5 Things to Do First in Elden Ring (& 1 to Avoid)

Elden Ring is easily one of the most highly anticipated video game releases of 2021, and it’s finally available on PC and consoles. The game features a large open-world that’s very easy to get lost in, and you might find yourself overwhelmed with things to do and not knowing where to go. Here are five things to do first in Elden Ring.

1. Clear Out Kale’s Inventory

Things to Do First in Elden Ring

Immediately after leaving the tutorial area, head straight north to find the Church of Elleh, where you’ll meet Kale the nomadic merchant. When speaking with him, he recommends that you buy the Crafting Kit, and that should definitely be the first thing you purchase.

The Crafting Kit lets you craft useful items like the Furlcalling Finger Remedy, which lets you see summon signs, along with arrows, fire pots, and other consumables. You should also purchase all the cookbooks from him, which unlock more crafting recipes, along with the torch and the telescope.

The telescope is handy for scoping out new areas, while the torch will light up dark places, which is very useful during your dungeon runs.

2. Make a Break for Gatefront Ruins

After meeting Kale, head for the Gatefront Ruins north of your position. Rest at the Site of Grace to trigger a cutscene with Melina, and this will unlock the leveling feature for your character.

From this point on, you’ll be able to level up your character while resting at any Site of Grace, and finally put those Runes to good use. Considering that leveling up is one of the key elements to getting stronger in this game, you should definitely get this done ASAP.

3. Get Your Spirit Calling Bell from Renna

Things to Do First in Elden Ring

With no time to waste, head back to the Church of Elleh after you’ve met with Melina. There’s now a new NPC sitting there, as Kale is dead asleep. Speak with the NPC, named Renna the Witch, and she’ll gift you the Spirit Calling Bell and the Lone Wolves Ashes.

The Spirit Calling Bell gives you the ability to make use of Spirit Ashes, and summon them to aid you in combat. This does consume FP, however, so be mindful of that and make sure you have enough FP set aside especially if you’re a magic user. Spirits are incredibly helpful in battle and can be summoned during boss encounters, along with NPC summons if available. However, you cannot use them when engaged in online multiplayer.

4. Get the Flask of Wondrous Physick

If you purchase Kale’s notes, you’ll read about the Flask of Wondrous Physick located somewhere east of the Waypoint Ruins. Get on Torrent and start riding all the way east until you reach the Third Church of Marika. Aside from the Flask itself, you can also get a Sacred Tear, which boosts the recovery effects of your Sacred Flasks.

When resting at a Site of Grace, you can adjust your Wondrous Physick mix with the various Tear items you collect on your journey to create different restorative effects. For instance, you can set it to recover half of your max HP and give you a stamina boost at the same time.

The Flask of Wondrous Physick only has one charge and needs to be restored at a Site of Grace after usage, so save them for tough encounters or boss fights.

5. Clear Out Some Dungeons

Things to Do First in Elden Ring

After you’ve gotten all your basic items sorted out, it’s time to clear out some of the dungeons in Limgrave. You have plenty of options here, including the Coastal Cave on the beach just west of the Church of Elleh, as well as the Murkwater Cave along the stream to the east.

Magic users should definitely hit up the Waypoint Ruins too, and look for a cellar that houses a mini boss you can fight. All of the dungeons will feature a mini-boss at the end, and they generally have much lesser health than the main story bosses. Some can be a little tricky, but their move sets are predictable, and you’ll also be rewarded with a fair amount of runes for your effort.

Avoid the Tree Sentinel for Now

When you first exit out of the tutorial area, you’ll rest at the Site of Grace, and then be tasked with heading north. In your way, patrolling the main path is the Tree Sentinel. He and his steed are all shiny and gold… and rather daunting.

As much as it may seem like you’re supposed to take this boss on now, he’s incredibly strong and will make incredibly light work of you. Instead, look to sneak around him to the Church of Elleh to meet the aforementioned Kale.

Coming back to this boss later on makes things much easier, and you’re less likely to launch your controller/ console/ keyboard/ entire PC out of the window from the battle, die, repeat cycle that’ll ensue.

And those are the five things you should do first in Elden Ring. Be sure to check our guide wiki for more tips and information on the game.