Introduction to the Lands Between: Your Ultimate Working Elden Ring Endings Guide for PC
Embarking on a journey through FromSoftware's masterpiece is no small feat, especially for players experiencing the Lands Between on a gaming rig. Whether you are playing at buttery-smooth frame rates or navigating the challenges of keyboard and mouse controls, one truth remains absolute: your choices matter. If you are searching for a comprehensive working elden ring endings guide for pc, you have come to the right place. Elden Ring is massive, punishing, and deeply layered with lore, offering multiple ways for your Tarnished to claim the Elden Ring and shape the fate of the world.
Understanding how to unlock all the different conclusions can feel overwhelming due to the sheer size of the game and the convoluted questlines required. Mistakes can easily lock you out of your desired path, forcing a New Game Plus run earlier than anticipated. Fortunately, PC players have a unique advantage. By utilizing save file backups via Steam cloud saves or manual directory copying, PC gamers can experience multiple endings in a single playthrough without replaying the entire 100+ hour campaign. In this guide, we will break down every single ending, the precise steps required to unlock them, and the ultimate PC trick to see them all effortlessly.
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Understanding the Elden Ring Endings Landscape
Before diving into the specific requirements for each path, it is important to know that Elden Ring features six main achievements/trophies tied to different conclusions. While there are technically six distinct cinematic endings, they branch into three main categories: the Standard/Age endings, the Mending Rune variations, and the unique, world-altering Lord of Frenzied Flame and Age of the Stars paths.
Your journey toward these endings heavily depends on which NPC questlines you complete. Characters like Ranni the Witch, Fia the Deathbed Companion, and Goldmask play pivotal roles in shifting the reality of the Lands Between. Missing a single dialogue prompt or prematurely killing an NPC can ruin hours of progress. Therefore, keeping a close eye on your quest logs and exploration milestones is crucial.
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How PC Players Can Backup Saves for Multiple Endings
Before we list the requirements for each path, let us address the ultimate PC exploit that makes a working elden ring endings guide for pc truly valuable. Because Elden Ring auto-saves constantly, traditional console players are locked into whatever choice they make at the very end of the game. PC players, however, have direct access to their local game files.
To abuse this system and see every ending in one single playthrough, follow these precise steps:
- Progress your game to the final boss and defeat it, but do not interact with the final site of grace or statue yet.
- Press the Windows Key + R, type `%appdata%\EldenRing`, and hit Enter.
- Inside that folder, you will see a folder with a long string of numbers (your Steam ID). Open it.
- Copy all the files inside this folder (usually named `ER0000.sl2` and similar backup files) and paste them into a separate backup folder on your desktop.
- Return to the game, choose an ending, watch the credits, and unlock the achievement.
- Once you return to the main menu (or start a New Game Plus), quit the game entirely.
- Copy the files from your desktop backup folder and paste them back into the `%appdata%\EldenRing\[Steam ID]` directory, replacing the current files.
- Launch the game again, and you will be back right before the final choice, ready to pick a different path.
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The Age of Fracture: The Default Ending
If you wander through the Lands Between, slay every demigod, and completely ignore all optional NPC questlines, you will stumble upon the default conclusion: the Age of Fracture.
To achieve this ending, you simply need to defeat the final boss, approach the broken Marika, and interact with her to repair the Elden Ring normally. There are no prerequisites, no special items required, and no hidden triggers. The world remains largely unchanged, save for the fact that you now sit upon the Elden Throne as the Elden Lord, maintaining the existing divine order under the Greater Will. While it lacks the dramatic flair or narrative twists of the other paths, it is the baseline standard of the game.
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The Age of the Stars: Ranni’s Secret Path
Widely considered by the community to be the "true" or most satisfying ending, the Age of the Stars brings about a completely new era ruled by the Lunar Princess Ranni. This path requires one of the longest and most intricate questlines in the entire game, taking you from Limgrave all the way to the depths of the underground rivers and the Moonlight Altar.
Here is a breakdown of what you need to do:
- Meet Ranni at Church of Elleh early in the game, then find her again at Ranni's Rise in Caria Manor.
- Agree to serve her and her retainers (Blaidd, Iji, and Seluvis).
- Journey to Nokron, Eternal City, to retrieve the Fingerslayer Blade.
- Give the blade to Ranni to receive the Carian Inverted Statue.
- Traverse the Divine Tower of Liurnia to obtain the Cursemark of Death and the Carian Inverted Statue secrets.
- Head to Ainsel River Main, find Miniature Ranni, and defeat the Baleful Shadow.
- Take the Dark Moon Ring from the chest in Raya Lucaria (after defeating Rennala) and use it at the Grand Cloister coffin.
- Defeat Astel, Naturalborn of the Void, and ascend to the Moonlight Altar.
- Enter the Cathedral of Manus Celes, place the ring on Ranni's finger, and summon her at the end of the game instead of interacting with Marika.
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The Lord of Frenzied Flame: Chaos Takes the World
If you prefer destruction over preservation, the Lord of Frenzied Flame is the path for you. This ending plunges the Lands Between into chaos, burning away all distinctions and divisions in a fiery inferno overseen by the Outer God of Frenzy.
