenant: Forest Hunter - discover Forest Hunter covenant. ( 25 points + Silver Trophy )
Strategy & Tips
- Often there will be people farming invaders for souls. You will often find yourself in a 1v2 when first arriving to the forest. There are a few ways to even the odds:
- The most common way is to lure the player(s) to the enemies in the forest. There are a few enemies you can use:
- The Forest NPCs: a mage, a thief, a cleric, and a bandit. There are also 2 knights and an archer that do not respawn when killed (you may get lucky and the host has not cleared them yet)
- In the back of the forest, there are a number of treemen you can use to help you. Many times the host + white phantoms will get overconfident or overly aggressive, and will ignore the treemen. You can use this to your advantage
- If the above enemies are already killed, you can use the 2 giant mushroom men in the lower part of the forest. They are not as effective as the other enemies, but every so often they can get a lucky punch for a lot of damage.
- If the above enemies are already killed, your last option is the 3 bearcats by the bridge. However these do not respawn when killed, so the host has to have not cleared them out for you to use them.
- If there are no monsters, you can run and hide and wait for a 2nd invader. This will make the fight easier. If there are no monsters left, this is the preferred method.
- Sometimes, the 2nd invader will be a red phantom. This can be because Darkwraiths are also invading, or sometimes because of an apparent glitch in which someone summoned via the Cat Covenant Ring nonetheless appears as a red phantom. If this happens, be careful that you both don't attack the same person, since you can damage and kill each other. If you're feeling particularly brave/crazy, you can try to kill the red phantom yourself (it will reward you with souls after all), but generally it is to both of your advantages to work together, since you both have the same objective (kill the host). This is especially true if the host has white phantoms helping him, since a 2v2 is more advantageous than a 1v1v2.
- There are multiple places on the map where you can appear when summoned using the Cat Covenant Ring. The location tends to be the closest to the host, but sometimes you will appear on the other side of the area (perhaps because the host is rapidly moving through the area). This can actually be advantageous if you wish to utilize NPCs or wait for other allied summons as above. As a Darkwraith or other invader such as a Dark Moon Blade, the location you appear is tied to the location where you use your invading item, such as a Red Eye Orb. If you use it close to the bonfire, it will spawn you at the top of the stairs leading down into the area from the previously sealed door. The predictability of this location means you may often face a host or summons waiting for you as you arrive, so be prepared to immediately try to attack or escape. If you wish for a safer summoning location, you can also spawn at different locations if you move farther into the woods or over the bridge past Alvina prior to utilizing your invasion item. The tradeoff is that if you die during your invasion, you may have to also travel back to that more distant spot in your own world to recover any souls or humanity.
- There are 3 bridges in the forest area; they are good spots to go if you get double or triple-teamed, since they are only wide enough to allow one person at a time.
- The most common way is to lure the player(s) to the enemies in the forest. There are a few enemies you can use:
Anonymousthe only covenant that understands my skill level. No need for 30 kills to max out the covenant, only 3 lol
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
It’s curious that you can get every type of chunk except red
- Anonymous
So for PTD Edition with multiplayer disabled, the only function of this Covenant seems to be:
1. Making the Forest Hunter NPCs passive.
2. Dodging the betrayal penalties when switching covenants by using this one as an intermediary.
'cause I guess there's no way to level it (good thing is the Fog Ring can be obtained a different way), the only thing you miss out on is a bit of dialogue and of course interesting invasions.
- Anonymous
I shamelessly run down three newbies on every new character for the ring. Sorry lads
- Anonymous
Can i join again this convenant after I killed Shiva and his ninja for a ring?
- Anonymous
being in the covenant makes the small mushroom people friendly towards you, this makes this covenant the best one Fromsoft has ever created
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Had the same problem as a previous comment, not getting any of the kill rewards in NG+. Got everything normally in NG. On PS4 remaster.
