What Should We Expect from Elden Ring’s “Shadow of the Erdtree” DLC?

What Should We Expect from Elden Ring’s “Shadow of the Erdtree” DLC?

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TIMESTAMPS ▼▼▼
00:00 Why is this video worth making?
01:02 Who is riding Torrent?
03:19 Who IS Torrent?
06:25 What is the “Shadow of the Erdtree”?
12:51 The god graves
14:00 When will the DLC release?
14:24 Soul Arts V2 shoutout

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37 Responses

  1. Dominant_Jelly says:

    I do feel like the dlc will deal with miquela and godwyn, considering the appearance of the 2nd tree, and the “o” in Shadow looks similar to the death blight from Godwyn. There’s also the fact that miquela is just laying there after Mogh’s bossfight, so that could be the entrance to the dlc if it does take place in the dream world.

    • Asdercol says:

      It is. Eclipse. Look at the tree and the black bleeding gold from deathblight. The Eclipse connects Miquella and Godwyn.

    • Rogue_pugs says:

      it would be nice if they had the dragon god in the dream world because we’ve already had lichdragon fortisax in a dream, and having the dragon god being the reason miquella is still in a dream would be pretty cool.

    • SmokinBacon says:

      I find FromSoft rarely does the most obvious DLC threads as their actual next DLC.

    • VirtualDominus says:

      I’m hoping the entrance is behind the castle where the giant grave with the hole in the center is. I remember doing my first playthrough. I thought it was a portal, or it had some sort of significance other than being scenery.

    • Carter Allison says:

      Literally copy and paste Gael kneeling with the painting scrap in DS3.

  2. Aldrin Mapesos says:

    Since we currently have no information about the DLC

    How likely is it that this expansion will take place and show us the middle portion of the world map?

    We see an Erdtree but the location looks very weird as we can see it rooted on plane land not on a cliff, could this DLC finally reveal whats in the clouded part of the map and tell us why the Divine Towers are positioned to perfectly around something?

    • Asdercol says:

      @I Boil Dogs Alive Carried the Erdtree. That didn’t happen. The Erdtree came way later. That was the Elden Beast.

      It also seems like Godwyn’s stuff since deathblight has the whole black with gold thing going on with it. Miquella, the Erdtree and Godwyn are all tied together by the Eclipse.

      And some people theorize that the convergence point is actually where Farum Azula once was. Like a fucklong time ago.

      And also judging by the ruins and terrain, Miquella and Torrent are at some part of Altus.

    • I Boil Dogs Alive says:

      The divine towers are positioned where they are because that’s where the meteor landed that carried the erdtree, I believe.
      I think we either entering Miquellas dream or perhaps traveling through time when miquellas tree “strangles” the erdtree

  3. Dillan says:

    While i don’t necessarily think the DLC will be about the Shadows given to Empyreans, I will say while replaying elden ring and watching Vaati, I was wondering where are Malenias and Miquellas shadows? shouldnt they have some? Maybe they’re in this?

    I do however think this is more likely to be tied to the land of the dead and spirits though. With more Miquella stuff in there, if not as the main plot

    • ZoombieStar says:

      @stan harold imagine having a Shadow so strong that becomes the Avatar of The Goddess of Rot

    • hisjoeness says:

      @Drew Block The Goddess of Rot has butterfly wings, not Malenia, Blade of Miquella. That’s an outer god thing and isn’t associated with the shadow part of the lore, imo. I do agree with her being Miquella’s shadow, though. It’s right in her title.

    • stan harold says:

      Or at least played the role of his shadow by giving up her right to rule.

    • stan harold says:

      I’m pretty sure Malenia is Miquela’s shadow.

    • Drew Block says:

      Malenia is Miquella’s shadow imo. That’s why she’s so obsessed with him, and instead of having a wolf head like Blaidd she has butterfly wings.

  4. DERyuga says:

    I’m almost wondering if this is even the Erdtree at all- I think you’re on the money that this could have a tie into the crucible and great tree’s history, where one tree sprouted out of the other, but I think it might actually be the Haligtree, with a new Erdtree sprouting from its remains, in response to Miquella’s miraculous return. That would explain why this doesnt really look like the land’s between, and it what it could instead be is some sort of revitalized consecrated snowfield, or something like that. Because thats what this angle reminds me the most of when I see it- the path to the Haligtree, but if it had fields of wheat instead of Snow.

    And yeah, its weird to imagine the snowfields with fields of wheat, but considering the cut content where Miquella is known as being of abundance, it wouldnt surprise me to see that he has the ability to give life back to barren lands.

    I have a feeling that the dlc will function like the end of the ringed city, where it will fast forward us through time to see when this event happens- and it will likely happen in Mohg’s boss room where Miquella’s body currently is.

