5 things to know before playing ‘Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree’

On social media, I showed off my Level 713 character (the highest possible level in “Elden Ring”) and boasted I was ready. Some of my followers scoffed at me and lectured me that I would probably ruin the experience by being too strong.

Dear reader, they were wrong. The enemies are scaled with the assumption that you’ve built a demigod in preparation. Even at the highest possible level, my maxed-out Sword of Night and Flame did almost invisible amounts of damage to enemy life bars. “Shadow of the Erdtree” warns you early that it has its own leveling system that requires collecting items called Scadutree Fragments to add a 5 percent boost to your attack and defense statistics. The higher your statistics are in the base game, the higher your percentage buffs from these fragments, so cash in that experience.