Prison Rock

Biodata

Leadership and Key Members

Setting and Society

Prison Rock has a wasteland-style aesthetic, though it is not literally a wasteland. Its interiors can combine modern technology, such as surveillance cameras, with rough dark-red stone construction and an absence of comfort-oriented furnishings. 131 132

Its player culture strongly prizes victory. Following the failed cross-boundary hunt, Zane's group retained an official reputation as warriors for morale purposes, but many Prison Rock players privately regarded them as disgraced losers. 184

• The region is governed by the Prison Rock Royal Court, including the Imperial Chancellor and other high-ranking officials. Royal guards wear dark-gold armor bearing the royal family's emblem. 194 222 193
• Its capital is Obsidian City. 188 193
• Its players are generally noted for powerful physiques and close-combat ability. The cross-boundary vanguards were mostly over 2.2 meters tall, with rough gray-rock skin, ore-like muscular sheen, and heavy metal armor. Not every player follows this pattern; Zane's relatively slender build and robes distinguish him from many of his compatriots. 119 185 118 184
• Prison Rock has undergone prior version updates before the events involving Nine Provinces. Queenie declined to disclose how many updates it had experienced. 181
• Sacred Mountain has a lava lake at its summit. Zhang Chongshan used a skill to hide within it while avoiding Prison Rock's players. 223

Reverence for strength also influenced Prison Rock's response to defeat. During Lu Xiu's final confrontation with its core players, some spectators stopped expressing anger and began openly respecting her, arguing that Gallagher and the others had been too completely outclassed for their loss to be shameful. 250

Dungeon Framework

Prison Rock's civilian-dungeon framework emphasizes barehanded survival combat. Players are deprived of weapons and placed in severe environments where they must fight enemies directly. 136

Design Characteristics

• Focuses on unarmed combat and combat-oriented enemy designs. 136 137
• Uses harsh environments and direct fights to the death rather than weapon-based progression. 136
• Relies on dungeon rules and balancing methods to compensate for constructors' comparatively frail attributes during verification clears. 139
• Was regarded by Queenie as a distinct construction path from Lu Xiu's roleplay-focused instances. 136
• Its combat-dungeon intelligence was considered valuable by Yan Fushou because enemy designs and attack methods offered insight into Prison Rock players' fighting styles, even without elaborate mechanics or roleplay systems. 135
• Its system instances were, according to Zhang Chongshan, essentially the same as Nine Provinces' system instances. His disappointment primarily concerned the civilian instances he had expected to offer a different experience. 153

Limitations Exposed by Nine Provinces

Prison Rock's constructors struggled to process the underlying mechanics of Nine Provinces instances such as Sekiro. Even Zhang Chongshan's simplified explanation of deflections, blade clashes, and posture bars caused Helag to react as though the concepts were unreasonable. 153

• Prison Rock constructors were generally not strong fighters themselves; those with exceptional combat ability were more likely to specialize as players rather than constructors. 139
• Helag considered Lu Xiu's highly selective, punishing design philosophy unsustainable for average players. 153
• Nine Provinces players later found Prison Rock dungeon enemies comparatively readable and full of openings after being trained by Lu Xiu's instances. 197
• Helag declared imitating Sifu impossible and accused Zhang Chongshan of supplying false intelligence. Zhang's subsequent description of Outlast also prompted accusations that he was a Nine Provinces spy. 152 153
• Some Prison Rock dungeons displayed SS ratings during the arena, but those ratings had been forcibly raised by the system for the event and did not indicate parity with Lu Xiu's similarly rated instances. 197
• Prison Rock's top players attempted to learn the Baker Estate, Mount Massive Asylum, and IMC combat scenarios, both to survive the arena and to give their constructors material to imitate. They continued avoiding Sifu and Sekiro, which they could not quickly adapt to and their constructors could not reproduce. 197

The comparison damaged Helag's standing within Prison Rock. Although the region had previously held its Chief Architect in high regard, the Royal Court's experience of Lu Xiu's instances made the difference in construction ability increasingly difficult to dismiss. 198

History

Vanguard Passage and Cross-Boundary Hunt

Twenty top Prison Rock players descended on Maple Leaf Avenue through the Vanguard Passage, intending to assassinate Nine Provinces Architect Lu Xiu. Their leader deployed the domain Abyssal Sea Sinking Fog to engulf the area and conceal the assault. 118

The invasion failed. Jian Li stopped six armored attackers from entering Lu Xiu's apartment building, while Lu Xiu personally defeated Zane and Thunder despite their superior combat reputations. 119 122 125 Jian Li subsequently returned after eliminating the six attackers, breaking the remaining invaders' morale. 126

