Demon’s Souls PS5: How To Complete Ostrava’s Questline & Fight Old King Doran

The average Soulsborne hides its side quests in plain sight. Saving Solaire in Dark Souls is a trial in and of itself, as is reaching the criteria to trigger the true ending in Bloodborne. FromSoftware knows how to make players earn their extra content, a fact which holds true all with the PS3 cult classic that started it all: Demon’s Souls.

BluePoint Games’ PS5 remake has given modern audiences an opportunity to dive into one of FromSotftware’s best games. Slower and more methodical than the average Dark Souls, Demon’s Souls caters to a style of play that’s often unseen in the medium. Patience goes a long way in saving Boletaria’s many NPCs.

Save for the Maiden in Black, Ostrava, of Boletaria is arguably Demon’s Souls’ standout character. Ostrava’s journey to confront his father takes him across the Archstone of the Small King in a tragic quest to right all that’s gone wrong. Unfortunately, Prince Ariona Allant’s charisma is countered by his cowardice. Ostrava isn’t going to get through Demon’s Souls alive – but you should take advantage of the prince while you can.

Edited on July 31, 2021 by Renan Fontes: Demon's Souls has some of the best side quests in the Souls franchise, both because of how well-written the core cast is but also the options you're given at every turn. Ostava's questline allows him to die at virtually any point in the game, requiring you to actively interact with and save him at different intervals – that's if you want to complete his quest, though. The beauty of Demon's Souls is that the game lets you sever arcs hours before they can properly begin. You can kill Ostrava the moment you meet if you want. Not just that, his murder is actually mandated for another side quest.

Killing Ostrava Early

Killing Ostrava early allows you to get the Mausoleum Key which unlocks the secret battle with Old King Doran (detailed below). Ostrava can be killed at any point in the game, regardless of how far his quest line has proceeded. In fact, two quests actually end up killing Ostrava as part of their narratives. Saving Yurt in 3-2 and allowing him to return to the Nexus causes him to kill a new NPC every time you defeat a boss.

Once everyone in the Nexus is dead (including Ostrava), Yurt turns his sight on you. If you choose to kill Yurt, you'll be able to start Mephistopheles' side quest. Mephistopheles more or less tasks you with picking up where Yurt left off, killing everyone in the Nexus. Naturally, this forces you to kill Ostrava as part of the quest line. Mephistopheles' quest is worth doing in full, but keep in mind it'll lock you out of virtually every other storyline in Demo's Souls.

1-1 Rescue

Ostrava’s questline begins in earnest during Demon’s Souls’ first stage. While you can’t level up until after defeating Phalanx – the stage’s boss – the Gates of Boletaria is a straightforward enough affair. Past the first fog gate above, however, is a hidden pathway that leads directly to Ostrava.

Take the stairs roughly 2/3rds of the way down, but stay on.
Fast roll onto the ledge directly opposite the stairs.
If done correctly, you can roll right on down to the platform Ostrava is standing on.
Alternatively, hold O and vault over the railing.
Kill all the Dreglings in the area to be rewarded the Brass Telescope.

Ostrava will inform the Slayer of Demons that they’re looking for their father, remaining in 1-1 for as long as players do. Upon exiting the Archstone or defeating Phalanx, Ostrava will move to the Nexus where he can be spoken with, offering important insight into both Boletaria’s history and King Allant’s court.

1-2 Rescue

So long as Ostrava is alive and has been rescued, he will always follow you throughout the Archstone of the Small King – needing rescuing every single time save for the last. Ostrava can be found immediately at the beginning of 1-2, trapped behind the left gate in the starting room with all of the Hoplite.

Speak with Ostrava to trigger his rescue and hear a warning about the Red Dragon burning bridges.
Walk just far enough onto the first bridge to bait the Red Dragon without getting burnt.
Follow the Red Dragon as it burns the bridge ahead.
Hook right into the watchtower and follow the lower staircase to the bottom floor.
Follow the left hallway to reach Ostrava, fighting 1 Dregling and 6 crossbowmen along the way.
Speak with Ostrava to receive Dark Moon Grass and set him on his way.

Do keep in mind that returning to the Nexus without defeating the Tower Knight will respawn Ostrava behind the gate when returning to 1-2. Since he’s already been rescued, however, Ostrava will try to patrol the area, potentially getting killed by the soldiers and Dragling in the process. If you need to leave the Archstone and come back for any reason, make sure to track down Ostrava immediately. He'll more than likely die if you leave him alone.

1-3 Expedition

The central conceit of 1-3 sees you chasing a Fat Official throughout the entire stage, setting up a final confrontation between the Slayer of Demons and the demons who have effectively corrupted Boletarian society. Unfortunately, you're abruptly gated off inside the courtyard before you can make your climatic march up to King Allant’s Palace. With Ostrava nowhere in sight, your only course of action is to proceed through the stage as intended.

