How to start the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC in Elden Ring

Jun. 4, 2024

Where the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion begins and what to do

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To start the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring, players need to go to Mogh’s arena underground and touch the withered arm sticking out of the cocoon. That’ll get you to the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion - but there’s some specific conditions and bosses that you’ll need to take down first, and that we’ll lay out for you below.

To start the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC in Elden Ring you’ll need to beat two bosses: Radahn, the boss of Caelid, and Mohg, who can be accessed relatively early if you complete the questline for the NPC Varre. Only then can you access the Expansion via the withered arm in Mogh’s arena, interacting it to trigger an automatic teleportation to the new Elden Ring DLC.

Here’s a full breakdown of what you need to do to access Shadow of the Erdtree:

Shadow of the Erdtree Somewhere a Great Rune has Broken messageShadow of the Erdtree Abyssal WoodsShadow of the Erdtree NPC QuestlinesShadow of the Erdtree Inappropriate Activity DetectedShadow of the Erdtree Martial Arts

Once Radahn and Mohg are gone and you touch the cocoon arm you’ll be in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC expansion area!You’ll see a Site of Grace in front of you marked by aShadow of the Erdtree Miquella’s Cross- a new thing to look for - so grab that and you’ll have a permanent fast travel point back to the areawithout having to go through the arm again.Getting to the Erdtree stuff isn’t something you should really rush though-the DLC is famously toughand while it has it’s own leveling system using things calledScadutree Fragments, you really want to be in the best shape you can be before you take on its challenges. To help you get ready here’swhat to do before Shadow of the Erdtree.

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Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and raconteur with a Masters from Sussex University, none of which has actually equipped him for anything in real life. As a result he chooses to spend most of his time playing video games, reading old books and ingesting chemically-risky levels of caffeine. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at USgamer, Gfinity, Eurogamer and more besides.

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