Aldwyn, The Scarred Duelist

She does not dodge. She stands, and the serpent feeds, and she stands again.

Build #3 in Series | Level 170 | Hero | Quality Affinity | No-dodge thrusting shield, aggressive counterattack focused

Status: Ready to Publish

Build Summary

Aldwyn is the third pillar of the Triad — the one who stands out of defiance, not habit or obligation. The Erdtree wants her dead, and she plants her feet anyway. She fights with a Dueling Shield looted from Messmer’s Shadow Keep, a serpent blade from the path Volcano Manor knew, and armor stripped from a dead knight’s corpse. Every piece she wears bears a serpent’s mark. Every fight is a ritual. She does not dodge. She blocks, she endures, she returns the strike — and when the prey runs, she lunges. Nine breaths of Focus. That is all the lunge costs. That is all she needs.

Stats

Character Overview

Level	170	Starting Class	Hero

Attribute Spread

VIG	MND	END	STR	DEX	INT	FAI	ARC
55	9	46	58	55	7	8	11

Derived Stats

Poise	71	Clears 51, 56, and follow-up light hit breakpoints — in-game verified
Equip Load	56.8 / 99.4	Medium load at END 46 — in-game verified
HP	~15,180	at 55 VIG
FP	75	at 9 MND — sufficient for 8 Impaling Thrust casts — Fextralife verified, in-game confirmed
Stamina	150	at 46 END — in-game verified

Strength is front-loaded at 58 over Dexterity at 55 for a deliberate reason: Quality B/B scaling yields identical AR either way, but Strength increases physical defense while Dexterity does not. That passive defense bonus is intentional — every point of mitigation matters when you refuse to dodge. Mind stays at 9 because Impaling Thrust costs only 9 FP, and 75 FP supports eight casts. The build treats Focus as a currency spent on distance, not damage. Endurance stays at 46 for the 150 stamina buffer — dropping below risks guard breaks on heavy boss hits after committing to the combat loop.

Equipment

Main Hand

Dueling Shield +25 (Quality Affinity, Ash of War: Impaling Thrust)

AR (1H)	638	AR (2H)	679
Scaling	B / B (STR / DEX)	Weight	9.0
Guard Boost	62.64 base at +25 (after infusion); 63.8 with Shield Grease	Crit	100
Skill	Impaling Thrust — 9 FP

“A ‘thrusting shield,’ or combined weapon and shield. Enables the wielder to attack and guard simultaneously. An armament once used in ritual combat performed to honor the Erdtree — a custom that had somehow remained within the realm of shadow.”

Two-handed 90%+ of the time. The R1 chain deals Pierce damage across a 4-hit combo with passive guard frames active during and after each swing — no L1 hold required. Impaling Thrust serves as the gap-closer: a single forward lunge costing 9 FP and 40 stamina, dealing Pierce damage that triggers the Spear Talisman’s counterattack bonus. The lunge trades nine breaths of Focus for the stamina that would have been burned sprinting across an arena. She arrives with her guard intact. The shield never drops.

Off Hand

Serpent-God’s Curved Sword (Quality Affinity, Ash of War: Parry)

Effect	Passive healing on kill — restores 2.5% max HP + 25 flat HP
Skill	Parry — 0 FP (medium shield parry frames)
Weight	4.0	Scaling	B / B (STR / DEX) at Quality

“Curved sword fashioned from a great serpent’s backbone. Embellished with traces of a forgotten religion. Restores HP upon slaying an enemy.”

Held passively in the off-hand 90%+ of the time while two-handing the Dueling Shield. The passive heal triggers on any kill — no attack required, no swing needed. It just works. For niche fights against parryable enemies (Crucible Knights, certain bosses), one-hand the shield, draw the serpent blade, parry → riposte → kill → heal → return to two-hand stance. The ritual loop doesn’t break. It sharpens.

