Unlock the Quickest Route to the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC Now

Greetings, fellow Tarnished, whether you’re a seasoned veteran looking to tackle fresh challenges, a returning player excited to explore new content or completely new to Elden Ring, I would assume you’ll want to access the DLC as quickly as possible and explore what FromSoftware has delivered.

For those starting a new game or in New Game Plus, knowing the fastest route to the DLC can save you hours of gameplay. Even if you’re in the middle of a playthrough, this guide will help you efficiently navigate to the required bosses and locations.

We’ll outline the quickest path to unlock the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, including alternative options, shortcuts and strategies to reach the necessary milestones. So sharpen your blade, prepare your spells, and get ready to embark on this new journey in record time!

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Update – August 11, 2024

I finally dove into NG+ and put the information in this article to the test . Although I was confident in the information’s accuracy, I wanted to make sure it held up in practice. The guide might benefit from some additional tips on the fastest routes, but I’m sure you’re capable of navigating on your own.

Considering I’m an average player at best, and I died a couple of times to gravity, got a bit lost trying to reach certain areas and did some unnecessary things (like fighting the Tree Sentinel at the start or grabbing a second Bloodhound’s Fang because the Evergaol was on the way), reaching the DLC in 1 hour and 52 minutes is still pretty decent, wouldn’t you say?

All in all, you should have everything you need in this article to get to the DLC quickly. From my perspective, it’s been checked and approved.

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The Requirements

First of all let’s have a look at the requirements you need to fulfill to access the Elden Ring DLC Shadow of the Erdtree:

1. Defeat Starscourge Radahn in Caelid.
2. Defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood in Mohgwyn Palace.
3. After defeating Mohg, interact with Miquella’s Cocoon in Mohg’s boss arena (Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum).

And within the blink of an eye you have reached the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC and can start your journey – well, kind of…

Let’s find out what you have to do, to reach the boss arenas of Starscourge Radahn and Mohg, Lord of Blood.

The Way to Radahn

Before you can start to crush (or get crushed by) Radahn, you first of all you have to get to Caelid and besides galloping through the bigger part of Limgrave first, there is a quicker way available, as I will show you now.

The Fastest Route

The fastest way to reach Caelid in Elden Ring is by using the hidden teleporter chest in the Dragon-Burnt Ruins of Limgrave. Here’s how to get there:

1. From the starting area (The First Step site of grace), head east and descend the cliff.
2. Look for the Dragon-Burnt Ruins in the area below.
3. Enter the ruins and find the stairs leading down to a room filled with rats. Either dash by the rats (and try not to be killed) or exterminate the rat plague first, before finding a chest at the end of the room.
4. Open the chest and allow yourself to be enveloped by the smoke that appears.

This chest is a teleport trap that brings you directly to the Sellia Crystal Tunnel in Caelid. If you have reached here with your RL1 character: congratz! Unfortunately things will be a little more dangerous, as you’ve been transported to a way more difficult area early in the game. To safely exit the tunnel, move right down the path while crouching to avoid enemy attention. Alternatively, you can try to sprint to the exit, if you’re quick enough. And don’t forget to activate the site of grace in the tunnel before you leave. Now head to the south of Caelid to reach Redmane Castle and the Radahn Festival.

While this method should be the fastest, it can be quite challenging for new players, but if you are already in NG+ and simply want to go for another SOTE ride this truly is your best option.

The Long Route

A slower, but definitely safer route lets you ride from the Stormhill Shack westward through Limgrave right into West Caelid and then further southeast to Redmane Castle – kind of Radahn’s residence, even though he actually lives in the backyard. If you fancy a big (and rather safe) sightseeing tour, then this is the choice to take.

The Alternative Route

If you want, you can alternatively use a portal located just north-east of the Third Church of Marika. This brings you to the Bestial Sanctum site of grace in the north of Caelid from where on you have to ride through nearly all of Caelid to reach Redmane Castle – its your decision after all.

