The recommended level for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree is pretty high - ideally 150 at the very minimum. but frankly that's a low bar. Erdtree is meant as post-game DLC, a challenge for those who have completed the main game, and while those who haven't reached that point might struggle, that doesn't make it impossible - just very, very challenging. We'll explain in further detail below what you need to know about level requirements for Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree, and how it'll impact your overall experience with the DLC expansion.
What level should I be for Shadow of the Erdtree?
So, as I mentioned above, you want to be at least level 150 for Shadow of the Erdtree. That's probably the bare minimum you can get away with if you want even a chance of surviving the Realm of Shadow. If you're not there yet then these Elden Ring Rune farming locations will help you level up faster. Realistically, close to level 200 is probably going to be better overall but as a currently level 154 player, I'm doing okay so far, with a couple of bosses down and working my way deeper into the map.
There's more at play here than just your existing level, though. This expansion has its own levelling system that uses Shadow of the Erdtree Scadutree Fragments to increase player level. It's a DLC specific thing that will only benefit your character in the expansion area but it means that, to some extent, your actual player level is less important than how many fragments you can find. There are also Spirit Ashes that do the same thing for your summons and, again, only have an effect in the Realm of Shadows.
- After 423 hours and over 15,000 total deaths, Elden Ring player finally beats Shadow of the Erdtree without the upgrades FromSoftware urged everyone to use: "Never give up"
- "A lot of the joy is in the difficulty": After spending 400+ hours dying 15,000 times in a painful Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree run, streamer admits challenges have "ruined normal gaming" for him
However, there's arguably something far more important than both player level and Scadutree Fragments combined and that's your Vigor stat. Erdtree enemies hit hard and even the most basic enemies can oneshot an otherwise high levelled character. If you haven't got at least 60 points in Vigor you are probably going to struggle and want to Respec in Elden Ring with a quick visit to Rennala at Lucaria Academy. More than my level, or the fragments I found, this is the thing that made the most difference. I had to tweak my build a little and power up a different weapon to better use my redistributed stats, but I went from barely being able to move without dying to taking down the Shadow of the Erdtree Dancing Lion boss first go.
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