Armor Set

Slot	Piece	Poise	Weight	Notes
Helm	Scaled Helm	11	6.8	Immunity 24 — serpent-scale plating
Chest	Scaled Armor (Altered)	30	15.0	Immunity 45 — altered by Boc at Roundtable Hold
Gauntlets	Scaled Gauntlets	7	5.3	Immunity 19
Greaves	Scaled Greaves	23	9.9	Immunity 35
Total		71	37.0	Immunity 123 total — clears 51 and 56 poise breakpoints, no Bull-Goat’s Talisman needed — in-game verified

The Scaled Set drops from Old Knight Istvan, the first Volcano Manor assassination target. Aldwyn wears it from head to toe — not as a trophy, but as testimony. The corroded metal reinforced with rock-hard scales is highly effective against non-physical attacks, complementing the Deflecting Hardtear’s physical-only protection. The scaled texture is serpent imagery in iron, not bronze. The corrosion matches the decay. When she put on Istvan’s armor, the duelist identity died. The Recusant was born.

Talismans

1. Spear Talisman

Effect: Increases thrusting weapon counterattack damage by 15%.

Triggers on ANY Pierce damage hit timed into an enemy’s attack animation — R1 swings, Impaling Thrust, and guard counter R2s all qualify. Also reduces the target’s piercing resistance by 15% during the counter window. Stacks multiplicatively with the built-in 30% counter bonus for approximately 49.5% total resistance reduction. Replaced the Curved Sword Talisman because Aldwyn swings into enemy animations far more often than she performs active guard counters. Guard counter damage boosting is handled separately by the Deflecting Hardtear in the Physick — no overlap, no wasted slot.

Source: Lakeside Crystal Cave (southern Liurnia of the Lakes) — chest near demi-human campsite. Weight: 0.5. Fextralife verified.

2. Ritual Shield Talisman

Effect: Reduces damage taken by 30% when HP is at maximum.

Only active at 100% HP. Any chip damage deactivates it until HP is restored. The kill-heal loop (Serpent-God’s Curved Sword + Taker’s Cameo = 5.5% max HP + 55 flat HP per kill) keeps HP bouncing back to max after each engagement, reactivating both Ritual talismans simultaneously.

Source: Leyndell, Royal Capital — West Capital Rampart grace, follow marble stairway south-southwest past Valiant Gargoyle, up to Royal Colosseum. Talisman at top of hill in front of sealed door. Weight: 0.9. Fextralife verified.

3. Ritual Sword Talisman

Effect: Increases attack power by 10% when HP is at maximum.

Pairs with Ritual Shield for dual activation at full HP. Together they grant -30% damage taken and +10% attack power simultaneously — but only when HP is at maximum. This is why the kill-heal loop matters. Every kill snaps HP back toward max. Every max-HP moment reactivates both talismans at once.

Source: Lux Ruins, Altus Plateau — chest in room after defeating Demi-Human Queen Gilika. Weight: 0.9. Fextralife verified.

4. Taker’s Cameo

Effect: Restores 3% max HP + 30 flat HP upon defeating an enemy.

Stacks with Serpent-God’s Curved Sword (2.5% max HP + 25 flat HP) for a total of 5.5% max HP + 55 flat HP per kill. Bears Rykard’s likeness with the same serpent scrollwork as the Dueling Shield — same mark, different brother. The cameo is the second link in the serpent chain: the shield came from Messmer’s keep, the talisman from Rykard’s domain.

Source: Reward from Tanith after completing 3 Volcano Manor assassination quests (final target: Juno Hoslow). Weight: 1.0. Fextralife verified.

Flask of Wondrous Physick

1. Deflecting Hardtear

Effect: Grants 100% physical damage negation on successful spontaneous guard. Up to 4 stacks, each granting +20% guard counter damage (max +80%).

Duration: 300 seconds (5 minutes)

Source: Furnace Golem, Gravesite Plain (north of Scorched Ruins). Fextralife verified.

2. Opaline Hardtear

Effect: +15% all damage negation. Stacks multiplicatively with other negation sources.

Duration: 180 seconds (3 minutes)

Source: Putrid Avatar, Minor Erdtree in Greyoll’s Dragonbarrow (Caelid, north of Fort Faroth). Fextralife verified.

Consumables

Shield Grease: Temporarily boosts guard boost. Closes ~20% of the remaining gap between base Guard Boost (62.64) and the soft cap, pushing effective Guard Boost to ~63.8. Applied before boss encounters for improved stamina retention on block.

Playstyle Notes

Aldwyn is not a turtle. She is a duelist. The Thrusting Shield’s passive guard frames activate during and after R1 swings without holding L1 — she blocks while attacking, not after. The Spear Talisman rewards this aggression directly: every Pierce damage hit timed into an enemy’s swing triggers a counterattack bonus. Impaling Thrust serves as the duelist’s lunge, closing distance for 9 FP instead of burning stamina on a sprint. She arrives ready to block. She arrives ready to swing. She never truly drops her guard.

