Four short, whispered sentences. Thus FromSoftware marks the beginning of the era of speculation on the plot of Elden Ring, the highly anticipated new title of the revered Japanese software house. Already widely leaked and initially known as Project Rune, the teaser of the talked-about game saw the light on the Xbox stage at E3 2019, immediately raising more questions than certainties. What is the Elden Ring? Who shattered it? Who are the mysterious characters that follow each other in the teaser? We will try to answer these questions by summarizing the speculation made here and there on the dark (souls) web and adding a few. But before we throw ourselves headlong into the favorite sport of souls fans, let's take a moment to analyze the mind who gave birth to this dark mythology.
I doubt you can even imagine it.
That which ruled the stars and which gives life its full splendor.
The Elden Ring, oh Elden Ring. Shattered, by someone or something.
Don't tell me you don't see it. Look at the sky up there. Burn!
Unknown narrator, Elden Ring teaserThe World of Ice and Fire
The mithos of Game of Thrones
If you are interested in the mythologies that influenced Martin in composing the cosmogony of Westeros and Essos, I refer to an interesting article by Arda2300.
George RR Martin it certainly needs no introduction. Author of A Song of Ice and Fire, he has thrilled millions and millions of fans around the world, releasing the fantasy genre from the nerd niche in which he has been locked up for years. But if the wars and incest of Westeros are now known to most, the less well known is the mithos which is the foundation of the beloved epic. And why should we care about Game of Thrones lore? Because that's exactly why Martin got involved in the Elden Ring project. To create the myth behind the storyline narrated in the gameplay.
In a recent interview, Miyazaki stated that he would never put the burden on Martin to write the main script. A screenplay for videogames it is characterized by rules and constraints that would surely have castrated the genius and imagination of a writer like Martin. Also it storytelling style of the American writer is very distant from that of the Japanese game director. The first tells through dialogues, the second through the environment.
But working on the cosmogony, Martin was able to fully express his immense knowledge on the various mythologies and their construction. When we talk about a fantastic epic, we immediately think of him, the undisputed father of modern fantasy, that is John RR Tolkien. No modern day fantasy writer can claim that he has not been influenced in some way by his works, including Martin. But in composing the myth of A Song of Ice and Fire, the American writer was certainly not outdone and this Miyazaki knows it well.
In the little known book / artbook The World of Ice and Fire, written by Martin himself in collaboration with the founders of the westeros.org site, it is possible to admire the immense structure that underlies the adventures narrated in Game of Thrones and how deeply Martin was inspired by Norse and Celtic culture. And it is precisely from here that our speculations will begin, from the already known passion of the American writer for those mythologies as ancient as they are incredible, which have profoundly marked his work also in the writing of the Elden Ring plot.
The Chronicles of a Ring of Fire
Let's start with the name. Literally translated Elden Ring means Ring of Fire. In Swedish the word elden means fire or embers and in English one of the best known meanings of the noun ring is ring. The figure of the ring forged in fire immediately refers to the imagery of The Lord of the Rings, the great work of the aforementioned Tolkien, which in turn took full advantage of Norse mythology. Draupnir was theOdin's magic ring, forged by the dwarves Eitri and Brokkr.
Every nine nights from it sprang eight rings of equal size and weight, which were given by Odin to the Norse kings to ingratiate themselves with their favors. Draupnir was part of a triptych of powerful artifacts. The second was Mjölnir the hammer of the god Thor and the third era Gullinbursti, the golden boar of the god Frey who plowed the Earth and made it green. We therefore understand how important artifacts were in Norse mythology, a symbol of divinity and power.
Shattered by someone or something ...
Ragnarock: the final confrontation and history repeating itself
But a recent interview with the Japanese game director, it would seem partially disprove this theory. When asked if Tolkien's work has in any way influenced the history of the game, Miyazaki replied in the affirmative. But not the way we think. The ring we are talking about would actually be a circle, a mysterious key element of the foundations of the world that forms its rules and gives its rhythm. This doesn't surprise longtime fans of the souls: the club, history repeating itself, is a recurring element in FromSoftware's titles.
