Many previous players will remember the godawful Basilisks that inhabited the underground section of the first game, not only for their truly hideous art-design, but for their penchant for laying a curse on you that would half your health until you could seek out a certain character or curing item. In Dark Souls 2 if you happen to die when in the weakened 'Hollow' state (something you will be in an awful lot), you'll take a permanent hit to your life bar. The way around this is to snack on a Human Effigy (a consumable that reverts you back to your human state and replenishes your lost segments). Now this does tie into a bigger problem addressed in two point's time, but as another new feature limits the amount of souls/currency you can mine from defeated foes, there is every chance you'll end up at a bonfire just before a very hard boss, all out of Effigies with no way to buy any more, stuck at 50% health (they decided the maximum amount of your bar you can lose is half). Yes, this adds to just how hard the game is, and many more sado-masochistically-minded players are going to relish in how much this feeds into the bragging rights of "Well I beat Boss X on half-health!" but is it fair, really? Should you really be punished for getting to grips with the game by way of trial-and-error? There's a well-documented notion amongst the 'Souls community about being greedy with your attacks, and it does pay you to explore every area with a raised shield or a finger poised on the parry button, yet for anyone new to the series this will only turn them away - although that could entirely be the point.