Core Mechanics

Passive Guard Frames: The Thrusting Shield class has passive guard frames during and after R1 swings. This is NOT an active block — it absorbs chip damage but does not trigger the guard counter prompt. Active blocking (L1) is still required to open the guard counter window.
Pierce Counterattack Bonus: Hitting an enemy during their attack animation grants a built-in ~30% damage bonus for Pierce damage. The Spear Talisman adds +15% counterattack damage and reduces target pierce resistance by 15%, stacking multiplicatively for ~49.5% total resistance reduction. This applies to R1 swings, Impaling Thrust, and guard counter R2s — all deal Pierce damage.
Kill-Heal Loop: Serpent-God’s Curved Sword (2.5% max HP + 25 flat) and Taker’s Cameo (3% max HP + 30 flat) stack for 5.5% max HP + 55 flat HP per kill. Each kill snaps HP back toward maximum, reactivating both Ritual talismans (-30% damage taken, +10% attack power).
Damage Negation Stacking: Damage negation stacks multiplicatively in Elden Ring. Formula: (1 – negation1) × (1 – negation2) = effective multiplier. With Opaline Hardtear (15%) active alongside Deflecting Hardtear’s 75% non-physical gap, elemental damage is reduced to approximately 21% of its original value.
Quality Affinity via Iron Whetblade: Impaling Thrust defaults to Keen affinity. The Iron Whetblade (found in Stormveil Castle) unlocks Quality, Heavy, and Keen affinities when applying any compatible Ash of War. Quality is selected to maintain the build’s B/B STR/DEX scaling.

Stance Damage

Attack	Poise MV (Two-Handed)	Notes
R1 Hit 1	240.5	185 base × 1.3 (2H bonus)
R1 Hit 2	240.5	185 base × 1.3
R1 Hit 3	240.5	185 base × 1.3
R1 Hit 4	260.0	200 base × 1.3
R1 Full Combo	981.5	4-hit chain, 60 stamina total, Pierce damage
Impaling Thrust	200	No 2H bonus (disabled on skill). Mobility tool, not DPS replacement. 9 FP, 40 stamina, Pierce damage
Guard Counter (2H)	~36	~33 base + ~10% GC bonus. Boosted by Deflecting Hardtear stacks (+20% per stack, max +80%)

Combat Loop in Practice

Primary Loop — Aggressive Swinging

Engage: Two-hand the Dueling Shield. Approach with Ritual Shield and Ritual Sword active at maximum HP. Both talismans are live — -30% damage taken, +10% attack power.
Close the Gap: If the enemy is distant, fire Impaling Thrust (9 FP). The lunge covers ground without burning stamina on a sprint. She arrives with 150 stamina ready for blocking and swinging.
Swing Into the Attack: Time R1 swings into the enemy’s attack animation. The Spear Talisman triggers its counterattack bonus (+15% damage, -15% target pierce resistance) on every Pierce hit during the counter window. Passive guard frames on the R1 swings absorb incoming chip damage simultaneously.
Block When Committed: If the enemy commits to a combo chain, hold L1 for an active block. This opens the guard counter window.
Guard Counter: Press R2 within ~1 second after an active block connects. Guard counter deals Pierce damage — the Spear Talisman triggers here too.
Continue the Chain: R1 combos continue. Stance damage accumulates — 981.5 Poise MV per full 4-hit chain when two-handing. Most enemies break stance within two combos.
Kill: Serpent-God’s Curved Sword passive (2.5% max HP + 25 flat) and Taker’s Cameo (3% max HP + 30 flat) trigger simultaneously. Total heal: 5.5% max HP + 55 flat HP.
Reset: HP snaps back toward maximum. Ritual Shield and Ritual Sword reactivate. The loop begins again.
Repeat: The ritual never ends.