- Anonymous
Ah man, those were the days, getting ganked and chain backstabbed. But also, outsmarting the ganks and making some friends.
- Anonymous
Honestly I wish more Covenants had an effect like this one does making the forest NPCs peaceful. Like maybe make the Anor Londo Sentinels peaceful with Princess Guard or something
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
This covenant is sad now. No way to do anything at all besides betray for the dark wood grain ring
- Anonymous
Not worth it, I think. Kicking/“Forcing” the 3 hunters out of the cliff is the best farm method I’ve found so far. 6.000 souls each time.
With a bit of practice, it takes very little time
- Anonymous
Very good in design, invade certain areas without penalty, if dark souls is a new game this covenant is a good opportunity for new players to try some invasions and win some useful titanite chunks (which is upgraded in DS 2, now you can get titanite chunks and slabs easily!). You still can be indicted, that's really good comparing to dark souls 3 covenant invasion which hosts won't get blue to help since new players can be easily killed and they need some help. You can get all rewards after winning 3 times, so you can only get 1 or 2 sin and go on to your journey, but you may also stay longer for pvp.
Hope elden ring covenant invasion can be a combination of DS 1 2 3, easy to get all rewards like DS 1, good to farm scarce resources for new players like titanite chunk in DS 2, and do some team fight with red against gank teams like in DS 3.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
"Hitting Alvina (...) will result in the NPC leaving permanently. You will lose the ability to unlock the covenant and receive the achievement until NG+". That's not true, at least not in a fully patches PTD edition. I killed Alvina, absolved my sins, and was able to joint Forest Hunters again.
If i get summed through a summon sign while im a forest hunter, and we get invaded by one, does killing the forest hunter that invaded count as betrayal or sin?
- Anonymous
"If there are no monsters, you can run and hide and wait for a 2nd invader. This will make the fight easier." This wiki man.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Shiva somehow got poisoned by the blighttown mud and then attacked me, and i got banned from the covenant, nice game.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
how do you join it if you accidentally said no to alvina at first? I was running through slaying the people in there and suddenly one i missed saw me and i dashed away to killl him and now she won't talk to me. I have tried relogging and going back to talk with and without killing the people there and she won't talk. I meant to say yes so they would leave me alone but i didn't realize dashing away counted me as saying no.....
- Anonymous
I got summoned via the ring and I killed the guy but the cat lady won't give me the divine blessing, any clues as to why?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
I just want to be clear about the betrayal part.
Does this mean I can just leave the covenant to farm souls and switch back without any consequences?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Is it ok if I kill the forest hunters after I leave the covenant
- Anonymous
I can't seem to get her to distrust the Eastern guy even though i've gotten the ring of fog and have warped and loaded in and out of the game.
- Anonymous
Youre only able to summon a SINGLE spirit when in this area. This is remedied by joining the covenant.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
The strategy and tips section is terrible. The more you fight 2 opponents at the same time, the more you become better at it (ganking doesn't give you the same skill). So, is not good advice to "hide". Be a man, and show them... you'll probably dye but the whole idea is to put up a good fight not just to win. If you are facing 3 opponents the single worst thing you can do is go to a bridge. Unless you are an OP coward Wizy or something... you need the mobility. Finally, as a Forest Hunter you don't spawn near the Host (or where the Host recently was) I think that's wrong; I'm not 100% sure, but I believe that it's random... Every point is possible but kind of related to your covenant rank, for some reason if you are Rank 3 you get way more spawnings near Albina. Instead as a Rank 0 - 1 you get more spawns near the bonfire stairs.
- Anonymous
I am wondering why I see white summons signs just at the bottom of the steps. If I would summon them, what would they do, help me in case I get invaded or help me if I invade a forest invader. The only other times I have seen summons signs is just before a boss. Thanks.