    But this is just my crackpot theory based on one image. I think that what Id be most happy to see is some of the cut miquella content brought in/restored (and some sort of covenant system), but we’ll see what we get. Im honestly most happy that we dont have to hear anymore crying for dlc, because it was exhausting to hear for Sekiro and it got very old very fast for Elden Ring (especially since it hadnt even been a year yet)

  5. TheWither129 says:

    I think the two best theories are that the tree is the Helphen, being a “shadow of the erdtree”, and the ghostly graves and all are to link it to the afterlife, and that there are two trees, one breaking and squeezing the life out of the other, it being of deathroot and godwyn, and i think its possible its both. Miquella is known for trying to put an end to Godwyn’s life in death, allowing his brother to be freed from his stagnation and curse, so he may move on fully. His whole thing is trying to expel the curses of those he cares about. As he is linked so closely with dreams, and Godwyn and Fia shared a dream you could enter, I think it’s possible we may enter Miquella’s, who has gone to find the soul of his brother, and here we find the afterlife, the spirit world, with the mighty Helphen being choked and bled by death blight, the Helphen and Erdtree being mirrors of each other, a bodiless soul and a soulless body killing the Erdtree and its “shadow”.
    I think its possible we may get another ending or two, as well. Obviously Miquella, being an Empyrean, may have an ending linked to his questline, but it also never sat right with me that collecting all the great runes had no bearing on the ending, and im wondering if Miquella’s and potentially Ranni’s may become available, as we know they are shardbearers, but Ranni cast hers aside, but unlike her body, we don’t get access to that, and Miquella simply isn’t present outside of his body in the cocoon.
    I really hope some kind of reward comes with acquiring all nine, surely that won’t be an easy feat. Only once has any other tarnished obtained even TWO, let alone SEVEN. And yet, nothing.

    • Bucky Hurdle says:

      @TheWither129 Man I am so ready for some new lore and boss fights I need to know what the hell is going on lmao

    • TheWither129 says:

      @Bucky Hurdle idk, honestly, but theres a couple possibilities. One is that its not the helphen, it could be related to the black blade kindred and the countless vulgar militia there, plus its on the path to farum azula where the black blade himself is. It could be due to the forge, but then neither one makes sense cus you get closer and this effect is entirely absent from the mountaintops. Another possibility is that for whatever reason, the sort of “barrier” between realms is weaker here, and the Helphen tries to guide you towards the rune of death as well. The mountaintops are inexplicably covered in spirit animals and trees, and Castle Sol and the steeple are found here as well. Theres a large graveyard, a death rite bird, a mariner, lots and lots of death and undead. Hell half the mountain is covered in the corpses of the fire giants. Maybe the Helphen’s influence peeks through in this lower zone leading to the death-ridden mountains.

    • Bucky Hurdle says:

      Speaking of Helphen whats up with the Forbidden Lands? Its the only place you see that “red” version of the guidance of grace which is supposed to be a feature of the Helphen. So why can we see it in the forbidden lands? And only there?

    • M.ubaid Aadam says:

      I think you might be on to something! Now the question is will we fight some sort of twisted godwyn

    • lobomen says:

      I really hope your right, getting some more insight to Godwyn’s curse on the lands between and Miquella’s involvement would make an amazing DLC.

  6. Glettification says:

    My theory is still that this is in Miquella’s dream, which has become (or always was) connected to the deathbed dream in which we fight Fortissax. That explains Miquella’s appearance, as it is how he remembers himself, Torrent, who Miquella may be able to summon, may simply go there as a spirit, or who may even just be Miquella’s memory, and the encroachment of what looks like a deathblighted tree. It also fits with your own theory about the connection between Miquella and Godwyn and the former’s attempts to save the latter. And if Miquella’s dream is also an actual spirit world, you can only imagine how bad it could be if Godwyn’s deathblight were to infect it entirely.
    The ‘trees’ that we see may even be symbolic of Godwyn – the prince of the golden lineage bleeding gold as he’s consumed by deathblight.
    This is all to say that I think the goal of the DLC will be to complete Miquella’s wish of granting Godwyn a true death. How that fits with what has become of Miquella after Mohg’s ritual, who knows.

    Although, another theory that I need to get out of my head is Miquella’s involvement in our journey, as you touched on. Miquella’s ability to manipulate people and the fact that both Torrent and the spirit bell end up in our hands, and the latter through Ranni, no less, might be a step in his plan. What if the Ranni ending, or at least some part of her quest, is the eclipse that Miquella needed? The moon covering the sun or, more symbolically, the source of light in the Lands Between; the Erdtree. It’s a bit of a swing but it could also make sense given Ranni’s connection to Godwyn and their shared death. Perhaps Godwyn can’t be brought back and granted a proper death as long as Ranni remains, but her ascension in the Age of Stars separates them? It also results in the end of the Golden Order and the dominance of the Erdtree, which Miquella may deem preferable. This fits with other theories I’ve had and seen that suggest that Ranni’s ending might be the ‘true’ ending as intended by Marika buuuuuut at this point I’m kind of rambling. Just needed to write this down, as I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.

