10 Shadow Secrets Kept In Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree

The Shadow Stay Inside Elden Ring: Shadow of Erdtree is home to a surprising number of secrets, hidden areas, and hard-to-find items, some of which are critical to some NPC questlines, such as Hornsent

. And while it may be the location of one of the DLC’s main legendary bosses, Messmer the Impaler

, the Spotted will want to explore the area thoroughly reveal Shadow of the Erd Treebest kept secrets.

Some of these secrets require players to obtain exclusive quest items or gather clues from across the Shadow Realm. The Shadow Keep also contains a hidden entrance to one of the hardest to find areas of the DLC. Keeping an eye on the secrets of the Shadow Keep isn’t always easy, but it can make for a more rewarding experience in Elden Ring: Shadow of Erdtree.

10

Draining the flooded religious district

Submerging the Holy Site of Grace

Many players’ first introduction to the Shadow Keep happens in the Church District, a flooded area with underwater structures that, at first glance, seem inaccessible. However, after exploring the area thoroughly, a mechanism can be found to drain this wateropening up access to the Sunken Chapel, where players will find very powerful Tree Spirits and some angry giant crabs, as well as some crucial items.

There are two Lesser Ulcerated Tree Spirits in the now accessible Sunken Chapelthe second of which drops an item that will come in handy when talking to the Fire Knight Queelign later – the Iris of Concealment

. Other items of note found in the Sunken Chapel include the Fire Knight Seal

the Battlefield Priest’s Cookbook [1]

and one Shield Fragment

.

9

The Prayer Room and the Fire Knight Queelign

A secret prayer and a burning enemy

As players search for the above mechanism to drain the flooded Church District, they will find a locked door to the Prayer Room that requires the Prayer Room Key

to open. The key can only be obtained after defeating the NPC invader version of the defiant Fire Knight Queelign when he invades at the start of the Tarnished’s journey, assuming they have passed through the Church of the Crusade.

Inside this room is the Fire Knight Queelign in the flesh, and the Tarnished will have the opportunity to make a choice about their fate. Assuming they have acquired both Iris of Concealment

and the Iris of Grace

, a decision will need to be made depending on which loot seems more desirable. The Iris of Concealment rewards the Tarnished with Queelign Greatsword

a powerful Heavy Thrust Sword, while the Iris of Grace gives players Queelign Fire Knight

of the Gray Spirit.

8

Go from afar

A distant threat

THE Go from afar

The enchantment can be found in a very tricky hidden area in the upper levels of the Warehouse in Shadowkeep. The Spotted will need to cross some narrow beams, fight a bat hanging from the ceilingand eventually do some careful platforming before looting the enchantment behind a gear column. Most players will probably ignore this oddly placed enchantment if they don’t want to stray too far from the beaten path.

Go from afarIts location in the rafters is likely a hint at an effective strategy for the enchantment, which can blast enemies back over ledges with a golden shockwave. It’s a great addition to builds that incorporate Holy damageand is considered a charged spell, so the Godfrey Icon

can be used to reinforce its effects.

7

Summon Signs

Help from a summoner

While it may be difficult to ignore the two summon signs found on the Main Gate Plaza ramp, the choices here are deceptive. Using the red light will help Knight of the Needle Leda

In a fight against Hornsent, using the golden sign will summon the Tarnished to fight alongside Hornsent against Leda. Players also have the option to choose neithera decision that has interesting consequences for Leda’s side mission.

If players side with Leda, they will be rewarded with the Hornsent set

, a viable armor set for light builds that offers high focusas well as the Falx

curved sword. If they decide to help the Hornsent, Leda discards the Ashes of War: Quick Cut

and Leda’s Runewhich can be sold for 40 thousand runes.

6

Dragons’ Domain Painting

Domain of a Dragon

Deep within Shadowkeep, players can find a secret passage behind a waterfall which eventually leads them to a somewhat random room with a beautiful piece of art, the Dragons’ Domain Painting

. Elden Ring Veterans will know that this type of painting is often found around the Lands Between or the Shadow Realm and indicates a puzzle that leads to a specific location with a unique loot item.

This particular painting suggests a location near the side of Jagged Peak mountain, where players will need to traverse difficult terrain and jump into a spirit spring to find the infamous ghost in a chair. Interacting with the ghost will reveal the Rock Heart item, one of the most unique consumable items in Shadow of the Erd Tree expansion. It literally transforms the player into an ancient dragon, increasing all Dragon Fellowship Enchantments.

