You're standing at the edge of the Ringed City, staring at a stone wall with a cryptic message carved into the ground. It tells you to ds3 show your humanity, and if you’re like most people the first time they played the Ringed City DLC, you probably stood there for five minutes trying every gesture in your menu. You waved. You bowed. You toasted. Nothing. It’s one of those classic FromSoftware moments that feels purposefully designed to make you feel a bit thick, but honestly, it’s one of the coolest environmental puzzles in the entire Dark Souls franchise.
The puzzle isn't just a gear check. It's a lore check.
Solving the Puzzle: How to Actually Show Your Humanity
To get past that wall, you have to leave the room entirely. Go back out to the swamp—the thick, murky water filled with those annoying locust men who keep talking about "eating." Stand in the water. Use a Young White Branch or the Chameleon spell.
Most of the time, these items turn you into a vase, a statue, or a box. But in this specific swamp, if you keep using them, you will eventually turn into a small, black, pulsing sprite. That's a Humanity. It's a throwback to the original Dark Souls sprites from the Abyss. Once you look like that little blob of darkness, walk back to the wall. A ladder will drop from the ceiling.
It’s that simple. And that annoying.
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Why the Solution Is So Weird
Dark Souls III is obsessed with its own history. The Ringed City itself is essentially a graveyard for the entire series, a place where all of time and space has crumpled together at the end of the world. By making you "become" a Humanity sprite, Hidetaka Miyazaki is forcing you to acknowledge the fundamental nature of the player character. You aren't just a knight or a sorcerer. You are a descendant of the Pygmy. You are a creature of the Dark.
The game doesn't want you to "act" human with a gesture. It wants you to reveal your literal, physical essence.
The Rewards Behind the Wall
So, why bother? Is it just for a shortcut? Not really.
Once you climb that ladder, you find the Purging Monument. This is a massive stone structure that is vital for finishing Lapp's questline. Lapp, who most players quickly realize is a certain "unbreakable" character with a penchant for kicking people down holes, has lost his memory. He needs to find the Purging Monument to remember who he is.
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If you don't solve the ds3 show your humanity puzzle, you can't help him. You miss out on the conclusion of one of the most poignant character arcs in the series. Plus, the monument lets you reset your "Hollowing" level and revive the Judicator Giant if you want to mess around with the Spears of the Church covenant mechanics again.
Common Mistakes and Misconceptions
People always think they need to be "Embered" to make this work. You don't. Being an Unkindled One in an Embered state is actually the opposite of showing humanity; Embers are linked to the First Flame, while Humanity is linked to the Dark.
Another mistake? Trying to use the "Stretch Out" gesture. It looks like you're being a little blob on the floor, but the game doesn't care about your physical posture. It cares about your transformation.
I’ve seen players waste dozens of Young White Branches because they keep getting turned into a ruin fragment or a statue. It’s RNG. You might get it on the first try, or it might take ten. Just keep popping them until you see the black sprite.
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The Lore Depth Nobody Talks About
The location of this puzzle is significant. The Ringed City was a "gift" from Gwyn to the Pygmies, but it was really a prison. The city is circular, walled in, and guarded by Silver Knights and Giants. By placing a secret that requires "showing humanity" to access the Purging Monument, the game suggests that the gods wanted to keep the cure for the Darksign hidden. They wanted the humans to forget who they were.
They wanted you to stay "hollow" so you wouldn't challenge their age of fire.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Run
If you’re currently stuck at this wall, here is the exact sequence to follow to ensure you don't waste your resources or your time:
- Stock up on Young White Branches. You can buy these from the Shrine Handmaid if you’ve given her the Xanthous Ashes, or just find them scattered around the Undead Settlement.
- Clear the area. Kill the two Ringed Knights nearby. You don't want them stabbing you in the back while you're trying to turn into a sprite.
- Stand in the swamp water. The transformation seems to trigger more reliably when you are actually in the liquid, not on the stone stairs.
- Walk, don't run. Once you transform into the Humanity sprite, do not roll or attack. Doing so will break the illusion. Just walk back to the "Show Your Humanity" carving.
- Climb the ladder immediately. Once the ladder drops, it stays there. You don't have to do the puzzle again on this playthrough.
After you reach the monument, make sure to head back to Lapp. He’s usually hanging out in the balcony area near the Shared Grave bonfire. Telling him the location of the monument triggers the final stage of his story, which leads to a helpful summon for the final boss of the DLC—and one last "classic" interaction that series veterans will appreciate.
This puzzle is a gatekeeper. It separates the players who just want to hit things with swords from the players who are willing to engage with the weird, obtuse, and deeply symbolic logic of the world. It’s frustrating, sure, but it’s also peak Dark Souls.