Shadow Of The Erdtree (Elden Ring DLC) Areas Ranked

I recently ranked the “Elden Ring” (base game) areas based on their content, fun, aesthetic and replayability, and now I’ll do exactly the same thing for the ginormous DLC.

I’ve played through the “Shadow of the Erdtree” DLC twice now, and both times I was blown away by the world design and the beauty of the Shadow Realm. These areas could go toe-to-toe with the base game’s offerings … but they weren’t all a slam dunk. Let’s rank them!

Before we begin, you can check out some of my related blog posts below:

Every “Elden Ring” Area Ranked

Top 20 Best Videogame Narratives

EVERY Game I Played In 2024 – Ranked

My Top 20 Favourite Videogame Soundtracks

Bad

14 – Enir-Ilim

We’re starting off with a red-hot take – I thought the final area of the DLC, “Enir-Ilim”, was bad. Painfully bad. Like “Lake of Rot” bad.

While it does look cool, it’s extremely linear and far too plain. You have to fight some of the most annoying enemies in the whole DLC on the way to the final boss … and don’t get me started on that final boss.

I’m of the opinion that “Promised Consort Radahn” is the worst boss in the entire game – base game included. Not only is it way too hard, but the field-wide lightbeam attack in his second phase is almost un-dodge-able and it always tanked my computer’s framerate. I’d take Malenia and her “Waterfowl Dance” over that BS any day.

Needless to say, I wasn’t happy with how the “Shadow of the Erdtree” DLC ended. But the rest of it was good.

Meh

13 – Charo’s Hidden Grave

“Charo’s Hidden Grave” would have been the most gorgeous area in the DLC, and maybe of the whole game … if “Cerulean Coast” didn’t exist.

What’s the point of this area? It’s awkward to reach and navigate, it copies the style of “Cerulean Coast” but in a red tint, and there’s nothing of note to do or find in it. It should’ve been cut or repurposed into something, y’know, relevant.

Okay

12 – Scaduview

Getting to “Scaduview” was probably my favourite part about it – only FromSoft would lock an area behind an obscure, easy-to-miss gesture.

The area itself, however, is very thin. There are huge lore revelations but there’s nothing much in terms of actual gameplay. A miniboss here, a Finger Ruin there. That’s it really.

You could miss this area entirely (which is very easy to do on a first playthrough) and not sacrifice anything.

11 – Rauh Base

“Rauh Base” is cool on paper – a gloomy, moody area tucked at the base of a more prominent one – but there’s not much going on in it.

There are a few good loot pickups and a couple of minibosses which tested me, but even after my second playthrough I’m struggling to remember many details.

Good

10 – Cerulean Coast

Visually, “Cerulean Coast” is my favourite-looking area in the DLC. Bar none. I almost gasped the first time I crested the hill and looked upon the fields of endless blue.

I like the various structures (Shipwrecks? Coffins?) you have to climb for loot, and there were enough hidden alcoves to encourage exploration. All in all, this is my bare minimum for a good “Elden Ring” area.

9 – Castle Ensis

A solid legacy dungeon.

“Castle Ensis” is a bit smaller and more monotone than I would’ve liked, but it’s a fun early to mid-game endeavor.

8 – Gravesite Plain

FromSoft always nail the visual presentation of their first few areas. For “Limgrave” and then “Liurnia” I was desperate to dive in, and that call to adventure was prevalent for “Gravesite Plain”.

You’re immediately struck by the shadowy Erdtree, the sheets of ghostly silk in the sky, and the massive fiery behemoth skulking in a faraway field. Those Furnace Golems gave me a beating across the DLC, let me tell you …

The actual content of this starting area is perhaps a bit thin, but it was still a very solid first impression.

7 – Stone Coffin Fissure

At the bottom of the map, beneath “Cerulean Coast”, is a big hole in the ground which I didn’t initially realise you could descend into. When I finally felt adventurous enough to go down I was met with one of the most striking images of the DLC – a cavernous space with huge stone structures jutting from the walls.

Laser-shooting enemies aside (some of the worst, most annoying enemies I’ve faced in any game …) this was a fun mini dungeon which culminated in a solid yet tricky boss. The drop into the boss arena was badass as hell.

Great

6 – Ancient Ruins of Rauh

The penultimate area of the game, “Ancient Ruins of Rauh” struck that perfect balance of difficult exploration and satisfying discoveries.

It’s not the prettiest area of the DLC but it does have some gorgeous views of the shadowy land below. I remembered the labyrinth being a pain in the backside, but on my second playthrough it wasn’t too bad.

5 – Jagged Peak

I thought “Mt. Gelmir” was a little underwhelming in the base game, so I didn’t get my hopes up for the DLC’s designated mountain zone. “Jagged Peak” blew me away with its visual style and the plethora of dragon minibosses.

I loved ascending the mountain while avoiding natural threats like red lightning and rockslides, and the “Bayle the Dread” fight at the peak was … well … peak.

4 – Scadu Altus

I usually penalize intermediate / “crossroads” areas in these rankings (because they lead to great content but are a little thin on their own), but something about “Scadu Altus” just clicked for me.

It’s an even better version of the first area, “Gravesite Plain”. There are far more things to do, like the finger-worshipping church and the various entrances to the “Shadow Keep”, and the enormous, shadowy Erdtree is as imposing as ever.

3 – Abyssal Woods

I had a big decision to make when ranking “Abyssal Woods”. For the other “Elden Ring” areas I’ve ranked the legacy dungeons separately from their attached zone (e.g. “Volcano Manor” is distinct from “Mt. Gelmir” in my mind), but for the sake of “Abyssal Woods” and “Midra’s Manse” I decided to combine them both. I consider them to be one large, creepy experience.

The woods themselves are fairly interesting, but I found the unkillable enemies to be more annoying than terrifying on my replay.

“Midra’s Manse” is the main reason I’ve ranked this area in the top three. It’s one of my favourite legacy dungeons in all of “Elden Ring” – I adored the unsettling atmosphere, the hidden mirages and the boss fight at the end.

Amazing

2 – Belurat, Tower Settlement

There’s a good chance “Belurat, Tower Settlement” is the first legacy dungeon you come across after dropping into the DLC, and I’d put it on par with the best legacy dungeon-ing that the base game had to offer.

It has everything I want in an “Elden Ring” area – impressive interconnectivity, hidden secrets worth discovering, and a final boss fight against the “Divine Beast Dancing Lion” which got my blood pumping.

I would have been satisfied if this was the main legacy dungeon in the DLC … but there was one other legacy dungeon which blew everything else out of the water.

All-Time Great

1 – Shadow Keep

I’d be shocked if anyone put “Shadow Keep” anywhere but top spot in their DLC rankings. The whole “Shadow of the Erdtree” experience, progression and world felt like it was built around this incredible legacy dungeon.

There are multiple entrances and exits, multiple bosses, an extraordinary amount of exploration and looting to do, and it all takes place in a dark and brooding building befitting of the “Elden Ring” style.

I can’t pretend to be a Soulsborne veteran or anything like that, but the “Shadow Keep” is surely the pinnacle of FromSoft design. It’s fiendishly tricky, it looks awesome aesthetically, and it’s been seared in my memory for the rest of my gaming life.

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