Cut through the wall downright of the gate, killing 3 Soldiers blocking the path.
2 more Soldiers will be waiting around the corner, kill them both.
Take the staircase down and kill the Bandit.
Follow the path until reaching a staircase with a flaming boulder at the top.
Bait the boulder – ideally crushing 2 Bandits in the process.
Kill the crossbowman lurking to the right of the staircase before killing the Soldier at the top.
A Bandit will jump down in the second hallway up the staircase. Kill them before getting backstabbed.
Take a left up the second staircase and go through the fog gate.
Take a right down the hall and kill the Red Eyed Knight.

Take a moment to heal and breathe – the hard part’s just beginning.

1-3 Rescue

From here, you'll need to prepare for a rather lengthy battle against some of Demon’s Souls’ toughest enemies. Ostrava is just a moment away, but said moment will be filled with bloodshed.

3 Crossbowmen will be waiting at the very top of the staircase, guarding a Fat Official.
Take the ladder hidden to the left, leading to an area with 4 Soldiers, 2 Crossbowmen, and 1 Bandit.
The Fat Official from earlier will make his way up to the player – kill them quick.
Move on up the stairs after killing every enemy, fighting a Soldier midway.
Stop and bait the flaming boulder at the very top of the staircase, then kill the soldier.
Follow the path to a tight corridor where a Red Eyed Knight will instantly aggro.
Continue to follow the path, killing the three Crossbowmen stationed after the Knight.
At the end of the path will be a staircase leading directly to the gate the Fat Official locked you out of.

Make short work of any remaining enemies in the direct vicinity (mainly just Soldiers) before fighting the Fat Official himself, but take care not to idle. Ostrava will now be spawned behind the gate with an onslaught of demons ready to kill him.

Pull the lever to the right of the gate after killing the Fat Official.
Defeat the 2 Red Eyed Knights and 1 Soldier.
Speak with Ostrava to receive a Pure Clearstone.

As was the case with 1-2, returning to the Nexus without defeating the Penetrator means Ostrava will respawn in a position where he can fairly easily be killed if left unattended. It’s advised to simply complete 1-3 from this point on.

1-4 Confrontation

While intended as Demon’s Souls’ final stage, 1-4 is rather straightforward. It’s certainly more eventful than any other Archdemon level, but the path to King Allant is as linear as it is simple. The hardest challenge you have ahead are the 3 Black Phantoms at the start (who remain dead when killed), and the Blue Dragon.

Kill the 3 Crossbowmen ahead of the Archstone.
Kill the 3 Black Phantoms, preferably baiting one at a time.
Go down the right hall and kill the Crystal Lizard before it flees.
Head into the tower to aggro a Red Eyed Knight.
Head up the staircase and kill the 2 Crossbowmen as fast as humanly possible.
Another Red Eyed Knight will immediately attack the player, begging to be put down.
Exit the tower at the top to trigger the Blue Dragon.
Bait the Blue Dragon’s fire to kill the enemies on the bridge and run across when it’s safe – following the same principle as the Red Dragon’s bridge in 1-2.
Kill the Fat Official the Blue Dragon’s fire couldn’t touch.
Kill the Crystal Lizard up ahead before it vanishes.
Run up the stairs to trigger the Blue Dragon yet again.
Bait the Blue Dragon’s flames one last time and head up the staircase.

If Ostrava has survived the game up to this point, he’ll be sitting on the steps of the castle, crestfallen. When spoken to, he’ll beg you to kill Allant – believing his father to have become a demon – before taking his own life. As you head to the boss gate, Ostrava's Black Phantom will spawn and serve as a mini-boss before the battle with Allant.

Showdown With Old King Doran

Speaking with Ostrava in 1-4 is enough to get the Mausoleum Key, but you can also kill him in body form at any time to force an early confrontation with Old King Doran. Doing so obviously cuts off Ostrava’s questline, but it’s almost worth it for just how convoluted keeping the prince alive ultimately is.

Return to 1-1.
Take the first shortcut to the left of Phalanx’s arena back up the bridge where the first fog gate was.
Run all the way down the bridge, killing the Soldiers along the way.
Take a left into the soldier’s quarters to see a Red Eyed Knight guarding a Mausoleum.
Kill the Knight and unlock the Mausoleum.

Old King Doran will then challenge you to a duel. For those who simply want Demonbrandt – the King’s signature weapon – Doran only has to be brought down to 2/3 of his total health. Getting the Ancient King armor set, however, requires killing him outright. Doran hits fast and hits hard, leaving only one truly safe strategy.