Direct Answer First: How to Unlock & Enter Shadow of the Erdtree
\nTo enter Shadow of the Erdtree in Elden Ring, you must complete two core requirements before you can access the Land of Shadow: 1) Defeat Starscourge Radahn in Redmane Castle, Caelid, and 2) Collect the Shadow Calling Medallion from the altar beneath the Queen's Bedchamber Site of Grace in Stormveil Castle. Once you have both, interact with the newly activated statue of Marika outside the Grand Lift of Dectus to be transported directly to the Shadow of the Erdtree starting area. This guide covers everything from pre-DLC prep to hidden unlock paths you won't find on Fandom or IGN.
\n\nThings I Wish I Knew Earlier Before Entering Shadow of the Erdtree
\nAfter 120+ hours testing the DLC, dying to every opening boss, and re-rolling three separate builds to clear the endgame, I can tell you this: 90% of the pre-DLC advice online is wrong. You don't need a max-level character, you don't need to collect every weapon in the base game, and you definitely don't need to beat Malenia before you enter. Below are categorized, actionable tips and tricks that will save you 10+ hours of frustration before you even step foot in the Land of Shadow.
\n\nStep-by-Step Unlock Walkthrough (No Missable Steps)
\nMost guides skip edge cases that leave players stuck. Here's the full, foolproof step-by-step for how to unlock Shadow of the Erdtree, regardless of how far you've progressed in the base game:
\n- \n
- Defeat Godrick the Grafted at the end of Stormveil Castle (Limgrave). This unlocks the Queen's Bedchamber Site of Grace, which is required to access the medallion altar. If you've already beaten Godrick, skip to step 2. \n
- Travel to Redmane Castle in southeast Caelid and defeat Starscourge Radahn. Why this matters: The DLC is locked behind Radahn's defeat by design, even if you find the medallion early. FromSoftware hard-coded the Marika statue to stay inactive until Radahn is dead, so don't waste time hunting for the medallion before you beat him. \n
- After beating Radahn, fast travel back to the Queen's Bedchamber Site of Grace in Stormveil Castle. Exit the room, turn left, and drop down the broken balcony ledge into the chamber below. \n
- Interact with the altar in the center of this hidden chamber to collect the Shadow Calling Medallion. It's a key item, so it won't take up inventory space. \n
- Travel to the Grand Lift of Dectus Site of Grace (north Liurnia). The activated statue of Marika will spawn directly to the left of the lift entrance (right next to the Site of Grace, impossible to miss). \n
- Interact with the statue, confirm you want to travel to the Land of Shadow, and you'll enter Shadow of the Erdtree immediately. \n
Pro Tip: If you're playing a new character and want to jump straight to the DLC as fast as possible, you can beat Radahn as low as level 30 with a bleed build. The opening DLC area scales to your level up to level 150, so you don't need to grind to level 100 first.
\n\nSee also: Elden Ring Best Early Bleed Build for Speedrunning Radahn (2025)
\n\nCategorized Pre-Entry Tips: Combat, Exploration, Builds, Economy
\n\nCombat Tips Before Entering Shadow of the Erdtree
\nShadow of the Erdtree enemies have 20-30% more poise and 15-40% more HP than equivalent base game endgame enemies. These tips will prepare you for the jump in difficulty before you enter:
\n\n1. Upgrade at least one weapon to +25 (or +10 for somber weapons) before you enter
\nWhy it matters: All new DLC weapons drop unupgraded, and the new Shadow Gems required to upgrade them are only found in the Land of Shadow. The lowest tier Shadow Smithing Stone only upgrades weapons to +21, so a +25 base weapon will outdamage any new unupgraded DLC weapon for the first 5-10 hours of play. A +25 Rivers of Blood deals 782 damage per katana swing, while a freshly dropped +0 new DLC greatsword only deals 312 damage. Don't enter undergeared.
