Bans, how to appeal them, and how to avoid them...

1. First, I do not know everything about the ban system, no one does. But it's also been roughly 10+ years since FromSoft started using anti-cheating measures, and we've had all that time to figure out how it generally works. This guide is meant to be the ultimate one-stop shop on information about bans, how to avoid getting banned, and how to get yourself unbanned. All of this information has been sourced from: anecdotal testing by myself and others, reliable community members who have developed mods for the game and have specifically had to deal with the anticheat, and the hypotheses which still hold up and match previous evidence. So yes, there is speculative information, since it is better to be overly cautious, but said information is marked as such, so act on your own discretion.

2. Second, This guide applies to DSR, DS2, and DS3. This guide does not apply to PTDE as that has no built-in anti-cheat and runs exclusively on community server mods due to the official servers shutting down as of October 25th 2022.

3. Third, I am sometimes a bit slow with updating this, but I respond to comments quickly. Subscribe to the comment notifications if you want to discuss anything relating to the guide, have questions, or want clarification.

The system can essentially be summed up in one sentence: "Whenever you go online, Dark Souls will scan all of your save files to detect any invalid data."

Again, this is speculation, but if true, then this rule also applies to DSR since it uses the same system as DS3 (not sure if DS2's system is the same in this regard, since it's based off an older network framework).

In DS3, this message says "YOU HAVE BEEN PENALIZED" instead. But it means the same thing as DSR's warning despite the difference in wording. It is widely reported that this warning isn't visible in all languages for some reason. If you suspect you might be softbanned: right-click on your game, click "Properties", and in the "General" tab set your language to English. This is confirmed to be the case for DS3, but I assume applies to DSR as well. DS2 does work for some other languages since I was able to find this Portuguese ban message[web.archive.org].

This is how softbans are supposed to work, it's the reason you don't get banned outright from even going online (FromSoft and Bandai likely know the system is quite flawed). In other words, if you play with a clean save for long enough, you're supposed to eventually get the restrictions on your account lifted.

But given the fact the last Dark Souls "game" came out in 2018, 8+ years ago as of writing (damn I feel old)...that's unlikely to happen.

I want to make this very clear; there is no way to play any Dark Souls game online and have full assurance that you won't wake up one day to a ban. This is due to a combination of cheaters trying to get people banned and possibly having ways to do it that aren't well-known, Bandai and FromSoft being very vague about what can flag you on the technical side, and also the fact that there are so many conflicting anecdotes that it's very difficult to know who to believe.

I don't want anyone to live in fear playing these games obviously, but it's true that it is not that uncommon to be banned and not really be sure why, I had it happen to me on DS3 and DSR. The good news is I have been more cautious and not been banned since, despite using build-creation cheats frequently. So my main piece of advice is to not worry, just be reasonably cautious and you'll probably be fine.

• Build Creation tools
  Cheat Engine is very weird. Do not use it if you don't know what you're doing. I've used it before and tried supposedly "safe" cheats in offline mode and ended up getting softbanned a little bit after I used those saves online in DSR and DS3.
  *I would not use CE online just to be safe, and make sure the app is completely closed when your game is online.

  What will absolutely get you banned are "residual cheats". So any cheat that modifies your save in a way that will flag your character, if you use one of them, then you'd better hope you backed up your save file. The rule of thumb for residual cheats is if you are unsure if it's residual, then don't use it. Some cheats that will 100% get you banned are: Modifying character stats or other flags directly, altering soul memory, and increasing soul count directly (just safely spawn in soul items, the safe way to spawn items differs between games), or giving yourself DLC spells when you don't have that DLC.

