Knight Artorias in Dark Souls

I've had a theory about the Soul's series and it's a bit of a long shot but I'm not going to get into that. What I wanted to know is: Are there any lore connections to Knight Artorias in vanilla Dark Souls? I can't come up with any and just want to see if anybody may know of some. Just to clarify, the DLC does NOT count for this question.

Solution 1:

There are multiple references to Knight Artorias in DkS 1 outside of the DLC.

• He was one of the 4 Chosen Knights under Gwyn.
• The Great Grey Wolf Sif was his companion, and he weilds Artorias' Sword.
• Artorias is mentioned as "the one who made a Covenant with Kaathe, to walk within the Abyss" (not a direct quote). This ring; Covenant of Artorias drops from Sif, and allows you to enter the abyss to fight the Four Kings.
• The Wolf Ring belonged to Artorias.

If you're looking for direct quotes containing the name Artorias there are a few:

• Wolf Ring: "One of the special rings granted to the four knights of Gwyn. The wolf ring belongs to Artorias the Abysswalker. Artorias had an unbendable will of steel, and was unmatched with a greatsword."
• Covenant of Artorias: "This ring symbolizes Knight Artorias' covenant with the beasts of the Abyss. Its wearer, like Artorias himself, can traverse the abyss."

Graveyard Edit: (Can't believe I left this out) The swords forged from the Soul of Sif also reference Artorias.

• Greatsword of Artorias: "Sword born from the soul of the great grey wolf Sif, guardian of the grave of the Abysswalker Knight Artorias. Sir Artorias hunted the Darkwraiths, and his sword strikes harder against dark servants."
• Cursed Greatsword of Artorias: "Sword born from the soul of the great grey wolf Sif, guardian of the grave of the Abysswalker Knight Artorias. The sword can damage ghosts, as it was cursed when Artorias joined a covenant with the creatures of the Abyss."