Chapter Summaries

Godwyn’s gamble left Leyndell devastated and failed to bring about the return of death as he had intended. As the survivors counted their losses, Horace sent the exhausted Radagon away on an extended vacation.

• Godwyn fell from the golden light, realized his plan had only partly succeeded, and fled as he regained his strength.
• Horace declared that a thousand years later, all wars would begin at the established starting point.
• Death demanded an explanation from Horace because Godwyn had betrayed it, but Horace ignored it.
• Radagon mourned the destruction of Leyndell and listed the problems facing its survivors while Horace listened.
• Horace offered Radagon an extended vacation, opened a rift to a peaceful haven, and watched him step through.

Horace sealed the Erdtree behind a barrier and questioned the Elden Beast about Godwyn before hearing Miquella’s proposal for a dream-based screening process to choose a worthy lord. As Miquella called on Horace to help him, Horace suddenly restrained him in golden chains.

• Horace surrounded the Erdtree with golden chains and a teleportation trap that would send intruders to a graveyard.
• Horace learned that the Elden Beast did not know where Godwyn had gone and concluded that Godwyn had run off.
• Miquella challenged Horace to consider how future examiners might misuse their authority over the Thousand-Year Contest.
• Miquella proposed using dreams and the subconscious to test candidates and select a lord who would not submit to the gods.
• Horace wrapped Miquella in golden chains before he could finish calling for the storm to descend.

Horace uncovered Miquella’s attempts to charm him and manipulate the Dreamscape’s predictions, then bound Miquella from acting in reality for a millennium. Miquella continued plotting in the Dreamscape as Horace cast aside the Crown and sent a rebellious hero onward.

• Horace resisted Miquella’s charm with his Great Rune, exposed his Dreamscape projections, and warned him against seeking Hötter’s power.
• Horace forbade Miquella from acting in reality until the next millennium but left Trina free to go where she wished.
• Miquella used the Dreamscape to plan a king-making prophecy, involving Rykard’s construction of the Chapel of Anticipation and a storm gathering around Huhu.
• Miquella’s ritual failed when Trina left, but he believed fate had begun to turn and hoped she would bring the king to him.
• Horace cast aside the Crown and urged a rebellious hero to follow the light.

The player entered Greyoll's Dragonbarrow, killed Greyoll and the young dragons, then fought through an ambush by an Ancient Dragon and the silent Crucible Knight. After defeating both, the player received an incantation from the knight but only Runes from the dragon, and continued onward.

• The player entered Greyoll's Dragonbarrow, killed the young dragons, and brought down Greyoll with repeated attacks and bleed damage, gaining five Dragon Hearts and Runes.
• The player encountered a silent Crucible Knight in a corridor, then was ambushed by an Ancient Dragon and killed by the knight's follow-up attack.
• The player returned, spotted the bare wall that signaled the dragon's ambush, dodged its charge, and parried the Crucible Knight's attacks until the knight died and dropped Crucible Aspects: Tail.
• The player used the Inquisitor Knight cannon to bombard the Ancient Dragon from a safe position until it died, receiving only Runes.
• The player complained about the dragon's meager reward and continued onward.

The player encountered Jergal, a mysterious old man who questioned the Tarnished’s reasons for killing and their vision of the world. After the Tarnished strangled him and watched him disintegrate, they found him again in another courtyard, where he revealed more about himself and cursed the king’s eldest son.

• The player met Jergal beneath a dead tree, and he asked why the Tarnished killed so mercilessly.
• The player first answered that they wanted to kill, then chose that they did not know, prompting Jergal to call the Tarnished a puppet and offer the option to let actions speak for themselves.
• The Tarnished seized Jergal by the throat, and Jergal disintegrated into ashes as the courtyard fell silent.
• The player fought through Beastmen and encountered Jergal again in a second courtyard, where he said the Tarnished could not truly kill him.
• Jergal asked what the world should be like, praised the player’s answer of not knowing, and began explaining what Jergal was before angrily cursing the king’s eldest son.

