Everything You Need To Do Before Shadow of the Erdtree: How To Prepare for Elden Ring DLC

The Shadow of the Erdtree DLC will be here this month, and it aims to add a wealth of content to the already massive RPG Elden Ring. However, you can never be too prepared for the Realm of Shadow, and here is everything you need to do before June 21.

Beat Mohg!

Yeah, you should have seen this one coming. See that guy in the image above. That’d Mohg, the Lord of Blood. And that gross egg-like thing behind him is the entrance to the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC.

You need to beat Mohg before you can access the DLC, and he’s not an easy boss fight. Luckily, we have a few guides that can help, including where to find Mohg and how to beat Mohg.

Reach Level 150+

There are going to be eight new weapon types in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, and you don’t want to be a few levels short of being able to test out any new hardware you come across. 150 is a good balance, allowing players to use a Larval Tear to respect into any build without having to sacrifice Vigor.

We do have a couple of guides that can help. The first is an explainer of the best level to be at for the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC and why it shouldn’t affect the game’s difficulty too much. And the second is a Rune Farming guide, so you can reach the desired level in a snap.

Collect All Larval Tears

Speaking of respecing, you are going to need Larval Tears to actually do that. There’s nothing more frustrating than finding a new weapon and going to Renalla, only to realize you don’t have a spare Larval Tear on hand.

We’ve got you covered as we’ve prepared a guide showing you the location of every Larval Tear in Elden Ring.

Collect Every Smithing Stone Miner’s Bell Bearing

When you eventually find a weapon you love and want to start using it against some DLC bosses, you’re going to need Smithing Stones or Somber Stones to upgrade it. Of course, you can just run around caves and collect them, but that’s a lot of time wasted that could be spent exploring the Realm of Shadow.

This is where Smithing Stone Bell Bearings come in. There are five Somberstone Miner’s Bell Bearings and four Smithing Stone Miner’s Bell Bearings. Collecting them all will allow you to buy an infinite number of Smithing Stones or Somber Stones. Again, we’ve got guides for both, which are linked above.

Collect Every Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone

Some weapons reach their highest scaling potential when they reach the max level. For Somber weapons, this is +10. For normal weapons, it’s +25. But you can’t reach these levels without either a Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone or an Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone.

The issue is that there’s a finite number of both per playthrough, and some can be missed if you progress too far in the main story without completing a few sidequests. We’ve got guides showing you the location of every Somber Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone and Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone in Elden Ring.

Complete Side Quests

There are a ton of side quests in Elden Ring, most of which end in despair, but some leave the player wanting a bit more. While Miyazaki has explicitly stated that The Lands Between and the Realm of Shadow are two separate places, we think there are a few NPCs that could end up appearing in the DLC.

• Sorceror Thops: He dies shortly after making it to Raya Lucaria Academy
• Rogier: He disappears after you become Ranni’s vassal
• Millicent: Her lengthy quest ends in her death before fighting Malenia, but she does have close ties to Miquella
• Jar Bairn: I don’t know why, but I’d like to see him again in the Realm of Shadow

There is a chance we don’t see any familiar NPCs in the Realm of Shadow, as the trailers have already shown several new NPCs that will likely have their own convoluted questlines.

That’s everything you need to take on the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC in Elden Ring. Sure, you can collect every item in the game and max out your flasks, but to really enjoy the DLC, you need to be ready to adapt to whatever items you find. Following the list above will not only make your life easier when testing out new weapons, but it will also cut out a ton of backtracking that would otherwise steal you away from the Realm of Shadow.