Guide: How To Access The Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC – Back in 2022, the biggest game of the year was undoubtedly Elden Ring, a game that captivated just about everyone who played it.Two years later, players are sat in intense anticipation of the first (and potentially only) DLC expansion for one of the best games of the last decade, Elden Ring’s Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC.The Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC will be available on PS5 and PS4 this coming June 21, 2024, but just buying the DLC isn’t all you need to do to get ready for it.Players who’ve dug into previous DLC’s of FromSoftware titles won’t be surprised then to learn there are quite a few steps you need to have completed first, to make sure you’ll be able to play the DLC on launch.This guide will show you everything you need to know on how to access the Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC, and everything you need to do to be ready for Elden Ring’s DLC.Guide: How To Access The Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree DLCRequirements For Accessing Shadow Of The Erdtree DLCThere are two requirements that have to be fulfilled for players to access the Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC.Beat Starscourge Radahn bossBeat Mohg, Lord Of Blood bossDefeating those bosses are a must for accessing the DLC, especially because the latter is required for being able to get to where you can access the DLC in the first place.Where To Access Shadow Of The Erdtree And The Land Of ShadowAccessing the Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC can only be done from a single teleport point, and to get to that teleport point, you’ll need to teleport to where it is.The Shadow Of The Erdtree is set in a new area called The Land Of Shadow, and it’s a place we teleport to from Miquella’s hand hanging out of his cocoon in Mohgwyn Palace. You’ll also need to defeat the boss of Mohgwyn Palace, one of the more difficult bosses in Elden Ring, Mohg, Lord Of Blood.Getting to Mohgwyn Palace also means taking one of two different routes, and which one you should take will depend on whether you’re just at the start of Elden Ring or have been through the vast majority of the game.For those just at the start of the game, the fastest way to access Mohgwyn Palace is to complete White Mask Varré’s quest line and teleport to the palace with the Pureblood Knight’s Medal.If you’ve played through most of the game and have made it to the Consecrated Snowfield, then you’re probably better off heading to a teleport gate found on the western edge of the Snowfield.Starting The Radahn Festival And Defeating Starscourge RadahnTo even get the chance to fight Radahn, you’ll need to kick off the Radahn Festival, a festival hosted by Radahn and his right-hand man, Witch-Hunter Jerren, where Radahn invites any and all warriors willing to take him on in battle, in the hopes that someone will be able to give him a glorious death in the heat of battle.Kicking off the festival can be done in three ways, though two of those ways are much more involved than one of them.Firstly, the easiest way to kick off the festival is to simply reach any site of grace in the Altus PlateauSecondly, you can also kick off the festival by progressing Ranni’s quest line until you speak to Blaidd about RadahnLastly, you can also kick off the festival by progressing Ranni’s quest line and speaking to Iji about Witch-Hunter JerrenOnce you’ve done any of these three things, when you head to Redmane Castle in the south eastern corner of Caelid, you’ll hear Jerren announce the festival has begun as you walk into the main plaza.After Jerren makes his big announcement, rest at the site of grace just outside the plaza, and then head up towards Jerren, to the lift that brings you to the warp gate on the beach, which brings you to the Radahn boss fight.Defeating Radahn is no easy task, at right when Elden Ring came out players regarded him as the toughest boss in the game – that was until they reached the Haligtree, and fought Maleina, Blade Of Miquella.To swiftly defeat Radahn, here are three key things to remember:You’ll be able to summon the rest of the festival attendees to help you in your fight, so spend the opening moments summoning everyone available – and don’t forget that even after they die, they can be re-summonedRadahn’s gravity magic is extremely powerful, and has a massive area of attack, so don’t be afraid to hop on Torrent to get out of the way from time to timeRadahn is very weak to Rot, more than any other status ailment, so having some method of infecting him with Rot is an easy path to victoryGetting To Mohgwyn Palace Through White Mask Varré’s Quest LineBesides