FromSofware's latest fantasy RPG Elden Ring is about a month away from release, and fans of "Soulslikes" games and fantasy literature are keen to learn more about the game's main characters, secret lore, and backstory, created in collaboration with fantasy author George R.R. Martin. Elden Ring's multiple trailers, coupled with the content of the recent Network Test, have revealed many interesting details about the Lands Between, the Demigods who once ruled it, and the Tarnished who were banished from it; Elden Ring's official Twitter also contains several interesting posts with information about the identities of certain trailer characters and the events that led to the sundering of the Elden Ring and the apocalyptic wars of the Shattering.
Game developer and current FromSoftware president Hidetaka Miyazaki drew inspiration from his youthful literary pursuits (and love of classic FromSoftware RPGs like King's Field) when creating the narrative of Demon's Souls, a story that exemplified the principle of "Show, Don't Tell." Aside from three cinematic cutscenes interspersed throughout the game, the plot of Demon's Souls was slowly revealed to players as they talked with new NPCs, collected equipment with interesting descriptions, and defeated boss enemies with strange, haunting epithets.
The jigsaw puzzle plot of Demon's Souls went on to inspire the similarly mysterious storylines of Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and other Miyazaki-directed titles, while also priming players of FromSoftware games to dissect every new "Soulslike" title for clues, secrets, and mind-blowing lore. During the long gap between Elden Ring's premiere trailer and its gameplay trailer, fans even wound up creating their own made-up lore for Elden Ring, recounting thrilling fights against fictitious boss characters such as "Glaive Master Hodir" and how the descriptions attached to their signature weapons revealed truly tragic pasts.
When the Elden Ring Network Test finally launched in the fall of 2021, play-testers instantly started catag every interesting item description, open-world enemy, and environmental detail they could find. They slowly assembled a picture of a once-flourishing kingdom sundered both politically and metaphysically. At the same time, Elden Ring's official Twitter started posting screenshots and artwork from the complete version of Elden Ring, along with interesting allusions to events in the game's backstory
Elden Ring's Story Trailer Narrator Is Called The Snow Witch
The most recent trailer for Elden Ring revealed the game's opening cinematic, mostly likely triggered after the player selects the "New Game" option in Elden Ring's main menu. A soft-spoken narrator describes the events preceding the events of the Elden Ring game proper - the theft of the Rune of Death, the murder of Godwyn The Golden, the wars of the Shattering, etc. At the cinematic's end, this narrator reveals her true appearance to the player: a pale woman with doll-like features, four arms, a white dress and bonnet, and a ghostly duplicate of herself clinging to her body and miming her motions.
After her reveal, some FromSoftware fans guessed she might be connected to Marika, the immortal queen who once ruled the Lands Between, while others wondered if she was the leader of the "Two Fingers" organization mentioned by other characters in the Elden Ring game. Then Elden Ring's Twitter posted an image of this mysterious narrator, along with the following caption: "The Snow Witch's tale is in need of an ending. Perhaps a Tarnished will be able to provide one."
If the narrator from Elden Ring's opening cinematic is indeed called the "Snow Witch," this would explain her pale complexion and lacy white garments; the role of the "Snow Witch" in Elden Ring's broader narrative is still a mystery, though. She could be a mentor and ally to the player, giving them the guidance and direction needed to become the "Elden Lord." She could also be a future enemy or boss fight in Elden Ring, depending on the choices players make.
Elden Ring's Cursemarks Of Margit The Fell
"Margit The Fell," the primary boss players encountered in the Elden Ring Network Test, is a stern, wild figure ravaged by countless mutations - patches of fur, a crown of horns erupting from his head, and a thick fleshy tail. Margit bars the path leading to Stormveil Castle, a massive dungeon filled with wild beasts and multi-limbed monstrosities, which led many Elden Ring players to think his grotesque appearance came from the "Grafting" experiments performed by the similarly warped and twisted Elden Ring Boss "Godrick The Golden." However, a recent post on Elden Ring's Twitter showed an image of Margit along with this caption: "The cursemarks he bore from birth were another ominous sign for the royal family."
Based on this statement, it would seem Margit The Fell was born with these beastly mutations, rather than altered by magic or surgery. Further, Margit appears to be a member of the royal family of Demigods who once ruled the Lands Between. He was likely shunned for his appearance and treated as an "Omen" of bad times to come.
Elden Ring's Godrick The Golden Was Weak Before Grafting
There are multiple posts on Elden Ring's Twitter that refer to "Godrick The Golden," the ruler of Stormveil Castle and one of the bosses shown in the Elden Ring gameplay trailer. A post about the game area of Limgrave has the following caption: "A kingdom still at war long past the Shattering. Godrick's claim as the rightful Golden King is not wholly uncontested. There are those who plot to see his crown into more worthy hands."
A re-tweet of fanart depicting Godrick The Golden was paired with this interesting nugget of backstory: "Born a weakling child, he coveted the strength of his kin." Finally, the official Elden Ring Twitter post about Godrick states this of the self-proclaimed inheritor of the Golden Order: "The ceaseless harvest of flesh throughout Limgrave has left the land thirsty for vengeance against the Grafted King." All three of these tweets strongly suggest Godrick The Golden was the "runt of his litter," a Demigod who lacked the strength, vitality, or arcane abilities of his divine siblings.
Envious of the power his kindred were born with, Godrick likely took advantage of the Shattering and the ensuing Demigod wars to seize multiple forms of power and authority for himself (while also making many bitter enemies in the process). From his dead brother Godwyn, he took the title of "Golden" (and perhaps a fragment of the shattered Elden Ring). In the land of Limgrave, he laid claim to Stormveil Castle and its crown. He even severed limbs from the Tarnished, the Dragons, and the other magical creatures of Limgrave, grafting them onto his own body to acquire their strength. At the start of his boss fight in Elden Ring, Godrick dismisses the player character as a "lowly Tarnished, playing as a Lord," - a hypocritical statement at best, considering his former lowly status and the ruthless measures he took to sur it.
Source: Elden Ring/Twitter