Boss Loop — Physick Active

Pop Flask: Deflecting Hardtear + Opaline Hardtear active. Five minutes of 100% physical negation on spontaneous guard, three minutes of +15% all damage negation.
Spontaneous Guard: Time the block within the guard window. 100% physical damage negated. Gain a Deflecting stack (+20% guard counter damage).
Guard Counter: R2 after the block connects. Boosted by accumulated Deflecting stacks. At 4 stacks, guard counter damage is +80%.
Gap Closure: If the boss repositions (Maliketh leaping, Radahn retreating), fire Impaling Thrust. 9 FP. Arrive with stamina intact.
R1 Pressure: Continue the R1 chain. Every hit timed into the boss’s swing triggers the Spear Talisman counterattack bonus. Stance damage accumulates toward a stagger or riposte window.
Transition: On phase transitions or kills, the kill-heal loop maintains HP for Ritual talisman reactivation. Pop a second Physick if the fight extends beyond 3 minutes.

Variation: The Parry Ritual

For parryable enemies — Crucible Knights, certain bosses — the shield drops to one arm and the serpent blade rises. One-hand the Dueling Shield. Draw the Serpent-God’s Curved Sword. Read the incoming strike. Parry. Riposte. Kill. Heal. Return to two-hand stance. The parry is not a detour from the loop. It is the loop compressed — parry → riposte → kill → heal → reset. The arena breathes again. A sealed coliseum cracks open. A dead tradition stirs. She doesn’t do it often. She doesn’t need to. But when she does, the parry is not a tactic. It’s a remembering.

Hidden Synergies Explained

The Kill-Heal-Ritual Cycle

Serpent-God’s Curved Sword and Taker’s Cameo stack for 5.5% max HP + 55 flat HP per kill. That heal pushes HP back to maximum, which reactivates both Ritual Shield (-30% damage taken) and Ritual Sword (+10% attack power) simultaneously. The next engagement starts with dual buffs active. The next kill refreshes them. This is not a sustain strategy — it is a perpetual motion machine. Every kill funds the next fight. The ritual is the engine.

Spear Talisman + Pierce Everything

Every damaging action in this build deals Pierce damage. R1 swings. Impaling Thrust. Guard counter R2s. All of them trigger the Spear Talisman’s counterattack bonus when timed into enemy attack animations. The build doesn’t need to choose between aggressive swinging and counter damage — the counter damage IS the aggressive swinging. Meanwhile, the Deflecting Hardtear handles guard counter boosting separately (up to +80% at 4 stacks), so no talisman slot is wasted on overlapping buffs.

Scaled Armor + Deflecting Hardtear

The Scaled Set’s corroded metal is reinforced with rock-hard scales, making it highly effective against non-physical attacks. The Deflecting Hardtear provides 100% physical damage negation on spontaneous guard but only 75% non-physical negation. The Scaled Armor fills that 25% elemental gap. Combined with the Opaline Hardtear’s multiplicative +15% all negation, elemental damage is reduced to approximately 21% of its original value during the Physick window. Physical is negated entirely on a timed block. She stands in everything.

Impaling Thrust + Stamina Economy

Sprinting across an arena burns stamina continuously. Against mobile bosses like Maliketh, arriving at the fight with depleted stamina means the first block might break the guard. Impaling Thrust costs 9 FP and 40 stamina — but it launches her forward in a single committed motion, arriving with 110 stamina remaining for blocking and swinging. She trades nine breaths of Focus for the stamina that running would have consumed. The math favors the lunge every time.

71 Poise Without Bull-Goat’s

The Scaled Set provides 71 poise across four pieces — enough to clear the 51 and 56 breakpoints and tank follow-up light hits without staggering. No Bull-Goat’s Talisman required. All four talisman slots remain available for damage, sustain, and mitigation. The armor does the poise work. The talismans do everything else.

Stamina Buffer: 150 Is The Floor

The combat loop costs ~133 stamina total (lunge 40 + R1 combo 60 + guard counter 33). That leaves 17 stamina for one additional light swing or block adjustment. Dropping Endurance below 46 would shave 8 points (to 142) and leave ~9 after the loop — that’s where a mistimed block becomes critical. 150 stamina is the floor. The 150 is enough to commit without getting caught empty on heavy hits. Keep it.

Lore & Narrative

The Serpent Chain — Four Links, One Symbol

Every piece Aldwyn wears points back to the same family. The same curse. The same war between siblings who should have stood together. Messmer was cursed by the serpent. Rykard was consumed by it. Ranni armed one brother against Marika’s own shadow. The serpent watched all of it. And Aldwyn wears its mark from head to toe — not as devotion, but as testimony.