Initiating the Radahn Festival

In order to fight Radhan, you have to initiate the Radahn Festival first and there are two primary methods available:

1. Progressing Ranni’s Questline: To trigger the festival via Ranni’s quest, you must advance her storyline to a certain point. This involves clearing Caria Manor, agreeing to serve Ranni and interacting with various NPCs such as Blaidd, Seluvis and Sellen. Once the necessary dialogues are exhausted, the Radahn Festival will be activated – that’s quite some stuff to do.
2. Reaching Altus Plateau: Alternatively and I would say preferably, you can trigger the festival by reaching the Altus Plateau. You have to get to the Altus Plateau anyway should you decide to do the White Mask Varré’s quest line in offline mode, as you will learn in the next section. We will also discover how to best get to the Altus Plateau later on. I would advice you to use the synergy these approaches offer when you combine them.

Once you reach Redmane Castle “simply” defeat Starscourge Radahn to tick the first box. Sorry, no tipps for the fight this time – the route is the goal of this guide.

After your victory over Radahn continue with you journey and take aim at Mohg, Lord of Blood.

The Way to Mohgwyn Palace

There are two different ways to reach Mohgwyn Palace that you can consider.

Use a Portal in the Consecrated Snowfield

You can reach Mohgwyn Palace through a portal in the western part of the Consecrated Snowfield, which is a late-game area, after killing an NPC invader that blocks the portal. To get to the Consecrated Snowfield you have to find both parts of the Haligtree Secret Medallion, which will grant you access by using the Grand Lift of Rold. Unfortunately you need to have access to the Mountaintops of the Giants to collect one of the both parts and that requires completing a rather intense quest in Leyndell. While this is a legit way to reach Mohgwyn Palace and one you can consider, if you want to complete most of the storyline anyways, there is an alternative (and in opinion better) way.

Complete Big Parts of the White Mask Varré’s Quest Line

This approach is also not without effort. By completing a huge part of White Mask Varré‘s quest line, you ultimately gain the Pureblood Knight’s Medal to teleport directly to Mohgwyn Palace. Let’s go into details (and don’t be scared by the amount of things you have to do, it is still the fastest way).

1. First Encounter: Find Varré at the very beginning of the game, right after leaving the tutorial area. He’ll be near the First Step grace, mocking your Tarnished status. Talk to him. Should you have killed him in exuberance of emotions… oops, Houston, we have a problem… use the above mentioned teleporter instead.
2. Church of Rose: After obtaining a Great Rune (what you have already done with defeating Radahn) and speaking with Enia at the Roundtable Hold, Varré relocates to the Rose Church in Liurnia of the Lakes. Here, he gives you the Festering Bloody Finger and asks you to invade other players’ worlds three times. Note that you do not need to win these invasions; simply participating (and jumping to death) counts.
   Alternative to the online invasions, play offline and go to the Writheblood Ruins area in Altus Plateau, where you find the invasion sign of the NPC Magnus the Beast Claw. Defeat him and go back to Varré.
3. Reward for Service: Return to Varré after your invasions or defeating Magnus. He will ask you to join the Bloody Lord’s order and give you the Lord of Blood’s Favor, which you need to soak in maiden’s blood.
4. Soaking the Favor: You can soak the Favor in the blood of a maiden at several locations:

• Church of Inhibition: Located at the top of the Frenzied Flame Village. In the church lies a dead Finger Maiden, but you have to defeat the NPC invader Festering Fingerprint Vyke to gain access.
• Chapel of Anticipation: Accessible via the second belfry at The Four Belfries. After you are transported back to where it all started, you get revenge on the Grafted Scion.
• Irina: Found at the entrance of the Weeping Peninsula near the Bridge of Sacrifice site of grace. You have to kill her, but if it eases your conscience I can tell you, that she will die either way.
• Hyetta: Initially located next to the Lake-Facing Cliffs (killing her will end her questline and lock you out of the frenzied flame end).
  
  I would assume poor Irina is the victim to reach in the shortest amount of time. The choice is yours to make…

5. Getting the reward: Upon returning with the blood soaked Favor, Varré will reward you with the final item – the Pureblood Knight’s Medal.
6. To Mohg, Lord of Blood we go: Simply use the the Pureblood Knight’s Medal to finally reach Mohgwyn’s palace. Hallelujah, what a trip that was.