  7. Azulrose says:

    I have a different theory, that tree is no tree at all. Its the “umbilical cord” within miquella´s egg, which would also make sense as to why it bleeds the unalloyed gold miquella is so associated with. Were probably going to be entering miquella´s dream through touching their hand.
    Now if you recall this is not the first time egg imagery is used in from soft games, our most recent one was the egg in the ringed city, which was stopping the flow of time. It is interesting to see it used opposite here, as miquella was attempting to bypass their curse of forever youth. So, what evils would this egg be keeping away i wonder?

    Both the unalloyed gold and the cradle song of st trina work to stop the influence of outside forces, but it seems neither were enough to free miquella from their curse, perhaps this time we will be able to defeat the incarnation of this god as we did with the elden beast, as clearly, the influence of this curse, is more insidious and hidden than the beast ever was.

  8. Danklin says:

    I didn’t think of it before, but after hearing Vaati’s speculation of the land in the image not being the Land’s Between, I wonder if it’s not the Land of Reeds? The area seems like a riff on the Field of Reeds from Egyptian mythology, a paradise and afterlife where your soul goes after death to await judgment, and it’s described to be filled with bountiful fields of wheat. Furthermore, souls are said to die their “second death” there, and it could be playing on Godwyn the Golden in those regards too.

  9. Adam Orly says:

    I love the Occult influences in all of the FromSoft games. I wonder if what we’re seeing here is a sort of dream? OR, could it be the alternate universe in which the “real” (in a Platonic sense) exists? So, what appears to us as Ghosts in the Lands Between are material in this world. This would mean that what appears as “ghostly” in the DLC realm is what is real in the Lands. Food for thought.

  10. BlackwaspBoy says:

    I think that this could be a Miquella’s dream and perhaps a nightmare. Riding on torrent through the wheat fields maybe from his earlier days during the shattering which is why we see these pale ghostly graves. The nightmare maybe what we the player need to beat. A dark shadow attempting to swallow the Erdtree or maybe his ideal version of the Haligtree, the fear of loosing what he was worked for. I can imagine if something along these lines is true we maybe fighting Godwin or how Miquella sees him now or what thing can scare a demi-god. If this is Miquella then i honestly don’t see us fighting him, the art shows him in the light as if he was a character we may need to help so he can wake. Waking him maybe one of the ways you beat the DLC but another could involve us siding with this nightmare that plagues him. Whatever the case the community will piece the puzzle together, I’d like to hear other ideas tho.

    • Char says:

      ​​@Dawson Hudson My theory is similar to yours :
      I think we give Miquella the needle, touch his hand and enter the dream world with St Trina pov. We will get to access the areas where Trina’s lilies grow.
      Berserk is Miyazaki ‘s fav, so we might see a similar concept of Eclipse happening in the dream world where Godwin (Sun) and Ranni (Moon) somehow come together to complete the two halves of death. The eclipse will fall on the Erdtree casting its shadow. This shadow is where Godwin’s real body/soul will reside as we have seen his presence spread over in many places (deathroots). His soul will probably be powered by the dying Erdtree being grappled by the Deathroot tree, like a parasite sapping out it’s energy.
      I also think Formless Mother will bleed into dream world with the help of Mogh when eclipse happens, just like how Melania ascended to Godhood. maybe Melania will finally come to our aid for a sibling action against Mogh, we all are dying to see that happen lol.
      At the end the lands between will finally release the souls of those who live in death, and under the eclipse a new order will be born, where two halves of life and death will live in synergy.
      Also Miquella ‘s Unalloyed Gold will keep the outer Gods’ invasion in check once the order is established.

    • Bill Clinton Enjoyer says:

      Lol the community never managed to get the truth before the games/DLCs released, only stupid theories and rumors like the Miquella one.

    • BlackwaspBoy says:

      @merelyanillusion I think it maybe something more simple like death. Miquella was close with Godwin we suspect so having his older brother die must of put some fear in him.

    • Dawson Hudson says:

      I already commented this, but wanted others to respond.

      My theory: The DLC will take place in a dream world, where miqella now sleeps. You take miqella’s needle, which intercepts the influence of outer gods, and insert it into his hand. This prevents further influence from The Formless Mother, and now you can enter a dream-like world, in a dream like state. New ending: brings Miqella’s dream into reality, an ending of abundance. Big fights include Godwyn, who we also know to be “sleeping” (Perhaps this is Miqella’s memory of Godwyn). Another big fight could be a host from The Formless Mother, to completely sever the connection, much like a parasite. Then the hardest boss in the game thus far, will be St. Trina/Miqella as a two-stage boss (full health) and when you defeat him, the dream “becomes your own”. I think he will fight you, to ensure that his dream will come true, and upon killing him, you finally let his dream end, and come true at the same time. Ending could also maybe be like the infinite Tsukuyomi from Naruto, where everybody dreams their best life.

    • Straight White Male says:

      Please no fucking nightmare sequences or prequels. Going into the past and altering the present doing it, sure, but not some dumb nightmare sequence. That stuff is the bane of storytelling. It’s always inconsequential.

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