“The bronze snakes coil across her shoulders, a brand that marks her traitor to the Erdtree. She did not earn that title through betrayal, but through faithfulness to a tradition the Erdtree forgot. This isn’t thematic decoration — it’s archaeology. Aldwyn is surrounded by serpents. Messmer, Rykard, the God-Devouring Serpent — all serpent-bound, all consumed or consuming. The shield, the talisman, the armor. Every piece remembers a serpent’s touch. Every piece bears a snake’s mark.”

The Dueling Shield bears serpent scrollwork identical to the symbol on Taker’s Cameo. The shield was looted from Shadow Keep — Messmer’s domain. The cameo was earned from Volcano Manor — Rykard’s domain. Same serpent mark. Different brother’s face. The Serpent-God’s Curved Sword sits on the alternate path to Altus Plateau, the one Rya from Volcano Manor revealed — the way the serpent bypassed the Grand Lift when it was blocked. The Ritual talismans mark the doors of a sealed coliseum where duelists once fought under ritual law to honor the Erdtree. Four pieces. Four serpent-linked locations. One chain: Shadow Keep → Volcano Manor → Ruin-Strewn Precipice → Royal Colosseum.

“They say she walks with serpents. Not beside them — inside them. Every death feeds the cycle. Every wound closes before it can scar. The shield bears the serpent’s mark, the talisman bears the serpent’s face, the blade bleeds the serpent’s promise. She does not dodge. She stands, and the serpent feeds, and she stands again.”

Bernahl — the former duelist turned Recusant — taught at the Warmaster’s Shack before joining Volcano Manor. He sold her the Parry ash of war for the serpent blade and the Impaling Thrust ash of war for the shield itself. Both from the same man. Both at the same shack. Both purchased before the manor revealed what it truly was. The serpent’s influence threads through every transaction.

“Some call it defiance. Some call it damnation. She calls it ritual.”

“The shield came from Messmer’s keep. The talisman from Rykard’s domain. The blade from the path Volcano Manor knew. The ritual at the arena door. All four bear the serpent’s mark. All four point back to the same mother, the same curse, the same war between siblings who should have stood together. She wears them all. Not as trophies. As testimony.”

“When the gap opens — when the prey flees across the arena floor — she does not chase. She lunges. The shield drives forward like a spear, like a memory of the first lesson every duelist learned: close the distance, control the space, make them fight on your terms. Nine breaths of Focus. That is all it costs. That is all she needs.”

Where to Find Each Item

Dueling Shield: Shadow Keep, Storehouse First Floor Site of Grace — turn left, take staircase up to narrow walkway/ledge where shield rests on corpse. Fextralife verified.
Ash of War: Impaling Thrust: Sold by Knight Bernahl at Warmaster’s Shack (Stormhill) for 1,000 runes. Also available later at Volcano Manor Drawing Room. Fextralife verified.
Iron Whetblade: Stormveil Castle — from Rampart Tower grace, head south down hallway, take east-side lift down, head north into great hall with Grafted Scion, turn left (northwest) through door to courtyard, use Stonesword Key on imp statue fog gate, loot corpse in armory room. Fextralife verified.
Serpent-God’s Curved Sword: Ruin-Strewn Precipice (Liurnia) — from overlook grace, take elevator up, go north to ladder, behind Land Octopus. Fextralife verified.
Ash of War: Parry: Purchased from Knight Bernahl at Warmaster’s Shack (Stormhill) for 600 runes. Fextralife verified.
Taker’s Cameo: Reward from Tanith after completing 3 Volcano Manor assassination quests (final target: Juno Hoslow). Fextralife verified.
Ritual Shield Talisman: Leyndell, Royal Capital — West Capital Rampart grace, follow marble stairway south-southwest past Valiant Gargoyle, up to Royal Colosseum. Talisman at top of hill in front of sealed door. Fextralife verified.
Ritual Sword Talisman: Lux Ruins, Altus Plateau — chest in room after defeating Demi-Human Queen Gilika. Fextralife verified.
Spear Talisman: Lakeside Crystal Cave (southern Liurnia of the Lakes) — chest near demi-human campsite. Fextralife verified.
Deflecting Hardtear: Furnace Golem, Gravesite Plain (north of Scorched Ruins). Fextralife verified.
Opaline Hardtear: Putrid Avatar, Minor Erdtree in Greyoll’s Dragonbarrow (Caelid, north of Fort Faroth). Fextralife verified.
Scaled Helm: Dropped by Old Knight Istvan after Volcano Manor first contract invasion (Limgrave, near Stormhill Castle). Fextralife verified.
Scaled Armor (Altered): Dropped by Old Knight Istvan. Alter at Roundtable Hold with Boc the Seamster. Fextralife verified.
Scaled Gauntlets: Dropped by Old Knight Istvan after Volcano Manor first contract invasion. Fextralife verified.
Scaled Greaves: Dropped by Old Knight Istvan after Volcano Manor first contract invasion. Fextralife verified.

