Summary
Elden Ring’s story is not spoon-fed to players, so it’s particularly difficult to know when certain events, like the newShadow of the ErdtreeDLC, are supposed to take place. Like with most FromSoftware games, much ofElden Ring’s story leaves some room for interpretation, and it has to be gleaned from a variety of sources other than just the gameplay and cutscenes. That said, there are some hints that can point to whenElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreetakes place in relation to the rest of the game.
[Warning: Spoilers for Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree.]
To try and pinpoint a place inElden Ring’s story whenShadow of the Erdtreeis meant to take place requires looking at the events of the story that concretely take place before and after. Certainevents inElden Ring’s timelinehave to take place before players are able to access the DLC. Similarly, there are parts of the story that definitely take place after, as players are not able to return toShadow of the Erdtree’s Land of Shadowat a certain point.
Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree’s Map Size Compared To The Base Game
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree takes players to the Land of Shadow, which has a significantly different scale and design than the Lands Between.
Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree Must Happen Before Players Confront Radagon
Radagon’s Fight Leads Directly Into The End Of Elden Ring
Radagon of the Golden Order is the second to last boss inElden Ring. Once he is defeated, players are immediately forced to confront the game’s final boss: The Elden Beast. Once the Elden Beast has been defeated, players are only left with two options: go back to a point before defeating it, or start New Game Plus. As players are not allowed to continue after defeating the Elden Beast,the events ofShadowof the Erdtreemust take place before the end ofElden Ring’s main game.
While it is nice to have a definitive point thatShadow of the Erdtreemust take place before, players need more information to pin down exactly when it happens. Still, thanks toElden Ringnot allowing players to continue on to the DLC after beating the final boss, it becomes a bit easier to try and figure out when it takes place. Since the story has a definitive end point, players next just need to look for what has to come beforeShadow of the Erdtree.
Shadow Of The Erdtree’s Events Take Place After Redmane Castle’s Radahn Festival
Players Must Trigger The Festival To Confront Starscourge Radahn
Several events must take place inElden Ring’s base game before players can travel to the Land of Shadowin the DLC, one of which isdefeating Starscourge Radahn. In order to challenge Radahn, players must trigger an event at Redmane Castle in Caelid, the Radahn Festival. To trigger the event players will have to either rest at a Site of Grace in the Atlus Plateau, or follow Ranni’s questline to a certain point. At the festival, players will have to challenge and defeat Radahn before being able to go to the DLC area.
How To Start Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC
Elden Ring’s quests are notoriously obtuse, and starting Shadow of the Erdtree is no different; here’s all you need to know to begin the DLC.
Though Starscourge Radahn is an optional boss in the base game, he has to be defeated to enter theShadow of the ErdtreeDLC. Since Radahn being killed and brought back to life by Miquella is an integral part ofShadow of the Erdtree’s story, it wouldn’t really make sense for it to take place before players had defeated Radahn. For similar reasons, there is another event that must take place in the events ofElden Ringbefore the DLC.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Takes Place After The Death Of Mohg
Mohg, Lord Of Blood Is An Optional Boss In Elden Ring
Another event players know has to take place beforeElden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtreeis the death of Mogh, Lord of Blood. Aside from the fact that the game won’t allow players to go to the Land of Shadow before they’ve killed Mogh,this boss also plays a major role in the story of the DLC. It is revealed through Sir Ansbach’s quests in the DLC that Miquella used Mohg’s body as a vessel to bring Radahn back to life inShadow of the Erdtree. This means Mohg obviously had to be dead for this to work.
As far as a game likeElden Ringgoes,placing the DCL between the deaths of Radahn and Mohg and the end of the base game is about as concrete as things can get when it comes to trying to map out a timeline of events. While there are things that must take place before and afterShadow of the ErdtreeonElden Ring’s timeline, it is impossible to create a completely linear series of events. There are plenty of other events that players can do in any order before tackling the DLC, and this will likely vary from player to player.
Players venture into the shadowed realm of the Land of Shadow to confront new biomes, dungeons, and formidable bosses. Guided by the enigmatic Miquella, they face the terrifying Messmer the Impaler and uncover the dark secrets shrouded beneath the Erdtree’s influence, featuring new weapons, magic, and challenges.