Furthermore, this meaning also has a counterpart in Norse mythology: the Ragnarock. The most common meaning associated with Ragnarock is that of final clash between the Norse gods, led by Odin himself, and the forces of chaos, represented by Loki. But at the end of this epic battle, where most of the forces at stake will perish, there will be one rebirth. The new gods, children of the previous ones, will restore order to creation thus closing the circle.
The girl, the mother and the old woman
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If the name strongly refers us to a Norse tradition, the symbol we see at the end of the teaser instead recalls that Celtic. Considered erroneously by most as a single great culture, the two traditions over the years have certainly influenced each other, also given their geographical proximity, but they have nevertheless remained quite distinct. The most important of these differences is found in pantheon of deities. The main goddess for the Celts was a woman, that is Morrigan, while for the Nordics / Germans he was a man, Odin. This affected two different types of society: matriarchal for the Celts and patriarchal for the Nordics. Symbol of Morrigan and the triple aspect of femininity (girl, mother and old woman) was the Triquetra, whose shape was evidently taken from the symbol of Elden Ring.
In Druidism, an ancient order of the Celtic religion, we know that the Triqueta assumes a telluric aspect, indicative of the three predominant natural forces: earth, air e water. But on a more spiritual level, it indicates the three degrees of the evolution of existence: "vita" (mother), death (old) e rebirth (girl). Sometimes represented with a circle that interconnects the three points / circles (as in the symbol we see at the end of the teaser), the Triqueta takes on the meaning of cyclicality. All this seems to corroborate the theory that the word ring of the title is not to be understood as a physical ring but as a cycle that repeats itself, in line with the previous souls. But despite this, we still cannot consider the la completely wrong ring theory, because, as we will see, some scenes of the teaser seem to confirm it.
An incessant hammering
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La theory of the presence of a physical ring is supported by two scenes in the teaser and by the enigmatic narrator. The video opens with a faint flickering light that expands into a huge dark cave (clear reference to the first flame of Dark Souls). It is generated by the insistent hammering of a blacksmith on a stone anvil. In Norse mythology and legends the figure of the blacksmith it is very present. Blacksmiths were the dwarves who created the triptych of divine artifacts described above (Draupnir, Mjölnir and Gullinbursti), and blacksmith was Völundr, one of the greatest Norse heroes.
But unlike the dwarves Eitri and Brokkr, the figure in the teaser appears to be destroying something very important for the balance of the world, not by forging it. With each blow he inflicts, horrible craters open along his back as the narrated voice uses the word shattered, crushed, to describe the fate of the Elden Ring, represented in one scene by an evident ring in pieces. Everything, from sounds to images and words suggests that the blacksmith of the teaser is the one who destroyed the Elden Ring and that is why he is left of it. badly defaced. This would confirm both the theory of a physical ring and the key element for the foundation of the world, as stated by Miyazaki.
If on the culprit we can only make assumptions. What is certain is that the destruction of this ring / circle has led to breaking of the normal cyclicality of existence and therefore it is safe to assume that we could find ourselves surviving in a hostile world devastated by unnatural forces. This represents a great news within the souls titles. The protagonist has always been an integral part of a cycle that has always been in place, with the possibility of interrupting it only at the end of the game. Here the cycle has already broken and it remains to be seen whether our task will be to restore it.
