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If you accidentally hit an NPC in Dark Souls and they are still alive, they can usually be brought back to normal. The standard fix is to request Absolution from Oswald of Carim, who becomes available in the Undead Parish after you ring the Bell of Awakening. Absolution costs 500 souls for each point of your Soul Level. If the NPC is dead, Absolution cannot bring them back, so the living-or-dead question decides which path applies.
Living or dead: the distinction that decides your options
The first thing to check is the NPC’s state. The community-maintained Dark Souls Wiki, hosted on Wikidot, describes Absolution as a way to reset hostility for most NPCs who turned on the player. It does not restore an NPC the player has killed. If the character has died, their services and any quest role may stay unavailable for the rest of that playthrough. Absolution mechanics reference
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So there are two situations:
- Alive but hostile. Request Absolution from Oswald, as described below.
- Killed. Absolution will not revive them. Plan around their absence.
Why the NPC turned hostile
The same mechanics reference states that most NPCs become hostile when the player removes more than 10% of their HP. This is a community-maintained figure that has not been checked against official documentation or every game edition, so treat it as the reference’s stated rule rather than a guarantee. In practice, the lesson is simple: a single careless swing can be enough to flip an NPC, and you should not assume a light hit is harmless.
How to request Absolution
- Stop attacking and retreat. Get out of the NPC’s reach so you do not kill them while they are still hostile. Player discussions recommend running away as a way to reduce risk. Treat this as sensible caution, not a guaranteed safe method. Reddit question
- Reach the Undead Parish bell tower and ring the Bell of Awakening. If you have not rung it yet, do so. Oswald appears there after the bell is rung. Oswald of Carim reference
- Speak with Oswald and choose “Request Absolution.” The wiki gives the price as 500 souls multiplied by your Soul Level, which you can read on your character’s status screen. Absolution mechanics reference
- Return to the NPC and check their state. Confirm they are no longer hostile before continuing. The reference documents exceptions, so do not assume every character will reset.
What Absolution costs
The price scales with your character’s level, not with the NPC you hit. The wiki gives two worked examples. Both are game-mechanic figures from the Dark Souls Wiki, with no publication date stated.
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| Soul Level | Absolution cost (500 souls × Soul Level) |
|---|---|
| 10 | 5,000 souls |
| 100 | 50,000 souls |
Because the cost climbs with level, a late-game character will need far more souls than an early one. Have enough souls on hand before you travel to Oswald.
What Absolution cannot fix
- Killed NPCs. Absolution does not resurrect them.
- Special cases. The reference notes characters whose state ordinary Absolution does not reset.
- Story outcomes. Paying the fee resets hostility for most NPCs. It does not guarantee every quest or storyline result will change.
Protect your route to Absolution
The Sin mechanics page on the same wiki advises avoiding the killing of Oswald, since he is the route to Absolution. Keep that in mind if you are fighting in the area around him. Sin mechanics reference
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Scope of this guidance
The mechanics described here come from the Dark Souls Wiki, which is community-maintained and does not state a publication date for the figures cited. They describe the original Dark Souls game. Confirm the steps and prices in the edition you are playing before relying on exact numbers, especially if you are using a remaster or a different release.
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