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To start Shadow of the Erdtree, defeat Starscourge Radahn and Mohg, Lord of Blood in the base game. After Mohg is defeated, return to Miquella’s cocoon in the Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum and interact with the arm hanging from it. That interaction transports your character to the Realm of Shadow, where the expansion begins.
The complete route is therefore: unlock and defeat Radahn, reach Mohgwyn Palace, defeat Mohg, then use the cocoon’s arm. The official access guide from Bandai Namco is the source for these requirements and route options: Elden Ring – How to enter the Realm of Shadow.
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What you must do before the DLC entrance appears
The entrance is not a menu option and it is not activated by buying or installing a separate item inside the game. Your save must record victories over both required bosses:
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- Mohg, Lord of Blood, found in Mohgwyn Palace.
Once both bosses are defeated, the arm hanging from Miquella’s cocoon becomes the interaction point for the expansion. You do not need a special accessory, repair item, or consumable to perform the transfer. The relevant prerequisite route is documented in Bandai Namco’s official guide.
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Step 1: activate the Radahn Festival
Radahn’s fight is accessed through Redmane Castle in Caelid while the Radahn Festival is active. The official guide identifies several ways to make the festival available. Choose the route that best matches your current progress rather than trying to complete every quest option.
Option A: progress Ranni and Blaidd’s questlines
One route is to progress the questlines of Ranni the Witch and Blaidd the Half-Wolf until Sorceress Sellen says that Radahn must be defeated to enter Nokron. This is a quest-led way to establish the reason for the festival and move toward the boss encounter.
- Advance Ranni’s questline and the associated Blaidd events.
- Continue until Sorceress Sellen explains that Radahn must be defeated to gain access to Nokron.
- Travel to Redmane Castle and enter the festival area.
This approach is useful if you are already following Ranni’s storyline. It ties the boss fight to the quest progression instead of requiring you to deliberately search for another activation trigger.
Option B: begin Ranni’s quest and speak with the festival-related characters
The guide also lists a shorter quest-state route: start Ranni’s questline, then communicate with Witch-Hunter Jerren and Blacksmith Iji to initiate the festival. The names matter because the game’s quest state is advanced through these conversations, not merely by arriving at Redmane Castle.
- Start Ranni’s questline.
- Speak with Witch-Hunter Jerren when the quest directs you to him.
- Speak with Blacksmith Iji as part of the same progression.
- Return to Redmane Castle and check the festival area.
If the festival has not started, revisit the relevant characters and exhaust their available dialogue before leaving the area. This is a practical check for a quest-driven activation route; it does not replace the requirement to defeat Radahn.
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Option C: enter Altus Plateau and rest at a Site of Grace
According to the official guide, entering Altus Plateau, resting at any Site of Grace there, and then visiting Redmane Castle makes the festival active even without the quest progress described above. This is an alternate option given by the guide, not a universal guarantee about every unrelated quest state.
- Reach Altus Plateau.
- Rest at any Site of Grace in the plateau.
- Travel to Redmane Castle in Caelid.
- Check the festival area and proceed to Radahn’s encounter.
Use this route when you have already reached Altus Plateau and want to avoid depending on Ranni’s or Blaidd’s quest progression. If you have not reached the plateau, one of the Ranni-related routes may be more direct for your current save.
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| Route | What activates the festival | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Ranni and Blaidd progression | Progress until Sorceress Sellen says Radahn must be defeated to enter Nokron. | A save already following those questlines. |
| Ranni, Jerren and Iji | Start Ranni’s questline and communicate with Witch-Hunter Jerren and Blacksmith Iji. | A player who wants a character-dialogue route. |
| Altus Plateau | Enter Altus Plateau, rest at any Site of Grace, then visit Redmane Castle. | A save that has already reached the plateau. |
Step 2: defeat Starscourge Radahn
With the festival active, go to Redmane Castle and enter the Radahn encounter. The DLC requirement is the boss victory itself, so make sure the game has completed the defeat and returned control to your character before moving on.
Confirming that Radahn is complete
- The encounter must be the Starscourge Radahn fight at the active festival.
- Do not assume that reaching the castle or activating the festival satisfies the expansion requirement.
- If you are following Ranni’s storyline, the victory also serves the quest purpose of opening the path toward Nokron, but the DLC route still requires the separate Mohg victory.
After the win, you can continue immediately toward Mohgwyn Palace or finish other base-game objectives first. The entrance remains unavailable until Mohg is also defeated.
Step 3: reach Mohgwyn Palace
Mohg, Lord of Blood, is located in Mohgwyn Palace. The official access guide gives two ways to reach the palace: a Sending Gate in the Consecrated Snowfield or White Mask Varré’s questline.
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Route A: the Consecrated Snowfield Sending Gate
The first route uses a Sending Gate in the Consecrated Snowfield. Reach the Snowfield, locate the gate, and use it to travel to Mohgwyn Palace. This option is tied to reaching that late-game region, so it may be preferable if your character already has access to the Snowfield.
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- Travel to the Consecrated Snowfield.
- Find the Sending Gate that leads to Mohgwyn Palace.
- Interact with the gate and complete the transfer.
- Once in the palace, follow the area forward until you reach Mohg’s arena.
The guide identifies the gate as an access route; it does not require the Varré questline or the medal described below.
