We put our humanity on the line analyzing every scrap of Deep Lore in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's trailer

GamesRPGElden Ring: Shadow of the ErdtreeWe put our humanity on the line analyzing every scrap of Deep Lore in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree’s trailerWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Bandai Namco)

Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree trailer screencap of a red haired character holding fire in their hand

Jump to:This Messmer guy has a lot cookingWhat’s Miquella up to?What the heck is a “Realm of Shadow"What are we trying to accomplish here?The kindly old portrait man to nasty centipede guy pipelineReferences to real world history and mythologyOther callbacks/connections to the main gameHow big is this thing?

PCG associate editor Tyler Colp and I have devoted an embarrassing amount of our brain power to Elden Ring over the past two years⁠—precious memories of family road trips and childhood friendships eagerly ejected to make room for moredeep lore.Well, it’s time for all that brain rot to pay off: join us as we speculate, make connections, and give our best guesses about what’s going on in Shadow of the Erdtree’s first trailer. If you want more than that, well, you’ll have to come over so I can show you my personal cork board and string setup⁠—or we can watch the40-minute VaatiVidyadeep dive that just dropped together.

This Messmer guy has a lot cooking

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Elden ring Key art of Messmer the Impaler sitting on a throne

Ted Litchfield, Associate Editor:With Messmer coming out of nowhere to take on the role of expansion mascot and Superhard Megaboss Apparent, there’s a risk of a kind of “Itchy and Scratchy and Poochie” thing here: “Who the hell is this new guy, and why should I care?”

Many players took this to be Melina, your helper throughout the game, but with the reveal of the fire-themed Messmer, I’m willing to bet that he’s the one, and Shadow of the Erdtree is a sibling drama playing out between the two surviving children of Radagon and Marika. Also, his having one eye lost or shut gives us a connection to both Ranni and Melina.

Tyler Colp, Associate Editor:Those are some compelling theories, especially because I could never quite square the Smoldering Butterfly representing Melina. But that’s another topic. I want to know what Mr. Messmer is even doing in the realm of shadow. His full title is MessmerThe Impalerand there’s actuallyan NPCwho talks about an “unwanted child” near the Impaler’s (Impaler!) catacombs. He also looks like he has one eye closed. I’m not sure what any of this means but I do like the idea that maybe he’s the onewho impaled Marikaand then got punished for it.

What’s Miquella up to?

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC artwork with a character on a horse in a golden field

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

Ted:I’m curious about all the more sinister things cooking with Miquella. The cruel tragedy around Malenia, the egalitarian promise of the Haligtree, and the fact that they might have been able to fix the world had their siblings not interfered all paints him in a sympathetic light, but that might not be the full story.

“He wields love to shrive clean the hearts of men⁠—there is nothing more terrifying.” That doesn’t sound too nice! The boy genius superstar of Elden Ring’s lore has worn a lot of hats, including an all- but- confirmed assumed identity as St. Trina, a knight of sleep and dreams. I wonder how much of this story will be us saving him from the pocket dimension hidden in his egg, or trying to stop some plot he’s put in motion there.

What the heck is a “Realm of Shadow”

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Land of Shadow panorama in Elden Ring DLC

My crackpot theory is that this could be how The Lands Between existed before the Greater Will got interested in it. It’s a realm of shadow because it mirrors the world we already know but maybe has been warped over time. I don’t subscribe to “the Erdtree is actually a parasite” theories, but I wonder if this place essentially fell apart as the topside flourished. Or maybe this is just me wanting to visit a dark Leyndell and a third Roundtable Hold.

Ted:One thing that’s gotten my mind overheating is the ghost you find at Castle Sol, after defeating Commander Niall in the base game: “Lord Miquella, forgive me. The sun has not been swallowed. Our prayers were lacking. Your comrade remains soulless… I will never set my eyes upon it now. Your divine Haligtree.” Castle Sol and its apparently failed metaphysical eclipse seem to have been central to Miquella’s plan somehow, and the Realm of Shadow looks to be in some kind of perpetual twilight, like its sun has been eclipsed.

I’ll leave off with a particularly juicy Miyazaki quote about the new zone from his Famitsu interview:

“In fact, the shadow lands are where Marika became a god and where the Erdtree was born. Of course there was a culture there before the Erdtree, and that lion dance comes from this culture.”

What are we trying to accomplish here?

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Miquella’s cocoon in Elden Ring

Ted:I have no idea! In his massive interview with Famitsu, Miyazaki stated that the DLC won’t unlock a new ending to the base game⁠—we’ve already taken the Elden Throne and become Elden Lord, so why are we touching the god egg and transporting to the shadow place? On the flip side, Dark Souls 3’s Ringed City offered this impactful, parallel ending to the main game that served as a meta send off to the entire series⁠—maybe we don’t need to muck with the main endings for this to be a great conclusion to Elden Ring’s story.

Tyler:I have no idea either, but maybe we’ll meet an NPC that wants something in the realm of shadow, kind of like Gael in Dark Souls 3. Whoever it is would know that touching the egg is the secret, which is an odd piece of knowledge to have. It is weird that it won’t change any endings, though. I’m extremely curious what prompts us to dip into the shadow lands when it wouldn’t result in hurting the Erdtree in any way.

