Oscar, Knight of Astora

Oscar is a knight of Astora and plays a minor role in the Dark Souls story.

Appearance
Oscar is equipped with full Elite Knight armor, a Crest Shield, and a Longsword. What his face looks like is unknown.

Plot
Oscar appears in the very beginning of the game in the Undead Asylum, where he rescues the player character from incarceration by dropping a corpse with the jail cell key down the roof of the player's jail cell. He is later found dying, where he gives the player character five estus flasks (and, if the player had defeated the Asylum Demon in the first encounter, the key to escape the Asylum). He then dies.

Oscar is encountered again upon revisiting the Undead Asylum, as a hollow enemy. He drops the Crest shield and two thousand souls upon defeat.

Strategy
Oscar alternates between using his long sword two-handed and single handed, and kicking the player for heavy stamina reduction. His attacks are somewhat painful, but he also moves slowly for an NPC enemy, allowing for plenty of opportunities to heal. He has the heavy roll, making it easy to strafe him. Also, unlike other hollows, he does not heal. However, he also has very high amounts of hitpoints and it may take a while to chip his health down unless the player is bringing a good weapon or spells.

Backstory
Judging from the Elite Knight Armor description, Oscar was likely a high-ranking knight from Astora. Why he went to the Undead Asylum to rescue the player is unknown; no other characters make mention of him.

Removed Content
Oscar was originally meant to play a much larger role in Dark Souls. His removed dialogue suggests that he was to be a summonable in Anor Londo and the Darkwood Garden. In addition, he seemed fated to confront the player at some point in the game.