  For DSR players, instead of Cheat Engine, use DSR gadget[github.com] instead if you can; it's less of a hassle, safer for the most part, and generally says in the program what options will and won't flag you. (Still be cautious)

• Invaild Items
  Now, according to emails with Bandai customer support[web.archive.org], invalid items (items like an +18 Moonlight Greatsword that shouldn't exist) can no longer ban you (June 18th, 2020). This was one of the most prominent ways cheaters caused innocent players to get banned by forcing these items into their inventory. This did not mean that a player dropping an item in your world could flag you; only items that were in your inventory could flag you.
  *Although I would still be cautious of this, on top of the fact that some players report they still get banned for what they think is item injection (which probably isn't the case, but still enough to make me a tiny bit skeptical), the wording in the aforementioned email makes it almost sound as if invalid items not banning people was a temporary side effect of them changing the system, which lines up with the fact they re-enabled Steam Family sharing for DS3 which they also mentioned disabling, but who knows.
• Other types of apps
  
  For a general tip for third-party apps/DLLs, be very careful of any app that modifies memory; the games DO check for this, and it can get you banned. A lot of DLL mods like Wex Dust are perfectly safe, but don't automatically assume every DLL mod is safe.
• Mods
  The BIGGEST rule of thumb is to always check 2 things: what the mod author says about online mode, and what the comments on the mod say about using it in online mode. A good example of why idouble-checking this is important is DS2fix for SOTFS[www.nexusmods.com], it claims to this day (although ambiguously) that you can use the mod and not get softbanned...however, many people in the comments point out they either did get banned or that it likely will softban you (it will).
  • Reshade - Likely Dangerous. Some people have gotten softbanned when they only had Reshade and nothing else (This was the case for me in DSR). This does make sense because Reshade has to modify the game's memory to work. However, some people report it as being safe, so whether you decide to use it or not, it's up to you.

  • Texture Mods - Completely safe. If a mod only modifies textures, you will not get banned. This goes for every FromSoft game aside from newer ones with real anticheat, like Elden Ring. This also obviously applies to other kinds of mods, which are just texture mods, such as sound replacement mods and UI mods.

  • Weapon/Armour/Character mods - Depends. It used to be the case that if a mod changed an item in the game, it would almost certainly get you banned. This is still the case if it's a modpack that adds new weapons, but if it's reskinning and installed through UXM, you will almost certainly be fine. Almost anything installed with UXM is safe, but regardless of that, READ THE MOD DESCRIPTION AND COMMENTS

  • Graphics Mods - Depends on the mod. Check the description and comments as per usual.

  • Overhaul Mods - 100% lethal. This should be pretty obvious, but big overhaul mods alter so much of the game that they will unavoidably flag your account. This is why a lot of these recommend installing with Mod Engine, which is set up to automatically set you to offline mode.
  
  ABOVE ALL ELSE, read what the mod author and comments say about using a mod online! (Hopefully the point is sticking lol)

• Cheaters
  That's right! Cheaters can and WILL modify your save file to get you banned! There are 2 main ways to counteract this, which I will go over later.
  
  

  This list is based 99% off of anecdotes. If you are unsure of something, always err on the side of caution.

So you got hit with the ban hammer...Good news! If it's your first time, then Bandai will pretty much always unban you, but nowadays you'll probably get unbanned even if it's your 12th.

1. Delete your save file
   Deleting your save file will make it more likely for subsequent appeals to be accepted and for your appeal process to be faster. DO NOT reload your old saves when you get unbanned, unless it's a backup you know beyond a shadow of a doubt is safe.
2. Getting in contact with Bandai
   Go to the Bandai Namco support website for your region, or send them a nice email :)
   
   Europe:
   https://service-en.bandainamcoent.eu/app/ask/p/6892

   Asia:
   https://bandainamcoent.asia/contact-us

   North America:
   https://support.bandainamcoent.com/s/submit-a-case

   

   You will need a Bandai Namco account for this. If you can’t create one, you’ll have to email them.
   
   
3. Providing information
   Put in your information about the restriction
   
   Here is an example screenshot of how you should put in your information.
   Important note about your Steam username
   
   

   When you're entering your Profile ID, it is not asking for your username; instead, it is asking for the part of your Steam Profile URL AFTER "https://steamcommunity.com/id/". In my case, I would enter "Xeratonereal" in this field. Thanks to ohiowizard24 for pointing this out!
   