what would be considered the ‘main’ quest in Elden Ring, which is to become Elden Lord, the other quest you’ll kick off right at the start of the game is White Mask Varré’s quest line.Varré is the one waiting for you when you first enter Limgrave, at the First Step site of grace. Speaking to him will kick off his quest line, so exhaust his dialogue here before moving onOnce you’ve acquired a Great Rune and spoken to Enia at the Roundtable Hold, Varré will move from his location at the First Step site of grace to standing just outside Rose Church in Lirunia Of The Lakes. The fastest way there is to head west from the Fallen Ruins Of The Lake site of grace.When you meet Varré at the Rose Church, he’ll ask you what you thought about meeting the Two Fingers, at which point you’ll have to tell him you thought there was something wrong with themVarré will be happy to hear your assessment is one of worried caution, and award you five Festering Bloody Fingers, which are items you use to invade other players game worlds.Invading three players, or invading the NPC Mangus the Beast Claw is required to advance his quest line further. Invading other players will require you to be playing online, so make sure you’re set before going this route. You also don’t have to win the fights against the players you invade, you just have to invade another player 3 times.If you want to avoid fighting other players, you can invade Mangus the Beast Claw, who’s invasion sign will appear in the Writheblood Ruins in the Altus Plateau. Defeat him, or invade three players, and return to Varré.Head back to Varré at the Rose Church where he’ll be delighted you’ve used the gift he gave you. Exhaust his dialogue and he’ll then task you with soaking the Lord Of Blood’s Favor item in the blood of a maiden, which can be done in four ways.Kill Irina, if she’s not already dead. She can be found in the Weeping Peninsula on the way to Castle Morne.Kill Hyetta, who you’ll first find at the Lake-Facing Cliffs site of grace. Irina must be dead for Hyetta to appear, but killing either Irina or Hyetta will lock you out of getting the Lord Of Frenzied Flame ending.Travel to the Church Of Inhibition site of grace, north of the Frenzied Village in Bellum Highway and examine the corpse of a maiden near the site of graceFrom one of the Four Belfries sending gates, travel back to the Church Of Anticipation from the beginning of the game. Use an Imbued Stonesword Key found near the Four Belfries site of grace to activate the sending gate next to the message “Precipice Of Anticipation.” Beat the Grafted Scion boss if you haven’t already, and continue forward to find the corpse of a maiden in the building just beyond the Grafted Scion bossOnce you’ve soaked the Lord Of Blood’s Favour item in the blood of a maiden through any of the four previously mentioned methods, you can return to Varré. Exhaust his dialogue and he’ll present you with the Pureblood Knight’s Medal.Even though Varré tells you not to use the medal, you can use it at any point to teleport immediately to Mohgwyn Palace. Once there, you’ll need to progress through to the Dynasty Mausoleum Midpoint site of grace, where you’ll be very near the Mohg, Lord Of Blood boss fight, and Miquella’s cocoon.Once you’ve beaten Mogh, a grace site will be available right in front of Miquella’s cocoon. Fast travel to this grace site to quickly access the DLC once it releases.Getting To Mohgwyn Palace Through The Consecrated Snowfield Warp GateWhile it’s no doubt faster to get to Mohgywn Palace through Varré’s quest line, those preparing for the DLC from a fresh playthrough could run the risk of reaching Mohgywn Palace vastly under-levelled.It’s a late-game area, and one you don’t want to head into unprepared. However, if you don’t complete Varré’s quest line, you’ll be able to reach Mohgwyn Palace through a different late-game area, the Consecrated Snowfield.There’s a warp gate on the western edge of the snowfield that’ll take you right to Mohgwyn Palace, defended by a Sanguine Noble, who’ll invade you as you get close. Defeat him, and you can use the warp gate to head straight to Mohgwyn Palace.Also be warned, there are two Runebears close by to where the Sanguine Noble will attack you, along with a few blood-damage dealing dogs. Take out the dogs first, and avoid the Runebears best you can. They’re tough enemies no matter where you are in the game, and you’ll have an easier time leaving them out of the fight.To get to the Consecrated Snowfield in the first place will require some doing. Mainly just collection both halves of the Secret Haligtree Medallion, to be used at the Grand Lift Of Rold.The first half of the medallion is very easy to find, you can grab it at the Village Of