5 Ways to Prepare for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree

It’ll soon be time for players to return to the Lands Between. Elden Ring’s upcoming expansion, The Shadow of the Erdtree is releasing later in the month. It will take players to a whole new area, introduce new bosses and NPCs, and add over 100 new weapons. It’s promising to be a mighty big slice of Elden Ring-ey goodness.

But if Shadow of the Erdtree is anything like the base game, it’s probably going to be quite a challenge. FromSoftware has a history of making their DLCs even harder than the original game (cough, Orphan of Kos from Bloodborne’s The Old Hunters expansion, cough). Hence, you’re going to want to make sure you’re prepared. Carry on reading to get ready for when you eventually travel to The Land of Shadow…

What Level Do You Need to Be?

Perhaps the most important thing you’ll need to know before Shadow of the Erdtree is what level you need to be. The recommended level for Shadow of the Erdtree is 120-150. Players who participated in the event have said this was the level their characters started at.

Seeing as you need to have beaten a relatively late-game boss to access the DLC – more on that in a moment – there’s a good chance your character will be around that level anyway. Unless you’re one of the masochists who enjoy doing Rune Level 1 runs, you’ll probably be near or past level 120 when the DLC is available to you.

Defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood

To access Shadow of the Erdtree, you need to have beaten Mohg, Lord of Blood. Mogh isn’t too difficult to take down, though as his name suggests, he’s got some pretty powerful blood-based attacks.

If you’re struggling, check out our Mohg, Lord of Blood guide. FromSoftware has confirmed that players need to defeat Mohg before accessing Shadow of the Erdtree.

Prepare Your Spirit Summon Buddies

It wouldn’t be Elden Ring without your ghostly Spirit Summons fighting by your side. And in Shadow of the Erdtree, you’ll want the most powerful summons backing you up. Like most people, I spammed the incredibly cheesy mimic tear when I first played Elden Ring, and I plan to use it again when I play Shadow of the Erdtree. Because sometimes your greatest ally, is yourself. Here’s our guide on how to find the Mimic Tear, or why not check our 10 best summons list.

Equip Those Powerful Talismans

In Shadow of the Erdtree, you’ll want to have every possible advantage against all the new dangerous (and probably disgusting) enemies. One of the best ways to do this is by making sure to equip the most powerful talismans. For example, the Great-Jar talisman greatly increases your equipment load, letting you carry more weapons and heavier armor sets. If you want to be able to carry more talismans, check out our guide on all talisman pouch locations.  

Collect Smithing Stones for New DLC Weapons

You’ll need to fully upgrade your weapons to be able to survive The Land of Shadow. Having lots of smithing stones will make this much easier. These upgrade materials aren’t exactly hard to find, and by the late game, you should purchase most of what you need from merchants – especially if you’ve collected all the bell bearings.

Plus, you’ll want to have stocked up on smithing stones because FromSoftware has confirmed that there are over 100 new weapons (including new weapon types) in Shadow of the Erdtree! These include reverse-hand swords, thrusting shields, and great katanas, and they’ll need to be upgraded if you want them at their full potential.

Get Some Larval Tears to Experiment With Builds

Larvel Tears are one of the most powerful items in Elden Ring, but also pretty darn rare, especially early on in your journey. These consumables allow you to respec your character and change up playstyle. All you have to do is take one to Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon (after defeating her, that is) and she’ll let you relocate your skills. Check out our guide on respeccing if you need some help.

We don’t know yet what kind of build is going to excel in Shadow of the Erdtree. We don’t if the combat encounters will favor intelligence builds or dexterity builds, or maybe it’ll favor those (me) who just equip the largest, most unwieldy hammer and squash everything in sight. Whatever build is best for the DLC, you might want to respec your character so you’ll have an easy time. Or maybe you just want to try some of the new weapon types.

With these tips in mind, you’ll be well-prepared to tackle the challenges of Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. I mean, you’ll probably still die. A lot. But isn’t that what these games are all about?

For more Elden Ring, check out our list of top 10 Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree enemies we’re most excited to die to.