The Elden Ring Items DLC Shadow from the Erdtree continues to be a big mystery and thus far, very few official details happen to be revealed yet. But the bit of information we now have has been enough to take a position about the setting of FromSoftware’s big add-on for Elden Ring.

About twelve months after the discharge of Elden Ring, players finally got the announcement they happen to be clamoring for: Shadow from the Erdtree is originating, the very first big Elden Ring DLC. That’s virtually all we've got though, as FromSoftware revealed not one other detail concerning the add-on, aside from its name along with a gorgeous little bit of promo art.

That was ample for the community though, which quickly began speculating about what Shadow from the Erdtree could offer players. One of the main questions concerns the DLC’s setting and whether or not this will be a sequel, or maybe even a prequel to Elden Ring.

Elden Ring DLC: Shadow Of The Erdtree's Timeline Mystery

On the breathtaking bit of poetic cinema that's the promo art, the thing is a figure riding around the spectral steed Torrent, or perhaps a creature that appears very similar to it. They're riding toward a darkened (and frankly disgusting-looking) tree. Fans online have gone mad speculating over what some of this could mean. Who is this individual? Is it the Erdtree we’re seeing here? Is it the Haligtree? What is going on here?

The response is: we don’t know. What seems that appears to be true, would be that the figure is Miquella, the brother of the infamous Malenia. Miquella has been said to feature braided blond hair, similar to the person within the artwork. We also didn’t see Miquella in the primary game, since he was… well, dead, kind of.

Like Bloodborne and Dark Souls: Will Elden Ring Play With Time And Space Again?

But: This is FromSoftware we’re referring to here, situations are of course a little more complicated. If you consider the massive tree featured within the artwork, it appears like the Erdtree, right? The thing is also within the title, therefore it will definitely play a large role again. But the tree is in a horrible state, it’s darkened and disfigured, oozing a golden liquid. Yuck. This will surely remind fans who finished Elden Ring of Erdtree’s fate in the primary game.

Towards the end of the game, you’re tasked with burning one thing down. The key art appears to show the Erdtree within this burned state, thus suggesting the DLC could be set following the events of Elden Ring. So… it’s likely to be a prequel AND a sequel?

Potentially yes. FromSoftware isn't any stranger to f-ing around as time passes. You literally have enough time travel in Dark Souls 2 and Sekiro. And think back to Bloodborne’s twisted version of Yharnam, fallen from time and space, or Dark Souls 3’s world, which features different versions of Lordran folded into one another. The elden ring items DLC could try something similar and have a parallel version of The Lands Between, where past and future collided or where events played out differently than in the primary game.