You’ve probably spent the last three hours getting flattened by a boss in the Land of Shadow. It’s okay. We’ve all been there. You’re changing your Ash of War, you’re re-allocating your Flasks, and you’re staring at those four tiny slots at the bottom of your equipment screen. Honestly, the Elden Ring DLC talismans are the real stars of the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. Forget the weapons for a second. If you don't have the right trinket pinned to your chest, you're basically just paper in a windstorm.
The DLC didn't just give us "better" versions of old stuff. It changed how we play.
Some of these items are absolute game-changers that make the base game look like a tutorial. Others? They’re traps. Total bait. You see a high damage number and you think, "Yeah, that’s the one," only to realize it makes you take 30% more damage from a boss that already one-shots you. It's a mess. Let’s break down what actually matters when you’re trying to survive Messmer or the Scadutree Avatar.
The Two-Headed Turtle and the Stamina Problem
Stamina is everything in the DLC.
In the base game, you could usually get away with the Green Turtle Talisman. It was fine. But in Shadow of the Erdtree, enemies have these 10-hit combos that keep going even after you think they're done. You're rolling. You're blocking. You're dying because your green bar hit zero. Enter the Two-Headed Turtle Talisman.
It’s found in a cave near the Temple Town Ruins, hidden behind a waterfall because FromSoftware loves a cliché. This thing speeds up stamina recovery by about 22.5% compared to the 17.7% of the original. That 5% difference sounds small. It isn't. It’s the difference between having enough juice to roll away from a grab attack or just standing there like a target. If you aren't using this in a melee build, you're playing on hard mode for no reason.
Why You Should Probably Ignore the Bloom
People love the idea of the Rotten Winged Sword Insignia. They see the Lacerating Crossed-Tree or the Retaliatory Crossed-Tree and think they need to stack every "successive attack" buff possible.
Look, those are great for the DLC bosses if you’re a literal god at the game. But for most of us? The windows to hit bosses are tiny. You get one poke, maybe two. The Elden Ring DLC talismans that reward aggressive, non-stop attacking are harder to trigger now because the bosses move like they’re on caffeine.
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Instead, look at the Two-Handed Sword Talisman.
It boosts attacks by 15% when you’re two-handing a weapon. Simple. No stacks required. No "hit five times to trigger" nonsense. You just hold your sword with two hands and you hit harder. It’s located in the Temple Town Ruins as well, inside a chest at the top of a tower. It’s consistent. Consistency wins fights in the Land of Shadow.
The Magic Resistance Reality Check
If you haven't found the Golden Braid yet, stop what you’re doing. Go to the Shaman Village.
It provides the highest Holy damage negation in the game. Why does this matter? Because the final boss of the DLC is basically a walking lighthouse of Holy energy. Without this talisman, the second phase of that fight is a nightmare of golden explosions. You can stack this with the Pearldrake Talisman +3 (found in the Shadow Keep) to actually survive hits that would normally send you straight back to the Grace.
Defensive Powerhouses
- Dragoncrest Greatshield Talisman: Still the king of physical defense, even if it's from the base game.
- Verdigris Discus: This is a weird one from Moore’s questline. It increases defense based on how heavy your equipment load is. If you’re a "Greatshield Poke" player, this is your new best friend.
- Talismans of the Dread: Boosts magma and fire. Great for Blasphemous Blade users, but niche.
Honestly, the Verdigris Discus is slept on. Everyone wants to be light rolling, but in the DLC, sometimes being a literal tank is the only way to see the credits roll.
The Spells and the Smithing
Casters got some love too, but it's complicated. The Beloved Stardust talisman is the ultimate glass cannon move. It gives you the maximum casting speed possible—literally caps it out—but it makes you take way more damage.
I’ve seen people use this in co-op. They cast a massive sorcery, look like a total badass for three seconds, and then get hit by a stray projectile and fold like a lawn chair. It’s risky. If you're going to use it, you better be at 60 Vigor and wearing some heavy armor.
