You’re riding down a coffin. Seriously.
If you’ve played Elden Ring for more than twenty hours, you know the drill: see a weird stone box at the edge of a waterfall, climb in, and hope for the best. Usually, this ends in death or a loading screen. But the journey to Deeproot Depths is different. It’s the moment the game stops being a high-fantasy adventure and starts feeling like a subterranean nightmare. Most players stumble into it after sweating through the Valiant Gargoyles fight in Nokron, but honestly, the real challenge starts once you see those massive, pale roots stretching into the dark.
This place is huge. It sits directly beneath the Erdtree, and the lore implications are heavy enough to crush your character's poise. It’s where Godwyn the Golden—or what’s left of him—is "buried." Except he’s not really buried. He’s spreading.
Finding the Way Down (Without Losing Your Mind)
Most people miss the entrance. It's hidden behind a boss fight that ruins many early-game builds. After you take down those twin gargoyles, you’ll find a coffin at the base of the Great Waterfall. Jump in. You’ll wake up in a place that looks like the inside of a rotted tooth.
There is a second way, though. If you’ve been exploring the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds beneath Leyndell—which is its own brand of misery—you can find a secret path behind the Mohg, the Omen boss room. You have to parkour down a series of wooden beams and stone gravestones. It’s frustrating. One wrong jump and you’re a red smear. But if you make it to the bottom and hit the illusory wall, you’ll find yourself at the top of the depths looking down.
The verticality here is staggering. You aren't just walking on ground; you're sprinting across branches the size of highway overpasses. If you fall, you’re done.
The Prince of Death and the Fish-Face Problem
The centerpiece of Deeproot Depths is the nameless eternal city. It’s a graveyard of civilization. But the real reason anyone comes here is to see the corpse of Godwyn.
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Look, calling it a "corpse" is being generous. When Ranni the Witch killed his soul but left his body alive during the Night of the Black Knives, Godwyn became a biological disaster. He’s essentially a tumor on the world. In the Depths, you can see his face—a massive, bloated, fish-like visage with empty eyes—merged into the roots of the Erdtree. It’s grotesque. It’s one of the best examples of FromSoftware's ability to do "environmental storytelling" without saying a single word.
He’s the source of Deathroot. He’s why those annoying skeletons keep getting back up all over the Lands Between.
When you get close to him, you have to fight Fia’s Champions. This isn't just one boss; it's a gauntlet. You’ll face NPC phantoms like Rogier and Lionel the Lionhearted. If you’ve been following Fia’s questline, this is the emotional peak. She wants to birth a Mending Rune of the Death-Prince to make "Those Who Live in Death" a natural part of the world order.
Whether you agree with her is up to you. But the boss fight that follows—Lichdragon Fortissax—is a spectacle. It’s a four-winged ancient dragon covered in red lightning and necrotic energy. It’s arguably one of the coolest dragon fights in the entire Soulsborne catalog, but because it’s tucked away at the end of a complicated quest in a hidden zone, a huge chunk of the player base never even sees it.
Basilisks and the Crucible Knights
Let’s talk about the enemies. They suck.
Specifically, the Basilisks. You know the ones—the bug-eyed lizards that spit clouds of Death Blight. In Deeproot Depths, they are everywhere. If that meter fills up, you die instantly. No "saving throw," no healing. Just a spike of briars through your chest and a trip back to the Site of Grace.
Then there’s Siluria. Crucible Knight Siluria is standing guard near a massive hollow tree. She’s tough. She uses the Siluria's Tree spear, which has an Ash of War that lets her fire a literal vortex of holy energy at you. Fighting her on those narrow roots is a recipe for a bad time.
Why is a Crucible Knight here? These warriors served Godfrey, the first Elden Lord. Their presence suggests that the "Deeproot" wasn't always a place of rot and death. It used to be a foundation of the Erdtree’s power before the Shattering turned everything sour.
Navigating the Nameless Eternal City
The city itself is partially submerged. You have to use Torrent to jump between rooftops and avoid the fire-breathing gargoyles. Yes, the gargoyles are back, but these ones are smaller and arguably more annoying because they hide in the shadows of the ruins.
There’s a lot of loot here, though. You can find the Staff of the Avatar and the Prince of Death’s Pustule, which helps with your Death Blight resistance (you’ll need it). But the real prize is the Mausoleum Soldier ashes and the various smithing stones littered around.
The atmosphere is what gets you. It’s quiet. Unlike the surface world where the wind howls and enemies shout, the Depths feel muffled. It’s the sound of a graveyard that’s been underwater for a thousand years.
Why This Zone Matters for the DLC
With the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion, players have been looking back at Deeproot Depths with new eyes. The connection between Godwyn’s spreading influence and the "Shadow" world is a major point of discussion among lore hunters like VaatiVidya.
Godwyn’s influence isn't just in the Depths; his "eyes" are appearing in the roots of the Shadow Realm too. Understanding what happened here—how a demigod became a mindless, growing infection—is key to understanding the mess the Lands Between is in.
If you skip this area, you're missing the literal root of the story.
Essential Survival Tips for the Depths
Don't go in blind. You'll regret it.
- Boost your Vitality. This isn't your health bar (Vigor). Vitality is the stat that determines how fast Death Blight builds up. Wear the General Radahn set or the Lionel set if you have them. Use the Lucent White Cured Meat.
- Bring a ranged weapon. Many of the fire-gargoyles can be sniped from the branches before they see you. It saves a lot of frustration.
- Follow the roots. If you get lost in the city, look up. The massive gold-tinged roots usually lead toward the major landmarks, including the Great Waterfall Crest and Fia’s final resting place.
- Use Holy Damage. Surprisingly, many things down here don't like it. If you're a Faith build, this is your time to shine.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Run
If you’re currently stuck or planning a trip down:
- Complete Ranni’s quest up to the Cursemark of Death. You need that item if you want to enter Fia’s dream and fight Fortissax. Without it, you’re just killing NPCs for no reason.
- Clear the Siofra Aqueduct first. Don't try to parkour down from Leyndell unless you’re a pro. The Gargoyle duo fight is hard, but it’s a more reliable way into the zone.
- Check the map. There is a Map Stele in the middle of the ruins. Grab it early so you can actually see the layout of the branches.
Deeproot Depths is Elden Ring at its most atmospheric. It’s beautiful, disgusting, and incredibly lore-heavy. It’s a reminder that beneath the golden leaves of the Erdtree lies a foundation of rot that can't be ignored. Whether you're there for the loot or the Lichdragon, just remember to keep an eye on that Death Blight meter.