You want to get started with Elden Ring and explore the open world? So that you don’t have to pay the price like we did, we have some valuable tips on how to start the game.
We actually knew what to expect from Elden Ring. After all, the open-world role-playing game comes from From Software, who are known for their crisp difficulty level in Dark Souls, Sekiro and Co. Nevertheless, some things about Elden Ring still surprised us and caught us off guard.
To make sure this doesn’t happen to you at release, we have 14 helpful tips for beginners to help you get the most out of your adventure. Because Elden Ring reveals so little of itself, we had to learn a lot the hard way. So put on your reading glasses for a moment before you strap on your greatsword and head off to the interlands.
Table of Contents
1. upgrade your tears
Hardly surprising, but in Elden Ring your health points are one of your most important currencies. So take good care of them! You can replenish them with your tear bottles, which in turn can be upgraded. At the beginning, you’ll be walking around with just four vials for life points and magic, which you can distribute freely between the two slots. For example, three vials for life and one for magic. But you can always get more and also upgrade the strength of the healing!
To get more vials, you need to collect golden seeds near the golden trees. To strengthen them, collect Holy Tears from churches and chapels. You can then activate both in places of grace (the equivalent of classic Souls bonfires).
2. Don’t ignore the skulls
You will encounter skulls with glowing eyes on the ground from time to time in the Open World that you cannot interact with. Instead, you should ride over them with your horse or smash them, because you will find golden runes in them. If you redeem them, you will receive a small amount of runes (i.e. experience points, the equivalent of souls from Dark Souls), which you can use to buy skills or equipment. However, it’s best to always keep a few of them, for example to be able to add a required amount to your counter for the next level up!
You don’t have to kill every boss right away
Unlike previous Souls games, you’ll almost never be forced to kill a boss immediately in order to progress on the map. There will almost always be a sneak path around the boss, so you can uncover large parts of the map without winning a fight. However, there are of course bosses that you will have to kill sooner or later in order to advance the story. And you shouldn’t ignore the others forever either, because they have valuable experience points and loot for you!
Especially smaller bosses in dungeons, which are comparatively easier to beat, often give swords or special attacks as a reward.
First skill up what you need immediately
You should not think too far ahead when skilling. Because weapons for your desired build can be scarce. Wands or dexterity weapons, for example, are pretty well hidden in the open world and it can take hours to get your hands on them. Since you will later be able to easily reallocate your skill points, you can concentrate at the beginning on the skills that you can immediately use. In the first area Limgrave, for example, there are mainly weapons that scale with your strength value.
5. visit cemeteries
You should visit cemeteries not only to pay your last respects to the deceased, but also to freeze-coldly loot their graves and thus collect runes, which you can redeem for a large amount of experience points. Some of them have a value of over 2000 runes.
6. you will find loot to match the location
“If I were a blacksmith’s stone, where would I hide?” Asking yourself this question every now and then can be a great help. Because in this case, the answer is simple: in a mine! Loot can often be found where it fits thematically. The same goes for weapons. In areas where you run into many agile enemies, Dexterity weapons might be waiting for you, and where there are many mages around, you can often find magic wands as well.
7. Remember the statues
You will find small, light grey statues in front of bosses or near Sites of Grace, i.e. the beacons of Elden Ring. You need to activate them to be able to summon co-op helpers or Spirit Summons. These make the battles in the game much easier. So check if you have already interacted with the summon figure before you call someone.
8. Get help
If you don’t see any land on the bosses, you should either use co-op or summon spirit helpers. They work like an extension of your build. Wolf phantoms, for example, can surround enemies and attack them at close range, while you, as a mage, stay at a distance. Spirit Summons stay by your side until you die, they die, the boss is defeated or you move too far away from the statue.
You will find their ashes as an item in your inventory, which you can select there. However, it is quicker to put them directly into your speed dial. For co-op, you have to leave a sign or search for the sign of other players by item. You can find both of these in the menu under “Multiplayer” along with an explanation or in your inventory. If the guest dies, you can continue fighting normally as the host; the other way round, both players return to the last save point in their respective world.
9. personalise the map
Read correctly, Elden Ring brings a classic map. However, only in the Open World and only if you find corresponding fragments. Places that you have already discovered are marked there, as are places of mercy, to which you can quickly travel from anywhere when you are not fighting or in dungeons. There’s no map there either, because they’re based on typical Souls levels where you shouldn’t feel too safe.
You can also mark places yourself, which becomes visible as a blue light column in the world. In addition, you can place your own icons directly on the map to remind you where certain enemies, treasures or secrets are hiding that you want to return to later.
10. Don’t jump back to the entrance right away
If you defeat the boss in an underground cave, a blue light spark will conveniently appear and transport you back to the entrance. However, you should only use it once you have had a good look around. That doesn’t mean you’re done here – sometimes you can still discover treasure chests or shortcuts to other areas. Also check the walls for magic walls!
11. Buy the Right Things from Merchants
You don’t just level up with your hard-won runes. You can also spend them on equipment and items at merchants. You will find enough weapons and armour in the world or you can upgrade what you already wear with Smithing Shards and Ashes of War. This strengthens the items and adds special effects such as lightning damage or magic.
A good catch is a crafting kit including recipes, because you can make items like fire bombs from found resources on the way. Or you can increase damage and stamina with self-made aids. Some of the ashes of the ghost helpers can also be bought. We have already explained above how useful they are.
12. provides a soft landing
Your magical horse Torrent jumps around like a little mountain goat, but you still shouldn’t take fall damage lightly. Compared to Dark Souls, it is reduced, but if you jump off a cliff, it won’t help. You can safely get down where the magic portals catapult you upwards. If you jump in here, you will not take any damage even if you fall from a great height.
13. quietly take out guards
Some enemies wear a flashy horn on their belt that they can use to call for reinforcements. This is particularly annoying because groups will quickly overrun you. If things go badly, you’ll suddenly have ten knights around you like we did in the beginning and have to run for your life. That’s why you should take a good look at your surroundings – you can even buy a telescope for this purpose from a merchant. Then you can quietly take out the guard from behind and then make short work of the remaining troublemakers.
14. stop the bugs
Don’t let the droll dung beetles with their sparkling balls go on their way, but take their prey from them by hitting them. Behind them are treasures such as spells or war ash, which you can use to modify your weapons and shields. Be careful: As soon as you approach, they start running and the beasts are surprisingly agile.
Those were our tips for getting started in Elden Ring. Are you already playing and perhaps have some advice of your own? Then feel free to write it down in the comments!