The player defeated the Draconic Tree Sentinel, received more of Jergal’s cryptic counsel and Dragon Wound Slash, then followed a hidden path across a void to confront Godwyn the Golden and Ancient Dragon Fortissax. Their first boss fight ended when Godwyn faked a stagger and killed them with Fortissax’s help.

• The player used Caria Retaliation to defeat the Draconic Tree Sentinel and collected his armor and helm.
• Jergal appeared again, spoke about sin and justice, then crumbled into ash and left the Ashes of War Dragon Wound Slash.
• The player found Jergal at a cliff and followed messages and bloodstains across an invisible path to a floating rock.
• Jergal transformed into Godwyn the Golden, summoned Ancient Dragon Fortissax, and challenged the player to a fight.
• Godwyn and Fortissax covered the platform in red lightning and water, then tricked the player with a fake stagger and killed them.

The player defeated Godwyn and Fortissax through repeated attempts, then overcame Godwyn’s tricks in a battle atop Gransax. Godwyn accepted defeat, aged into Jergal, and left behind runes and a remembrance that gave the player entry to the final battle.

• Godwyn healed himself and Fortissax with a golden incantation, but the player eventually reduced both their health bars to nearly zero.
• Godwyn summoned Gransax, and the player began a new phase of the fight on the dragon’s back against Godwyn and Fortissax.
• After repeated deaths and learning their attack patterns, the player defeated Godwyn and Gransax.
• Godwyn conceded defeat and said the player had killed old age, then withered into Jergal.
• The player collected Godwyn’s Ideology Runes and the Remembrance of the “Dragon and Prince.”

The player explored Farum Azula after Fortissax and Gransax carried Jergal away, then found Gurranq asleep and unwilling to help. Trina suggested using Godwyn’s defeat and a gift to persuade him, and the player decided Rykard’s Reserve Wine might be the answer.

• Fortissax seized Jergal and flew away, and Gransax followed after him.
• The player found no way out of Farum Azula and traveled inward through Beastmen patrols to a chamber where Gurranq was sleeping.
• Gurranq refused to discuss Farum Azula, so the player left and rested at a site of Grace.
• Trina suggested that the player use Godwyn’s defeat to persuade Gurranq, but Gurranq dismissed the news and refused to praise the player.
• Trina suggested offering Gurranq a gift, and the player spotted Rykard’s Reserve Wine in their inventory.

The player fought Gurranq, received Miquella's Master Key, and was sent through a portal to the sleeping Dragon Lord Placidusax, who teleported them away to avoid being disturbed. Wandering Limgrave afterward, the player found Tracker standing beside Irina's corpse.

• The player gave Gurranq the fine wine, provoking him into attacking before he broke down sobbing and stopped fighting.
• The player told Gurranq that Miquella had sent them, and Gurranq gave them Miquella's Master Key and opened a portal to the Dragon Lord.
• The player approached the sleeping Dragon Lord Placidusax, who teleported them to the Beast Clergyman's Sanctum to escape them.
• The player found the empty sanctum had little to offer and wandered aimlessly through Limgrave.
• The player found Tracker beneath a tree beside the dead Irina, whose clothes bore scorch marks and whose chest was bloodied.

After Tracker questioned the justice of killing Irina, he vowed to seek the strength to extinguish the Frenzied Flame and bury her properly. The player followed his quest to the Divine Tower of Limgrave, overcoming its reversed controls and reaching the top.

• Tracker confessed his doubts about killing Irina and said he would bury her, then seek the strength to extinguish the Frenzied Flame.
• The player checked a guide and went to Stormveil Castle, where Tracker asked them to seek a legendary weapon in the Divine Tower of Limgrave.
• The player fought a Lion Misbegotten, dodged a Crucible Golem's flaming arrows, crossed the bridge under fire from Albinauric archers, and battled Golems to reach the tower.
• Inside the tower, the player found that the controls were reversed and died to Fingercreepers while struggling to move and attack.
• The player reversed the key bindings in the settings, defeated the Fingercreepers, and rode the lift to the top of the tower.