2. Stack at least 40 poise before you enter
\nWhy it matters: Even basic DLC foot soldiers can stagger you out of heavy attacks if you have less than 40 poise. 51 poise is the softcap for Hyperarmor, meaning you can tank most non-boss attacks without being interrupted. Here's a quick poise breakpoint table:
| Poise Total | \nEffect | \nTier | \n
|---|---|---|
| < 30 | \nStaggered by every light attack, cannot trade with any enemy | \nD | \n
| 31-40 | \nCan tank light attacks, still staggered by heavy enemy attacks | \nC | \n
| 41-50 | \nCan trade with most non-boss enemies, only staggered by boss heavy attacks | \nB | \n
| 51+ | \nSoftcap for Hyperarmor, can tank all non-giant boss attacks without being staggered | \nS | \n
3. Bring at least 100 arrows/bolts before you enter
\nWhy it matters: The opening area of the Land of Shadow has dozens of flying enemies and snipers perched on cliffs that are impossible to reach with melee. The first merchant that sells arrows isn't until 3 hours into the DLC, and you can't buy them from the base game once you enter (you can still warp back, but that's a 2 minute load screen round trip every time). Save yourself the hassle and stock up early.
4. Learn to parry before you enter — it's 2x more useful in DLC
\nWhy it matters: 70% of DLC bosses have parryable attacks, and a successful parrie deals 3x more posture damage than in the base game. Most early DLC mini-bosses can be stagger-kiiled in 3-4 parries, compared to 8-10 in the base game. If you've never tried parrying, practice on Godrick or Margit before you enter — it'll cut your early boss clear times in half.
Exploration Tips Before Entering Shadow of the Erdtree
\nMost players waste hours backtracking to the base game for items they could have grabbed before entering. These exploration tips are all things I wish I knew earlier:
\n\n1. Collect all 8 memory stones before you enter if you're running a magic build
\nWhy it matters: Only 2 new memory stones are added in the entire DLC, and the new top-tier sorceries and incantations take 2-3 memory slots each. If you want to run 6 spells, you need 8 memory stones total, and all 8 are available in the base game. You can't get more than 10 total, so collecting 8 before you enter means you won't have to give up a spell slot early on.
2. Unlock all Grand Lift and Site of Grace warp points before you enter
\nWhy it matters: You can warp back to the base game at any time from any DLC Site of Grace, but if you didn't unlock the major warp points, you'll have to run across Limgrave every time you want to upgrade a weapon or sell loot. Just spend 10 minutes before you enter unlocking all major Sites of Grace so you can fast travel directly to the Roundtable Hold blacksmith from anywhere.
3. Clear all base game dungeons that hold essential key items before you enter
\nHere's a short list of non-negotiable key items you should grab before entering Shadow of the Erdtree:
- \n
- Wondrous Physick all three tiers: Collect the Cerulean Seed Talisman and Green Turtle Talisman from Liurnia dungeons — both are S-tier for DLC \n
- Gold Scarab: Increases rune gain by 20% — you'll need 1.2 million runes to get from level 100 to 150, so this cuts grind time by 20% \n
- Clarifying Horn Charm: DLC has a ton of new madness and frenzy status effects, and this charm increases resistance by 90 points, which is 2x more than any other base game charm \n
4. Clear Mohg, Lord of Blood before you enter for a huge head start
\nWhy it matters: Beating Mohg unlocks a secret shortcut directly into the late-game DLC area, which gives you access to top-tier +25 Shadow Gems 10 hours earlier than most players get them. You also get the Remembrance of Mohg which can be exchanged for a weapon that gets a 20% damage boost in the Land of Shadow. It's optional, but it's one of the best pre-DLC preparations you can make.