• Queenie defected to Nine Provinces and received a 24-hour protection shield. 126
• Zhang Chongshan defected from Nine Provinces to Prison Rock, bringing knowledge of Nine Provinces players and civilian instances. 126 127
• Prison Rock's players left the event having failed to kill Lu Xiu and having lost equipment and skills through death. 184

Zhang Chongshan's reception did not amount to unconditional trust. Armed Prison Rock guards monitored him while he tested its dungeons, prepared to kill him if he behaved suspiciously. His dissatisfaction with its instances and the constructors' rejection of his suggestions led him to consider returning to Nine Provinces. 132 153 By the beginning of the arena conflict, he had escaped confinement, and the Royal Court was still seeking him during the subsequent fighting. 188 198 199

Cross-Realm Arena

Prison Rock initially entered the arena conflict with confidence in its physical strength, but its players were repeatedly disadvantaged by unfamiliarity with Lu Xiu's dungeons. Zane advised avoiding high-rated instances—especially Lu Xiu's—but Gran ignored him and selected the SS-rank Sekiro instance. 184

Prison Rock later adjusted its dungeon-selection strategy toward S- and A-rank instances, but Nine Provinces continued to exploit its experience with Lu Xiu's mechanics. 189 190

Lu Xiu's nine consecutive recapture-battle victories were a major turning point:

Prison Rock did capture several areas of Chen Capital early in the conflict, but these gains were outweighed by its overall losses. 187 188 In its own dungeons, familiarity with terrain allowed its players to break line of sight, manipulate monster aggression, and lure opponents into environmental hazards. This home-field advantage prevented an immediate rout without reversing Nine Provinces' advantage. 198

The recapture campaign produced repeated exchanges of territory and attribute bonuses: Prison Rock's strongest players could reclaim an area, only for Nine Provinces' Chosen Players to take it back later. Lu Xiu's absence from these later battles remained a source of anxiety because Prison Rock did not know whether she would resume challenging its defenders. 198

During Lu Xiu's verification of Dark Souls, the system's limited-time invasion event sent the dungeon's monsters into ongoing arenas and recapture battles. Prison Rock suffered heavily, and repeated deaths made even some Chosen Players reluctant to continue matching. The end of verification and the opening of the preparation period gave the region a badly needed respite. 198 205

Dark Souls Speedrun Conflict

Prison Rock viewed Lu Xiu's SSS-rank Dark Souls dungeon as a chance to compete from an equal starting point, since both regions initially lacked knowledge of its routes and mechanics. 205

That expectation failed when Prison Rock prioritized the rewarding but punishing hidden maps of the Painted World and Oolacile. The decision damaged players' confidence and delayed main-story progression. 222

• Nine Provinces won the first-clear speedrun 36:21. 224
• Fifty districts of Prison Rock's capital were transferred to Nine Provinces. 224
• By that point, two-thirds of Prison Rock's capital belonged to Nine Provinces. 224

Gallagher completed the main dungeon, but the discovery of routes unlocked by the Peculiar Doll and Broken Pendant revealed that his clear had omitted major hidden content. The Imperial Chancellor ordered him to enter again. 221 By the fourth day, Nine Provinces led 21:13, and repeat clears by top players could not increase their faction's first-clear total. Accepting that the speedrun was effectively lost, the Chancellor redirected exploration toward preparing hidden-map strongholds for the group battle. 222

The Painted World's narrow routes, blind spots, cliffs, and enclosed layout appeared especially suitable for turning map knowledge into a defensive advantage. Gallagher consequently came to understand why the Royal Court wanted to use it as a main base. 223

After the final territorial transfer, the Imperial Chancellor ordered an inventory of available items, equipment, and Survival Points. Even before the group battle, the Royal Court was preparing bargaining resources in case it needed to negotiate the redemption of occupied territory. 225

Dark Souls Group Battle

Prison Rock's Royal Court identified killing Lu Xiu as its primary path to victory after the system announced that an Architect's death would be worth five Core Bonfires. 226 Its forces were divided between routes through Firelink Shrine, Anor Londo, and the Painted World.

The plan collapsed under Lu Xiu's combat ability, the enhanced dungeon bosses, and Nine Provinces' coordination.