5

The Hidden Passage

A hidden path

Exploring the area southwest of the Dragons’ Domain Painting will lead to a room with an illusory wall hidden between two torches. Interacting with the wall will reveal a path that leads up a flight of stairs to one of the Elden Ringthe infamous “coffin teleporters”. These coffins are often used in the Lands Between to transport the Spotted to new secret areas that cannot be reached by any other means.

This coffin is no exception and will take players to the Castle Watering Hole, where they can explore the Ruins of Unte, the Darklight Catacombs, and the Nameless Eastern Mausoleum.. The Tarnished will likely want to return to these newly available areas after they’ve finished exploring the Shadow Keep, as each of these locations contains some useful items for the journey ahead.

4

Waking the Furnace Golem in the Unte Ruins

Awakening a Giant Guardian

Once the Tarnished return to these areas after using the Shadow Keep coffin, they will find a “sleeping” Furnace Golem blocking the entrance to the Unte Ruins. While it may seem like this area is inaccessible, a secret clue to an item previously found while exploring the Shadow Keep, the Note from the Keeper of the Furnace

gives the Tarnished a clue on how to wake the Furnace Golem:

A note left probably by a furnace caretaker, containing warnings about the proper use of the furnace. “Keep the fire pots well away when the golem’s furnace is on fire – and never let me catch you with pots that produce swirls of flame, for God’s sake.”

These “flaming whirlpool pots” refer to the new Robust Oven Pot

craftable items in Shadow of the Erd Tree which are used to combat these giant furnace golems. The Tarnished can find what they need Oven View

items to craft the nearby pots and can then throw one at the furnace crown of the sleeping Furnace Golemwaking him up and finally gaining access to the Ruins of Unte – after a tough battle, of course.

3

The Darklight Catacombs and the Nameless Oriental Mausoleum

The depths of a catacomb and a nameless tomb

The coffin in the Shadow Keep is the only way to access the Darklight Catacombs and the Nameless Eastern Mausoleum. To find the Darklight Catacombs, the Tarnished will need to travel far downstream from the Ruins of Unte, jumping across platforms and cliffs, until they find a secondary level to the river and see two blue torches somewhat difficult to see in a dense forest. Notable loot from these catacombs includes the Death Knight Set

and the Viridian Amber Medallion +3

.

After finding the Place of Grace downstream of the Recluso River, the Manchados will need to navigate a narrow, barely visible path alongside the cliffs. They will eventually see two braziers and a door in the mountainside marking the entrance to the Nameless Eastern Mausoleum, where they can find the Rakshasa Set

.

A Forbidden Ritual

THE Scroll of the Secret Rite

can be found by exploring the various floors of the Specimen Storehouse in the Shadow Keep. It is located out of sight on a bookshelf near the Specimen Storehouse: Fourth Floor Site of Grace. The scroll contains a message about “the secret rite of the divine portal said to be found in the shadow-shrouded tower.” This refers to the Gate of Divinity that the Tarnished will encounter at the end of the DLC when they face Miquella and her consort Radahn.

Most significantly, the Secret Rite Scroll can be given to Ansbach

on the first floor of the Specimen Warehouse. This will advance the search for Ansbach, but players will want to be cautious when handing over the itemas doing it too soon will prevent them from pursuing Freya

quest lines.

1

Oh Mother Secret Entrance to the Sertão

A mother’s secret

Of all the secrets of Shadowkeep, this hidden entrance is one that many players would simply never know about unless they were really paying attention to what Ymir has to say. While exploring Shadow Keep, Tarnished will find a statue of Marika near the Back Gate Site of Grace with a message saying: “Have mercy on the missing shamans.”

Although this may look like an ordinary statue of Marika, a specific emote, the Oh Mother gesturewill reveal a hidden entrance to the interior behind the statue. However, this emote is nowhere near the Shadow Keep, and the Tarnished will need to pick it up in the northeast section of Bonny Village if they haven’t already. The Interior area is where the Tarnished can continue Ymir and Jolan’s quests and also find some very useful items, making this area one of the biggest secrets in Shadowkeep. Elden Ring: Shadow of Erdtree.