Published , by Sam Chandler
Published , by Sam Chandler
Elden Ring is an open world game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco. Before its release on February 25, fans the world over were preparing for what was set to be the next major Soulsborne game from the critically-acclaimed developer. Now that it’s out and in the wild, veteran players and those new to the genre are diving into one of the best games and most expansive titles in FromSoft’s catalog. Below you will find a collection of guides that span all aspects of Elden Ring.
There’s a lot going on in Elden Ring, not just in terms of its story but also the various mechanics and systems working in the foreground and background. Whether you’re new to the game or a veteran of the Soulsborne formula, there’s a lot to learn. Check out the following guides for information on where to find items, how to complete certain tasks, and other general information.
| Elden Ring guides | |
|---|---|
| Guide | Description |
| General information | |
| Controls and PC keybindings | Work out what button does what action and learn about moves not listed in the in-game settings menu. |
| Voice actors & cast list | The voice actors behind the many characters in Elden Ring. |
| How long to beat Elden Ring | Find out how long you should expect to be playing Elden Ring before you finish it. |
| Turn on Recent Items Tab | Turn on this valuable tab to easily see what new items you've collected. |
| Mechanics & Systems | |
| Does Elden Ring have crossplay? | Elden Ring features multiplayer but crossplay is another matter. |
| How to pause | Though not a traditional pause, it is possible to do. |
| Leveling up & growing stronger | Learn about how to level up your character in Elden Ring. |
| Respec stats & builds | Take all of your points and reassign them using the game's respec system. |
| Turn off Invasions | Decrease your chances of being invaded by another player. |
| Which Keepsake to choose | Start your game right by picking the best Keepsake. |
| Main story & Questline guides | |
| Main story walkthrough | Follow the critical path through Elden Ring. No optional bosses. Only what you need to roll credits. |
| Ranni's questline | Help Ranni the Witch fulfill her purpose in Elden Ring. |
| Dung Eater's questline | Unlock a new ending by completing the Dung Eater's questline. |
| Varre's questline | Discover the terrible truth behind Varre's motives. |
| How to guides | |
| Break glowing statues | Smash open glowing statues for a neat reward. |
| Upgrade the Sacred Flask | Improve the Sacred Flask to carry more charges and make it heal and refill Focus Points more efficiently. |
| Unlock Torrent, the Spectral Steed | Unlock your spectral steed, Torrent, and start galloping around the map. |
| Use pouch items | Start using your pouch for items you don't want in your Quick Bar. |
| Summon Spirit Ashes | Summon the ghosts of animals and monsters to help you in battle. |
| Dragon Hearts & Cathedral of Dragon Communion | Find out what to do with Dragon Hearts and how to get to the Church of Dragon Communion. |
| Open Rennala's chest in the Grand Academy | Discover how to unlock Rennala's chest and what it contains. |
| Jump on the Walking Mausoleum in Liurnia of the Lakes | The best and easiest way to get on top of this Mausoleum. |
| Important locations & Painting solutions | |
| Falling star crash site | Find where the star bit the earth after the Starscourge Radahn fight. |
| Weathered Map location | Discover the location depicted on the damaged Weathered Map. |
| Homing Instinct painting | Found a painting in Limgrave? Here's where you can get your reward. |
| Resurrection painting | Locate the artists muse in Liurnia of the Lakes. |
| Redmane painting | Find the location depicted in the Redmane painting found in Sellia. |
| Flightless Bird painting | Track down the location of the Flightless Bird painting. |
| Champion's Song painting | Learn where the artist got his inspiration for the Champion's Song painting. |
| Sorcerer painting | Discover the reward for the Sorcerer painting. |
| Sorcerer towers guides | |
| Ordys's Rise | Ordys's Rise is one of the first sorcerer towers you might find. |
| Converted Tower | There are two ways to solve the Converted Tower puzzle. |
| Converted Fringe Tower | Unlock the Converted Fringe Tower using some odd items. |
| Lenne's Rise | Access Lenne's Rise in Caelid for a special reward. |
| Mirage Rise | Learn the trick to unlocking Mirage Rise. |
| Weapon & Item guides | |