Questline Connection

This build is deeply tied to Volcano Manor’s Recusant questline — by design. The Scaled Armor set drops from Old Knight Istvan, the first assassination target. Taker’s Cameo is the reward for completing the third contract (Juno Hoslow). The armor and talisman come from the same bloodline, the same mission. Bernahl — the former duelist turned Recusant — taught at the Warmaster’s Shack, then joined Volcano Manor. He sold the Parry ash of war that Aldwyn equips on her serpent blade, and the Impaling Thrust ash of war she applies to the shield itself. Both from the same man. Both at the same location. Both before the manor revealed what it truly was.

The Serpent-God’s Curved Sword sits on the alternate path to Altus Plateau — the one Rya from Volcano Manor revealed. The manor knew this route when the Grand Lift was blocked. The sword was left there like a marker, a reminder of how serpents moved when gates closed.

The Ritual talismans sit at arena doors with no guardians, no rewards, no dialogue. The colosseum is sealed. The tradition is gone. Only the memory remains, etched into stone and talisman.

The Spear Talisman, found in Lakeside Crystal Cave beneath Liurnia, honors the thrust-weapon tradition of arena combat — the duelist’s lunge, the counter-strike, the art of timing your blade into the enemy’s swing.

If there’s a connection to Malenia and her warning about the rot spreading, it’s intentional parallel. Malenia blooms when pushed to the brink — rot as weapon, rot as release. Aldwyn stands in the rot and refuses to bloom. She refuses to succumb. Whether she’ll hold is unknown. The serpent watches.

Build Philosophy

Why Ritual? Why Defiance?

Ritual operates on three layers. Mechanically, it is the loop: kill, heal, buff, counter. Historically, it is the Colosseum duelists who performed ritual combat while wearing serpent marks of treason against the Erdtree. By lineage, it is Messmer’s keep, Rykard’s domain, Ranni’s conspiracy — Marika’s children torn apart by the serpent. Aldwyn stands at the intersection of all three. The loop is the ritual. The ritual is the defiance.

The Erdtree wants her dead. She stands anyway. Not for the tree. For the serpent. Every fight is a duelist’s match. Every block is a vow kept. Every guard counter is an echo from a sealed arena that no longer opens. Every lunge is the first lesson every duelist learned: close the distance, control the space, make them fight on your terms.

She is not a turtle. She is a duelist. The Spear Talisman rewards aggression — swinging into enemy attacks triggers the counter bonus. The Thrusting Shield’s passive guard frames on R1 swings let her block while attacking. Impaling Thrust closes gaps without wasting stamina on running. The lunge is the duelist’s fundamental tool.

The parry is the arena’s memory — the purest expression of ritual combat. It feeds the loop: parry → riposte → kill → heal → reset. Ninety percent of the time, she stands behind the shield. The rest of the time, the serpent blade catches the strike and the arena opens again.

“She does not dodge. Dodging was for those who fled. She blocks, she endures, she returns the strike. That is the ritual. That is what they taught her before they threw her out. That is what she remembers when no one else speaks of the old ways anymore.”

“Her constant focus, her unbroken rhythm, her refusal to yield — these keep the rot at bay. Not forever. But for now. And the serpent watches.”

Comparison to Previous Builds

Build	Theme	Weapon Type	Combat Philosophy
Brynhildr Voss	Habit	Heavy STR	March forward, never stop
Sister Veyra	Corruption / Obligation	Faith Twinblade	Serve until you break
Aldwyn, The Scarred Duelist	Defiance	Thrusting Shield	Stand firm, let them come

All three refuse to fall. Different reasons. Same resolve.