   
4. Wait till the magic happens
   Wait
   
   Your appeal could take a few hours to a few weeks to get processed; usually, it's about a week or two.

Unfortunately, the most efficient way to avoid bans in DS2 and DS3 is to be super paranoid. The best combo for avoiding bans is the Blue Sentinel mod + A save manager + DS3ConnectionInfo for DS3 players. I personally wouldn't be as worried if you're a DS2 player, since bans are a lot less common, but it's still important to watch out for them.

Anyways, save managers, cheaters messing with you aside, they are a helpful tool to have in a game like Dark Souls, where one misinput can mess up an entire questline with no way to go back. We have 2 good options for save managers:

• SoulsSpeedruns - Save Organizer
  Link: https://github.com/Kahmul/SoulsSpeedruns-Save-Organizer
  This is designed specifically for Souls speedrunners, but is perfectly usable for normal players (I mean...it's a save manager, so I guess what can you expect) Pros:
  
  • Very easy to set up
    
  • Supports other games if you set it up
    
  • Has a "Read only" toggle to prevent accidental deletion
  Cons:
  
  • No automatic backup feature listed, you'll have to rely on hotkeys
• EZ Auto Backup
  Link: https://www.nexusmods.com/site/mods/768
  Originally designed for Elden Ring, this is a much more general-purpose app that is a lot more configurable (albeit lacking some things like good hotkey support). In addition to many more options, it natively supports many more games out of the box. This is the app I personally have used for DS3, mainly for its auto-backup feature. If you like it, you should go support the mod author on Patreon[www.patreon.com] Pros:
  
  • Configurable automatic backups with history
    
  • A lot of options
    
  • Great game support
  Cons:
  
  • Visually...interesting, looks like it was made by a 14-year-old in 2003
    
  • Has a tendency to be flagged as a virus in Windows; this is a false positive though.

The Souls games have had mods to help players deal with cheaters since PTDE released on PC. The mod for DSR has its own section, so it will not be mentioned here.

With that being said, your options for somewhat up-to-date ones are pretty straightforward, both by LukeYui. This list doesn't include deprecated mods that have been effectively replaced like DSR Watchdog.

It is important to note that these mods are only "helpful" against cheaters; they will not completely negate their cheats.

This part of the guide ONLY applies to Dark Souls: Remastered, sorry DS2/3 fans.

So, how do you turn off bans in DSR? That's right, I said turn off bans, and this is not clickbait,
The answer is pretty simple now, by using a mod, yes there is a mod that disables getting banned. It sounds ridiculous but it exists and it's a must-have mod for everyone playing this game. (This mod will not "undo" your bans, just prevent them from happening)

This mod is called "Dark Souls 1 PvP Overhaul" by MetalCrow and it can be downloaded from here:

• Nexus Mods: https://www.nexusmods.com/darksoulsremastered/mods/466
  
• Github: https://github.com/metal-crow/Dark-Souls-1-Overhaul

If you have any questions about this mod, please read it’s Github page, if you still have questions you can ask on it's Nexus Mods page, or its Discord server. Please don’t ask questions like “Why did the mod change the size of my healthbar?!?!” on this guide, thanks!

Don't be a douchebag and cheat in PvP. This guide is to help honest players of the game, not cheaters.

I also want to say I really appreciate all the support given in every way, shape, and form towards this guide. The fact this has become one of the most popular DSR guides is mindblowing to me. You guys are amazing, and I really appreciate all the comments too.

Massive shoutout and credit to MetalCrow for his amazing overhaul mod and his Discord server for helping to answer questions relating to the mod and how DSR's penalization system works. And I also want to give a general statement of my appreciation for Yui and all of the amazing mods they've made for the Dark Souls community, both for cheating prevention and otherwise.

If you find any spelling or information errors in this guide then let me know in the comments.