There’s no doubting the size of Elden Ring. It’s the pinnacle of everything that came before all wrapped up into a world that’s full of nuance, secrets, and lore. The steps FromSoft went to when they made Elden Ring was phenomenal, placing in details that fans would love, and inserting hidden features that would take years to figure out.
Whether you’ve played the game before or are gearing up to tackle it before the DLC drops next month, there’s a lot to learn. Much of which could easily pass you by, so we’ve got a handy little guide on what you didn’t know you could do in Elden Ring.
Torrent’s I-Frames
Elden Ring and the games that precede it are all about juggling I-Frames (frames of invincibility) in order to negate the damage dealt by an enemy. But did you know that your mount, Torrent, gives you these I-Frames when you clamber into and out of the saddle? Of course, this takes great timing, but what doesn’t in Elden Ring? So, if you’re in a scrap and can time it right, call for Torrent and take advantage of that slice of invincibility.
Back to where it began
In the initial opening area where you take a scripted death (unless you’re a God), you may end up wishing you could go back and teach that creature a lesson. Well, you can. It takes a bit of work, but you can head back to that tutorial area for round two. You will need to place an Imbued Stone Key in the Precipice of Anticipation tower in the Four Belfries, this is found on the western edge of Liurnia of the Lakes.
Scared of the flame
Now this is a tip that stunned me when I learned about it. Animal enemies - wolves, hawks, etc - are actually scared of a certain torch. It’s called the Beast Repellant Torch and can be purchased from the merchant in Caelid. This is a great way to keep the enemies away from you when running through populated areas, preventing you from having to stop and slay them, and saving you some time.
Map reading
Your map is your best friend in Elden Ring and FromSoft, while being unfairly cruel at times, has given players some great tips on the map. For example, if you’re looking to find the next section of the map in a darkened area, you only need to look on the map for an icon that looks like a pillar. Here you’ll find the next piece of the map. The same goes for if you want to go mining for Smithing Stones - just look for dark caves surrounded by an orange line on your map and head in that direction.
Roundtable Hold
At a point in the game, you unlock a new area called Roundtable Hold, where there are a bunch of NPCs and merchants to talk to. It can be a bit of a hassle to travel there as the site of grace is in the bottom corner of your map. Or, you can bring up your map and scroll through to the underground sites of grace (using R3 on a controller) to instantly select it, saving you time.
Spirit Springs will save you
You’ll have seen the Spirit Springs dotted around the world and the game does a great job of telling you that you can use Torrent to launch up in the air with them. However, you can also use them to negate fall damage. As long as you call Torrent you will land without losing any health at all. You don’t even need to land in the middle as the springs are pretty forgiving. It’s a great way of exploring quickly, too.
It’s raining gold
At certain times in your journey, you will notice that it begins to rain with a golden sheen to it. This usually happens at night and it’s a sign that you should start killing things. This golden rain will boost your rune acquisition and item discovery. You don’t need to do anything differently, just kill the enemies as normal and you’ll get a small buff. It’s not widely known how much of a boon this is, but it’s worth taking advantage of.
Button-mashing works (in one instance)
As you’ve probably learned, button-mashing is worthless in Elden Ring and will usually wind up with you getting killed because you’re not being tactical. In one circumstance, however, button-mashing is actually very helpful, and that’s when you get grabbed by an enemy. If you quickly tap your trigger buttons and face buttons on a controller while grabbed, you’ll actually shake yourself loose faster. It’s a good job that’s my panicked ‘go-to’ whenever this happens.
A visit to Godwin
A nice bit of lore for those delving deep; if you visit Stormveil Castle and work your way into the bowels of the castle, you’ll find a throne waiting for you. It’s occupied, but thankfully not by something waiting to kill you. It’s actually Godwin’s head. When he was ‘killed’, it seems only his soul was destroyed leaving his body to rot and here is where you can find his head. A lovely touch, if not a bit gross.
Sometimes you have to be nice
There are several quests in Elden Ring that are completed by performing an emote, and one such quest involves Boc the Seamster. At one point in his dialogue, Boc will tell the tarnished that he’s ugly. Poor Boc, he’s constantly bullied, so why not be nice and tell him he’s actually beautiful? By performing this emote using the Prattling Pate item you can give him a nice ending to his short questline.
Topics: Bandai Namco, Elden Ring, Fromsoftware