Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Ending Explained

Summary

Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring offers tons of new content, including optional bosses and a new land to explore.
The DLC focuses on the story of Miquella the Kind and his quest for godhood, leading to interesting endings for players to theorize about.
While the DLC doesn't change the base game's main endings, it provides more of what Elden Ring players love, making it a worthwhile journey.

Spoilers for the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC for Elden Ring ahead.

Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC gives players tons of content to add on top of the base game's already large playtime. With plenty of optional bosses, a difficulty curve that has frustrated even the most dedicated players, and an entirely new land of mystery, fans will most certainly be busy exploring the Land of Shadow. It's rather easy for the main storyline of Shadow of the Erdtree to take a backseat, and of course, the ending gives players plenty of room to theorize about what it means. All in all, the DLC clearly exists to give fans more to do and see rather than focus too heavily on deep lore implications.

Although it doesn't change the ending of the base game that much, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree still features a story that will intrigue those who love to understand the background that enriches The Lands Between. Shadow of the Erdtree deals with the story of Miquella, known as Miquella the Kind by those in the Land of Shadow that have fallen under his gifted charms. In the DLC adventure, the Tarnished needs to put an end to the Empyrean's quest for godhood.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree - Promised Consort Radahn Boss Fight

Here is our climactic bout against the final boss of The Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. Promised Consort Radahn is NO JOKE, this is an incredibly difficul

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By Jonathan Spurgeon

What Can Be Understood From Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's Ending

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree Only Serves to Reinforce What Players Already Know

Shadow of the Erdtree doesn't actually have what could be considered a typical ending. The best players get is a memory left behind after the final boss is defeated, which belongs to Miquella. This memory seems to take place before Miquella's other experiments, where he sits before his "lord brother" and makes him promise him to be his consort. This is of course Radahn, who players have defeated alongside Miquella as his "Promised Consort" form in order to view this scene.

Miquella states to Elden Ring's Radahn Starscourge that when he ascends, he aims to make the world a "gentler place." This is the future that many of Miquella the Kind's followers in the Land of Shadow were desiring from him. This world would be one supposedly without conflict due to his god-like allure, which should keep everyone happy under him to create the closest thing to peace possible.

While it may be a way to bring peace to The Lands Between, there are rather obvious reasons as to why the Tarnished stops Miquella's ascension. For starters, Miquella's idea of peace comes from his charms, which have the potential to be strong enough to remove his followers' free will. It brings up the ever-existing morality debate about whether personal freedom or happiness is the most important in life.

Why Shadow of the Erdtree Doesn't Change Elden Ring's Main Endings

On the other hand, when it comes to stopping Miquella, the Tarnished has their own agenda. The goal of Elden Ring itself is to become the Elden Lord, so Miquella's reign would either be overthrown eventually regardless or a game over would happen as the Tarnished would abandon their goal under the Empyrean's charms. This serves as a great reason as to why Shadow of the Erdtree doesn't change Elden Ring's existing endings, even if some fans were potentially excited about the feature. The lack of a new ending doesn't mean the Shadow of the Erdtree isn't worth playing, though.

Shadow of the Erdtree remaining as extra content overall is great for one big reason: it brings more of what Elden Ring players love. Just the fact that the Land of Shadow has so much to explore with plenty of new weapons to find and enemies to fight makes it worth the price for those who adored the first game's challenge. It may take time, but Shadow of the Erdtree is a worthwhile journey for those who wish to take it, lore implications included or not.

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Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree

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Released: June 21, 2024

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Shadow of the Erdtree is the first and only DLC expansion for FromSoftware's groundbreaking Elden Ring. It takes players to a whole new region, the Land of Shadow, where a new story awaits the Tarnished.

ESRB: M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
Base Game: Elden Ring
Developer(s): FromSoftware
Publisher(s): Bandai Namco Entertainment, FromSoftware
Multiplayer: Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
Platform(s): PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S