You’ve probably seen the blue, four-armed witch sitting on a pile of books at the top of a tower and thought, "Yeah, I want to work for her." Everyone does. But honestly, the Elden Ring Ranni questline is less of a standard side quest and more of a total overhaul of how the game's ending actually works. It's long. It's confusing. If you aren't careful, you’ll end up staring at a brick wall in the middle of a subterranean city wondering where the heck your half-wolf friend went.
Basically, Ranni wants to overthrow the current cosmic order—the Greater Will—and replace it with a cold, lonely Age of Stars. It sounds bleak, but in the context of Elden Ring, it’s actually one of the "good" endings. Sorta.
Starting the Ranni Questline Without Breaking Everything
Most people think you just show up at Ranni’s Rise in Liurnia and start chatting. Well, you can, but there's a lot of baggage if you've been talking to Rogier the Sorcerer back at the Roundtable Hold. If Rogier sent you to find Ranni’s Cursemark, she might actually tell you to get lost the first time you meet her. You have to go back to Rogier, he'll suggest you "serve" her as a spy, and then she’ll let you into her inner circle.
Here is the thing about the Elden Ring Ranni questline: it is incredibly sturdy, but it has "soft-locks" that feel like bugs. For instance, if you start the Radahn Festival in Caelid before talking to her, she might not even be in her tower. Don't panic. You just have to go kill Radahn first.
The Fellowship of the Witch
Once she accepts you, you’ll meet her three stooges (spirit versions of them, anyway):
- Blaidd the Half-Wolf: The muscle. He’s usually hanging out in Siofra River later, looking up at the ceiling like a lost puppy.
- War Counselor Iji: The giant blacksmith. He’s the most honest guy in the group, though he has a habit of locking his friends in jail "for their own good."
- Preceptor Seluvis: A total jerk. Honestly, everyone hates this guy. He lives in the tower nearby and wants you to turn people into puppets.
The Radahn Wall and the Hole in the Woods
You can't finish the Elden Ring Ranni questline without killing Starscourge Radahn. Why? Because the stars are literally stuck in the sky. Radahn is holding them back with gravity magic. Once he dies, a meteor slams into the Mistwood in Limgrave, opening the path to Nokron, the Eternal City.
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I've seen players spend hours looking for the entrance to Nokron after the fight. Just look for the giant cluster of floating rocks in the sky south of the Mistwood Ruins. Follow the rubble down into the crater.
Finding the Fingerslayer Blade
Nokron is gorgeous, but it’s a trap-filled nightmare. You’re looking for the Fingerslayer Blade. It’s hidden at the very end of the Night’s Sacred Ground area, sitting in a chest under a massive skeleton on a throne. You can’t even open this chest unless you are currently in Ranni’s service. If you try to "cheat" and go here early, the game just tells you that you aren't destined to open it.
The Part Everyone Misses: The Miniature Ranni Doll
After you give the blade to Ranni, she gives you the Carian Inverted Statue (which you use at the Carian Study Hall to get her "real" body’s cursemark) and then she just... leaves. She tells you she’s going on a journey.
Most players get stuck here. Go to the third tower in the Three Sisters area, Renna’s Rise. There’s a portal at the top. It takes you to Ainsel River Main. Right in front of you, there’s a stone coffin with a Miniature Ranni doll.
DO NOT IGNORE THIS DOLL.
Go to the nearest Site of Grace and sit down. You’ll see a new menu option: "Talk to miniature Ranni." You click it. Nothing happens. You click it again. Nothing happens. You have to click it three times before the doll finally snaps at you and starts talking. If you don't do this, the rest of the quest won't trigger. It’s one of those classic FromSoftware "why would I ever know to do that" moments.
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The Lake of Rot and the Dark Moon Ring
The doll tells you to go kill a "Baleful Shadow" deeper in the caves. This guy looks like Blaidd but is basically a hitman sent by the Two Fingers. Kill him, and you get the Discarded Palace Key.
Where does this key go? All the way back to the Raya Lucaria Grand Library where you fought Rennala. There’s a locked chest behind her. Inside is the Dark Moon Ring. You need this ring to finish the quest, but the game doesn't explicitly tell you to go back there.
Crossing the Lake of Rot
After getting the ring, you have to cross the Lake of Rot. It’s exactly what it sounds like. A giant pool of Scarlet Rot. My advice? Bring plenty of "Preserving Boluses" or the "Flame, Cleanse Me" incantation. Don't try to explore every corner on your first run; just run for the platforms and hit the switches to raise the landmasses.
At the end of the lake, you’ll find a coffin. Hop in. You’ll be transported to a boss fight against Astel, Naturalborn of the Void. He’s a giant space bug that shoots lasers. Once he’s dead, if you have the Dark Moon Ring in your inventory, you can pass through the seal at the back of the arena to reach the Moonlight Altar.
The Cathedral of Manus Celes
The Moonlight Altar is a plateau high above Liurnia that you can’t reach any other way. Ride past the dragon (Glintstone Dragon Adula) and head into the Cathedral of Manus Celes.
There’s a hole in the floor near the Site of Grace. Jump down. You’ll find Ranni’s doll body sitting there, looking pretty beat up after she killed her Two Fingers.
- Interact with her to "Wear Ring."
- You’ll put the Dark Moon Ring on her finger.
- She’ll manifest in her "spirit" form and tell you that you’re her consort.
- She leaves, and the Dark Moon Greatsword—the legendary weapon from almost every FromSoftware game—appears on the ground.
How to Actually Get the Age of Stars Ending
Completing the Elden Ring Ranni questline does NOT automatically give you her ending. This is a common mistake. After you defeat the final boss of the game (the Elden Beast), do not touch the fractured Elden Ring in the center of the arena.
Instead, look on the floor for a blue summon sign. It’s the only ending that requires you to manually summon an NPC to trigger the cutscene. If you touch the statue first, you’ll trigger one of the standard "Elden Lord" endings and lock yourself out of Ranni’s achievement for that playthrough.
Why This Questline Still Matters in 2026
Even with the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion and all the lore drops we've had since, Ranni remains the most complex figure in the game. Her questline isn't just about a cool sword; it’s about the "Night of the Black Knives" and the literal death of the soul versus the death of the body.
Actionable Tips for a Smooth Run:
- Don't kill Seluvis too early: Even though he's a creep, he gives you the Magic Scorpion Charm, which is essential for magic builds.
- Talk to Iji often: He has unique dialogue after almost every major step, especially after you defeat the Baleful Shadow.
- Get the Ghost Glovewort: Nokron and Nokstella are the best places to find high-level upgrade materials for your spirit summons (like the Mimic Tear, which you find during this quest).
If you want the full story, make sure you go back to Ranni’s Rise one last time after the Cathedral of Manus Celes but before the final boss. There’s a new Site of Grace at the top of her tower where you can have one last "talk" with the miniature doll, which changes her dialogue in the final ending scene to be a bit more... affectionate. Kinda. As affectionate as a cold moon goddess gets, anyway.
Now that you’ve secured the Dark Moon Greatsword, you should focus on leveling your Intelligence to at least 38 to actually use the thing. It’s one of the best scaling weapons in the game for a reason. Make sure you head over to the Forge of the Giants next if you're looking to wrap up the main story line; Ranni's part is done, and the rest is up to you.