Tracker failed to pull Caliburn from the stone, and the Tarnished failed as well, so Tracker broke the stone around it and took the sword with the rock attached. He left to confront the will, while Kalé told the Tarnished that the Great Caravan had changed and that he had smelled Scarlet Rot there.

• Tracker tried three times to pull Caliburn from the stone but could not move it.
• The Tarnished also tried repeatedly and failed, leaving Tracker wondering why the sword would not come free.
• Tracker chipped the ground around Caliburn and took the sword with a chunk of stone still attached.
• Tracker carried the sword away, intending to confront the will and let the dead rest in peace.
• At the Church of Elleh, Kalé told the Tarnished he had briefly returned to the Great Caravan and found that many Nomadic Tribe members had left.
• Kalé said the Great Caravan reeked of money and that he had smelled Scarlet Rot there.

Kalé asked the player about his missing kinsman, and the player visited Sick Village, where the frenzied flame had devastated the settlement. Tracker’s sword broke while suppressing the flame, leading him to decide that the Inquisitor Knights needed the power of will.

• Kalé asked whether his missing Inquisitor Knight kinsman had been transferred or killed, and the player stayed silent before receiving three Smithing Stones [5].
• The player used Horace's Medallion to pass the guards at Sick Village and spoke with Master Azur, who gave them Comet Azur and asked them to dissuade Sellen from her dangerous research.
• The player fought through frenzied villagers and afflicted Inquisitor Knights to reach the ruined church at the village’s center.
• Tracker showed the player his broken sword and said it had overheated and snapped while suppressing the frenzied flame.
• Tracker decided the Knights needed the power of will, and wondered why the Inquisitor Knights could not produce it through Ideology Runes.

Tracker sought Ideology Runes from Horace, but Horace urged him to claim kingship through his own desire and will. Tracker forged a Rune within himself, then pulled a whole Golden Sword from the rock at the Limgrave Divine Tower.

• Tracker asked Horace for Ideology Runes, and Horace explained that Tracker had not broken the rules and did not need Horace to grant him power.
• Horace told Tracker that kingship came from the will to choose, and that the king chose the sword rather than the sword choosing the king.
• The player answered that desire was the foundation of kingship, and Tracker realized he wanted power to bring hope and defy despair.
• Tracker formed an Ideology Rune in his palm and crushed it, absorbing its golden light into his body.
• At the Limgrave Divine Tower, Tracker inserted the broken sword into the rock and drew out a complete Golden Sword.

Tracker summoned the player to help defeat Midra, then revealed his convictions about kingship and gave the Tarnished his Rune and golden sword. Tracker’s questline ended, leaving Storm to decide what came next.

• Tracker asked the player to accompany him, and they accepted his summons at a dilapidated manor.
• Tracker used golden chains and sword waves to help the player defeat Midra in his first phase.
• Midra pulled the Greatsword of Damnation from his head and transformed into the Lord of Frenzied Flame.
• Tracker fought Midra alone, absorbing and redirecting his flames before delivering the final blow.
• Tracker explained that a king should end despair, gave the Tarnished Tracker's Ideology Runes and Tracker's Golden Sword, and declared his mission complete.

The player explored the nearly empty Frenzied Flame Depths before returning to the Roundtable Hold, where Leda invaded and attacked. Sir Gideon Ofnir and Uriel defeated her, and the player agreed to leave her in Uriel’s care in exchange for Uriel’s Resolve.

• The player searched Midra's Manor and the Frenzied Flame Depths, finding few items and discovering that the Spectral Steed could not be summoned there.
• The player gave up exploring and teleported to the Roundtable Hold, where Leda invaded and attacked in the darkened hall.
• Sir Gideon Ofnir and Uriel intervened and defeated Leda.
• Uriel asked to discipline Leda himself, and the player accepted his resolution.
• Uriel rewarded the player with the incantation Uriel's Resolve.

The player failed to convince Leda about Miquella’s key, then learned from Miriel that Miquella planned to force a marriage between the player and Ranni. After obtaining the Dark Moon Ring and following Rennala’s directions, the player reached Nokstella, defeated the Dragonkin Soldier, and opened a chest containing a Large Ghost Glovewort.