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On the flip side, the Smithing Talisman is a weirdly specific gem. It boosts weapons that are "thrown." We’re talking about the new Smithscript weapons—daggers, hammers, spears. It’s a 10% buff. If you’re doing a dedicated throw build, it’s mandatory. If not, it’s literal dead weight in your inventory.
The Weird Stuff: Ailments and Crits
The Aged One's Exultation is basically the Lord of Blood's Exultation but for Madness. It’s incredible for PVP or very specific PVE setups using the Madding Hand. When madness triggers nearby, you get a 20% attack boost.
Then there’s the Blade of Mercy.
This thing is fascinating. You get a 20% attack boost after every critical hit (ripostes or backstabs). In the base game, backstabbing was a bit of a meme in boss fights. In the DLC, several bosses—like the humanoid ones in the Mausoleums—can be parried into oblivion. If you’re a parry king, the Blade of Mercy turns you into a woodchipper.
Cracking the Scadutree Code
The biggest mistake players make with Elden Ring DLC talismans is forgetting that they scale with your Scadutree Fragment level. A 10% buff to a low base number is whatever. A 10% buff when your attack power is already doubled by fragments? That’s massive.
Don't prioritize a damage talisman over a survival talisman if your Fragment level is low. You can't deal damage if you're dead.
The Shattered Stone Talisman is another oddity. It boosts "kicking and stomping" skills. Think Hoarah Loux's Earthshaker or the new dryleaf arts. It’s a 15% buff. It’s niche, sure, but it’s part of the new "build identity" FromSoftware pushed in this DLC. They want you to specialize. They don't want you to just be "the guy with the sword." They want you to be "the guy who kicks people in the face really hard."
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Mapping Your Loadout
You have four slots. Usually, one is locked to the Dragoncrest Greatshield. That’s the "survivability tax."
The second should probably be the Two-Headed Turtle. Stamina is life.
The third and fourth? That’s where you play. If you’re using the new Great Katanas, the Two-Handed Sword Talisman is a no-brainer. If you’re using the Milady or other light greatswords, maybe you look at the Lances Talisman if you’re fighting from horseback (though let’s be real, Torrent dies in two hits in the DLC).
Actually, the Crusade Talisman is great for clearing levels. You get an attack boost every time you kill an enemy. It lasts 20 seconds. For running through the Shadow Keep or Enir-Ilim, it’s better than almost anything else because you’re constantly chaining kills. Just don’t bring it to a boss fight. It’ll do nothing.
Final Thoughts on Optimization
The meta for the Land of Shadow is still shifting, but the raw data doesn't lie. Defensive talismans like the Golden Braid and the Dragoncrest are more valuable here than they ever were in Limgrave. The bosses hit harder, the combos are longer, and the margin for error is razor-thin.
Stop trying to force the "one-shot" builds you saw on YouTube from 2022. The DLC is a war of attrition. You need talismans that help you stay in the fight, keep your stamina high, and punish the very few openings you actually get.
Actionable Next Steps
- Check your Holy Negation: Before entering the final area of the game, ensure you have the Golden Braid equipped. It is found in the Shaman Village, accessible through the "O Mother" gesture at the Shadow Keep back gate.
- Audit your Stamina: Swap the standard Green Turtle for the Two-Headed Turtle Talisman. The recovery frames are significantly faster and allow for one extra roll in almost every major boss combo.
- Specialization check: If you are using the new Smithscript weapons, equip the Smithing Talisman immediately. It provides a flat 10% buff to all thrown attacks, which is essential for making those weapons viable in late-game scaling.
- Weight Management: If you are struggling with heavy armor, don't waste a slot on the Great-Jar's Arsenal if you can instead use the Verdigris Discus to turn that heavy weight into a defensive buff.
The Land of Shadow is brutal. Your gear should make it less so. Pick the talismans that cover your weaknesses, not just the ones that make your big numbers slightly bigger.