Route B: White Mask Varré’s Pureblood Knight’s Medal
The second route is to progress White Mask Varré’s questline until he gives you the Pureblood Knight’s Medal. Use the medal to travel directly to Mohgwyn Palace.
- Progress White Mask Varré’s questline.
- Continue until you receive the Pureblood Knight’s Medal.
- Use the medal from your inventory to travel directly to Mohgwyn Palace.
- Traverse the palace and locate Mohg.
This route avoids waiting until you have reached the Consecrated Snowfield. It is the practical choice if Varré’s questline is already advanced or if you want the direct travel item.
Comparing the two palace routes
| Access method | Requirement stated by the official guide | When it makes sense |
|---|---|---|
| Consecrated Snowfield Sending Gate | Access to the Consecrated Snowfield and the Sending Gate. | You already have the Snowfield available and prefer an area-based route. |
| Pureblood Knight’s Medal | Progress White Mask Varré’s questline until the medal is received. | You want direct travel and have progressed Varré’s questline. |
Both methods lead to the same destination. You do not need to use both, and neither route removes the requirement to defeat Mohg.
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Step 4: defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood
After arriving in Mohgwyn Palace, traverse the area to Mohg’s arena and defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood. This is the second mandatory boss victory. Reaching the palace, seeing the cocoon, or defeating another enemy there does not substitute for Mohg’s defeat.
Check the exact boss and completion state
- The required boss is Mohg, Lord of Blood, in Mohgwyn Palace.
- Wait for the victory state to finish before leaving the arena.
- If the cocoon interaction is unavailable later, verify that both Radahn and Mohg were defeated on the same save.
Once Mohg is defeated, the route to the expansion is a short return trip inside the palace.
Step 5: use Miquella’s cocoon to enter the Realm of Shadow
Return to Miquella’s cocoon in the Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum. An arm hangs out of the cocoon. Approach it and interact with it. The interaction transports you to the Realm of Shadow, which is the starting area for Shadow of the Erdtree.
- After defeating Mohg, leave the boss area and return to the mausoleum section containing Miquella’s cocoon.
- Stand close to the arm hanging out of the cocoon.
- Use the interact prompt.
- Accept the transition when the game presents it.
- Continue in the Realm of Shadow after the loading screen completes.
When Leda appears and invites you to join her companions as they follow Miquella’s footsteps, continue through the interaction sequence. The arm is the DLC entrance; there is no separate doorway or map icon that must be found.
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What happens on your first return to the base game
The first Site of Grace you use in the Realm of Shadow matters for travel. After resting at any Site of Grace in the new realm, the map allows fast travel between the Realm of Shadow and the Lands Between.
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If you die before touching a Site of Grace in the Realm of Shadow, the official guide says you must return to Miquella’s cocoon to enter again. Treat the first Site of Grace as an immediate priority after arrival:
- Complete the cocoon interaction and arrive in the Realm of Shadow.
- Reach and rest at a Site of Grace as soon as the game allows.
- Only after resting should you rely on map travel between the two realms.
This condition affects only the early return route described by the guide. It does not change the two-boss requirement or the location of the entrance.
Troubleshooting when the entrance does not work
The arm has no interaction prompt
Check the two required victories first. The festival activation is not enough; Radahn must be defeated. Reaching Mohgwyn Palace is not enough; Mohg, Lord of Blood must also be defeated. Return to the cocoon only after both boss encounters have been completed.
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Use one of the official activation routes: progress Ranni and Blaidd until Sorceress Sellen explains the Nokron requirement; start Ranni’s questline and communicate with Witch-Hunter Jerren and Blacksmith Iji; or enter Altus Plateau, rest at a Site of Grace, and visit Redmane Castle. The Altus Plateau method is an alternate route specified by the official guide, not a claim that every other quest state has been reset.
You cannot find Mohgwyn Palace
Use either the Consecrated Snowfield Sending Gate or White Mask Varré’s Pureblood Knight’s Medal. If you choose the medal route, confirm that Varré’s questline has progressed far enough for the medal to be awarded. If you choose the gate route, confirm that you are searching in the Consecrated Snowfield rather than another region.
You died immediately after entering the DLC
If you had not rested at a Site of Grace in the Realm of Shadow, return to Miquella’s cocoon in Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum and interact with the arm again. After you rest at a Site of Grace in the new realm, map travel between the two realms becomes available.
Do you need a special edition or accessory?
No special accessory, repair item, consumable, or outside service is required for the entrance route. Players who already own the base game and expansion can follow the steps above.
For Nintendo Switch 2 buyers who do not yet own the game, Bandai Namco describes the ELDEN RING Tarnished Edition as including the base game and Shadow of the Erdtree. That is a platform-specific purchase option, not a prerequisite for players who already have the expansion. See the official product page for the edition’s stated contents: ELDEN RING Tarnished Edition | Official Website (EN).
Quick Recap
One-page route checklist
- Activate the Radahn Festival at Redmane Castle through one of the listed routes.
- Defeat Starscourge Radahn.
- Reach Mohgwyn Palace through the Consecrated Snowfield Sending Gate or White Mask Varré’s Pureblood Knight’s Medal.
- Defeat Mohg, Lord of Blood.
- Return to Miquella’s cocoon in Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum.
- Interact with the arm hanging from the cocoon.
- After arriving in the Realm of Shadow, rest at a Site of Grace before relying on cross-realm map travel.
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