Elden Ring PSA: Don't Play Shadow Of The Erdtree On NG+

Summary

• Start fresh before Shadow of the Erdtree to avoid excessive difficulties in NG+.
• Soulsborne DLC increases difficulty, challenging builds and skills like never before.
• Jumping into NG+ for DLC is like trying to tickle a Runebear- unnecessarily difficult.

If I could etch “Be wary of NG+” in front of Miquella’s cocoon, I would. But I can’t, so here I am, imploring Elden Ring players to start fresh before Shadow of the Erdtree. This is my ‘try finger but hole’ to you all.

It’s been two years since Elden Ring launched, and fans have plundered The Lands Between over and over again with the same character, reaching new endings and levelling their builds to even greater heights. You probably feel on top of the Erdtree with your mimic, devastating Stormveil castle with a Rivers of Blood in each hand. But the Land of Shadow will humble you the second you fall into its clutches.

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That's a whole lot of maidenless.

FromSoftware DLC is notoriously difficult. Dark Souls might’ve had the “Prepare to Die” tagline, but it was our plunge into a past corrupted by the abyss that earned the reputation. Manus, the embodiment of man’s all-devouring nature and the expansion’s final boss, defeated the also-infamous Artorias. We were fighting bosses who had toppled other bosses who had already crushed our spirits and sent us crawling back to the bonfire countless times. It’s no surprise then that so many struggled to beat Manus back into the shadows, even with the help of Sif.

Soulsborne games always up the ante when it comes to expansions. We test our mettle in the base game, honing our skills and perfecting our builds. It’s tough, but fair. DLC tends to introduce more frantic fights and experimental areas, like the crystal-infused dragon Midir in Dark Souls 3 or the invisible tigers of Dark Souls 2.

Jumping headfirst into a soulslike DLC is already an enormous challenge few pull through, but doing it in any of the NG+ variations is like trying to tickle a Runebear. Each NG+ difficulty (up to NG+ 7) increases enemy damage and health while reducing how much stance damage they take. They stagger less, hit harder, and don’t die as fast. Soulslike DLC already feels like entering NG+, so doubling up on your first try is going to make things unnecessarily difficult, especially if you’re also rusty.

You’re likely over-levelled if you’re several NG+ runs deep, so you won’t just be entering an even harder version of the DLC, but you’ll run into fewer players. Now’s the perfect time to prepare a character that stays within the meta so you can enlist help if you need it.

It can be tough to let go of a character you’ve poured time into. I took my first Elden Ring playthrough to NG+7 and have logged hundreds of hours, so it’s a build I’m comfortable with and skilled at more than any other. Abandoning it to start over is a lot of work, but not only will it make the DLC far more approachable, it’s also easing me back into a game I put down months ago.

I know from experience that Shadow of the Erdtree will make the base game feel like the Soldier of Godrick tutorial, and I don’t intend to rub even more salt in the wound. Especially when FromSoftware has already said that the challenge is on par with Malenia, a boss I still dread on every playthrough.

You might think it’ll be fine because you’re at a point where the Lands Between offers little resistance, but trust me - if you listen to a single message in Elden Ring, listen to the one I can’t write. Playing the DLC on NG+ is going to make you hate this game.

Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree