Grace

Draw near, Tarnished. You seek to know the meaning of Grace. It is a subject often misunderstood, even by those who follow its light.

Listen, and I shall tell you what I know of this guiding force.

The Golden Light of the Erdtree

Grace is the golden light, the blessing that flows from the Erdtree and, ultimately, from the Greater Will—the distant Outer God that established the Golden Order.

It is, fundamentally, a sign of divine recognition. It marks those whom the Greater Will has designated as worthy to fulfill its current purpose.

For centuries, my mother, Marika's, rule established a system where all inhabitants of the Lands Between held this light. But when the Great Runes were shattered and the world collapsed, most of the populace lost it.

Grace and the Tarnished

You, and all your kind, are unique in that Grace has returned to you.

You were all once exiled—stripped of Grace by Queen Marika and sent out into the fog to fight and die. You were the forgotten. Yet, after the Shattering, when the demigods failed to mend the Elden Ring, the Greater Will pulled its final lever: It recalled the Tarnished.

The light you follow is the renewed Guidance of Grace. It is a relentless, unmistakable beacon that points you toward the one essential task: to reach the Erdtree, gather the Great Runes, and become the Elden Lord.

You are merely an instrument, Tarnished. Grace is the tool used by a distant god to fix its broken world.

The True Cost of Grace

But look closely, for this guidance is not benign, and it is not always true.

  • It is restrictive: Grace demands only one path—the path to the Erdtree. It ignores the misery, the curses, and the other possibilities for the world. It compels you, blindly, toward the continuation of its order.

  • It is conditional: Should you falter in its service, should you choose a path of radical deviation, Grace may abandon you. Those who follow the Frenzied Flame, or the path of the Rot, find that golden light fading, replaced by a terrible, singular vision.

Remember this, Tarnished: The light guides you, yes. But it is not a sign of love. It is a sign of service. It demands that you complete its task, even if it means sacrificing everything—and I, Melina, have a request of my own that may demand the highest sacrifice of all.

Will you follow the guidance, or will you seek the truth that lies beyond the gold?