| Map locations | Uncover the entire map of Elden Ring. |
| Golden Seed locations | Increase how many Sacred Flasks you can hold. |
| Sacred Tear locations | Improve the HP and FP efficiency of your Sacred Flask. |
| Talisman Pouch locations | Equip more Talismans by unlocking more Talisman Pouches. |
| Memory Stone locations | Memorize more spells by finding more Memory Stones. |
| Find the Flask of Wondrous Physick | One of the best additions to the franchise is the Flask of Wondrous Physick. Make sure you find it as soon as possible. |
| Unlock the Mimic Tear Ashes | Unlock the most powerful Ashes in the entire game. |
| Larval Tear locations | You will need one Larval Tear each time you want to respec. Here's where you can find more. |
| Golden Runes | Fill your pockets with runes by using Golden Runes. |
| Best Rune farming routes | Fill your pockets with enough Runes to make you an unstoppable Tarnished. |
| Find the Lantern | Clip this thing to your belt and never need another torch. |
| Smithing Stones | There are a couple of spots guaranteed to have the Smithing Stones you need. |
| Reduvia | Find a dagger that deals a whole lot of Blood Loss. |
| Ringed Finger | Track down one of the strangest weapons in the game. |
| Great Stars | Wield the mighty Great Stars Warhammer and crush your foes with blood loss. |
| Rivers of Blood | Discover one of the best katanas in the game, complete with its own Ashes of War. |
| Shadow of the Erdtree Guides | |
|---|---|
| Guide | Description |
| Final boss guide | How to beat the final boss in the expansion. |
| All Scadutree Fragments | The location of every single Scadutree Fragment. |
| All Miquella's Cross locations | Get a Scadutree Fragment and some lore! |
| How to use Scadutree Fragments | You can't just collect them, you need to use them. |
| How to use Revered Spirit Ash | The same goes for the Revered Spirit Ash. |
| How to deal more damage & take more hits | Dying quickly? You need to start finding a specific upgrade material. |
| Shadow of the Erdtree recommended level | Wondering if you're ready to dive into the expansion? |
| How to start the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion | You can't just boot this up from the main menu. You need to kill two, rather tough bosses first. |
| Defeat the Furnace Golem | This thing probably killed you a few time at the start. Now it's time for revenge. |
| How to talk to the woman in the storeroom | There's a woman in a storeroom in Belarut. Speak to her! |
| Find the well in Belarut | Here's where to find the well in Belarut and the key to open it. |
| Dragon Pit dungeon guide | Found the Dragon Pit and don't know how to reach the end? Let us help. |
| Hefty Cracked Pot locations | Hefty Cracked Pots are the next biggest throwable pot in Elden Ring. |
| Find the Greatjar Head | The biggest jar for your head, ever! |
| Backhand Blade | Where to find the Backhand Blade dual-weapon. |
| Blade of Mercy Talisman | Track down the powerful Blade of Mercy Talisman. |
| Kill Aging Untouchables | The yellow-head dudes that do Madness? Yeah. You can kill 'em. |
| Golden Braid Talisman location | Where to find the Golden Braid Talisman. |
| Dryleaf Dane quest | Where to find and how to beat the monk in the east. |
| Domain of Dragons painting | Solve the Domain of Dragons painting and become one yourself. |
| The Sacred Tower painting | Find the Sacred Tower location shown in the painting. |
| Incursion painting | There's not much to go on here. Let us help you. |
| O Mother Gesture | Grab the O Mother Gesture. Not just a means of communicating! |
| Reach the northern Finger Ruins | Here's how to get to the top of the map. |
| Reach the eastern area | The area in the east that's far below everything? Get there. |
| Other Site of Grace in the Storeroom | You've seen the Site of Grace across the Storeroom. Here's how to get it. |
| Blackgaol Knight guide | This bloke hits hard. Hit him harder. |
At this point, Elden Ring is a critically-acclaimed title that is no doubt going to be up for a wealth of Game of the Year nominations. The reception to the game has been extremely positive, with yours truly giving it a glowing review. Take a look at my Elden Ring review for my full thoughts, but the take away is that the game has exceeded my expectations.
Be sure to check back in with this Elden Ring strategy guide as we update it over time with new and important information to help you become an Elden Lord. Stop by the Shacknews Elden Ring page for the latest news.