Albinaurics, in the south east corner of Liurnia Of The Lakes, underneath the Moonlight PlateauWhen you make it to the village, you’ll have to defeat a minor overworld boss in the form of an Omen Killer. Beware of his weapons as they can cause bleed, but if you’re far enough that you’re ready for the Consecrated Snowfield, this boss should be no problemMake your way through the village until you find Old Albus, an Albinauric who is currently hiding as a giant pot. Roll into the pot or attack it, and he’ll speak to you, giving you the first half of the medallion with his dying breathThe second half is much more difficult to acquire, and can only be done once you’ve made it to the Mountaintops of the GiantsYou’ll find the second half of the medallion at Castle Sol, which is located on the western edge of the MountaintopsMake your way through the castle and defeat its main boss, Commander Niall. The second half o the medallion is just beyond where you fight Niall, next to a phantom lamenting that they’ll never see Miquella’s ‘divine’ Haligtree. (Fun fact, if you look down over the edge of the castle from this point, the Haligtree can be seen below you)Once you have both halves of the medallion, head back to the Grand Lift Of Rold, where you’ll have the option to either “Hoist Medallion” or “Hoist Secret Medallion.”Choose the latter, and make your way through a few militia men and land octopuses to walk out into the Consecrated Snowfield. From here, you can head straight to the warp gate that’ll take you directly to Mohgwyn Palace.You’ll know it’s the right warp gate because it’ll be covered in blood, because of the Sanguine Noble you’ll meet on your way to it, and the snow will be covered in red flower petals on your way there.When it comes to defeating Mohg, Lord Of Blood, ironically you’ll want to stock up on weapons that do bleed damage, as it’s the main thing Mogh is actually weak to.You’ll also want to grab the Purifying Crystal Tear, which you get from completing Yura, Hunter Of Bloody Fingers quest line. Armed with that crystal tear in your Mixed Physick, and some good blood damage weapons, and you should be good to go.That’s not to say he’ll be an easy fight – Mohg, Lord Of Blood is definitely one of the more difficult bosses in the game, so be prepared.Other Things To Do To Prepare For The DLCSo that’s all the things you absolutely must do in order to access the DLC in the first place. But being able to access it is all for naught if you aren’t prepared.There’s going to be new weapons, spells, and armour sets you’ll likely want to try in the DLC, so there’s a few things you should pick up in the base game to be ready for all that.Acquire all Smithing Stone Bell Bearings: It’s worth your time, regardless of the DLC (but especially because of the DLC) to trek across the Lands Between to find each Smithing Stone Bell Bearing, and give them to the two finger maidens at the Roundtable Hold. This will allow you to be able to purchase every smithing stone you need to upgrade your weapons from them, instead of having to farm them in the rest of the game. Plus unless you head into NG+, the smithing stones you find in the world won’t reappear like other resources once you’ve collected themThe same goes for the Ghost Glovewart Bell Bearings, as there’s likely new Spirit Ashes to collect in the DLC, and you’ll want to upgrade them easily tooBeat the game – but also don’t beat the game. After defeating Radagon and the Elden Beast, stop before you activate whichever ending you have prepared. There will be a site of grace you can activate that’ll bring you right back to this spot when you’re ready, but if you beat the game and enter new game plus, everything, including the DLC, will be more difficultIt’s also worthwhile to find every cookbook in the game. Crafting in Elden Ring is a mechanic that can largely be ignored if you want, but it can also be a great boon if you want it to be. Being able to craft whatever antidotes you may need for ailments you could be afflicted with, instead of relying on purchasing them in limited supply from merchants, or heading back to the Roundtable Hold, is quite handyStock up on Larval Tears. These are the items you need to use Rennala’s Rebirth Great Rune, which lets you re-spec your character if you want to try something else. Using rebirth to have access to a new weapon, or better equip you for a difficult DLC boss, could go a long way to making your time in the DLC smootherSpend some time farming Runes. If you don’t head into NG+, each level increase will only make you that much stronger when heading into the DLC. It won’t be a cakewalk surely, but being anywhere from level 150+ will set you up for success
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