To unlock this terrifying conclusion, you must descend deep beneath the Royal Capital of Leyndell into the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds. Navigate the brutal platforming puzzle down the giant shaft until you reach the Frenzied Flame Proscription site of grace. Remove all your armor and weapons, and walk through the heavy door to receive the Three Fingers' embrace. Your body will be permanently scarred, and Melina will abandon you in disgust, vowing to kill you herself.
Important PC Note: If you accidentally inherit the Frenzied Flame and change your mind, you can cleanse yourself by completing Millicent's questline, defeating Malenia to get Miquella's Needle, and using it inside Dragonlord Placidusax's boss arena in Crumbling Farum Azula. This allows you to lock in any other ending you prefer.
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The Mending Rune Endings: Variations of the Elden Lord
Aside from the major deviations above, there are three distinct Mending Rune endings that still result in you becoming Elden Lord, but with fundamentally altered societal rules for the Lands Between. Each requires finding a specific item through NPC questlines.
Age of the Duskborn
Championed by Fia, the Deathbed Companion, this ending introduces Death into the Golden Order, legitimizing those who live in death rather than hunting them down as abominations. To achieve this, you must complete Fia's questline by giving her the Cursemark of Death (obtained from the Divine Tower of Liurnia during Ranni's quest), defeat Lichdragon Fortissax in Deeproot Depths, and claim the Mending Rune of the Death-Prince. Use this rune at the end of the game to trigger the Duskborn cinematic.
Age of Order
Advocated by the pious scholar Goldmask and his loyal follower Corhyn, this ending seeks to correct the fickle and emotional nature of the Golden Order's gods by establishing a new, flawless absolute rule. To get the Mending Rune of Perfect Order, you must solve the riddle at the Erdtree Sanctuary in Leyndell using the spell Law of Regression, track Goldmask to the mountains, and progress their dialogue until the final stretch of the game.
Age of Despair
Perhaps the most grim and disturbing ending in Elden Ring, the Age of Despair is brought about by the vile Dung Eater. By collecting Seedbed Augures across the world and feeding them to his physical body trapped in the Roundtable Hold sewers, you eventually receive the Mending Rune of the Fell Curse. Using this item infects every single living being in the Lands Between with a hereditary curse, plunging the entire world into eternal suffering.
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Best Practices for PC Optimization During Late-Game Progression
As you wrap up these massive questlines and prepare for the final encounters on your PC, ensuring your hardware is running smoothly is essential. Elden Ring's PC port has seen significant improvements since launch, but stuttering can still occur during heavy particle effects in boss fights like the Elden Beast or Dragonlord Placidusax.
Make sure your graphics drivers are up to date, and consider locking your frame rate to match your monitor's refresh rate using Nvidia Control Panel or AMD Radeon Software to minimize frame pacing issues. Furthermore, remember to regularly check your local save backups, especially before making irreversible decisions like entering Crumbling Farum Azula or accepting the Frenzied Flame.
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Conclusion
Mastering the complexities of Elden Ring requires patience, thorough exploration, and careful management of NPC questlines. Whether you choose to save the world with Ranni, burn it all down with the Three Fingers, or reshape the Golden Order with a Mending Rune, your journey through the Lands Between is entirely your own. By utilizing the PC save-scumming backup method outlined in this working elden ring endings guide for pc, you can witness every cinematic conclusion without having to grind through multiple fresh playthroughs. Now, go forth, Tarnished, and claim your throne.
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FAQ
Q: Can I get all Elden Ring endings in a single playthrough on PC?
A: Yes, absolutely! Because PC players have direct access to their local game save directory (located in `%appdata%\EldenRing`), you can backup your save files right before the final choice, trigger one ending, reload your backup, and pick another until you have seen them all.
Q: What is the easiest ending to get in Elden Ring?
A: The Age of Fracture is the easiest and default ending to achieve. It requires zero optional NPC questlines; you simply need to defeat the final bosses and interact with Queen Marika without any special items in your inventory.
Q: Does accepting the Frenzied Flame lock me out of other endings?
A: Yes, inheriting the Frenzied Flame locks you into that specific ending and causes Melina to abandon you. However, you can reverse this lock by using Miquella's Needle at Dragonlord Placidusax's boss arena after completing Millicent's questline.
Q: Where are Elden Ring save files located on PC?
A: Your save files are stored locally on your PC. You can access them by pressing Windows Key + R, typing `%appdata%\EldenRing`, and hitting Enter. Inside, you will find a folder named after your unique Steam ID containing your `.sl2` save files.
Q: Do I need to defeat every optional boss to get the secret endings?
A: Not every single boss is mandatory, but you must defeat specific major bosses tied to questlines. For example, you must defeat Astel to finish Ranni's quest, and Lichdragon Fortissax to complete Fia's quest for the Duskborn ending.
Q: Is Ranni's ending considered the "good" ending?
A: Elden Ring does not feature traditional "good" or "evil" alignments. However, Ranni's "Age of the Stars" ending is widely regarded by the community as the most hopeful and liberating path, as it removes the oppressive outer gods from directly interfering with the Lands Between.
Q: What happens if I accidentally kill an NPC needed for an ending?
A: If you accidentally kill a vital NPC, you may be permanently locked out of their specific ending for that playthrough unless you visit the Church of Vows in Liurnia of the Lakes to seek absolution (though absolution does not revive permanently dead NPCs in all cases).