• Lu Xiu used Ornstein and Smough to turn an attempted ambush into a massacre of Prison Rock players in Anor Londo. 228
• Finn's mythic-grade Edge-less Prison domain failed to overcome Lu Xiu's deflections and neutralizations; he escaped only through an invincibility skill. 233 236 238
• Gallagher's team was devastated by Darkeater Midir, while Zane's force retreated after Sister Friede and Father Ariandel overwhelmed them. 241 242
• Zane's team killed Crossbreed Priscilla and briefly secured a Core Bonfire, but this caused Gwyndolin to hunt Zane and trapped his force against Nine Provinces players. 245
• Lu Xiu defeated Finn, Gareth, Gallagher, and the remaining core players; Nine Provinces secured four Core Bonfires and victory. 250 251

Lu Xiu's Anor Londo maneuver killed more than a hundred Prison Rock players and left the surviving force led by Tessa trapped deeper inside the city, where Nine Provinces pursued it. 231 232 Finn's subsequent report made the situation worse: he disclosed that Lu Xiu had fought him while simultaneously using skills against a Nine Provinces traitor elsewhere. Queenie described their opponent as a “dungeon aggregate,” whose abilities could be traced to elements of her constructed instances. 238

Killing Priscilla also imposed faction-wide consequences beyond Gwyndolin's pursuit. Previously neutral or friendly NPCs became hostile toward Prison Rock and would no longer assist its players. Zane acquired a special status allowing an enemy who killed him to claim points equivalent to a Core Bonfire; killing him through a teammate would merely transfer that status to the teammate. 245 247

Facing an unfavorable open battle, Zane, Gallagher, and Finn attempted to lure Nine Provinces into Midir's arena and sacrifice their own force to the dragon rather than surrender Zane's points. Lu Xiu countered with Lord of Cinder, allowing Nine Provinces players to survive the Abyss Laser and continue fighting with revival support. 247 248 251 Gallagher ultimately stopped attacking when he recognized that he could not win, asked whether Lu Xiu was an Apostle, and came to believe Queenie's account of that legend as he was defeated. 250

Following the defeat, Prison Rock's players largely fled from Lu Xiu and abandoned bonfires rather than confront her. 255 This avoidance continued throughout the following days: its first-echelon players failed to win a single match, while the second and third echelons also lost more often than they won. 254 255

Postwar Settlement and Exchange Visit

After the arena conflict, the system presented Nine Provinces with settlement options for the occupied territories. Under Forced Plunder Mode, its players could vote between permanent annexation accompanied by resource stripping and compensation through system-assessed resource deductions to redeem the territory. Representative Negotiation Mode instead allowed Nine Provinces' governing body to negotiate directly with Prison Rock under system protection, with the option of reverting to forced plunder if negotiations failed. Any resulting contract required the signature of the player ranked first in war contribution. 256

During the truce, Gallagher, Helag, and other Prison Rock Chosen Players and Architects visited Nine Provinces. Their goals included understanding their defeat and examining Nine Provinces' social foundations, material reserves, and player attitudes. 256 267

Cheng Xiu conducted the delegation's tour. Seeing ordinary elderly people living safely, and learning that Nine Provinces stopped monsters at its front lines, gave the visitors a different understanding of their opponent's society. Gallagher concluded that Prison Rock had little leverage in the coming negotiations and asked to meet Lu Xiu. 267

Gallagher offered cooldown items as a gift, prompting Lu Xiu to accept the meeting. Cheng Xiu brought the delegation to a primeval forest near Chen Capital, where they found her beside Xeno'jiiva, a sapphire-blue dragon. The dragon caught the box of items Gallagher handed over and returned it to Lu Xiu; when Helag demanded an explanation of the creature, Lu Xiu declined to provide one. 267

Relations

• Nine Provinces — Rival region and victorious opponent in the Vanguard Passage, cross-realm arenas, Dark Souls speedrun, and group battle. Subsequently hosted Prison Rock's truce-period exchange delegation while holding the stronger position in postwar negotiations. 118 224 255 267
• Lu Xiu — Nine Provinces Architect whose instances, recapture victories, and group-battle combat repeatedly shattered Prison Rock's strategy and morale. Gallagher later sought a direct meeting and presented her with Prison Rock's cooldown items. 194 224 250 267
• Coordination Bureau — Nine Provinces governing institution that studied and publicly released Prison Rock's civilian-dungeon framework after the first conflict. Cheng Xiu later guided Prison Rock's visiting delegation through Nine Provinces and arranged its meeting with Lu Xiu. 135 136 267
• Play Society — Organization of players who treat the gamified world primarily as a game; Zhang Chongshan belonged to it before and after joining Prison Rock. 153

Trivia

• Prison Rock's chief constructor was initially referred to as “Lord Helag” by its players, reflecting Helag's standing as the region's leading builder. 118
• Prison Rock's upper ranks eventually ordered Gallagher, Helag, and other Chosen Players and Architects to visit Nine Provinces during the postwar truce to study the region and meet Lu Xiu. 256 267
• During the group battle, Queenie could not return to Prison Rock because too few Prison Rock players remained alive to meet the system's voting threshold. 251
• Prison Rock's initial Constructor influence rankings appeared comparatively balanced beside Nine Provinces': Helag held 10,050 points, Derek 5,100, and Martin Abbey 3,600. Nine Provinces observers regarded this stepped distribution as a more conventional regional constructor ecosystem. 118