Ted:I keep catching on the requirement for accessing the DLC: according to Miyazaki, you have to beat both Mohg, Lord of Blood and Starscorge Radahn. Mohg makes sense⁠—he’s the beefy devil boy camped right in front of the creepy egg we’ll use to reach the DLC, but why Radahn, who’s over on the other side of the map and can actually be skipped on your way to Mohg? My guess is that Radahn’s defeat will trigger the appearance of that Gael-style gatekeeper/plot hook NPC

The kindly old portrait man to nasty centipede guy pipeline

(Image credit: FromSoft)

A strange, gaunt man inserts a long protuding stick into his eye.

Tyler:Everyone seems convinced the old man in the portrait from the trailer isthe guy pulling the sword out of his skull. The pendant certainly looks the same. But yeah, what’s up with this guy’s body? What is happening with those bones? Or are they some kind of growth? If we’re dealing with opposites, it could be some form of root-based necromancy from a shadow version of the tree. We really haven’t seen stuff that looks like that before—it doesn’t quite look like deathroot or the new spiky incantation. I will say this though: the framing makes it look like a boss fight cutscene.

Ted:He was maybe my second favorite enemy design behind the freaky grafted omen lion dance guy. I hope he pulls that big splinter out of his eye and fights us with it, and I’m really curious to know more about that sinister hooded lady standing behind him in the portrait⁠—is she responsible for his nasty bisected thorny state? Could this even be Marika or Miquella in the painting?

References to real world history and mythology

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Malformed Lion Dance boss from Shadow of the Erdtree

Ted:One of the real standout characters from the trailer for me was the animated kaiju burning Wicker Man—famous from the movie, but also anecho of ancient Celtic culture—who seems to be a field boss best fought atop Torrent. That’s a “hell yes” from me, but it’s also an example of one of my favorite things FromSoft does on the art front: pulling from all different cultures and eras to inform its fantasies⁠—it’s the kind of sensibility that delivered us Angkor Wat half-sunk in a lava lake.

Other callbacks/connections to the main game

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

Hat Man from Shadow of the Erdtree

Ted:Zullie the Witchpointed out that the Caria-looking magic man has a suspicious resemblance to the Carian Inverted Statue you have to use in Liurnia’s tower in the main game as well. Another weird one Zullie and others have pointed out: the silken veils hanging from the sky in the Realm of Shadow look an awful lot like the ones in Marika’s bedchamber, before you cross the bridge to fight Morgott in the main game.

How big is this thing?

(Image credit: FromSoftware)

A creepy man readies a bomb to hurl at an unwitting enemy in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree.

Ted:I’ve noticed some commenters bemoaning how Miyazaki described Shadow of the Erdtree as being a bit bigger than the base game’s zone of Limgrave⁠—whether that’s some kind of understatement, or belies a new density of design remains to be seen, but I trust that it’s going to be big. This is the same designer who quoted Elden Ring as being 30 hours long in one interview, after all, and as PCG news writer Joshua Wolens pointed out, it’s weirdly thrilling that Shadow of the Erdtree istwice the priceof any previous FromSoft DLC. 40 bucks is apromise.

Tyler:I think Limgrave as an example makes sense because anyone who even played the game a little bit would understand what that means. But it’s also one of the most dense areas in the game, which is another thing Miyazaki has mentioned about the new area in recent interviews. I think it may be surprising how dense it is and I’m still crossing my fingers that we may have a new underground area to visit that mirrors the forgotten city below the capital.

TOPICSFromSoftware

TOPICS

More about rpg

A Path of Exile 2 sorceress casting flaming skulls in a hellish landscape

Path of Exile 2 numberlord spends 16 straight days killing rare monsters to prove that a stat that makes loot better makes better loot

Double headed wizard man holding arms up looking sad

LatestToday’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11See more latest►

Latest

Today’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11

Wordle answers

Today’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11

See more latest►

Most Popular

The Witcher 3’s now 2-year-old bonus quest is our first taste of the ‘vibe’ CD Projekt is going for in The Witcher 4

2024 was the year updates for old games beat out all the new ones for me

Train like you game with this adventure-inspired workout

‘It’s simply impossible to make a difficulty level that’s just right for all players’: How Final Fantasy 14’s lead battle designer has been playing a precarious balancing game for Dawntrail’s dungeons and raids

Please join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)

Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual fun

Call of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doing

These are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

Five new Steam games you probably missed (January 6, 2025)

I’ve seen enough: No more forcing singleplayer studios to make mediocre live service games

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

This Messmer guy has a lot cooking#

What’s Miquella up to?#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

What the heck is a “Realm of Shadow”#

What are we trying to accomplish here?#

The kindly old portrait man to nasty centipede guy pipeline#

References to real world history and mythology#

Other callbacks/connections to the main game#

How big is this thing?#

This Messmer guy has a lot cooking

What’s Miquella up to?

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

What the heck is a “Realm of Shadow”

What are we trying to accomplish here?

The kindly old portrait man to nasty centipede guy pipeline

References to real world history and mythology

Other callbacks/connections to the main game

How big is this thing?