Then “simply” defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood to tick the second box. Rest at the site of grace in Mohg’s arena and afterwards you can tick the last box by interacting with Miquella’s Cocoon in the boss arena. Shadow of the Erdtree here we come. Finally.

I should mention that you lock yourself out of the Varré quest line and the chance to obtain the White Mask when you kill Mohg, Lord of Blood. Better bring that quest to an end first.

How to Reach the Altus Plateau

If you should decide go for the Varré Quest and defeat Magnus the Beast Claw you have to reach Altus Plateau first – you have to get there anyway, as you learned above.

The fastest route to reach the Altus Plateau is generally considered to be through the Grand Lift of Dectus. While the second option, the Ruin-Strewn Precipice path is a viable alternative, it involves more combat and navigating through a series of enemies, which can take more time if you’re not adequately prepared or familiar with the area.

Via the Grand Lift of Dectus

• Collect the Dectus Medallion: To use this route, you need to find both halves of the Dectus Medallion.
  • Left Half: Located in Fort Haight in Limgrave.
  • Right Half: Found in Fort Faroth in Caelid.
• Activate the Elevator: Once you have both halves, head to the Grand Lift of Dectus and activate it to ascend directly to the Altus Plateau.

Alternative Route through the Ruin-Strewn Precipice

This path is more challenging as it involves plotting a course through quite an amount of enemies and facing a boss fight against Magma Wyrm Makar. If you still want to head this way, you can reach the Ruin-Strewn Precipice as follows:
Start in Liurnia of the Lakes: Head to the northern part of Liurnia, near the Glintstone Dragon Smarag area. From there, follow the river north-northeast into a narrow ravine. Continue along the river until you reach the Ravine-Veiled Village site of grace. This area marks the beginning of your ascent to the Ruin-Strewn Precipice.

You find the relevant locations on these map fragments:

What Level Should You Have for the Fights with Radahn and Mohg?

It’s recommended to be at least level 60-80 before facing Radahn, with standard weapons +12 to +15 or somber weapons +5 to +6. Remember, Radahn’s fight is unique due to its festival-style format where you can summon NPC allies. This can help offset some of the difficulty, allowing for some flexibility in your approach.

For Mohg, it’s suggested to be at least somewhere between 80-100, with standard weapons +17 to +20 or somber weapons +7 to +8. At these levels, you should have enough health, damage output, and defensive capabilities to handle Mohg’s aggressive attacks and blood loss buildup. Remember, Mohg is considered a late-game boss, so these recommendations reflect that.

These are general recommendations. Some players might feel comfortable facing these bosses at lower levels, while others might prefer to level up more. Your personal skill level and familiarity with the game mechanics will also play a significant role in determining the ideal character and weapon level for this fight.

Tarnished Ambitions: New Players’ Journey to the DLC

For new players to Elden Ring, accessing the DLC represents a significant challenge that should not be underestimated. Whereas speedrunners have meticulously planned routes, exploit glitches, and possess a mastery of Elden Ring’s mechanics, that will grant them access to the DLC in less then 30 minutes, new players will (I fear) necessitate hours upon hours of exploration, combat mastery, and character progression.

Just by looking at the suggested levels for the fights with Radahn and Mohg, Lord of Blood you can assume that you have to sink quite some hours into the base game and the development of your game character, before you stand a fair chance of defeating these bosses. But who knows, maybe you are a natural and dash through the base game like a hot knife cuts through butter.

Final Words

The Lands Between is an unforgiving realm, and accessing its most demanding content is a true test of a player’s dedication. But for those bold enough to take on this challenge, the sense of accomplishment and the rewards that await can be truly extraordinary.

Now, let me ask some final questions: Did I miss something? Do you need more details? Are there any errors? If you wish, please, let me know in the comments.

However, if you want to proceed to the DLC as fast as possible, this guide should provide you with a proper game plan and if you are in NG+ I assume you already know the details, that I left out on purpose. So steel your nerves, Tarnished, and prepare to embark on a journey unlike any other.

Resources

Moving Pictures: Youtube . Search . Fastest Way To Shadow Of The Erdtree.