- Anonymous
Por favor é nesse pacto que você ganha o per da lentidão do oponente tipo o do gigantes de pedra ?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Why is it that everyone immediately summons phantoms to try and gank the forest hunters? I'm just looking for honorable 1v1s;if there are enemies in the area, I'll wait until they're dead to attack the host, I'll hang back if another forest hunter is already fighting, unless it looks like they're being 2v1'd, etc. And yet, for some reason, nobody else ever seems to care about honorable pvp. I invade in and within seconds see two if not 3 summoning phantom messages, before a massive number of white and gold phantoms come at me all at once. Is there any better covenant to join in order to get good 1v1 pvp without going all the way down to ash lake and joining the path of the dragon?
- Anonymous
If the cat chick disappeared in a white puff of smoke, will she come back if I get my sins resolved , it will cost me 50k to do this and I do enjoy this game time in this cov. But I am not up for waisting 50k either ?! Any help asap would be great thank you! Ps I'm aware I may have to wait till next walk through!
- Anonymous
I accidentally hit one of the NPCs guess I should just massacre everone
- Anonymous
What if your summons attack the forest npcs after you join? Because you yourself aren’t killing them but they’re dying or receiving damage in your world. Would that kick you out?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Question is okay to leave the covenant kill the npcs in the forest then rejoin or do I have to request my sin to be removed before they calm down
- Anonymous
Trophy still not unlocking. Have the official guide and followed each step. Ridiculous.
- Anonymous
Decided to do some PvP with this covenant in NG+, 5 hosts were killed (I know they were hosts since I received a pendant, two chunks and two large shards after all of that). I talk to Alvina after 4 kills and she does not give either reward, no divine blessing or fog ring. After the fifth kill she talks about how suspicious Shiva is, then resumes the same "how ya doin' out thar?" dialogue. What's going on here? Is the covenant bugged? Did I not follow some esoteric procedure that prevents me from obtaining the rewards for good? Not that it's THAT big a deal, I already have a fog ring from a Snuggly trade (can that cause issues?) and divine blessings aren't that terribly hard to come by (I have eight of them) but it's the principle of the matter more than anything.
- Anonymous
There's, I think, a really rare bug that is not related here. You can be summoned as covenant invader in the Darkroot Garden in a world where the gate is not opened. Of coursly there's nobody to kill and you have to wait the host die by himself or you to go back to your world.
- Anonymous
Clarification Needed - Wiki States: This is the one and only covenant that has no betrayal penalties and also has the helpful effect of deflecting other betrayal penalties. If you join this covanent (after abandoning another without Oswald's help) you will not receive the penalties of leaving that previous covenant.
Example: I'm level 2 in Chaos Servants and have not yet unlocked the shortcut door to Lost Izalith. If I join Forest Hunter covenant and abandon my current covenant will I retain my level 2 rank? Or will I get normal betrayal penalties and get ranked down to level 1?
I would love an answer. If it's wrong then it's pretty harmful misinformation.
- Anonymous
Is it possible to still invade others players this many years after the games release? So far I haven't found anyone and was hoping to get the ring of fog
- Anonymous
Important note that isn't mentioned in ANY of the Wikis. When you join the Forest Hunter covenant, regardless of how you do it (abandoning other covenant or not being in any covenant), will make you sin. I couldn't find any apparent harm, as in, anyone acting hostile towards you or denying any services, but it is apparent and you can test it: 1. Start at Oswald, making sure 'You have not sinned'2. Run to Alvina without killing any of NPCs3. Answer her questions correctly and join the covenant4. Make sure nothing's bugged, no NPCs died and you aren't attacked by NPCs5. Run straight back to Oswald6. Use the 'absolve sin' option and see that you, in fact, have sin now, simply by joining Forest HuntersSeriously. Not a single wiki lists this and it's quite major, in my opinion. I wanted to do a 'no-sin' walkthrough and was quite perplexed to see it's impossible to do if I also want to join this covenant at any point of the game...
- Anonymous
Will it count as a sin if I am summoned via white soap stone to fight other in my covenant
A hunter must hunt.
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