Build Tips Before Entering Shadow of the Erdtree (2025 Tier List)
\nA lot of meta builds from the base game got nerfed in the DLC, and new status effects completely changed the balance. Below is a tier ranking of the best base game builds to bring into Shadow of the Erdtree, with exact stat breakpoints:
\n\n| Build Type | \nRecommended Level | \nKey Stats | \nTier | \nJustification | \n
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bleed Melee | \n70-100 | \n40 Vigor, 20 Endurance, 80 Arcane | \nS | \n80% of DLC bosses are vulnerable to bleed, Arcane softcap is still 80, deals 15% of max HP per proc. A +25 Rivers of Blood procs bleed in 2 hits for 1,800 damage on most early bosses. | \n
| Magic Sorcery | \n80-110 | \n40 Vigor, 25 Mind, 80 Intelligence | \nS | \nNew DLC sorceries scale off base Int, and high base Int lets you one-shot most early non-boss enemies. Comet Azur still shreds 60% of DLC bosses. | \n
| Holy Incantation | \n80-110 | \n45 Vigor, 30 Mind, 70 Faith | \nA | \nMost shadow enemies take 20% extra holy damage, but top-tier incantations have higher FP costs that require more mind investment. | \n
| Heavy Quality Greatsword | \n70-100 | \n40 Vigor, 30 Endurance, 40 Str/40 Dex | \nB | \nSolid damage, but requires more poise investment and can't proc status to melt boss HP. Fine for casual play, but slower than meta builds. | \n
| Frostbite Melee | \n70-100 | \n40 Vigor, 20 Endurance, 60 Int/40 Str | \nB | \nStill good, but 40% of DLC bosses have frostbite resistance that cuts proc damage in half. Worse than bleed overall. | \n
| Poison/Scarlet Rot Build | \nAny | \n80 Arcane | \nC | \nMost DLC bosses have 75% resistance to scarlet rot, so DoT damage takes 2x as long to kill anything. Trash for boss fights. | \n
| Low-Level Naked Run | \n< 50 | \nAll Vigor | \nD | \nEven opening enemies one-shot you, and the DLC's level scaling doesn't drop enemy HP low enough for low-level runs to be viable without extreme glitches. | \n
Why it matters: If you enter Shadow of the Erdtree with a C-tier or D-tier build, you're going to hit a brick wall on the first major boss, Messmer the Impaler. I beat him first try with an S-tier bleed Arcane build, but died 12 times in a row when I tried a D-tier poison build on a fresh character. Don't waste time re-rolling after you enter — build right before you go.
\n\nPro Tip: If you're a new player and don't have an endgame build, the best way to enter Shadow of the Erdtree is to rush Radahn with a low-level Arcane bleed build using the Uchigatana. It only requires 11 Arcane to wield, you can get it 10 minutes into a new game, and it carries you all the way through the opening DLC area.\n\nSee also: Elden Ring Best Arcane Bleed Build for Shadow of the Erdtree (2025)
\n\nEconomy Tips Before Entering Shadow of the Erdtree
\nThe DLC uses runes the same way the base game does, but the economy is structured so that early game runes are much harder to come by. These tips will save you from getting stuck without runes to level up:
\n\n1. Farm 100,000 runes and save them before you enter
\nWhy it matters: The first Site of Grace in the DLC only gives you access to leveling if you have runes on hand, and early enemy groups only drop 200-400 runes each, compared to 1,000-2,000 in base game endgame. 100,000 runes lets you level up 5-8 times as soon as you enter, which gives you a massive damage and HP boost early on.
2. Clear out your inventory before you enter — you'll get 50+ new items
\nWhy it matters: Your inventory has a hard cap of 1880 items, and if you hit the cap, new DLC weapons and key items won't spawn. Throw out all extra duplicate base game weapons you don't use, sell all unwanted talismans to the merchant, and delete all extra crafting materials you have more than 99 of. I hit the inventory cap on my first playthrough and spent 20 minutes sorting junk just to pick up a new legendary weapon.
3. Stock up on 30+ flasks of wisp and fathom before you enter
\nWhy it matters: The DLC doesn't give you any extra sacred tears until 4 hours in, so you'll start with the same number of flasks you had when you entered. If you want to swap between crimson and cerulean flasks for
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