The blacksmith seems to be destroying something very important for the balance of the world, not forging it
A composite mythology
The sacrifices of Uppsala
Human bodies offered as sacrifices were hung from the branches of the sacred wood of Uppsala
The most evident elements that allow us to speculate on the ring / circle are over here, but in the teaser there are other scenes that quote in a more or less direct way the two mythologies in question. From here on, the speculations on the plot of Elden Ring become more evanescent and become more than anything else mere suppositions. Let's start with the first scene presented after the intermittent flashes of the blacksmith. A man (or much more likely than a woman, given his build and long hair, but that's not clear) offers a severed arm as a sacrifice. The scene is very gruesome as the dark figure holds his arm inside the one offered, while a melting pot of hands comes out of nowhere to grab it.
In Uppsala in Sweden, the Blót, a pagan ritual in honor of the gods and elves, took place every nine years. The Vikings sacrificed nine males for each species (including men for a total of 72 deceased) and the bodies were hung from the branches of the sacred wood, near the temple. No one was exempt from this ritual and anyone had to send gifts to the sanctuary, even the ruler. If we look carefully at the emaciated figure offering his arm in sacrifice, we notice that it wears a sumptuous cape and crown. It is possible that, as with the Nordics, he is a sovereign of the world of Elden Ring and that, despite his rank, he must still offer the "gods" a human sacrifice, which also includes an important part of himself. This would indicate the presence of "divinities" or "superior races" that transcend the mere castes of men.
Nuada, first king of the Túatha Dé Danann
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But the scene that most of all made the fans discuss and that immediately brought the aforementioned cultures to attention is the one that shows a mutilated woman in armor grafting a metal arm. Given the showy helmet with wings, the common imagination immediately shot towards the powerful female figures of Norse mythology, namely the Valkyries. Warrior women in the service of Odin, they had the task of recovering the fallen in battle to bring them to the Valhalla or in the field Fólkvangr. But if you overlook the decorative motif of the armor and helmet for a moment, the woman's silver prosthesis and red hair clearly refer to the Irish mythology and to the figure of Nuada, first king of the Túatha Dé Danann.
A people with an uncertain historical existence, they invaded Ireland under the command of their ruler Nuada, who lost his arm during one of the many battles. Since the customs in effect they prevented a mutilated person from reigning, Nuada thanks to the help of Dian Cécht, the god of healing, and Credne, the goldsmith of the Túatha Dé Danann, forged a silver arm to be able to reign again after conquering Ireland. We do not know what the role of this female figure is. What is certain is that, given the mythological references, it will certainly be linked to sphere of war, an element that has always been present in FromSofware titles. Furthermore, theuse of a prosthesis in combat loudly recalls FromSoftware's latest title, Sekiro: Shadow Die Twice. Could this scene be a veiled hint to game play mechanics?
It burns ...
We close our (for now) imaginary peregrinations in the plot of Elden Ring, analyzing the scene of the warrior in armor burning under a red sky. Surrounded by the remains of a battle, he is on his knees pierced by some spears on his back, while the narrator invites us to watch the burning sky like him. It is clear that theunnatural red color it was caused by the destruction of the Elden Ring and it is possible that just daring to look at it could cause its own destruction.
Flying over the now evident reference to Kentaro Miura's dark fantasy manga, if we wink we notice that the warrior's face is not that of a human but rather that of a ogre-like. The presence of this particular race belonging to the classic fantasy world gives us hope for a possible one existence of different ethnic groups, maybe even playable. This hypothesis is confirmed by Miyazaki's recent statements on the presence of a more pronounced RPG component in Elden Ring than in previous souls.
It is clear that theunnatural red color was caused by the destruction of the Elden Ring
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Our journey through the fantastic mythologies of the past ends here. We have seen how strongly Martin and Miyazaki were strongly inspired by the culuta Norse, Celtic ed Irish to create the plot of Elden Ring, a favorite receptacle for all fantasy authors from Tolkien onwards. But what emerges from all these speculations is how much this enigmatic teaser has managed to make people talk about itself. All this only confirms how important is authorship in video games now. The game director who brings his recognizable signature to each of his works. With such an exceptional duo we couldn't expect anything less and we can't wait to count all the deaths that Martin and Miyazaki will cause together.