• The player tried three explanations for how they got Miquella’s key, but Leda rejected each one.
• After consulting a guide, the player visited Miriel, who explained Miquella and Trina’s history and said Miquella intended to force a bond with Ranni.
• The player told Miriel about Miquella’s key, and Miriel urged them to consider whether they were willing to force Ranni into marriage.
• The player showed Rennala the Dark Moon Ring, and Rennala directed them to a hidden portal while asking them to punish Rykard.
• The player traveled through the portal to Nokstella and quickly defeated the Nokstella Dragonkin Soldier, obtaining Ice Lightning Spear.
• The player opened the chest beneath the statue and obtained one Large Ghost Glovewort.

The player met Sellen in Nokstella, agreed to keep helping her, and learned of her ambition to become a star before defeating Blaidd. Sellen’s backup plan then drew an angry response from the Ranni Doll, who marked a location on the map.

• At a site of Grace, the player spoke with Sellen, agreed to help her, and received a Silver Holy Grail to strengthen Tears.
• Sellen explained that she and Ranni were working with the Eternal City and sent the player toward a lake concealing Scarlet Rot to seek Essence.
• In Nokstella Basin, Sellen described her ambition to explore the essence of the Lands Between and become a star, and the player found Blaidd's Fur.
• Blaidd invaded and told the player that Ranni had forbidden anyone to pass, but the player defeated him and obtained the Royal Greatsword.
• Sellen revealed that she had made the Ranni Doll and directed the player to a site of Grace to activate her backup plan.
• The Ranni Doll angrily confronted the player after repeated attempts to speak with it, then marked a location on the map.

Sellen used Yera’s body and Scarlet Rot to create Nahema, then betrayed her apprentice and challenged the player to a timed battle. After Nahema was defeated, Sellen gave the player a Golden Holy Grail and went deeper into the passage he had dug.

• Sellen summoned Yera’s body and combined it with Scarlet Rot to create the crystalline Nahema, declaring she would use rot to fashion a God.
• The player fought Nahema in a timed battle, dodging Sellen’s sorcery and Scarlet Rot Crystalians while learning to attack when Nahema collapsed.
• The player defeated Nahema, who shattered and revealed a passage beneath the swamp.
• Sellen thanked the player, said she would break new ground, and gave them a Golden Holy Grail as a parting gift.

Asimi transformed into a hostile copy of the player, but the player defeated her and received her Mimic Tear Spirit Ashes. A voice from Nahema’s crystals, identifying herself as Yera, offered the player an alliance, and the player went to ask Sellen for advice.

• Asimi broke free of the player, transformed into a stronger copy, and fought them with clumsy attacks.
• The player defeated Asimi, who mourned their inevitable parting and asked to be devoured before dissolving into the player.
• The player obtained the Mimic Tear Spirit Ashes and discovered that Nahema’s glowing crystals held a voice named Yera.
• Yera offered to support the player as their god and urged them to ask Sellen for advice.
• The player jumped into the deep passage, found Sellen standing beside a vast field of lava, and heard her remark that the player had dealt with Asimi.

Sellen warned the player not to trust the Outer Gods, gave them her Ideology Rune, and urged them to go to Ranni. The player traveled through the Grand Cloister and reached a cavern where Ranni, Adula, and Astel awaited a three-on-one battle.

• Sellen told the player that she had planned to betray them, cautioned that gods exploited mortals, and urged them to refuse Yera's offer.
• Sellen gave the player Sellen's Ideology Rune and encouraged them to go see Ranni instead of pursuing lordship.
• The player followed the map marker through the Grand Cloister, fighting scarlet rot bugs and avoiding the rotting water.
• The player entered the open stone coffin beside the scarlet waterfall and arrived in a vast cavern.
• The player found Ranni riding Glintstone Dragon Adula beside Astel, Naturalborn of the Void, and their three health bars appeared under the shared name ["Atheist" Satan].